For the next two months, Diarmuid remained with Sasori at the secret base, delving into the secrets of the Sharingan and other related mysteries. While the days were quiet, they were undeniably fascinating. The outside world was a whirlwind of chaos, yet the Third Shinobi World War seemed unable to touch them.
As Diarmuid had suspected, while Sasori might not have been interested in mastering conventional ninjutsu, his analytical approach was incredibly intriguing, and his grasp of foundational knowledge was rock-solid. Sasori was, after all, someone capable of conducting high-level research alongside the likes of Orochimaru. His expertise was more than enough to guide Diarmuid through the introductory stages of shinobi science.
Having been out wandering for some time, Kakuzu finally returned today. Though he looked travel-worn, the faint glint of a smile in his eyes made it clear he had raked in a significant amount of cash.
Neither Diarmuid nor Sasori knew that rumors of the Third Kazekage's passing were now rampant. Sunagakure's genius puppeteer, Sasori of the Red Sand, had officially been reclassified from "missing" to an S-rank Rogue Ninja. For the longest time, people assumed both the Kazekage and Sasori had met with some mutual disaster. It turned out that Sasori had turned traitor and assassinated the Third Kazekage!
Furthermore, over these two months, the Great War had escalated to even more violent heights. The Land of Water, which had previously stayed on the sidelines, finally entered the fray and declared war on the Land of Fire. The two nations were now engaged in relentless clashes along the southeastern coastline of the Land of Fire.
As it stood, the Land of Fire was not yet at war with the Land of Wind, but the other three Great Nations—Lightning, Earth, and Water—had all declared war on them. Konohagakure was essentially forced to face the combined might of Kumogakure, Iwagakure, and Kirigakure simultaneously.
Fortunately, the other nations were also in a state of mutual carnage. While Iwagakure fought Konoha, it was also attacking Sunagakure and Kumogakure. Kumogakure was fighting on three fronts as well, having initially struck Sunagakure before getting bogged down with both Konoha and Iwagakure. Only the Land of Water, having recently joined, was focused primarily on a single front against Konoha due to its geographical isolation from the mainland.
With all Five Great Nations now fully committed, the entire shinobi world had dissolved into utter pandemonium. It had to be said that Kumogakure's surprise raid on the Hidden Sand had been the spark that set the entire war zone ablaze.
"What's with the getup?" Kakuzu asked, looking at Diarmuid with a trace of surprise. He sensed a subtle change in Diarmuid, something he couldn't quite put his finger on. Then, Kakuzu's eyes widened. Wait... his height? Diarmuid seemed to have shrunk a bit?
When they first met, the man was nearly 230 cm tall, but now he didn't look nearly as out of place.
Noticing Kakuzu's dazed look, Diarmuid chuckled. "What do you think? Don't I look like I've had a complete change in temperament? I'm no longer just the boss of an Exchange Point in the Land of Bears, but a scientist contributing to the advancement of humanity."
Diarmuid gave a self-satisfied half-turn. He was now wearing a pair of plain-glass spectacles that slightly softened his heroic, martial aura, making him look more like a refined gentleman. He had also traded his usual white short-sleeves and military boots for a crisp white lab coat. From a distance, he radiated an air of "education."
"If you're going to change your image, at least be consistent. You look half-baked," Kakuzu remarked, glancing at Diarmuid's waist.
The "refined gentleman" look was indeed undercut by the fact that Kokorowatari was still strapped to his side. It looked bizarre, yet if one stared long enough, it gave off a mysterious, formidable vibe.
"You don't understand fashion," Diarmuid said with a dismissive wave. "So, why are you back?"
"I've got a job. I can't handle it alone," Kakuzu replied.
Diarmuid nodded, but before he could speak, Kakuzu continued, "Before I came back, I stopped by the Land of Bears. It's strange, even though you've been gone for so long, your Exchange Point hasn't gone under. In fact, business is booming. They've accumulated a lot of money, which I've brought back with me."
"Is that so?" Diarmuid was surprised. When he left, he hadn't explicitly stated he was quitting the lucrative "Exchange Point Boss" industry. Given how that place was a den of vipers, he'd expected someone to move in and take over the moment he turned his back.
"How is your research going? Did that guy finish the Sharingan Human Puppet? You probably don't know yet, but two formidable Uchiha have appeared on the battlefield: Fugaku and Shisui. That Shisui kid is only about ten years old, but he's incredibly dangerous. He's been scouring the land for information on Kagami... Heh." Kakuzu laughed.
"Why is he looking for Kagami?" Diarmuid asked, curious. Plenty of Uchiha had died on the battlefield, after all.
"Apparently, Kagami was his uncle and the person who raised him," Kakuzu explained. These were just battlefield rumors; he couldn't verify their truth.
