The Akatsuki, A Collapsed Fate

In a cave within the Land of Water.

Uchiha Itachi and Biwa Juzo were sitting by a campfire, warming themselves.

Over the past few days, facing the damp and rainy environment, Itachi had quickly adapted to his new identity—a member of the Akatsuki organization.

Stretching his back, Biwa Juzo complained:

"Being a bounty hunter every day, working as a mercenary to earn money for the organization, it's so tiring. I finally managed to leave the Bloody Mist Village and become a free-spirited rogue ninja, only to end up right back in this life."

"Only a monster like Kakuzu who can't die would enjoy this. Hmph, he only finds pleasure in earning money and counting it; he never actually spends a cent."

"By the way, Itachi, let me tell you, the organization's financial power is likely in Konan's hands. I reckon she's the richest woman in the Ninja World, with assets that don't lose out to Gato, the richest man in the Land of Waves. It's a pity she walks around with a sour face all day, calling herself some kind of messenger of God."

"Sigh, perhaps we're the only two normal people in the entire Akatsuki."

Beside him, Uchiha Itachi leaned against the cave wall, eyes closed in feigned sleep.

Itachi showed no reaction to the complaints of his chatterbox partner, Biwa Juzo; he seemed to be gradually growing accustomed to all of this.

It's a good opportunity to gather intelligence and find a chance to pass it back to Konoha.

Uchiha Madara? I don't know where that mysterious guy who lured me into the organization has gone now.

He seems to have a poor relationship with that leader, Pain, and the messenger, Konan.

I always get the feeling that both of them are quite wary of me.

The Fifth Hokage, Xiu... you are the most prominent figure in the Ninja World lately.

Suddenly, a mental message descended into their minds from across the distance.

Biwa Juzo, who had been in the middle of a long-winded rant about being forced into black-market labor, curled his lip: "What does the group want now! So annoying!"

Itachi, who craved to awaken the Mangekyo and master greater power but always felt he was one step away, remained habitually silent. Without saying a word, he stood up and placed a paper charm at the entrance of the cave.

A defensive barrier capable of masking chakra signatures was generated immediately.

Turning back, the two performed a hand seal in unison.

Biwa Juzo, wielder of the Kubikiribōchō, said in a low voice:

"Magic Lantern Body Technique!"

In an instant, their mental projections descended into a massive cavern.

Inside, there stood an abnormally bizarre, giant humanoid statue with a face twisted to the extreme, and nine closed eyes scattered across its visage.

It looked like something with a profound history.

Uchiha Itachi's mental projection landed on one of the statue's fingers from thousands of miles away. He first scanned his surroundings.

He discovered that besides the leader, Pain, who had summoned him and Biwa Juzo, there were real-time projections of two other Akatsuki members standing on the fingers of the statue's other hand.

Orochimaru and Sasori of the Red Sands.

"Kakuzu, you've lost another partner, haven't you? Tsk tsk tsk, two teammates dead in a single month. Who would dare to work with you in the future?"

Facing Biwa Juzo's mockery, Kakuzu—who possessed five hearts and claimed to have fought the legendary Hashirama and survived—stood on the edge of a finger and let out a cold snort.

At this moment, the leader, 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 are to head to the border of the Land of Earth immediately. Lead the organization's peripheral ninjas and assist Ōnoki in crushing the forces of the Land of Lightning!"

A war commission of the highest order?

But why help the Land of Earth!

Earth and Lightning have been hostile for so many years; they were evenly matched.

Breaking the balance early offers no visible benefits.

Biwa Juzo frowned: "Intervening in a Great Nation's war this early, aren't we afraid that the Tailed Beast collection plan will be exposed prematurely?"

Orochimaru's gaze lingered on Uchiha Itachi for a long while before he licked his lips in a perverted manner:

"Oh? It seems something big has happened again. The Third Hokage died in a coup. According to the general trend, shouldn't the nations be tacitly attacking the Land of Fire from multiple fronts, crushing Konoha, and dividing the spoils?"

