The Rinnegan eyes rotated within the sockets of Uchiha Madara.
Sharp and dangerous, the vibes that came off said eyes looked different than when they were on Nagato.
It was as if... the eyes had the consciousness of their own. They seemed to be rejoicing by the fact that they finally returned to their original owner.
"Madara, tell me."
Watching the black-haired shinobi who seemed to have returned back to his prime time, the Black Zetsu asked.
"What exactly is that red orb that you handed to Obito?"
"The one which he ended up using on a different person, you mean."
Madara's Rinnegan shifted, now gazing at Zetsu.
"It is what you think it is."
"So it really is..."
Zetsu's voice shook a little.
"The prototype of the 'Eye of the Moon Plan.'"
This was the reason why Zetsu said that Obito couldn't possibly achieve what Madara was planning for.
Be it through intelligence or strength, Madara was a force to be reckoned with.
"...Did you predict that Obito would act as such?"
"It was merely one of many possibilities that I prepared for."
Grinning, Madara walked.
"Fuinjutsu sets the condition that renders the inside brittle while the outside especially durable. By setting another condition that allows anyone to freely enter the object, the seal became even more durable, making it essentially impossible to free the trapped ones from the outside. Should the orb physically break from the outside, the fuinjutsu will be terminated, and therefore, whoever is trapped would die along."
"And on top of that..."
"Yes. For one to break out from the inside, they must overcome the genjutsu that I set through the use of Izanagi. And that isn't the end of it."
Madara and Black Zetsu stopped walking. The underground that they were in was large. There existed numerous inactive forms of White Zetsus.
"I set another condition to the object's fuinjutsu... that if one were to successfully escape, it will break. In other words, no matter how many entered... only one can make it out alive."
"Then..."
Black Zetsu realized.
Uchiha Madara expected that Obito would, eventually, be forced to use this fine device he created on someone other than Akashi.
At the same time, he guessed that the victim of the device would be someone close to Akashi, ultimately forcing the latter to willingly enter the seal.
"Akashi, he is..."
"Yes."
Madara's grin widened.
"He is as good as dead."
Obito, who didn't trust Madara and planned to achieve the Eye of the Moon plan himself, was dead.
Akashi, who is probably the only one who has the chance to match his combat strength, was essentially dead as well, or if not, trapped until he has completed his conquest.
"Now... the only thing that's left is..."
To collect the nine tailed beasts.
And to Madara, those tailed beasts were nothing more than harmless puppies.
It was his victory.
__________
"Hey, did you hear? The daimyo of the land of water apparently yielded to us!"
The first thing that Akashi did after managing to sneak his way into Amegakure was to collect information.
The village was livelier than he had ever seen in his world. Though the rain continued, the faces of the people weren't gloomy.
Compared to the faces of the people that he saw in the wagon where he woke up, there was a stark contrast.
It was a bizarre experience. It felt as if the rest of the world absorbed the gloom out of Ame.
However, that wasn't the point. Just now, one man said the word 'yield.' The daimyo of the land of water yielded to the land of rain... to Hanzo of the Salamander?
The layout of the world was the same. Still the same Elemental Nations. Still the same ninjas and chakra and common sense. Yet, the way this world was playing out was different.
"Well, that's the Akatsuki for you."
Then, Akashi froze, having heard the name that wasn't supposed to come up.
"The division that only the top of the crop can enter! The guardians and strikers of Ame! Must be feeling nice to be hailed as heroes."
"When they haven't suffered a single loss, they deserve such treatment."
"Well, true."
"Pretty cool, don't you think? Gathering the rogue ninjas around the world and forming a group out of them... I won't lie, I initially thought that it'd never work."
"We all felt the same, buddy."
Based on the nuance of their words, it looked as if Akatsuki was a part of Ame's military.
'But that means that...'
Akashi couldn't wrap his head around this information.
"Why? What's wrong?"
Chakka whispered from the inside of his cloak.
"...Akatsuki is the organization that I established."
"Huh?"
"Focus. Leave the thinking part to me."
"Okay!"
Being an apt chakra sensor, Akashi tasked Chakka to notify him of any formidable ninja who is nearby. If ignoring the fact that it was often distracted, it actually proved to be quite helpful to Akashi.
