Under the relentless heat of the summer sun, the trio drew closer to the silhouette of a bustling town.
"Hey... Hey, Pervy Sage!" Naruto buzzed, breaking the rhythmic crunch of gravel beneath their feet.
"How many times do I have to tell you? It's Jiraiya!" the old man barked, his eyebrow twitching in irritation.
"You're taking me along as a traveling companion... does that mean I'm secretly a genius?" the blonde boy asked, his face lighting up with sudden, hopeful radiating energy.
"Oh, you're definitely a hidden gem, Naruto," Shorai interjected, offering a thin, knowing smile. "You just need to pay more attention to your own skills."
Jiraiya glanced silently at the two boys, his gaze lingering on Shorai with a measuring weight before he turned back to the road.
They stepped into the town center, where the atmosphere shifted into a dizzying kaleidoscope of color and noise. Clubs, street performers, bars, and gambling stands lined the thoroughfare. Jiraiya led them with a wide, predatory grin, his eyes darting around as if searching for buried treasure.
"What kind of town is this?" Naruto muttered, looking visibly uncomfortable as the sights and sounds pressed in on him.
"A potential honey-pot for our gambling lady, isn't it?" Shorai asked, glancing at the Sage, who was currently giggling to himself.
"Here's a hotel," Shorai noted, pointing to a decent building by the roadside.
"No. This one is no good," came the dismissive, playful reply.
"What about that one?"
"Too shabby for my taste."
Shorai's brows furrowed. His intuition was beginning to bug him; there was a calculated edge to Jiraiya's pickiness. "You certainly have exquisite taste, Jiraiya-san."
"I'm just very picky with my old bones," Jiraiya said, his voice sounding oddly forced, as if he were mimicking Hiruzen's somber gravity.
Finally, Jiraiya's smile grew wide as he increased his pace toward a particular establishment. Two ornate fountains flanked the entrance, their streams supporting glass pearls that danced and swirled in the sunlight. The entire façade was draped in flamboyant luxury.
"We're staying here tonight!" Jiraiya announced.
Shorai scanned the lobby as they entered, approaching the receptionist who was busy sizing up their travel-stained clothes. "Good day, miss. Your establishment is quite striking. Truly one of a kind."
"Thank you. We are the premier stay in this town," she replied with practiced polish.
"In other words... the most expensive," Shorai murmured, turning toward the Sage.
"Money is a trifle for a 'Prince' like you," Jiraiya countered, leaning into his role. "Besides, youth should always look after the elderly. All the gold in the world can't buy back your years, Shorai. You should learn to spend it while it matters."
"You seem plenty youthful to me," Shorai's eyes narrowed.
"Pervy Sage! I can still walk... why do we need—?" Naruto's voice trailed off as his gaze drifted toward the entrance.
Shorai followed his look and immediately frowned. Standing in the center of the road was a woman in a tight velvet dress, her black hair falling like a dark waterfall over her shoulders. She stood there with a disarming, inviting smile, tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear.
'And so it begins,' Shorai thought.
"Ah-ha-ha!" Jiraiya chuckled nervously, placing a hand on Naruto's shoulder. "Alright, Naruto. Go inside, focus your chakra, and get some sleep. I'm going to be... occupied for a while."
"Eh? Why just me?" Naruto protested.
"You're too young for her charms, Naruto," Shorai said, stepping forward and firmly pulling the boy toward the stairs.
"Hmph! That pervert!"
"You were salivating just as much as he was a moment ago," Shorai teased, though his eyes remained sharp.
Jiraiya watched them go, his composure instantly shifting into that of a dignified gentleman as he approached the woman. Naruto watched them leave with a scowl before reluctantly following Shorai into their suite.
"That is so unfair! That two-faced pervert!" Naruto groaned, flopping onto his bed in a meditative pose.
"And what would you have done?" Shorai asked, leaning against the wall. "Just talked to her and tried to look cool? Is that it?"
"Of course! You told me a man needs to stand out and make a woman feel safe!" Naruto barked. "I would've shown her how skilled I am! She would've fallen for me instantly!"
Shorai shook his head. "You're forgetting one detail: you're a child. She is an adult."
"So? It shouldn't matter—"
"Oh, it matters," Shorai cut him off, his voice dropping into a cold, clinical register. "You are naive and inexperienced. If a gorgeous woman gives that much attention to a total stranger in a town like this, your first instinct should be suspicion. There is always a catch. Otherwise, you'll find yourself robbed, missing an organ, or left dead in an alley."
Naruto visibly shuddered. "You... you sound scary sometimes, Shorai."
"Reality is scary," Shorai replied, turning to the window. "Intuitive people like us have a disadvantage in social masks, but an advantage in seeing what's really there. Provided we have the experience to bridge the gap."
Naruto narrowed his eyes, trying to parse the words. "What are 'intuitive people'?"
"Pay more attention to yourself and your instincts, Naruto," Shorai sighed.
They settled into silence, Naruto focusing on his chakra control while Shorai sank into his own calculations. He knew the timeline. He knew the scuffle between Itachi and Sasuke was inevitable. He just needed to play his part perfectly.
—
Thud. Thud.
The rhythmic knock on the door made Shorai's eyes snap open. Naruto rushed forward, a grin on his face. "Finally, that Pervy—"
The boy froze.
Standing in the doorway was a towering figure silhouetted against the hall lights, clad in a black cloak patterned with red clouds. Naruto's breath hitched as he locked eyes with the man's spinning, blood-red Sharingan.
Shorai stood slowly, his gaze drifting to the second figure emerging from the shadows.
"This kid really has the Kyūbi in him? I'm almost disappointed," Kisame remarked, his hand resting on the hilt of the bandaged monstrosity on his back.