Pain shook his head, his tone indifferent: "The Hokage went deep into Iwagakure, snatched the Four-Tails and Five-Tails, and practically shattered the village's ability to mobilize for war."

"An interesting fellow," Sasori remarked with caution.

For such a major event, Pain has so little to say. There must be a massive amount of inside information.

Clearly, that Fifth Hokage is very troublesome!

After emphasizing that all groups must abandon their current tasks and head to the target location immediately, Konan, wearing a paper flower in her hair, spoke:

"Dismissed!"

Instantly, the mental projections of these elite Jonin and Kage-level powerhouses vanished from the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path.

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

In the Land of Grass, there were two.

Kakuzu, Orochimaru, and Sasori of the Red Sands were, in fact, not far from the Land of Earth.

Inside Mount Myoboku.

Jiraiya, wearing a forehead protector inscribed with the character for "Oil," rubbed his head and sighed helplessly:

"We only just parted ways, and now you summon me back so suddenly. What could possibly be the matter? The village is incredibly fragile right now; I need to escort the Tailed Beast spoils back, then accept the Fifth Hokage's orders to guard the most dangerous front lines."

"Stop your whining." Sage Fukasaku hopped effortlessly onto Jiraiya's shoulder and tapped his head with a webbed claw:

"We wouldn't have brought you here if it weren't urgent!"

At that moment, the purple-skinned Sage Shima hopped onto his other shoulder and added, "We don't know the specifics ourselves. It was only after we informed the Great Sage about the Fifth Hokage's deeds that He had another dream."

"Oh?"

The moment he heard it concerned the Great Sage and a dream, Jiraiya immediately straightened up.

Mount Myoboku was the place that had changed him, the "dunce" of the Sannin.

--It all stemmed from a reckless summoning jutsu he performed in his youth.

Sage Fukasaku and Sage Shima, perched on his shoulders, were both renowned as the Great Toad Sage's most trusted elder-level confidants. They had taught him all his Sage Arts and had contributed significantly to the recent Iwagakure Collapse Plan.

Having practiced Sage Arts for over eight hundred years without showing signs of age, they were deeply respected by all the powerful young toads of Mount Myoboku.

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

As the thousand-year-old progenitor of Mount Myoboku, legend held that He had fought alongside the Sage of Six Paths against the source of chakra, the Rabbit Goddess. He had provided the secret treasure, the Talisman of the Sage, to resurrect the Sage of Six Paths and had taught him profound Sage Arts to turn the tide of history.

Jiraiya believed this implicitly!

Even if the era was so distant that history and myth had intertwined, making it hard to distinguish truth from fiction, and even if many of these rumors were only heard from the mouths of younger toads—the Great Sage himself never spoke of it.

Thus, it went without saying that the Great Toad Sage used his fragmented dreams to issue various prophecies regarding the direction of the Ninja World.

He had decreed that Jiraiya must find and nurture the Child of Prophecy—

Consequently, disgusted by the Konoha governed by his teacher, the Third Hokage Sarutobi, and longing to escape the cruel internal power struggles, among other reasons, Jiraiya had firmly left Konoha. Under the guise of intelligence gathering, he traveled throughout the Ninja World, primarily searching for the savior mentioned in the Great Sage's prophecy.

"Thank goodness I found him."

"It must be the Fifth, it has to be."

Uchiha Xiu, with his iron-fisted methods and endless supply of mysterious techniques, appeared in his mind.

Soon, Jiraiya, carrying Fukasaku and Shima on his shoulders, arrived at the main hall of worship.

In the center seat.

The entirely orange Great Toad Sage looked shriveled, his wrinkled, leathery skin even more pronounced than the last time they met!

It was as if a spirited sixty-year-old had suddenly collapsed onto a sickbed, declaring his time was near.

At this moment, Gamakichi was dozing. The pale purple opal embedded in the center of the prayer beads around his neck emitted a faint glow, continuously nourishing his body.

Sage Fukasaku spoke up, bowing respectfully: "Great Sage, little Jiraiya is here."

