When the name didn't appear on the Akatsuki's membership list, the Raikage had secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He hadn't expected this nightmare to descend once again in such a manner.
Gaara's brow furrowed tightly, a ripple of confusion and memory flashing through his eyes.
In the blurred fragments of his childhood memories, there seemed to be a shadow related to this name, but it was too distant and hazy to grasp a clear outline.
Was it during the Chunin Exams? He had participated back then too...
Suddenly, his expression became complicated. Konoha had lost the Nine-Tails, and he could be considered an accomplice.
However, doubt appeared in his eyes. Was Naruto not the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki?
A complex and indecipherable emotion flickered in Mei Terumī's eyes.
She also remembered this name vividly. They had once hoped that this mysterious 'The Collector' would step in to deal with the controlled Fourth Mizukage, Yagura Karatachi, since Yagura had the Three-Tails chakra the other party needed sealed inside him.
However, the helping hand they had looked forward to never appeared in the end...
Thinking about it now, perhaps the reason was simple: the Three-Tails chakra had already been pocketed by 'The Collector'?
"Wait, Hokage!" Fourth Raikage Ay broke the silence.
His coarse brow was locked tight, his eyes fixed deathly on the Hokage, his tone filled with questioning and urgency.
"You only mentioned 'The Collector' just now, but can you be certain he really isn't a member of the 'Akatsuki' organization? There was no certainty of that in your words!"
The Raikage had caught the key point of ambiguity in Minato's narrative.
A similar seriousness appeared on Ōnoki's face, his gaze also focusing on Minato as he said in a deep voice.
"The Raikage is right, Hokage. Regarding the relationship between The Collector and 'Akatsuki', this is crucial. I also wish to know your exact judgment."
To the side, Gaara and Mei Terumī exchanged a glance full of shock.
As relatively 'young' Kage, their understanding of 'The Collector' was limited to intelligence—words describing his terrifying power.
They had never personally experienced his might, but right now, the uncontrollable wariness and dread shown by the Raikage and Tsuchikage upon hearing the name alone were enough to stir a massive wave in their hearts.
This dread even surpassed the impact of suddenly hearing the taboo name 'Madara' just moments ago!
Minato felt the heavy pressure of the four converging gazes.
"Yes, Raikage-dono, Tsuchikage-dono. Regarding the point that The Collector is not an 'Akatsuki' member, that is indeed just my speculation."
He didn't pause, immediately following up by clearly articulating his reasoning process.
"When The Collector acts, he doesn't take the Jinchuriki away like the Akatsuki; he merely extracts the Tailed Beast from within the Jinchuriki's body."
Minato's words were cautious, deliberately avoiding mentioning the core secret that his wife, Kushina, was the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki.
Even now, very few in the Shinobi World knew that his wife was the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki.
"However," Minato's tone suddenly grew heavier, "the fundamental reason that led me to this speculation is that the level of strength shown by The Collector has completely exceeded the scope of my understanding. One could even say it... defies common sense."
He looked around, his gaze sweeping over every Kage, his voice carrying a sense of shock.
"If The Collector, who possesses such overwhelming power, were himself a member of the 'Akatsuki' organization..."
He paused for a moment.
"Then, would the 'Akatsuki' organization still need to go to such lengths as they are now? Their plan to capture all the Tailed Beasts would likely become as simple as reaching into a bag for an object in front of The Collector. And we wouldn't even have the chance to be sitting here peacefully, holding this Five Kage Summit concerning the survival of the Shinobi World."
Minato gave his final conclusion.
"Therefore, based on this unimaginable gap in power and the fact that 'Akatsuki' has yet to complete its goal with lightning speed, I speculate that The Collector is not a direct member of 'Akatsuki'. His more likely identity is... a 'temporary worker' hired by the 'Akatsuki' organization."
As Minato's words fell, the Raikage's body tensed, his coarse brow furrowed into a deep frown;
Beside him, Ōnoki's face also showed deep worry and solemnity. The two fell into silence.
In the depths of their hearts, they instinctively found it hard to believe the extremely high evaluation Minato gave to "The Collector's" strength.
However, logic reminded them that Minato had absolutely no reason to exaggerate right now.
There was even less need to specifically flatter the opponent in an intelligence exchange concerning the survival of the Shinobi World, especially when it clearly involved belittling himself...
