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Inside Ichiraku Ramen, Manji suddenly frowned and turned toward the window.
"What is that brat doing in Konoha?"
A moment later, he vanished from the shop.
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Late that night, a mysterious man in a tiger-striped mask appeared in the heart of Konoha.
"Infiltration successful." Tobi surveyed the sleeping village with a faint smile. "Madara's gotten careless. It never even crossed his mind that someone might attack Konoha itself."
Kurama had just gotten to Mount Myōboku, but Tobi already had a plan for him. He wanted to cause a scene in Konoha and prove to the Grand Sage what he could do.
Hashirama was the only major fighter left in the village... Madara, Tobirama, Izuna, and the others were all away, leaving Konoha's defenses stretched thin.
Tobi's plan was simple. He would distract Hashirama while Kurama tore through the village, causing enough chaos to scare everyone. After seeing war up close, the villagers would start blaming Madara.
The enemy reached Konoha itself—yet you're still waging wars abroad. Where were you when the village needed you??
Once people started complaining, Madara would have to rethink his plans. At the very least, Konoha's villagers would see what his wars could bring to their own homes.
Inside the summoning realm, Kurama saw through the scheme immediately.
"Oi, Tobi. Don't tell me you're planning to dump me in the middle of Konoha and stage your own Nine-Tails attack."
Kurama looked thoroughly unimpressed. "Hashirama Senju isn't some nobody. He's Asura's reincarnation, and I have no interest in slaughtering innocent people just to help with your little performance."
Manji's lessons had calmed most of Kurama's old rage. Compared to the Nine-Tails from the original story, this Kurama was almost like a big house cat.
"You're the strongest of the Tailed Beasts, and you're scared of Hashirama?" Tobi asked, deliberately poking at his pride. "Relax. I'll deal with Hashirama. All you need to do is tear up the village."
He shrugged. "And don't worry about casualties. Just think of it as a show. Anyone who dies will wake up in the Pure Land and keep living there."
Honestly, the Pure Land was more like paradise than the real world. Some people might even say staying alive was the tougher choice.
"Me? Afraid of Hashirama? Even Asura would have to call me Granduncle!" Kurama mulled it over, then lifted his chin.
Because of their odd teacher-student family tree, he was technically correct.
"But I'm still not killing civilians... I'll wreck some buildings and leave it at that. Teacher would never want me murdering innocent people." Kurama continued.
"Fine. Suit yourself... I only need Konoha thrown into chaos." Tobi laughed.
He glanced over the quiet village, feeling more confident. "Honestly, Konoha isn't that great. Its barrier doesn't work, and Hashirama hasn't even noticed me. This place just lives on its reputation."
A figure appeared behind him the instant the words left his mouth.
"Tobi, what are you doing here at this hour?" a quiet voice asked.
"..." Tobi's smile froze.
He turned slowly, like he'd just seen a ghost, and saw Manji standing right behind him. Tobi blinked, rubbed his eyes, and looked again.
"GRAND SAGE?? WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?" he blurted.
All of Tobi's mysterious attitude vanished. Instead of a schemer, he was now just a grinning flatterer trying to save himself.
"No wonder Konoha feels different tonight! Just like you wrote, even an ordinary place becomes something special when a sage decides to make it his home."
Manji folded his hands behind his back. "I heard Kurama's been thinking about stirring up trouble in Konoha."
"Do you want me to stop him?" Tobi answered without hesitation.
Before Manji could say anything else, Kurama rushed to clear his own name.
"TEACHER! TOBI PUT ME UP TO IT!" He blamed Tobi right away.
Manji rubbed his eyes. "It's fine, Kurama. Just keep yourself under control. I'm too old to enjoy watching rivers of blood, and most of the people in Konoha are decent enough. Knock down a few buildings if you have to, but don't start slaughtering people."
He glanced toward the surrounding streets. "And pick somewhere less crowded."
Tobi kept his face blank.
Too old to enjoy rivers of blood?
Even if you added up everyone on Mount Myōboku, they probably hadn't killed as many people as Manji did in just one year of the Six Paths Purge. So why was he setting limits now?
"One more thing... My shop is right over there. Don't destroy it," Manji pointed behind him.
"..." Tobi's eyes widened.
"..." Kurama fell silent.
The Grand Sage, the most powerful man in the shinobi world, was living like a regular person and running a ramen shop.
"No one in the shinobi world realizes that the man who controls it is standing right here..." Kurama muttered.
Tobi recovered almost immediately. "The people of Konoha are really fortunate. They get to eat noodles personally prepared by the Grand Sage."
"Enough. Stop buttering me up and get on with it." Manji waved them away, returned to Ichiraku Ramen, and went back to sleep.
Tobi only relaxed after Manji left. He quickly moved to another part of the village, making sure to stay far from the ramen shop.
"Kurama, watch where you're aiming. If we destroy the Grand Sage's shop, neither of us has enough lives to survive what happens next."
Tobi flashed through a series of hand seals and slammed his palm against the ground.
"Summoning Jutsu: Nine-Tails!"
"Let's go!"
A deafening explosion rocked Konoha.
Smoke shot up into the night sky, spreading over the rooftops in a huge cloud. Inside it, a giant shape slowly rose above the village.
Kurama had descended upon Konoha.
"What is that thing??"
"What kind of monster is that??"
Villagers jolted awake by the explosion rushed outside, only to freeze at the sight of the colossal beast towering over their homes.
"Wait... I've seen that thing in the old records. That's the Nine-Tails!"
"The Nine-Tails? But aren't the Tailed Beasts supposed to be sacred guardians?"
"The histories say the Sage of Six Paths took them away after the Six Paths Purge. How can one possibly be here?"
For the people of Konoha, it was hard to believe what they were seeing. It felt like a monster from an old legend had come straight out of a history book and landed in their village.
The Tailed Beasts had vanished from the shinobi world eight hundred years ago. After Manji finished the Six Paths Purge, they were gone, and over time, most people thought of them as just old legends.
Now one of those legends stood in the heart of Konoha.
While Kurama drew every eye in the village, Tobi slipped silently into the Senju compound and seized the infant Tsunade.
"TSUNADE!" Mito cried, her face paling as she glared at the masked intruder.
"Who are you?" Hashirama stepped forward, his expression turning cold.
Tobi held Tsunade securely in one arm and raised a kunai to her with the other.
"Don't move, Hashirama Senju."
He pressed the blade closer.
"Take one more step, and your granddaughter dies."
With Tsunade in his hands, Tobi finally had the leverage he needed against Hashirama.
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