In the direction of the Land of Earth.
Yagami Light looked at Gari of the Explosion Release fallen on the ground, his face showing no emotion.
If he remembered correctly, this person seemed to have been reincarnated via Edo Tensei during the Fourth Great Ninja War, and had apparently died at Hiruko's hands in the last two years; he hadn't expected to be the one to take him down now.
Yagami Light even felt a bit sorry for him; he couldn't escape death no matter what.
Ignoring them afterward, he looked at his hands and sighed, "The Shapeshifting Technique truly is miraculous!"
It's a bit like being possessed by a powerhouse from a fantasy novel.
Unfortunately, this was likely a Ninjutsu exclusive to the Rinnegan; he hadn't researched much about it, only knowing it was a technique related to spiritual energy and the soul.
"What a pity. If only I had more time."
As his voice faded, Yagami Light's consciousness completely vanished from this body. Lacking the maintenance of spiritual energy, the body swayed and fell heavily to the ground.
In the direction of the Land of Lightning.
Deidara stood atop his Explosive Clay Bird, looking down at Nii Yugito, who had already fully entered her Tailed Beast state.
At this moment, the giant cat demon surrounded by blue flames looked up at Deidara in the sky and opened its massive maw. Violent Chakra converged in its mouth, transforming into a Tailed Beast Ball enveloped in blazing fire.
Deidara's expression changed as he watched the Tailed Beast Ball take shape. This move wouldn't be easy to take; he had to interrupt it.
His hands quickly formed seals, and taking a deep breath, he spat out a large amount of Explosive Clay.
Following his movements, the clay rapidly expanded, turning into a hideous giant clay dragon nearly a hundred meters tall.
Then, he held two fingers upright in front of him, a smile playing at the corners of his mouth.
"Let's see if a Tailed Beast can block my C2, hmm!"
Then, the clay dragon flapped its wings and charged toward the Two-Tails.
"C2 Dragon, Katsu!"
"Boom—!!"
A massive explosion tore through the sky, and a blinding white light instantly swallowed the entire battlefield.
Smoke and rubble soared into the sky, and the earth shook violently, as if the entire mountaintop had been forcibly overturned, leaving only a churning mushroom cloud slowly expanding against the horizon.
The smoke gradually dissipated, leaving behind only devastated, scorched earth. On the broken rocks and blackened ground, the residual heat of the explosion and the pungent smell of gunpowder still lingered.
Deidara stared at the situation on the ground, his eyes narrowing, with no joy on his face.
"I've been played!"
There was no sign of the Two-Tails in the field. It seemed she didn't want a head-on confrontation; that Tailed Beast Ball just now was a smokescreen.
At that moment, five hundred meters away from the center of the explosion, a protective shield condensed from Magnet Release slowly lowered, revealing Sasori's figure.
"Hey! Deidara, are you trying to kill me too?"
He had just been playing cat and mouse with Darui when Deidara suddenly pulled that move. If he hadn't brought out the Third Kazekage at the critical moment to use Magnet Release for protection, he might have been blown to pieces as well.
"Don't be like that, Sasori-danna. What about your opponent? Did he run away too?"
"Yeah. He was saved by that cat. They had no intention of fighting to the death at all."
Sasori then put away the Third Kazekage puppet. "Let's go. Time to report back to the leader."
Konoha Village.
"You're saying Amegakure is the Akatsuki Organization's headquarters? Then what about Hanzou?"
Tsunade's face was filled with shock. That was Hanzou the Demigod; even now, in her prime, she wouldn't dare claim to be a match for that old man.
"He's probably dead. The guy was old, and I don't believe he'd willingly hand over power."
"Besides, putting everything else aside, do you think Hanzou could keep those unruly rogue Ninjas in check?"
Tsunade's expression tightened. It was true. Just from what they knew now, there were two S-rank rogue Ninjas, Uchiha Itachi and Kisame Hoshigaki, plus the famous Kakuzu from the black market, and Orochimaru, who had already left.
Tsunade didn't think Hanzou could keep them in line, not even in his prime.
Aoki Yoru then pulled a scroll from his robes and handed it to her. "This is the mission report."
"You already know the intel on Uchiha Itachi and Kisame Hoshigaki. As for that Kakuzu, his ability is truly bizarre. According to Yui's report, he seems to have five lives, and I suspect he can replace his hearts at any time."
"In that case, unless he's dealt with all at once, he can restore his five lives whenever he wants."
Tsunade's face darkened at the words. Trying to kill a Kage-level powerhouse five times was practically a fantasy unless the opponent refused to flee, which was impossible. Only her eldest grandfather could have pulled that off.
"I'll arrange for the Anbu to investigate."
She then smiled. "You've worked hard this time. If it weren't for you, anyone else might not have made it back."
Flap, flap—
A messenger owl appeared on the desk. Tsunade took the intel from its leg, broke the seal, and read it.
She frowned unconsciously, then looked up at Aoki Yoru. "The investigation team Sunagakure sent to the Land of Rain was wiped out. However, their final message stated it was the work of the Hidden Mist's S-rank rogue Ninja Zabuza and an Ice Release Ninja."
Aoki Yoru wasn't surprised at all. "That's normal. Since the Akatsuki Organization already has many rogue Ninjas, it's not strange for them to recruit Zabuza."
Tsunade nodded, her brow furrowing even deeper. The combined strength of the members they knew was already formidable. To put it bluntly, if the Akatsuki attacked Sunagakure with their current lineup, the village might not be able to stop them.
Aoki Yoru ignored the pensive Tsunade and walked straight out. Lately, he'd been either conducting experiments or dealing with Akatsuki-related matters; he'd been constantly on edge and needed a good rest.
Nao, who was boredly folding paper, looked up with a delighted expression at the sound of the door opening. She immediately ran out of the room and threw herself at Aoki Yoru as he walked in.
"Brother Yoru, you're back! I haven't seen you in so long."
Aoki Yoru rubbed her head. "Sorry, I've been busy lately and didn't have time for you."
Nao shook her head. "Brother Yoru is a high-ranking official in Konoha; you must have a lot of things to do."
Then she became a bit fidgety, looking as if she wanted to say something but was hesitating.
Aoki Yoru looked at her curiously. "What's wrong? Just say it, Nao. Brother Yoru will grant whatever you want."
Nao took a deep breath and said, "I want to go to school. Chino has already signed up and passed the selection; she's going to the Ninja Academy in two days. I want to go too."
Aoki Yoru was stunned. He hadn't expected this. In his mind, Nao wasn't supposed to go until next year; after all, it was better for children to play for another year.
But it didn't matter. Kakashi had started school at four, and Nao was almost six, so going now was fine.
"Sure. I'll take you when school starts in a few days," Aoki Yoru said with a smile.
Although the registration and selection were over, with his current status, it was just a matter of a single word.