From within a tree trunk, the black-and-white Zetsu poked out half a head, cautiously observing the distant battle where Nagato was.
"Ooh, ooh, looks like we've created quite a monster," White Zetsu exclaimed, his mouth agape as he saw Nagato inflict such terrifying damage with a casual strike.
"The Stone of Gelel not only replenished his depleted life energy but also further stimulated the recovery of his Rinnegan." A grave look flashed in Black Zetsu's single eye; this was definitely not part of their original plan.
"Can Afei handle this?" White Zetsu wondered aloud, referring to Tobi. "...I don't know either," Black Zetsu admitted.
The Deva Path of Pain leaped beside Konan. She understood his unspoken signal instantly. With a flap of her pure white paper wings, she quickly flew away from the battlefield.
"Hmm?" Darui watched this, a flicker of doubt in his eyes. However, before he had a chance to ponder, the Deva Path raised its right hand. "Again?!" Darui didn't hesitate for a second, immediately turning to flee.
"Shinra Tensei!"
BOOM! Darui leaped into a crater just as a torrent of earth, rubble, and broken branches surged towards him, burying him completely.
"Aren't you going to finish him off directly?" Konan asked, tilting her head as she looked at the Deva Path who had caught up to her.
"There's no need. Our target is the Tailed Beast," the Deva Path stated, shaking its head. "Rather than waste time on him, it's better to focus on extracting the Tailed Beast's chakra from Yugito."
...
Caw, caw~ Several vultures circled high above the Land of Birds, warily observing the two figures below. From those slender forms, the birds sensed a primal fear, the instinctual dread of creatures lower on the food chain facing apex predators.
"I think I know why the Akatsuki lured you here," Naruto Uzumaki suddenly said, looking at Sasuke Uchiha, who was in the process of collecting the remains of their fallen comrades from an earlier, unseen battle.
Poof! Sasuke quickly formed hand seals, sealing the remains into a scroll, then turned to Naruto. "Yugito Nii? Or another Jinchuriki?" Only a Jinchuriki, or rather, a Tailed Beast, would warrant such a large-scale operation from the Akatsuki.
"It is Yugito," Naruto confirmed with a slight nod. "Just a short while ago, the Akatsuki leader personally made a move. She's already been captured."
"Where?"
"In the Land of Grass."
Sasuke fell into deep thought. Ever since the Akatsuki's re-emergence, his Shinobi Squad had become the Five Great Villages' main force active on the grand stage of the shinobi world. Their primary task was cleaning up heinous underground organizations that individual villages found inconvenient to handle. However, apart from the Five Kage and the top echelons of the Great Villages, few knew that their Shinobi Squad had been given a top-secret mission from the Five Kage Summit since its inception: eliminate the Akatsuki.
Indeed, the Akatsuki had been their primary focus for the past year. But for some reason, after a brief period of activity, the Akatsuki had strangely chosen to lie low. Coupled with White Zetsu's incredibly difficult-to-detect reconnaissance abilities, the difficulty of their mission had skyrocketed. They had managed to catch Akatsuki's tail a few times, but White Zetsu had always obtained intelligence beforehand, allowing them to evade capture.
"Naruto, are there any unusual chakra sources nearby?" Sasuke asked. The intelligence lag had directly led to him being led by the nose, a feeling he thoroughly disliked. Ordinary reconnaissance ninjutsu couldn't track White Zetsu. He knew Naruto possessed the unique ability of a Nine-Tails Jinchuriki to sense malice, so he pinned his hopes on that for an unexpected breakthrough.
Naruto carefully scanned their surroundings for a moment, then shook his head slightly. Did they anticipate Naruto's ability and hide in advance? Sasuke mused. His brother, Itachi, had been the one to tell him about White Zetsu's existence; relying on the Five Great Villages' intelligence systems alone might not have even revealed such a creature.
Hmm? Naruto's expression flickered. "What is it?" Sasuke asked quickly, thinking he had sensed something.
"It's a personal matter," Naruto said, standing up. "I might need to make a trip to Konoha. Want to come?"
"No need. I still have things to handle here."
Naruto nodded slightly, focused on a Flying Thunder God marker he had placed in Konoha, and vanished on the spot.
Konohagakure, the Village Hidden in the Leaves.
Shikamaru Nara lay on the grass, idly gazing at the white clouds drifting across the sky. Suddenly, a dark shadow fell over him. "Finally over," he said, executing a perfect kip-up to get to his feet. "Dad, what's the result?"
"The Jonin have voted. The selection process for the Sixth Hokage candidates will begin in three months," Nara Shikaku replied with a nod.
"It passed on the first try? I thought there'd be a few rounds of bickering over it."
"We had no choice. Sunagakure's Konoha Crush Plan already made us taste the bitter fruit of not having a Hokage candidate readily available."
Shikamaru recalled the various overt and covert power struggles among the influential factions back then and nodded slightly. If Lady Tsunade hadn't stepped up at the last moment, the position of Fifth Hokage would likely have fallen into Shimura Danzo's hands. It wasn't impossible that Konoha might have developed even better under Danzo's leadership. However, compared to the relatively more affable Lady Tsunade, probably very few in Konoha would have preferred the cold and grim Shimura Danzo.
"Lord Jiraiya has nominated Uchiha Sasuke. The Inuzuka, Sarutobi, and Shimura clans have jointly nominated Kakashi," Shikaku continued.
"Two spots are basically decided then," Shikamaru muttered, biting his nail. "That leaves one more spot. What method will we use to push Naruto for it?"
"The final spot will be decided at the next Jonin Council meeting. We still have time to build momentum for Naruto." Compared to his son, Nara Shikaku seemed much more relaxed, as if he already had a plan in mind. "More importantly, have you notified Naruto yet?"
"Given his speed, he should be arriving soon," Shikamaru estimated. He had notified him in the morning; knowing Naruto's speed, it wouldn't take long.
"Good." Nara Shikaku nodded. Though his son was a bit lazy, he was quite reliable when it came to handling important matters. "You explain the situation to Naruto first when he gets here. I'll try to finish up my business before dinner. I'll discuss the specific arrangements then."
Shikamaru nodded. After his father's figure disappeared from sight, he lay back down on the grass. Such leisurely moments were extremely rare. Watching the white clouds drift one after another overhead, his thoughts gradually began to wander. Sometimes, he really envied the clouds—drifting freely in the sky every day, without the endless, ever-piling tasks weighing them down. No need to consider the responsibilities of a Chunin, or the family's arrangements for promotion to Jonin. Ah, to be so carefree...
"Thinking about someone special?" Naruto asked, appearing beside him with his usual grin, noticing Shikamaru's wistful expression.
Shikamaru scrambled up from the ground in a fluster, but then suddenly realized he hadn't done anything embarrassing. Why was he so startled? He promptly lay back down on the grass. "Less than two hours. Where were you just now?" Shikamaru asked, glancing at the time, still amazed.
"Land of Birds," Naruto replied casually.
"You've gotten stronger... again." Shikamaru was speechless. How did gaining strength come as easily as eating and drinking for this guy? "The selection for the Sixth Hokage candidates has begun..." He then recounted the details of the situation to Naruto.