Deep underground, Kabuto's lips curled into a slight smirk. "It looks like I'm the one who found them first, the Eight-Tails and the Nine-Tails."
"Have you found them?" Kanon asked softly.
"Yes, indeed."
"As long as we capture the Eight-Tails and Nine-Tails first, our two trump cards, that man will have no choice but to dance to our tune."
Hearing Kabuto say this, Kanon reached out and playfully tapped him on the head with the side of her hand.
"Then quit stalling and go catch them!"
"Don't be in such a hurry, Kanon-chan. The White Snake Sage taught us not to be impatient."
"I want to see what kind of regretful expression that man makes. Don't you?"
Kanon chuckled at Kabuto's words. It was true; she and the masked man were merely using each other, and despite their outward cooperation, she found him utterly insufferable. If they could checkmate him, it would be a fine outcome. At the very least, Kabuto was one hundred percent on her side; he was the only one who truly treated her like a sister.
"It's just a pity I won't be able to see the face under that mask."
"I'm going to begin the control process now, Kanon-chan. Can you transfer some Sage Chakra to me?"
"Fine." Kanon nodded, placing a hand on Kabuto. Instantly, a surge of incredibly pure natural energy poured into his body.
…
Just as Naruto and Killer B were conversing with Itachi and Nagato, the expressions of the two reanimated shinobi shifted abruptly.
"Fire Release: Fireball Jutsu!"
Itachi shouted as he exhaled a massive sphere of flame from mid-air, hurtling toward the duo. The heat was so intense it carved a trench into the ground. Killer B drew Samehada and swung it with a wide arc.
Samehada's unique properties allowed it to slice the Great Fireball right down the middle. Watching the two terrifying walls of flame pass harmlessly on either side of Naruto and himself, B broke into a cold sweat. Itachi's Fireball Jutsu was monstrous, so much so that Samehada actually let out a thump against B's hand in complaint.
"Too hot for you? Sorry for the poor hospitality."
Seeing Samehada in B's hands, Itachi looked surprised. "Samehada? Then Kisame is..." Itachi dared not finish the thought.
Hearing Itachi's murmur, Naruto spoke up. He knew the situation best, having been there. "You mean that shark-faced guy!"
"Yes. What happened to him?"
"He was going to take his own life, but Kanon saved him at the last second!"
At these words, Itachi let out a sigh of relief. He remembered that during his life, Kanon had been exceptionally kind to everyone in the organization except him. It was perfectly within character for her to save Kisame.
"We were just talking, so why..." Naruto gritted his teeth, annoyed.
"They have no choice but to follow the puppet master's orders. Timing is irrelevant to them," B reminded him.
Suddenly, Itachi flickered and leaped toward Naruto in the air. On the other side, Nagato shouted a warning to the duo.
"Above you!"
"I know!" Naruto lunged forward, clashing with Itachi.
"How is Sasuke?!" Itachi asked.
"Why don't you ask about Kanon!" Naruto shouted, irritably shoving Itachi's hands aside.
"Because I don't deserve to be her brother... You can tell me about them both together..."
"Sasuke wants revenge on Konoha! He's joined the Akatsuki!"
"Why didn't Sasuke return to the village?!" Itachi was shocked, even as his body continued to trade blows with Naruto.
"He and Kanon found out about your top-secret mission! Now, Sasuke and Kanon have turned against each other, they can't forgive one another anymore!"
"Sasuke chose to destroy the village for your sake!"
"And Kanon did destroy Konoha. It's currently being rebuilt."
"Sasuke wants to destroy the peace you created through sacrifice. Kanon wants to destroy everything you held dear..."
As Naruto spoke, his heart grew heavier. The reason Kanon had become what she was today was largely the fault of the biological brother standing before him, the brother who had chosen to massacre his own clan for the sake of Konoha and its people.
Beside them, Nagato was confused. He knew nothing of any "top-secret mission."
"Did Madara... leak my..." Itachi murmured.
Itachi leaped back to create distance, dodging a surprise attack from B. He looked at Naruto with a complex expression. "I heard the truth of that matter from Madara as well."
Hearing Naruto's answer, Itachi nodded slowly. "I see."
"So, what Madara said was all true!" Naruto continued. "The Uchiha clan really planned to take over the village, and then..."
"Stop it, Naruto..."
"Kanon was supposed to die in that coup as well... at least, in my original plan, she was meant to die..." Itachi confessed. "She only survived because of her own means. I have failed her utterly..."
Nagato looked at Itachi, his expression twisting with complexity. "Itachi, you gave up so much to protect the village and Sasuke. You even gave up Kanon, my best friend!"
"You died as a traitor. I thought Sasuke could understand your pain and resolve, but Kanon never will..." Before Naruto could finish, Nagato lunged forward and grabbed Itachi by the collar.
"You bastard! So she was never even an option for you from the very beginning?!"
"That child was only six years old! You monster, how could you lay a hand on her?!"
Looking at Nagato's fury, Naruto felt a pang of pity. Kanon had once used the gentlest Tsukuyomi to show him the night of the massacre, the sight of her parents lying in pools of blood and her own total breakdown. He knew Itachi did it for the village, but why did Kanon always have to be the sacrifice?
"But Sasuke didn't choose to inherit your will. Instead, he intends to crush Konoha," Naruto said. "And Kanon has completely veered off course. After she destroyed Konoha, she personally started the Fourth Great Ninja War. She's going to use the war you hate most to destroy everything you desired."
"She's discarded the peace she helped build. She's determined to tear it down..."
Naruto lowered his head, unable to look Itachi in the eye. At that moment, Nagato sent Itachi flying with a punch, leaving him collapsed on the ground.
"You damn fool! To think you did such a thing! Itachi Uchiha, do you have any humanity left?!" Nagato roared.
Itachi lay there, paralyzed by the weight of it all. Everything about this war was directly linked to him, because he was the one who had turned his sister into this. He was filled with profound regret; he had even caused the rift between Sasuke and Kanon. He could only imagine how lonely and helpless Kanon felt now...
If he had killed her with his own hands on the night of the massacre, perhaps she wouldn't have had to suffer so much... And that bastard Madara was to blame too, for leaking the truth to Kanon and Sasuke.
"Does... anyone else in the village know of this?" Itachi asked.
"Kakashi-sensei and Captain Yamato were there. But since Madara had no proof, Kakashi-sensei told us not to spread it," Naruto replied. "No one else should know..."
Itachi breathed a sigh of relief. "Then I ask that you do not mention this to anyone else in the village."
"The Uchiha are still a clan of honor... and..."
Before Itachi could finish, Nagato cut him off. "You slaughtered the whole clan just to save the 'honor' of the Uchiha? You're the one who brought shame to the Uchiha! Did you ever consider anyone else's feelings?! Did you ever think about Kanon's?!"
"Talking about honor even now? Without you, the Uchiha would be a clan of honor!" Nagato roared.
He truly viewed Kanon as his junior sister. Kanon had been diligent and loyal in her work for the Akatsuki; she truly considered them her family. Consequently, Nagato had every reason to defend her. His fury had reached its peak. Learning that Kanon had witnessed the trauma of her parents' death at six and that her own brother had sent people to kill her was more than he could bear. Although he had wronged Kanon in his final moments, his feelings for her were sincere.
Just as Nagato was shouting, his body moved on its own.
"Dammit, my body is moving!"
Nagato thrust his hand out. "Universal Pull!"
Naruto was yanked toward Nagato, who used his other hand to summon a massive boulder from the lake to crush him.