In the dark underground chamber, the massive Demonic Statue of the Outer Path stood with its ten fingers raised. Above them, indistinct silhouettes flickered faintly in the shadows.
"Zetsu, why did you call this emergency meeting?"
Nagato's eyes turned toward Zetsu's projection.
"We've just received news—Sasori of the Red Sand and Kisame Hoshigaki's team has been wiped out," Zetsu announced.
"They were… destroyed?"
Shocked voices rippled among the gathered figures.
If it had been an ordinary squad, no one would have been surprised. But Sasori and Kisame were anything but ordinary. Both wielded Kage-level power. Together, they should have been able to retreat safely even against the strongest opponents.
Yet they had been annihilated. The revelation sent shock through the room.
"Was it Uchiha Fugaku?" Konan asked sharply.
She knew only one man capable of killing both—Uchiha Fugaku.
"No. Fugaku hasn't left Konoha recently," Zetsu shook his head, then added,
"Then who was it?"
The shadow of an elderly man—the newly joined member, Shennong—spoke up with unease.
He had joined Akatsuki because of its overwhelming strength and the protection it promised for his ambitions. But now, hearing that even two Kage-level shinobi had fallen, he began to regret his decision. Their enemies were far stronger than he had imagined.
"Sasori and Kisame were killed in the Land of Iron," Zetsu explained. "Before their deaths, an informant reported sighting Uchiha Shisui and another Konoha ninja there."
"I suspect it wasn't Shisui, but another Uchiha impersonating him—someone who killed them both."
"Hmph," Orochimaru's voice cut in, thick with mockery. "Sasori wanted to turn Fugaku into a puppet, and now he's been slain by a newly awakened Mangekyō Uchiha instead. How fitting."
He chuckled darkly. Had Sasori's body been intact, he would have relished reviving him with Edo Tensei just to see his humiliation.
"Even with the Mangekyō, a single ninja shouldn't have been able to kill both Sasori and Kisame," Konan pressed, frowning.
"From the battlefield traces, there were clearly two fights," Zetsu explained. "The one with Shisui wasn't alone. His partner also displayed Kage-level strength."
"Konoha deliberately targeted Akatsuki," Konan concluded.
"Hmph… Konoha."
Nagato's snarl echoed coldly. Fugaku's strength gave him pause, but only for now. Once his body was fully restored and the power of the Six Paths gathered within him, he would surpass even Uchiha Fugaku.
A day later, Zetsu's clones returned to Konoha, carrying Kisame's body.
As for Sasori, his puppet body and chakra core had been completely destroyed by Amaterasu's flames, reduced to ash alongside the Third Kazekage puppet.
With the scroll containing Kisame's corpse in hand, Fugaku entered a secret chamber near the Naka Shrine.
Poof!
A burst of smoke, and Kisame's massive corpse lay before him.
"I wonder… after fusing Kisame's body, how far will my chakra grow?" Fugaku thought with anticipation.
Kisame had been called the Tailed Beast Without a Tail, his chakra vast enough to rival the real bijū. If Fugaku absorbed it, the increase could be unimaginable.
"Corpse Fusion!"
He hurled the body upward. A black void appeared, swallowing Kisame whole.
As the corpse dissolved, warmth radiated from Fugaku's left eye, spreading through his body. It was like standing in winter sunlight—soothing, comforting.
Every cell within him began a mysterious transformation: producing more chakra, expanding its capacity.
Moments later, Kisame's body was gone. The warmth faded.
Fugaku closed his eyes, using Yamanaka sensory techniques to probe his condition.
"Hmm?!"
Surprise flickered across his face. His chakra had indeed grown, but not to Kisame's level. The difference was vast.
"No… it's still increasing. It must take time to adapt."
Realization struck. He hadn't instantly inherited Kisame's reserves. Instead, his body now carried Kisame's capacity. With recovery, he would reach—or even surpass—Kisame's peak.
By the next morning, his chakra stabilized at full capacity.
In the backyard, Fugaku released his chakra. With Yamanaka perception, he measured it carefully. His lips curled upward in astonishment.
"Tenfold!"
His chakra had grown ten times stronger. Kisame's physiology had amplified his already enhanced reserves to an insane degree.
Before, by fusing others' gifts, his chakra was already three times greater than the average Kage. Now, it had multiplied tenfold again—thirty times that of a normal Kage.
Thirty times the chakra of a Kage! An overwhelming, terrifying reservoir.
"No wonder Kisame was called the Tailed Beast Without a Tail," Fugaku whispered in awe. His chakra now rivaled that of ordinary bijū, second only to the monstrous Eight and Nine-Tails.
With this power, chakra would never again be his weakness. If he faced Nagato once more, there would be no need to hold back.
A rare smile spread across his face.
"What's making you so happy?"
A gentle voice called out. His wife, Mikoto, stepped into the yard, her rounded belly unmistakable now after several months.
Fugaku hurried over, supporting her carefully. "Just a breakthrough in training," he explained warmly.
"That's wonderful," Mikoto said, sharing his joy.
"Why are you up so early? You should rest more," Fugaku chided gently.
"I've slept enough," she laughed softly, stroking her belly. Then she looked up at him with expectant eyes.
"What do you think we should name our child?"
Fugaku's expression softened. "If it's a boy, Yato. If it's a girl, Ruri."
He had thought long on this—names with beauty and meaning.
"Yato… Ruri…"
Mikoto repeated them, savoring the sound. The more she said them, the more she loved them. The other names she had considered felt pale by comparison.
"Yes," she smiled. "Let's decide. Yato if it's a boy, Ruri if it's a girl."