Outside Amegakure.
Lightning illuminated the dark clouds.
A long time later, the rumble of thunder came from behind the clouds.
As the lightning flashed, Yōkō saw Amegakure on the opposite side of the great lake.
He was greatly disappointed.
In the original work, under Pain's rule, Amegakure had tall buildings with tubular structures, the entire village encircling the great lake, turning it into an inner lake.
The current Amegakure didn't even occupy one-third of the lake's shoreline.
This great lake was the very one where Konan had hidden six hundred billion explosive tags in the original work.
Amegakure was not only small, but the village also had no tall buildings whatsoever; the structures were simple and crude, filled with a sense of decay from years of neglect.
Under Hanzo's rule, Amegakure was barren, dilapidated, and lifeless in the heavy rain.
Who knows what the Demigod of the Shinobi World is doing.
Two people arrived successively using Body Flicker Technique from the direction of Amegakure.
The one using Water Body Flicker was Hanzo; the other person was Danzō.
Danzō had reached Amegakure first; it seemed he had already reached some agreement with Hanzo.
Hanzo saw the strange look in Fox's eyes as he gazed at Amegakure and frowned.
Is Fox actually scrutinizing Amegakure, evaluating whether he can attack it?
Yōkō withdrew his gaze and spoke first: "Lord Danzō, I have arrived."
Danzō was very satisfied with Fox's attitude and said:
"Uchiha Madara is a rogue ninja of Konoha. He has also established a force with several powerful subordinates.
Uchiha Madara's rogue ninja organization has brought great trouble to Amegakure.
During the Second Shinobi World War, Hanzo showed mercy to Tsunade and the other two, releasing them and demonstrating sufficient goodwill.
Pursuing rogue ninjas is Konoha's unshirkable responsibility. We must help Amegakure eliminate Uchiha Madara and his rogue ninja organization.
Fox, Hanzo and I have reached a consensus.
Uchiha Madara is proficient in Wood Release and Susano'o. You will use Wood Release to deal with Uchiha Madara.
As for Uchiha Madara's subordinates, Yahiko, Uzumaki Nagato, and others, will be handled by Hanzo and me."
Danzō stared at Fox, unsure just how compliant he would be.
Yōkō calculated inwardly, You certainly haven't considered Obito as a variable, have you?
What you will face is not just Uzumaki Nagato and Tobi, but also Uchiha Obito.
Yōkō, of course, would not remind Danzō.
He acted very hesitant, very conflicted. After a long time, Yōkō said:
"Lord Danzō, Lord Hanzo, I will deal with Uchiha Madara. However, do you have any intelligence on Uchiha Madara's whereabouts?"
"We do." Hanzo visibly relaxed.
Fox's Wood Release already bore some resemblance to the First Hokage's; he was a strong shinobi capable of confronting and killing Tailed Beasts head-on.
If Fox had refused, Hanzo would have continued to be a turtle hiding in its shell.
Danzō also breathed a sigh of relief.
Cooperating with Hanzo, he knew Hanzo's strength was considerable even among Kage-level shinobi. This way, he could avoid many dangers.
Hanzo threw a scroll to Yōkō. When Yōkō opened it, he saw a map.
A red circle was marked on the map.
Hanzo said: "Uchiha Madara has been hiding in the Land of Rain for years. I haven't been completely idle.
This location is Uchiha Madara's hiding place.
Yahiko and Uzumaki Nagato are currently in the southeast of the Land of Rain, seeking support from the nobles there.
Fox, go and intercept Uchiha Madara. We will take care of Uchiha Madara's subordinates."
Yōkō calculated inwardly.
If Nagato is outside, then Tobi, Obito, White Zetsu, and the others should be by Nagato's side.
The Rinnegan is too important; it's the foundation for controlling the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path.
"Alright, I will go intercept Uchiha Madara."
Yōkō vanished using Body Flicker Technique.
