After nearly a month of deliberation and preparation, the Five Kage Summit officially began.
The summit was held in the Land of Iron.
Konoha, led by the Fifth Hokage, Tsunade Senju, shared their intelligence on the Seireitei. Every detail in the report was more shocking than the last. Shinigami and Hollows, unlike any human; powerful Shikai and Bankai—the mysterious veil of the Seireitei was finally lifted before the Five Kage.
When they learned that the leader of the Seireitei was a rogue ninja from Konoha, the other Kage felt a strange mix of emotions.
"How does your village produce so many Kage-level rogue ninja?" Onoki complained, his tone laced with a hint of jealousy. All of them were great ninja villages, yet Konoha seemed to churn out Kage-level shinobi as if they were common cabbages. Even after losing so many powerful individuals, the village still had quite a few Kage-level fighters.
To show their sincerity, Tsunade laid all of Konoha's cards on the table, including the deaths of renowned shinobi like the Third Hokage and Jiraiya, and their current remaining strength.
Hearing this, the other Kage fell silent. Konoha was undoubtedly at its weakest, but none of them entertained the thought of taking advantage of the situation. Not only did Konoha still have Itachi Uchiha, but the force that had pushed them into this corner, the Seireitei, clearly required their utmost attention.
The goal of its leader, Uzumaki Naruto, was particularly alarming.
"He wants to overthrow the entire order of the shinobi world! Is he insane?" the Kage muttered, their faces filled with horror. They couldn't describe their shock. They were born in ninja villages, had followed their rules, and perhaps had once thought of rebelling and changing everything, but faced with the pressure of reality, they had all chosen to conform and become part of the system. After becoming Kage, they understood even more how difficult it was to break the rules. The various villages and clans had their own unwritten codes; as long as an entity grew large enough, it would naturally develop selfish interests.
What Naruto wanted to do was to tear it all down and reset all the rules. He wanted to be the breaker of rules and the maker of new ones! This was something none of them could allow.
"We absolutely cannot let the Seireitei continue to develop," the Kage agreed for the first time. The Seireitei was the enemy of the entire shinobi world!
But not only did the Seireitei have a fearsome ambition, it also had fearsome strength.
Minato Namikaze, the Nine-Tails, Kakashi, Shion, Orochimaru, and Haku. The known Kage-level fighters alone far outnumbered those of a single great ninja village, not to mention the other hidden powerhouses and the super-Kage-level Uzumaki Naruto.
According to the intelligence, they also learned of another super-Kage-level shinobi: the leader of the Akatsuki, the Six Paths of Pain. His Rinnegan could easily crush Kage-level opponents, and his strength was definitely beyond anyone present. It was even possible that the combined might of the Five Kage couldn't defeat him. But even such a powerhouse had suffered a loss at the Seireitei, all six of his puppets destroyed.
Naruto's abilities were a complete mystery. His Zanpakuto, which was originally thought to control the five senses, now included a fire-type blade with the power to kill Jiraiya in a few exchanges.
Could they really fight against such a force? The Five Kage looked at each other, their faces etched with worry.
The double agent, Gaara, put on his best acting performance and expressed the same concern. Although Sunagakure was participating in the summit, they would surely switch sides in the end. Gaara was also tired of this sick shinobi world and was thinking of going wild with Naruto for once.
"If we attack the Seireitei now, what are our chances of winning?" the Raikage asked after a moment of thought.
The Kage looked at each other, carefully weighing the strengths of both sides. In terms of lower-ranking ninja, the allied forces would definitely crush the Seireitei. But after learning about the power of Pain's Super Shinra Tensei, they didn't think those numbers would decide the outcome. The most important factor was the top-tier combat power.
Including the Tailed Beasts, the allied forces could probably muster about ten Kage-level fighters. For the super-Kage level, they only had Itachi Uchiha. How could they go to war with the Seireitei like this? It was a completely unbalanced fight!
"Contact the Akatsuki!" Onoki suddenly suggested. "Let Itachi Uchiha and Pain hold off Uzumaki Naruto, while we and the other Akatsuki members take out the Seireitei's Kage-level shinobi as quickly as possible. That's how we can end the war."
Onoki's proposal received unanimous approval.
