Sarutobi Hiruzen recounted the contents of the high-level meeting and assigned the mission of envoy to Sunagakure to Jiraiya.
"So it was all planned from the start. Kogetsu is really bold," Tsunade remarked with some admiration.
Little did she know, her own boldness was even greater. She gambled on every major event, with no stability whatsoever.
It was only because Naruto was the protagonist and the others were important supporting characters that she didn't lose. Otherwise, a single lost bet could have resulted in major losses for Konoha, or even its destruction.
"Very bold. If it were me, I would have preferred to nip the danger in the bud. But it's a good thing he won," Jiraiya said in agreement.
"Alright, hurry up and set off. This matter should be handled sooner rather than later," Sarutobi Hiruzen urged.
"Okay." Jiraiya took the scroll and left.
Tsunade also slipped away, to avoid being scolded and nagged any further.
...
Land of Rain, Amegakure, in a room at the top of the tallest building.
A figure wearing a black robe with red clouds and a paper flower in their blue hair pushed the door open. Light streamed in, revealing six figures—one sitting, five standing.
"How are things progressing?" Pain, in the body of Yahiko, asked with a blank expression, though his tone was quite gentle.
"Most of the people loyal to Hanzō have been dealt with. Only a few managed to escape, but they won't be able to cause any trouble," Konan said with a hint of a smile.
Taking advantage of the fact that the nine-village joint Chūnin Exams in Konoha had captured the world's attention, Nagato and Konan had launched a surprise attack on Hanzō.
Hanzō himself, his family, and his trusted followers were all killed. Nagato and Konan seized the opportunity to take over Amegakure.
Amegakure belonged to the two of them, not to the Akatsuki. The other members could not interfere, just as the Akatsuki could not interfere with the affairs of its other members' factions.
"Well done. We are one step closer to our goal."
Just as Konan was about to speak, a spatial vortex appeared in the center of the room, and a pitcher plant-like head emerged from the floor. She immediately swallowed the words on the tip of her tongue.
"For the two of you to come together, has something major happened?" Nagato asked coldly, controlling Yahiko's body.
"Ah, something big has happened in Konoha."
"Sunagakure was played by Konoha and Otogakure. The general situation is like this..."
White Zetsu quickly recounted the intelligence he had gathered, roughly reconstructing the course of events, though the details were not entirely complete.
"The Sixth Hokage of Konoha is quite bold, and his thinking is very meticulous. Sunagakure has been utterly defeated this time," Konan said, quite surprised.
"Yes, but in the end, this world is ruled by the strong. Sooner or later, God will make Konoha feel pain!" Nagato said with full confidence.
God, God, God my ass. You're just a pawn.
Obito couldn't help but complain inwardly, but on the surface, he reminded him, "Don't underestimate Kageyama Kogetsu. He is very strong. You might not be guaranteed a win against him."
"Perhaps, but the final victor will be me, because God does not fail!" Although Nagato listened, he was still brimming with confidence.
Forget it. I'm not wasting my breath on a fool.
"This incident in Konoha is a great opportunity to throw the ninja world into chaos."
"If the important prisoners die, Sunagakure might act recklessly and declare war on Konoha."
"Once war breaks out between the two, the other villages will definitely not stand by. Sooner or later, they will get involved."
"Once the war starts, when it ends will no longer be up to them. The Fourth Great Ninja War is likely to break out."
"The more chaotic the situation, the more beneficial it is for us to collect the Tailed Beasts, and the power of the five great ninja villages will be weakened."
"Furthermore, this is a good opportunity to obtain the One-Tail. We take the benefits, and Konoha takes the blame. It's a great deal."
Nagato nodded after listening. "I agree with your view. The question is, who will go to Konoha to carry out the mission?"
"This mission is extremely risky. Even if it's completed, escape is not guaranteed."
Obito said in a deep voice, "Who else could it be?"
