The Mist Village and the Akatsuki Alliance? The Konoha Higher-Ups Were Dumbfounded on the Spot!

The words of the Anbu ninja fell, and the entire Hokage's office seemed to have its air sucked out.

"Clang."

The pipe in Hiruzen Sarutobi's mouth dropped to the floor with a crisp sound, scattering hot ashes everywhere, yet he remained oblivious.

Kisame Hoshigaki?

The name was unfamiliar to most present, but the title of Fourth Mizukage of Kirigakure Village carried immense weight.

It represented the strongest individuals standing at the pinnacle of power in each of the Five Great Nations, bearing the title of Kage!

Even more critically, establishing formal diplomatic relations with the "Akatsuki" organization?!

What did that even mean?

An elite rogue ninja group that rampaged across the ninja world had suddenly allied itself with a ninja village of one of the Five Great Nations!

This was no longer a simple military threat; it was a blatant threat to the existing political order!

"Impossible!" Danzo's single eye widened, his voice hoarse as he growled, "Has Kirigakure Village gone mad? How dare they associate with a bunch of rogue ninjas? This is a declaration of war on the entire ninja world!"

"This is troublesome..." Shikaku Nara clutched his face in agony, muttering repeatedly, "This is really troublesome now..."

The intelligence Jiraiya had brought earlier about Amegakure's economic development had seemed like an absurd joke, but now, connected with this news, it transformed into a chilling horror story that made one's scalp tingle.

"I understand..." Shikaku Nara's expression turned extremely grim, "That Pain, or rather, Uchiha Madara behind him, wasn't just messing around!"

"The series of economic development plans he implemented—mining, steel production, selling ninjutsu... he wasn't just doing it to make money. He was also using the shortest possible time, through opening up and conducting trade, to fundamentally change Amegakure, a village that was self-enclosed and perpetually mired in war, into a solid fortress with war potential and abundant funds!"

"Then, he used the same method to deeply infiltrate Kirigakure Village, which was in an even more chaotic state! He completely purged the old guard, represented by the Third Mizukage, through a massive cleansing, and instead chose that Fourth Mizukage named Kisame Hoshigaki, a puppet they propped up for external propaganda."

All the clues connected at this moment!

First, subvert the regime through military means, then infiltrate and control through economic means, and finally, support loyal agents to achieve complete control over a great nation!

This combination of tactics sent a bone-chilling cold through everyone present.

Uchiha Madara, that legendary man, was not playing the shallow games of traditional ninja warfare. What he was manipulating was the naked strategy of great nations swallowing territory and domain through military control, aided by economic development, and then by reasonably supporting agents!

"We've been played," Minato's voice was soft, yet it lowered the temperature in the office by several degrees.

Since the Nine-Tails Incident, their attention had been entirely focused on Obito, the jinchuriki, and the power struggles within the village.

But who could have imagined that while they were frantically dealing with these issues, Uchiha Madara had, thousands of miles away, silently annexed one of the Five Great Ninja Villages!

Now, the Akatsuki was no longer a disorganized mob.

They had the resources of a nation behind them and a formal political identity. They could openly recruit soldiers and declare war on other countries with legitimacy!

"We must contact the other three great nations immediately!" Hiruzen Sarutobi picked up his pipe and stood up again, his expression more serious than ever. "The drastic changes in Kirigakure Village have threatened the balance of the entire ninja world! We must form an allied force to strike at Uchiha Madara's actions and nip the threat in the bud!"

"It's useless, Third Hokage-sama," Shikaku Nara shook his head, his face full of bitterness. "Iwagakure and Cloud Village would be delighted to see Konoha fall, and might even take the opportunity to attack Konoha and seize territory. Sand Village is currently struggling to cope. Until they see the true fangs of the Akatsuki, none of them will easily take a side, lest they face the threat of the Akatsuki and Uchiha Madara's attack alone!"

"Moreover," Danzo added sinisterly, "Who can guarantee that other villages haven't been infiltrated by that 'Akatsuki'?" "And, esteemed sirs, with the strength Uchiha Madara has displayed so far, unless the First Hokage, Senju Hashirama, known as the God of Shinobi, is resurrected, who in this current ninja world can be Uchiha Madara's opponent?"

His words plunged everyone into silence once more.

Indeed, if even Kirigakure Village, one of the Five Great Nations, could be silently taken down, who could guarantee their own village was impregnable? If the mastermind behind it all couldn't be dealt with, the threats would continue endlessly.

Minato walked to the massive floor-to-ceiling window, looking down at the village still busy with reconstruction.

Behind him were Konoha's top strategists and combatants.

Yet, at this moment, everyone was at a loss.

Because their enemy had stepped outside the framework of "ninja" thinking, beyond the way most people of this era thought.

At the same time.

Inside a dark cave.

Lin Feng leaned back on a stone chair, a Water Mirror formed from chakra floating before him.

The Water Mirror clearly reflected the dejected expressions of Minato and the others in the Konoha Hokage's office.

"Heh heh, a pile of loose sand."

Lin Feng picked up a cup of hot tea from the stone table beside him, blew on it gently, and let out a contemptuous laugh.

