"Wait!!"
Jiraiya demanded of Itachi, "You're telling me Pain is a renegade from Amegakure, and he possesses the Rinnegan?!"
"Jiraiya-sensei, does that mean you know this Pain?" Minato asked, noticing the clear distress on his teacher's face.
"I've never heard the name Pain," Jiraiya said slowly, "but…" His voice deepened. "Back when I traveled the ninja world, I once took in three disciples from Amegakure."
Naruto: "So that makes them Dad's fellow disciples?"
Jiraiya nodded. "Those children were Yahiko, Nagato, and a girl named Konan."
"Konan?" Itachi's expression shifted slightly. "There is a female Missing-nin from Amegakure beside Pain named Konan—her codename in Akatsuki is White Tiger."
He gestured to the ring on his finger. "Akatsuki has ten members. Pain's codename is Zero, Konan is White Tiger, I am Vermilion Bird, Kisame is Southern Cross. Beyond that, there is Sasori of the Red Sand from Sunagakure, codenamed Jade Maiden; the Iwagakure defector Deidara, codenamed Azure Dragon; the Takigakure defector Kakuzu, codenamed Hokuto; the Yugakure defector Hidan, codenamed Three Stars; and Orochimaru, who has since defected, codenamed Empty Sky."
Jiraiya growled, "That bastard Orochimaru! He even joined Akatsuki at one point!! I don't recognize the others, but Nagato—the child I mentioned before—he was… very special."
"Special?" Minato Namikaze asked. "What do you mean by that, Jiraiya-sensei?"
Jiraiya normally would never speak of this. But now that the matter involved the masked man—the same one responsible for killing the Minato and Kushina of their parallel world—he had no choice but to continue…
"Nagato actually possessed the blood of the Uzumaki clan. But more than that… he held the Sage Eyes of the Rikudō Sennin—the Rinnegan."
"What?!" Madara Uchiha was stunned. "A Uzumaki? With the Rinnegan?!!"
"Impossible," Tobirama Senju said sharply. "The Uzumaki clan has never exhibited a dōjutsu-type Kekkei Genkai."
Jiraiya, recalling those days with the three children, asked Itachi again for Pain's and Konan's appearances.
"Pain has short orange hair and the Rinnegan. His abilities are unknown. Konan has medium-length blue-purple hair and uses the Divine Paper Technique."
A ninja who uses paper…
It had to be Konan.
And orange hair—that would be Yahiko!!
But then… how did Yahiko gain the Rinnegan?!
And Nagato…
Where had Nagato gone?
Jiraiya revealed everything about how he'd taught the three children self-defense back in Amegakure.
Even Itachi was visibly stunned.
Akatsuki—the organization that gathered S-rank Missing-nin from across the entire ninja world—their leader was a disciple of Jiraiya, one of Konoha's Sannin?!
Just as Naruto had said earlier…
In a way, they could even be considered the Fourth Hokage's senior apprentices.
Jiraiya continued, "Years ago, I heard the three of them had grown up and founded an organization called 'Akatsuki.' They traveled everywhere striving for peace in the ninja world, hoping to prevent another village like Amegakure—one destined to become a battlefield in every great war. My worries eased, and I felt proud of their ideals and their hard work…"
He had even believed Nagato to be the long-awaited Child of Prophecy—and placed his hopes on him.
Until—
After a pause, Jiraiya said quietly, "I never imagined that within a few years, their rapid expansion would threaten Hanzō the Salamander's authority… and ultimately lead to their downfall…"
The white-haired Toad Sage had often wondered: if only he had gone back to check on them.
"I had heard of the Missing-nin group 'Akatsuki,' but Yahiko's Akatsuki had already been wiped out. I never connected the two… not until today, when you said Akatsuki had a man named Pain who looks like Yahiko, and Konan..."
"..."
Minato Namikaze noticed how his teacher seemed to age years in an instant, his voice turning hoarse with grief.
"There's no point dwelling on this now," Tobirama Senju cut in, steering the conversation back to the Masked Man. He asked Itachi, "Do you have any other intel or suspicious details regarding him?"
