Snow Capital.
The great hall.
Sandayu, who had been lying in his chair waiting for the maids to feed him fruit, shot to his feet when Itachi Uchiha and Kisame Hoshigaki suddenly appeared before him.
"Lord Itachi, what brings you here?"
Itachi did not answer. He simply swept his gaze across the furnishings in the hall.
Sandayu immediately waved everyone else out, then dropped to his knees.
"Lord Itachi, may I ask what matter brings you here this time?"
Itachi looked at Sandayu and said calmly, "You look much better. It seems you've been living quite comfortably."
Sandayu had no idea what Itachi was trying to say, so he could only force a smile.
But in the next instant, he saw Itachi's Mangekyō Sharingan.
By the time he came back to his senses, he had already been bound to a cross.
Looking at the world before him, a world that seemed to contain nothing but blood-red color, cold sweat trickled down Sandayu's forehead.
"Lord Itachi, w-what is this?"
Itachi said slowly, "This is the world of Tsukuyomi. Time, space, and mass are all under my control."
"Now... tell me everything you know about the Ōtsutsuki Cult."
Sandayu's pupils shrank. He forced out a smile and said, "What Ōtsutsuki Cult? I've never heard of it."
Itachi did not waste words with him. He simply drew a long blade and stabbed it into Sandayu's chest.
The next second, Sandayu let out a scream.
"This pain will continue until you are willing to talk."
Before Sandayu could say anything else, he once again felt a heart-rending agony tear through him.
He raised his eyes and looked around, only to discover that the once-empty crimson world had, at some point, become filled with countless versions of himself and Itachi.
All of the pain was shared. Every second, Sandayu felt as if he were being sliced apart alive.
For a time, the only sound in the world of Tsukuyomi was Sandayu's screams.
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Bang!
Sandayu's body went limp and crashed heavily to the floor.
Kisame asked in confusion, "How did this guy end up like that in the blink of an eye?"
"Itachi, what did you do to him?"
Itachi said calmly, "I cast Tsukuyomi on him. Although only an instant passed in the real world, three days and three nights had already gone by inside the world of Tsukuyomi."
"Sandayu told me everything he knew. We can now confirm that the force behind the Ōtsutsuki Cult is Kara."
"In one week, the Ōtsutsuki Cult will hold a gathering, and a member of Kara will personally attend."
Kisame asked curiously, "Itachi, how did you know Sandayu was a traitor?"
"He was the greatest contributor to protecting Lady Koyuki until she grew up. If your judgment had been wrong... Lord Yuzuru would probably have had a hard time accepting it, wouldn't he?"
Itachi shook his head and explained, "Ever since Koyuki's mother followed Father back to Konoha, Sandayu has been the one in charge of Snow Capital's authority."
"With the Ōtsutsuki Cult gathering over a thousand people right under his nose, there is no way he could have known nothing about it."
Kisame nodded. Looking at Sandayu, who lay unconscious on the ground, he said with some emotion, "Back then, Sandayu was hunted by Doto Kazahana for more than ten years, yet he still devoted himself wholeheartedly to assisting Lady Koyuki. I never thought he would choose betrayal now."
Itachi gave a faint snort and slowly said, "A few years ago, he was diagnosed with an incurable disease. After he wrote to Koyuki's mother, she asked Orochimaru to heal him."
"Not long after that, he wrote again, asking Koyuki's mother to help him attain eternal life. She refused that request."
"Later, people from Kara came to him and modified his body. After that, he pledged allegiance to Kara."
"People... change."
After saying that, Itachi's gaze fell on Sandayu.
"Amaterasu!"
Black flames rose, instantly burning Sandayu to ash.
"Do not let word of this spread. In one week, come with me to the Ōtsutsuki Cult's base."
"All right."
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One week later.
At a base in the mountains outside Snow Capital, Bagu was anxiously pacing back and forth.
Beside him sat a tall, slender man wearing a black cloak. He had center-parted purple hair, mysterious red eyes, and the Roman numeral VII beneath his eyes. He let out an impatient cold snort.
"Quiet down. You're ruining my steak!"
Bagu was startled and hurriedly explained, "Lord Deepa, I keep feeling uneasy."
"Can we cancel this meeting?"
Deepa set down his knife and fork, then gave Bagu a cold glance.
"With me here, what are you afraid of?"
"I'll tell you the truth. The leader does not have much time left. In order to find the most perfect vessel as soon as possible, we must move from the shadows onto the stage."
"Only then can we establish a powerful intelligence network."
Feeling the killing intent coming from Deepa, Bagu did not dare say anything more.
Although he was only an Outer of Kara, he had once heard some information about Deepa from Boro.
The man before him was a complete and utter freak.
His personality was brutal, and he took pleasure in killing.
Anyone who encountered him would be treated as prey and killed for his amusement.
And because Deepa most enjoyed seeing the fear and pain on people's faces before they died, everyone he killed would suffer inhuman torment before their final breath.
"Hmph!"
Seeing Bagu sit back down, Deepa finally snorted coldly and picked up his knife and fork again.
Tonight, he was going to kill to his heart's content!
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Time quickly reached late night, and Bagu's heart gradually sank to the bottom.
The appointed time had already arrived, yet not a single believer had appeared.
This situation could only mean one thing.
They...
had been discovered!
At that thought, Bagu said to Deepa, "Lord Deepa, something must have gone wrong. We need to find a way to escape!"
Deepa gritted his teeth and said, "Damn Sandayu. I'm going to kill that bastard!"
"No need to trouble yourself."
A teasing voice came from the darkness.
"Sandayu has already been dealt with by us. Now it's your turn."
Seeing the two ninja walk out of the darkness, Bagu was so frightened that he hurriedly hid in a corner.
This was bad. There had to be an inescapable net laid outside.
He...
wasn't going to die here, was he?
Compared to Bagu, Deepa's face revealed a faint smile.
"Only the two of you?"
"Sometimes, being too confident isn't a good thing."
"Tonight, I will make you die in agony amid the depths of despair!"
"Oh?"
Kisame lowered Samehada from his shoulder, revealing a mouth full of sharp, shark-like teeth.
"Then let me see whether your strength is as tough as your mouth."