This realization made that disbelief particularly bitter.
"...The Collector," the Raikage squeezed out every word as if through his teeth, filled with wariness, "that guy... has gotten stronger again?!"
Ōnoki also nodded heavily.
The trajectory of The Collector's rise surfaced clearly in everyone's minds. The first time he became famous in the Shinobi World was on the tragic battlefield between Konoha and Kumogakure.
At that time, he was certainly powerful and his methods were unpredictable, but the power he displayed was still within the understanding of Kage-level experts, not unattainable.
However, when he appeared for the second time, with his target set on Iwagakure, everything changed.
That time, he was actually able to force Iwagakure to hand over the Five-Tails Jinchuriki by his strength alone!
As a witness, Ōnoki had experienced firsthand what a despairing gap in strength felt like.
That sense of oppression still made his heart pound with lingering fear even now.
And now, judging by the various details described by Minato, The Collector's strength had actually achieved an unimaginable giant leap based on the Iwagakure incident!
This realization made the two Kage-level experts feel a sense of absurdity and powerlessness.
Their strength had long reached its peak, remaining almost stagnant for years; even occasional improvements were but minor steps.
Why could The Collector's power achieve such terrifying leaps time and again, as if there were no limit?
It was like a mystery that defied common sense, leaving them completely baffled.
But on second thought, looking back at the leaps in strength brought by every high-profile appearance of The Collector, those incredible magnitudes of progress...
Minato's bold speculation—the possibility that The Collector was not an Akatsuki member—seemed to gain a few more points of strange rationality.
At this moment, Raikage Ay and Ōnoki both felt a heartfelt hope, tinged with a bit of luck, surge within them.
If only Minato's guess were true!
If The Collector really stood on the opposite side of Akatsuki...
If The Collector really were one of the core members of that mysterious organization 'Akatsuki', combined with that legendary first-generation disruptor Madara, whose long-established power was considered terrifying...
Then this war about to sweep the entire Shinobi World seemed to have lost its suspense from the very beginning.
Even if the Five Great Shinobi Villages set aside their past grudges and united with all their might, they would likely find it hard to contend with this destructive force capable of overturning the world.
However, the thought of despair lasted only for an instant.
In the next second, the eyes of the two Kage became sharp and firm again.
As a 'Kage' burdened with the safety of a Village, they knew that in reality, there was no turning back.
In such a situation, united resistance was still the only choice! Because...
If they didn't resist, the Shinobi World would completely sink, without even a single spark of hope left;
But as long as they fought to the death, even if hope were as faint as a candle in the wind, a glimmer of a chance to turn the tables would still exist!
After all, from the existing intelligence, the Akatsuki's style of operation was completely different from The Collector's approach back then when he appeared in Iwagakure just to seize the Five-Tails chakra—clear in purpose and without causing unnecessary trouble.
The Five Kage would never dare gamble with the lives and futures of the countless Shinobi and civilians of their entire Villages.
They had no choice but to fight with their backs to the wall, gathering all their strength to carve out a path to survival in a desperate situation!
The air inside the meeting hall seemed to freeze for a moment. The Kazekage of the Hidden Sand Village, Gaara, this young leader, finally couldn't suppress the doubts in his heart and broke the silence.
"Hokage-dono," he looked directly into Minato's azure eyes, "according to the current situation... has Konoha's Nine-Tails Jinchuriki... also unfortunately passed away?"
The other Kage looked over slightly upon hearing this, a hint of confusion crossing their faces.
In their view, this was almost a set-in-stone fact.
When a Tailed Beast is extracted from a Jinchuriki, there is only one path: death.
The Hidden Sand Village relying on a forbidden technique to save Gaara's life was already a rare miracle.
Did Konoha also have a similar forbidden technique?
However, when their gazes fell upon the silent Hokage, Minato, that confusion was quickly replaced by shock.
He didn't answer directly, which meant...
Could it be that Konoha really has a forbidden technique similar to the Sand's?
Minato actually didn't want to bring this up, but since Kazekage Gaara had asked, he would no longer hide it.
"The Nine-Tails Jinchuriki did not die, and in fact, has no side effects at all."
"Hokage! Could it be that your Konoha also hides a forbidden technique like the Sand's?" the Raikage asked directly.
Minato shook his head gently.
