Akatsuki, the Shattered Threads of Fate

In a cave somewhere in the Land of Water.

Uchiha Itachi and Biwa Juzo sat beside a campfire, warming themselves.

Over the past few days, Itachi had quickly adapted to his new identity as a member of Akatsuki, despite the damp, rainy environment.

Stretching, Biwa Juzo complained:

"Being a bounty hunter every day, taking mercenary jobs and making money for the organization—it's exhausting. I'd finally escaped the Bloody Mist Village and become a free-spirited rogue ninja, only to end up right back where I started."

"Maybe a deathless monster like Kakuzu enjoys it. Hmph. He only enjoys earning and counting money. He never spends any."

"By the way, Itachi, I'm telling you, Konan should be in charge of the organization's finances. She's probably the richest woman in the Ninja World. Her assets rival those of Gato, the richest man in the Land of Waves. It's a shame she always wears such a sour expression and calls herself some kind of divine messenger."

"Honestly, maybe we're the only two normal people in all of Akatsuki."

Beside him, Uchiha Itachi leaned against the cave wall, eyes closed as he rested.

Itachi didn't react at all to his talkative partner Biwa Juzo's complaints. He seemed to be gradually getting used to all of this.

It was a good opportunity to gather intelligence and find a chance to send it back to Konoha.

Uchiha Madara? I wonder where that mysterious man who brought me into the organization has gone.

He didn't seem to get along with Pain, the leader, or Konan, the divine messenger.

I can't help feeling that they're both wary of me.

Fifth Hokage, Xiu... You've been the most talked-about person in the Ninja World lately.

Suddenly, a mental message arrived in the minds of both men from afar.

Biwa Juzo had been going on and on, grumbling about working like a slave every day. He pursed his lips and said, "What does the boss want with our team now? What a pain!"

Itachi, who longed to awaken his Mangekyo Sharingan and gain greater power but always felt he was just one step short, fell silent as usual. He said nothing, got up at once, and stuck a talisman at the cave entrance.

A defensive barrier capable of blocking perception immediately formed.

Turning back, the two made the same hand sign.

Biwa Juzo, wielder of Kubikiribōchō, called out in a low voice:

"Magic Lantern Body Technique!"

In an instant, their mental projections appeared inside a vast cavern.

Within it stood an enormous, bizarre humanoid stone statue. Its face was grotesquely twisted, and nine closed eyes were scattered across it.

It was clearly no ordinary statue.

Uchiha Itachi's mental projection appeared on one of the statue's fingers, thousands of miles away. He first looked around.

Besides Pain, the leader who had summoned him and Biwa Juzo, two other Akatsuki members' true projections stood on the fingers of the statue's other hand.

Orochimaru and Sasori of the Red Sands.

"Kakuzu, did you lose another partner? Tsk, tsk, two teammates dead in a month. Who'd ever dare go on a mission with you again?"

At Biwa Juzo's taunt, Kakuzu, who had five hearts and claimed to have fought Hashirama at his peak and survived, gave a cold snort from the finger at the edge.

Then Pain, standing on the statue's thumb, spoke. "The organization needs to adjust its strategy. Orochimaru, Sasori, Uchiha Itachi, Biwa Juzo, Kakuzu—all of you, head to the border of the Land of Earth immediately. Lead the organization's peripheral ninja and assist Ōnoki in defeating the forces of the Land of Lightning!"

A top-level war contract?

But why help the Land of Earth?

The Land of Earth and the Land of Lightning had been enemies for years, and their strength was evenly matched.

Breaking the balance ahead of time offered no apparent benefit.

Biwa Juzo frowned. "We're getting involved in a war between great nations this early? Aren't you afraid it'll expose the Tailed Beast collection plan?"

Orochimaru's gaze lingered on Uchiha Itachi for a long while. Then he licked his lips with his long tongue, like a pervert.

"Oh? Something big has happened again. The Third Hokage died in a coup. Given the general trend, shouldn't the other countries be attacking the Land of Fire on several fronts in unspoken agreement, crushing Konoha and dividing up the spoils?"

