Mist Village, Mizukage's Office.
Mei Terumi sat behind the Mizukage's desk with her hands clasped, lost in thought.
On the desk in front of her was a letter from Sunagakure's Fourth Kazekage, Rasa.
"Mizukage-sama, I've already arranged for Sunagakure's envoy to rest, and I also notified Zabuza and the others to come for a meeting."
A moment later, the door opened and Ao walked in.
"Mm."
Mei responded, saying nothing more.
Before long, Momochi Zabuza, Chōjūrō, and Hōzuki Suigetsu entered the Mizukage's office.
Mei swept her gaze over them. These were already the standouts among Kirigakure's younger generation and rising talents.
She sighed inwardly. Mist Village really was caught in an awkward gap right now—its strength wasn't carrying over smoothly to the next generation.
Chōjūrō and Suigetsu were basically the last hope.
That was exactly why she'd called them in—she wanted to cultivate them early.
Aside from Chōjūrō and Suigetsu, the only ones left were elite jōnin like Ao and Zabuza.
They were the pillars of Kirigakure… but there were far too few pillars like that.
Especially compared to Konoha, it felt downright bleak.
Mei couldn't help thinking: if Kitazawa were in Kirigakure, then in just three years, Mist Village could catch up to Konoha.
Unfortunately, there was no "if."
"Take a look at this letter."
Mei picked up the letter and handed it to Ao.
Ao glanced at it and couldn't help letting out a soft, surprised sound.
After reading it, he passed it to Zabuza.
"Rasa's being this kind?" Zabuza asked bluntly.
"We'll discuss it together in a bit," Mei said, shaking her head in reminder.
Zabuza heard her and didn't ask again.
Soon, everyone finished reading Rasa's letter.
The contents were simple.
Sunagakure had unexpectedly discovered the location of the Mist Village rogue-nin, Biwa Jūzō.
If Kirigakure was willing, Sunagakure could help eliminate him.
"What do you think?" Mei casually set the letter back on the desk.
"There's definitely something fishy about this," Ao said after thinking for a moment.
"With Suna's strength, secretly taking out Biwa Jūzō wouldn't be a problem," Zabuza snorted. "But he came to us on purpose. He definitely wants something!"
"And what do you two think?" Mei looked at Chōjūrō and Suigetsu.
"I… I think Ao-senpai and Zabuza-senpai are right." Chōjūrō looked tense.
"Biwa Jūzō has the Executioner's Blade. We have to take it back!" Suigetsu said without hesitation. "We've already lost two blades. We can't lose the Cleaver Sword—Executioner's Blade too!"
Mei couldn't help feeling a little disappointed.
Chōjūrō was introverted and didn't have much of a mind of his own, while Suigetsu was obsessed with recovering all seven ninja swords.
Neither answer was what she wanted to hear.
She could only hope the two of them would mature over time.
Otherwise, Kirigakure's future would be hanging by a thread.
"The Executioner's Blade is important to Kirigakure," Mei said slowly, "but the current Mist Village can't afford any chaos."
"Then are we giving up the Executioner's Blade?" Suigetsu immediately looked unwilling.
"I'll take a squad of Anbu to Sunagakure," Zabuza said confidently. "Give me enough time, and I'll find Biwa Jūzō's location."
"No. Don't rush." Mei shook her head. "Ao, investigate this. I want to know the full story—cause and effect."
"Why go through all that trouble?" Zabuza frowned.
"Kirigakure needs to move carefully right now," Mei said, giving him a look.
"I'll send people to Sunagakure to investigate immediately," Ao said, bowing slightly before turning and leaving.
Mei rubbed her brow.
Other than Ao, there really wasn't a single one she could rely on.
Zabuza was the strongest, but he was far too aggressive—this style didn't suit a Mist Village still in recovery.
As for the other jōnin… she'd rather not even talk about it.
"You can all leave for now," Mei waved them off.
Zabuza and the others turned and left.
"Have you found Utakata?" Mei asked the empty air.
"Not yet." A Kirigakure Anbu pushed the door open and stepped in.
"Find him as soon as possible," Mei nodded.
Kirigakure had two tailed beasts: the Three-Tails and the Six-Tails.
The Three-Tails' jinchūriki was Yagura Karatachi.
After stepping down as Mizukage, he had effectively retired.
But either way, he was still in Kirigakure—if something happened, he could still respond in time.
