Half a month later, Amegakure, the Village Hidden in the Rain.
While Habara had been busy executing some of his plans, others hadn't been idle either. It should be said, certain conspiracies had been steadily and effectively advancing.
The scale of the Akatsuki organization was expanding, its manpower assembling.
Several days prior, Orochimaru had finally reappeared in Amegakure, marking his return to the organization. Simultaneously, Uchiha Obito's persuasive efforts had borne fruit; he brought back Uchiha Itachi, who had defected from Konoha.
At this moment, within a secret room deep inside Amegakure, all current Akatsuki members—save for Uchiha Obito—were gathered. This included Pain, Konan, Zetsu, Kakuzu, Hidan, Orochimaru, and the newly recruited Uchiha Itachi, recently ensnared by the pyramid scheme... ahem, organization. The purpose of this assembly? A meeting.
"You've all witnessed the recent upheaval in the Land of Fire," Pain began once everyone was present. "Considering the worst-case scenario, Konoha's Hokage has effectively consolidated all the resources of the Land of Fire under her control. Undoubtedly, Konoha will become even more formidable, which is clearly detrimental to our future plans."
Although they shared the same space, the members maintained significant distance from one another, a gap akin to the walls around their hearts. While not everyone here necessarily harbored ulterior motives, Orochimaru's thoughts, at the very least, remained inscrutable.
Orochimaru said nothing, his gaze sweeping across the room. His eyes lingered first on Uchiha Itachi, then paused on the Tendo Path puppet resembling Yahiko.
Nagato, hidden behind Pain, was highly sensitive to such scrutiny and immediately focused his attention on Orochimaru.
"...The organization has gained a new member, but it seems we're also missing one," Orochimaru offered calmly under the leader's gaze, seemingly explaining his wandering eyes.
Alright, this was actually a subtle act of submission. He obediently clarified why his gaze had been roaming—certainly not plotting anything nefarious, merely noticing the change in personnel.
"The new member is Konoha's Uchiha Itachi," the Tendo Path stated. "As for Tobi... he currently has his own mission."
The name Uchiha Itachi caused several heads to turn slightly. By now, news of the near-annihilation of the Uchiha clan had spread throughout the shinobi world, and Itachi's name, as the alleged perpetrator, had spread with it. Konoha's wanted posters served as indirect confirmation of these events.
Having deepened his understanding of the Uchiha clan, Orochimaru would no longer act rashly against Itachi. The saying goes, "fear the fists of the young"; in the shinobi world, it was better to provoke the old than to carelessly bully the young. Moreover, Orochimaru hadn't fully recovered yet and needed more time to lay low. He was currently in a state sufficient for self-preservation but lacking the capacity for aggressive action.
While the name Uchiha Itachi caused a flicker of surprise, the members didn't show excessive concern. After all, everyone here was proud and untamable. Wiping out the Uchiha clan? What was so impressive about that? As if they couldn't do the same—they simply hadn't had the opportunity for such a performance.
Thus, the conversation returned to the main topic. Hidan interjected with an accusation, "Speaking of which, didn't this whole thing happen because one of our people helped them out? No matter what, it's hard to imagine Konoha shinobi themselves dealing with the Fire Daimyo's entire clan, right?"
"Absurd," Kakuzu retorted immediately, refusing the blame. "If the Hokage harbored such ambitions, how could the Daimyo possibly stand in her way? Rather than letting them achieve their goal through other means, it was better handled by me. Besides, I brought back substantial funds for the organization's development."
From his perspective, Kakuzu's argument wasn't entirely baseless. If the events in the Land of Fire had been Konoha acting on collective will, then whether he took the mission or not wouldn't have mattered much. Who could have predicted beforehand that such a major undertaking was the unauthorized action of a single individual?
Hidan shrugged, saying no more, but it was clear he still believed Kakuzu had messed up. Given his propensity for trash talk, he normally wouldn't have let it go so easily. However, the presence of the Tendo Path forced him into silence.
Even someone who seemed utterly brainless like Hidan feared the might of Pain.
"But according to our understanding, the Fifth Hokage, Tsunade, isn't the type of ambitious person who would plan and execute a scheme to change the entire political landscape of the Land of Fire," Zetsu, half-black and half-white within his aloe-like casing, chimed in. "As the First Hokage's granddaughter, she arguably has no reason to disrupt the internal structure of the Land of Fire."
At this, the Tendo Path's gaze shifted back to Orochimaru.
