"Uchiha Madara has disappeared."
At the top of the tower in Amegakure, Konan, her expression grave, delivered the news to the Deva Path of Pain.
There was not the slightest change in Pain's face. Only the faint, eerie violet glow within his Rinnegan intensified.
He stood in the rain for a long while before speaking slowly,
"It seems he encountered a troublesome opponent. But with his abilities, even if he was defeated, he wouldn't die so easily. Most likely he was gravely injured and is now recovering somewhere."
Konan remained silent. Her intuition told her things were not as simple as Nagato made them sound.
Pain did not continue discussing "Uchiha Madara." Although it was "Madara" who had guided him and Konan onto this path, he had never truly trusted the man. In fact, he had always been wary of him.
Now that "Madara" had vanished, he actually felt somewhat relieved. In his view, the Akatsuki had already taken shape. Each member possessed formidable strength, and with him—wielder of the "God's Eyes"—as their leader, the loss of one "Uchiha Madara" would not greatly affect their future plans.
However, Kirigakure had recently been giving off an ominous vibe. To be safe, Nagato decided to alter the first target of the Tailed Beast retrieval plan. For the time being, they would avoid provoking the jinchūriki of the great ninja villages and instead begin with those wandering outside village control.
Over the years, Nagato and Konan had prepared extensively for the Tailed Beast retrieval plan. From establishing Amegakure as their base to rebuilding the Akatsuki, the effort they invested was beyond measure.
But beyond infrastructure, they had never neglected the most important thing—intelligence. Detailed information on every jinchūriki in the ninja world had long since been gathered and entrusted to Konan.
Through the Deva Path, Nagato voiced his thoughts.
After a brief moment of contemplation, Konan selected what was currently the most suitable target: the Six-Tails' jinchūriki, Utakata—the rogue ninja of Kirigakure.
According to intelligence, since defecting from Kirigakure, Utakata had been active mainly in the region controlled by the Tsuchigumo clan. Among all jinchūriki who were not under village protection, he was the easiest to locate.
Nagato naturally supported Konan's decision. After confirming the target, Konan asked who should be sent for the mission.
Nagato narrowed his eyes slightly and said in a low voice,
"The first mission must succeed. I will go personally."
Konan gave a slight nod.
"You're not suited for independent movement. I'll go with you."
"Mm."
...
Elsewhere, Carl, Lily, and Kaguya descended upon Sunagakure.
The moment Lily stepped out of Yomotsu Hirasaka, she frowned and waved a hand dismissively.
"This place has such a terrible environment!"
Her displeasure was understandable. Of the Five Great Ninja Villages, Sunagakure's environment was the harshest. Surrounded by desert, the air was dry and filled with blowing sand. It was no wonder Sunagakure was the poorest and weakest among the five—at one point nearly swallowed by Kumogakure.
Seeing Lily's discomfort, Kaguya also knit her brows slightly.
Carl casually raised a hand. A faint white barrier spread out, enveloping the three of them and shielding them from the sandstorm.
To Carl's surprise, Lily flashed him an unexpectedly charming smile.
Carl blinked. Is she on her period or something…?
Of course, he wasn't foolish enough to say that aloud. Instead, he smiled and said,
"You ate the God Tree's fruit too. You can use this ability as well."
Lily pouted.
"Too much trouble. Isn't that what you're here for?"
Carl looked at her in surprise.
"Since when did you learn to lie flat?"
Lily didn't understand the slang at first—and naturally misunderstood it in an entirely different direction. A faint blush crept onto her face as she snorted.
"What? You don't like it when I lie flat?"
"Uh… that's not what I meant. I just didn't expect a world-conquering strong woman like you to lie flat so quickly…"
"You're really something—taking advantage and still acting innocent! Wasn't the world already yours? And aren't you the one who made me lie flat?"
Carl thought, When did I ever say that?
Still, her words put him in an excellent mood. It meant Lily was gradually giving her heart to him.
What he didn't realize, however, was that they were having two completely different conversations. This time, Lily was the only one speeding down the highway.
Kaguya quietly watched their playful banter, a faint smile and trace of envy in her eyes.
Suddenly, Carl looked down and pointed at a spherical sand fortress below.
"Kaguya, the One-Tail is inside there, right?"
Kaguya blinked, sensing the One-Tail's chakra before nodding.
"Yes, it is. Can you now sense the chakra of the Tailed Beasts as well?"
Carl smiled.
"No. It's just that Sunagakure's jinchūriki is the most obvious target of all. He's practically the crown prince of Sunagakure."
"It seems you are quite familiar with Sunagakure."
Carl merely smiled without confirming or denying it. Then he led Lily and Kaguya down, landing atop the circular sand fortress—the Kazekage Building.
The moment they touched down, several Sunagakure ninja wrapped in turbans and face coverings surrounded them as usual.
This time, Carl didn't bother wasting words. He simply curled a finger.
The white barrier enveloping the three of them suddenly expanded outward before shrinking back to normal. The surrounding Sunagakure ninja rolled their eyes back and collapsed to the ground.
The disturbance quickly drew attention from inside the building. Before long, the current leader of Sunagakure—the Fourth Kazekage, Rasa—rushed up with a group of ninja.
Seeing his fallen subordinates, Rasa's eyes flashed with anger. But when his gaze shifted to Carl and the others, he froze. His expression gradually turned grave.
As a man bearing the title of Kage, his observational skills far surpassed ordinary ninja. In this sandstorm-filled environment, the way the trio's clothing moved was clearly unnatural.
The faint white barrier surrounding them was no simple technique. It appeared to be chakra released outward to block the sand—and the precision required to control chakra to such an extent spoke volumes about their strength.
Compared to Kumogakure and Iwagakure, present-day Sunagakure was still relatively weak. Without a solid foundation to rely on, Kazekage Rasa had no choice but to act cautiously.
Facing unknown powerhouses like these, he did not act as aggressively as the Fourth Raikage, immediately launching into battle. Instead, he spoke politely:
"I am the Fourth Kazekage, Rasa. May I ask who you are? And what business brings you to Sunagakure…?"
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+80 chapters on p@treon/tambeerg