Land of Rain!
'Boom! Boom!' Thunder roared, and lightning danced like silver serpents.
This perpetually rainy nation was shrouded in a torrential downpour, the raindrops drumming relentlessly against a towering spire.
Raindrops the size of beans relentlessly pelted a figure standing atop the spire—a being both divine and demonic, as cold as ice.
Tendō Pain!
From his lofty perch, he surveyed the entirety of Amegakure. The intensifying downpour had no effect on him whatsoever.
'Swish!'
Suddenly, white paper fragments surged behind Tendō Pain, coalescing into the form of a beautiful young woman with blue hair.
"Nagato," Konan said softly, holding a scroll in her hand. "Konoha's diplomats have delivered an invitation to the Joint Chūnin Exams."
Tendō Pain remained silent, offering no immediate response. Konan continued, "This year, Konoha plans to invite its allied nations and several smaller neighboring countries to participate, and we're included in the invitation."
At this, Konan sneered. "This is likely just a trick to gather intelligence on other nations and villages, while also flaunting their supposed great-nation status."
"When?" Tendō Pain asked, his voice utterly devoid of emotion.
"July 1st."
"Understood," Tendō Pain replied softly, pausing to consider before asking, "The last time Konoha invited our village to participate in the Joint Chūnin Exams was during Hanzō's reign. That man sent a large number of Genin, if I recall correctly."
"Mm-hmm."
"In that case, let's send a few squads from our village to reassure them, making them believe Amegakure remains under Hanzō's control. We can then use this opportunity to gather intelligence on the Jinchūriki and Konoha."
"Very well, I'll make the arrangements," Konan nodded, then brought up another matter.
"Nagato, Suien has agreed to all our terms and is now asking when we'll send assistance to help him stage a coup in Takigakure."
Hearing this, Tendō Pain lowered his gaze slightly and said calmly, "Arrange it as soon as possible."
"Alright, I'll dispatch Kirisame and the others then—"
"Wait, Konan."
Before she could finish, Tendō Pain interrupted, pausing to consider.
"Convene a meeting with all organization members later."
Konan turned to face him, her voice serene as she asked, "Nagato, do you mean we'll send members of the organization for this mission?"
"Hmm."
"I understand."
Konan nodded, though she privately doubted the necessity of sending Akatsuki members.
However, as Nagato's most devoted follower, she would carry out his decision without question.
That night, on the outskirts of a town within the Land of Fire, the silver moon hung high as the first stars began to twinkle.
A figure clad in a black trench coat emblazoned with red clouds and wearing a straw hat moved nimbly through the night.
A cool night breeze rustled through the air, inadvertently lifting the figure's straw hat to reveal his refined features, deep tear troughs, and crimson Sharingan eyes!
Uchiha Itachi!
The frosty moonlight illuminated Itachi's face as he tilted his head back, gazing up at the myriad stars flickering across the night sky. His eyes shifted slightly, as if lost in quiet contemplation or deep reminiscence.
"Mr. Itachi, what are you thinking about?"
Just as Itachi seemed lost in reminiscence, a hulking man with a shark-like face, also wearing the Akatsuki's signature red cloud black robes, appeared behind him.
"Nothing," Itachi replied coolly, snapping out of his reverie. He continued walking forward, step by step.
The towering shark-like man remained unfazed by Itachi's coldness, stepping forward to stand beside him and grinning widely. "Looks like Mr. Itachi has something on his mind. Though I'd love to know, I doubt you'd ever tell me."
Uchiha Itachi, his expression unchanging, glanced sideways at his partner. "It seems you've finished your task, Kisame," he said flatly.
"Of course."
Hoshigaki Kisame grinned, revealing a slightly sinister smile. He pulled out a paper bag. "You must be tired after walking all day, Mr. Itachi. Here's some late-night snacks to tide you over."
'Dango?'
Uchiha Itachi stared blankly at the food in the paper bag, momentarily stunned.
Just as he reached out to take it, he asked, "Are dango shops even open at this hour?"
"Mr. Itachi, you're joking," Kisame chuckled, his grin revealing a hint of murderous intent. "Dango isn't a late-night snack. They're long closed by now. So I simply had a... polite discussion with the owner and persuaded him to get up and make a fresh batch."
Hearing this, Uchiha Itachi's hand froze mid-reach, but after a moment's pause, he still accepted the bag.
Sensing the shift in Itachi's demeanor, Hoshigaki Kisame chuckled softly. "Of course, I didn't kill him in the end. Just put him under a genjutsu so he could sleep soundly."
Uchiha Itachi lowered his gaze, making his expression unreadable.
After a moment of silence, he spoke: "Don't do such unnecessary things in the future. It increases the risk of our exposure."
"Alright, alright," Hoshigaki Kisame chuckled dryly, offering a casual, dismissive reply. He glanced up at the starry sky before changing the subject.
"Speaking of which, Mr. Itachi's younger brother has become quite famous lately, hasn't he? Heh."
'Sasuke?'
Upon hearing his brother's name, Uchiha Itachi's eyes flickered slightly, but he remained silent, calmly eating the dango in his hand.
Seeing his partner still impassive and seemingly uninterested in engaging, Hoshigaki Kisame didn't take offense.
He continued, "I heard Kurosuki Raiga, that old bastard, also died at the hands of Mr. Itachi's brother recently. I guess you could say he truly lives up to his lineage, huh?"
Kurosuki Raiga had been a member of the first generation of the Seven Swordsmen, while Kisame belonged to the second.
In a way, Raiga was his senior.
Hoshigaki Kisame held Kurosuki Raiga in low regard—or rather, he looked down on all three of the Seven Swordsmen who had managed to survive.
He considered them nothing more than cowards.
It wasn't until later, when Kisame learned about some of the events that had occurred during Jūzō Biwa's partnership with Uchiha Itachi, that his opinion began to shift, and even then, it only applied to Jūzō Biwa.
"If he weren't Mr. Itachi's younger brother, I'd actually want to test his strength myself," Kisame said, half-joking, half-serious.
Though he secretly disdained Kurosuki Raiga, the man was still one of the Seven Swordsmen.
Uchiha Sasuke's ability to defeat him naturally piqued Kisame's curiosity and forced him to take the boy seriously.
Hearing this, Uchiha Itachi remained silent as always.
He had been closely monitoring his younger brother's recent exploits:
Effortlessly defeating Matatabi, passing the trial he had left for him years ago.
Killing Kurosuki Raiga, one of the Seven Swordsmen.
Helping his comrades assist the Daimyo's only daughter reclaim her throne.
Judging by various signs and intelligence reports, Sasuke's growth in strength had far exceeded Itachi's expectations.
Though Granny Cat had never directly informed him about Sasuke's progress, Itachi's keen intuition allowed him to discern that Sasuke had been steadily growing stronger over the years by utilizing resources from Granny Cat's side and the Uchiha clan's legacy.
This discovery filled Itachi with both satisfaction and concern.
He was pleased that his younger brother's growth extended beyond mere strength, encompassing critical thinking and strategic planning.
Yet he worried that Sasuke's deepening awareness might lead him to uncover the inconsistencies surrounding the events of that fateful night.
Lost in thought for a moment, Itachi was about to speak when a tremor from the ring on his finger interrupted him.
"The leader is summoning us."
___
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