Anya said meekly, "Uncle, I came all this way just to help you complete the Organization's mission."
As he spoke, Anya tossed the container holding the Seven-Tails toward Kakuzu.
Kakuzu caught it effortlessly and nodded knowingly, "So it seems you already have the One-Tail under control as well."
Anya admitted directly, "Yes, it has already been extracted from its Jinchuriki."
Kakuzu hesitated for a moment before speaking, "With your secret assistance, Akatsuki's pace in collecting Tailed Beasts will be extremely fast. Once they gather all of them, do you think you'll still have things under control?"
Amused, Anya teased, "Uncle, are you actually showing concern for me?"
Seeing Kakuzu's expression turn grim, Anya quickly continued, "Don't worry, everything is perfectly under control. My goal is to get them to collect all nine Tailed Beasts as soon as possible."
Kakuzu countered, "Don't treat others like fools. Ever since you restored your clan name, the Akatsuki have noticed you. They've even discussed whether to send someone to test your strength."
"Oh really? What happened?"
This was something Anya hadn't known before. Sasori never told him because he knew full well that unless the entire Akatsuki launched a joint attack, sending anyone to test Anya would just mean suicide.
"Itachi Uchiha took on the task. He said he'd find you after you left Konoha. No one expected you to stay off the radar for over two years." Kakuzu expressed genuine surprise—this brat used to run off everywhere when he was young, but now, surprisingly, he could actually sit still.
"So it was him." Anya actually hoped he'd come looking. The plan to collect the Tailed Beasts had already begun, so Itachi no longer needed to stay undercover. At their next meeting, he'd bring him back home—he figured Miss Mikoto must be getting impatient by now.
"Now that we've secured the Tailed Beast, I'll take my leave."
As Kakuzu turned to go, Anya called out, "Wait a minute. Even though Hidan is an idiot, he's not *that* big of an idiot. You should at least leave some signs of battle behind."
"Hmm, you're right."
Kakuzu immediately activated Earth Grudge Fear. From behind his body surged countless black threads, even spewing out from his mouth.
These black lines danced around above his head like a fan. Meanwhile, black threads extended outward, each forming a mask on either side.
[Fire Release: Great Fire Annihilation.]
[Wind Release: Pressing Harm.]
A raging hurricane laced with flames created a wide-range fire attack. The whole forest radiated intense heat. A torrent of blazing chakra surged forward like molten lava, leaving Anya with nowhere to escape.
"What the hell? You're actually doing it!"
Muttering a curse, Anya instantly activated the Inorganic Rebirth technique of Ryuchi Cave Sage Art, transforming the surrounding soil, then sinking into the ground itself. In no time, he vanished without a trace.
Such a large-scale jutsu naturally alerted Hidan, who was still lying motionless on the ground. He shouted excitedly, "That's the way, Kakuzu! Burn that bastard to death!"
"Enough, shut up and get up already." Kakuzu had already arrived beside Hidan.
"What?" Only now did Hidan notice the blades piercing his body had mysteriously disappeared, although the pain from earlier injuries reminded him of what he had just endured.
"Damn it, this's the first time someone's ever beaten me this bad," Hidan said, picking up his scythe with a face radiating cold-blooded malice. "Hey Kakuzu, what happened to that guy? Did he die?"
"He's gone — burned down to nothing."
Kakuzu started preparing to leave as he spoke.
Seeing the direction Kakuzu walked toward, Hidan frowned in confusion. "Hey Kakuzu, where are you going? Shouldn't we wait here for the Seven-Tails' Jinchuriki?"
Kakuzu pulled out the container he had just acquired. "Just now, I've already taken it from the Jinchuriki."
"Huh... everything went too smoothly," Hidan muttered after thinking for a while. He felt something was off, but given his limited brainpower, couldn't figure it out. Seeing Kakuzu had already walked far away, he quickly hurried to catch up.
Anyao watched from afar, silently calculating in her mind. According to Sasori's plan, Akatsuki had already collected the Four-Tails, and now with the recently obtained Seven-Tails, once the Chunin Exams ended, Sunagakure would relax its vigilance. Then, other members of the organization would come to collect the One-Tail.
Besides the difficult Eight-Tails and Nine-Tails, there were still the Two-Tails, Three-Tails, Five-Tails, and Six-Tails — none of which should pose much of a problem.
"It's almost time," Anyao murmured softly before vanishing into the horizon.
A large group of candidates gathered at the entrance of Sunagakure. They were all those who had successfully obtained scrolls and passed the second round of testing. However, their mood wasn't upbeat — word had spread that the Chunin Exams had hit an unexpected snag. Due to sudden climate shifts, many candidates vanished amidst sandstorms, leading to the immediate termination of the exams.
However, their performance records had been sent back to their home villages, where each would decide independently whether the ninja would be promoted to chunin.
Except for Naruto and Sasuke, the rest of Konoha's Twelve Rookies had all arrived, gathering together to catch up on old times. Only Tenten kept glancing toward the raised platform, as if searching for someone, her eyes heavy with quiet sadness.
Noticing Tenten's unusual behavior, Sakura approached and asked, "What's wrong? You've seemed distracted since earlier."
Tenten snapped back to attention and forced a smile. "Oh, nothing."
Though Sakura found this slightly strange, she didn't press further.
Soon after, a masked Sasori appeared atop the raised platform, announcing, "All examinees, thank you for your hard work. Everyone should clearly understand that throughout the Ninja World, there have been three Great Ninja World Wars. Each war brought massive sacrifices among ninja forces, and when the wars ended, the Ninja World's rules continuously evolved, forming new orders. Yet these changes weren't thorough enough — they remained superficial, only bringing temporary peace. From today onward, I will carry out reforms across the entire Ninja World, just like how Sunagakure has already changed. Although this Chunin Exam ends prematurely, feel free to explore the village at your leisure."
Once his speech finished, Sasori vanished without even glancing in Tenten's direction once.
Down below, Tenten hadn't heard a single word Sasori said — she merely felt confused, unable to comprehend what had happened. It was the first time since childhood that Sasori had treated her with such coldness. For over two years, not a single letter she sent from Konoha ever received a reply.
Realizing this, Tenten could no longer hold back and quietly slipped away from the group.
The remaining candidates were still absorbed by Sasori's earlier words, completely failing to grasp their deeper meaning. However, they were quite interested in the changes happening in Sunagakure. This place had many features you couldn't find anywhere else, giving off a vibe of high-class design. How could one put it? When compared side by side, their own villages felt rather backward.
Among the crowd, only Neji silently lowered his head. He roughly understood the meaning behind Sasori's words and had also grasped the Organization's future ambitions. A chill ran through him as realization hit—his hands curled into tight fists.
Changing the Ninja World, huh? So that's it… They're trying to change the entire Ninja World. Never would've guessed that was the Organization's real goal. Very well then, I will definitely strive to enhance my strength as soon as possible and contribute my share of effort.
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