Itachi replied, "The Masked Man taught me about the Mangekyō Sharingan and guided my later combat style. I truly cannot imagine anyone within the Uchiha Clan besides Madara-sama who would possess such deep knowledge of the Mangekyō. His battle instincts are sharp, and his experience is significant…"
Madara briefly considered testing Itachi in a spar, but given Itachi's fragile condition, he dismissed the idea.
Minato asked, "What is the Masked Man's official identity within Akatsuki?"
Recalling the Masked Man's clownish behavior when calling himself 'Tobi,' Itachi frowned slightly.
"He is considered external personnel—not assigned important missions. Most of the time, he carries out scouting and intelligence work alongside Black and White Zetsu."
"White Zetsu?!!"
Members of both Kakashi's and Minato's teams shouted almost in unison.
Itachi hadn't expected their familiarity. "You know them?"
Naruto opened his mouth, but Sasuke grabbed his arm to stop him.
Staring at the man who had haunted his dreams for five years—his biological brother—Sasuke's expression twisted painfully.
"As a member of Akatsuki and a traitor to Konoha, his words cannot be trusted! Do not share our intelligence with him!"
Hearing Sasuke's accusation, Obito Uchiha—who had pieced together the truth from his conversation with Kisame—finally snapped.
"Itachi is a spy Konoha planted inside Akatsuki!"
"What?!!" Sasuke was completely stunned.
Those who had been pulled into Itachi's Infinite Tsukuyomi and already knew the truth remained expressionless.
Everyone else—Naruto, Sakura, Young Kakashi, Rin—froze in shock.
Sasuke slammed his fist into the ground. "How many more things are you hiding from me?!!!"
After that first strike, something inside him snapped. He hammered the floor again and again.
"Every time! Every single time! EVERY TIME!!! It's always like this!!!"
His voice broke into a raw, desperate scream. "You always make me wait for next time! Do you hate me that much?! Huh?!!!"
Madara's emotions were stirred as well. Now that he knew—this youth named Itachi intended to do for Sasuke what Izuna had once done for him…
Entrust his own eyes, his own clan's future, to his brother.
These were matters for the next generation. Tobirama chose not to interfere.
Shockingly, the calmest one was usually the most impulsive—Obito Uchiha. "Either way," he said, "we've confirmed our primary enemy is the Masked Man. So I believe the information in the mission scrolls can be shared with Itachi. At the very least, mine can."
He took out his mission scroll.
Tobirama Senju had already sensed the space-time energy flowing through it.
"So this is the object—the one that brought you to our era."
Minato nodded.
This serious, elite-like Obito felt utterly foreign to Rin, to Young Kakashi, and even to Adult Kakashi.
Minato Namikaze thought the same.
Especially after noticing a few subtle coincidences—it was hard not to think deeper.
But for now, everyone assumed this was simply the awakening of Obito's Uchiha bloodline, spurred on by the Sharingan.
The three titans of the Warring States era—Hashirama Senju, Tobirama Senju, and Madara Uchiha—leaned over the scroll.
SSS-Rank Mission: Eliminate the Masked Man.
D-Rank Mission: Kakashi recites Icha-Icha Paradise.
A-Rank Mission: Impersonate the Fourth Mizukage and speak with Zabuza.
A-Rank Mission: Slash a name on the Memorial Stone with a kunai.
A-Rank Mission: Itachi Uchiha visits Konoha.
B-Rank Mission: Impersonate the Fourth Mizukage and speak with Kisame Hoshigaki.
The moment he saw the first mission, Tobirama spoke bluntly, "The Masked Man you're referring to absolutely cannot be Madara Uchiha."
Madara didn't expect Tobirama to be the first person to defend him, and raised an eyebrow.
Tobirama ignored him. "The Masked Man calls himself 'Madara.' Everyone assumes he is Madara Uchiha. But if this scroll's true mission were to kill Madara Uchiha, why would it be labeled 'Kill the Masked Man'?"
