In Iwagakure's Dark Room.
Ōnoki and Deidara's argument grew fiercer, their faces almost pressed together.
"You insolent brat! Stop spouting nonsense and making outrageous claims in front of me!"
"Old man, you'd better know what's good for you. I'm doing this for your sake!"
For the sake of his own health, Ōnoki made a decision.
He gave up on persuading Deidara and swept toward the door.
"You ungrateful brat, stay here and reflect on your mistakes! Don't even dream of returning to that Night Hidden Village!"
Deidara snorted disdainfully and spoke with absolute confidence.
"The leader and Sasori will definitely come rescue me, hmm!"
"Five days at most... no, three! I'll be out of here, hmm!"
Ōnoki sneered.
"Hah! If they dare come to Iwagakure, I'll make sure none of them leave!"
With that said.
Ōnoki stormed out of the Dark Room.
(A short-haired girl quietly ran off.)
The moment he stepped outside.
The anger on Ōnoki's aged face gave way to calm.
His conversation with Deidara hadn't been entirely fruitless.
Quite the opposite.
He had gleaned several crucial pieces of intelligence from his disciple.
Information concerning the identity of the Night Organization's hidden leader.
"A member of the Uchiha Clan," "slightly older than Deidara," "exceptionally powerful," "eccentric."
Putting those clues together, Ōnoki couldn't help thinking of one person.
The Fourth Hokage's disciple—Obito Uchiha.
At seventeen, he had single-handedly forced the Raikage to retreat amid an army of thousands.
From then on, his name had spread throughout the shinobi world, drawing widespread attention. He had even been called the greatest of the new generation.
But just as his fame reached its peak.
Obito Uchiha had suddenly vanished without a trace, as though he had disappeared from the shinobi world altogether.
Not long afterward, the Night Organization had entered the public