Jiraiya's departure made many people breathe a sigh of relief.
Among them were Naruto Uzumaki, the leader of Uzushiogakure, Shisui Uchiha, the head of the Uchiha clan, and the group of Uchiha ninjas who knew exactly who Jiraiya was.
As Shisui had said, a ninja of Jiraiya's level was a threat even if he did nothing but stand in the village.
Only after Jiraiya left could everything truly return to normal.
After leaving Uzushiogakure, Jiraiya summoned a toad from Mount Myoboku, then entered the toad's stomach and escaped through the sea.
His trip to Uzushiogakure had gained him quite a lot. Besides finding Naruto and the Uchiha clan, he had also discovered Orochimaru and the puppet of the Third Kazekage controlled by a mysterious puppeteer.
This information needed to be brought back to Konoha as soon as possible and handed to the old man, Hiruzen Sarutobi, for a decision.
Watching the toad disappear into the deep sea, Orochimaru and Sasori removed their disguises and stood on the soft sand.
After being tricked by Naruto earlier, they hadn't left the Land of Whirlpools immediately. Instead, they stayed hidden, waiting for another opportunity to act. After all, Jiraiya had irreconcilable conflicts with the Uchiha currently staying in Uzushiogakure.
But now Jiraiya had left the Land of Whirlpools completely unharmed, which was beyond their expectations.
After exchanging a glance, Orochimaru said with regret,
"What a pity the Uchiha and Jiraiya didn't fight. It seems your revenge plan has completely failed."
Sasori's eyes turned cold.
"I don't know who was scared shitless by that attack that looked like a Tailed Beast Bomb. Someone ran away so fast they almost left their skin behind. Pretty embarrassing for one of Konoha's Sannin."
Orochimaru smirked slightly.
"Didn't you retreat immediately as well?"
After pausing, Orochimaru recalled the terrifying Spiral Wheel Orb (Helix Lunyu — likely a mistranslation of a Rasengan-type technique) he had seen earlier. He sighed faintly.
"I didn't expect the leader of Uzushiogakure to be that powerful. Not only does he possess Wind Release comparable to the Kazekage, but he also has destructive power similar to a Tailed Beast."
"If there hadn't been rumors recently about a runaway Jinchūriki, I would've suspected that guy wasn't even human."
Sasori frowned.
"Are Jinchūriki really that strong?"
He hadn't forgotten that the ultimate goal of the Akatsuki was to capture the Nine Tailed Beasts. If every Jinchūriki were this terrifying, then Akatsuki might as well give up the plan before getting their heads chopped off.
Orochimaru shook his head slightly.
"Most Jinchūriki aren't that powerful. But if we're talking about the Eight-Tails or the Kurama, then yes—their hosts can reach that level."
"However, the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki in Konoha is just a kid. And Kumogakure has no reason to build a ninja village right under Konoha's nose."
"If nothing strange is going on, that man is probably similar to the Fourth Raikage—someone with monstrous chakra comparable to a Tailed Beast."
"So," Orochimaru continued calmly, "you should give up the idea of revenge for now."
"With just the two of us, we can't take revenge on Uzushiogakure."
Sasori snorted coldly, though he had to admit Orochimaru was right.
After losing more than half of his puppets, he didn't even know whether Orochimaru would suddenly attack Uzushiogakure out of curiosity. In his current condition, revenge was simply impossible.
But swallowing such a huge loss… left a bitter taste in his mouth.
As if guessing Sasori's thoughts, Orochimaru smiled faintly.
"Don't think too much about it. Let's just report the information we gathered."
"During the battle earlier, I spotted several Kirigakure ninjas nearby. Kirigakure may have secretly formed an alliance with Uzushiogakure."
"That kind of headache should be left to the boss, Nagato… or rather, Pain, to worry about."
Sasori nodded.
They might not be able to deal with Uzushiogakure—but that didn't mean Pain couldn't.
That night, Sasori was busy forging new puppet parts from metal when the ring on his finger suddenly began to throb.
Orochimaru looked down at the ring on his own hand as well. The two exchanged a glance and nodded.