"Therefore, there is only one conclusion—the Masked Man is not Madara Uchiha!"
Hashirama immediately grew upset. "Then who is tarnishing Madara's reputation?!"
Tobirama shot him a glare. "I never said the first Nine-Tails attack on Konoha wasn't Madara Uchiha. You should focus on keeping him under control! Big Brother!"
Hashirama cheerfully vowed he would change the future outcome, talk things out with Madara properly, and create a Konoha they both could be satisfied with.
Madara snorted. "Unless Izuna can be revived."
Hashirama froze, then slumped down hugging his knees, mumbling pitifully that Madara was bullying him.
"Big Brother, maintain your dignity in front of the younger generation!"
Tobirama scolded Hashirama, then turned to Madara.
"I will find a way to address what you're asking for, but it will require time. Attacking Konoha with the Nine-Tails harms you, the village, and our elder brother. Abandon that idea. I will find a way to make Izuna appear before you again."
"!!!!"
Madara's eyes widened. "What do you mean?! Bring Izuna back before me?!!"
"That's beyond the scope of today's discussion. I'll tell you what you need to know later." Tobirama's voice was steady, emotionless—the voice of a true shinobi.
"Continue," he instructed Obito with a small nod.
Obito set the mission scroll on the ground, then pulled out a miniature scroll and handed it to Itachi.
"Is the White Zetsu mentioned here the same White Zetsu from the Akatsuki's Black-and-White Zetsu you described?"
[White Zetsu components can neutralize Hashirama's cells.]
Sitting beside Itachi Uchiha, Madara Uchiha immediately noticed the tiny line of text written on the scroll.
"Hashirama's cells?" His gaze sharpened, sweeping up and down Hashirama Senju with an eerie intensity.
The one whose expression truly froze over, though, was Tobirama Senju. His eyes went cold as he reached out, attempting to snatch the miniature scroll.
But of course Madara wouldn't let him.
With a swift motion, he blocked Tobirama's grab—then flipped his hand to seize Tobirama's wrist, fingers locking down like an eagle's talons.
At the same time, his Mangekyō Sharingan focused on Tobirama in a razor-sharp glare, wordlessly warning that Tobirama had crossed the line first.
Two crimson-eyed men stared each other down, neither willing to concede or lower their hands.
Hashirama felt his soul leaking out of his body from pure exhaustion...
Truly, utterly tired.
Once again, he had to step in to ease the tension between his best friend and his younger brother.
Naruto, stunned by how fast things had escalated, muttered, "I seriously can't tell whether Second Hokage-bro and Madara get along or not! Why're you two acting just like Kakashi-sensei and Obito when they were kids? Fighting at the drop of a hat?"
Young Kakashi immediately bristled. "You and Sasuke are the same! How dare you say that about us!"
After living together this long, who didn't know exactly how the others behaved?
Hearing the two boys compare them to that duo, Madara and Tobirama both felt metaphorical black lines slip down their foreheads.
Especially Tobirama. "The one who always ends up arguing with Madara is my idiot big brother! Not me! Don't misunderstand!!"
He barely even spoke to Madara! Hashirama was the one who always acted as their go-between!
Jiraiya, understanding why Tobirama reacted so sharply, stepped in to explain for everyone else who looked lost. "Hashirama's cells imply the ability to use Wood Release."
"How do you know that?" Tobirama immediately redirected his indignation toward Jiraiya. When it concerned anything involving his big brother, he took nothing lightly.
"Your future student, Hiruzen Sarutobi—my sensei—had another student named Orochimaru..."
Jiraiya then revealed how Orochimaru had exploited Konoha shinobi's trust to conduct experiments using Hashirama's cells. Every single subject died from their bodies rupturing under the overwhelming power of Wood Release.
Tobirama Senju and Hashirama Senju's faces turned storm-dark.
Their anger wasn't just because Hashirama's cells had been used in experiments—it was the outrage that a man named Orochimaru had used Konoha ninja as disposable test subjects.
"Not a single success?" Tobirama demanded.
...
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