Land of Rain.
Konan looked worried. "You're really going through with Madara's plan? Starting the operation early?"
Nagato sat hunched in his wheelchair, his expression weary and gaunt.
"Madara made a good point. War has erupted across the shinobi world, and the Jinchūriki might get dragged into battle. They won't be under tight control like before. This is the perfect time to act. And if a Jinchūriki dies in the field, who knows how long it'll take for the Tailed Beast to reincarnate? I don't have that kind of time."
His voice grew firm. "I need to carry out our dream—while I still have the strength to move."
Konan gently clasped his frail hands.
"No matter what you decide, I'll always stay by your side."
They exchanged a quiet smile, and for a brief moment, warmth filled the space between them.
...
Since the last time Sasuke beat him down, Obito had been genuinely shaken. He didn't dare provoke him so carelessly anymore.
Even though the souls of his parents and Rin Nohara had been torn apart, Obito remained convinced he'd reunite with them in the Infinite Tsukuyomi. To him, the people in this reality were nothing but shadows. Only the dream world was real.
Using a tongue, Obito laid out the pros and cons, persuading Nagato to begin the hunt for the Tailed Beasts ahead of schedule. He succeeded.
At the same time, he caught wind of something interesting—Itachi and Sarutobi Hiruzen had formed an alliance with former Konoha shinobi now residing in the City of Peace. They were planning a surprise attack on Uchiha Sasuke.
Obito wholeheartedly supported the idea. In secret, he ordered Kisame to assist Itachi. Once chaos broke out in the City of Peace and everyone's attention was diverted, the Akatsuki would seize the opportunity to move in the shadows.
Their first target: Shukaku, the One-Tail.
During the collapse of Konoha, many had witnessed Shukaku being forcibly separated from Gaara and sealed into a strange sphere. No one knew how he'd done it—but that only made Obito's job easier.
He ordered White Zetsu to infiltrate Gaara's entourage and steal the orb that contained Shukaku. With that, the One-Tail would be theirs with almost no effort.
After reviewing the plan, Obito was confident—no flaws, no loose ends.
The next day, Pain convened a meeting to officially launch the Tailed Beast capture operation.
The Akatsuki's top fighters were still in good shape, so this would be a multi-pronged assault.
Pain didn't interfere with Itachi's personal vendetta against his brother. Letting the remaining Konoha shinobi throw everything they had at Sasuke would actually work in Pain's favor. While the Land of Fire fell into civil unrest, he'd swoop in and claim the Nine-Tails.
...
The sun slowly sank beneath the horizon, casting a dim, ashen hue across the sky like a veil of mist. Even as the sun vanished completely, the world remained unnaturally silent, as though every living thing had died off.
A sense of unease crept into Itachi's chest. He hadn't paid attention to it before, but now it was impossible to ignore—forests had withered into barren fields, rivers had dried to dust, and not even the hum of insects could be heard. No wonder the journey had been so eerily quiet—the only sound left was the wind.
The closer he got to the City of Peace, the stronger that uneasy feeling became.
After traveling day and night without pause, Itachi and Kisame finally arrived at a mountain range overlooking the city.
Itachi stood on a ridge, his face calm as he gazed at the distant skyline. The city's lights looked dimmer than he remembered—almost suffocating in their darkness. Only a few scattered points of light glimmered in the emptiness. The streets below were deserted, and a strange sense of dread hung in the air. It felt as though something monstrous was quietly taking shape in the shadows, waiting to devour everything in sight.
For a moment, Itachi was lost in thought. Sometimes he couldn't understand how Sasuke had turned out this way—and sometimes he felt it made perfect sense.
A child who'd witnessed his older brother slaughter their parents… of course he'd go mad. Of course he'd spiral into hatred, reject society, become something dark.
In the end, Itachi had been naive. He believed Sasuke would walk the path he laid out. He'd ignored the damage that path might cause to Sasuke's mind.
"What's on your mind, Itachi-san?" Kisame asked, slinging Samehada over his shoulder. He could sense the shift in Itachi's mood and grinned, flashing his shark-like teeth.
"Nothing," Itachi replied flatly. His expression was as calm as ever, impossible to read.
Kisame didn't mind. He was used to Itachi being like this.
"This time, the boss is getting involved directly. If your brother runs into him during the operation, I doubt he'll stand a chance," Kisame said, casually chatting. He still operated within the chakra-based system of power. As far as he knew, Sasuke had a Mangekyō Sharingan—on par with Itachi at best, and maybe just more annoying thanks to tricky techniques.
Seeing Itachi remain expressionless, Kisame pushed a little further.
"Once the Rinnegan gets involved, who knows what kind of damage that could cause?"
The message was clear: you better settle your personal business with your brother now. If Pain steps in, there won't be any time left to "perform."
Kisame genuinely meant it as a friendly warning. Ever since the events of the Uchiha Clan Massacre were leaked, the entire shinobi world had come to learn about Itachi's twisted relationship with his younger brother.
And Sasuke clearly wasn't buying into any of it. When the time came for vengeance, he never held back.
Itachi stayed silent, eyes lowered.
Suddenly, a White Zetsu emerged from the earth beneath their feet.
"Sarutobi Hiruzen's already led a team of elite shinobi to the outskirts of the City of Peace. The moment you engage Sasuke, they'll move in," he reported.
"What about Orochimaru?" Kisame asked. Sasuke was dangerous, sure—but Orochimaru was no slouch either.
"That old snake's gone into hiding again," Zetsu said with a sigh. "Sasuke used some kind of technique—I don't know what it was—but he can detect my clones. I can't get anywhere near the city center."
So, Sasuke's gotten even stronger, Itachi thought. He'd definitely be more difficult to deal with than before. Still, he believed in Kotoamatsukami.
...Even though there was no solid data or test results on the power of Kotoamatsukami—neither Itachi nor Danzō had ever actually seen it in action—they trusted Shisui's word completely. Maybe that was the genjutsu's true hidden effect: to make people believe in it blindly.
"There's no time to waste. Let's move," Itachi said. "Zetsu, make sure you relay all intel directly to Sarutobi Hiruzen."
He was running out of time.
His illness had already eaten away at his body, and the emotional strain wasn't helping. He wouldn't live much longer. Before that, he had to put Sasuke back on the right path. He had to entrust his eyes to him—to awaken the Eternal Mangekyō—and make sure Sasuke could protect Konoha in his place.
No matter how twisted Sasuke had become, Konoha wouldn't throw away a powerhouse like him. Besides, Itachi had already negotiated a deal with Sarutobi Hiruzen: if Sasuke survived, he would be accepted back.
Once Sasuke possessed the Eternal Mangekyō, he'd be tethered to Konoha. He might just be able to go toe-to-toe with Pain and survive the coming chaos.
As Itachi and Kisame strode boldly through the front gates of the City of Peace, Sasuke's gaze sliced through the layers of buildings and landed squarely on his brother.
"Tch. I've been waiting for this day for far too long…"
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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