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Kirigakure.
"Mizukage-sama!"
A Kirigakure Anbu knelt before Mei Terumī, his voice respectful.
Mei inquired, "What is the situation regarding Uchiha Kagaya? Has there been any response?"
The Anbu lowered his head in reply. "There has been no reply so far. Their group has sailed out to sea. While I have dispatched people to track them, we may lose their trail at any moment."
Mei narrowed her eyes, contemplating for a moment. "Your previous report stated that Uchiha Kagaya is currently in a state of unconsciousness, correct?"
The Anbu confirmed.
"Yes, Mizukage-sama!"
Mei fell silent, deep in thought. Should she...?
After a while, a smile touched Mei's lips.
"Never mind. Let it be. You are dismissed."
"As you command!"
With that, the Anbu vanished.
Mei returned to her paperwork, lowering her head.
A moment ago, she had been considering whether to sixteen this opportunity to obtain a pair of Sharingan eyes.
Ao had acquired a Byakugan, proving just how formidable the Kekkei Genkai of Konoha's dōjutsu clans were. Therefore, Mei reasoned, the Sharingan, renowned as the equal of the Byakugan, couldn't be far behind. Acquiring a pair would be a tremendous boon.
But ultimately, she decided against it. What if, during her attempt, Kagaya recovered his strength? That would be disastrous!
Kagaya, allied with Orochimaru, had crippled even Konoha. Could her small Kirigakure withstand Kagaya's wrath?
This was a question Mei dared not contemplate too deeply.
Thus, she chose to let it go.
Just as Kagaya had once thought, in this world, only Karin, Haku, and Itachi were the ones who would never harm him. Most others approached him solely for their own gain.
Orochimaru was like that. Mei Terumī was like that. Zabuza was like that. Obito was like that.
Upon the open sea, Kagaya slowly opened his eyes.
He had regained consciousness several days ago, but his body was far from fully recovered. Now, as he opened his eyes, he saw neither the blue sky nor the wooden planks of the boat. He didn't know what he was seeing—it was all a blur.
At present, Kagaya's left eye had turned a dull gray, his right eye a pale, faded gray.
He knew with absolute certainty: three more times, at most. If he dared activate his Mangekyō just three more times, these eyes would be utterly, irrevocably blind. Three times might even be an overestimation. Perhaps one or two more activations would be enough.
"Caw—Caw—"
Kuro, perched on Kagaya's shoulder, cawed twice.
A faint smile appeared on Kagaya's lips. He turned his head. He could no longer see Kuro clearly, but fortunately, Kuro seemed to understand. Every time he landed on Kagaya's shoulder, he did so at the exact same spot with unerring precision.
Kagaya reached out a hand, stroking Kuro gently.
"I'm not hungry, Kuro."
The caw had been Kuro's way of asking if he was hungry. During these days at sea, Kuro had even learned to catch fish, though, thinking about it, that wasn't too surprising in this shinobi world.
After speaking, Kagaya sighed. His plan to transplant the eyes needed to begin immediately.
The problem was, for the past several days, both Karin and Haku had steadfastly refused to perform the operation. In Kagaya's current severely weakened state, they dared not undertake such a major procedure.
But Kagaya understood, based on his original knowledge, that Sasuke's Eternal Mangekyō was transplanted by Obito, and Madara's seemed to have been transplanted by himself. Neither possessed exceptional medical skills. From this, it could be inferred that the risk associated with the eye transplant and evolution into the Eternal Mangekyō shouldn't be excessively high.
However, Kagaya knew this, but Karin and Haku did not. Even if Kagaya patted his chest and assured them the risk was minimal, they wouldn't agree.
Kagaya realized he needed to find someone else. But who would help him?
Orochimaru seemed a potential candidate. But Kagaya would absolutely never seek him out. Orochimaru's desire for the Sharingan was written plainly on his face. If Kagaya asked him to perform the transplant, he suspected Orochimaru might simply steal his eyes. This wasn't a joke; Kagaya believed Orochimaru was fully capable of such an act.
So, excluding Orochimaru, who else was there?
Itachi. He could potentially do it. But after leaving the Akatsuki, Kagaya had lost all means of contacting him.
Suddenly, a name came to Kagaya's mind—Tsunade!
He had invaded Konoha. There was no way Tsunade would agree to help him transplant his eyes.
Aim! Tsunade was currently addicted to gambling. She might not even know about Konoha's invasion yet!
Perhaps he could use this timing to find Tsunade and ask for her help!
If, in the end, Tsunade also refused... then he would have no choice but to use every possible means to force Karin to perform the transplant.
Kagaya then called Karin and Haku, informing them of his decision to return to land.
Half a month later.
Orochimaru's hideout.
Orochimaru stared at his purple, lifeless hands, his expression dark. 'Damn it all. What kind of wretched state is this?'
He wished he could Edo Tensei the Third Hokage back just to curse him out for three days and three nights. Unfortunately, the Third had been sealed by the Dead Demon Consuming Seal and was beyond summoning.
'I can't afford to lose my hands. I must find someone... Let me think... Who can heal these hands...'
Orochimaru allowed a thin smile. In terms of medical ninjutsu, in his opinion, there was one person who stood unparalleled in the shinobi world. And conveniently, that person was his former teammate.
Of course, Orochimaru was well aware that this person was highly unlikely to heal his hands willingly. Therefore, he had prepared a suitable Trump card.
The Edo Tensei... and Dan Katō!
Invoking these two things should be enough to make Tsunade submit.
The Edo Tensei could bring the dead back to life. And Dan Katō was Tsunade's deceased lover.
Konoha.
Jiraiya had, naturally, been selected as the temporary acting Hokage.
While it would have been perfectly reasonable for Jiraiya to assume the Hokage title outright, he had no desire for the position. Thus, he only accepted the role of "Acting Hokage."
As for the permanent Hokage, Jiraiya had already settled on a candidate: Tsunade!
He planned to venture out and bring her back to become Hokage!
Unfortunately, Konoha's current problems were far too numerous. Jiraiya couldn't possibly leave at the moment. Even searching for Tsunade would have to wait for some time.
Compared to the original timeline, this time Konoha had lost not only the Third Hokage but also the three elders Danzō, Koharu, and Homura. The issues were overwhelming. Realistically, Jiraiya wouldn't be able to leave for at least three months.
Even if everything was perfectly stable, Jiraiya needed to remain in the village for a significant period to reassure the populace and maintain order.
Unknown to Jiraiya, the two individuals responsible for Konoha's current devastated state were, coincidentally, both beginning their own searches for Tsunade.
In the original story, Orochimaru and Jiraiya found Tsunade at roughly the same time. This time was different. Jiraiya was unable to search for Tsunade now. The ones seeking her out were Kagaya and Orochimaru!
This greatly increased the possibility of Tsunade agreeing to perform the eye transplant for Kagaya.