"Naruto Uzumaki, you will be coming with us," Itachi said, his voice a calm, chilling flatline.
Naruto gulped, rooted to the spot by Itachi's gaze.
"Itachi-san... it would be easier if he couldn't run," Kisame suggested, his shark-like teeth bared in a jagged smile. "Should I take a leg?"
"No need." Itachi's gaze shifted to Shorai. "You will cooperate."
As Itachi's eyes brushed over him, Shorai felt a wave of oppressive, oily chakra slam into his system. His limbs grew heavy, his thoughts beginning to blur into a thick grey fog.
'Genjutsu!' Shorai snarled internally. He flared his chakra, trying to shatter the illusion, but it was like fighting a tidal wave. The pressure would recede for a second, then hammer back with renewed force.
Shorai caught Naruto's terrified eyes. He forced a small, sharp nod, signaling the boy to move. Naruto, his face a mask of primal fear, stepped out into the corridor.
Kisame remained in the doorway, staring at Shorai. "Don't do anything funny, brat. I still think one leg is the best policy."
Itachi stood in the hall, his expression unchanging. "What timing... it's been a while, Sasuke."
"Uchiha... Itachi!"
The voice was pure venom. Naruto and Kisame turned to see Sasuke standing at the end of the hall. Shorai used the distraction to finally purge the last of Itachi's invasive chakra from his mind, his body humming as he prepared his own elemental release.
"Huh? What a resemblance," Kisame mused, his devilish smile widening. "He even has the eyes. Who is this?"
"My younger brother," Itachi replied flatly.
"And here I heard a tale of someone who murdered his entire Uchiha clan..." "By you, actually," Kisame added snidely.
"Itachi Uchiha! I... I will kill you!" Sasuke roared.
The sound of a thousand birds chirping began to fill the narrow hallway—the Chidori.
"The life I lived... my loathing for you ends here! I lived only for this moment!" Sasuke screamed, and his desperate charge thundered through the hall.
Boom!
An explosion of dust and lightning rocked the corridor. Shorai didn't wait. He accelerated his chakra flow, a translucent white shroud of Swift Release coating his body.
Naruto clamped his hands together, summoning a swirling mass of orange-red Kyūbi chakra.
"Strange chakra..." Kisame muttered, glancing back. "I see. The Fox."
Sasuke's cry of agony echoed through the hall. Itachi had him.
"Sasuke!" Naruto shouted. He began the seals for a summoning, but Kisame was already mid-swing. "Too slow!"
Tss.
With a sharp distortion of space, Shorai appeared in front of Naruto. He blocked the massive, bandaged blade with a kunai, the metal screeching under the pressure.
"Oh?" Kisame's smile widened. "Not bad, brat. You're quick."
The physical weight behind the sword was monstrous. Shorai felt the floorboards groan beneath his shoes. He managed to tilt his wrist, redirecting the blade's trajectory just enough so it slammed into the floor beside Naruto.
But as he jumped back, a cold shiver ran through his pathways. His chakra reserves hadn't just dipped; they had plummeted.
"I can't feel my chakra!" Naruto cried out, his orange shroud flickering and dying.
"My sword, Samehada... it has a particular appetite," Kisame explained, the bandages of his weapon twitching as if the blade were alive. "It enjoys devouring chakra."
Shorai stared at the two Akatsuki members. Sasuke was on his knees, clutching a broken wrist, his face twisted in agony.
"This is getting troublesome," Kisame joked. "Maybe I'll just take their arms first."
Shorai took a measured breath. He glanced at Naruto, who was frantically trying to pull chakra from his core, to no avail.
'Shadowless Flight into a Stage Two dash? No... not enough chakra left for Stage Two.'
His eyes narrowed.
"Swift Release: Shadowless Flight."
Shorai vanished. Kisame's smile flickered as the boy appeared centimeters from his chest.
"Swift Strike: Pressure Point Destruction!" Shorai whispered.
His fingers, coated in a high-frequency wind edge and crackling static, struck in a blur.
Pah. Thud. Pah. Thud.
Kisame was stunned—actually shocked—that the boy had landed four clean strikes before he could react. He swung Samehada in a desperate diagonal sweep.
Shorai leaned back, the air from the swing whistling past his nose. He used a final expulsion of wind from his back to stabilize his retreat, ending the exchange with a snapping kick to Kisame's chest.
Bah!
Both fighters skidded backward. Kisame's eyes were now bloodshot, a manic light dancing in them. Shorai was gasping, his lungs burning.
'That sword is too hungry...' Shorai noted. Itachi was watching him now with a new, clinical interest. Another wave of Genjutsu hit him.
"This brat has impressive skills, Itachi-san," Kisame noted.
"So it seems," Itachi replied. "Kisame. Finish this."
"Shark food it is!" Kisame accelerated, Samehada raised high.
Shorai reached for the Reality Stone, his mind screaming for a perception warp to override his exhaustion—
Puff!
A massive cloud of smoke erupted in the center of the hallway. A giant, armored toad materialized, its shield blocking Samehada with a deafening clang.
"You guys thought you knew me?"
A voice, thick with playfulness and condescending authority, echoed from the smoke.
"Jiraiya-sama doesn't fall victim to a woman's allure. I make them fall victim to mine!"
Shorai froze, exhaling as he deactivated the Stone's trigger. Jiraiya stood there with a vixen draped over his shoulder, striking a flamboyant pose.
"There is no woman who could make me follow her blindly! If you ever reach my level, women will squeal with delight and longing at my sheer sex appeal!"
Shorai felt a familiar tick return under his eye. He slowly turned his head to look at the posing Sage, his expression one of flat, unadulterated disbelief.
"A fool," Shorai muttered under his breath. "A legendary, powerful fool."