If You Don't Believe Me, I'll Beat You to Death

On the Sacred Tree, the figures of Uchiha Itachi and Kisame Hoshigaki flickered in and out of sight amid the thick branches and leaves. Like fleeting glimmers of light, they rapidly leaped toward the summit.

"This is the place."

Uchiha Itachi looked around and quickly spotted numerous marks in the branches and leaves that had clearly been worn down by someone sitting on them.

"Could Uchiha Houka's purpose in coming to this village have been to sit here?" Kisame Hoshigaki asked curiously. "To enjoy the view?"

"There isn't enough information for me to determine his purpose."

Uchiha Itachi slowly walked to one of the spots, then sat down.

Kisame Hoshigaki copied him and found himself a place to sit as well. Looking left and right, he found that the surroundings really were quite nice. During the day, one could sit here, enjoy the breeze, and admire the scenery. At night, one could enjoy the breeze and gaze at the stars.

But could a ninja renowned throughout the Ninja World really spend all day sitting here just to admire the view?

Kisame Hoshigaki wouldn't believe that even if he were beaten to death!

"Itachi, did you find anything over there?" Kisame Hoshigaki asked.

Uchiha Itachi gave a slight shake of his head, rose to his feet, and said, "From what I know of Uchiha Houka, he would never waste his time admiring scenery."

"So we'll only know the answer once we find him?" Kisame Hoshigaki said.

"Let's go."

Uchiha Itachi took the lead in jumping down from the Sacred Tree.

Land of Fire.

Zetsu had also successfully met up with Orochimaru.

As a local power, Orochimaru had long learned everything through Danzo.

"Kakuzu took on a Black Market mission to hunt down Kakashi and seize his Sharingan. Kakashi has now