'Akatsuki is an official division that is well known in this world, known to even the civilians.'
Akashi had a feeling. Digging into this will tell him more about where Konan may be.
Leaving a coin that he had saved from the dead body of the one whom he had previously fought, Akashi exited the pub with a normal footstep to erase any possible suspicion that he was a shinobi.
Walking out, he gazed at the central building that was higher than any other building in Ame.
It used to be the place that Hanzo dwelled in, but he wasn't sure if this remained the same here.
'I may need to check it out—'
"A-Akashi..."
Chakka suddenly spoke up.
"Something is strange... about this rain."
"...What?"
"T-There is chakra in those raindrops."
Akashi's eye widened.
Turning around, he felt what Chakka meant. He was seen and being monitored.
However, it was strange.
This wasn't the first time that he was being chased and monitored. Throughout years of experience, he was very well-versed in sensing killing intents. Although not as adept as the chakra sensors, he could, to some extent, sense chakra as well.
This time around, he couldn't. Ignoring the fact that the potential enemy pulled off a feat as insane as 'imbuing chakra on the rain cloud,' he didn't sense chakra at all.
Why was this the case?
'Because...'
One revelation struck Akashi's mind. He clenched his fists tightly.
"...It's me."
"What do you mean?"
"There is 'another me' in this world. He..."
Akashi felt a pair of purple eyes with numerous rings peering at him.
Rinnegan.
"Owns Rinnegan, which means..."
Just the thought of it made Akashi's bones chill.
"Uh... I can't follow, Akashi."
Anyhow, Akashi now had to make a choice.
Retreat and collect more information, or fight his way through.
If it were the usual him, there wouldn't have been the need to think. It is always better to retreat and prepare than to act brazenly.
However, the fact that Konan's safety wasn't guaranteed made him think otherwise.
"Two! Incoming!"
Akashi clicked his tongue as Chakka informed.
'Normal clones can't fool dojutsus. If so...'
Raising his hand and forming a hand seal, he produced a number of shadow clones.
He and his clones began to run in different directions, causing the nearby citizens to yelp and back in surprise.
"An intruder?!"
"Get him! Then we decide!"
The defense system of the village was well established. In a matter of seconds, the platoon of Ame ninjas was after him and his clones.
The real Akashi was, in the middle of all this, actually heading toward the central building.
Even if it were to be reckless and risky, there was no better option than this in trying to figure out Konan's whereabouts.
With the Ame ninjas tailing his back, Akashi barged into the building.
One who appeared to be a receptionist jolted in surprise, before revealing a kunai from her vest.
By the time the kunai was drawn, however, her head was no longer attached to her neck.
Akashi appeared behind the beheaded corpse, with Ryuma drawn.
Immediately after, wires sprang from the walls all around, attempting to capture him.
Akashi keenly noted that oil was encasing the wires.
'They are attempting to set the wires on fire. The building is made out of wood, and this is the lowest floor. The whole building will collapse, but due to the rain, the fire won't spread.'
Akashi's eye narrowed.
It was as if his enemies expected that he would come here and had set up the trap.
'The reason why they expected such a move out of me is because...'
Konan.
Everything makes sense if they have contacted her.
"Akashi!"
Just then, the wires were lit aflame. In an instant, Akashi stood in a torrent of fire.
Then, boom.
The building burst into a fit of fire before it crumbled down. The citizens, clearly shocked, yelped as they ran left and right.
Akashi appeared in the middle of them, having marked one wall with Flying Thunder God.
'What now?'
Just as Akashi thought, a voice boomed across the village,
"Code red! I repeat, code red! All citizens of Ame, evacuate immediately! An unknown enemy at the level of jonin or above appeared!"
At the same time, Akashi saw the backs of two men, who wore fluttering black cloaks with red cloud symbols drawn on them.
Akashi's breathing momentarily stopped. He whispered,
"...There."
He knew that it was likely another trap. However, even if he was playing atop someone's palm at the moment, he had to go.
As soon as he reached such a conclusion, his feet moved, starting his chase after two cloaked individuals.