The two Amegakure ninja grabbed Konan and slung her over their shoulders, hurrying through the rain-filled mist.
This was the plan laid out by their leader, Hanzō of the Salamander.
He could no longer tolerate Akatsuki's continued expansion. It was beginning to threaten his authority.
At the same time, Akatsuki's three most important members—Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan—were all students of Jiraiya, one of Konoha's Sannin.
Hanzō had no choice but to suspect that they were being manipulated and used by Konoha.
Capture the girl among the three. Then, under the pretense of peace talks, lure Akatsuki's leader out.
Finally, use the girl's life as leverage and wipe them all out, together with the ANBU brought by Danzō.
"It's a little despicable," one of them said, "but it's all for the village's peace and stability."
"Yeah. That's right."
The two Amegakure ninja murmured to each other.
Just then…
They looked up and seemed to spot a few figures at the edge of the rain and fog.
"Are they here to meet us?"
"No idea. Stay sharp."
They slowed their pace, raising their guard.
Before long, the two sides entered each other's line of sight.
"Konoha forehead protectors?!"
"Danzō's people?"
They couldn't think of any other reason Konoha ninja would show up in the Land of Rain.
Unless…
Konoha was planning to start another war.
Ever since the Second Shinobi World War turned Amegakure into a battlefield, the Rain ninja had harbored deep resentment toward Konoha. Calling it hatred wouldn't be an exaggeration.
"Three adults and six kids?"
Honestly, this didn't look anything like one of Danzō Shimura's ANBU teams.
"Something's not right. Be careful."
Not bothering to pay much attention to the six children, the two Amegakure ninja fixed their gaze on the three adults with gold, silver, and black hair, gripping their kunai tightly.
This was the final stage of the Third Shinobi World War—the era when Konoha's Yellow Flash, Minato Namikaze, was at the height of his fame.
If they had known that the blond man standing across from them was that legendary Yellow Flash, they never would have dared to face him head-on.
Unfortunately for them, it would never occur to these two Amegakure ninja that the people before them were Minato Namikaze, Kakashi Hatake, and Obito Uchiha, all having crossed over from other parallel worlds.
Not to mention that among those three adults were the Yellow Flash, the Copy Ninja, and—
the would-be boss of the Fourth Shinobi World War.
And as for the six kids…
Two Jinchūriki—Rin with the Three-Tails, Naruto with the Nine-Tails.
Two who had awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan—young Obito Uchiha and Sasuke Uchiha.
One twelve-year-old who was already a Konoha jōnin—young Kakashi Hatake.
And one monstrously strong girl, Sakura Haruno, who was already training alongside Rin under Tsunade-sama.
That lineup…was an instant trump card anywhere.
Against that, two ordinary Amegakure jōnin were simply not enough.
Watching the eight imposing ninken standing in the rain, the two Amegakure ninja shifted their gaze back to the three adults with gold, silver, and black hair.
"Konoha ninja! Why are you showing up here in the Land of Rain? Are you trying to start a war?!"
The two Amegakure ninja shouted.
Even though the black-haired man wasn't wearing a Konoha forehead protector, it hardly made a difference.
Obito Uchiha had already realized that the era he had crossed into was precisely the time when he had committed his sins against Akatsuki. His expression darkened noticeably. Ignoring their question, he spoke coldly instead.
"Put that woman down."
That commanding tone, that low, hoarse voice…
Short black hair, scars covering the right side of his face.
Even without a Konoha forehead protector, he was clearly a Konoha ninja.
"Could it be you're…?"
Obito Uchiha raised an eyebrow. How could Amegakure ninja from this era possibly recognize him?
"—Danzō Shimura?!"
"......"
".........."
"Pfft—"
The one who burst out laughing was Pakkun.
Obito Uchiha's already scarred face grew even darker. He had never suffered such an insult in his life.
His Sharingan snapped open as he glared at the Amegakure ninja opposite him.
"You're Danzō Shimura! Your whole damn family is Danzō Shimura!!"
Adult Kakashi shot him a sideways glance.
"That was childish, Obito."
Obito was livid.
"I've never been cursed this badly in my entire life!"
"Alright, alright," Adult Kakashi replied perfunctorily, placating him without much sincerity.
Young Obito Uchiha's face turned green as he pointed at the two Amegakure ninja and shouted,
"Are you blind or what?!"
Sasuke Uchiha, Naruto Uzumaki, and Sakura Haruno looked at the two Obitos—one young, one adult—their expressions indescribable.
Rin smiled at them indulgently.
Young Kakashi sighed. In the next instant, he moved together with the Yellow Flash. Taking advantage of his smaller build, which made him easy to overlook, he snatched the unconscious woman back to their side just as Minato-sensei instantly knocked out the two Amegakure ninja.
Rin clapped her hands.
"As expected of Kakashi! So reliable!"
Young Obito was practically fuming, glaring at Young Kakashi as if he wanted to bite him.
Rin quickly comforted him.
"Obito was great too! You successfully drew their attention!"
"Rin…"
Both Young Obito and Adult Obito felt a bit embarrassed. That method of drawing attention really was hard to be proud of.
"It was excellent teamwork!"
Rin's earnest gaze made the three members of Team Kakashi feel awkward doubting how much sincerity there was in that enthusiastic praise.
Minato Namikaze dragged the two Amegakure ninja into the shadows. Adult Kakashi used a small Earth Release technique to dig a pit, tossed the two ninja inside, and hastily covered them up.
"Concealing the bodies will delay the enemy from discovering them," Minato Namikaze said with a smile, turning it into an impromptu lesson for the three children of Team Kakashi, who had grown up in an era of peace.
At the same time, he began laying out their strategy.
He looked at Adult Obito.
