The fan emblem on the forehead protector gleamed in the sunlight.
Old Tanigakure had vanished completely from history, like dust wiped away.
And a new force under Uchiha Makoto's absolute control, combining some local forces with a large foundation of White Zetsu and beginning to recruit exceptional talents from across the world, quietly took root in a corner of the Shinobi World.
Uchiha Makoto stood before the floor-to-ceiling windows of the office atop the newly built Tanikage building, overlooking the village taking shape below, a faint smile lifting his lips.
"The first step is complete."
"Next comes... recruiting, building up our strength, and... properly tending this experimental plot of my own."
His actions seemed to have quietly muddied the waters of the Shinobi World a little further.
Thick clouds shrouded the night sky over the Land of Birds, leaving the moonlight unable to penetrate the gloom. Only scattered tumbleweeds made hoarse rustling sounds in the dry wilderness air.
Several dark figures swept across the rolling hills like phantoms, finally landing at the entrance to a long-abandoned mine.
"Lord Cheng, the intelligence has been confirmed." Number Two knelt on one knee, his voice barely above a whisper. "Sasori of the Red Sands slipped across the Land of Birds' border three days ago and killed a messenger from the residence of the Daimyo of the Land of Wind. Since then, he's been hiding in this abandoned mining site. He seems to be repairing a new Human Puppet and needs some rare metal from deep inside the mine."
Uchiha Makoto stood at the front, his long black hair lifting and falling in the night breeze. His scarlet Sharingan slowly rotated in the darkness, reflecting the faint blue glimmer of chakra flickering deep within the mine.
He did not immediately give the order to