"They…"
Konan said softly, "They're all dead."
It was within his expectations. Itachi showed no strong reaction. Even if he felt something, it would be meaningless. It was better to focus on the core of the problem.
"They died fighting Hanzō and Danzō?"
He asked the question, but Itachi already felt the likelihood was low. If Konan and Nagato had truly met Yahiko and fought alongside him against Hanzō and Danzō, their reactions earlier wouldn't have been like that.
Nagato: "They died on the way to stop us."
Just as expected.
Itachi Uchiha formed hand seals. With a puff of smoke, he transformed into Kyūsuke's appearance.
"In that case," he said, "I think it would be best for us to disguise ourselves as them. We shouldn't alert the 'enemy.' Once they reveal themselves, we can catch them off guard and deal with them."
There was no need to spell out who the hidden enemies were.
Black Zetsu and the Masked Man.
Those two had abilities that made them impossible to track. Unless they chose to appear on their own, no one could find them, whether by digging them out of the ground or dragging them out of the Kamui dimension.
Kisame agreed with Itachi and turned to Nagato.
"What do you think? Should we do it?"
After a brief hesitation, Nagato nodded. What Itachi proposed really was the best option.
Catch the ones who killed Kyūsuke and the others back then. Stop them from preventing the original Akatsuki from coming to support him and Yahiko. Then rush to aid this era's version of himself and prevent Yahiko's death…
Deep down, he knew that even if Yahiko's death was prevented in this parallel world, it wouldn't change anything in his own world.
But when given a chance to go back, his body still wanted to act. No matter what, he wanted to try to change the outcome of that year.
At least in this parallel world.
He wanted—to let Yahiko live.
Boom!
Kakuzu transformed into Daibutsu's appearance.
Kisame, Deidara, and Sasori followed, and finally Nagato and Konan as well, each taking on the forms of the original Akatsuki members.
The scene shifted.
Amid the torrential rain, the second-generation Akatsuki racing forward all became indistinguishable from the first-generation Akatsuki.
They leapt through branches shrouded in rain and mist, having long since left the real original Akatsuki far behind. Without one or two full hours of nonstop pursuit, there was no way to catch up.
...
Meanwhile, on the other side, Minato Namikaze, Adult Obito, and Adult Kakashi were also rushing in the same direction. As they moved swiftly through the forest, Adult Obito shared more detailed intelligence while running.
"This route leads to the original Akatsuki base."
"Nagato and Yahiko went to meet Hanzō, not knowing that Konan had already been captured by Hanzō using underhanded methods. Members of their organization learned that Danzō crossed the border with an ANBU unit and realized something was wrong, so they tried to pass on a warning…"
Adult Kakashi glanced back at him. "They failed?"
Obito didn't hide anything. "I killed them. I couldn't control Nagato and stop him from feeling the pain of losing Yahiko. And Yahiko saw things clearly. The path he chose was different from ours…"
He paused briefly, then added, "Different from the me back then."
"But after going around in circles, you finally returned to the Obito who dreamed of becoming Hokage," Minato said, leaping to Obito's side and running alongside him, just like Kakashi.
He tilted his head slightly, looking at Obito's eyes filled with sorrow and guilt, and spoke softly.
"Obito really is…"
"…the one who loved Rin the most, right?"
"!!!!"
Obito was startled and nearly slipped in the heavy rain. "W-why bring that up all of a sudden?!"
Minato Namikaze turned his gaze forward again, watching the cold rain whipping toward them.
"But for Obito, the one he could never truly let go of…"
"…was always Kakashi."
This time, it wasn't even a question. Both Obito and Kakashi froze.
In the final stage of the battle against Kaguya, even after dying, he still went back to help Kakashi save the world that followed.
"I did that to fulfill my promise to Rin, to save the world in style. It wasn't to help that scarecrow stuck in the ground who couldn't even move. We're oil and water. We don't mix!"
"But in the end, didn't you still go back to help?" Minato replied calmly.
Obito stubbornly talked back, but in his mind, just like Kakashi's, the same question surfaced at the same time.
That question was—
Hadn't Minato-sensei never entered the illusion? Then how did he know about the future?
"Let's talk about the plan," Minato said. "When we encounter this parallel world's Obito, how do we restrain him so he can't escape?"
Obito said, "Besides this parallel-world me, Black Zetsu is also a major problem."
"Pull both of them into your Kamui space?"
"Black Zetsu is extremely cunning. I'm worried he'll deceive this world's me and leave part of his true body inside that Kamui space. Once we leave, Black Zetsu would still have a way to get out and continue causing havoc in the ninja world."
"So we need to strike by surprise, right?"
"Exactly."
"Alright, then next…"
With a puff of smoke, Minato Namikaze transformed into a Konoha ANBU.
Right after that, Kakashi also changed into the appearance he once had while serving in ANBU. Silver hair, a white cat mask, and a tall, lean build.
Seeing that neither of them gave him a choice, Adult Obito pouted, formed hand seals, and with a "poof" transformed into a relatively younger-looking version of Danzō Shimura from this era, dressed in Konoha ANBU attire.
Disguising themselves as Danzō's group was meant to avoid alerting the enemy.