After Fox had gone far away, Danzō said to Hanzo:
"To be safe, we should deal with the Uzumaki remnants only after Fox and Uchiha Madara have engaged in battle."
Hanzo nodded, thinking, As expected of Danzō, he's overly cautious, refusing to act until he sees the prey.
Danzō added: "Konoha is helping you deal with Uchiha Madara and his rogue ninja organization. We cannot return empty-handed.
Whether it's the Rinnegan of the Uzumaki remnants or Tobi's Mangekyō Sharingan, these spoils of war belong to me."
"Of course. I only want to kill the leader of the Akatsuki organization, Yahiko," Hanzo said:
"I have no interest in Dōjutsu. Even if I obtained them, they would be useless. Unlike you, guarding so many Uchiha in Konoha Village, you must have done quite some research on Dōjutsu."
Danzō did not continue on this topic and instead said:
"The foundation of our cooperation is solid enough; there's no need for such boring tests."
The two disappeared into the heavy rain.
—
In the southern part of the Land of Rain, Yōkō led the White Ram Squad as they moved through the rainforest.
—
At the foot of the Yoshoka Mountains, Uzumaki Kaichō and Uzumaki Genchō were moving swiftly.
They had received intelligence that Danzō was heading to the southeast of the Land of Rain. They were to find Danzō's trail for Fox.
Their strength was far inferior to Danzō's; even if they found him, they were no match for him.
However, Uzumaki Kaichō held a kunai in his hand—Fox's Flying Thunder God Kunai.
Yōkō's reaction speed was not as good as Namikaze Minato's; he couldn't use the Flying Thunder God with god-like proficiency in battle, but for travel and movement, it was extremely convenient.
As long as they found Danzō, Yōkō could appear at any time.
The rain continued to fall incessantly.
Yōkō and his group arrived near the destination indicated by Hanzo.
Yōkō placed a finger on the ground and soon detected a strange large tree.
The part of the tree above ground appeared normal, but underground, the tree's roots had a wooden gall over a hundred meters in diameter.
That wooden gall was likely Uchiha Madara's underground base.
Yōkō hid behind a tree, carefully observing that particular tree.
The tree's crown even had two bird nests, seeming utterly unremarkable.
Just as Yōkō prepared to investigate further, a long, narrow fissure appeared in the tree's trunk.
The inside of the fissure was pitch black, like a slender eye.
Yōkō knew he was exposed. Seeing no point in further disguise, he stepped out from behind the tree and walked openly towards the large tree.
From within the tree fissure, a Wood Dragon emerged.
On top of the Wood Dragon stood the figure of Uchiha Madara.
He still had gray-white hair, a wrinkled face, and leaned on his scythe.
What was different was that Uchiha Madara was extremely excited. Upon seeing Yōkō, he violently swung his scythe, pointing it at Yōkō, and shouted:
"Top Transformation: Buddha! You obtained Senju Hashirama's Top Transformation: Buddha after killing the abbot of the Fire Temple!"
"I did not!" Yōkō immediately denied:
"I did not kill the abbot of the Fire Temple. Uchiha Madara, don't make false accusations!"
Uchiha Madara let out a cold laugh and said:
"The blood in my entire body is boiling once more.
Come, Fox! Let me witness the Top Transformation: Buddha again!
Let me see just how much of Senju Hashirama's power you, this rat hiding in the Konoha Anbu, possess!"
Red Maple Wood Release and Green Leaf Wood Release collided together, the rainforest filled with the eerie cracking sounds of wood growing!
In the distance, a Salamander infiltrated the rainwater, sending the message of the battle's outbreak back to Hanzo.
"Uchiha Madara and Fox have engaged! Quickly! We must deal with Uchiha Madara's subordinates as soon as possible!"
Upon receiving the message, Hanzo and Danzō immediately set off for the southeast of the Land of Rain to find Uzumaki Nagato.
***
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(End of Chapter)