The question was, how could they contact the Akatsuki? After Pain's defeat, the organization had gone quiet, rarely making an appearance. Finding them would not be easy.
"Leave that to us. Itachi was once an undercover agent," Tsunade volunteered.
The Five Kage Summit reached a preliminary agreement. All of them left with heavy hearts, heading back to their own villages. War was imminent. They needed to rally their troops and prepare for battle.
In Amegakure.
Nagato was recuperating. The battle at the Seireitei had taken a huge toll on him. He felt as if his body was on the verge of collapse. The power of the Rinnegan was immense, but so was its cost. Even with his Uzumaki lineage, it was difficult to bear. The root cause was that the Rinnegan was not his own.
"I never thought my cheap junior apprentice would be so strong," Nagato thought, replaying the details of the battle in his mind, his eyes flickering. The sword Uzumaki Naruto wielded could produce roaring flames and even block his Shinra Tensei. From Naruto's posture at the time, it didn't seem to be a strain. Which meant that was far from his limit.
With Uzumaki Naruto around, the capture of the Nine-Tails was impossible. And the Akatsuki's ideals could not be realized. It seemed the Akatsuki also needed to expand.
At the same time, the other members of the Akatsuki were also troubled. The successive failures of their missions had made them doubt themselves.
"Why have so many powerful people suddenly appeared in the shinobi world?"
"Hidan and Kakuzu are both dead." The atmosphere became somber.
"That Seireitei... is terrifying," Deidara was no longer his usual arrogant self, his voice low. Recalling the details of his previous battles, he had to admit that the Kage-level shinobi of the Seireitei were all stronger than him. What shocked them even more was that their leader had also suffered a defeat there. It could only be described as a complete disaster.
Click. Suddenly, a familiar figure emerged from a corner. "It's been a long time, everyone," Itachi said with a smile.
After the Akatsuki and the allied shinobi forces had made initial contact, Tsunade rushed back to Konoha. While researching the First Hokage's cells, she also had to study the forbidden jutsu, Edo Tensei. That's right. Konoha had restarted its research into forbidden jutsu.
Tsunade understood deeply: desperate times called for desperate measures. Continuing to adhere to principles at this stage would only lead to Konoha's destruction. To ensure the victory of the allied forces, they needed more trump cards. Konoha had always been bound by ethics, but if they cast that aside, a Konoha with forbidden jutsu would become terrifying.
While the entire shinobi world was preparing for war, Sasuke had finally mastered his Reiatsu. As the world's only Quincy with spiritual pressure, he deeply understood his mission. His keen intuition told him that a great war was about to begin, and he could not stay out of it.
In the mountains behind the village, a waterfall cascaded down, its roar almost deafening. Sasuke sat on a rock beneath the falls, letting the bone-breaking force of the water crash down on him. His mind was clear, his eyes wrapped in a white cloth.
Boom. In an instant, a roaring lightning erupted from Sasuke's body. The entire waterfall was engulfed in the light, and the rushing water actually paused for a moment, and even flowed backward.
Sasuke looked up. The white cloth covering his eyes instantly disintegrated, revealing a pair of sharp, yellow pupils. A massive amount of Reiatsu erupted from his body, soaring into the sky. No living creature in the area could remain standing; they all collapsed to the ground in fear.
Hum. Just as Sasuke stood up, his body about to erupt in an even more dazzling light, his consciousness was suddenly pulled into a mysterious space.
"Sasuke," a vast voice echoed.
Sasuke turned and saw an old man standing behind him, looking at him with a benevolent expression. Sasuke's guard went up. He couldn't feel any pressure from the old man, as if he were just an ordinary, frail elder. This meant that the old man had perfectly concealed his power.
"Who are you?" he asked.
"I am the Sage of Six Paths," the old man's answer left Sasuke in disbelief. The Sage of Six Paths was a legendary figure in the shinobi world, a supreme being who had transcended the limits of humanity and reached the realm of the gods. He should have been dead. Why was he here?
The Sage of Six Paths sighed and told Sasuke the story of Asura and Indra's past lives. After hearing it, Sasuke's expression was blank. He even felt a little like laughing.
"What does any of that have to do with me?" he asked coldly.
