[Besides Tendo Pain, Nagato also has five other puppet Paths, each with their own unique abilities. And the strength of the other Akatsuki members is not to be underestimated either. As the strongest antagonistic group in the Shinobi World, their early appearances were exceptionally brilliant. The Jinchuriki of various villages were easily handled by them, and their power won them countless fans.]
The screen continued with the introduction, quickly flashing scenes of Akatsuki members capturing Tailed Beasts with overwhelming force.
The night was quiet in the Land of Wind.
A giant bird made of clay soared through the sky. On the bird's back, the blonde-haired youth Deidara grinned widely, casually tossing a white clay doll from hand to hand. The specific battle details were skipped; instead, the scene changed to show a figure clutched in the giant bird's talons.
The shinobis of Sunagakure looked closely and were shocked to discover that the captured youth had the character "Love" on his forehead. His identity was immediately clear.
"GAARA—!!"
Rasa abruptly stood up, slamming his hand through the desk before him. His expression was nearly out of control, making it impossible to tell whether he was angrier about the One-Tail being captured or about his own son's unknown fate.
---
Inside a dim cave, blue flames flickered.
Matatabi, the Two-Tails, let out a piercing, mournful howl. Its body was tightly entangled by countless pitch-black tentacles, and no matter how it struggled, it could not break free.
Soon, the light of a sealing Jutsu shone, and Matatabi's chakra was forcibly extracted. Yugito's body collapsed like a marionette with its strings cut.
"Yugito!"
A's lightning chakra, agitated by his intense emotions, leaked out uncontrollably, crackling loudly.
"Akatsuki…"
He suddenly punched the wall. Stone fragments flying, and a massive crater appeared in the wall.
"I'll tear them apart one by one!!"
---
Land of Water, Kirigakure.
In the center of a vast lake, ripples spread across the water.
Isobu, the Three-Tails—resembling a giant turtle with three tails—slowly surfaced. It seemed to sense something and looked around vigilantly.
In the sky, a giant clay bird circled leisurely. Deidara sat on the bird's back, casually dropping a few clay dolls below.
Violent explosions sent towering waves across the lake's surface. Isobu, barely able to demonstrate its power before being disoriented by the chain of explosions, slowly sank to the bottom of the lake with its massive body.
Mei's face turned ashen. The other hidden villages at least had their Jinchuriki captured, but when it came to Kirigakure, there wasn't even a Jinchuriki—a stark reflection of the village's current predicament.
The only consolation for Mei was that Isobu had not yet been reborn due to the death of the Fourth Mizukage, so for now, the Akatsuki couldn't capture it even if they wanted to.
---
Land of Earth, near an unnamed forest.
Light rain fell from the sky. The Four-Tails Jinchuriki, Rōshi, lay collapsed on the ground. Kisame stood over him, Samehada still dripping blood. The shark-like man wore a satisfied smile.
Nearby, Itachi stood silently. He hadn't even needed to fight, merely watching it all. His dark eyes held no emotion whatsoever.
"RŌSHI!!"
Ōnoki's roar shook the entire office. Kitsuchi stood to the side, expression equally grim.
The Five-Tails, Six-Tails, Seven-Tails… One Jinchuriki after another was captured. One tailed beast after another was sealed. And the members of Akatsuki appeared in turn, showcasing their terrifying abilities.
Until—the scene of the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki, Killer Bee, being captured appeared.
Fighting against him were four young people wearing the same Akatsuki uniform.
Leading them was a youth holding a Kusanagi sword. Behind him followed a red-haired girl, a muscular man wielding a large blade, and a young man with a gloomy expression.
Team Hebi.
Kakashi's eyes suddenly widened.
"Future Sasuke... his strength is already strong enough to capture the Eight-Tails?" Kakashi muttered.
He looked at the Sasuke on the Sky Screen, then turned his head to look at the Sasuke beside him. A complex mix of emotions welled up in his eyes.
Were these two even the same person? The gap in strength was just too vast.
But what shocked Kakashi even more was another detail—Sasuke's attire.
A long robe with red clouds on a black background—exactly the same as the Akatsuki's uniform.
But just now, when the Sky Screen had introduced the Akatsuki members, Team Hebi hadn't been included. Could they be a one-time mercenary arrangement for a single mission?
Sasuke, however, looked at the screen with a face full of pleasant surprise. His future self was actually this strong?
But... that outfit.
Sasuke quickly noticed it too—his future self was wearing the Akatsuki's uniform!
His heart immediately tightened.
Why?
He knew that Itachi was also in the Akatsuki. So what had his future self gone through?
Why join the Akatsuki?
Why wear the same clothes as that man?
"Sasuke!"
Naruto's voice pulled him back to reality.
"What's wrong? You look terrible."
Sasuke turned to look at Naruto, his expression filled with confusion.
"Naruto, say... why would my future self join the Akatsuki?"
Naruto blinked, then scratched his head.
"This... I don't know either, but your future self must have his reasons."
Sakura didn't even know how to respond. For a moment, Team 7 fell into an eerie silence.
---
Hiruzen and Jiraiya stood side by side at the window, watching the rapidly flashing scenes on the Sky Screen.
Now, they finally understood Nagato's true purpose for coming to Konoha—the Nine-Tails.
"Looks like our village is the most valued, huh? Fighting against every village in the Great Ninja Wars, and in the future, the Akatsuki's leader himself comes personally."
Hiruzen took a deep drag from his pipe and let out a bitter smile.
"The Jinchuriki of other villages were subdued so easily. The Akatsuki's strength is far greater than we imagined." Jiraiya's voice was strained.
"At least the Sky Screen has exposed this. Now the other villages will also feel a sense of crisis. At least we won't have to bear this burden alone."
"It's just a pity there's no detailed combat footage of the Akatsuki members. With more intelligence, they'd be easier to deal with," Hiruzen said with some regret.
After all, the biggest factor in shinobi battles was intelligence. Unless you have reached the level of the God of Shinobi, a battle was a battle of information.
A prime example was Jiraiya. It was said that once he had precise information, there was no one in the world he couldn't defeat.
Hearing Hiruzen's words, Jiraiya's face lit up with joy. He grabbed his teacher and shook him.
"Intelligence! Right, intelligence!! Old man, you're right. Most Akatsuki members are S-rank missing-nin from various villages. Their respective villages should be very familiar with their abilities and strengths. We can share intelligence!"
Hiruzen's eyes also lit up at that, but then his expression became troubled. He paced back and forth in the Hokage office with his hands behind his back.
Itachi was actually a fake defector—his real purpose was to infiltrate the Akatsuki and monitor them. What if he exchanged Itachi's personal information with other villages... and Itachi ended up getting killed?
Wouldn't that become an international joke!
Jiraiya watched as Hiruzen, who had been so happy just a moment ago, suddenly fell silent. He knew there must be some hidden reason.
But since the old man wasn't saying, he couldn't be bothered to ask.
*****
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