Chapter 64: Ripples of Departure
"It's incredible. Lord Naoki actually defected." In the Land of Grass, after Juzo Biwa exited the Demonic Lantern Body, he couldn't help but exclaim to Uchiha Itachi beside him.
"He never followed the rules in his actions. Something like this happening to him is reasonable!" Uchiha Itachi was somewhat caught off guard by Uchiha Naoki's defection. Along with that came worry—worry that Uchiha Naoki would harm Konoha.
When Uchiha Naoki was still in the Akatsuki organization, he could at least monitor him to prevent him from causing trouble. But now, freed from Akatsuki, Uchiha Naoki was like a tiger released from its cage, no longer restrained. He believed that with Uchiha Naoki's intellect, he wouldn't fail to deduce who the mastermind behind the 'Uchiha Massacre Night' was. Precisely because of this, Uchiha Naoki had a high probability of seeking revenge against Konoha's leadership.
If that happened, how could he fulfill his promise to Uchiha Shisui to protect Konoha? If his 'foolish little brother' were accidentally harmed, how could he face his deceased parents? Thinking of this, he couldn't help but feel flustered.
But all he could do now was quickly send a message to Konoha, inform them of this, and let them prepare. Additionally, he needed to see if he could use 'Koto Amatsukami' on Uchiha Naoki this time, rewrite his will, and make him a dark guardian of Konoha.
Meanwhile, at the Border of the Land of Rain...
"To think that after having so much fun in Kirigakure under Big Brother Naoki's command, I now have to turn around and hunt him down." While preparing enough clay, Deidara muttered, "Sorry, Brother Naoki. It's not easy to go against the Leader's orders! Let me send you off with the most dazzling art. After all, the beauty of an instant is true art!"
Compared to Uchiha Itachi's worry and Deidara's excitement, the Scarlet Sand Scorpion was currently reading a letter. From Uchiha Naoki.
[Please forgive my sudden departure. My ambitions lie elsewhere, so I left to find a place better suited to me.]
[I will establish a Ninja Village in the Land of Fields. If you are interested, Brother Sasori, I look forward to your arrival.]
[...]
[Finally, I believe eternal art is more worthy of appreciation.]
...
A few minutes later, he finished reading. The Scarlet Sand Scorpion burned the letter and murmured in a low voice, "Establish a ninja village? Interesting! Naoki, let me see if you have the capacity to build a village!" As he spoke, he stroked a scroll on the table marked with the character for 'Hundred.' "I won't show mercy!"
...
The news of Uchiha Naoki's departure naturally didn't leak out. But at this moment, the shinobi world was in turmoil, and the situation had suddenly changed!
Two Days Ago...
With the full support of the Fourth Raikage from Kumogakure, Kirigakure's dual Kekkei Genkai kunoichi—Terumi Mei—ascended to the position of "Fifth Mizukage," announced the formal establishment of an alliance with Kumogakure, and implemented an open-door policy.
One Day Ago...
The Raikage and Mizukage simultaneously came to Konoha Village to hold Konoha accountable for the damages Uchiha Itachi and Uchiha Naoki had caused to Kirigakure. The Third Hokage of Konoha Village apologized to the two Kage and agreed to the condition set by the Raikage and Mizukage to pressure the Land of Rain and hold Amegakure responsible.
And Just Today...
The Fourth Raikage officially issued the "Five Kage Summit," summoning the Five Kage to the Land of Iron to discuss their stance towards "Akatsuki." Should they let it grow, potentially becoming a future calamity? Or should they proactively contain and restrict it?
But the news of the imminent Five Kage Summit plunged the entire Land of Rain and Amegakure into panic. This was the first time the Five Great Shinobi Villages had united to target a specific ninja village. War was likely coming to Amegakure. If war arrived, Amegakure and the Land of Rain would surely become history, with no chance of recovery.
After all, it wasn't just that the Land of Rain was weak—no single one of the Five Great Nations could withstand this crisis. The union of the Five Great Shinobi Villages meant they were invincible in the shinobi world. No force could resist them.
But it didn't end there! The panicked situation in the Land of Rain and Amegakure soon grew even more turbulent and restless as another incident occurred.
Simultaneous with the Raikage issuing the 'Five Kage Summit,' another piece of news spread throughout the shinobi world. Rumors claimed that a mercenary organization called 'Akatsuki' existed somewhere in the Land of Rain. This 'organization' had captured the Three-Tails, and it was precisely because of this incident that the current crisis in the Land of Rain and Amegakure had been triggered.
Therefore! The path ahead for the Land of Rain and Amegakure was already clear. If they didn't want to be annihilated by war, they must quickly have this 'Akatsuki' hand over the Tailed Beast.
"Damn this 'Akatsuki'! They actually brought such disaster to our Amegakure! They must not be spared!"
"That's right! I didn't know such an evil organization existed before. Now that I know, how can we tolerate them continuing to reside in the Land of Rain?"
"Let's go, to the Tower of God! I believe 'God' will never tolerate the existence of this damned organization!"
Upon hearing the news, the residents of Amegakure immediately became restless. Groups of people ran to the Tower of God, demanding to meet their village's guardian, 'God,' and begging 'God' to expel this 'Akatsuki' for them and safeguard Amegakure's peace.
"Troublesome!" When 'God' Pain received the news, the 'Angel' Konan beside him couldn't help but frown. "How could we take action against ourselves? If we hand over the Tailed Beast, all our time and effort will have been in vain. But if we don't act and don't give the people an explanation, they definitely won't give up! If they find out we are the masters behind 'Akatsuki,' we'll be in an extremely passive position."
She couldn't help but grit her teeth. "The Five Kage are so ruthless!" There wasn't even a hint of conspiracy—just an overt, straightforward plot, yet quite effective.
"Let's set aside how the Five Kage determined 'Akatsuki' was connected to Amegakure. But their methods are so ruthless—we should have expected this. After all, these are the rulers of the Five Great Shinobi Villages, the five giants dominating the shinobi world. How could they maintain their position without being ruthless?" Pain said. "But the more important thing now is to first appease the people, then try to buy as much time as possible and erase all traces of 'Akatsuki' we left in the 'Tower of God' to avoid being exposed by the Five Great Villages."
Looking at the gloomy sky, his voice was calm. "If they join forces, capturing the Tailed Beasts will become much more difficult. This isn't what we want to see."
Hearing Pain's words, Konan nodded. "Alright, we'll do it this way!" With that, she went to execute the plan.
But Nagato, the person behind the Deva Path, clenched his fists, his eyes cold. "Five Great Shinobi Villages, for today's humiliation, you will repay me manifold in the future!" He considered himself a 'God'! And how could a 'God' be persecuted into such a sorry state?