Nine Nether returns

["Don't you think it's strange?" Deidara turned to face Kurotsuchi.]

["Kumogakure's technology is developing fast, sure, but would that alone give them the nerve to challenge Naruto Uzumaki so openly?"]

["You and I both saw what Naruto Uzumaki was capable of during the Fourth Shinobi World War. His strength is far beyond anything ordinary ninjutsu or technology could measure."]

["Darui isn't an idiot. Where did he get the confidence to believe his cannons and armed civilians could take on Naruto Uzumaki? Hmm?"]

[Kurotsuchi's pupils contracted at his words, and a name immediately came to mind. "You mean Nine Nether, the organization that worked with Obito Uchiha?"]

["They're backing Kumogakure? But didn't Naruto Uzumaki and the others defeat them during the Fourth Shinobi World War? How could they still have that much influence?"]

["Defeat them?" Deidara scoffed, a hint of mockery in his voice. "Apart from the few people at the heart of the battlefield, who really knows exactly what happened at the end?"]

["With beings on that level, who can guarantee they didn't have a contingency plan? What if they simply went into hiding and have now risen from the ashes?"]

["If Nine Nether really is providing Kumogakure with support we know nothing about, perhaps even a trump card powerful enough to stand against Naruto Uzumaki, then all of this makes sense."]

[Silence fell over the office again, broken only by the faint bustle of the city outside the window.]

[Deidara's speculation landed like a heavy boulder dropped into water, shrouding the situation in even greater uncertainty.]

[Kurotsuchi absorbed the terrifying possibility, her face growing paler. "If that's true, this isn't just about Kumogakure's ambitions anymore. It's another catastrophe that could engulf the entire Shinobi World."]

[Something suddenly occurred to her, and her voice grew more uneasy. "And could the