He had no particular fondness for the Sage of Six Paths. From the Sage's perspective, he and Naruto were the reincarnations of Asura and Indra, his sons. But when Naruto had annihilated the consciousness of Asura and Indra, his connection to the Sage had been severed. The Sage of Six Paths hated Naruto and opposed his ideals. But throughout the entire shinobi world, there were very few who could compare to Naruto. Only Sasuke still had some potential.
So, the Sage of Six Paths had found him.
"I can give you the power of the Six Paths. Then you can defeat Naruto and bring peace to the shinobi world," the Sage said with a benevolent expression. In his view, the power-hungry Uchiha could rarely resist the temptation of the Six Paths. Plus, Sasuke already had a complicated relationship with Naruto. He would likely accept his power and, on behalf of the shinobi world, defeat—no, kill—Naruto.
But to the Sage's surprise, Sasuke did not eagerly accept his gift. Instead, he asked, "Why don't you do it yourself?"
The Sage's expression turned grim. "I am already dead. What you see now is just a remnant of my soul with a portion of my power. And Uzumaki Naruto's identity is not simple. He has inherited everything from the ruler of the Pure Land."
The Sage of Six Paths then told Sasuke about the war between the Pure Land and the shinobi world.
"You mean, in the future, Naruto will replicate the war between the Pure Land and the shinobi world?"
"That's right. His goal is the same as the ruler of the Pure Land's: to transform the shinobi world into another Pure Land, to turn all humans into Wandering Souls," the Sage said decisively. Although these were just his deductions, to get Sasuke on his side, he couldn't be bothered with the details.
However, to his shock, Sasuke's answer was far from what he had expected.
"I refuse," Sasuke said, his eyes proud, not even bothering to look back. "I have no interest in your so-called Six Paths power. I will not indulge in the power of others. I will become stronger with my own two hands. If Naruto really does something so evil, then I will use my life to stop him."
"You are already dead, Sage of Six Paths. If you're dead, then return to the Pure Land or turn to dust. Don't come out and bother the living," Sasuke said coldly. A dazzling lightning erupted from his body, instantly shattering the space and returning him to reality.
"This guy... his stubbornness is terrifying," the stunned Sage of Six Paths muttered, at a loss for words.
With this, there was no one left in the shinobi world who could stand against Naruto. The Sage himself was bound by the rules of the Pure Land and the shinobi world and could not intervene. After a long time, he sighed. "Perhaps I have to go there."
His figure gradually faded.
After returning to the real world, Sasuke's face was filled with contempt. He was confident in his own power. The reason he had reached this level was because of his self-confidence and determination. If he were to accept the Six Paths power, it might have a negative effect on the Reiatsu he possessed. His strength might even decline.
Sasuke walked out from under the waterfall, his expression grim. The entire shinobi world was in turmoil. Even a long-dead monster like the Sage of Six Paths had shown up. To protect everything he held dear, his current strength was not enough.
With that thought, Sasuke quietly gazed at the sky. It was the first time he had looked at it since unbinding his eyes. The sky was so blue, so nostalgic.
"I should have absolute intuition now. Kyoka Suigetsu shouldn't work on me," Sasuke clenched his fists, his face full of confidence.
But mastering his energy couldn't be done through training alone. He needed a lot of battle experience!
He got up and returned to the village. After entrusting his disciples to someone he trusted, he set off alone, dressed in a white robe.
In Sunagakure.
Gaara, having just returned from the Five Kage Summit, was in his office.
"Eh? Gaara, you're back. So? Is the war starting?" Shukaku, who was lying on the sofa, lifted an eyelid and greeted him casually.
"Yes. We need to prepare. This time, the Seireitei is facing not only the great ninja villages, but also the mysterious Akatsuki," Gaara replied.
"The Akatsuki?! Isn't that that group of people?" Shukaku sat up, his expression gradually turning serious.
"That's right. The Akatsuki has one super-Kage-level member," Gaara said. "Not only that, Konoha has many forbidden jutsu. We need to be prepared. Are you sure you want to stand with the Seireitei this time?" Shukaku asked. "You know the consequences of betrayal."
"I know. I've made up my mind! The Seireitei is the future of the shinobi world," Gaara said, his voice cold and confident.