A few days later, the Kage from the Five Great Ninja Villages had gathered in the Land of Iron.
Minato Namikaze only brought Naruto and Sasuke to attend the Five Kage Summit.
He didn't want to bring too many people and make it look tense, as though they were heading into a war.
Yukio and Arisu stayed behind in Konoha to guard the village.
On the eve of the Five Kage Summit, Killer B, the Eight-Tails' Jinchuriki from Kumogakure, was successfully captured by the Akatsuki.
This time, nearly every member of the Akatsuki took part. Their strength far surpassed what it had been before.
Killer B didn't even get the chance to escape by cutting off one of his tails like he had in the original story before falling completely into their hands.
Meanwhile, in a hidden forest somewhere in the Land of Iron.
Uchiha Obito quietly appeared with a man in a black robe.
The black-robed man silently looked up at the sky, the corner of his mouth seeming to curl into a cold smile.
———
[Outside The Five Kage Summit Venue]
Uchiha Sasuke suddenly stopped and looked up at the sky.
His brows immediately drew together.
Among the clouds, he could vaguely make out a Mangekyo pattern he had never seen before. It looked strange and complex, as though it were slowly spinning.
You've received an invitation to the Ninja War. Once you see this mark, the black-robed man is about to drag you into the Fourth Great Ninja War.
"Sasuke, what are you standing there for? Come on, let's go in. My dad and the others went in ages ago."
Naruto scratched his head and urged him in confusion.
Sasuke didn't move. His expression grew more and more serious.
He said in a low voice, "Naruto, get closer!"
Although Naruto had no idea why, he had always trusted Sasuke, so he immediately moved over.
At that moment, Sasuke suddenly raised his right hand and quickly formed hand seals, summoning the divine artifact Teacher Arisu had given him...
The Yata Mirror.
The mirror instantly expanded, covering both him and Naruto inside it and forming an impregnable defensive barrier.
Naruto jumped in surprise.
"Sasuke, what are you doing?!"
"Shut up, Naruto! There's something wrong with those clouds!"
Sasuke's voice was stern as his Sharingan stared fixedly at the sky.
Naruto followed his gaze.
At first, he looked completely confused.
"I don't see anyth..."
Before he could finish speaking, the faint Mangekyo pattern among the clouds rapidly darkened.
The design became clearer and clearer, while its rotation grew faster and faster, as though it might fall from the clouds at any moment.
"Huh? I see it now! It's getting darker and darker! Is that some kind of pattern? How can there be something like that in the clouds?"
Naruto shouted in surprise, his eyes wide.
Sasuke rolled his eyes.
"Clouds don't grow patterns on their own. Someone's using a jutsu."
Only then did Naruto realize what was happening. The grin disappeared from his face.
"...Then what do we do now?"
"Until this jutsu ends, we'd better not go outside."
Sasuke said in a deep voice, his eyes sweeping the surroundings warily.
Naruto looked worried.
"Huh? Then what about my dad?"
Sasuke frowned.
"The Five Kage have definitely noticed it too. We don't need to worry about them. With your dad's strength and sensing ability, don't you trust him?"
Naruto thought about it.
Over all these years, Minato Namikaze had never let him down.
In the end, he nodded and remained under the protection of the Yata Mirror.
At the same time, inside the Five Kage Summit venue.
Minato Namikaze was speaking with the other Kage when he instinctively glanced out the window, his brow creasing slightly.
Just then, before Gaara could say anything, Terumi Mei couldn't help speaking first.
"Hokage... where did that mark on your hand come from?"
Minato froze.
Following Terumi Mei's gaze, he looked down.
An eerie mark had appeared on the back of his hand without him noticing.
The pattern clearly resembled a certain Mangekyo Sharingan, yet carried an unfamiliar sense of oppression unlike anything he had ever seen.
Minato's expression changed at once.
"Everyone! Check your hands!"
The other four Kage immediately looked down.
Sure enough, the same mark had appeared on every one of them.
Not only the Five Kage... their bodyguards, including Kurotsuchi, Ao, and C, all had the same pattern on their hands.
Even the samurai of the Land of Iron and Lord Mifune, the representative of the neutral nation, were no exception.
Kurotsuchi couldn't help crying out, "What's going on?!"
Ao frowned and quickly analyzed it.
"This mark... it looks somewhat like the Uchiha clan's Mangekyo Sharingan, but it's also different..."
The Raikage's bodyguard, C, also said quietly, "It does look similar... but on this scale, it's definitely not an ordinary genjutsu."
C immediately formed the seal to dispel it.
Nothing happened.
A powerful sense of unease rose in Minato's heart.
He had a bad feeling.
He suddenly stood up, about to warn everyone to strengthen their guard.
But they no longer had time to react.
The Mangekyo pattern in the sky completely lit up.
A blinding light instantly engulfed the entire venue.
In an instant, the dazzling Mangekyo pattern in the sky burst into a strange light.
The light swept over the venue like a tidal wave.
They were corrupted by a mysterious force.
The Five Kage's bodies stiffened almost at the same time.
Their eyes quickly became dull and empty.
Minato Namikaze, Terumi Mei, Gaara, the Fourth Raikage A, the Third Tsuchikage Onoki...
Everyone's eyes lost focus, and their expressions became blank.
Then their bodyguards, Lord Mifune, and the samurai of the Land of Iron all fell victim as well.
One after another, they lowered their heads, their eyes becoming equally vacant.
The entire venue fell into deathly silence.
Only the sound of breathing remained.
Soon, three figures silently appeared in the center of the venue.
The black-robed man.
Uchiha Obito.
And White Zetsu, who emerged from the ground like a pitcher plant.
The black-robed man looked around, his gaze sweeping over the controlled Kage and ninja, but his brow furrowed slightly.
"Two slipped through."
The black-robed man said.
White Zetsu poked his head out of his bud-like body, shrugged, and said lazily, "Sasuke and Naruto? No big deal... They're just two kids."
The black-robed man rejected the idea immediately.
"No! Those two are special. Their souls are anything but ordinary!"
"You should know better than I do. Their souls belong to the reincarnations of the Great Sage's two disciples."
"I'm worried something might happen. Besides, Naruto still has the Nine-Tails inside him. We need it."
The black-robed man turned to Obito and ordered coldly, "Obito, take me to them. We can't let them keep roaming free."
"Understood."
Obito answered quietly.
He placed one hand on the black-robed man's shoulder.
Space twisted, and the two vanished instantly.
At the same time, somewhere outside the venue.
Naruto and Sasuke remained enveloped in the light of the Yata Mirror.
The mirror stood like an unbreakable barrier, completely blocking the strange light descending from the sky.
Although they could clearly see the ominous light rising from the direction of the summit venue, they were not corrupted in the slightest.