At the Flying Fortress.
"Jigen attacked Nagato?"
The moment Haku and the others encountered Konan, Shinji learned of it through the connection of Naobi.
He frowned slightly.
In the original timeline, Jigen—or rather, Ōtsutsuki Isshiki—hadn't acted rashly during the Fourth Shinobi World War. Instead, he'd remained in hiding until he found Kawaki, a "vessel" capable of withstanding all of his Chakra. Only then had he begun to move more frequently.
"Is this the butterfly effect?" Shinji smiled wryly and thought, I'd only just thought of going after him, and he's already plotting against me. Hah!
Though he wore a faint smile, the murderous intent in his eyes was unmistakable.
Without the Overlord, the Otsutsuki Clan would be the greatest threat in the Shinobi World. And compared to the sealed Kaguya Otsutsuki, Ōtsutsuki Isshiki was clearly the greater danger.
The reason Shinji hadn't moved against Ōtsutsuki Isshiki yet was not only that the Overlord's imminent threat left him too occupied to spare the attention. Another important reason was that he'd assumed Isshiki wouldn't make waves at this stage.
Now that Ōtsutsuki Isshiki had brazenly attacked Nagato, the situation had changed!
Without disturbing Yakumo, who was staying behind at the fortress, or Shion, who was studying magic, Shinji slipped away.
The Flying Fortress was his secret base, and too many secrets were tied to it. Even though Konan was no longer an enemy, he didn't want its secrets exposed to outsiders. He obviously couldn't meet her inside the Flying Fortress.
In a forest somewhere in the Land of Fire.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!
With a rush of wind, Haku, Neji, Kimimaro, and Konan landed in the forest one after another.
Haku, Neji, and Kimimaro had already changed back into their Akatsuki Organization outfits. They wore hooded Red Cloud outfits and their respective masks.