For Jie Uchiha, Minato Namikaze's departure was nothing more than a minor interlude.
As Jie threw himself back into his intense and demanding work, Konoha entered a high-speed, entirely new era of development.
Meanwhile, far away in the central tower of the Land of Rain.
The orange-haired Pain stood quietly, draped in his signature black cloak patterned with blood-red clouds. He listened to a report from a bizarre figure that looked like a human Venus flytrap.
"So, Kisame Hoshigaki was the only one to survive this mission?" Pain asked.
He stared down at the plant-like creature. His rippling eyes—the legendary Rinnegan of the Sage of Six Paths—were completely devoid of emotion.
"That's right. That Jie Uchiha's strength far exceeded our expectations," White Zetsu said leisurely. "It seems even Kakuzu and Sasori of the Red Sand couldn't force out his true strength, right up until the moment they died."
"If this Jie Uchiha continues to live, he'll be a massive threat to our plans," White Zetsu added darkly. "After all, the most critical element of the Ten-Tails Plan is the Nine-Tails. With an unknown variable like him around, capturing it in the future probably won't go smoothly."
Pain pondered this for a moment.
"Then we will suspend the Tailed Beast capture plan for the time being," he replied coolly. "Zetsu, continue searching the ninja world for capable members to fill our empty ranks. For now, our focus will be amassing funds and building our strength."
"As for Jie Uchiha," Pain stated flatly, "beneath these eyes of a god, all so-called strength is merely an illusion."
"Understood."
With that, White Zetsu's body slowly sank into the solid floor, vanishing without a trace.
Shortly after he left, crisp white sheets of paper drifted into the room through the open window. They fluttered through the air, quickly converging to form the figure of a beautiful, purple-haired woman.
Konan gazed at Pain's familiar face, losing herself in thought for a moment.
"Nagato," she finally spoke. "Jie Uchiha is simply too powerful. With our current strength, completing the Ten-Tails Project will be incredibly difficult. Why don't we just stop?"
She looked at him, her eyes pleading. "We could disband the Akatsuki. We could take Yahiko and find a place where no one can ever reach us. A place to live out our days in peace. Isn't that the life we always wanted?"
Pain shook his head, his face an emotionless mask.
"Konan, have you forgotten our dream?" he asked. "This ninja world is already rotten to the core. Only by experiencing true pain will humanity forget its hatred and finally learn to coexist."
He stared ahead coldly. "Therefore, the Akatsuki will remain. We will continue to hunt the Tailed Beasts, and the Ten-Tails Project absolutely cannot be stopped. As for a mere Uchiha... with these eyes, he will be no hindrance at all."
Hearing Nagato speak through Pain, a faint trace of melancholy flickered across Konan's face.
She forced a small smile and spoke softly, "Then do what you must. Nagato… Yahiko… I'll always stand by your side."
....
Meanwhile, in an even darker, hidden underground base.
Black Zetsu stood face-to-face with a masked man.
"Are the members of this Akatsuki all garbage?" Obito spat, his voice dripping with utter disgust.
He scoffed. "Four against one, and they actually managed to get two killed and one captured? With such a pitiful display, do they really deserve the S-rank tag? Especially when their opponent was nothing but a ten-year-old brat. Having the tables turned on them by a child is an absolute disgrace."
Black Zetsu looked at him, speaking slowly. "Obito—"
"Don't call me Obito," the masked man interrupted sharply, his voice carrying a stern, icy authority. "I am Madara Uchiha now."
Black Zetsu fell silent for a moment before continuing.
"...Madara. That Jie Uchiha isn't as simple as he seems. His current strength is likely right up there with yours when you awakened the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan. Even in a four-on-one fight, Kakuzu and Sasori couldn't force him to show his true power. Without a doubt, this man will become the biggest obstacle to our Eye of the Moon Plan."
Obito frowned.
He didn't doubt Zetsu's intel for a second. Black Zetsu was the physical manifestation of Madara's will, born from Yin-Yang Release. Combined with White Zetsu, who was cultivated from Hashirama Senju's cells, their espionage skills were absolutely flawless.
If someone with Zetsu's insight was this wary, then Jie Uchiha was a very real threat to their grand design.
"Jie Uchiha." Obito slowly tested the name on his tongue.
He was no stranger to the boy. The son of Fugaku Uchiha, the clan head. A childhood prodigy with immense courage. Even worse, during the Night of the Nine-Tails, Jie was the one who had intercepted him. That interference directly led to Obito's defeat at the hands of Minato Namikaze.
Obito's eyes narrowed dangerously as he recalled that night. He remembered the swaying, blood-red chakra tail whipping behind the boy.
That sensation... it was undeniably Nine-Tails chakra.
But how could a mere five-year-old child—and an Uchiha, no less—come into contact with the Nine-Tails? Let alone harness its power?
'Jie Uchiha is definitely hiding a massive secret', Obito thought.
After a moment of silence, Obito spoke nonchalantly. "Since Pain asked you to scout for new members across the ninja world, I might as well join the Akatsuki this time."
"Oh?" Black Zetsu asked, surprised. "Are you planning to step in personally?"
"I can't put my trust in an Akatsuki that loses half its team in a four-on-one fight," Obito stated coolly. "I'd better supervise the Eye of the Moon Plan myself. As for my codename... just call me Tobi."
"Understood," Black Zetsu replied evenly, giving a nod. "I'll go coordinate things with Nagato."
Left alone in the dark, Obito made a silent vow.
'Jie Uchiha... I won't let you ruin my plan.'
Over the next few days, shocking news swept across the ninja world... Jie Uchiha had become the Fifth Hokage.
"Haha! Konoha has truly fallen. To think they'd let a ten-year-old kid sit in the Hokage's seat!"
Inside Iwagakure, Onoki burst into booming laughter. "If I ever run into this new Hokage, the brat will have to call me 'Grandpa'!"
"Lord Tsuchikage," Toushijin said, a cunning glint flashing in his eyes. "Konoha just survived a war with Kumogakure, and they recently suffered severe internal strife. They are at their absolute weakest. Perhaps Iwagakure should seize this chance to extort a massive fortune out of them."
Hearing this, Onoki fell silent, his mind racing.
It was true that Konoha had won their war against Kumo. They had even managed to slay the Fourth Raikage. But Onoki knew they must have paid a bloody price to do so. The village's military strength had to be a shadow of its former self.
Add in a recent rebellion where the Uchiha wiped out the Third Hokage's faction, and capping it all off by crowning a ten-year-old as their leader?
It was undeniable. Konoha had never been this vulnerable.
"Old man," Kitsuchi chimed in, stepping forward. "Toushijin is right. Konoha is bluffing. Pinning the death of the Fourth Raikage on a mere child, and daring to make him Hokage? It's impossible. Even if he started training in his mother's womb, a ten-year-old couldn't possibly be that strong. We can absolutely bleed them dry."
As a shrewd old fox, Onoki's instincts warned him that things might not be as simple as Kitsuchi thought. Yet, he couldn't find a single flaw in his son's logic. It was just as Kitsuchi said—even a unparalleled prodigy couldn't reach the level of slaying a Raikage at ten years old.
Brushing aside his doubts, Onoki slapped his thigh and made his decision.
"Dispatch a delegation to Konoha! Iwagakure is going to fleece them for all they're worth!"
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