"No, that's not it."
"Then why?!" the Raikage pressed, the Kage all showing a mix of confusion and curiosity.
They thought they had found a clue to the answer, only for the Hokage to cut it off personally.
Originally, with the Sand's example, they were actually quite able to accept that Konoha had such a forbidden technique.
But it turned out not to be?
Minato took a deep breath and said.
"I only know it is related to The Collector," Minato spoke.
Suddenly, everyone was shocked again.
"After The Collector extracted the Nine-Tails, the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki indeed fell into a near-death state, but I don't know what The Collector did; afterward, the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki's life force was completely restored," Minato said.
This incredible description made the Kazekage and Mizukage open their eyes wide in even greater disbelief.
Extracting a Tailed Beast and then instantly healing the Jinchuriki? Without paying any price? This was simply a miracle that defied common sense!
In sharp contrast to them were the Raikage and Ōnoki.
After their initial shock, a kind of almost numb understanding appeared on their faces simultaneously.
Regarding that mysterious 'The Collector'...
Although this kind of thing was absurd and bizarre to the extreme, if it was him who did it...
It seemed... to actually carry a strange sense of helpless rationality?
Minato brought the discussion of the Nine-Tails matter to a heavy close.
"In summary, currently only the Eight-Tails remains safely within Kumogakure. Additionally, the Six-Tails' whereabouts are still unknown, while the Seven-Tails... is in the Takigakure Village, which is hidden and difficult to locate."
His gaze swept over the Five Kage present as he made this summary, intending to organize the current situation.
And this fact left the Five Kage in a state of silence; none of them had expected the situation to have already become so severe.
Just as this suffocating silence was about to turn into something physical, a sudden and urgent knock on the door rang out, breaking the dead silence.
A samurai clad in armor pushed the door open with a nervous expression, hurrying straight to the side of the meeting's moderator, Mifune.
He leaned down, close to the ear of the Land of Iron's General, and delivered urgent intelligence in a hurried, low voice.
In an instant, a flash of hard-to-conceal astonishment crossed Mifune's face, his pupils shrinking slightly.
This subtle change did not escape the eyes of the Five Kage.
The Five Kage focused on Mifune simultaneously.
The urgent intelligence arriving at this moment was almost certainly closely related to the Tailed Beast topic concerning the survival of the Shinobi World.
An ominous premonition silently spread through the meeting room.
Mifune took a deep breath, as if to use that breath to suppress the complex emotions churning within him.
In fact, throughout the entire process of the Five Kage exchanging intelligence, as a third party who was not a Shinobi and only responsible for the order of the meeting, he had already become physically and mentally exhausted to the point of numbness from listening.
He had originally envisioned that after exposing the Akatsuki's plot, the meeting would head straight for the theme of united resistance.
But the reality was becoming more shocking each time.
First, the name of the legendary Shinobi Madara was thrown out, followed by the involvement of that mysterious Collector who had already become a living legend...
What was even more despairing was that these two existences, capable of overturning the structure of the Shinobi World, were very likely the enemies they were about to face!
The successive impacts were enough to make anyone's spirit shatter.
That Mifune could remain forcedly calm while sitting and listening until now was already a testament to his extraordinary composure.
At this moment, facing the inquiring and heavy pressure of the Five Kage's gazes, Mifune suppressed his churning thoughts, his face more solemn than ever before.
His voice was low as he announced the bad news that made the situation even worse.
"My Lords, according to the urgent report just delivered... Takigakure Village, where the Seven-Tails Jinchuriki was located, has been breached by the Akatsuki. The Seven-Tails... has already fallen into their hands!"
The message struck like a bolt of thunder.
The expressions of the Five Kage changed instantly, their shock and anger beyond words.
However, beneath this surface of shock, there wasn't much true "surprise."
After all, even Iwagakure, with its powerful defensive forces, had failed to stop the Akatsuki's steps in seizing the Tailed Beasts.
So how could Takigakure, whose former glory had long since faded and whose strength was weak, hope to hold onto the Seven-Tails?
One could say that as soon as Takigakure's location was discovered, this would be the result.
This was something that had been expected.
The situation was even more critical than they had realized moments ago!
Just as Minato was summarizing, they were still hoping to unite their forces to bring the Seven-Tails under their protection as well.
However, it was already too late!