"Oh, oh..."

Like an old man suffering from dementia, the Great Sage, whose true name was Gamakichi, opened his cloudy eyes.

Jiraiya couldn't bother with pleasantries and asked urgently:

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

"And... what did you dream of? Is it about the Child of Prophecy!"

Without a doubt, he felt a deeper connection to the Toad clan than he did to the Third Hokage Sarutobi.

The Great Toad Sage shook his head and spoke slowly:

"Fate has been thrown into chaos; all my prophecies have failed..."

At this, Gamakichi couldn't help but shudder.

He had attempted to calculate what had happened to that Fifth Hokage, only to have his own lifespan stripped away. He, who had boasted of a life spanning ten thousand years, had nearly died on the spot.

It was only thanks to the various secret treasures of the Toad Kingdom that he had survived.

He was wise enough not to force the divination again.

Jiraiya's heart trembled along with him.

Fate is in chaos? Then what have I been running around the Ninja World for all these years? Where is the meaning of my life!

"And then?"

Facing the impatient questioning, the Great Toad Sage shook his head again:

"Alas, I only hope this planet can have a good beginning and a good end, and not be destroyed by visitors from beyond the heavens."

"Visitors from beyond the heavens? What is that?"

After a pause, Jiraiya frowned and continued to press.

"Sigh!"

The Great Toad Sage let out a long sigh, a look of reminiscence on his face, his voice sluggish:

"In the history of the Ninja World, that progenitor of chakra, the Rabbit Goddess, came from beyond the heavens. The ocular powers she possessed transcend Kekkei Genkai and Kekkei Tōta, possessing abilities that surpass both the Sage Eye and the Mangekyo Sharingan."

Sage Eye, also known as the Rinnegan.

Having once been Nagato's mentor and having seen the Sage Eye with his own eyes, Jiraiya felt the situation spiraling further into collapse.

The Ninja World had become exceptionally strange!

A renowned veteran powerhouse like him felt as though the past few decades had been lived in a delusion.

Next, Uchiha Xiu did his utmost to avoid leaking certain intelligence, lest he frighten Jiraiya and the others.

The Rinne Sharingan, the Ten-Tails Divine Tree, the atrocities of the Otsutsuki Clan attempting to refine the entire planet...

A thousand years ago, the unfathomably powerful Great Sage was nearly sucked dry into a toad-jerky!!

"Little Jiraiya, take Shima and Fukasaku back to Konoha. You must protect Uzumaki Naruto well; the child of prophecy you have been searching for all this time is precisely him." Gamakichi dared not speak in riddles or act mysterious any longer.

No matter how fate changed, having lost its certainty, it hoped to have cards to play in its own hand.

Uzumaki Naruto—the reincarnation of Asura's chakra.

The Sage of Six Paths could not be relied upon, as he had been unreachable for a long time; he hoped that his second son would be useful at the critical moment.

Sigh, the whereabouts and identity of the reincarnation of Indra's chakra were unknown. If he could be brought over, there would still be room for redemption even if a mistake occurred.

"Yes, Great Lord."

The two Sage Toads perched on Jiraiya's shoulders responded in unison; they would obey the order to garrison in Konoha and guard the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, Uzumaki Naruto.

They would absolutely obey the command of that mysterious and wicked Fifth Hokage.

"Everything shall be centered around Uchiha Xiu."

The Great Toad's voice was laced with profound dread.

Hokage Office.

The morning glow filtered through the glass, gilding the mountain of files in gold. Shizune gazed out at the street in a daze:

How did I, a mere Jonin, end up handling all this official business?

It's so infuriating.

Lady Tsunade is truly lazy; this was work entrusted to her as the Fifth Hokage.

"However, it seems she has the beginnings of a romance."

"There have always been rumors that compared to his original wife, the bond between the First Hokage, that God of Shinobi, and Madara was much deeper."

"So... for the Senju Clan, are the Uchiha succubi?"

