Hidden Rain Village.
Inside its most prominent tower.
In a room sat a woman with short purple hair, wearing a black-and-red Akatsuki cloak over a purple tube top and shorts, her crossed legs clad in black fishnet stockings and ninja sandals.
It was Konan, of course, and she was calculating the organization's expenses.
The Shinobi World was deeply warped. You could possess tremendous strength, yet still have to obey ordinary people with money.
You even had to take the missions they posted. Why couldn't you rob the rich to help the poor?
Rob them of their wealth to relieve my poverty...
Couldn't bring themselves to do it? That was impossible. Plenty of ninja killed even their comrades without hesitation, let alone strangers.
Yet the more she calculated, the more serious her expression became, and her gently swinging legs slowly stopped.
Her full toes, painted with purple nail polish, spread as she set her feet on the floor with a tap.
"We can't grow like this. There are so many things we need money for."
After muttering under her breath, Konan was still wondering what missions she should take when someone suddenly knocked on her door, and Itachi Uchiha's voice came from outside.
"Is White here? I need to see the leader. Could you let him know?"
Hearing his voice, Konan raised an eyebrow, got up, and opened the door. Seeing how sickly Itachi Uchiha looked, she asked curiously,
"Oh? What is it?"
"I want to meet the real leader, 'Madara Uchiha.' There's something I need to discuss with him."
With his life and his future plans at stake, Itachi Uchiha couldn't help acting rashly. Otherwise, he might have chosen a more cautious approach, but he couldn't wait any longer.
His body could support, at most, one battle using Susanoo. But judging from the information revealed in the Diary, there would be more than one battle in his future-more than two, even.
He needed the method mentioned in the Diary to prolong his life.
"Hmm?"
Konan wasn't surprised that Itachi Uchiha knew about the real leader. After all, the Masked Man had brought him here. But if that man had brought him in, why didn't he have a way to contact him? Why did he need her to pass on a message? It was strange.
"All right. I don't know whether he's here, though. He comes and goes without a trace."
Still, Konan didn't refuse. Her delicate brows, furrowed in thought, relaxed as she nodded in reply.
"All right. Thank you."
Itachi Uchiha then headed to the reception room to wait for Konan to relay his message.
Watching him, Konan found it strange. Was it really that urgent?
With that thought, she closed her door and headed toward Nagato's room.
If there were any instructions or orders, they would have been given to Nagato, not Pain.
"Nagato!"
Konan froze as soon as she walked in. She hadn't expected the person she was looking for to be right here.
Nagato and Obito Uchiha both turned to look at her.
"What is it, Konan?"
"Oh, Itachi Uchiha from Konoha says he needs to speak with Madara Uchiha about something urgent. He's waiting downstairs."
"Hmm? How did he know I was coming today?"
The Sharingan in Obito Uchiha's eye spun. He thought Itachi might be planning to attack him and use Kotoamatsukami to control him, leaving him somewhat uneasy.
"I don't know. I can sense that his life force is growing weaker and weaker."
Konan shook her head.
"Oh..."
Obito drew out the word. According to the White Zetsu he had sent to investigate, Itachi's mental state had improved somewhat. At worst, he wasn't sleeping well. Even with the strain of the Mangekyo, he should still be able to hold on for five or six years.
He was curious. Was the strain of the Mangekyo really that great? Why hadn't he felt it?
"You should see him. He looks quite anxious. Or would you like me to sound him out first?"
Konan found his hesitation very strange. He had brought Itachi here himself, yet he still had doubts about him.
"Never mind. I'll go myself."
As soon as he finished speaking, space-time ripples emanated from Obito Uchiha's eye.
"Sigh..."
Itachi Uchiha propped his head on his hand, rapidly sorting through the information in his mind.
"I heard you wanted to see me."
Obito Uchiha kept his Mangekyo active as he watched Itachi. If the man made any suspicious move, he would immediately retreat into the Kamui Dimension.
But after watching for a while, he saw nothing of the sort. All he received was Itachi's weak reply.
"Yes."
"What's wrong? Are you injured?"
"No. It's the strain of the Mangekyo. My body can't take it."
Itachi Uchiha raised his head and stared straight at Obito Uchiha.
"There's no other reason I came to you. I'm simply curious. Your Mangekyo doesn't seem to be an Eternal Mangekyo, yet you can use it freely without putting any strain on your body."
"You want my method?"
Obito was a little slow on the uptake. The man's frail condition didn't look like an act, and he was also somewhat curious about why he could use his own eyes so freely. But faced with Itachi Uchiha's direct question, he maintained the air of an unfathomable expert as he answered.
"That's right. My body is nearly at its limit. I might not even live long enough to carry out my plan. In exchange, I can work for you, as long as it doesn't harm Sasuke or Konoha."
Without hesitation, Itachi Uchiha stated the terms he could accept.
Then he stared directly into Obito Uchiha's exposed eye, waiting for his answer.
"That offer is a little lacking. Is your own life worth so little to you?"
Obito Uchiha tried to provoke him, hoping to extract something else-Shisui's eye, for instance.
Having Itachi work for him was certainly tempting. Itachi Uchiha's greatest asset was his intelligence. If he could truly assist him, he would be a tremendous help to the plan.
But after a long wait, Itachi Uchiha simply shook his head. There was nothing else he could offer. Giving away Shisui's eye was out of the question.
"Those terms aren't good enough. I need to go back and give this careful consideration."
With that, Obito vanished on the spot.
Watching him leave, Itachi Uchiha sighed helplessly and used the Body Flicker Technique to depart, hoping he could obtain some way to prolong his life.
Meanwhile, Obito returned to the room where he was temporarily staying.
"Black Zetsu! Black Zetsu!"
"What is it, Obito? Why are you making such a fuss the moment you get back?"
A black-and-white, corpse-like figure emerged from the side, his tone thoroughly displeased.
"Call me Madara!"
Hearing that name displeased Obito greatly, and he glared with his Mangekyo eye.
At those words, Black Zetsu helplessly waved his hands.
"All right, all right. What is it?"
"I want to know how I survived back then. Are there any records? Remember every medicinal ingredient used and write it all down on paper. Don't leave anything out."
Obito urged him on impatiently.
What he had just told Itachi Uchiha wasn't really about considering the offer. He needed to research it. If he could figure it out and gain another subordinate, that would be great. If he couldn't, there was nothing he could do.
"Huh?"
Hearing that, Black Zetsu was instantly dumbfounded. How many years had it been? Asking him to remember all that now-wasn't that making things difficult for him?