All sides on the move

"Jugo, Jugo...!"

Taka reached the riverbank and found Jugo unconscious on the ground, his body no bigger than a child's.

"Ugh..." Jugo sat up, clutching his throbbing head.

Sasuke asked, "What happened?"

Jugo looked dazed, unable to remember for the moment. Before leaving, Naruto had tampered with his memories.

Naruto did not want to draw Sasuke's attention too soon.

Sasuke should have investigated the attack on Jugo thoroughly, but right now, he was more concerned with his enemy's whereabouts.

Sasuke said, "Forget it. What matters is that you're alive. We'll investigate this later. Right now, we have something more important to do!"

Jugo asked, "Something more important?"

Sasuke's six-pointed Mangekyō Sharingan gleamed fiercely. "Our target has changed. The Land of Iron, the Five Kage Summit. That's where Taka will hunt down Konoha's evil ringleader, Danzo!"

And so, Taka set off for the Land of Iron.

The masked Obito and White Zetsu watched from the trees behind them.

White Zetsu asked in confusion, "Why wouldn't you let me tell Sasuke what Naruto has been doing? Wouldn't it be better to use him against Naruto?"

Obito had thought it through carefully. "Naruto took Nagato's body. That involves our two most closely guarded secrets, the Rinnegan and the Demonic Statue. We shouldn't let Sasuke get involved... Besides, I doubt Sasuke can handle Naruto as he is now."

White Zetsu said, "That's true..."

Obito said, "Having Sasuke fight the Five Kage to develop his Mangekyō and keeping him as our backup is the safer choice... Speaking of which, have you found Naruto?"

White Zetsu said, "No, but one of my clones suddenly went missing a little while ago. Someone probably killed him..."

"Oh?" Beneath his mask, Obito raised an eyebrow slightly. "Someone silenced a Zetsu before he could relay any information through their mental link? That's worth looking into. Tell me where you lost contact!"

Whoosh!

A dozen or so seconds later... Obito emerged from a swirling Kamui vortex at the site of Naruto and Orochimaru's earlier battle.

Traveling with Kamui also required spatial markers.

Obito had spent more than a decade lying low. He had not gone so far as to mark the entire Land of Fire with his ocular power, but Konoha and the area for a hundred miles around it were well within his coverage. Within that range, he could come and go freely.

White Zetsu finally arrived about a minute after he appeared.

Surveying the ruins, Obito said in a low voice, "There's no mistake. Only those eyes could cause destruction on this scale. Naruto can already use the Rinnegan's power!"

White Zetsu said, "It's hard to believe. Back then, Nagato didn't gain this level of mastery until several years after the Akatsuki was founded..."

Obito said, "It's not that surprising. Naruto is a late bloomer. His potential now may well surpass Nagato's."

White Zetsu asked, "What do we do now? We've already lost the initiative."

Obito's gaze darkened slightly. "Don't worry... As long as I have the Demonic Statue and the Tailed Beasts, Naruto can never gain complete control of the situation. And even if things take the worst possible turn, I still have one trump card that can turn everything around!"

Even if that trump card... is something I've refused to touch all these years!

Konoha.

Apart from the Jōnin led by Shikaku, the people of Konoha had fully accepted Danzo's leadership. This was the tide of support he had created by smearing Naruto!

It had to be said... he had been remarkably successful.

Now, all he needed was for the Five Kage Summit to conclude successfully and for the Missing-nin Sasuke to be eliminated. Then even the Jōnin would have to acknowledge Danzo as Hokage.

Inside the Hokage's temporary tent.

Danzo sat upright, with three white-clad members of Root kneeling before him.

Danzo said, "With that settled, I can attend the Five Kage Summit without worry."

"These are extraordinary times. We must ensure nothing goes wrong and avoid any oversights."

"Assign more people if necessary. You must capture Kabuto." Danzo thought, He may know about my connection to Orochimaru...

The reason was simple. Orochimaru had carried out the Konoha Crush. Any connection to him would jeopardize Danzo's newly secured position as Hokage.

"Also, Kabuto should have the records of Orochimaru's human experiments. Make sure you obtain them..."

Click!

Danzo exposed his iron-armored right arm and pressed a hand against his bandaged right eye, his expression shadowed. "Those records may still be useful for my right eye and right arm..."

After giving these instructions, he looked at the three men before him.

"Fū and Torune, stay. Terai, you're in charge of the Kabuto matter. Go."