The Six-Tails' jinchūriki was Utakata. He was no longer in Kirigakure—more accurately, he had become a rogue-nin.
The reason for his defection was rather dramatic.
Utakata hated being a jinchūriki.
His teacher, out of goodwill, researched a way to extract a tailed beast while keeping the jinchūriki alive.
But instead of telling Utakata, he planned to extract the Six-Tails for him directly.
In the shinobi world, the common belief was that once a tailed beast was extracted, the jinchūriki would die.
Utakata mistakenly believed his teacher was trying to kill him—so he killed his teacher first, then fled Kirigakure.
Mei's reason for searching for Utakata was to clear up the misunderstanding and bring him back.
Because right now, Kirigakure desperately needed jinchūriki-level combat power.
Summer break ended quickly amid training.
September 1st—the new semester for the Advanced Class officially began.
As for enrollment, Kitazawa once again left it to Umino Iruka.
Early that morning, he went to the Forest of Death.
Kitazawa stood in place and activated Senju Chakra Mode and Yang Release Chakra Mode.
Feeling the surging chakra within him, he took a deep breath.
Shadow Clone Jutsu!
He created a shadow clone, then formed hand seals.
Wood Release: Hotei Technique!
The ground beneath his feet trembled.
Centered on him, a wooden wall rose up.
The circular wall rapidly closed in, completely enclosing him.
In the end, a shield shaped like a fanged oni face appeared in the clearing.
Wind Release: Rasenshuriken!
His shadow clone formed seals.
Chakra completed nature transformation, becoming razor-sharp wind.
He raised his hand as the wind spun and expanded in his palm.
Then the clone slammed it straight into the wooden shield.
In an instant, a shrill yet heavy sound rang out.
Countless tiny wind blades—like a swarm of locusts—tore and chewed at the wooden shield.
The shield shuddered.
Its interior absorbed that terrifying Wind Release chakra and spread it outward.
Boom!
Layer upon layer of shockwaves surged into the sky, turning into a howling gale.
Nearby flowers, grass, and trees were swept up and blown away, forming a massive impact zone.
A moment later, all movement vanished.
The wooden shield stood there completely intact.
Kitazawa dispelled the shadow clone.
Pain surged from his right arm, making him frown slightly.
If he weren't testing the defensive strength of the Wood Release: Hotei Technique, he wouldn't have bothered using Wind Release: Rasenshuriken.
Luckily, with the Strength of a Hundred Seal—and while in Yang Release Chakra Mode—the pain quickly faded.
Kitazawa clapped his hands together and dismissed the Wood Release technique as well.
He looked around and nodded in satisfaction.
No wonder the Wood Release: Hotei Technique used by Senju Hashirama could withstand Uchiha Madara and the Nine-Tails' armored Susanoo.
Across the entire shinobi world, there weren't many jutsu that could surpass Wind Release: Rasenshuriken in sheer offensive power.
Kitazawa figured only Ōnoki's Dust Release and Nagato's Rinnegan could manage it.
In any case, after learning Wood Release: Hotei Technique, his sense of security was basically maxed out.
And once he learned the Flying Thunder God Technique, his mobility would become number one in the shinobi world.
If he also mastered Sage Mode—or Sage Art: Wood Release: True Several Thousand Hands—his attack power would reach the pinnacle as well.
Unless some enemy came down from the space, he could pretty much do whatever he wanted in the shinobi world.
Wood Release: Nativity of a World of Trees!
Kitazawa formed seals.
The trees destroyed by Wind Release: Rasenshuriken quickly grew back.
If it were anywhere else, he could've just left.
But this was Konoha's Forest of Death—he had to restore the damage.
After scanning the area and confirming everything was fine, he headed back toward Konoha.
Walking through the streets, he thought for a moment and went to the Hokage's office.
Learning Wood Release: Hotei Technique was a big deal—he should tell Tsunade.
"Tsunade-sensei."
Kitazawa entered the Hokage's office.
"Why are you here so early today?" Tsunade set down the documents in her hand. "I haven't even finished my first file."
"I've got good news to share."
Kitazawa walked around the Hokage's desk and stopped at her side.
Standing over her, his gaze drifted toward her neckline.
That pale, full skin looked like it had been soaked in milk—he couldn't look away.
"What good news?" Tsunade lifted her head and immediately caught him peeking.
But she was already used to it, so she didn't say anything—generously letting him look.