The so-called Five Great Nations, the so-called balance of the ninja world, seemed as fragile as paper lanterns in his eyes. He only regretted that Senju Hashirama had been too naive back then. As a traditional citizen of the Dragon Country, Lin Feng inherently possessed the ambition to unify the world. The mindset, institutional framework, and class status of the ninja world, a mere continent of small nations, were all solidified. They didn't even dare to have the idea of unification. If it had been unified back then, there wouldn't be so many troublesome matters now.

A fragile peace only needed a gentle poke to shatter completely.

"Old man, why..."

A weak voice filled with hatred echoed from a corner of the cave.

Lin Feng glanced back indifferently without turning his head.

Obito lay on a stone bed, his severed right arm reattached with White Zetsu's cellular tissue. However, beneath the shattered mask, the Sharingan revealed burned with furious rage.

"You're awake," Lin Feng's tone was as flat as if he were speaking to a stranger.

"Why?! Why did you save Minato and Kushina! Why didn't you let me destroy Konoha!" Obito struggled to sit up, but the movement pulled at his wounds, causing him to grimace in pain.

He couldn't understand.

I had acted according to Madara's plan, even going so far as to expose my identity and gamble everything to complete it.

Yet, at the final moment, the one who stabbed me in the back and ruined all my plans was none other than Madara himself, who was supposed to be supporting me from the shadows!

"Destroy Konoha?" Lin Feng finally turned his head, his Rinnegan gazing at him indifferently. "With that farce of yours, riddled with flaws?" "With your不堪一击 combat power?"

He stood up and walked slowly to Obito, looking down at him from above.

"Release the Nine-Tails and escalate the conflict between the Uchiha and the village? Your idea is sound, but what then?" "Did the Uchiha directly fight the village? Or did the Uchiha directly defect from the village? What were your subsequent actions? Is your revenge based solely on an unsuccessful conspiracy, with no follow-up plan, relying only on a surge of hot-blooded courage, impulsively executing a plan, and then slowly praying that your wish would come true, that the village and the Uchiha would fight a great battle and both suffer heavy losses? If you had the ability to appear afterward and clean up the mess, and consolidate the village under my name as Uchiha Madara and become Hokage, I would have considered your plan a success.

"But you don't understand what revenge is, nor do you understand patience, and most fundamentally, you don't even have enough strength!"

Lin Feng extended a finger and gently tapped Obito's forehead.

"Your so-called revenge is nothing more than a self-indulgent romantic tragedy. To destroy the world for a dead woman? How pathetic, you've been deceiving yourself, Obito."

"You have no right to mention Rin's name!" Obito roared, his Mangekyo Sharingan spinning wildly as he tried to activate Kamui.

However, Lin Feng merely watched him quietly, his purple Rinnegan like a bottomless universe.

Obito felt his pupil power hit an insurmountable wall, instantly rebounding, and a needle-like pain shot through his brain.

"Ugh!" he screamed, covering his eyes.

"Playing with ninjutsu in front of me? You're not worthy." Lin Feng withdrew his finger, his tone filled with disdain.

He walked to the Water Mirror and waved his hand gently at the surface.

The image in the mirror switched from the Hokage's office in Konoha to the main gate of Konoha Village.

Minato stood there, seeing Jiraiya off as he embarked on his journey once more. The master and disciple looked solemn, as if discussing something important.

"Look," Lin Feng's voice drifted over, "your teacher and your teacher's teacher are working hard to clean up the mess you've created."

"And your so-called enemy, Namikaze Minato, is not only alive but has become the hero who saved the village."

"Your plan, from beginning to end, was a joke."

Obito watched the scene in the mirror, his body trembling violently.

It had failed.

Completely and utterly failed.

Not only had he failed to kill Minato or destroy Konoha, but he had also allowed Minato's family to be reunited, while he himself had become a stray dog.

Immense humiliation and powerlessness washed over him like a tide.

"Why... why did it turn out like this..." Obito muttered, the light in his eyes rapidly dimming.

"Because you are too weak."

Lin Feng's voice rang out again, like a final judgment.

"Your so-called Mangekyo, your so-called Wood Release, are nothing more than child's play in my eyes."

He turned around and walked to Obito, slowly crouching down.

"However, your eyes still have value."

Lin Feng reached out and removed the tattered white mask from Obito's face, tossing it aside.

Then, he took out a brand new mask from his embrace.

It was an orange-yellow spiral mask with a single eyehole.

"From today onwards, Uchiha Obito is dead."

Lin Feng slowly placed the new mask onto Obito's face, covering his face filled with despair and unwillingness.

"Your new name is 'Tobi'."

"A clown who brings 'laughter and joy' to the 'Akatsuki' organization." "Obey me, and perhaps I can even revive your beloved Rin!"

From beneath the mask came Obito's suppressed, beast-like gasps.

"Rin!"

Lin Feng ignored his reaction, stood up, and walked back to the Water Mirror.

The image in the mirror switched again, showing a vast desert.

"Your first mission," Lin Feng's voice was chillingly devoid of emotion, "go to the Land of Wind, find Sasori, and pass his test to become a useful member of the Akatsuki. Otherwise, you will remain buried in this earth forever!"

"As for your longed-for 'Eye of the Moon Plan'..."

A playful curve formed on Lin Feng's lips.

"I will complete it myself, in a different way."

"And you, just watch from the side, and learn well."

"See how a true strategist reshapes the order of this world."