Under the moonlight, on the cliff.
Itachi's eyes were slightly lowered, his feelings somewhat complicated.
His purpose in coming to Sunagakure this time,
Besides executing the mission issued by Pain to assist Kyo, naturally, he also had his own personal objective.
That was to gather intelligence on Kyo.
As a Konoha's spy,
Itachi never forgot his identity for a moment.
So he knew that one day in the future, Akatsuki would inevitably attack Konoha.
And at that time, Kyo, as a member of the Akatsuki, would inevitably become an enemy of Konoha.
Therefore, in preparation for that day,
Itachi knew he had to completely master all of Kyo's intelligence.
Only in this way, in future battles, would he not fall into a difficult fight due to an information gap.
However,
After observing the mission tonight,
Itachi suddenly realized in confusion-
His understanding of Kyo's abilities, far from becoming clearer, had instead become... even more confusing!
The two blasts of blue Fire Release and golden Lightning Release went without saying,
They could be considered his signature techniques.
But,
What was that subsequent single-handedly destroying the sandstorm...?
Possessing such powerful Dojutsu, this guy's Taijutsu was actually this absurdly strong too?
And that giant armored samurai he summoned without hand signs, named "Kokujo Tengen Myo'o", had shaken everyone's very souls.
Because of this, at that moment, Itachi even thought that this Summoning Technique should be Kyo's ultimate trump card.
But, to his utter surprise,
Not long after,
That extremely unique Ninjutsu of his, Black Coffin, appeared.
With a speed and destructive power that no one could predict, it instantly defeated Rasa!
There wasn't even a battle process!
At that moment,
Itachi suddenly realized-
The entire mission, was over just like that!
This mission was the most leisurely mission Itachi had ever executed, bar none!
He had completely coasted through the entire thing!
He had been lurking in the shadows the whole time, not even moving from his spot, and had directly witnessed the entire process of the mission's completion as a bystander.
And this mission was still 1 person vs 1 Shinobi Village.
Who could have imagined that this kind of battle, which sounded so lopsided, would be completely overturned at this moment?
Kyo, alone, was suppressing the entire Sunagakure and fighting...
However,
What shocked Itachi's heart even more was,
After releasing so many powerful techniques just now, the Kyo before him seemed to show no signs of fatigue or exhaustion whatsoever.
He hadn't even broken a sweat, which was ridiculous.
...
Just as Itachi was pondering,
Kyo spoke again, looking at the two before him and saying flatly:
"The mission to intimidate Sunagakure is complete."
"You two return to Amegakure and report back."
"...Huh?"
Hearing this, Juzo beside him was momentarily stunned and said subconsciously:
"You're not going back?"
Kyo shook his head, waving his hand, and said:
"I've found some clues about the traitor Orochimaru and need to investigate."
"You two are too slow; following me would only slow down progress."
"..."
As soon as these words were spoken,
Instantly, Itachi and Juzo's faces were covered with black lines, speechless.
This kind of statement,
They were both hearing for the first time...
Back when they were in Konoha and Kirigakure, weren't they both mainstay Shinobi in their villages, the standout centerpieces of their teams?
How come when it came to Kyo... they became the ones slowing down progress...?
After pondering for a moment, Itachi suddenly looked up, his face serious as he said:
"No, Kyo-senpai."
"I understand Orochimaru. He has always been full of cunning schemes and skilled at hiding."
"If you go alone like this, Senpai, it's very possible he will deliberately set an ambush and put you at a disadvantage."
"Please let us go with you. We can look out for each other."
Under the moonlight,
Itachi's expression seemed very earnest.
However, as soon as these words were spoken,
Kyo couldn't help but roll his eyes.
'Got it.'
'Starting to play me again.'
'You think I don't know what you want to go for?'
Kyo couldn't be bothered to even look at him and said flatly:
"Ah, you understand him, do you?"
"Then how about I give you the intelligence, you go catch Orochimaru, and I'll return to Amegakure?"
"...Huh?"
Itachi was momentarily dumbfounded.
His purpose in proposing to go together was certainly not for mutual support, but just to continue monitoring Kyo.
But now, how had the tables been turned?
'If you're not going, what would I catch Orochimaru for...'
'Ah, this...'