Only Kitazawa dared to stand in that spot. Everyone else stayed outside the desk area, keeping to the center distance of the Hokage's office.
"I learned Wood Release: Hotei Technique," Kitazawa said with a light laugh.
Tsunade immediately looked surprised.
Even though she couldn't use Wood Release herself, she knew Wood Release jutsu very well.
Wood Release: Hotei Technique was definitely high-level Wood Release.
Along with Wood Release: Nativity of a World of Trees and Wood Release: Wood Dragon Technique, Kitazawa had now mastered three advanced Wood Release techniques.
Tsunade suspected there wasn't a single shinobi in all of Konoha who could defeat him now—not even Sarutobi Hiruzen and the others.
No question, this was good news—earth-shatteringly good news.
"How about you become Hokage right now?" Tsunade said as she tugged at her collar.
Kitazawa's vision filled with white.
So you'd use such a shameless trick?
Kitazawa widened his eyes, wanting to scold her—yet he didn't waste time and openly appreciated the view.
"How boring." Seeing he wasn't shaken, Tsunade clicked her tongue and tugged her collar back up, covering the extra "scenery."
"Tsunade-sensei, two years means two years. Why are you in such a hurry?" Kitazawa couldn't help laughing.
"Not two years," Tsunade corrected. "Half a year has already passed. There's only a year and a half left."
"Why do you remember it so clearly?" Kitazawa asked, helpless.
"When you're stuck at work, every day feels like a year," Tsunade waved a hand. "Alright. If you don't have anything else, don't bother me while I work."
"Tsunade-sensei."
Kitazawa leaned down and hugged her.
"What are you doing?" Tsunade rolled her eyes at him.
"Nothing. Just hugging you."
Feeling the soft, sexy body in his arms, Kitazawa smiled.
"Hugging that tight? Sounds like you're just taking advantage of me," Tsunade immediately saw through him.
"As if," Kitazawa said, loosening his arms. "I'm heading out. Bye."
He turned to leave.
Tsunade bit her lip, surprised.
This time… he really only hugged her?
Kitazawa returned to the Anbu base.
He planned to think about where to take the midterm mission this semester.
The mission itself was secondary—what he really wanted was to bring back another student and fill out seven squads, meaning the top twenty-one of the Advanced Class.
"Kitazawa."
When Konan saw him, she instinctively stood up.
Over summer break, she'd gone back to the Akatsuki and promoted the "water business" using the method Kitazawa taught her.
After staying for half a month and confirming the results were good, she returned to Konoha.
"Good morning, Konan."
Kitazawa walked up and hugged her.
He lifted a hand and gave her butt a pat. Only after feeling that rich softness did he let her go.
"Mhm," Konan answered softly.
Kitazawa smiled and went to the desk.
He casually took out pen and paper, recalling the original plotline.
When it came to geniuses of Naruto's generation, the first person he thought of was Ōtsutsuki Toneri.
As a descendant of Ōtsutsuki Hamura, the Sage of Six Paths' younger brother, his talent was unquestionable.
But he was also a complete villain.
He not only stole Hyūga Hanabi's Byakugan, but also wanted to marry Hyūga Hinata, and even planned to destroy the shinobi world.
Kitazawa shook his head and kept thinking.
Most of the memorable prodigies he knew came from the Five Great Villages.
Like Gaara, Kurotsuchi, Deidara, and Darui.
But none of them could possibly join Konoha and become students in the Advanced Class.
Deidara might have a tiny chance—if the Akatsuki were subdued first.
Kitazawa gave a small sound of surprise.
Maybe Gaara was possible too.
After all, his life was miserable right now.
But no matter how miserable, he was still Sunagakure's jinchūriki.
And with Rasa still alive, there was no way he'd allow Gaara to go to Konoha.
Unless something like the "Konoha Crush" happened—like in the original story.
Once Konoha turned Kirigakure into an ally, maybe Gaara and his siblings could come over.
Just as Kitazawa was stuck, in Kirigakure's Mizukage office, another small meeting began.
"Biwa Jūzō joined the Hidden Rain, and Sunagakure and the Hidden Rain are business competitors," Ao reported his investigation results. "I suspect Rasa wants to use our name as justification to strike the Hidden Rain."
"If that's the case, we can't let Rasa have it easy," Zabuza immediately said. "He has to pay a price big enough!"
