The messenger hawk found him mid-stride, just as the four of them crested the last ridge overlooking the valley.
For a second, Sukuna even wondered whether the hawk had mistaken him for someone else, but nope, it couldn't be. This was definitely a Konoha-trained messenger bird. The existence of advanced technology in this world was apparent, even when it wasn't very well distributed, so it was always baffling to him that even when better options existed, hidden villagers used these messenger birds to this date.
He always looked down on it, but perhaps he might have to change his mind about them if this little guy could find him all the way here.
Sukuna plucked the scroll off its leg without breaking pace, unrolling it one-handed while the bird circled once and took off again.
Shizune's handwriting, rushed but legible. Definitely Tsunade's message, one she made her poor assistant write, most likely while she wasn't in the best of moods, if the rushed letters were any indication.
"Find out everything you can about an organisation calling itself Akatsuki. Full authorisation to go off-grid if necessary. As long as you're not bringing it back to the village. And don't bring Naruto along. Do it and I'll send you to border duty for the entire decade. I'm not joking."
Sukuna almost laughed at that last part.
"Something funny?" Kiyomi asked, peering over at the scroll with open curiosity.
"Tsunade wants intel on Akatsuki." He rolled the scroll back up, tucking it away. "Says I have permission to go off-grid to get it."
Neji snorted. "Convenient timing."
"Isn't it." He grinned, eyes turning towards the city in front of them.
Below them, half-hidden behind perpetual rainclouds, the outline of the hidden village sprawled out across the valley floor — towers and bridges and walkways stitched together out of old scrap metal and stubbornness, exactly the kind of place a man who called himself a god would choose to hide in.
Izumi's arms were crossed, gaze fixed on the village below with the particular stillness she got whenever she was weighing something seriously. "How in the world did you convince me of this again..."
"I guess it had something to do with an opportunity to meet Itachi again."
Kiyomi's face stiffened at that. Izumi too stiffened, while unlike Kiyomi, who didn't really care about that man, the previous Izumi loved Itachi, so the memories were still with her.
Sukuna turned to the Hidden Rain Village in front of him and stated, "There would be strong individuals here; however, the majority of the shinobi in this village are weak. There are also common people here, so try to keep the destruction limited and directed to the Akatsuki members."
Izumi exhaled, long and slow, though it wasn't quite a refusal. "I doubt I can change the decision even if I try now, can I?"
"Would you try?" Sukuna looked at her with a dubious look.
"Probably not." She sighed and relented.
Sukuna glanced sideways at her, at Neji, at Kiyomi, giving them all one last look before committing to anything further. "Last chance to back out if any of you are having second thoughts."
Nobody moved.
Kiyomi's grin only widened. Neji simply adjusted his stance, Byakugan already flickering faintly at the edges of readiness. Izumi grumbled something under her breath about reckless children and questionable life choices, but made no move to leave either.
"Didn't think so," Sukuna said.
Four reincarnated sorcerers, standing at the edge of a village that housed one of the most dangerous organizations in this world, about to walk straight into the middle of it uninvited.
Sukuna figured there wasn't much point in being subtle about an entrance like this. While he was all but playing the assassin in the shadows, there are times when entering by knocking down the front door is just more fun.
"Say, let's announce our arrival with a bang..." He grinned.
Curse energy gathered at his fingertips, precise and vast all at once, and he raised his hand toward the village below without ceremony.
"Kai."
The technique tore forward, a clean and merciless line cutting straight through rain and cloud and metal alike, slamming into the outer district hard enough to level an entire block in a single, thunderous instant.
The booming voice rang out, and the entire area was cut open and destroyed as if multiple A-rank jutsu had detonated suddenly out of nowhere.
The rain kept falling. The silence that followed didn't last long, though.
"Oh, not playing ninja for this one," Kiyomi said, grin sharp enough to match the explosion still echoing below.
"Nah... did you hear what the letter said? It's okay to go a little off the grid this time," Sukuna replied with a big smile on his face.
xXx
A/N : Tsunade herself told so, whatever happen next is not his fault.
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