"Obito, you're certain that Danzō Shimura was involved in this back then, right?"
Adult Obito nodded.
"Danzō Shimura didn't want the hatred to end here. So he joined forces with Hanzō of the Salamander, who also distrusted Akatsuki. They believed that once Yahiko was killed, Akatsuki would collapse."
They never could have imagined what Akatsuki would become in the future.
—All S-rank missing-nin.
Just ask whether Hanzō of the Salamander and Danzō Shimura would be afraid of that.
Minato Namikaze continued,
"If that's the case, we can obtain concrete evidence of Danzō interfering in another country's internal affairs. We'll hand it to my counterpart in this era and the Third Hokage and bring down Danzō Shimura and his Root organization in one move."
Naruto looked thrilled, brimming with enthusiasm.
Sasuke, Sakura, Young Obito, Young Kakashi, and Rin felt the same way.
Minato turned to Sasuke Uchiha.
"Sasuke, your progress in genjutsu has been remarkable lately. This is a perfect chance to put it to use."
Young Sasuke straightened immediately.
"What do you need me to do?"
He held deep respect for the Fourth Hokage and was determined to perform well on any mission Minato assigned.
Minato Namikaze said,
"You, Naruto, and Sakura will use Transformation Techniques to disguise yourselves as Kirigakure ninja and Konan, and continue Hanzō of the Salamander's plan. If you run into trouble, you'll need to use your Sharingan to restrain the Amegakure ninja. Can you do that?"
"Yes," Sasuke Uchiha answered firmly. "Ordinary ninja won't be a problem."
As long as he didn't run into Danzō Shimura or Hanzō of the Salamander, Sasuke Uchiha might lack experience, but the power of his Mangekyō Sharingan was more than enough to handle the situation.
"Obito, Rin, and Kakashi," Minato said as he looked at the teenagers from his team. "The three of you will stay inside Obito's Kamui Space. On one hand, be ready to support Team Kakashi at any time. On the other, find a way to obtain evidence of Danzō Shimura interfering in Amegakure's internal affairs."
"No problem!!" Young Obito adjusted the orange goggles attached to his Konoha forehead protector. "I'll use my camera to photograph all of his crimes!"
Thankfully, all ninja tool pouches were waterproof. Otherwise, if his little instant camera had been soaked and ruined by the rain, he really would have cried his eyes out.
Rin smiled warmly. "It's all thanks to Naruto helping Obito win that camera in the lottery before. It's come in very handy!"
Rin always seemed able to find something to praise, helping teammates who lacked confidence see their own value.
Hearing that, Young Obito felt even more grateful to Minato-sensei's son, while once again lamenting his own bad luck and Naruto's ridiculous good fortune.
"Kakashi is the only jōnin here," Minato continued after a brief pause. "If anything comes up, Kakashi, you'll be the one making the call."
"Yes!" Young Kakashi accepted the order and asked, "Then what about you, Minato-sensei?"
Adult Kakashi answered his younger self, "We're going to stop Obito from this era."
The six youths fell silent all at once. The torrential rain poured down over them, leaving only the sound of water striking the ground and everything around it.
No matter how many parallel worlds they had crossed, this was still something they couldn't fully come to terms with.
"Alright," Minato Namikaze said, pulling everyone back together. "We'll stop the 'Masked Man.' Now go carry out your tasks."
…
Minato Namikaze, Adult Kakashi, and Adult Obito departed together, following the Eight Ninja Dogs.
Young Kakashi and the others watched as Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura transformed into two Kirigakure ninja and Konan. After confirming there were no issues, they had their Young Obito bring himself, Rin, and the unconscious Konan into the Kamui Space.
But then something rather awkward happened…
Normally, boys mature later. In the end, it was Naruto Uzumaki, not even thirteen yet, who used the Transformation Technique to become an Amegakure ninja and insisted on carrying Sakura Haruno, who had transformed into Konan.
After only a few steps, Naruto was already panting heavily.
He complained that Sakura was too heavy and immediately got punched.
"Switch!"
Sakura jumped off Naruto and transformed into one of the Amegakure ninja instead.
Huh?
Then who was supposed to turn into Konan?
"How about Rin?" Naruto suggested.
Sakura rejected it outright. "Konan was poisoned by Hanzō of the Salamander. Rin is treating her right now."
"Then…"
Naruto noticed that both Sakura and Sasuke were glancing his way.
"Why not Sasuke?!"
"You're shorter. That means you're definitely lighter than me, idiot."
Sasuke's brutal three-hit combo dealt a critical blow to Naruto's fragile self-esteem, and Naruto nearly lunged at him to bite him.
Sakura stopped him just in time. "Even though I'd rather carry Sasuke-kun myself, Naruto, aren't you really good at turning into a pretty girl? Hurry up, don't delay the mission!"
And so, under the threat of Sakura's fist, Naruto transformed into Konan's appearance and was about to be carried by Sasu—
Sasuke had originally planned to carry Naruto, but Sakura beat him to it.
"I'll do it. Sasuke-kun probably isn't stronger than me."
Bang—
The laws of cause and effect were merciless. The young pride of the Uchiha clan's second young master, weighed down by an idol image worth three tons, was stabbed clean through, and the person responsible had no idea she'd done it.
Inside the Kamui Space, Rin and the others couldn't help but see reflections of their own past selves in Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke. Their personalities weren't exactly the same, but the way they bickered while trusting one another made them nostalgic for their own era.
…
Meanwhile, the Eight Ninja Dogs were leading Adult Obito, Adult Kakashi, and Minato Namikaze through the rain at full speed.
At the same time, the Akatsuki members from the future, caught in the middle of the downpour, were still completely bewildered, unable to understand how they had suddenly gone from Konoha to the Land of Rain.
***
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