Just as Obito was about to leave,
A venus flytrap emerged beside him.
When it opened, Black Zetsu was unmistakably inside.
"Any situation?"
Obito asked in a deep voice.
In front of Black Zetsu, who knew his true identity, he didn't need to use Tobi's voice to disguise himself.
"According to what White Zetsu detected, Takumi has appeared in the Land of Demons with the Nine-Tails' Jinchuriki. This is an opportunity."
Black Zetsu said in his uniquely deep voice.
"..."
Obito pondered, analyzing the pros and cons.
Takumi being outside Konoha was indeed an opportunity.
But to ensure they could kill Takumi, they would inevitably need to mobilize most of the Akatsuki's manpower.
Just him and Black Zetsu certainly wouldn't be enough.
Although the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki was also very tempting, after calmly thinking it over, he gave up on Black Zetsu's proposal. "Forget it. Let's focus on the Three-Tails for now. Have you located it?"
"Not yet."
Black Zetsu shook his head.
Obito said, "Find its whereabouts as soon as possible. Also, don't forget that the locations of the other Tailed Beasts are the next priorities."
"Understood."
Black Zetsu finished speaking, closed the venus flytrap, and burrowed into the ground.
"What a pity. This is too far from the Land of Rain."
Obito looked towards the Land of Demons.
Takumi had left Konoha alone, without any backup, which was a perfect opportunity to kill him.
And the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki was also with him.
If they could capture the Nine-Tails, the Tailed Beast Capture Plan would advance significantly.
But the timing was just so inconvenient.
They wanted to capture the Tailed Beasts step by step.
Disrupting the plan rashly might cause even more trouble.
They had already suffered too many losses at Takumi's hands.
Next time they faced Takumi, they would absolutely have to be two hundred percent focused.
He silently melted into the darkness and disappeared from the spot.
The night returned to calm.
Like the calm before a storm.
At some unknown time, it would erupt with earth-shattering sounds.
…
After a good night's sleep,
The next morning, Takumi slipped out of Koyuki's tent before dawn, avoiding everyone's line of sight.
Reunited after so long, Koyuki couldn't bear the loneliness in her heart and, regardless of the many people around, still boldly invited Takumi into her tent.
When day broke,
Everyone immediately packed up and prepared to depart.
"How leisurely."
Sitting in the carriage, spared from the bumps, Shion's face was full of mockery. "Every country is being attacked by Moryo, many people are sacrificing themselves, and we're just slowly moving along?"
There wasn't a single word of complaint in her words, but anyone could hear that they were filled with dissatisfaction.
Only Naruto didn't catch it.
Only Shion and Koyuki, the two girls not good at physical activity, were in the carriage.
The others were following outside the carriage, guarding it.
Hearing Shion's words, Naruto immediately said, "You think it's slow? But the carriage is already going as fast as it can, and it's not even that slow."
What Naruto said was true.
This carriage was carefully selected by the Director. The horses pulling it were extremely robust. Even pulling the carriage and two girls, they ran very fast and had great endurance.
Although definitely slower than Shinobi moving at full speed, it wasn't far off.
"Hmph!
Shion rolled her eyes. "Idiot."
She really didn't want to deal with Naruto, this brain-dead guy.
She did think it was slow.
But was she complaining about the carriage being slow?
It was the entire journey being too slow.
As the Miko, she knew her duty too well.
Thinking that because of her, so many innocent people in various countries were dying at the hands of Moryo, she couldn't bear it.
Although Shion seemed cold on the surface, she was actually a very kind child.
Her outward coldness was because she had seen too many people around her die because of her since childhood.
Whether it was escaping, or thinking that as long as they weren't involved with her, those people wouldn't die,
She gradually used coldness to disguise herself.
Now, the disguise had become a habit.
But those who knew her well knew what she was truly like.
So, people like Taruho would vow to protect her, even at the cost of their own lives.
Even knowing their own death had been foretold, they still came to her without hesitation.
Neji was also a bit puzzled by the slow pace.
'Although the carriage wasn't slow, we would still arrive at the Land of Swamps later than if we hurried.
'The situation at the front was still unclear. Shouldn't we reach the sealed place in the Land of Swamps as soon as possible and reseal Moryo?'
"Takumi-kun, I don't quite understand."
He moved closer to Takumi, running through the trees, and asked his question. "Why are we deliberately slowing down?"
"If I said it was to accommodate the uncles filming the movie, would you be angry?"
Takumi turned back and said with a smile.
Neji's expression froze for a moment.
Although he thought Takumi couldn't possibly be doing it for this reason, suddenly hearing this answer, he inevitably felt quite angry.
After all, compared to the mission to seal Moryo, the mission to film a movie was far too insignificant.
He never thought this could be the reason.
"Is it really because of the filming?"
Although Neji didn't believe it, he still asked.
He wanted to know the exact answer.
"It would be lying to say it has nothing to do with it."
Takumi's answer made Neji's eyes widen.
Neji hadn't expected it to actually be related to the filming.
"But it's just a convenient coincidence."
Takumi said with a smile. "If you're worried about the front lines, there's no need."
"What do you mean?"
Neji suppressed his doubts.
"This time, upon detecting signs of Moryo's revival, every country will definitely be on full alert."
Takumi explained. "So, they will surely dispatch a large number of Shinobi to hold back the enemy's invasion."
"And the strength of those terracotta soldiers..."
Takumi paused, looking for a reference to indicate their strength.
"Terracotta soldiers?"
Neji asked confusedly. "What are those?"
"They are a kind of puppet, formed from earth under the control of Moryo's power."
Takumi explained. "They don't fear death, only advance and never retreat. They are strong, but their agility is weak."
"If we're talking about strength, they're probably about the same as Naruto's Multiple Shadow Clones."
This explanation was very concrete, giving Neji a clear idea.