Itachi Uchiha's Decision

"Konoha has sent people to Takigakure!"

As soon as Pain stepped into the room, he heard bad news brought by White Zetsu's unreliable voice.

Konoha!

Of the Five Great Shinobi Villages, only Konoha was determined to fight against Akatsuki. Although the other ninja villages also regarded Akatsuki as an enemy, apart from the Kage of each village, no one else posed a threat to Akatsuki.

"Hinata Hyuga?" Konan asked, frowning.

White Zetsu drawled, "No, Konoha probably wants the Seven-Tails Jinchuriki go to Konoha to lay low. The ones sent to Takigakure are Konoha's Jonin, Kakashi Hatake, Asuma Sarutobi, and Might Guy!"

Pain ignored the White Zetsu, turned his pale purple Rinnegan towards Obito, and said in a deep voice, "Mr. Madara!"

The spiral mask concealed Obito's expression, with only one scarlet Sharingan through it as he met Pain's gaze.

By now, Obito was well aware that his identity had aroused suspicion from all sides. Fortunately, the plan was progressing smoothly; once he obtained the Seven-Tails and Eight-Tails, it would be irrelevant whether he was Obito Uchiha or Madara Uchiha.

Strength is everything!

However, to gain power, one must obtain the Rinnegan.

Obito currently only has the Kamui Sharingan and Wood Release and Fire Release techniques to his name, which barely qualifies him as a 'Kage' level ninjutsu. If it weren't for the unique nature of Space-time ninjutsu, he would have died countless times over.

"You need to personally handle the Eight-Tails situation!" Obito said bluntly.

Konan gave Obito a gloomy look, then turned to look at Pain, but didn't say anything more.

Konan was extremely confident in Pain's strength; apart from Hinata Hyuga, no one in the entire Shinobi World could rival Pain. Even if the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki was training in Kumogakure, Pain was still capable of forcibly breaking into the Kumogakure and kidnapping the Eight-Tails.

Pain nodded slightly and gave a soft "hmm," but his gaze toward Obito became even sharper.

Yin Yang Jue also turned to look at Obito, wanting to see how Obito would respond.

After years of planning, and with his alliance with Hinata, Obito was no longer as important to Black Zetsu. The Impure World Reincarnation combined with Hinata's Tenseigan ability was enough to revive Madara Uchiha.

If Madara Uchiha were to appear at his peak, activating the Infinite Tsukuyomi would be a matter of moments.

The Three Tomoe Sharingan slowly rotated in the right eye of the spiral mask, instantly creating an extremely tense atmosphere in the room. Konan stood behind Pain, ready to attack.

"Kumogakure is Martial Combat ninja village. Given the relationship between the Raikage and the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki, we must also prepare for war!" Obito's tone was calm yet authoritative. "However, by then... we'll be almost ready!"

"Let's start with Kumogakure!"

Upon hearing this, Pain withdrew his gaze and nodded slightly to Obito.

Nagato's plan was to instigate a Shinobi World war and then use the ultimate weapon, the "nuclear weapon," created from the Nine Tailed Beasts to obliterate the Shinobi World. Once everyone in the Shinobi World witnessed that destructive power, no one would dare to start another war.

Once Nagato masters the ultimate weapon, he can use his power to weaken the strength of the major Shinobi Village until he unifies the world.

As for Obito's identity...

If Obito had explained his identity just now, he would have seemed a little guilty.

However, regardless of whether he was Madara Uchiha or not, he could not possibly withstand the power of the Rinnegan. When Nine Tailed Beasts were gathered, Nagato's power would be enough to make him a true god.

By then, neither Hinata Hyuga nor the Nine-Tails within Naruto Uzumaki will be able to stop Nagato's advance.

The space rotated slightly, absorbing Obito. As his crimson Sharingan disappeared, it gave Nagato a deep look.

"Then I'll continue gathering intelligence!" White Zetsu said jokingly. "Take care of Takigakure. If Konoha is going to transfer the Seven-Tails Jinchuriki, they will definitely send Hinata Hyuga to protect him secretly."

After saying this, Jue sank into the ground and disappeared.

"Pain!" Konan looked at Pain with a worried expression. "We're getting closer and closer to success, and Madara might very well make a move against you!"

Pain said in a deep voice, "No one can stand against the power of a god!"

"That guy is cunning and will likely use the power of the Five Great Shinobi Villages to deal with us!"

Looking intently at Pain, Konan said in a deep voice, "After all... there can only be one person who rules the world!"

Pain fell silent upon hearing this, but did not say anything more.

Konan's words are not without reason. The structure of a power is pyramidal, and there can only be one person at the top.

Why did Hanzo resort to any means to deal with the Akatsuki back then? Wasn't it because the Akatsuki threatened his rule over Amegakure?

The guy who calls himself Madara Uchiha may seem to be wholeheartedly assisting Nagato at the moment, but anyone who thinks about it for a moment will know that his purpose is definitely not that simple.

"I'll be careful!"

A small wooden cabin in a valley in the Land of Water.

Sasuke sat on the edge of the bed, his eyes wrapped in bandages, unable to see anything, yet he calmly asked Itachi Uchiha, "What are your plans next?"

Sasuke could sense that the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan was about to awaken, and that he would eventually leave this place to go his own way.

Itachi Uchiha handed the teacup to Sasuke and said slowly, "I will find a village to settle down in!"

Taking the teacup and taking a sip, Sasuke said somewhat unwillingly, "Everyone is fighting for it now, even for the sake of the Uchiha name, you can't..."

Before he could finish speaking, Itachi Uchiha interrupted, "I have no power left!"

In Itachi Uchiha's eyes, there were only pure black pupils; he ultimately did not accept Shisui's eyes.

Sasuke remained noncommittal upon hearing this, and asked coldly, "Konoha?"

Itachi Uchiha paused slightly; he was indeed still thinking about Konoha. Call it blind loyalty or brainwashing, but it was Itachi Uchiha's lifelong belief.

Konoha may seem powerful now, but it is also beset by internal and external troubles.

The power of Akatsuki is undeniable. Itachi Uchiha infiltrated the Akatsuki for many years, and he did find out something.

The reason he questioned Hinata that day was because he had discovered clues about the Hyuga Clan's collusion with Orochimaru, and the truth might be far more complex than that.

However, Itachi Uchiha knew very well that even if he knew more, he couldn't report it to Konoha. He understood Hinata's abilities well; even from a great distance, she could monitor your every move and even hear every word you said.

Moreover, given Hinata and the Hyuga Clan's current strength, if they were forced to leave Konoha, it would definitely cause Konoha a huge loss.

Itachi Uchiha whispered, "Itachi Uchiha is dead!"

Sasuke snorted coldly upon hearing this, seemingly dismissing Itachi Uchiha's words with disdain.

Sasuke knew Itachi well; now that he had survived, he would definitely continue to live as a 'Konoha Ninja'.

Especially with the current turmoil in the Shinobi World, Itachi Uchiha is simply unable to leave Konoha unattended.

He didn't want to talk about it simply because he was worried about the relationship between Sasuke and Hinata!