After hearing Madara's words, Tobi let out a sigh of relief, but his eyes held a deep wariness.
Was Madara's previous remark just a simple warning?
Or had he already begun to suspect him?
Tobi's body tensed. Either way, it was not good news for him right now.
His current strength was leagues below Madara's.
Tobi was now increasingly convinced that Madara was somehow behind Rin's death.
Yet, the more he suspected, the more respectful he acted towards Madara.
"Go."
Madara's calm voice reached Tobi's ears.
"Yes, Lord Madara."
Tobi gave a respectful nod, and a spatial vortex swiftly enveloped him before he vanished.
Without turning back, Madara's cold gaze remained fixed on a shinobi world map laid out before him.
After a moment, a thoughtful expression flickered across Madara's face.
He reached into a prepared stack of documents below and pulled out two pieces of intelligence.
On them were the basic profiles of Deidara and Sasori.
"The rogue ninja of Iwagakure and Sunagakure... an unexpected gain. It seems the plan will need to be adjusted."
A faint smile touched Madara's lips.
In a forest, Yuto and Konan walked with neutral expressions, leading a teenage boy in deep green clothes with a Takigakure forehead protector. He was Shibuki, the leader of Takigakure.
It had to be said that aside from Sunagakure's vast desert, the other major villages were all surrounded by dense forests.
In terms of environment, the forests of the shinobi world were in a class of their own.
After all, no matter the destruction, they still covered a huge portion of the world.
"This boy... is he really the leader of Takigakure?" Konan asked in a skeptical tone, her gaze on the nervous Shibuki ahead.
A village leader's strength might not need to be great, but they must possess certain qualities of leadership. Yet, Konan sensed none of that in the boy before her.
"If my information from Kirigakure's Anbu is correct, he is," Yuto said flatly, shrugging.
Hearing this, a faint trace of pity flashed in Konan's eyes. In the shinobi world today, a small village leader without a strong hand was a great misfortune for that village.
The entire shinobi world might seem peaceful, but it was nothing but a false illusion.
This peace would likely be shattered before long.
Just then, a beast's roar suddenly echoed from deep within the forest.
Shibuki, who was in the lead, froze. His face immediately broke into a panic, and he quickly turned and ran behind Yuto and Konan.
With a fearful expression, Shibuki peeked his head out from behind Yuto, looking cautiously ahead.
Yuto and Konan looked at him in astonishment. They could both feel that his fear was genuine, not an act.
At that moment, a giant bear, nearly twice the height of a man, emerged from the dense woods.
As soon as it appeared, its fierce gaze fell upon the three of them.
"You're a shinobi, right? It's just a normal bear. It shouldn't be a problem for you," Yuto said, turning to Shibuki behind him.
"B-but it's so huge!" Shibuki stammered, looking at the fierce bear before him. He shuddered and quickly lowered his head.
"A cowardly man," Konan said with a hint of disdain in her voice.
If this was what a village leader was like, she couldn't imagine the village's future.
A low growl came from ahead.
Seeing the three humans make no move, the bear's cautious demeanor vanished in an instant.
The next moment, the giant bear charged towards them.
Paper Shuriken!
Konan flicked her wrist, a paper shuriken formed instantly, and shot towards the bear.
A spray of blood erupted.
The shuriken pierced the bear's body.
Without even a chance to let out a cry, the bear fell to the ground, lifeless.
Only after seeing the bear die did Shibuki, who had been hiding behind Yuto, finally breathe a sigh of relief and step out.
"How much farther to our destination?" Yuto asked, his tone flat.
Shibuki paused, then said somewhat sheepishly, "We're almost there!"
Meanwhile, on a large tree some distance from Takigakure, dozens of shinobi stood silently in various positions, their eyes on two men and one woman at the center.
"Of everyone here, Shibuki, you're the only one who knows the exact entrance to Takigakure. I don't want you to lie to us. The consequences would be severe," a shinobi with a vicious expression said coldly.
"Hmph? Consequences?" the ninja, named Suimu, scoffed. "Don't look down on me just because I'm like this now. I'm the strongest ninja in Takigakure, after the former leader."
"Is that so? I'd love to test that sometime," another shinobi named Fū said with a cold smile.
As he spoke, the already tense atmosphere suddenly grew tighter.
"If I remember correctly, Takigakure has a Jinchuriki. That's a big problem. If we actually fight them, we might all lose our lives here," a woman in revealing clothes said, seeming to sense the shift. She licked her lips and her eyes landed on Suimu.
"Don't worry. The village doesn't suspect me yet. I'll lead the Jinchuriki away first. But Fū, don't kill too many people," Suimu said, leaning against the tree and staring at Fū.
"Reducing civilian casualties? How interesting. In the end, you can't bring yourself to attack your own village, can you?" Fū said with a mocking laugh.
Ignoring the taunt, Suimu's face remained expressionless. Or perhaps, it had always been that calm.
"It's not about that. Only the village leader, Shibuki, knows the exact location of the 'Hero's Water'."
"If we want him to reveal it, we'll need to take some villagers hostage."
Suimu stood up from the tree, cracking his neck. "It seems we have no choice."
Fū raised an eyebrow, a faint smile on her face.
"We'll split into two groups. One follows me into Takigakure to draw the Jinchuriki, Fuu, away."
"The other group will wait at the great waterfall outside the village entrance."
"I'm not sure when Shibuki will be back, but it should be soon. If we can capture him first, many problems will be solved."
Suimu looked at Fū and Yuto, laying out his plan.
Fū and Yuto exchanged a glance and nodded slightly. Suimu's plan was indeed the most reliable method for now.
After finalizing the plan, cold smiles appeared on their faces.
In the next instant, all the shinobi vanished from their spots, rushing off in two directions.
Meanwhile, with Shibuki as their guide, it didn't take long for the sound of rushing water to reach them.
Looking in the direction of the sound, a massive waterfall appeared before their eyes, a breathtaking sight created by several waterfalls of different sizes.
Beside a clear river below the falls, Konan looked up at the surrounding cascades, a hint of surprise in her eyes.
"No wonder few villages invade Takigakure. Even if you get here, without someone who knows the way, you'd never find the actual entrance."
Amegakure and Takigakure were both located at the junction of the three great villages.
Amegakure was at the crossroads of Sunagakure, Iwagakure, and Konohagakure.
Takigakure was at the crossroads of Iwagakure, Kumogakure, and Konohagakure.
Although their positions were similar, their situations were completely different.
Amegakure had no natural geographical advantage and was thus in a constant state of war.
This was why Konan was somewhat surprised to see Takigakure.
Such a special environment could spare Takigakure from most of its troubles.
"Thank you for escorting me this far. I've been a bother to you both," Shibuki said, stopping and turning to face Yuto and Konan with a hint of embarrassment.
"Does that mean you want us to leave?" Konan asked, her expression flat.
"It seems you're wary of us and don't want to reveal the village's entrance," Yuto said with an interesting smile.
Hearing their words, Shibuki's face changed, and he quickly backed away a few steps.
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