"A ninja world from the future?"
"The Ōtsutsuki Clan's invasion? The ninja world on the brink of collapse?"
Listening to Bai Mo's account, Itachi and Kisame fell into a long silence, seemingly trying to process the information and discern its truthfulness.
Bai Mo mentioned that he came from the future ninja world, but unlike the previous gathering, he didn't offer any proof, merely stating it.
Then he revealed the Ōtsutsuki Clan's future invasion of the ninja world.
Next was the Akatsuki Organization's revised goal: from collecting Tailed Beasts to gathering powerful combatants.
This included the objective of resurrecting Ōtsutsuki Kaguya.
"Is this the true world?... But if we told the people of the Five Great Shinobi Villages this, they wouldn't believe it, would they?"
Kisame said with a sigh.
"Exactly, so the Five Great Shinobi Villages are still our enemies for now, but if we weaken their strength, then when we face the Ōtsutsuki Clan in the future..."
Itachi stopped there, observing Bai Mo's expression.
"Itachi, for the future of the ninja world, can you make some sacrifices and choices?"
Bai Mo didn't continue Itachi's sentence but directly asked another question.
"..."
Itachi frowned, opened his mouth, but said nothing.
He had been about to nod, but on second thought, his persona in the Akatsuki Organization didn't seem to be like that, so he swallowed his words.
"Strategist, you should first explain what exactly you want Itachi to do.
Once he knows the specifics, Itachi can better weigh whether to agree or not."
Kisame, who was beside him, helped to say.
"Itachi, you still have a younger brother in Konoha, right? What are your thoughts about him?"
Bai Mo walked ahead, a faint smile on his face.
Hearing Bai Mo's question, Itachi immediately stopped.
"...He is my spare eye, my new light."
"Then I apologize, Itachi, for the future of the ninja world, I must stop you from doing this."
Bai Mo stopped and turned to look at Itachi.
His acting, his expression and posture, could make him an international superstar in the Boruto era.
"You mean..."
"Do you remember what I just said about the core principle of our Akatsuki Organization's new goal? — to gather all powerful combatants.
Uchiha Sasuke, as one of the strongest combatants twenty years later, his strength and character are beyond doubt, and he is known as Konoha's Supporting Shadow.
Although he and the Hokage at that time were defeated by the Ōtsutsuki Clan's enemies, and it was a crushing defeat, he is still one of the rare combatants."
After Bai Mo finished speaking, it was Itachi's turn to show off his acting skills.
"What is the Supporting Shadow?"
Itachi's face was outwardly troubled, his brows deeply furrowed.
But inwardly, he was relieved and joyful.
This joy was not only because he learned of Sasuke's future achievements but also because, if Bai Mo was telling the truth about the Akatsuki Organization's goal, wouldn't he go from being a "surface ally" to a true ally?
At least regarding his attitude towards Sasuke, it was indeed so.
"In the future, Uchiha Sasuke leaves the village under the guise of traveling the world, gathering information about the Ōtsutsuki Clan worldwide.
He protects the village from outside, like another Hokage, silently supporting the village. This is the Supporting Shadow.
However, while he protects the village, he is actually protecting the world.
After all, the Ōtsutsuki Clan's goal is not to destroy a mere Konoha, but the entire world."
As Bai Mo spoke, he took a scroll from his waist pouch.
With a 'bang,' a stack of cards appeared in his hand.
He flipped through them a few times, pulled out one card, and handed it to Itachi: "This is a Gachapon card developed by a certain company during a future peaceful era. This card is very rare and valuable."
Itachi took it and saw a profile of a middle-aged man on the card.
Before Bai Mo put the other cards away, Itachi glanced at them.
The characters on the other cards were all facing forward, seemingly deliberately posed.
Only this Sasuke card showed just a profile.
If it weren't for the familiarity between brothers, even people in Konoha who had seen Sasuke now might not recognize him.
And that profile... even though only a hint was revealed, Itachi keenly noticed it.
That was... a Rinnegan?
The appearance of the Gachapon card further increased Itachi's belief in what Bai Mo had said.
"A Rinnegan? Itachi's younger brother will actually possess the same eye as the leader in the future?"
Kisame, watching from the side, also noticed this detail and asked directly.
"Yes, as for how the Rinnegan came about, you will find out during this mission; no need to rush."
With Bai Mo's words, the implication was that he wouldn't tell them now.
Kisame then said no more.
"I can let go of my killing intent towards Sasuke, after all, if the ninja world is destroyed, I won't survive either.
So, Strategist, can you tell me the organization's, or rather, your plan regarding Sasuke?"
Itachi silently put away the Gachapon card, then, with an expression of having struggled with his thoughts, replied to Bai Mo.
"That part of the plan for Sasuke? What could it be, other than helping him avoid some detours and improve his strength as quickly as possible?"
"Understood."
—
After a day and a night of travel, the trio had already passed through the Land of Fire. In the morning, they were at the northwestern border, and now they had reached the east, nearing their destination.
The three found an inn to rest.
Late at night, Itachi was still contemplating and analyzing what Bai Mo had said during the day.
First, the credibility of what Bai Mo said about the Ōtsutsuki and his origins from the future was already extremely high.
Itachi's current doubt was whether Bai Mo, being from the future, knew about him being a Konoha spy and his true attitude towards Sasuke.
After thinking for a while, Itachi gave up on exploring this question.
Because whether Bai Mo knew or not, as long as there were no other interfering factors, the final outcome would be as it was now.
Even if Bai Mo knew his situation and deliberately catered to his thoughts, as long as the direction was still correct, he wouldn't need to worry about anything.
Bai Mo, on the other hand, slept soundly.
Sometimes, "intelligence" is indeed very important.
By knowing the specific personality and goals of everyone in the Akatsuki Organization, Bai Mo could control everyone.
Just like with Itachi, he had to tell him a part of the truth, letting him know that the future ninja world was on the brink of destruction, almost beyond salvation.
Otherwise, people like Itachi, Minato Namikaze, Uzumaki Naruto, and later Uchiha Sasuke.
These types of people would inexplicably resist "time travel" and "changing history."
Unless it was a world-ending threat, they would all think about not changing the past, even if it meant making some sacrifices.
Whether sacrificing themselves or others.