Diarmuid paused. There's such a connection? He honestly hadn't known. It seemed he had made a mortal enemy out of Uchiha Shisui. He wondered if the kid had awakened Kotoamatsukami yet. Surely Kagami's death might have triggered it? But then he realized that even if he'd killed Kagami, it wouldn't immediately involve Shisui. Let the kid have his fun for a few more years; eventually, Danzo would handle the "harvesting."
"You haven't told me yet. How is the research?" Kakuzu asked again.
"Not great. My mood is fine because I've learned a lot, but Sasori is getting quite irritable. He's failed dozens of times. Kagami's body, which was once perfectly preserved, is now full of holes. I doubt it can withstand much more experimentation," Diarmuid said, clicking his tongue.
Indeed, despite Sasori's extraordinary talent for the Human Puppet technique, the hurdle of creating a Sharingan Human Puppet was proving difficult to overcome. He had failed repeatedly. While the puppet made from Kagami's corpse could move and use the ninjutsu he knew in life, the Sharingan remained inert, completely blind.
Sasori had tried every solution he could think of, but all ended in failure. He was now in a foul mood, teetering on the edge of a mental breakdown. Kagami's corpse had been put through the wringer and couldn't survive much more "creative" tampering. For all intents and purposes, this specific research project was a total failure. This was the price of developing new jutsu and technology. It didn't just happen with a snap of the fingers.
"What about the Sharingan themselves? Did he ruin them?" Kakuzu asked quickly.
"No, the Sharingan were well-protected. They are the most important part, after all," Diarmuid replied, shaking his head.
"Good. Don't let him break them," Kakuzu said seriously.
Diarmuid: "???" What does this have to do with you?
"You're not planning to sell them for cash, are you?" Diarmuid asked, incredulous.
Kakuzu looked at him strangely. "You guys can't figure out a use for them, so why keep them? As decorations? Or do you want to transplant them yourself? Isn't that disgusting? Since they're useless to you, I might as well sell them. You have no idea what the Great Nations are willing to pay for Kekkei Genkai like the Sharingan or the Byakugan. They're rare treasures. Even Konoha would pay a fortune just to buy them back and destroy them."
Diarmuid's eye twitched. He stared at Kakuzu and thought: What right do you have to call a Sharingan transplant 'disgusting'? You've got five other people's hearts shoved inside you!
He didn't say it out loud, though. Instead, he waved it off. "Forget about selling the Sharingan. I'll find a real talent to continue the research later. They're not for sale."
"I'll give you twenty percent of the cut..." Kakuzu hesitated.
"I wouldn't sell them even for eighty percent," Diarmuid rolled his eyes. As far as ownership went, both the eyes and the body belonged to him since he was the one who defeated Kagami. Sasori had technically "bought" them from him via the contract money given to Kakuzu, but now that Sasori was done, the "rights" reverted back to the third-in-line: Diarmuid.
Kakuzu was greedy, but he wasn't about to turn on Diarmuid over a pair of eyes. Seeing that Kakuzu was still persistent, Diarmuid changed the subject. "Anyway, enough nonsense. You said you had a job you couldn't do alone?"
"That's right," Kakuzu nodded, dropping the Sharingan issue.
"What is it?"
"A matter involving the Land of Earth and the Land of Lightning. Kumogakure has pushed through the Land of Waterfalls and invaded the interior of the Land of Earth. It seems Iwagakure's situation isn't great. Onoki is looking to hire some high-level shinobi to help handle the problem."
Kakuzu paused for emphasis. "The reward is very high!"
Diarmuid didn't ask about the exact amount; instead, he began to process the information. The Cloud invading the interior of the Land of Earth?
He recalled something similar. It was a campaign led personally by the Third Raikage. They thought they were making a smooth invasion, but in reality, it was a tactical trap set by the master strategist Onoki. Onoki sacrificed some ground to lure the Cloud shinobi into a desperate corner. Ultimately, to buy time for his subordinates to escape, the Third Raikage fought alone against ten thousand shinobi. He died on the soil of the Land of Earth, defeated by Iwagakure.
Kumogakure was fighting on multiple fronts, but with the escalation of the war, their operations against the Sand were actually winding down. In contrast, their pressure on Konoha was increasing, led most notably by the A-B Brothers—the future Fourth Raikage and Killer B. Those two were slaughtering their way through Konoha's forces until Minato eventually stepped up to turn the tide.
If his memory served, they were at that exact stage. Soon, the Third Raikage would be lured to his death in the Land of Earth. Following his sacrifice, Kumogakure would be forced to shift from an offensive stance to a strategic defense. One could say the Third Raikage's death in the Land of Earth was the direct catalyst for Kumogakure's eventual defeat in the Third Shinobi World War.