The Raikage's Plan

"Madara, Nagato is injured."

Black Zetsu emerged from the ground and spoke to the Masked Man.

"Useless! He has the Rinnegan, yet he still got injured in Kumogakure."

In the Masked Man's eyes, the Rinnegan, which is even higher in level than the Sharingan, is the most powerful, and as the owner of the Rinnegan, he should also be the strongest. Therefore, the Masked Man looks down on Nagato.

"Should I take Nagato's eyes out right now?"

The Masked Man made a symbolic inquiry to Black Zetsu.

"We still need Nagato's strength, so please wait a little longer."

Black Zetsu advised, Black Zetsu didn't want his plan to go awry.

"Alright then, you continue to monitor Nagato. I don't want him to try anything funny."

"Um."

After the two finished their discussion, Black Zetsu left. Once he was sure no one was around, the Masked Man let out a cold snort.

"I'd like to know what you're up to."

"However, I am determined to Rinnegan. If you stand in my way, don't blame me for being ruthless."

Although the Masked Man was Madara's chosen successor, Madara's time was limited, resulting in the brainwashing not being thorough enough. This allowed the Masked Man to develop his own ideas. Furthermore, don't forget that the Masked Man had a grandfather, the Grand Elder of the Uchiha Clan. After discussing all his problems with his grandfather, and learning that the Akatsuki Organization possessed the Rinnegan, he developed a strong urge to obtain Rinnegan. That was the Eye of God! Other clans might have long forgotten, but the Uchiha Clan, with its long history, remembered it clearly. The Grand Elder even dreamed that once the clan possessed the Rinnegan, he could depose Fugaku as Clan Head and become Hokage. Therefore, he and his grandson devised a series of plans to seize the Rinnegan.

The Akatsuki Organization is small, but each member has their own agenda.

"Nagato, are you feeling better?"

After seeing that Nagato had stopped coughing up blood, Konan asked anxiously. Nagato's appearance just now was truly terrifying; the blood hadn't stopped flowing.

"Cough cough."

"I'm alright, Konan."

Nagato said weakly that he hadn't expected the Eight-Tails to self-destruct for the sake of a human. If it weren't for the special properties of the Rinnegan, Nagato might already be dead. His six clones were also reduced to ashes in the explosion. He could easily replace the other five clones, but the fact that his close friend Yahiko's body was gone was what pained him the most.

"I'm injured. Has Black Zetsu pulled any tricks?"

Within the Akatsuki Organization, Nagato only trusted Konan. In his eyes, everyone else was merely a tool to carry out his plans. Black Zetsu, in particular, was Nagato never understood his true purpose in defeating.

"No, he's always been an honest and upright person."

Konan tells Nagato about Black Zetsu's movements during the period when Nagato was injured.

"That's the scariest part; the less he does, the bigger his goal must be."

Nagato said with a worried expression, he was no longer the naive boy he once was. So many years of growth had made Nagato understand a principle: others will only obey you if they want something from you.

"Should I go and kill him?"

Konan possesses a beautiful appearance and speaks with icy words. Like Nagato, in Konan's heart, anyone who poses a threat to Nagato is someone she can kill.

Nagato shook his head. He didn't want Konan to take any risks. Anyone who could live so long in the Ninja World must have some tricks up their sleeve. Nagato didn't want Konan to take any risks.

Seeing that Nagato did not agree to her plan, Konan did not persist.

"Now we only haven't captured the Eight-Tails and the Nine-Tails. What should we do next?"

Konan said to Nagato, after all, she was used to listening to Nagato.

"The Eight-Tails is no longer a concern; we can continue capturing it once it revives."

"I will personally bring the Nine-Tails back from Konoha."

"But Jiraiya is old..."

Konan was interrupted by Nagato before she could finish speaking.

"Konan."

"You need to understand that we've been going in opposite directions from the very beginning."

"Yes! There was no turning back once it started."

"But Konoha is also the strongest Ninja World! Are we confident we can pull off this risky move?"

Konoha is currently brimming with talent. The older Hiruzen Sarutobi, Konoha Sannin, hasn't retired yet; the Legendary Ninja World are in their prime; and the new generation, led by Minato Namikaze, includes Kakashi and Might Guy, who are just beginning to emerge. Not to mention, there's also Karot. Although Karot is currently out of the Ninja World, as Jiraiya's student, during the time Jiraiya mentored them, Karot was the name Jiraiya mentioned most often. Jiraiya once warned them that if they encountered Karot, they must never fight him. This was the only time Jiraiya seriously and earnestly warned them.

"Don't worry, Konan. In my eyes, everything is just an ant."

Nagato said confidently that ever since he became invincible with the Rinnegan, Nagato inevitably became arrogant. Even the most basic vigilance had disappeared, otherwise he wouldn't have been injured by the Eight-Tails' self-destruction.

Konan has always had blind confidence in Nagato. She would never say anything to disobey Nagato. For Konan, as long as she was with Nagato, everything else was irrelevant to her.

"Lord Raikage, what should we do now?"

Dressed like a mummy, Darui limped over to Ai for instructions.

Looking down at the completely transformed Kumogakure, A realized that Pain's final Super Shinra Tensei had annihilated half of the Kumogakure. The other half would have been obliterated by Pain's power had it not been for the Eight-Tails' own strength. This also caused the Eight-Tails to lose too much power, fall into a coma, and be captured by Pain.

"With the Five Kage Summit convened, that organization is no longer one that any single ninja village can confront alone."

Forced to swallow his pride, A had to seek help from other ninja villages, a humiliating defeat for the proud man. But he had no choice but to avenge his village and brother.

"Lord Raikage, we've received intelligence that the Tailed Beast of Sand Village and Mist Village have also been captured."

The elder of the Kumogakure rushed towards A with the intelligence report in his hand.

"What?"

A quickly scanned the intelligence in his hand. He had initially thought he had overestimated the Akatsuki Organization, but he had underestimated them. This organization was even more powerful than he had imagined. They had attacked the Three Great Shinobi Villages in a single day, and all of them had succeeded. Originally, it would have been difficult for A to request a Five Kage Summit, but now it was no longer just a matter for his Kumogakure; it was a matter for the entire Ninja World. Someone was challenging the existing order of the Ninja World.

"Why is there no information from Konoha?"

Ai looked up at the elder.

"Konoha has not been attacked."

Hearing this, Ai felt a pang of sadness. As the saying goes, it's not scarcity that's the problem, but inequality. His own village was attacked, so why was Konoha allowed to get away with it? Ai felt resentful.