At the same time, it would lower the guard of Zetsu and the masked man, allowing them to restrain Zetsu first. After that, they could find a way to reveal the truth to the masked man, who was this world's Obito Uchiha.
Things unfolded exactly as they had expected. Disguised as Danzō and two Anbu, Namikaze Minato, the Adult Obito, and the Adult Kakashi indeed encountered the Masked Man, Zetsu, on the road—someone who robbed lives but not money or women.
…
The perspective shifts to Akatsuki's side.
Itachi Uchiha, Kisame Hoshigaki, Deidara, Sasori of the Red Sand, Hidan, Kakuzu, Konan, and Nagato, all disguised as members of the original Akatsuki, were rushing through the torrential rain to chase after this world's Yahiko and Nagato, intending to warn them about the conspiracy between Hanzō of the Salamander and Danzō Shimura.
Suddenly, about ten meters ahead, a spiraling пространial vortex appeared.
A man whose head was wrapped in something emerged from the vortex, his face twisted into a grotesque, puckered shape.
Beside him, a massive aloe-like plant grew straight out of the ground.
Kyūsuke and Daibutsu, who were running at the front, stopped and jumped down in front of Zetsu and the masked man. The others behind them also dropped from the branches to the ground one after another.
"What a pity," the man said. "I can't let you go any farther."
The voice belonged to Madara Uchiha.
Zetsu let out a perfunctory grunt.
If this had been the real original Akatsuki of this era, they might truly have been shocked by the sudden appearance of these two.
But…
Kyūsuke was Itachi Uchiha in disguise.
Daibutsu was Kakuzu in disguise.
And behind them were Kisame Hoshigaki, Deidara, Sasori of the Red Sand, and even Konan and Nagato, whose fury was already barely contained.
"Who are you people?"
Itachi asked knowingly, deliberately lowering their guard to buy Nagato time to activate Chibaku Tensei.
The group disguised as members of the original Akatsuki subtly positioned themselves to block Nagato from view, completely hiding his Rinnegan and the Chibaku Tensei core he was steadily forming from Zetsu and the masked man across from them.
"My name is Madara Uchiha."
"What's your objective?" Itachi Uchiha continued, playing along. "Were you sent by Danzō or Hanzō?"
Masked Man: "...I am not Danzō's subordinate, nor am I Hanzō's. But I need Nagato to witness the cruelty of this ninja world, to see reality for what it is. That means your next actions will interfere with my plans..."
As he spoke, he had no idea that just across from him, hidden behind the others, Nagato's fists were clenched so tightly they trembled.
At that moment, the newcomers who had just arrived—Adult Obito disguised as Danzō Shimura, along with Minato Namikaze and Adult Kakashi disguised as his ANBU—also happened to overhear those words.
It was hard not to sigh at the irony. Black Zetsu had used Madara Uchiha, Madara had used Obito in the exact same way, and Obito had then used that same method on Nagato.
Round and round it went. All one could say was that Black Zetsu understood the weaknesses of the human heart far too well.
"Yaho!!"
Hidan, disguised as a member of the original Akatsuki, slung his massive scythe over his shoulder and let out a cocky laugh, jerking his head back as he asked, "So? Are we fighting or what?"
Deidara, also disguised as an original Akatsuki member, cracked his knuckles loudly.
"I've been wanting to teach that bastard a lesson for a long time now! Mm."
Adult Obito, still disguised as Danzō: "..."
Although the Akatsuki members were all using Transformation Jutsu to look like the original Akatsuki, their weapons hadn't changed for the sake of convenience. Their voices and mannerisms made it obvious who was who.
Even if the masked man couldn't imagine something like time travel, it wouldn't take long before the act fell apart.
"Make your move."
Minato Namikaze spoke up.
Adult Obito and Adult Kakashi, disguised as Danzō and an ANBU, leapt out together with Minato, who was likewise transformed into a Konoha ANBU.
The Akatsuki members who had been about to engage the masked man and Zetsu paused.
Hidan: "Hey, hey, hey! More people coming out to mess things up?! Should we kill them too?! Sacrifice them all to Jashin-sama!!"
"Shut up and kill," Kakuzu said flatly.
His dull tone actually fit Daibutsu's persona quite well. Compared to Daibutsu's quiet reserve, Kakuzu truly was the type who spoke little and killed decisively.
Deidara and Sasori also prepared to bring out their own brand of art.
"Konoha ANBU, huh. Didn't expect these guys to jump in and cause trouble too. Mm."
Sasori: "Kill them."
While the Akatsuki side was itching for battle—
The masked man, instead, fell completely silent.
His gaze locked onto the silver-haired ANBU standing behind "Danzō Shimura."
That mask.
That hairstyle.
That tall, slender frame.
That hand reaching back toward the ninja blade at his waist…
Wasn't that Kakashi Hatake?!
The masked man wrapped in White Zetsu's coiled body darkened instantly.
'That bastard…'
'He joined Danzō Shimura's Root!!'
Scenes from the past surged through his mind, the moment he had entrusted his eyes—and Rin—to that man.
That promise now felt like the most cruel, mocking lie of all.
"This world…"
"—is truly beyond saving, rotten with hypocrisy!"
***
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