Just as Itachi was thinking about how to continue finding excuses,
Kyo didn't plan to pay him any more attention. He simply turned around expressionlessly and leisurely walked towards the edge of the cliff.
Then, with his back to the two, he raised his hand and waved, saying flatly:
"I'm off."
"Don't follow."
Before the words faded,
Swoosh-
His body immediately turned into an afterimage, directly disappearing from the cliff.
His presence had completely vanished into the darkness.
Without any hesitation,
He left.
Leaving only Itachi and Juzo, stunned in place on the cliff.
"..."
After a long silence.
Itachi lowered his eyes and reluctantly let out a light breath, saying:
"Juzo-san, let's go. Return to Amegakure."
This attempt to investigate Kyo's intelligence,
Had ended in complete failure.
Itachi certainly wouldn't give up just like that.
But he also knew he couldn't act too hastily, or he might easily reveal a weakness.
'I'll try again next time...'
...
The next day, early morning.
In a small country called the Land of Rice Fields, located in the northern region of the Land of Fire.
At that moment,
From inside a luxurious mansion, loud laughter was heard.
And outside the mansion's gate,
A young Shinobi with round-framed glasses and a grey ponytail stood under a tree, quietly waiting for something.
It was the number one spy of the Shinobi World, Kabuto.
Just then,
The mansion's gate suddenly opened.
Subsequently, a pale-skinned, effeminate man emerged from within, having an eerie smile.
Kabuto's eyes instantly lit up. He quickly hurried over and said respectfully:
"Orochimaru-sama, how did it go?"
Hearing this,
Orochimaru didn't stop walking but instead curled his lips into a smile as he moved forward, chuckling darkly:
"Easy, a success."
"Just as you said, Kabuto, the Daimyo of the Land of Rice Fields is indeed a man of infinite greed."
"He was bought off with just a few gold coins. How ironic."
Orochimaru spoke with a smile, his expression clearly pleased.
Kabuto beside him chuckled lightly and said:
"Only someone like you, Orochimaru-sama, who pursues the truth, would view money as dirt."
"This also precisely illustrates that your vision is far above ours."
Kabuto spoke from the heart, his head slightly bowed.
Orochimaru smiled and said again:
"Let's go."
"Now that we've successfully obtained the Daimyo's permission, it's time to establish our own village."
"And then... begin gathering people step by step."
A strange light flickered in Orochimaru's eyes, as if he could already see the moment his plan succeeded.
Kabuto immediately replied respectfully:
"Yes."
The two left the Daimyo's mansion.
Just then, Orochimaru seemed to suddenly remember something else and stopped, saying:
"By the way, Kabuto."
"How is the plan to incite war between Sunagakure and Amegakure progressing?"
As the words fell,
Kabuto revealed a smile, slightly pushing up his glasses, and chuckled lightly:
"Rest assured, everything is proceeding successfully."
"The Fourth Kazekage, upon receiving my intelligence, immediately sent people to investigate Amegakure and Konoha."
"Barring any accidents, Sunagakure should soon be able to confirm that Hanzo of the Salamander is dead."
"This way,"
"They will probably, just as you planned, directly initiate a war to conquer Amegakure."
Hearing this, Orochimaru's smile grew even wider. He nodded and said:
"Well done."
"This way... we can divert the attention of those terrifying individuals in the Akatsuki, right..."
Orochimaru spoke as if to himself.
However, as soon as the words fell, Kabuto immediately showed a surprised expression and asked questioningly:
"Orochimaru-sama."
"The terrifying individuals you speak of, do you mean Konoha's Uchiha Itachi...?"
Kabuto already knew that Orochimaru had defected from Akatsuki due to failing to seize Itachi's Sharingan.
Therefore, he naturally had this guess.
However,
Orochimaru suddenly looked over, shook his head with a light smile, his eyes flickering as he said:
"No, that's not right."
"Uchiha Itachi's Mangekyo Sharingan is certainly very powerful."
"But, within Akatsuki..."
"There are two other guys who possess even more terrifying Dojutsu than his eyes..."
"Hmm...?!"
Kabuto was visibly shaken, his pupils slightly constricting.
'What?'
'There are Dojutsu even more powerful than the Uchiha Clan's Mangekyo Sharingan?'
'What on earth could it be...'