Watching Deidara constantly inching closer to Seiki Shimaseki, Kitsuchi felt a headache coming on. At least his father was unconscious now.
Otherwise, seeing his disciple—the one he had been grooming as the next Tsuchikage—clinging so eagerly to Seiki Shimaseki would probably make him furious enough to disown the boy.
"But isn't this brat only obsessed with explosions?" Kitsuchi wondered. "Although Seiki is powerful, he doesn't use explosives, does he?"
After Shimaseki responded to Kitsuchi's thanks, he asked, "What exactly is happening now? Why is the Akatsuki organization attacking Iwagakure so recklessly?"
"I don't know either. Maybe they want to defeat us one by one?" Kitsuchi replied somewhat awkwardly.
His father had just declared a few days ago that the Akatsuki would never unite to attack a ninja village. Right after making that claim, they were proven completely wrong—the village itself was almost half destroyed.
But it wasn't entirely their fault! Who could've predicted the Akatsuki could conduct mass summonings? Even during the last Kage Summit, they had only summoned a few Rinnegan users!
Lord Seiki nodded grimly. "The other villages might also be in danger next. We must inform them in advance to prepare accordingly!"
Thinking about how the other great ninja villages had been spared due to their own "sacrifice," Kitsuchi felt bitter inside. Why did the Akatsuki bastards have to target them, specifically Iwagakure?
However, he quickly transformed his bitterness into hatred toward the Akatsuki. Gritting his teeth, he growled, "We can't just sit here taking punches—we must unite and defeat those bastards!"
"Unity is the best option, but easier said than done!" Lord Seiki sighed. "Few people have the foresight. Without feeling the pain themselves, most tend to think optimistically, especially now, after Iwagakure has already suffered. The Traditionalists in other villages will definitely refuse to spare any forces and cooperate with us to launch a counterattack."
Kitsuchi lowered his eyelids. Wasn't Iwagakure itself exactly like that?
Before this catastrophe struck, they always thought about protecting themselves, hoping others would take the lead when trouble came.
But when disaster did strike, they were simply powerless to resist!
"I will speak with those Traditionalists," Kitsuchi said solemnly after a brief silence. "I will tell them with my own experience… Unity may cause temporary losses, but without unity, what happened to Iwagakure will be their future fate!"
Seeing that Iwagakure had transformed from a hesitant opportunistic faction into a firm advocate for unity, Lord Seiki nodded in satisfaction. "That's great news! With your personal testimony, the chances of successful unification will greatly increase!"
After the discussion ended, Deidara beside them couldn't hold back anymore. He raised both hands and eagerly asked, "Lord Seiki, could you perform surgery and sew mouths onto my palms as well?"
Kitsuchi's face darkened. Was this guy implying their explosion power was still insufficient?
...
A few days later, in the Cloud Village.
Inside the Raikage Building.
"The Hokage wants to convene a Kage Summit?" Dodai frowned. "He sure isn't afraid of exposing his own wounds!"
Raikage remained noncommittal, handing out the photograph he held. "Take a look at this."
Dodai took the photo, his pupils suddenly constricting. "Is this real?"
Beside him, B couldn't resist rapping, "Shocking! It's blowing my mind! Definitely not something worth celebrating, huh?!"
Raikage said gravely, "I've already sent people to confirm. Although it's not certain yet, Amegakure definitely has something to hide!"
Dodai rubbed his chin, muttering, "Didn't expect the Hokage to actually be reliable this time!"
Yugito brightened, "Then shall we immediately gather the other Four Great Ninja Villages and destroy their base?"
Raikage sneered, "If we really go, we might never return!"
"Eh? What do you mean?" Yugito tilted her head, asking.
Dodai's eyes narrowed slightly, "Raikage-sama, you mean... this base in the photograph is a trap?"
Raikage stated coldly, "Whether it's a trap or not, I'm not sure. However... it's very likely this photo was obtained from Akatsuki themselves!"
"What? Are you saying the Konoha Hokage is actually part of Akatsuki?" Yugito exclaimed.
Dodai couldn't help asking, "Raikage-sama, is the source of this information reliable?"
Raikage answered solemnly, "We have people in Konoha's Intelligence Division. When he obtained these photos, he was also shocked. He extracted the residual substances on the original photo and compared them with the captured monsters. He found the genetic information to be very similar!"
"There's also one thing: the images in these photos are too clear. They don't look like clandestine photos at all—more like they were taken right in front of Akatsuki!"
Hearing his explanation, Yugito picked up the photo and examined it from various angles, then nodded slowly, "Right, the shooting angles are too normal—normal to the point of being unreasonable!"
"If that's the case," Dodai suddenly realized, "Four years ago, it was actually Akatsuki who willingly let him go! At that time, I originally thought Akatsuki did it to hinder Seiki Shimaseki and prevent him from becoming Hokage. I never imagined the real reason was this!"
B couldn't help but curse, "That withered old man definitely plans to sabotage us! Aniki, let's team up with Seiki Shimaseki and kill him!"
"Don't act recklessly!" Raikage glared at him. "This is actually a rare opportunity for us!"
"Opportunity?"
"The chance to drag Akatsuki out from the shadows!"
"I get it!" Yugito clapped her hands enthusiastically. "Akatsuki invited Raikage to the Kage Summit through Danzo. It must be planning to set a trap during the Summit. We can also seize this opportunity to set a trap for them instead!"
"Exactly!" Dodai nodded approvingly. "If Akatsuki keeps hiding in the dark, we indeed have no way to deal with them. But now that they've exposed themselves, everything's different!"
"A bunch of fools, a group of idiots! Let me make them all perish~yo!" B gestured dramatically. "Aniki, let me go with you guys!"
Yugito shot up her hand, "Count me in too!"
However, Raikage shook his head and said, "What do you two want to come for?"
"Too many people going along will only draw suspicion. You all stay here and protect the village!"
"But they're already setting a trap for you!" B frowned. "If too few go, they might actually succeed in their sneak attack!"
Yugito nodded repeatedly. "That's way too dangerous!"
"Don't worry," Dodai said. "I'll notify the other Kages and Lord Seiki in advance. As long as Seiki Shimaseki is ready, that bunch of bastards from the Akatsuki organization will definitely suffer!"
"Oh! Now I feel relieved!"
"Hey Aniki," someone added, "remember to stick close to Seiki Shimaseki once the fighting starts!"
Seeing their sudden shift in attitude, A facepalmed.
What did they take him for? He was the Raikage!
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