Although Chinatsu possessed incredible perception, her age and experience were still limiting factors.
Meanwhile, Uchiha Itachi was one of the top shinobi in the ninja world.
He also knew that Chinatsu was Tsunade's daughter, meaning she had likely mastered the Super Strength Fist.
Even though he was using the Elephant Turning Technique, which limited his power, his Sharingan's insight allowed him to easily dodge her attacks.
Realizing she couldn't land a direct hit, a ball of lightning suddenly appeared in Chinatsu's right hand.
"That's Chidori!"
Both Itachi and Kakashi—along with Sakura and Granny Chiyo—were shocked.
They immediately recognized the technique.
The air filled with the screeches of a thousand birds, and in the next moment, the ground erupted, sending dust and debris flying everywhere.
Itachi—even while limited—managed to use his heightened reflexes to evade the Chidori, jumping away from the dust cloud.
However—
"There's an opening!"
Kakashi reacted instantly.
Having been waiting for this moment, he launched himself forward, Raikiri crackling in his palm, aiming directly at Itachi.
Yet—
Itachi's Sharingan spun rapidly, instantly reading Kakashi's movements.
Just as Kakashi struck, Itachi dodged at the last second, narrowly escaping the Raikiri's deadly range.
He prepared to counterattack, but—
Another Chidori screech echoed behind him.
Before he could react, a Chidori Sharp Spear shot out of the dust cloud, piercing straight through his chest.
"The same Chidori transformation as Fujiwara Kirito?"
Itachi coughed up blood, yet a faint, relieved smile appeared on his face.
"It seems the Hokage's daughter truly is a genius..."
Seeing Itachi collapse, both Kakashi and the others were momentarily stunned.
Especially Kakashi.
Although he had known that Kirito had personally trained Chinatsu, he never expected her to reach this level at such a young age.
"Kakashi-sensei, it's over now."
The dust finally settled, revealing Chinatsu's small frame.
Her right hand still crackled with lightning, and she remained calm.
The Chidori Sharp Spear vanished, and Itachi's body fell, landing inside the crater Chinatsu had created earlier.
Sakura stood frozen, her eyes wide with disbelief.
"This is... victory?"
She couldn't believe it.
The same Uchiha Itachi—the man Sasuke had dedicated his life to defeating—was taken down by Chinatsu just like that?
"Of course. Chinatsu is strong."
Karin grinned, patting Sakura's shoulder before casually walking forward.
"Wow, Konoha truly is a place where geniuses appear one after another."
Granny Chiyo sighed, walking forward with a calm expression.
However, the moment she saw Itachi's body change, her composure vanished.
She gasped in shock.
"This is... Yura?!"
Kakashi frowned deeply.
"As expected. Chinatsu realized from the start that this wasn't his real body."
"It seems the enemy has developed a jutsu similar to the Impure World Reincarnation. By using a living person as a sacrifice, they create an identical clone with nearly the same strength as the original."
"That way, they can stall for time without risking their actual forces."
Suddenly, Sakura snapped out of her daze.
Her eyes darted around.
"Wait... where's Naruto?"
"Uh… I think he's over there."
Karin pointed behind her.
Everyone turned around.
And there, in the distance, Naruto was standing alone in the jungle, making bizarre movements, flailing his arms and dancing randomly.
A long, awkward silence filled the air.
Pakkun sighed.
"It seems Naruto got caught in a genjutsu."
Sakura's shoulders trembled in frustration.
She closed her eyes, sighing deeply.
"This idiot..."
The Land of Rivers
As night fell, Akatsuki's cave base remained eerily silent.
The sealing of Shukaku was almost complete.
Gaara's lifeless body hung in midair, his chakra continuously drained.
The red energy surrounding him slowly faded, vanishing into the mouth of the Gedo Statue.
Pain's voice echoed through the cave.
"We're now entering the final stage. No mistakes are allowed. Focus."
Itachi's eyes opened.
His scarlet Sharingan gleamed in the dim light.
"…Failed."
Deidara raised an eyebrow.
"There's actually someone who can beat you? Was it that Kakashi guy?"
"No," Itachi shook his head.
"It was Chinatsu, the Hokage's daughter."
Everyone turned to him in surprise.
"She has the same perception abilities as Kirito.
"She can fight with her eyes closed, rendering my Sharingan illusions useless."
"She also possesses incredible talent in Water Release, strong enough to counter my Fire Jutsu."
"On top of that, her Lightning Release skills are exceptional. She has already mastered Chidori and is capable of using the same shape transformations as Kirito."
"The same Lightning Style as Brother Kirito?"
Deidara frowned, clicking his tongue.
"Tsk... that's bad news. My detonating clay is weak against Lightning Release."
At that moment, Kisame also opened his eyes.
"Same here. Those Konoha ninjas are stronger than I expected."
"It doesn't matter," Pain spoke calmly.
"We achieved our main goal—stalling them long enough."
Sasori scoffed.
"That's easy for you to say. Those two sacrifices were my subordinates."
"Hehe," Pain chuckled.
"They should be grateful instead."
"With the Elephant Transmigration Technique, they got to experience life as Akatsuki members… even if only for a short time."
Pain turned to Zetsu.
"Zetsu, go eliminate the two sacrificed bodies."
"I understand."
Zetsu disappeared into the shadows.
Pain's gaze swept across the room.
"Enough talking. Focus."
"We cannot afford mistakes now."
***
The Next Morning
As dawn broke—
The final remnants of Shukaku's chakra were devoured by the Gedo Statue.
Gaara's body dropped lifelessly to the ground.
Sasori sighed.
"Finally done."
Deidara stretched.
"Tch, my arms are sore from making so many seals. What a pain."
Hidan rubbed his neck.
"I feel like my spine is gonna snap."
Kisame grinned.
"Heh… but the real winner here is Kirito."
"He used a shadow clone to do all the work."
"We suffered for three days straight. Meanwhile, he probably spent it lounging with his wife and kids."
Pain ignored them.
Instead, he turned to Zetsu.
"Zetsu.
"Where are the Konoha teams now?"
(End of this chapter)