"Yes!"

Terai vanished, leaving Fū and Torune behind.

Danzo said, "All right. It's time I attended the Five Kage Summit. Under the agreement, barring special exceptions, each participant may bring only two guards to the summit. As two of Root's finest, you'll accompany me. Masks aren't permitted, though. Take them off."

The two removed their masks, revealing the faces of Yamanaka Fū and Torune Aburame.

Yamanaka Fū asked, "What weapons should we carry as your guards?"

Danzo said, "Use your own judgment."

Yamanaka Fū replied, "Yes."

Danzo said, "Torune, have your men locate Uzumaki. We cannot allow the Nine-Tails to slip beyond our control. Also, keep an eye on Sai. He may betray Root. Be careful..."

"Eliminate the Missing-nin Naruto Uzumaki!!!"

"Eliminate Naruto, the Nine-Tailed Fox!!!"

"Give us back our homes!!"

The people of Konoha, seething with anger, organized their own marches to denounce Naruto Uzumaki.

Even Naruto's home in the village was set on fire and burned to the ground.

The situation had spiraled completely out of control.

Kakashi and the others were deeply troubled.

But in the face of seemingly irrefutable evidence, they could offer no defense for Naruto.

Danzo had taken the position of Hokage and issued an order to hunt down and kill the Missing-nin Sasuke.

Naruto, who had always been open and honorable, had also lost his reputation.

Having two Missing-nin among them dealt a heavy blow to their peers.

They gathered near the temporary benches in Konoha to discuss the matter.

Neji Hyuga and Shino Aburame both wore grave expressions and said nothing.

After all, the deaths linked to Naruto involved members of both the Hyuga Clan and the Aburame Clan...

Ino Yamanaka sat on a bench, crying. After all... Sasuke had been the prince of her girlish dreams, too.

Sakura also looked pale and stricken... Her village had been destroyed, her mentor lay unconscious, and both her teammates had become traitors.

Of those two, one had long been her source of support, while the other... held the deepest place in her heart.

Could Team 7 without Naruto and Sasuke still be called Team 7?

But no one suffered more than Hinata... Everyone said the boy she loved most had killed an older member of her clan.

Shikamaru Nara had the clearest head. Faced with the oppressive mood, he stepped forward despite his usual aversion to trouble. "It's too early to declare Naruto guilty. Those three bodies were brought back by members of Root. Knowing how Root operates, there could very well be something suspicious going on!"

Everyone fell silent in thought.

After a long while, Sakura asked hesitantly, "Then... what about Sasuke?"

"Whew." Shikamaru sighed. "Sasuke... There's solid evidence of his crimes. No one can defend him. He's in even more danger than Naruto. Whatever Naruto has done, for now, he's only a threat to Konoha. Sasuke is already an enemy of the entire Shinobi World. The Five Kage Summit in the Land of Iron was called specifically to deal with him."

"..." Sakura bit her lip hard, anguish filling her heart. Naruto, you're the village's hero. Why did you have to do something so outrageous at a time like this? You're the only one who can save Sasuke...

"Ah." Shikamaru sighed. He was about to say more when... a soft yet resolute female voice rang out. "I'm going to find Naruto-kun!"

Everyone turned to her in shock. "Hinata...!?"

Hinata said firmly, "Naruto must have had no choice but to leave the village. Naruto-kun couldn't have killed Tokuma. There must be more to this!"

Neji tried to reason with her. "Lady Hinata, I understand how you feel, but we're ninja. We can't let personal feelings cloud our judgment..."

But Sakura said, "Hinata has a point!"

"Sakura...?"

Sakura thought, Naruto... if you've lost your way, then I'll bring you back! In my own way!

Rock Lee said, "Looks like there's no other choice. Youth means charging straight ahead!!"

Kiba Inuzuka said, "You can't track someone down without our noses. Right, Akamaru?"

Akamaru barked, "Woof, woof, woof!"

Neji said, "Actually, I don't believe Naruto would do something like this either. Let's find out the truth..."

Shino said, "I'm going too. If you want to know why... I was left out of the mission to pursue Sasuke. I won't be absent from the search for Naruto... Besides, I want to ask him about Muta's death!"

Shikamaru rose helplessly. "What a drag. One after another, everyone in our year turns out like this... Including me."

Hinata was filled with gratitude. "Shino, Kiba, everyone... Thank you."

And so, with every side on the move, the Five Kage Summit began as scheduled.