They had been wondering how to report their findings, and now a new meeting of the Akatsuki had been called.
After performing the Magic Lantern Body Technique, Sasori and Orochimaru closed their eyes as their consciousness traveled thousands of miles away.
Standing on the finger of the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path, the two glanced around.
They soon noticed that the position of Juzo Biwa (Loquat Juzo) was empty.
Both of them were puzzled for a moment.
But after seeing the face of Itachi Uchiha, they immediately understood.
There was a very high chance that Juzo Biwa was dead.
After all, new members joined the organization every few months. Without real strength, dying during missions was practically guaranteed.
Juzo was already considered a capable ninja.
Unfortunately, his brain wasn't particularly bright.
After confirming that everyone had arrived, Pain began the meeting as usual and asked each team to report their mission results and collected intelligence.
When it was Orochimaru and Itachi's turn, the two reported everything they had learned about Kirigakure and Uzushiogakure, sharing all the information they had gathered.
After hearing the report, the members of the Akatsuki were visibly surprised.
Even Orochimaru and Itachi themselves were somewhat shocked by the new information that surfaced during the discussion.
The death of Juzo didn't matter much to Orochimaru. A traditional ninja relying on the Kubikiribōchō had no research value to him, and the chaos within Kirigakure was already well known.
What really caught his attention was that the leader of Uzushiogakure—Qianbu (uncertain translation — name may be incorrect)—had appeared in Kirigakure.
Not only that, he had helped Kirigakure repel the attack from Juzo and Itachi, and even assisted in suppressing the Isobu.
Why would Uzushiogakure help Kirigakure?
Wasn't Kirigakure one of the villages most responsible for the destruction of the original Uzushiogakure?
Meanwhile, Itachi was shocked for another reason.
Shisui had taken the remaining Uchiha to join the Land of Whirlpools and help rebuild Uzushiogakure.
But since when did that village gain a ninja powerful enough to rival Orochimaru?
Orochimaru and Itachi glanced at each other, both hoping to learn more information from the other.
At that moment, Kakuzu, who had been silent the entire time, suddenly spoke.
"I've never heard of a ninja named Uzumaki like this. Where did he come from? Is he a survivor of the Uzumaki clan that was destroyed long ago?"
Kakuzu's question immediately caught everyone's attention.
After all, Kakuzu was an old ninja who had survived since the Warring States Period. He was extremely familiar with the powerful figures of every era—mainly because he constantly calculated the bounty on their heads.
If someone this strong had existed before, Kakuzu would definitely remember.
Hearing the name "Uzumaki," Konan immediately became alert and glanced toward the wheelchair-bound Nagato.
Having stayed with Nagato for over ten years, she naturally knew that Uzumaki blood flowed in his veins.
She was surprised that Nagato might have such a powerful clansman… but she was also worried about how it might affect him.
Nagato frowned deeply.
If this man was truly that powerful, why hadn't he appeared earlier to prevent the tragedy of the Uzumaki clan's destruction?
Why rebuild the country only now?
But after thinking about it more carefully, the answer might be simple.
Perhaps, like himself, the man had only recently gained enough power—and by then, it was already too late.
For a moment, Nagato even felt a desire to meet this mysterious clansman.
Maybe the man would support his plan: gathering the Tailed Beasts and using their power to threaten the great nations into peace.
But the thought soon faded.
He was no longer just Nagato.
He was the leader of Amegakure… and Pain, the one destined to guide the ninja world.
The other man wasn't a wandering ninja either—he was the leader of the newly rebuilt Uzushiogakure.
Both of them had their own ideals and their own forces.
If their ambitions aligned, cooperation might be possible in the future.
If not…
Then they would meet on the battlefield.
Pain had no weakness.
Pain had no emotions.
Suppressing the wandering thoughts in his mind, Nagato controlled the Deva Path and slowly looked around at the Akatsuki members.
"Is that all the information for now?"
"Finally, something interesting."
"To fill the vacancy left by Juzo Biwa, let's welcome a new member to the organization."
"The newcomer is called…"
"A Fei."
"He's a highly recommended ninja who possesses powerful space-time abilities."
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