Alliance Secret Talks, Two-Tails' Distress Signal

Inside the Sunagakure medical room, pale purple chakra swirled around Gaara like a thin veil. Su Ye's fingertips twitched, channeling the final strand of restorative chakra into his dantian. As the energy integrated, Gaara's eyelashes fluttered, and he slowly opened his eyes. His voice was hoarse, carrying the weakness of one who had narrowly escaped death: "Was it... you who saved me?"

"Don't speak yet; your body hasn't fully recovered." Su Ye withdrew his hand and turned toward the door. Kakashi and Elder Chiyo were standing there, followed by the Sunagakure Council. Elder Chiyo hurried forward, taking Gaara's hand, her aged eyes filled with relief: "It is enough that you have awakened. Sunagakure cannot do without you."

Half an hour later, in the Sunagakure council chamber, the core members of Konoha and Sunagakure sat around a table. Jiraiya spread a map across the surface, pointing toward the direction of Kumogakure: "According to intelligence, the Akatsuki's next target is likely the Two-Tails jinchuriki, Yugito. After this failure, Obito will certainly accelerate the pace of capturing the Tailed Beasts."

"We must form a joint defense force." Gaara sat at the head of the table; though his face remained pale, his gaze was resolute. "Sunagakure is willing to dispatch elite ninja to cooperate with Konoha in protecting the remaining jinchuriki."

As Su Ye studied the Tailed Beast locations marked on the map, his Rinne Sharingan suddenly grew warm. A blurred vision flooded his mind: in a pitch-black forest, Yugito's Tailed Beast-transformed figure was being besieged by two dark shadows, and the Two-Tails' chakra was rapidly dissipating. He stood up abruptly, his tone urgent: "This is bad, the Two-Tails is in danger! My Rinnegan sensed Yugito's distress signal; she must be in the Forest of Lightning on the border of Kumogakure!"

The group's expressions shifted instantly. Kakashi rose at once: "Su Ye and I will head out first, using the Flying Thunder God Kunai to provide support! Jiraiya-sama, you and Gaara organize the joint force as quickly as possible and follow behind!"

Su Ye and Kakashi exchanged a glance and simultaneously crushed the Flying Thunder God Kunai in their hands. A flash of yellow electricity surged, and their figures vanished from the council chamber in an instant.

Inside the Forest of Lightning, the roaring was deafening. Yugito had fully transformed into her Tailed Beast, her body wreathed in the flames of the Two-Tails as she launched attacks at Hidan and Kakuzu. Hidan brandished his Triple-Bladed Scythe, dodging the flames while the chain attached to the weapon ensnared the Two-Tails' hind leg. Kakuzu seized the opportunity to extend his pitch-black tentacles, piercing the beast's body to begin extracting its chakra.

"You bastards!" Yugito roared, a Tailed Beast Bomb gathering in her maw. Just as she was about to fire, Hidan suddenly slashed his own palm with his scythe, his blood dripping onto the ritual circle on the ground: "Jujutsu: Death Controlling Possessed Blood!"

Yugito felt a violent pain strike her heart instantly, and the formation of the Tailed Beast Bomb was forced to a halt. Kakuzu sneered, the suction of his tentacles intensifying: "Resistance is useless. You will be our trophy soon enough."

Just then, a flash of yellow lightning tore through the air, and Su Ye and Kakashi appeared on the battlefield. Su Ye activated Heavenly Hand Power, instantly swapping positions with Hidan, and drove his black sword straight toward Kakuzu's heart. Kakuzu reacted with lightning speed, immediately detaching a heart-monster to block in front of him. The sword pierced the monster's body, but failed to inflict even the slightest injury on Kakuzu.

"It's you two again!" Seeing Su Ye, Hidan's eyes filled with killing intent. "You ruined our plans last time; this time, I will definitely use your blood to complete my ritual!" He swung his scythe and charged at Su Ye.

Kakashi seized the moment to circle behind Yugito, Chidori gathering in his palm to sever the chains wrapped around the Two-Tails' leg: "Yugito, how are you? Can you still fight?"

