Amegakure, beneath the tower.
Naruto walked toward the entrance.
"I'm starving… I've been out for so long."
"Can we leave now?"
Naruto stopped and looked back at Jūgo.
Jūgo said calmly, "We've already helped you like we agreed. We don't owe you anything else."
Suigetsu leaned over and whispered, "Hey, Jūgo, don't forget, we're at someone else's place."
But Naruto stayed calm.
"Sasuke is probably in Akatsuki's underground base. Do you know how to get there?"
Jūgo nodded. "Yes. We went there after his fight with Itachi."
"Do as you like," Naruto said. "But if you see Sasuke, I have a message."
Jūgo looked surprised. He didn't expect Naruto to let them go so easily.
"Tell me. I'll make sure he hears it."
Naruto said, "Danzo isn't in Konoha. He's likely looking for Yakushi Kabuto. If you're planning something, act fast. Don't give him another chance."
Jūgo nodded. "Understood."
"Then go," Naruto said.
The two left Amegakure, walking across the muddy ground.
Suigetsu rested his hands behind his head and muttered, "I didn't expect him to let us go so easily. I thought he'd try to sweet-talk us, then slowly rope us in. And if that failed, he'd hit us with a genjutsu and turn us into puppets."
Jūgo said nothing.
Suigetsu wondered aloud, "Do you think he wants to use Sasuke to get rid of Danzo?"
Jūgo let out a low hum. "I don't think so. With his strength, if that were his goal, Danzo wouldn't have made it out of the Land of Iron alive. Maybe… he really wants to help Sasuke get his revenge."
Suigetsu frowned. "I don't get it. Are they friends or enemies?"
"It's more accurate to say they're both," Jūgo murmured. "If Sasuke weren't the one Kimimaro entrusted to me… following him wouldn't be such a bad idea."
Suigetsu blinked. "Huh? What was that last part? I didn't catch it."
"Nothing," Jūgo said. "Let's keep moving."
…
Kumogakure.
After a long night defending the village, the ninja began assessing the damage.
"The total damage to the village is about ten percent. The Raikage's residence and the area around it were hit the hardest."
"Over a hundred people were injured, mostly minor wounds. No deaths."
"No one died… that's at least something to be thankful for."
"We still don't know how the enemy bypassed the Heavenly Punishment Technique."
"The enemy who led the assault is incredibly strong and unpredictable. Especially that jutsu he used to trap the Raikage, it's completely unheard of."
The Kumo shinobi looked up at the night sky, where the stars hung high.
The remains of Chibaku Tensei were still crumbling.
Huge rocks occasionally fell, shaking the ground with thunderous crashes. It was too dangerous to get close, let alone start cleanup.
"Have we identified the enemy yet?"
"According to Master Dodai, he's a rogue ninja from Konoha who calls himself Hikari Akatsuki. But his real identity is still unknown."
"Hikari Akatsuki? Sounds like he's cut from the same cloth as the real Akatsuki."
"The Raikage probably knows who he really is, but… he hasn't regained consciousness yet."
"Is it serious?"
"Yes. He passed out from lack of oxygen and suffered lung damage. He used up all his chakra trying to escape. But the worst part was the fall, he didn't have his Lightning Style armor to protect him, so he injured his cervical spine."
"His collarbone?"
"Yes. I'm afraid Raikage-sama won't be able to twist his neck like he used to."
"What? That's something he's done for years! It was his trademark move!"
"Master B and the others should be returning soon..."
Boom!
Thunder echoed through the night.
In the bushes outside the village, Darui stumbled forward, drenched and pale. His vision was fading, but he could see the gates just ahead.
"I can't fall… Not yet... I'm almost there..."
The entire left side of Darui's body had been pierced by a huge, jagged tree branch, he couldn't feel anything on that side.
He had survived using the Wood Style: Cutting Technique.
It was a mix of strength… and luck.
In that critical moment, Darui dodge just enough to protect his vital organs.
He let the branch pierce through his left shoulder, avoiding his heart. Though the following branches injured his internal organs, none struck a fatal spot.
He then used the Lightning Style Body Flicker Technique to escape the battlefield, forcing himself to endure the nearly fatal pain… and made it back to the village!
At the gates, a guard shouted in shock, "Darui-san! What happened to you?!"
"Bee… fell into Akatsuki's hands..."
Thud!
Darui collapsed face-first, unconscious.
"Darui-san!!"
"This injury—oh no...! Get the medical team, now!"
…
Inside Kamui's time-space dimension.
Thud!
Killer Bee crashed to the ground… lifeless.
"Y-you monsters… You actually killed Bee!!!"
The Eight-Tails' grief-filled roar echoed through the void.
Whoosh!
A Tailed Beast Bomb surged upward, shaking the space with raw fury.
This was Obito's personal space-time dimension. Here, he couldn't use his intangibility ability.
Alongside Obito stood Omoi.
"I won't let you do as you please in here…" Omoi said firmly.
Clap!
Tobi pressed his hands together in front of his chest.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Wooden dragons burst from the ground, twisting together and wrapping around the Eight-Tails, absorbing its chakra.
Whoosh!
The Tailed Beast Bomb that was forming began to shrink rapidly, its energy draining before their eyes.
The Eight-Tails glared at the plain-looking Tobi. "That's… the First Hokage's Wooden Dragon Technique! You—!"
Tobi cut him off. "Obito, now! Do it!"
"Leave it to me."
Obito suddenly looked up. His right eye, visible through the mask, turned bloodshot
Genjutsu: Sharingan!
Sizzle!
The Eight-Tails fell silent. Its eyes turned into Sharingan, proof that it had fallen under a powerful illusion.
Snap!
Obito unfurled a scroll. He sliced the Eight-Tails' skin with a sharp blade, then cut his own wrist.
Mixing their blood, he completed the Summoning Contract.
The scroll glowed briefly, then disappeared.
The contract was sealed.
—Kamui: Time-Space Prison!
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
Massive blocks shot in from all sides, locking together to form an inescapable prison trapping the Eight-Tails inside.
Obito spoke coldly, "Eight-Tails, from now on, until I recover the Rinnegan, you'll serve as my Summoning Beast. Once I'm done summoning you... the Gedo Statue will be your final resting place."
Whoosh!!
At dawn, guided by Kamui, Obito and Tobi returned to the Akatsuki hideout.
Boom!
A deep rumble echoed from within the base.
White smoke drifted from cracks in the walls.
"You're finally back," a voice said from the shadows. "Go see Sasuke…"
…
Inside a dark room
Karin sat curled up in a corner, hugging her knees, trembling in fear.
Not far from her, a dark purple chakra took the shape of a massive Susanoo, its armor resembling a mythical Crow Tengu.
Swish!
Inside Susanoo, Sasuke removed the white bandage from his eyes.
His eyes gleamed in the dark, Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan, glowing with a complex pattern of tomoe.
A twisted smile formed on his face.
"These eyes... can see through the darkness!"
Boom! Boom!
With every step, he and Susanoo shattered the ground beneath them.
Obito appeared ahead, speaking in a low voice:
"Sasuke, this is the Akatsuki's base. You're being too reckless."
Sasuke smirked arrogantly.
"Oh, it's you. Perfect timing. Let me test my new strength on you."
Fwoosh!
Black flames of Amaterasu erupted in Susanoo's hand, forming a blazing black sword.
With a swing, the flaming blade shot toward Obito, aiming to burn everything in its path.
.
.
TO BE CONTINUED
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