Gekkō Raito's expression grew rather grim.
Did that mean they had completely played him?
Raito was now in a thoroughly foul mood, an inexplicable anger surging through his chest.
Seeing Raito's face darken until it looked ready to drip water, Hashirama seemed to have guessed something.
"These youngsters are quite the clever tactical geniuses. They knew they couldn't face you head-on, so they did everything they could to hold you up!"
"Don't panic! Think carefully. What would they most likely be doing after going to such lengths to stall you?"
At Hashirama's reminder, Raito froze for a moment. Then inspiration struck, and he instantly thought of Kirigakure, far across the sea.
If Akatsuki had gone to such pains to stall him, there was only one evil deed they were most likely to commit.
They would take advantage of his absence to attack Kirigakure and seize the tailed beasts!
Closing his eyes without the slightest hesitation, Raito hurriedly sensed the real-time images being transmitted by the Cloud Pigeons he had left in Kirigakure.
The thirty-six special Cloud Pigeons possessed the [Cloud Eye] ability, allowing them to share every image and piece of information they saw, heard, and sensed with Raito, regardless of distance.
Kirigakure still appeared peaceful, but that did not mean it would remain so.
Raito immediately took remote control of a Cloud Pigeon and sent it flying to find Mei Terumi at once.
Although the Cloud Pigeon could not speak, it had no trouble passing on information by writing and drawing with its claws.
As long as he could alert Mei Terumi in advance and have her stay on guard, preventing Nagato and the others from suddenly arriving and snatching the jinchūriki away, there would be no problem.
At that moment, in the spacious Mizukage's Office, Mei Terumi wore