Yugito gasped for air, having already lost a significant amount of the Two-Tails' chakra. She shook her head: "I can hold on for a while longer, but Kakuzu's tentacles can absorb chakra. We must find a way to break his ability."

Su Ye was locked in combat with Hidan, his Rinne Sharingan rapidly analyzing Hidan's attack trajectories. He realized that while Hidan's attacks were ferocious, they were relatively slow; as long as he avoided contact with the blood, the ritual could be countered. Su Ye deliberately exposed an opening to bait Hidan into swinging his scythe, then activated Limbo. Three black shadows detached from his body, launching a simultaneous assault on Hidan.

Hidan was ensnared by the shadows, unable to break free. Su Ye took the chance to turn and charge at Kakuzu. Seeing this, Kakuzu split off three heart-monsters, each utilizing Fire, Wind, and Lightning style ninjutsu to strike at Su Ye. A flash of light crossed Su Ye's eyes as he activated his Rinne Sharingan, absorbing the Fire and Wind ninjutsu before reflecting the Lightning style back, striking one of the heart-monsters.

"What?!" Kakuzu's expression changed; he hadn't expected Su Ye to be capable of absorbing ninjutsu. In the split second he was distracted, Kakashi's Chidori struck, piercing one of his hearts.

Hidan broke free from the shadows and, seeing Kakuzu injured, roared as he charged at Su Ye: "I'm going to kill you!" He slashed his palm again, preparing to initiate his ritual. Su Ye was prepared; he activated Heavenly Hand Power to swap a massive boulder with Hidan. Hidan's blood dripped onto the rock, the ritual circle activated, and the boulder shattered instantly.

"How is this possible?!" Hidan stared at the shattered rock, his face full of disbelief.

Su Ye sneered, his black sword thrusting out once more, aiming straight for Hidan's throat. Hidan dodged in a panic, only to be struck in the shoulder by Kakashi's Chidori. Sensing the situation turning dire, Kakuzu retracted his tentacles, grabbed Hidan, and attempted to flee: "We're leaving!"

"Trying to run? It won't be that easy!" Su Ye activated the gravitational force of his Rinnegan, pinning Hidan and Kakuzu firmly in place. Just as he prepared to launch a finishing blow to eliminate them both, a powerful surge of chakra erupted in the distance. Su Ye's Rinnegan sensed Obito's presence, and not just one—another chakra, similar to that of Madara, was approaching rapidly.

"This is bad, it's Obito and Zetsu!" Su Ye's expression shifted, and he was forced to withdraw his gravity. "Kakashi, we must retreat! Obito is here; with our current strength, we are no match for them!"

Kakashi nodded, helping the injured Yugito to her feet, and retreated rapidly alongside Su Ye. Hidan and Kakuzu seized the opportunity to escape. Before leaving, Kakuzu glanced back in Su Ye's direction, a flicker of wariness in his eyes.

By the time the three of them reached a safe zone, the figures of Obito and Zetsu appeared in the Forest of Lightning. Zetsu split into Black Zetsu and White Zetsu, the latter giggling: "Hidan and Kakuzu have already run off, and they only extracted half of the Two-Tails' chakra, Obito."

Obito watched the direction in which Su Ye and the others had vanished, a cold glint in his eyes: "It doesn't matter. Next time we meet, I will make Su Ye pay the price. Notify the other members to accelerate the capture of the Tailed Beasts; we cannot give them any more chances."

Black Zetsu nodded slightly, his figure dissolving into the darkness. Obito turned to look deep into the Forest of Lightning, a cold sneer curling his lips: "This game has only just begun."

Meanwhile, the trio reunited with the arriving joint force. Jiraiya looked at the injured Yugito, his brow furrowed: "It seems the Akatsuki's strength far exceeds our expectations. The battles ahead will be even more difficult."

Su Ye gripped his black sword tightly, his Rinne Sharingan flickering: "No matter how difficult it is, we cannot back down. As long as we stand united, we will surely be able to stop the Akatsuki's plan."

The group exchanged glances, their eyes filled with resolve. A war concerning the very survival of the ninja world had officially begun.