It took quite a while—dusk had already fallen—before Sasuke finally calmed down.
He quietly stored Itachi's body away, then bowed deeply to Natsuki. "Natsuki, thank you! If it weren't for you, I'd never have learned the truth!"
Natsuki waved it off and asked, "What are you going to do? Fuse your brother's Mangekyō Sharingan (Kaleidoscope Copy Wheel Eye)?"
Sasuke's expression twisted with conflict. "I don't want to damage my brother's remains… but I also want to accept his gift."
Natsuki nodded. "Decide soon, otherwise Itachi's eyes will deteriorate quickly. If you choose fusion, take them out, store them in nutrient solution, and wait for a safe time to do the transplant. But as far as Akatsuki is concerned, Itachi's death means a failed jinchūriki capture. They'll launch a large-scale assault soon, so this isn't a good time. Do it after the battle."
"I understand. I'll think it through."
Sasuke felt a bit guilty for having taken up so much of Natsuki's time, so he hurried to take his leave. But when he reached the gate, he couldn't help asking, "So… how do you know so much?"
Natsuki had his excuse ready. "If I said the Rikudō Sennin (Sage of Six Paths) told me in a dream… would you believe it?"
"I would!"
Sasuke answered without hesitation and departed.
Watching Sasuke's silhouette disappear, Natsuki finally let out a long, heavy breath. Too much had happened today, and he'd burned through a lot of words—but at least he'd steered Sasuke away from darkness.
Thankfully, he'd taught Sasuke to stay calm in the past. Sasuke hadn't flown into a random rage and was still willing to listen. Even without Kotoamatsukami, if you lay out the facts and appeal to emotion and reason, Sasuke will listen.
Now that Sasuke had promised not to strike at the Hidden Leaf, that outcome was already hard-won.
What's more, Sasuke would honor Itachi's wish and continue living in the village, which meant he'd help protect it. He's a jinchūriki with Mangekyō Sharingan—a true top-tier force. With him around, handling Akatsuki's invasion should be a lot easier.
Add in Jiraiya, Neji's Tenseigan (Reincarnation Eye), Tenten's Rikudō dōgu (Six Paths Ninja Tools), the strengthened jinchūriki, and all the other tough fighters…
If we still can't defend home base, there's nothing more to say.
"Right, I haven't delivered dinner yet."
Natsuki quickly made several dishes, then headed to Fū's place and found Tenten nearby.
Tenten was holding a lunch box, about to eat. Seeing Natsuki, she waved. "Natsuki, you're here. I thought you were busy, so I sent a shadow clone to buy food."
Natsuki immediately took the box from her hands and pushed his own bento over. "Eat mine. Store-bought doesn't beat my cooking."
Tenten didn't stand on ceremony. She opened the bento and dug in.
Natsuki ate with her, the two of them casually feeding each other from time to time.
"Didn't see you at all today—busy with something?" Tenten asked offhandedly.
"Yeah. Sasuke went to avenge himself on his brother. I went to keep an eye on things," Natsuki said, dropping a bomb like it was nothing.
"Huh? Is Sasuke okay?"
"He's fine. Itachi is dead. As for the clan massacre… it's complicated. I'll find a time to tell you slowly."
"Oh, okay."
Tenten didn't press him. Whenever she wanted to know something, Natsuki always told her in the end.
They finished eating, then leaned together to watch the stars, debating which ones shone brighter—peaceful and warm.
Natsuki thought that maybe he really didn't care much for the village… but he truly liked Tenten. Being with her made him happy, like he'd found home.
Just then, Fū shoved her window open, face full of annoyance.
"I'm saying, you two lovebirds—could you not sprinkle dog food outside my window in the middle of the night? I've put up with it the past few nights, but not today! If you want to chat, come up here and talk to me!"
Uh…
Natsuki and Tenten both felt awkward and didn't know what to say.
Fū didn't care. She pulled out a deck for Ninja Kill. "Come on, come on! Play cards with me all night! Or I'll get mad!"
Natsuki and Tenten exchanged a look and had to agree. "All right—but we can't play too late."
Meanwhile, Akatsuki began to mobilize. (For explosive,爽快 reads, head to Feilu Novel!)
Pain spoke first. "The Five-Tails' jinchūriki and the Six-Tails' jinchūriki have both been captured. That leaves the One, Three, Seven, Eight, and Nine. Too many still remain. Since we can't find the Eight-Tails for now, we'll head to the Hidden Leaf and capture targets there."
Kisame said, "Leader, Itachi-san went to capture the Three-Tails' jinchūriki and hasn't returned."
"No. He won't be returning."
Black Zetsu cut in. "He's already died at his brother's hands."
…(Please send flowers)…[014704013 Feilu 024282550]
Kisame froze for a while before murmuring, "I see… even Itachi-san…"
Pain decided at once. "In that case, we invade the Hidden Leaf. I'll take the field personally."
Kabuto's eyes flashed; he smiled. "Leader-yo, while your strength is overwhelming, the Leaf has four jinchūriki and many strong fighters. You might want some backup. How about… we all launch a unified offensive on Konoha?"
All of us?
Pain hesitated. He was confident in his own power, but Kabuto had a point. Four jinchūriki are strong on their own, plus the Leaf has no shortage of elites—especially that unpredictable Natsuki. A full-squad team fight might be the better call.
He nodded. "Fine. Then together. Kisame, Kabuto, Tobi—head to the border between the Land of Rain and the Land of Fire to rendezvous with me. We'll invade the Leaf as one and capture all four jinchūriki!"
"Yes, Leader!"
They answered in unison.
Kabuto's smile took on a sinister curl.
He knew the Leader would definitely clash with Natsuki this time, so he had to be there to watch. If the two sides battered each other, all the better—he could reap the spoils. And if Natsuki got one-sidedly crushed, he wouldn't mind seeing that either. Either way, this trip was a guaranteed profit.
Lose? That never crossed Kabuto's mind. If even the Rinnegan (Samsara Eye) could lose, then this world really would be insane.
Still, he was cautious by nature. To be safe, he'd bring more Edo Tensei (Impure World Reincarnation) bodies. Even if Natsuki had weird Fūinjutsu (Sealing Arts), as long as those bodies didn't run into Natsuki, what's the problem?
"Right… should I bring Guren, Karin, Suigetsu, and Jūgo too? If anything goes wrong, teammates can bail me out."
After weighing it again, Kabuto decided to play it safe.
After all, that guy Natsuki constantly refreshes people's understanding of him. Just when you think you've got him figured out, he suddenly pulls something new that catches you off guard—and gets under your skin.
Kabuto figured Orochimaru-sama and he had both underestimated Natsuki before—that's why their plans kept failing.
So this time, absolute caution. Even with the Rinnegan, he would proceed with care!
(End of Chapter)
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