The third match is set: Heavenly Gate Gorge in the Land of Lightning!

More than twenty days passed on Blue Moon Island.

Sasuke threw himself wholeheartedly into preparing for his Third Match.

Karin took care of Sasuke's daily needs.

Suigetsu and Jugo remained asleep.

White Zetsu spent his days wandering aimlessly in the dungeon.

With funding secured, Orochimaru drew up designs for new laboratory equipment and put Kabuto Yakushi in charge of contacting skilled craftsmen throughout the Shinobi World to manufacture it.

Kabuto Yakushi also had another task: finding the whereabouts of Sasuke's opponent for the Third Match!

Suigetsu and Jugo's disappearance had not delayed the Akatsuki's hunt for the tailed beasts.

Thousand Cloud Mountain, the Land of Lightning.

Boom...! With a surging wave of water, the fierce battle that had lasted six hours finally came to an end!

Kisame Hoshigaki walked away from the battlefield, a woman with straight, light brown hair draped limply over Samehada on his shoulder.

The Two-Tails' jinchūriki, Yugito Nii!

Itachi, who had accompanied Kisame but had not joined the fight, waited at the foot of the mountain.

When he returned to Itachi's side, Kisame tossed Yugito onto the ground.

"She is a young woman, after all," Itachi said. "You should avoid being too rough."

"If you judge by appearances alone, you're sorely mistaken," Kisame said. "This woman's Fire Rat Ball was quite troublesome, and those cat claws really hurt..."

Itachi turned around. "The Leader has contacted us. We're gathering at our base in the Land of Lightning, Heavenly Gate Gorge."

"Another three days and nights of drudgery? At least we've met our quota. We can take it easy and wait for the others now..."

Hiss, hiss, hiss!

Beside a haystack the two passed, a small snake poked out its head, flicking its tongue as it watched their retreating backs.

Tap!

Just then, Itachi suddenly stopped and glanced toward the haystack out of the corner of his eye.

Hiss!

The little snake hastily withdrew into the haystack!

"What's wrong?" Kisame asked.

After a moment's thought, Itachi said, "Nothing. Let's keep moving."

Three days and nights later, the sealing of the Two-Tails was completed at Heavenly Gate Gorge.

After meeting up with Zetsu and taking care of Yugito's body, Kisame walked out of the cave.

"Those two brats who just joined actually missed this one. It seems even the Leader doesn't know where they are. How strange..."

At that moment, Itachi stood in the rain outside the cave, his Sharingan fixed on the sky. From behind, he looked utterly haggard, and a little lost.

"Standing in the rain like this will only make your illness worse," Kisame said.

"It's fine. Just for a little while."

Kisame stepped into the rain and stood beside Itachi.

"I think Suigetsu and Jugo's disappearance has something to do with your little brother. Ah, perhaps he isn't your little brother anymore..."

Itachi's Sharingan held a deep, tranquil gaze. "No, Sasuke is still Sasuke. But something beyond our understanding has definitely happened to him."

Kisame had always trusted Itachi's judgment. His voice lowered. "If that's true, you need to be especially careful. He has the same eyes as you, and he wields Hashirama Senju's power. He also seems to have mastered Ninjutsu far beyond his years. If you were healthy, you could probably hold your own. But..."

Itachi was a clever man, so Kisame did not spell it out.

Itachi knew exactly what that "but" meant.

As you are now... you might fall at Sasuke's hands!

Itachi reflected inwardly: To be honest, dying at Sasuke's hands is the ending I've always hoped for. Perhaps I should simply wait for Sasuke to come to me and die by his hand in a fair fight. But what exactly happened to Sasuke? What burden is he carrying? How deeply is Orochimaru involved? What are they after? If I don't find out, I probably won't rest in peace even if I die.

So I can't fight another battle unprepared. I have to do everything I can to push Sasuke to his limits. Only then can I find the answers!

"Kisame, I have a feeling I'll be meeting Sasuke soon. I need some time to prepare, so let's act separately for a while..."

The decision Itachi reached after careful thought came as no surprise to Kisame.

"Ah, so even you can't take this in stride. We've finished the Akatsuki's mission, anyway, and there shouldn't be anything for us to do for a while. Go ahead. If the Leader asks, I'll tell him we got sick of looking at each other and split up for a while to avoid infighting..."

"Thank you."

For the first time in a long while, a smile finally appeared on Itachi's face. He cautioned, "And Kisame, be careful while you're on your own. We can't rule out the possibility that Sasuke is targeting every member of the Akatsuki."

At that, Kisame burst into hearty laughter. "Hahahaha... I couldn't ask for more. I'm actually very curious about just how capable your little brother is. If we do run into each other and I get a little serious, you won't hold it against me, will you?"

Without giving an answer, Itachi turned and patted Kisame's broad shoulder. "Take care," he said meaningfully. "I hope that in the near future, we can both see who we truly are..."

Whoosh!

As the space-time vortex swirled gently, Kabuto Yakushi returned to Blue Moon Island to report.

"I've confirmed the target's whereabouts. He's in the vicinity of Heavenly Gate Gorge in the Land of Lightning. Itachi seems to have noticed my surveillance, but deliberately chose to ignore it..."

"That was unexpected," Orochimaru mused. "We accounted for the possibility of Itachi interfering in the Third Match. As expected of Itachi, he seems to have plans we hadn't anticipated. Still, this is for the best. His involvement would have added many uncertainties to this Third Match. After all, Itachi is my chosen opponent for Sasuke-kun's fourth match!"

Kabuto Yakushi adjusted his glasses. "How is Sasuke-kun progressing?"

"Come along..."

The cliff where Sasuke trained was riddled with craters, and terrifying gouges covered the rock!

Kabuto Yakushi was stunned. "Ah... is this the kind of Rasengan that destroyed two of Kakuzu's hearts?"

"He used it unconsciously last time, and its power was considerable," Orochimaru said. "Sasuke-kun decided to make it something he could use routinely. The Rasengan does have distinct advantages over Chidori, such as the unique effects produced by incorporating different nature transformations. The White Rasengan, which incorporates Hashirama's unique Wood Release power, already rivals Wind Release: Rasenshuriken in power, even in its unfinished form!"

"Truly remarkable," Kabuto Yakushi said. "In the blink of an eye, he's moved even further ahead."

"That's not all," Orochimaru said with a smile. "Sasuke-kun seems to have put some work into the Earth Grudge Fear Technique as well. It really suits the way he uses it..."

Having changed into a pure white kimono, Sasuke approached with Karin at his side.

"This opponent is someone you know," Orochimaru said. "The Akatsuki's Southern Dipper, Kisame Hoshigaki..."

Sasuke's expression grew reminiscent. "Him? In my previous life, some unfortunate ties led us to work together, but I never saw him fight seriously..."

"That man is known as the Tailless Tailed Beast," Orochimaru said. "He's an opponent who grows stronger against stronger foes, and his strength can vary enormously. Sasuke-kun, don't underestimate him just because you have both the White Cursed Seal and the Yang Seal..."

"Of course," Sasuke said firmly. "How could I underestimate someone qualified to be Itachi's partner?"

"Well then, let's go," Orochimaru said. "To Heavenly Gate Gorge in the Land of Lightning, for our Third Match!"