At the temporary camp in the Land of Birds:
The allied forces' earlier pursuit had naturally failed. Itachi, Jūzō Biwa, Sasori, and Deidara had vanished without a trace after shaking off the allied forces' surveillance.
The subsequent search across the entire Land of Birds yielded no clues.
Later, the Third Tsuchikage arrived first, followed by the Hidden Mist reinforcements led by Terumī Mei, who reached the Land of Birds after a long journey.
With this, the allied forces of the five great shinobi villages reunited, marking the end of the brief period of peace in the shinobi world following the Grass Country War.
Inside the command tent:
The leaders of the reinforcements from each village gathered for a high-level meeting.
Looking at the compiled intelligence from various sources, the Third Tsuchikage, Ōnoki, had a grim expression.
Both of his village's Jinchūriki had been captured, and all intelligence leads had come up empty. The Akatsuki's actions had shown no regard for Hidden Rock, effectively slapping Ōnoki in the face in front of the entire shinobi world.
The Fourth Kazekage, still recovering from his injuries, represented Hidden Sand at the meeting.
His pale complexion couldn't hide the fury in his heart. If his earlier failure to stop Hiruko and the others could be attributed to asymmetric intelligence, his defeat at Sasori's hands was an indelible stain on his record.
This failure not only shamed him personally but also brought disgrace to the entire Hidden Sand Village.
Kakashi's expression was solemn.
Having participated in the entire operation, he had personally experienced the Akatsuki's terror and had a clear understanding of the dire situation.
Terumī Mei remained silent.
This was mainly because Hidden Mist had arrived late, missing all the previous battles, so she felt it wasn't her place to speak at this moment.
Seeing everyone silent, the hot-tempered Fourth Raikage slammed the table. "Is this how you hold a meeting?"
The Third Tsuchikage spoke up, "Everyone, the Akatsuki's attack was meticulously planned. They won't stop, and their next target will be your village's Jinchūriki. To thwart their ambitions, we must wage all-out war against the Akatsuki and take back the Four-Tails and Five-Tails from their hands!"
Terumī Mei, representing Hidden Mist, declared, "Before departing, Lord Mizukage authorized me to speak for Hidden Mist. I now express Hidden Mist's support for a full-scale campaign against the Akatsuki!"
The Fourth Kazekage slowly raised his hand. "Hidden Sand agrees!"
Kakashi said, "I don't have the authority to represent Hidden Leaf, but I believe in Lord Hokage's determination to maintain peace in the shinobi world!"
The alliance of the five great shinobi villages had been spearheaded by Hidden Leaf, so Kakashi's words were straightforward. He lacked the authority to make this decision, but once the message reached the village, the Hokage would surely agree.
The Fourth Raikage added, "Hidden Cloud also supports an all-out war against the Akatsuki!"
"Excellent!" The Third Tsuchikage's grim face finally showed a hint of satisfaction.
With consensus reached, they began discussing the next steps.
The immediate priority was to rescue the two Jinchūriki captured by the Akatsuki, which involved both intelligence and operations.
The Third Tsuchikage proposed, "I suggest that each village share all the intelligence they've gathered on the Akatsuki! The Akatsuki can't have appeared out of thin air—it must be hiding somewhere in the shinobi world. If the five great shinobi villages share all their intelligence without holding back, we'll surely find a lead on the Akatsuki!"
The others nodded in agreement.
Kakashi recalled the Third Hokage's subtle warning to avoid Hidden Rain Village before departing, suspecting that Hidden Leaf's leadership must have some knowledge about the Akatsuki.
The Fourth Raikage added, "There's a rogue shinobi from Hidden Waterfall Village in the Akatsuki, and Hidden Waterfall also has a Tailed Beast. We should rally all the minor shinobi villages to contribute their forces and manpower for the peace of the shinobi world!"
The Third Tsuchikage agreed, "Indeed, if we can bring that old man Hanzō over, our chances against the Akatsuki will be much greater!"
A single minor shinobi village couldn't compare to the five great villages.
But if all the minor villages were mobilized, they would form a considerable force, especially a village like Hidden Rain, which was known to have a top-tier shinobi.
Of course, the shinobi world at this time was unaware that Hanzō, known as the 'Demigod,' had been dealt with by Nagato years ago.
The Fourth Raikage smiled. "If we can bring Hanzō on board, our chances of victory will greatly increase!"
The Fourth Kazekage asked, "I've heard Hanzō maintains strict neutrality, neither interfering in external affairs nor allowing outsiders to meddle in the Land of Rain. Will he join our alliance?"
The Third Tsuchikage snorted, "With the combined pressure of the five great shinobi villages, even Hanzō will have to bow his head!"
Listening to the discussion, Kakashi's expression grew slightly heavy.
The Third Hokage's mention of Hidden Rain Village was not without reason, so something must have happened there. Either Hanzō, the legendary 'Demigod' who gave rise to the fame of the 'Legendary Sannin,' was already dead, and the Akatsuki had seized control of Hidden Rain, or Hanzō himself was the mastermind behind the Akatsuki.
Sharing intelligence, rebuilding the allied forces, and mobilizing all shinobi villages.
Under the immense threat of the Akatsuki, these topics, which would have been impossible to agree on in the past, were swiftly finalized in this simple military tent.
After the meeting, Kakashi immediately returned to the Hidden Leaf shinobi camp.
Seeing Kakashi return, the Hidden Leaf jōnin gathered around him. Asuma was the first to ask, "How did the meeting go?"
Kakashi briefly summarized the meeting's contents and then announced, "Pack your gear. We're returning to Hidden Leaf now."
The Akatsuki had demonstrated astonishing strength in this operation, proving that a hastily assembled shinobi army was insufficient to counter their threat. To deal with the Akatsuki, the five great shinobi villages needed to mobilize a formidable force.
With the Akatsuki members' trail now lost, there was no point in the temporary allied forces lingering in the Land of Birds.
Moreover, each village's shinobi army either needed rest or reinforcement, so the meeting had passed a resolution for each village's forces to return to their respective villages for reorganization.
In Hidden Rain Village:
Konan ascended the high tower and spoke to 'Deva Path,' standing at its peak, "They've brought back the Four-Tails and Five-Tails Jinchūriki. Everything went smoothly!"
'Deva Path' nodded, casting one last reluctant glance at Hidden Rain Village below before saying, "Let's go. It's time to leave!"
Since all-out war was inevitable, it was only a matter of time before Hidden Rain Village, their stronghold, was discovered. Thus, Nagato had already completed the base's relocation before the operation, intending to be the last to leave Hidden Rain Village.