"The water business is that profitable?" Mei's attention was on the water trade.
"Not sure," Ao shook his head. "We're shinobi. We know very little about business."
"If it's enough for Sunagakure and the Hidden Rain to fight over, then it must involve massive profit," Mei tapped the desk. "We can join in too."
Kirigakure lacked a lot of things—but it definitely didn't lack Water Release shinobi.
The only pity was that seawater couldn't be used as drinking water. Otherwise, they'd be even more suited for the water trade.
"This…?" Ao hesitated.
"Doing business doesn't fit a shinobi's rules," Zabuza frowned.
He only liked killing. He didn't like doing business.
"If Suna and Rain can do it, so can Kirigakure," Mei said calmly. "And we don't have to spend much effort. We can just cooperate with Sunagakure."
The Land of Wind was obviously the most water-starved.
If Kirigakure wanted to run a water business, they'd have to sell to the Land of Wind anyway—which would put them in direct competition with Sunagakure and the Hidden Rain, making it a headache.
Better to contribute manpower, cooperate with Suna, take a cut, and keep things simple.
"Ao, you leave today. Go meet Rasa and talk cooperation," Mei said with a faint smile. "He's been waiting half a month—he's probably getting impatient."
"Yes, Mizukage-sama," Ao responded immediately.
"I'll write down the specifics. Use it as a guide when you negotiate," Mei added after thinking for a moment.
Three days later, Sunagakure's Kazekage Tower.
"Kazekage-sama," Yūra said, "according to Anbu reports, Ao and the others will arrive soon."
"So they finally came?" Rasa shook his head. "Looks like they've already investigated our bottom line."
He hadn't written the details in the letter because he wanted to see if he could trick Kirigakure.
But now it seemed the Fifth Mizukage, Mei Terumi, hadn't fallen for it.
If they were negotiating for real, Sunagakure would have to pay a hefty price.
Still, if they could take over the Land of Wind's water market in one move, it would be worth it.
"Go welcome him," Rasa waved.
"Yes, Kazekage-sama." Yūra bowed and left.
Rasa sat in the Kazekage chair, deep in thought.
About ten minutes later, a knock came.
"Kazekage-dono. A pleasure," Ao said, extending his hand.
"Mm." Rasa shook it and asked, "How does your village want to handle Biwa Jūzō?"
"Capture him and bring him back to Kirigakure," Ao said without hesitation.
"Biwa Jūzō has joined the Hidden Rain. You know Hanzō well—he's not someone to mess with," Rasa said plainly.
"But Kazekage-dono, you're this eager not because of Biwa Jūzō… but because of the water business," Ao said, cutting straight to the point.
"What does your Mizukage want?" Rasa asked, expression unchanged.
"Cooperation." Ao paused. "Cooperation on the water business."
"That's impossible!" Yūra couldn't help blurting out from behind Rasa.
"Why is it impossible?" Ao smiled. "Kirigakure has countless Water Release shinobi. We can help you cut costs dramatically."
"I can hire you," Rasa said immediately.
"That's not sincere enough, Kazekage-dono." Ao shook his head. "Kirigakure and Sunagakure are both one of the Five Great Villages. Equal status. We want a share."
"A share?" Rasa narrowed his eyes. "How much?"
"Forty percent." Ao held up four fingers.
"Clearly your sincerity isn't enough either," Rasa said slowly, not angry. "All you're providing are Water Release shinobi. That's not worth forty percent. In the water trade, Sunagakure has done far more work than you."
"Not just Water Release shinobi," Ao smiled. "We also provide you a legitimate pretext to strike the Hidden Rain."
"But it still doesn't justify forty percent," Rasa rejected.
"You understand Hanzō's strength," Ao said after a brief pause. "If Sunagakure and the Hidden Rain get dragged into a war quagmire, the other villages won't be able to resist intervening."
"What are you getting at?" Rasa's expression grew serious.
"Kirigakure can publicly support Sunagakure—for example, announcing an alliance," Ao said. "That way, the other three villages won't act rashly."
Rasa thought to himself: as expected, they're hard to fool.
Every one of his motives had been guessed by Ao—or rather, by Mei.
"Two-tenths at most," Rasa said firmly. "If you don't accept, you can leave."
Ao immediately frowned.
Twenty percent was Kirigakure's bottom line.
After all, they weren't really contributing much—just sending some Water Release shinobi to help transport water.
