The moment Uchiha Itachi appeared, Obito unhesitatingly slipped into the Kamui dimension.
Seizing the opportunity, Orochimaru watched coldly. After swiftly committing the crucial details of Obito's spatial ability to memory, his body silently melted into a pool of sludge and slowly seeped underground.
A moment later, in a secluded forest outside the Land of Fields...
Orochimaru's figure slowly rose from the swamp once more.
Looking at Uchiha Itachi, who had appeared at the entrance at some unknown point, he gave a faintly amused smile...
"Itachi, did you come all this way for something?"
There was a trace of provocation in Orochimaru's tone.
Uchiha Itachi stared expressionlessly at Orochimaru, his voice calm and cold.
"The leader sent me to ask when you will return to Amegakure."
"Heh heh... I still have some data on that falling planet that has yet to be fully collected."
Orochimaru deliberately answered in a casual tone.
Uchiha Itachi clearly did not trust Orochimaru, but he had no intention of exposing his lie just yet.
His expression remained cold and calm as he spoke in that nearly emotionless voice...
"The leader's meaning is very clear. You must return to Amegakure within three days, because Akatsuki is preparing to appear at the Five Kage Summit and fully display its strength."
"The Five Kage Summit?"
Orochimaru raised an eyebrow slightly.
Obviously...
Nagato believed that only by displaying Akatsuki's strength in the most overwhelming manner at the Five Kage Summit could he truly unite the power of the entire Shinobi World and face the world-ending crisis together.
At that point, faced with the threat of destruction, the Five Great Shinobi Villages would naturally have no choice but to submit.
Having understood the Akatsuki leader's intentions... Orochimaru smiled...
Unfortunately, this leader of Akatsuki was still too naive...
Forget the Five Great Shinobi Villages. Konoha alone would never cooperate so easily.
"Heh heh, I see... I understand."
"I understand. I will return on time within three days."
Nagato's childish way of thinking made Orochimaru resolve to leave Akatsuki...
Having received a definite answer, Uchiha Itachi said nothing more and turned to leave.
The instant he turned around, a venomous snake shot silently from Orochimaru's sleeve with lightning speed, its sharp fangs aimed at the back of Uchiha Itachi's neck.
Just as the snake was about to strike...
Uchiha Itachi suddenly turned back as though he had anticipated it, and his scarlet Sharingan instantly met Orochimaru's eyes.
Orochimaru's body seemed frozen, unable to move in the slightest.
As he stared into Uchiha Itachi's deep, cold Sharingan, uncontrollable panic surged within him.
"Orochimaru..."
Itachi's voice was icy and indifferent, yet it carried an irresistible pressure...
"Before these Sharingan, you are still no match."
"Those words again..."
Anger and humiliation rose in Orochimaru's heart.
Last time, it had been Danzo. This time, it was Uchiha Itachi...
Only a few seconds later, Itachi slowly withdrew the suppression of his ocular technique, coldly turned around, and walked toward the door.
Orochimaru remained where he was, his gaze complex and sinister.
He did not attack again. He merely stared fixedly at Uchiha Itachi's retreating back, cold sweat beading faintly in his palm.
Only after Itachi had completely vanished from sight did Orochimaru gradually regain his freedom.
His body trembled slightly, not from fear...
But because that long-lost, intense thrill was continuously stirring the ambition and desire within his heart.
Obito's figure slowly emerged from the darkness again, his tone reproachful. "Orochimaru, you should not be provoking Uchiha Itachi on your own right now."
"Heh heh... I merely wanted to test how terrifying the Mangekyo was."
Orochimaru chuckled softly.
"Indeed, the Sharingan are truly terrifying..."
Obito saw Orochimaru's state and did not press further.
"How are things progressing on your end with the Impure World Reincarnation plan?"
"Rest assured. I have basically finalized the specific arrangements for Impure World Reincarnation."
"But before that, I still need your help, Lord Madara."
Obito responded, "Do you need enough corpses of powerful shinobi?"
"I'm afraid I can only trouble you with this matter."
It had to be said, this Masked Man who called himself Uchiha Madara... was truly useful...
He would handle the sacrifices, and even the corpses of the shinobi to be resurrected could be left for him to acquire.
This Masked Man was simply too easy to work with.
Obito nodded slightly, his tone full of confidence.
"This is simple for me. Sneaking into the major shinobi villages and finding those corpses and samples will not be a problem."
He was already planning to steal White Zetsu anyway, so what were a few corpses?
Digging up corpses was practically his specialty when combined with his Sharingan.
Especially with the Shinobi World in such chaos, the defensive forces of the major shinobi villages would mostly be focused on dealing with Akatsuki and the world-ending crisis. That would make his task effortless.
This Masked Man seemed extremely invested in their cooperation. He was a perfect partner.
Orochimaru suppressed his intense desire for the Sharingan and spoke in an unusually mild tone. "Then I'll leave it to you, Lord Madara."
"No matter. This was part of our cooperation to begin with."
After pondering for a moment, Orochimaru suddenly seemed to recall something. "Oh, there is one more matter."
Obito raised an eyebrow lightly and asked with interest, "What else do you need?"
Looking at the perfect partner before him, Orochimaru thought of another interesting matter.
"Regarding Uchiha Itachi's younger brother, Uchiha Sasuke..."
There was a trace of cunning anticipation in Orochimaru's tone...
"Lord Madara, could you bring him here as well?"
Obito's eyes lit up when he heard that. "Leave it to me."
In fact, ever since he had completely fallen out with Akatsuki, he no longer needed to honor certain agreements concerning Uchiha Itachi.
For Obito, bringing Sasuke to Orochimaru would not only meet Orochimaru's needs, but would also benefit his future arrangements.
At the very least, it would give him another piece to restrain Uchiha Itachi.
As for whether Sasuke lived or died, Obito did not care in the slightest.
Even if Sasuke had great potential for growth, at this stage, he could not grow any stronger.
Seeing Obito's nearly blind trust in him, Orochimaru quietly confirmed something in his heart...
Uchiha Yuan's mysterious Mangekyō Sharingan apparently could not completely control the Masked Man before him.
Judging from Obito's behavioral logic, that ocular technique seemed more like a method of subconscious guidance rather than complete and absolute mind control.
In particular, Obito's willingness to take Uchiha Sasuke away without hesitation clearly contradicted Danzo, who had also been influenced by Uchiha Yuan.
This indicated that Uchiha Yuan's ocular technique had some flaw or loophole in its rules...
It could not completely erase the target's original consciousness and could only carry out subtle ideological guidance.
Since they conflicted with one another, Uchiha Yuan's Mangekyō Sharingan still had a loophole in its rules.
However, although Sasuke was his target...
There was also a risk of being corrupted...
Especially if the Masked Man stayed with Sasuke...
But...
It seemed rather interesting...
Because until now, Obito and Danzo had acted independently...
It was impossible to see Uchiha Yuan's true intentions at all...
Thus, out of curiosity, Orochimaru was even willing to take the initiative and approach Uchiha Yuan...
As a scientist, he wanted to know what the truth was.
Before you continue