Orochimaru mused for a moment, then said, "Tsunade indeed wouldn't do such a thing; she'd find it too troublesome… If I'm not mistaken, the central figure orchestrating this is likely a ninja named Habara."
He possessed no concrete evidence, nor did he necessarily believe Habara was truly responsible. Furthermore, based on Orochimaru's knowledge of Habara, the man had never shown any dissatisfaction with the Land of Fire's political situation. But none of that stopped him from pinning the blame squarely on Habara.
Miraculously, the accusation hit the mark.
Hearing Orochimaru's words, Uchiha Itachi's ears twitched almost imperceptibly, but he remained silent, like a puppet, not participating in the discussion.
Nagato had heard the name Habara before. He even seemed to recall a fleeting glimpse of him sometime during the Third Shinobi World War. More importantly, according to the "Masked Man's" reports, this Habara had repeatedly interfered with the organization's plans, including disrupting their attempt to recruit Akasuna no Sasori. In short, Habara was a ninja with his own agenda and posed a significant threat.
"The Fifth Hokage is just an ordinary ninja bound by rules and conventions," Orochimaru added. "In comparison, this Habara might bring far greater uncertainty."
"What do you gauge his strength to be, compared to yours?"
Nagato, viewing himself as a god, naturally wouldn't stoop to asking such questions. What significance was there in assessing others' strength? No matter how strong, they couldn't possibly surpass him. It was Konan who posed the question, seeking to extract as much intelligence as possible from Orochimaru.
"When I first met Habara near the end of the last great war, his strength was negligible," Orochimaru recounted. "But after a very short time, he had grown strong enough to participate in the Kazekage assassination mission. Later, he took part in the battle against the Nine-Tails and survived unscathed. By the time I left Konoha, his strength was comparable to mine. As for now… I suspect he is already far stronger than me. He is simply that kind of ninja—one whose power grows at astonishing speed."
He spoke mostly factually, at least based on his own understanding, offering what he considered a relatively objective assessment. Even if there were slight discrepancies with reality, they were likely minor enough not to affect Nagato's judgment.
"If he is likely to become an obstacle, then there's no need to allow him to continue growing stronger. Let's resolve this trouble quickly," the Tendo Path declared.
Although Nagato was confident in his own power, believing absolute strength rendered any interference futile, it didn't mean he was foolish enough to play the role of the villain who dies monologuing or lets the enemy power up unchecked. If a stumbling block could be easily kicked aside now, why wait until it becomes a devastating landslide later? Efficiency mattered.
Orochimaru smiled silently. He had laid the groundwork for this entire exchange, all leading up to his next sentence:
"Perhaps this matter could be entrusted to myself and our newcomer here. We are both ninja originally from Konoha and possess some understanding of Habara's strength and peculiarities."
Hmm, it was difficult to say who Orochimaru's real target was—Habara? Or his potential teammate?
Uchiha Itachi, however, was blunt and direct. "I am no match for Habara," he stated without hesitation. "Completing such an objective would be difficult."
Logically, a newcomer directly refusing a mission should increase the distrust surrounding him, but Itachi chose the path of sincerity.
"The leader may consider assigning other tasks to me. I guarantee there will be no issues."
"Hey, hey, Mr. Newbie! Lacking confidence one moment, blindly confident the next! Are you mentally stable? Or is this Habara guy really that terrifying?" Hidan, naturally, wouldn't miss such a prime opportunity for mockery. He'd mock anyone who spoke like that… except the leader.
Uchiha Itachi remained unmoved. "You are welcome to try him yourself."
"Fine! Then leave this mission to me! I won't fail!" Hidan declared, his confidence truly off the charts.
Honestly, given Hidan's unique condition, if he actually went after Habara, Habara could probably toy with him endlessly. With sufficient intel, Hidan's techniques weren't that hard to counter, were they? He might as well throw a shuriken from 800 miles away.
"Enough arguing," the Tendo Path intervened. "I will handle this matter personally. Soon, that ninja will cease to be a problem."
Since multiple members had attested to Habara's unusual strength, Nagato saw no need to send others to their potential deaths. He decided to deal with it himself.
News that Tsunade, the Hokage, had become the State Lord of the Land of Fire spread through the shinobi world like wildfire. In an instant, allied nations were shocked, neighboring countries terrified, and a state of heightened alert permeated the air.
The Land of Fire's system served as the template for the shinobi world; other nations had largely copied its structure. Now that the Land of Fire had changed its leadership structure, would this act as a political weather vane? If the Hokage could become the ruler of the Land of Fire, could the Raikage become the ruler of the Land of Lightning?