"It's a problem for anyone else to even enter Konoha. I'll have to do it myself."
Konoha's barrier had long since been changed. Even Itachi Uchiha could no longer slip in unnoticed, unlike in the original story where he could come and go freely.
Nagato was somewhat surprised by Obito's eagerness. After a moment of silence, he said, "Alright. If you succeed, the organization will remember your contribution."
Obito said faintly, "Contributions are not important. What's important is our plan."
Anyone who didn't know the inside story would think the two had a good relationship. In reality, if the Tailed Beasts were all collected and neither of them had died, an irreconcilable conflict would have inevitably broken out.
With that, Obito left, and White Zetsu followed.
"Nagato, be careful of them. Their intentions are not pure," Konan reminded him.
"Don't worry. I have never trusted them."
"In the entire Akatsuki, I can't trust anyone but you. We are just using each other," Nagato said in a deep voice.
"As long as you are aware."
...
Late at night, the moon was bright and the stars were few. All was quiet.
On a high mountain north of Konoha, Obito, clad in a black robe, stood at the summit. The biting cold wind whipped his robe, making it flutter noisily...
White Zetsu's head emerged from the cold, hard rock, his tone quite cheerful. "I've found the target's location."
"Baki and the three siblings are being held separately in the Alpha-cell in the deepest part of the Torture and Interrogation Department's prison. Here is the prison's layout."
"What's the guard situation?"
"Double the normal number of guards."
"Mm."
Obito nodded slightly, took the layout, and entered his Kamui dimension. After studying the layout and confirming the spatial coordinates, he prepared to go...
"Wait a minute. I've been thwarted three times in Konoha, and twice it was related to Kageyama Kogetsu."
"Sunagakure was so miserably outplayed. Would that deep-scheming fellow not be on guard against me?"
"He couldn't have forgotten about me, could he?"
"Hmm... to be safe, I should have a backup plan."
With this thought, Obito formed hand seals and used Izanagi to buy himself some insurance before using Kamui.
Konoha, Torture and Interrogation Department Prison, Alpha-cell.
In the pitch-black, damp cell where one couldn't see their hand in front of their face, Baki, Gaara, Temari, and Kankurō were leaning against the same wall, resting with their eyes closed...
A spatiotemporal vortex appeared. Obito landed silently on the ground, his right eye glowing with a strange red light. He stepped forward, his right hand reaching for Gaara's hair.
The moment his hair was grabbed, Gaara opened his eyes. The spatiotemporal vortex reappeared, pulling at Gaara...
At the same time, Baki, Temari, and Kankurō opened their eyes simultaneously. They shot up and plunged slender steel needles into Obito's body. His right chest, lungs, and kidneys were pierced at the same time.
"To think they could react so fast... as expected, it was a trap. Good thing I was one step ahead..."
Obito's tone held a hint of relief. His figure vanished like a phantom and reappeared in a corner of the cell.
"Hehe, Masked Man, you've gotten smarter."
Poof, poof, poof, poof. Four puffs of white smoke appeared, and four Kageyama Kogetsus, their faces playful, spoke in unison.
These were all Kageyama Kogetsu's shadow clones. Gaara, Temari, Kankurō, and Baki had been knocked out and moved to an absolutely safe location long ago.
There were many Suna prisoners, but these four were the most important bargaining chips.
If the other prisoners died, there was still room for negotiation. If the Jinchūriki died, there was basically nothing left to discuss.
"Kageyama Kogetsu, you really are sinister and treacherous. I never would have guessed it before."
Obito was referring to their time at the Ninja Academy. He had seemed like such an honest person, but now he had become so sinister.
"Hehe, when it comes to being sinister and treacherous, I'm far behind you."
"Even back then, I could see you were a beast in human form."
Kageyama Kogetsu was also referring to the Ninja Academy, but Obito, who thought his identity had not been exposed, did not catch the meaning.
A beast in human form?
Obito was quite displeased to hear this...
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