Uchiha Itachi

Land of Lightning.

Kumogakure.

Boom!

The Fourth Raikage, A, slammed his fist down on the iron desk in front of him. The deafening crash dented its solid surface.

"Damn it!"

"Orochimaru and those bastards from Sunagakure actually beat us to it!"

The Fourth Raikage glared furiously, lightning flickering faintly around him.

"Konoha is a cracked egg now!"

"Tell Samui to lead the reconnaissance unit and get right up to the northern border of the Land of Fire. I want the most detailed frontline report you can get!"

"One more thing!"

"Contact all our spies in the Land of Fire. Assess Konoha's current defensive weaknesses and any opportunities we can exploit!"

"Yes, Lord Raikage!"

Kumogakure had always been direct and aggressive.

In the Fourth Raikage's eyes, Konoha's weakness was a godsend.

Even if they didn't launch an all-out war immediately, they still had to apply as much military pressure as possible and seize a strategic advantage.

If they could take a big bite out of Konoha, that fat sheep, so much the better!

For a time, the entire shinobi world was thrown into turmoil by the Third Hokage's death, with undercurrents running beneath the surface.

By comparison,

another piece of news—

that Shimura Danzo had joined forces with Orochimaru to assassinate the Hokage, and had been officially declared an S-Class Rogue Ninja by Konoha and placed on the international wanted list—

was just as shocking.

But in the wake of the enormous storm caused by the Third Hokage's fall, it seemed almost insignificant.

The public's attention, and the strategic focus of the major villages' leaders...

were almost entirely drawn to Konoha's loss of the Third Hokage.

At the border of the Land of Fire,

beneath the greasy lamplight of a small-town eatery, voices clattered all around.

Uchiha Itachi and Kisame Hoshigaki sat at a table in the corner, silently eating their meal.

At the next table, several ninja who looked like wandering ronin were red-faced with drink.

They were loudly discussing the explosive news they'd just heard.

"...You hear? The Third Hokage of Konoha is dead!"

"Seriously? You're kidding, right? That was the Third Hokage!"

"It's true!"

"They say Orochimaru, a S-Class Rogue Ninja from their own village, did it together with the leader of that 'Root' outfit. What was his name—Danzo?"

"Sunagakure and Otogakure got involved too... Tsk, Konoha's really disgraced itself this time!"

"You can say that again! Not only did one of their own stab them in the heart, but someone even killed the village's Kage!"

"..."

At that, Itachi's hand paused almost imperceptibly around his chopsticks.

The Third Hokage had actually died?

Kisame Hoshigaki bared his shark-like teeth and gave a silent grin, listening with interest.

The ninjas at the next table kept talking, their voices full of exaggerated amazement—and, of course, schadenfreude.

Itachi quietly put down his chopsticks. More than half the food remained in his bowl, but he'd lost his appetite.

"Let's go!"

Itachi spoke softly, rose to his feet, set the money for the meal on the table, and walked straight out without looking back.

"Hm? Full already? They sure can't talk about you for long, Itachi!"

Kisame shrugged, grabbed Samehada from beside him, and followed.

The two walked one after the other into the dim street, leaving the noisy eatery behind. The night breeze carried a chill.

Kisame carried the greatsword Samehada over his shoulder and broke the silence first, his voice openly scornful:

"Konoha... Hah! What a spectacular fall from grace!"

"The greatest shinobi village in the world, reduced to having its Kage assassinated by one of its own."

"I thought only our Blood Mist Village had a tradition of this kind of coup!"

Itachi didn't answer. He kept walking ahead without breaking stride.

His wide hat hid most of his face, concealing every expression.

Yet beneath his calm, unreadable exterior, Uchiha Itachi's heart was already churning like a storm-tossed sea.

The Third Hokage... was dead?

That old man who always held a pipe in his mouth, had kind eyes, and sometimes looked at him with complicated emotions...

Dead?

Killed in a joint attack by Orochimaru and... Shimura Danzo?

Danzo?!

The name stabbed into Itachi's heart like a poisoned thorn.

He understood Danzo's darkness and ambition better than anyone!

But he'd never imagined—

that Danzo would go this far! He'd attacked the Hokage directly?

Then...

What was happening in the village now? Were Sasuke and Yo safe?

Had they been caught up in this? Would that madman Danzo take advantage of the chaos and go after Sasuke and Yo?

Countless questions and worries nearly left Itachi breathless.

"Hey, Itachi, you seem pretty concerned. Well, I suppose that makes sense!"

Kisame's voice came from behind him, tinged with amusement.

"After all... Konoha is your hometown. How does it feel to hear it's been caught up in such a huge scandal?"

Itachi's stride didn't falter. His voice came through the fabric, still utterly calm:

"...I don't feel anything."

"Rotten trees will fall eventually. It's only a matter of time."

"Is that so?"

Kisame chuckled without committing either way. "So, Itachi, where are we going now?"

"Keep heading north, to the border of the Land of Earth, and meet up with Scorpion and the others?"

Itachi kept walking, but his reply carried back to Kisame:

"No! We're going to Konoha!"

"Oh?"

Kisame sounded genuinely surprised. "We're not carrying out the mission over there? That doesn't sound like you, Itachi."

Itachi had already thought of a reason, and there wasn't a hint of a flaw in his explanation.

"The Third Hokage was killed in battle. Konoha is weaker than it's ever been!"

"Its defenses and security will inevitably be thrown into disarray, leaving openings."

"This is the perfect time to take advantage of their weakness."

"Taking the Nine-Tails is one of the organization's top priorities. This might be our best chance!"

Kisame bared his teeth and grinned silently, his smile carrying a hint of understanding and amusement.

"Going after the Nine-Tails... Sounds like a pretty good reason!"

Kisame shifted the greatsword on his shoulder, his tone casual.

"Perfect! I've been wanting to see with my own eyes just how chaotic the greatest shinobi village has become."

"Maybe..."

"I'll even find a worthy opponent and get to stretch my legs."

The next morning.

After breakfast, Sasuke was about to head to the Naka River to continue training.

He'd just reached the entryway when Yo's voice came from behind him.

"Don't rush off yet!"

Sasuke stopped and turned around, looking at Yo in confusion.

Yo ignored him and nodded toward the kitchen. "Karin, come over here too!"

Karin was washing dishes. She quickly dried her hands and followed Sasuke back to the living room, looking a little uneasy.

The two sat down across from Yo, unsure what he wanted to say.

Yo didn't explain. He reached into his clothes, took out a Sealing Scroll, and spread it open on the low table between them.

"Release!"

Yo formed a hand seal with one hand.

In an instant!

Whoosh!

A huge number of scrolls poured out of the small Sealing Scroll like water from a fountain, quickly piling up.

In the blink of an eye, several stacks had risen beside the low table, forming a small mountain.

The scrolls varied in age and material. Some were made of old, rough-looking leather; others were new paper. Different symbols and writing marked their surfaces.

"W-What are these?"

Sasuke and Karin stared at the sudden mountain of scrolls, wide-eyed, both confused and stunned.

Yo brushed off some dust and explained, "After taking out Danzo, I emptied the entire Root Base!"

"I destroyed the useless junk inside!"

"But these..."

Yo pointed to the mountain of scrolls. "Ninjutsu, Secret Techniques, outlines of Forbidden Jutsu, training notes, collections of information about different countries and clans..."

"I thought some of it might be useful, so I brought it all back."

Yo looked at Sasuke. "There are Fire Release and Lightning Release techniques in here, and even some secret arts involving the Ultimate Technique of Nature Transformation!"

"You can study them. They should be more useful than figuring everything out on your own!"