The thoughts of the various Kage were unknown, but the Daimyos of other nations reacted unanimously and immediately, jumping up and down in fury. Every single one of them sent formal diplomatic letters to the Land of Fire, declaring they would not recognize the Hokage's status as ruler of the nation.
This was a normal reaction, largely bluster with little actual impact. It amounted to little more than being scolded, and the target of the scolding was merely the "ambitious" Tsunade anyway.
The Land of Fire certainly wasn't going to change its State Lord due to the overreactions of other major powers. The next likely step for these Daimyos would be to order a severance of all ties with the Land of Fire. Still useless. The Land of Fire was the most prosperous nation on the continent; trade with it was a necessity. Prohibitions decreed by other Daimyos were almost impossible to enforce effectively.
Without military leadership, how much control did a Daimyo truly have over their nation? Could they command absolute obedience with a single order? They were likely living in a dream world.
This matter would likely just drag on. In any case, these affairs were unrelated to Habara.
Meanwhile, within Konoha (now functionally centered at the stronghold), a series of high-level structural adjustments were underway. The overall framework for these changes came from Habara's report. While it underwent modifications and refinements from various angles, the basic structure remained Habara's conception.
The arrangements made for him included favorable treatment, acknowledging his undeniable strength and contributions. However, after consideration, Habara ultimately declined the title of Advisor, transferring it instead to Daigo.
Granting Daigo high status was logical. Even without Habara yielding the position, she would have attained significant standing for a simple reason: while ninja have short lifespans, chakra life forms can live for a very long time. Daigo was poised to become a vital cornerstone of Konoha's future. As time passed, her importance might even surpass that of the Nine-Tails.
Thus, Daigo became an "Advisor" of Konoha, a member of the Hokage Advisory Council, holding a seat on the Meritorious Council, and serving as the supreme head of the "Three Systems," directly controlling the Integrated Information Thought Entity.
Habara also received a seat on the Meritorious Council, nominally positioned as Daigo's subordinate. His official title became Administrator of the Chakra Infinite Library.
Hatake Kakashi became the network administrator for the Flying Raijin Formula Network.
It seemed the Three Systems were being split, but in reality, Habara and Kakashi merely held titular positions. It made them sound important, but actual control remained firmly with Daigo.
This was also why Habara refused the Advisor role. Holding one key position within the Three Systems was sufficient; additional titles wouldn't increase influence, only attract unnecessary attention. As for whether the Advisor was Habara or Daigo—what difference did it make?
With this structure—Hokage -> Hokage Advisory Council (Daigo) -> Three Systems—the hierarchy became very clear. Simultaneously, the "Akakammuri" organization nominally ceased to exist, its other members integrated into various positions within the Three Systems.
Because the Land of Fire needed to construct a new capital, Konoha continued to transfer ninja here. As the new capital would be the Hokage's residence, the scale of ninja deployment was far larger than the previous minor reinforcements. To ensure the Hokage's safety, Konoha needed to dispatch personnel here en masse. It was foreseeable that, over time, the new capital's importance would only grow, while Konoha village, a hundred kilometers away, would gradually fade into the background.
That's just how bloodsucking works, unfortunately.
At this point, the developments had actually exceeded Habara's original expectations. His initial plan was for Tsunade to be Hokage in Konoha while he managed his own small stronghold here—possessing strength, independence, and autonomy. Wouldn't that be ideal? But Tsunade's willful decision had shattered that plan.
Habara considered the current situation. It wasn't bad. The upside was that the construction speed of the "stronghold" had drastically accelerated, almost becoming a blur. The downside was that the "stronghold" was no longer under his control.
However, he wasn't fixated on holding that control. Compared to the grand trajectory of the Land of Fire rapidly moving in the direction he envisioned, losing control of the base was an acceptable price.
On the third floor of 10 Shadow Leaf Street, Habara was helping set up the offices meant to house the "Three Systems"—one must fulfill the duties of one's position, after all. Glancing up inadvertently, he spotted a familiar figure walking down the outer corridor.
Habara was slightly taken aback; he hadn't expected this person to be here.
He quickly went out to greet her. "Lady Sarutobi, what brings you here?"
"Hm? Oh, Habara…"
"Lady Sarutobi," of course, couldn't possibly be Lord Hiruzen Sarutobi. It was Lady Biwako Sarutobi.