A war with the Hidden Rain would naturally be Sunagakure's responsibility.
Kirigakure would at most help deter other villages and buy Sunagakure time.
"Fine. Then happy cooperation," Ao finally agreed.
"I've already locked onto Biwa Jūzō's location. We can depart tomorrow," Rasa quietly exhaled in relief, then continued at once. "After we deal with Biwa Jūzō, we'll notify the shinobi world."
No matter where you were, having a justification mattered.
Sunagakure and Kirigakure were striking the Hidden Rain to eliminate the rogue-nin Biwa Jūzō.
Even if Hanzō came out to accuse them, he wouldn't have the moral high ground.
"Agreed," Ao said, then added, "but we sign the treaty today."
"No problem," Rasa agreed readily.
He didn't intend to start an all-out war with the Hidden Rain. His goal was to drive them out.
Then he could monopolize the water business and let money pour into Sunagakure endlessly.
The next day.
Led by Rasa, a group of jōnin flew through the sky straight toward the Hidden Rain's outpost built in the Land of Wind.
This outpost sat at the center of the transport pipeline system, and its daily duties were twofold:
First, protect the pipelines and ensure the water's safety.
Second, take summons out to sell drinking water.
Only one Akatsuki member was stationed there—Biwa Jūzō.
Normally, the Akatsuki acted in pairs.
But transporting water took a long time, and the Akatsuki were short-handed, so only one person was assigned.
The rest were Hidden Rain shinobi proficient in Water Release.
White Zetsu did spot Rasa's group, but it was too late.
And it wasn't really White Zetsu's fault—Rasa and the others came from the air.
After a fierce battle, Biwa Jūzō was killed, and Ao recovered the Cleaver Sword: Executioner's Blade.
Ao didn't actually want to kill Biwa Jūzō, but his resistance was too fierce. Without holding back, Ao had no choice but to finish him.
After wiping out the Hidden Rain shinobi at the outpost, Rasa led his people in destroying all the pipelines.
Half a day later.
Amegakure, in the Land of Rain.
Tendō Pain learned from White Zetsu that Biwa Jūzō had been lost.
He didn't really care about the life and death of Akatsuki members.
After all, Kakuzu had sold teammates' heads to the underground bounty market multiple times already.
But he did care about the water business.
Because the money from the water business could greatly accelerate the start of the Eye of the Moon Plan.
Now that Sunagakure and Kirigakure had ruined it, even if the silver jewelry business remained, losing one income stream would slow them down.
"Bring Konan back," Tendō Pain said coldly.
With his strength, he could kill Rasa and Ao.
But that would completely expose the Akatsuki, turning them into a target for everyone—and that would affect the Eye of the Moon Plan.
After weighing it over, Tendō Pain decided he should ask Konan's opinion.
After all, both the silver jewelry business and the water business were her projects.
Without her push, the Akatsuki wouldn't have gone into business at all.
As for gathering the other Akatsuki members for a meeting—there was no need.
Their relationships were basically hatred, not camaraderie.
With Biwa Jūzō dead, the others would only think he was weak, not think about avenging him.
Two days later, Tendō Pain met Konan.
"Did White Zetsu tell you?" he asked.
"Yes," Konan nodded.
"What do you think?" Tendō Pain said evenly. "I don't want this to affect our Eye of the Moon Plan."
"We abandon the pipelines and rely mainly on summons for transport," Konan said slowly. "At the same time, we sabotage Sunagakure's pipelines."
"Why?" Tendō Pain asked, puzzled.
"The water business is too profitable to give up," Konan replied. "But because of the Eye of the Moon Plan, we can't directly go to war with two Great Villages. A tug-of-war is the best approach."
"Too troublesome," Tendō Pain said after thinking. "And in a tug-of-war, the water business will take a huge hit."
"Chaos has its own ways of making money. Risk is also opportunity," Konan said calmly. "We raise the price of water. And by controlling Sunagakure's shinobi, we can 'cooperate' with them and push the price even higher."
"…"
Tendō Pain felt like he hadn't understood a word.
At the same time, he realized Konan had become extremely unfamiliar—like a completely different person from before.
"How will we handle the Hidden Rain shinobi casualties?" Tendō Pain asked again.
"Use White Zetsu and puppets as disguises," Konan suggested. "I think we can leave this to Sasori."