Pain shook his head, his tone cold. "The Hokage ventured deep into Iwagakure and took the Four-Tails and Five-Tails. He nearly shattered Iwagakure's ability to mobilize for war."

"Interesting fellow," Sasori said warily.

Pain had said so little about such a major event. There had to be a great deal of information he was keeping to himself.

Clearly, that Fifth Hokage was a formidable opponent!

After emphasizing that every team had to abandon its current missions and head to the designated location at once, Konan, wearing a paper flower in her hair, spoke:

"Dismissed!"

One after another, the mental projections of elite Jonin and Kage-level fighters vanished from the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path.

In the Land of Waterfalls, a figure dressed in a red-cloud cloak tucked away a stack of banknotes and raced toward the border of the Land of Earth.

In the Land of Grass, two others did the same.

Kakuzu, Orochimaru, and Sasori of the Red Sands were all relatively close to the Land of Earth.

At Mount Myoboku.

Jiraiya, wearing a Forehead Protector marked with the kanji for "oil," rubbed his head and said helplessly:

"We only just parted. Why summon me here all of a sudden? The village is so weak right now. I have to escort our Tailed Beast spoils back to the village, then follow the Fifth Hokage's orders and guard the most dangerous front line."

"Stop complaining." Sage Fukasaku hopped lightly onto Jiraiya's shoulder and tapped his head with a frog's paw.

"We called you here because it's important!"

At that moment, Sage Shima, her skin purple, hopped onto his other shoulder and added, "We don't know the details either. After we told the Great Sage about the Fifth Hokage's deeds, he had another dream."

"Oh?"

Hearing that it involved the Great Sage and a dream, Jiraiya immediately grew serious.

Mount Myoboku was where he, the dead last among the Sannin, had changed.

It all began with a reckless Summoning Technique in his youth.

Sage Fukasaku and Sage Shima, perched on his shoulders, were both trusted aides of the Great Toad Sage, a senior elder. They had taught him all his Senjutsu, and had contributed greatly to the recent Iwagakure Collapse Plan.

The two had practiced Senjutsu for over eight hundred years without showing any signs of age. They were also revered by the many young, powerful toads of Mount Myoboku.

As for the Great Toad Sage, he lived in a temple deep within Mount Myoboku.

The founder of Mount Myoboku, who had lived for over a thousand years, was said to have joined the Sage of Six Paths in fighting the source of chakra, the Rabbit Goddess. The Great Toad Sage had once offered the Sage of Six Paths the treasured Talisman of the Sage to revive him, then taught him a more advanced form of Senjutsu, turning the tide of battle.

Jiraiya believed this without question!

Even though it had happened so long ago that history was tangled with myth, and many of the tales had come from younger toads, the Great Sage never spoke of them himself.

And that was nothing compared to the Great Sage's many prophecies about the fate of the Ninja World, delivered through fragmented dreams.

He had appointed Jiraiya to find and train the Child of Prophecy—

And so, Jiraiya had firmly left Konoha. He hated the village under his teacher, the Third Hokage, and longed to escape its brutal internal struggles, among other reasons. Under the pretext of gathering intelligence, he wandered the Ninja World, primarily searching for the savior foretold by the Great Sage.

"Thank goodness I found him."

"It has to be the Fifth Hokage. It must be."

Uchiha Xiu came to mind, with his iron-fisted methods and endless array of mysterious techniques.

Soon, Jiraiya arrived at the temple with Fukasaku and Shima on his shoulders.

In the central seat of honor sat the Great Toad Sage, his body orange all over. He looked shriveled, his wrinkled skin even more creased than the last time they met!

It was like seeing a sprightly sixty-year-old one moment, then finding him bedridden and near death the next.

At that moment, Gamakichi was dozing. The pale purple cat's-eye stone set in the center of the prayer beads around his neck glimmered, continually nourishing his body.

Sage Fukasaku spoke respectfully. "Great Sage, young Jiraiya is here."

"Oh, oh..."

