Orochimaru's addition was a great help to Akatsuki.
His intelligence network was a great supplement to Xiao's abilities, and his personal strength was also undeniable.
During his time in Konoha, this person completed 108 S-rank missions, 491 A-rank missions, not to mention other types of missions, making him a veritable mission maniac.
Zetsu reported the situation to Obito.
" Obito, Pain really got Orochimaru to join Akatsuki, what should we do..." Black Zetsu asked.
Troublesome individuals coming together only create more trouble and increase the difficulty of control.
Obito sat there, head down, carving a brand new mask with a knife. Black Zetsu noticed that it was a Uzumaki mask.
Whenever he changes the style of his mask, it means he will appear under a new identity.
Is this guy about to start some kind of operation again?
White Zetsu spoke up, "Should we continue with the old method?"
The so-called old method is to use someone else to do the dirty work. Root is a good tool; whether it's intelligence capabilities or execution, there's no one else like it in the entire Shinobi World.
Because of Root's philosophy: ninjas are tools.
"Okay, first leak the information about Orochimaru joining Akatsuki to Danzo's people," Obito replied in a deep voice.
"Then what..."
"I'll go talk to him. Now is not the time to hide; things are changing."
"You need to be careful, Danzo..." Black Zetsu warned.
Orochimaru and Aoki Tsuki are already difficult enough to deal with, let alone the Shinobi of Darkness, their former employer.
In the underworld, where bad guys congregate, their side is outnumbered and outmatched, making things incredibly difficult!
"I know what I'm doing," Obito said nonchalantly.
Whether intentional or unintentional, Akatsuki's carelessness led to the assassination's failure, alerting the Kirigakure bloodline clan.
This made it more difficult for him to control the Kirigakure, taking up a lot of his energy and leaving him unable to spare any time.
Looking back, he was shocked to find that Nagato had already made Akatsuki a great success, and there was nothing left for him to do.
We cannot allow the situation to continue like this. His goal is the ' Eye of the Moon ' project, Nagato's goal is to create a super weapon to deter all countries.
The two sides have fundamentally conflicting ideologies, and once the Tailed Beast are all gathered, it will be time for them to turn against each other.
They quickly launched their operation.
" Danzo, we have important information."
The Root members handed a secret letter to Danzo, who opened it and read it.
" Orochimaru has joined Akatsuki... Things are getting more and more complicated."
Danzo stroked his chin and pondered for a moment.
He strongly suspected that Hanzō was secretly controlling this terrorist organization, because Akatsuki's assassination methods were too similar to Amegakure's.
' Hanzō must be secretly amassing power under the guise of Akatsuki; what an ambitious fellow.'
He couldn't help but think that way.
The Second Shinobi World War was launched by Hanzō, whose goal was to make Amegakure a large village like the Five Great Shinobi Villages. Unfortunately, it was thwarted by the combined forces of Konoha, Iwagakure, Sunagakure, and the Land of Iron.
Now that he has obtained the Rinnegan, his power has greatly increased, and he has become more reserved, acting secretly in the shadows.
'This will threaten Konoha's position; we must take action.'
He mentally reviewed the cards in his hand, planning how to play this game.
The Third Kazekage of Sunagakure, is dead, and his performance in the Third Shinobi World War was even more dismal, so for the time being he can only serve as an infantryman and provide support.
Iwagakure attempted to cause trouble on the border, but Root spies stole their intelligence and, in conjunction with neighboring small countries, nipped the threat in the bud, forcing Iwagakure to behave itself.
It must be admitted that Ōnoki is a cunning fellow and difficult to manipulate.
As for the Golden General, Danzo already had someone in mind.
Just then, the sounds of fierce fighting came from inside the hall, Danzo got up and walked out of the room.
" Danzo, a guy suddenly barged in... he..."
Danzo squinted and looked over. The dozen or so ninjas left at the Root base were completely helpless against the intruders and were being toyed with.
The fact that the opponent could pass through the base's barrier silently is enough to demonstrate their strength.
Hand Seals, opened his mouth and took a breath, his chest swelling up.
" Wind Release: Vacuum Sphere "
Whoosh whoosh whoosh...
The Chakra mixture is compressed and fired at high speed continuously; the dense Chakra bullets can turn the enemy's body into Hachinosu.
The mysterious masked man once again displayed an eerie defense.
All the Chakra bullets simply passed through his body without causing him any real damage.
"They went through it...?!"
Danzo was startled. A Shuriken appeared in his hand, and he gently blew on it. The Shuriken spun rapidly, forming a large windmill.
Wind Release: Shuriken
Buzz...
The rapidly spinning Shuriken, carrying a wind blade, sliced straight through the masked man's body along the midline, and the expected scene did not occur.
puff...
The Shuriken embedded itself deeply in the wall not far away, tearing a large crack in it.
" Ninjutsu is ineffective, weapons are ineffective, what's wrong with this guy?"
Danzo decided to test the waters at close range, so he rushed forward with a Kunai, hoping to take the opportunity to place Cursed Seal on his opponent during the close -Taijutsu combat.
"Don't even think about it!"