Hmph, hmph~

The pig named Tonton in her arms grunted, seemingly in agreement.

Inside the village.

A shop in a small alley.

Uchiha Xiu, who had easily mastered Lava Release and was committed to taking shortcuts, was calmly enjoying his breakfast, not being extravagant:

A dish of natto and a serving of sweet soup.

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

Tsunade kept reaching out to grab the dango, tasting the sweetness seeping from them.

It was as if she were biting into someone's flesh.

She had stood in the training hall all night accompanying this guy!

"Lava Release is formed by combining Fire Style chakra and Earth Style chakra. Its nature transformation manifests as the creation of high-temperature magma or volcanic bombs..."

"When the ratio of Fire Style chakra is higher, Lava Release exhibits intense aggression, manifesting as high-temperature molten lava capable of melting or burning targets—enough to melt a second-stage Susanoo, much like Mei Terumi's Boil Release."

"When the ratio of Earth Style chakra is higher, Lava Release leans toward control and support, capable of generating substances similar to volcanic ash or cement to restrict the movements of groups of enemies..."

Upon his return, his strength was that of a weak Kage.

He lacked offensive means.

Now, having first copied the abilities of Elder Shin and the late Danzo in battle, then taking control of the Scroll of Seals to master all non-senjutsu Wood Release, he possessed strong Kage-level combat power.

Coupled with the Kamui eye of Obito, who had delivered it to his doorstep.

"As a perfect Jinchuriki, do I count as Beyond-Kage level now?"

"Nagato's Rinnegan paired with the Pain Six Paths is essentially a quality-control test for whether one can step into the Beyond-Kage level."

In the plan for this current return, Uchiha Xiu had no intention of clashing with the Akatsuki organization for the time being.

It was not secure.

The subsequent series of plans was equivalent to leading Konoha to resist the Four Great Nations and the entire Akatsuki organization, forcing Black Zetsu, who possessed a certain degree of Kekkei Mōra power, to make a move.

Resources were tight on all fronts.

The operation was too extreme, and he didn't have a second Negacion to use for his own extraction.

"Let's play it safe. Next time I return... I will possess my own Mangekyo, and with the resources obtained from the Main God Space in The Mummy, I can guarantee there will be no room for error."

Tsunade glanced helplessly at the distracted young Hokage opposite her and asked casually, "What are you thinking about?"

"The intensity of the war has been brought under control; Konoha is no longer in danger of annihilation. Under normal circumstances, at most, Kumogakure will just stir up some trouble."

Uchiha Xiu replied, "Therefore, I leave military and economic matters entirely to you. From now on, I intend to focus my energy... on practicing the Flying Thunder God and sealing techniques."

"The Hokage's insight is profound," Tsunade said coldly.

Sealing techniques were of the highest priority.

The next dungeon for the East Sea Team involved ancient Egyptian mythology, explicitly featuring the Soul Reaper Anubis, the creator Sun God Ra, and the Pharaoh's guardian, the God of Hakimi...

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

Logically speaking, while there was difficulty, it shouldn't be excessively high.

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

But on second thought, the Main God was constantly evolving and had applied too many patches; some phenomena were different from those in Zheng Zha's Central Continent Team—after the guide dissipated, the reincarnation logs of the previous East Sea Team had actually been preserved.

"One can never have too many skills. Sealing techniques have a high ceiling and can produce miraculous effects in many horror movies."

Thereafter.

For a long time, as the source of the original plot collapse in the Ninja World, Konoha remained unusually calm, content to stay out of the fray.

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

This was only because Kumogakure, Iwagakure, and the Akatsuki organization had begun tearing into each other, forcing experts like Killer B to go provide support.

During this period, the agile Fourth Raikage even wrote a personal letter to Uchiha Xiu, hoping that Konoha would rein in Orochimaru. That guy was using Impure World Reincarnation to desecrate the dead, having actually conjured an army of the undead on the front lines.

"Time to return to the Main God Space."

"When I return next time, it will have been only a second in Hokage time, and I will turn the Ninja World upside down..."