Hokage's Office.
Thanks to the convenience of the Flying Thunder God, Shinju brought Naruto here in an instant as soon as he received the message.
Behind the desk, Tsunade had clearly been waiting for some time. When she saw the two arrive, she greeted them briefly before going straight to the point.
"According to Konoha's Anbu investigation, Pain is dead. But Akatsuki's activities haven't stopped."
"The members scattered across the world are still continuing their hunt for the Tailed Beasts."
Shinju nodded. He had guessed as much when he saw the Rinnegan vanish.
Tsunade continued, "Behind Akatsuki, there's still an unknown leader hidden in the shadows."
"Shinju, Naruto, the two of you have already clashed with Akatsuki members before."
"So I want to assign this investigation to the both of you. What do you say?"
Hearing the new mission, Shinju and Naruto exchanged a glance.
This was clearly Tsunade realizing that the two of them wouldn't stay in the village for long, so she deliberately issued this kind of mission.
No time limit, no specific target—essentially giving them official permission to travel at the village's expense.
Conveniently, the two had already planned to leave soon to meet up with Sasuke and investigate the matter of Itachi.
One more mission wouldn't hurt!
"Alright."
Shinju and Naruto both nodded, choosing to accept this task that would normally give regular shinobi a headache.
"You can decide the time frame yourselves. But any new intel on Akatsuki—you must send it back to the village immediately," Tsunade instructed.
Shinju and Naruto nodded, showing they understood.
After leaving the Hokage's office, the two went home and treated themselves to a good meal.
After dinner, Shinju headed out as promised to the small forest outside the village.
There, Konohamaru was already waiting, brimming with excitement. When he saw Shinju arrive, he couldn't hold back his enthusiasm.
"Shinju, you finally came! Let's get started already! ❛‿˂̵✧"
Shinju nodded and began a new round of training.
For the next few days, the two met at the same time every day in the forest outside Konoha to practice.
With Shinju's near-broken level of teaching ability, Konohamaru managed to grasp the basics of the Rasenshuriken in just three days.
"From here, all you need is diligent training—you'll be able to master it."
"What do you mean? Don't tell me you're leaving again?"
Konohamaru's voice carried reluctance.
Shinju nodded. "Yeah."
"Will you come back?"
Konohamaru clearly misunderstood and said with some sadness,
"Even if you're no longer a Konoha shinobi in the future, you'll always be my niichan! (｡ì _ í｡)"
Shinju: (ー_ー)!!
"What are you thinking?! This time I'm leaving because of a mission issued by the Fifth Hokage!"
Realizing his mistake, Konohamaru scratched his head sheepishly.
"Oh… so that's it…"
"Then after you leave, I'll train hard on my own!"
"The next time we meet, I'll make sure my growth surprises you! ୧⍢⃝୨"
The corner of Shinju's mouth lifted in a small smile.
"Alright. I'll be looking forward to that day."
...
The next day.
Shinju and Naruto packed their things early and arrived at Konoha's main gate.
At some point, a large crowd had gathered there.
Standing at the front, Jiraiya stepped forward and patted Shinju on the shoulder.
"Take care out there."
Shinju nodded. "Don't worry."
After greeting Hinata, Kiba, Neji, and the others they were close with, the two finally walked out of Konoha's gates.
In the morning sun, the steel fortress beside the village gleamed with a metallic shine.
...
According to their plan, the first step after leaving Konoha was to meet up with Sasuke.
"I thought Sasuke would be waiting for us outside the village," Naruto said.
"We've stayed in the village nearly half a month. Sasuke can't just sit around waiting all that time," Shinju replied helplessly.
Naruto suddenly brightened, asking excitedly,
"Wait, didn't you leave a Flying Thunder God mark on Sasuke? If you did, we could just teleport straight to him! ୧⍢⃝୨"
Shinju ┓( ´∀` )┏: "I forgot when we parted ways. -_-||"
"So how do we find him now?" Naruto's shoulders slumped.
"Let's go to a bounty station. We can buy intel from information brokers about Sasuke's recent movements—and maybe even track Akatsuki's activity." Shinju suggested.
Naruto nodded, agreeing it made sense.
Soon, the two arrived at a bounty station in a small town in the Land of Fire.
To avoid drawing attention, they disguised themselves.
Then Shinju spent a hefty sum to purchase the latest intel on Sasuke and Akatsuki's recent movements.
After reviewing it, Shinju said, "Turns out Sasuke is still in the Land of Fire."
At a nearby table, a group of men were in heated discussion about Shinju's exploits.
"Hey! Did you guys hear what happened in Amegakure recently?"
"That guy Shinju is unbelievable! In an instant, he turned the whole village into a sea of trees!"
Another added, "I actually crossed paths with him once, at the bounty station in the Land of Demons. Almost got caught and turned in for a reward! (||๐_๐)"
"Embarrassing stuff like that, you should keep to yourself."
"They say after the Amegakure incident, Shinju's bounty shot up to 3.2 billion ryo! He's now at the top of the list!"
"Yeah, but who could actually survive long enough to collect it…"
"Aren't you guys curious who raised the bounty? Shinju killed Pain, who was a menace. That should've been cause for celebration."
"Probably those big ninja villages pretending to be allies… and the displaced shinobi from Amegakure too."
After listening to their chatter, Shinju and Naruto left the bounty station.
Shinju began to reflect—maybe he hadn't thought things through enough during the Amegakure incident.
He should've lured Nagato out and killed him separately…
But that guy was so well hidden. Without tearing apart the entire Amegakure, there was no way to find him…
"What are you thinking about? Aren't we going to find Sasuke?" Naruto asked, patting Shinju's shoulder.
Shinju raised his head. "Let's go."
...
Somewhere in the Land of Fire, deep in the border forests.
Having just received intel on Itachi's whereabouts, Sasuke led his squad quickly toward the location.
Suddenly, Karin, the sensory type, stiffened. "There's an unusual chakra signature nearby!"
The next moment—
Flap flap flap—
A flock of crows flew before them, merging into a humanoid form.
Itachi Uchiha appeared.
The squad instantly pulled back in alarm.
Sweat formed on Suigetsu's forehead.
"So this is Sasuke's brother, huh… the pressure is unreal."
Karin pouted. "Compared to Shinju, he's way off! ╮(￣▽￣)╭"
Beside her, Sasuke reached for the hilt of his newly acquired sword.
But Itachi ignored their movements, smiling faintly as he greeted,
"Sasuke. You've grown a lot these past years."
"Fight me one on one!" Sasuke growled through clenched teeth.
Itachi raised his hand. "My foolish little brother… you want to find me and end it all with your own hands, don't you?"
"Come to the Uchiha clan's stronghold. I'll be waiting there…"
----------------
Pls Drop some Power Stones
+100 chapters and support me on Patreon(.)com/Jixo