Obito had already seen through it all and didn't give the other party a chance to make physical contact.
This guy was covered in holes, Obito dared not absorb him into the Kamui Dimension. Who knew what terrifying things might happen?
After a fierce struggle, Danzo finally managed to see his opponent's eyes.
" Sharingan, who exactly are you?"
"Hmph, so you're finally going to talk to me calmly!"
Obito shrugged, indicating that he wasn't there to fight. "A name is just a code; just call me 'Madara'."
"Spot?"
Danzo opened his eyes, stared at Obito for a moment, but did not press for details.
What is your purpose in intruding into the Roots?
Obito glanced around at the Root members and said, "Discussing cooperation with you can't be done in a few words. Let's find another place."
Soon, the two moved to a secret room.
Obito explained his purpose and awaited Danzo's reply.
"I'm at odds with the leader of Akatsuki, and Akatsuki's continued expansion in the underworld will inevitably threaten Konoha's interests. Cooperation would be beneficial to both of us."
Danzo, however, would not agree so easily.
"They're just a bunch of international mercenaries. They haven't had any conflict with Konoha. Why should I risk helping you deal with them?"
Obito was fully aware of Danzo's intentions.
Back then, Danzo participated in the persecution of Nagato and his two companions, and witnessed the power of the Rinnegan. It was impossible for him not to covet it.
This strategy of retreating in order to advance is merely a way to seize the initiative and gain advantages.
He glanced at the Sharingan wrapped in bandages and said, "As far as I know, the leader of Akatsuki possesses the legendary Eye of the Sage. You must want them too."
This statement finally struck a nerve with Danzo.
' Hanzō, he really is the leader of Akatsuki!'
"Hmph, those rogue ninja in Akatsuki are not easy to deal with."
This statement is tantamount to tacitly agreeing to cooperation while simultaneously demanding benefits from the other party.
Danzo knew very well that Madara the Mask simply wanted to use him to weaken the Akatsuki and quietly reap the benefits.
This was exactly what he wanted; he needed help.
Obito was not surprised at all; it was exactly what he had expected.
"I can provide you with information about Xiao's mission schedule, including details about individual core members, to help you formulate a strategy."
"Not enough!"
Danzo grew increasingly wary of Madara, for he had managed to obtain such top-secret information as the Akatsuki's personnel and schedules, indicating that he must have something much more to do.
"You've been planning to Uchiha, haven't you? I can help you."
Obito played his trump card.
Upon hearing this, Danzo's expression showed a moment of shock, which he quickly suppressed.
"You were the one who caused the Nine-Tails' Disturbance, weren't you, Madara!"
In Konoha, the identity of the Jinchūriki, the time of their birth, and the weaknesses of their seal are all top secrets. It was only by breaking through the Anbu's defenses and releasing the Nine-Tails under the protection of the Fourth that they were able to do so.
Considering the strange abilities the other party displayed when they broke into Root, and their Sharingan, Danzo already had a guess in his mind.
Obito shrugged and replied in a cheerful tone, "Heh... who knows..."
In the dark room, the candlelight flickered, and the two one-eyed figures stared at each other, adding to the eerie atmosphere.
At this moment, on the Uchiha Clan's exclusive training ground, two figures were sweating profusely, engaged in a fierce battle.
"Itachi, your strength is increasing rapidly. In a while, even I might not be a match for you, haha..."
"Yes, I will try my best to catch up with you."
Itachi only reveals his truest self in front of Shisui.
He usually looks worried and anxious.
"Don't put too much pressure on yourself. If it really comes to that, I will stop it," Shisui comforted her.
" Shisui... you..."
Itachi was surprised to hear this and said, "Even you are so pessimistic?"
"We have never faced just the dissatisfaction of our clansmen; the people in the village hold deep prejudices against the Uchiha."
Especially after the Nine-Tails' Disturbance, the hatred for losing loved ones was transferred onto the Uchiha.
Shisui has gradually accepted reality; since he returned to the village from the front lines, his clansmen have become increasingly radical.
They saw him as a powerful ally, unaware that he also cared deeply for the village.
"Even so, we can't give up so easily, otherwise Father wouldn't have planned to send me into the Anbu."
At this moment, Itachi still held a sliver of hope.
Upon hearing this, Shisui's expression darkened. Itachi's entry into the Anbu meant facing the same predicament he was in: his family on one side and his village on the other.
Being caught in the middle is agonizing.
All I could do was offer the words of comfort, "I hope you can truly become a bridge between the family and the village."
"Hmm." Itachi nodded.
My father said the same thing. In fact, he knew that he might be made a spy in the future to gather intelligence about the village.
"By the way, Shisui, there's been some progress on the matter you asked me to investigate last time."
"You're really something! I've been searching for ages without any clues. With so many branches branching out over the years, I simply don't know where to start."
"It's indeed hard to find. I only found out about it from an older member of the clan, and when I checked, the records were interrupted, as if they had been deliberately erased."
" The Anbu?"
"Yes, this is her information." Itachi handed a slip of paper to Shisui.
"Thank you. You still have to report to the Anbu later, so you should go now."
Itachi left the training ground.