Like an old man with dementia, the Great Sage, whose real name was Gamakichi, opened his cloudy eyes.

Jiraiya skipped the pleasantries and asked urgently:

"Great Sage, what happened to you? How did you suddenly become like this?"

"And... what did you dream about this time? Was it about the Child of Prophecy?"

Without a doubt, he felt more affection for the Toad Clan than for the Third Hokage, Sarutobi.

The Great Toad Sage shook his head and spoke slowly:

"Fate has gone astray. All my prophecies have failed..."

As he said this, Gamakichi couldn't help shivering.

He had tried to divine what had happened to the Fifth Hokage. In return, his lifespan had been stripped away. Though he had always claimed to be immortal, he had nearly died on the spot.

He had only survived thanks to the many treasures of the Toad Kingdom.

And because he had known better than to keep forcing his way through the visions.

Jiraiya's heart gave a jolt too.

Fate had gone astray? Then what had all his years of wandering the Ninja World been for? What was the meaning of life?

"And then?"

Facing Jiraiya's impatient question, the Great Toad Sage shook his head again.

"Alas, I hope this planet can meet a good end and won't be destroyed by visitors from beyond the stars."

"Visitors from beyond the stars? What does that mean?"

After a pause, Jiraiya frowned and pressed on.

"Alas!"

The Great Toad Sage sighed deeply, a look of reminiscence on his face. His voice was gentle and slow.

"Throughout the history of the Ninja World, the progenitor of chakra, the Rabbit Goddess, came from beyond the stars. Her dōjutsu surpassed Kekkei Genkai and Kekkei Tōta, with abilities beyond the Sage Eye and the Mangekyō Sharingan."

The Sage Eye referred to the Rinnegan.

Jiraiya had once taught Nagato and had seen the Sage Eye with his own eyes. The more he heard, the more he felt that everything was falling apart.

The Ninja World had become utterly unfamiliar!

A famous, seasoned fighter like him had spent the past decades living in a delusion.

Next came the leaks of information Uchiha Xiu had tried so hard to keep from Jiraiya and the others, lest he frighten them.

The Rinne Sharingan, the Ten-Tails Divine Tree, and the Otsutsuki Clan's atrocities as they tried to refine an entire planet...

A thousand years ago, even the unfathomably powerful Great Sage had nearly been sucked dry like a desiccated toad!

"Jiraiya, take Shima and Fukasaku back to Konoha. Be sure to protect Uzumaki Naruto. The original Child of Prophecy you've been searching for is this boy." Gamakichi no longer dared to speak in riddles or put on airs.

No matter how fate changed or what certainties were lost, he hoped to have a card to play.

Uzumaki Naruto—the reincarnation of Asura Chakra.

The Sage of Six Paths was out of reach, and had been impossible to contact for a long time. He could only hope that the Sage's second son would prove useful when the time came.

Alas, the reincarnation of Indra's Chakra was missing, his identity unknown. If they could bring him in, there would still be a chance to turn things around if something went wrong.

"Yes, Great Sage."

The two little sage toads perched on Jiraiya's shoulders answered in unison. They would follow orders, stay in Konoha, and protect the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, Uzumaki Naruto.

They would obey the mysterious, sinister Fifth Hokage without question.

"Let Uchiha Xiu take the lead in everything."

The Great Toad Sage's voice was filled with deep fear.

The Hokage's office.

The morning glow streamed through the glass, gilding the mountain of documents. Shizune gazed absently at the street outside the window:

Why was she the one handling all this paperwork when she was only a Jonin?

This was so frustrating.

Lady Tsunade was so lazy. The Fifth Hokage had clearly entrusted the work to her.

"But it seems like she might be falling in love."

"There's always been gossip that the First, the God of Shinobi, had a deeper relationship with Madara than with his own wife."

"So... are the Uchiha Clan love demons to the Senju Clan?"

Heh heh~

In her arms, Tonton the piglet oinked, seeming to agree.

In the village.

At a shop in a narrow alley.

