After Obito vanished, the room fell silent. Every gaze turned instinctively toward Chiga. Even a fool could see that the masked man, who had boldly proclaimed himself to be Uchiha Madara, had shown clear caution only toward him.
Without realizing it, many of the gathered Kage had begun to treat Chiga as their anchor.
Mei Terumi's voice broke the silence.
"Hokage-sama, Akatsuki has declared war on us. What do you suggest we do next?"
Chiga tapped his finger lightly on the table, his expression calm.
"Since they've declared war, there's nothing more to discuss. We fight."
Gaara frowned, arms folded across his chest. The situation was advancing far too quickly. They had come here to deliberate on how to deal with Akatsuki, but before anyone realized it, the declaration of war had already been made.
He turned to Itachi.
"I heard you spent time inside Akatsuki. Can you tell us what their true purpose is in gathering the Tailed Beasts?"
Itachi hesitated. Only when Chiga gave him a subtle nod did he finally answer.
"Their leader seeks to collect all the Tailed Beasts in order to activate a final weapon. With it, he intends to start a war and demonstrate overwhelming power, hoping to intimidate the entire shinobi world into peace."
These were the words Chiga had instructed him to repeat before they came.
A scowled, his voice sharp.
"A final weapon? Just how powerful is it?"
Itachi's expression was grave.
"I can tell you this much—it can destroy an entire Nation with ease."
The chamber grew heavy with dread. Even the Tailed Beasts, terrifying as they were, could not wipe out a nation so effortlessly.
Itachi continued, his tone steady.
"According to the Uchiha clan's stone tablet, this weapon is called… the Ten-Tails."
The air seemed to freeze. The Kage stared in disbelief, the name alone sending a ripple of shock through them. This was the first time any of them had heard of such an existence.
Ōnoki managed to collect himself first, though his voice trembled faintly.
"Then what role does the man claiming to be Uchiha Madara play in Akatsuki?"
Itachi shook his head.
"He is shrouded in mystery. From what I've observed, his relationship with Akatsuki's leader is not one of command and subordination, but of uneasy cooperation."
A's fists tightened.
"Who is the leader then? Is it that man with the orange hair and the Rinnegan?"
"You can see it that way," Itachi answered. "But it isn't just him. There are five others, each also bearing the Rinnegan. Together, they are called Pain."
A's eyes widened in disbelief.
"Six Rinnegan… all at once? How is that possible?"
Itachi's response was calm, almost clinical.
"My belief is that the six are nothing but puppets. The true wielder of the Rinnegan remains in the shadows."
The explanation chilled A to his core. His shoulders sank as he slumped into his chair. The realization struck deep—despite years of conflict with Akatsuki, his Hidden Cloud had never faced the true enemy at all.
If just one of them was this formidable, what kind of threat would the real mastermind pose? And with his younger brother Killer Bee directly in their sights, could he even protect him?
The other Kage were weighed down by similar thoughts. They turned their eyes once more toward Chiga.
Ōnoki spoke in a grave tone.
"Hokage-sama… can your Mangekyō Sharingan contend with the Rinnegan of Akatsuki?"
Before Chiga could respond, Itachi stepped forward. His voice carried reverence.
"You are mistaken. Our Hokage's eyes are not ordinary Mangekyō Sharingan."
Ōnoki's eyes narrowed. He thought back carefully. While Itachi's Mangekyō had been unsettling, it had not gone beyond making them uncomfortable. Chiga's, however, had been suffocating, a pressure identical to what Ōnoki once felt standing before the real Uchiha Madara.
His lips pressed into a thin line. "You mean… there's a level beyond the Mangekyō?"
Itachi's eyes softened, but his tone was filled with awe.
"Yes. Our Lord Hokage has awakened the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan—just as Uchiha Madara once did."
Gasps spread through the chamber. Though none fully understood the scope of such eyes, they all knew one thing: this power was extraordinary, terrifying in its scale.
Ōnoki muttered under his breath, almost to himself.
"No wonder… no wonder I saw Madara's shadow in him."
What none of them knew was that the Eternal Mangekyō varied greatly with the user. Its floor was high, but its ceiling even higher. Compare Madara and Sasuke: both wielded the Eternal Mangekyō, yet Madara's mastery allowed him to summon the Perfect Susanoo and overwhelm the Five Kage, while Sasuke had never reached such heights.
And Chiga? His Susanoo had already surpassed Madara's in size and could merge with the power of Devil Fruits, becoming an unparalleled weapon. The problem was simple—so few enemies even existed who could force him to unleash it.
Behind Chiga, Sasuke's thoughts churned. He had heard the name Eternal Mangekyō before, had even asked Itachi about it once. His brother's answer had been simple:
"When your eyes lose their light, only then may you awaken the Eternal Mangekyō."
At the time, Sasuke had dismissed the idea. Now, with Itachi alive and by his side, his hunger for power had softened. If gaining such eyes meant Itachi would lose his vision, then Sasuke wanted no part of it.
Itachi, watching quietly, felt relief. He knew that if Sasuke had truly desired the Eternal Mangekyō, he would not have hesitated to give up his own sight for his brother's sake. But such a path was unnecessary now.
Sasuke's Mangekyō had not yet awakened, and besides, there was no longer a need for such desperation.
For Itachi himself, things had changed as well. Thanks to the Yang Release chakra Chiga had infused into him, his frail body had recovered steadily, his eyesight restored. So long as he did not recklessly overuse his Mangekyō, he would never again face the threat of blindness.
Because of this, Itachi's loyalty to Chiga deepened even further. What he feared most was not death, but the thought of never again seeing his brother.
_____
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