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Yes, Kagaya was preparing to return to land. Several days had passed since the eye transplant. Although his eyes weren't fully adapted yet, Kagaya could feel they were gradually stabilizing. In a few more days, they would likely be fully adjusted. Regarding this, Kagaya was ninety-nine percent certain.
And since his eyes were almost ready, of course, it was time to return to land and settle some scores.
Coincidentally, Kagaya would have a hard time finding Obito relying solely on Karin's sensory abilities. While he knew the location of an Akatsuki hideout, Obito wasn't a corpse; he definitely wouldn't just sit idly in one place waiting for him.
Therefore, Kagaya planned to have Orochimaru lend a hand with this. And as luck would have it, at this very moment, Itachi had also asked him to prevent Orochimaru from taking Sasuke's body.
With both these factors combined, Kagaya naturally needed to pay Orochimaru a visit.
*****
In the Akatsuki hideout.
Obito looked at the figure of Pain before him and spoke gravely. "There's trouble. I need your help."
A rare flicker of surprise appeared on Pain's typically impassive face. "Even you encounter trouble?"
In Pain's—or rather, Nagato's—perception, the being before him was the legendary Uchiha Madara, who had dominated an entire era. What kind of trouble could possibly unsettle him? Probably only the resurrection of that person. But that seemed unlikely.
However, Nagato reconsidered. If even Uchiha Madara had survived, then it wouldn't be too strange if that person had also lived.
Obito immediately recognized Nagato's confusion. Unfortunately, he was Obito, not Uchiha Madara. If he were the Madara of his prime, facing a newly formed Eternal Mangekyō, he wouldn't be overly concerned; he'd just go over and crush him. Just like in the later stages of the Great Ninja War in the original story, where Madara, even without his eyes, had effortlessly defeated Sasuke with his Eternal Mangekyō.
But Obito was not Madara. The Eternal Mangekyō was simply too overpowered for the current Obito.
"I'm not exactly at my peak condition. Certain minor matters from the past can still pose a bit of trouble for me in my current state."
The red light gleamed beneath the mask as Obito offered this explanation to Nagato. His identity as "Uchiha Madara" could not be exposed as false. After all, the deterrent power and influence of "Uchiha Madara" far surpassed that of "Uchiha Obito."
Pain nodded. "Very well. Speak."
In the eyes of Nagato and his group, the current "Uchiha Madara" must have some issues. Otherwise, he wouldn't need to operate so covertly. Moreover, the Kamui ability naturally created an aura of mystery and the unknown. So, Nagato and the others hadn't seriously doubted the identity of this "Uchiha Madara." Of course, even if they harbored suspicions, Nagato certainly wouldn't let this "Madara" know about them.
Obito fell silent for a moment. He could guess that Nagato and Konan had always harbored some degree of suspicion regarding his "Uchiha Madara" identity. However, the level of doubt wasn't severe, so Obito hadn't addressed it.
"Uchiha Kagaya. He has awakened the Eternal Mangekyō. Can you deal with him?"
Pain spoke with confusion. "Uchiha Kagaya, I know. But what is the Eternal Mangekyō? I've only heard of the Mangekyō."
Obito took a deep breath and explained part of the Eternal Mangekyō's nature to Pain.
After listening, Pain spoke cautiously. "So, you're saying he is very strong?"
Obito nodded. "Very strong. At least for us in our current state, extremely strong!"
Yes, at this moment, Kagaya was truly overpowered. If Obito had a few more years to let the Gedo Statue absorb more Tailed Beasts, he wouldn't care much about Kagaya. As long as Kagaya didn't evolve the Rinnegan, Obito, with the Gedo Statue, would have no reason to fear the Eternal Mangekyō.
Unfortunately, Obito didn't have those few years. It was very likely that within the next few months, he would face Kagaya's pursuit.
Pain began to contemplate. "A Mangekyō that never fades... It seems even I would have to expend great effort to defeat him. I feel we have no need to provoke him, do we?"
Obito sighed. "I don't want to provoke him either. But what I fear is him coming for me."
Pain asked curiously, "Do you have a grudge against him?"
Obito let out a derisive snort. "In my view, it's not a grudge. But in his view, that's another matter."
Obito then recounted the incident from Kagaya's genin days when he had killed Kagaya's two comrades.
After listening, Pain couldn't help but fall silent for a moment. He thought of Yahiko. In their youth, he, Nagato, Konan, and Yahiko had been so close. The three of them had dreamed together of establishing true peace, hoping people could communicate. Sadly, Danzō and Hanzō had personally shattered that dream and killed Yahiko. Since then, the Nagato who had yearned to build peace through communication had vanished. In his place stood a Nagato who would forcefully use Tailed Beasts and extreme violence to suppress war.
Danzō and Hanzō had personally created an extremist.
"No wonder, then."
For Obito, Kagaya holding a grudge over two insignificant kids from the past and coming after him was the act of someone with a vengeful nature. But for Nagato, who had experienced the warmth of childhood companions, he could better understand Kagaya's actions.
Just like when Hanzō killed Yahiko, it wasn't long before Nagato, with the Six Paths of Pain, went and slaughtered Hanzō.
After a moment's thought, Pain spoke. "I understand. However, we should still not actively provoke him. If he comes for you, I will assist. I will also begin preparations from now on."
Obito nodded. "Good."
******
Several days later.
Konoha.
Naruto, the blond kid who could barely master even the most basic Academy techniques like the Three Basic Ninjutsu, displayed terrifying, almost inhuman talent when it came to two high-level jutsu: the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique and the Rasengan. In just a few days, Naruto learned the Rasengan. In terms of talent for this specific technique, Naruto could be considered the number one in the ninja world.
One must understand that the Rasengan was no que; it couldn't be learned in just a few days. At the very least, if Kagaya tried, he definitelsimple techniy couldn't learn it in a few days. In fact, forget a few days; mastering it in a month would be a struggle.
Subsequently, just like in the original story, Tsunade became Konoha's Fifth Hokage.
And the first action Tsunade took after assuming office was—she removed Uchiha Kagaya from Konoha's list of rogue ninja.
This meant Konoha would no longer pursue Kagaya for capture or view him as an absolute enemy.
This decision delighted a small minority but left the majority dissatisfied. During his invasion, Kagaya had killed many Konoha ninja. Although he hadn't harmed a single civilian, the blow he dealt to Konoha was significant. Naturally, many were unhappy with his removal from the rogue ninja list.