Uchiha Xiu, who had mastered Lava Release with ease and followed the path of shortcuts to the end, calmly enjoyed a modest breakfast:

A plate of natto and a bowl of sweet soup.

He shared a plate of three-colored dumplings with Tsunade.

Tsunade kept reaching for the dumplings, savoring their sweetness.

It was almost like she was biting into someone's flesh.

She'd spent the whole night with this guy in the training hall!

"Lava Release is formed by combining Fire Release chakra and Earth Release chakra. Its nature transformation manifests as molten rock at high temperatures, volcanic bombs, and similar forms..."

"When the proportion of Fire Release chakra is higher, Lava Release is more offensive. It takes the form of high-temperature molten rock that can melt or burn its target, enough to melt Susanoo in its second stage, like Mei Terumi's Lava Release."

"When the proportion of Earth Release chakra is higher, Lava Release leans toward control and support. It can generate substances resembling volcanic ash or cement, restricting the movements of groups of enemies..."

When he returned, his strength had been at the lower end of Kage Level.

He'd lacked offensive techniques.

Now, after copying the abilities of Elder Shin and the dead Danzo in battle, then taking control of the Scroll of Seals and learning every non-Senjutsu Wood Release technique, he had the combat power of a strong Kage-level fighter.

And then there was Obito's Kamui eye, delivered right to his door.

"Wouldn't my current Perfect Jinchuriki self count as Super Kage Level?"

"Rinnegan Nagato with Pain Six Paths is about the benchmark for whether someone can enter Super Kage Level."

Uchiha Xiu had no plans to take on Akatsuki during this return.

It wasn't prudent.

His subsequent plans amounted to taking Konoha on against the four great nations and the entire Akatsuki, forcing Black Zetsu, who possessed a degree of Kekkei Mōra power, to act.

He was stretched thin on every front.

The plan was too risky, and he had no second Negacion to use as an escape route.

"Let's play it safe this time. When I return next time... I'll have my own Mangekyo, and with the Main God Space resources I obtained in The Mummy, I'll be able to guarantee success."

Tsunade glanced helplessly at the young Hokage across from her, who seemed lost in thought, and casually asked, "What are you thinking about?"

"The intensity of the war is under control. Konoha isn't in danger of being wiped out. Under normal circumstances, the most we have to worry about is Kumogakure causing trouble."

Uchiha Xiu replied, "So you can take full responsibility for military and economic affairs. From now on, I'm going to focus... on training in the Flying Thunder God and Sealing Jutsu."

"Wise words, Hokage," Tsunade said coldly.

Sealing Jutsu was a very high priority.

The next East Sea Team mission involved Egyptian mythology, including the Soul Reaper Anubis, the creator and Sun God Ra, and the pharaoh's guardian, God of Hakimi...

Could it involve the concept of divinity? Uchiha Xiu wasn't sure.

In theory, it was difficult, but not that difficult.

The answer was simple: the East Sea Team was a new team.

But then again, the Main God had kept up with the times and patched things over and over. Some things were different from the Central Continent Team Zheng Zha was in—for instance, after the guide disappeared, the East Sea Team's mission logs from its previous cycle had somehow remained.

"Knowing more skills never hurts. Sealing Jutsu has a high ceiling and can work wonders in all kinds of horror films."

After that.

For a long time, Konoha—whose actions had set the Ninja World's original storyline on a path of ruin—settled into an uncharacteristic calm, content to stay out of things.

The lost territory on the northeastern front, after being forcefully occupied by the Land of Lightning for several days, was easily reclaimed by Uchiha Setsuna and his men.

That was only because Kumogakure, Iwagakure, and the Akatsuki had started tearing into one another. Killer B and the other experts had to go lend support.

During that time, the nimble Fourth Raikage even sent Uchiha Xiu a letter in his own hand, asking Konoha to rein in Orochimaru. The man was desecrating the dead with Impure World Reincarnation and had even raised an army of the undead on the front lines.

"It's time to return to the Main God Space."

"When I come back next time, only a second will have passed in the world of Naruto. I'll turn the Ninja World upside down..."