Although Sasori was Chiyo's grandson from Sunagakure, he had killed the Third Kazekage—he was destined never to return.
And he didn't want to return anyway. In the Akatsuki, he could pursue human puppets and "eternity."
"You handle it," Tendō Pain nodded.
Konoha, Anbu headquarters.
Kitazawa received the intel the next day.
In one sentence: Sunagakure and Kirigakure cooperated to kill Kirigakure's rogue-nin Biwa Jūzō.
Not only him—both Iwagakure and Kumogakure received the intel too.
After all, it was public information jointly announced by Sunagakure and Kirigakure.
Iwa and Kumo were a bit puzzled, but they didn't care much.
In their view, Hanzō could only swallow the loss.
Unless he was insane enough to have Amegakure fight both Sunagakure and Kirigakure at once.
Only Kitazawa knew that behind today's Amegakure stood the Akatsuki.
The Akatsuki had the power to wipe out Sunagakure and Kirigakure.
But would they act over one Biwa Jūzō?
Kitazawa didn't think so.
The Akatsuki's purpose was always one thing: the Eye of the Moon Plan.
Every member was just a disposable piece—if one died, recruit another.
If the Akatsuki destroyed Sunagakure and Kirigakure, it would alarm the other villages, even triggering the Fourth Great Ninja War.
Because the Five Great Villages would never allow an organization that strong and dangerous to exist.
But that was all speculation.
Luckily, Kitazawa had a spy inside the Akatsuki: Konan.
Once she returned, he could ask her.
Personally, Kitazawa hoped to delay the Fourth Great Ninja War for another two or three years.
Because right now, he still wasn't invincible enough.
Kitazawa thought for a moment, then went to the Hokage's office.
"About Sunagakure and Kirigakure—what do you think?" Tsunade asked as soon as she saw him.
"It probably won't escalate into a large-scale war," Kitazawa guessed.
"I think so too," Tsunade agreed. "This is a good chance to get a look at that mysterious Akatsuki."
Kitazawa had previously told her Hanzō was dead, and that Amegakure was now controlled by the Akatsuki.
"Have Anbu keep an eye on them. If anything unusual happens, report to me immediately," Tsunade wasn't particularly worried about the incident itself.
She cared more about the Akatsuki.
After all, Konoha was terrifyingly strong right now—there was no need to panic.
"Understood," Kitazawa nodded.
Two more days passed, and Konan finally returned to Konoha.
"I heard about what Suna and Kiri did. What's the Akatsuki's situation?" Kitazawa asked directly.
Konan didn't hide anything and explained the Akatsuki's response.
She didn't directly say Sasori's name, though.
"Looks like you learned fast," Kitazawa said after listening, unable to resist praising her.
Especially that line—chaos has its own ways of making money—it already had the flavor of war profiteering.
At the same time, he confirmed his own guess.
The Akatsuki didn't intend to start the Fourth Great Ninja War yet.
Seems like their buildup still wasn't enough.
But because he had interfered, it would probably happen much earlier than in the original story.
"Still, dragging things out like this isn't a real solution," Kitazawa blinked. "Once Rasa notices something's off, he'll definitely expand the scale of the war."
"Drag it out for now," Konan said after hesitating for two seconds, half-truthful. "Once we have enough money, we can hire other villages to help later."
"How long are you planning to drag it out?" Kitazawa asked calmly—his most important question.
"I don't know," Konan shook her head. "Ideally… one or two years."
Kitazawa felt a bit more at ease.
One or two years was short, but still enough.
It just meant he couldn't take things so leisurely anymore—he needed to speed up his system task progress.
And beyond that, he had to trigger more key system tasks—especially ones related to Sage Mode.
"If you run into danger, you can ask me for help," Kitazawa said, reaching out to stroke her cheek.
Konan's heart trembled. She felt touched—and also guilty.
For the Akatsuki's sake, she'd told Kitazawa some necessary lies.
"You came back this early?" Kitazawa asked again.
"The other members will handle it," Konan replied.
"Good," Kitazawa chuckled. "Staying in Konoha is safer for you anyway."
Konan froze slightly, but said nothing more.
Kitazawa looked at her, and a thought suddenly struck him.
Once the Eye of the Moon Plan began, the Akatsuki would hunt jinchūriki everywhere, extracting tailed beasts.
And normally, once a tailed beast was extracted, the jinchūriki would die.
But the Six-Tails' jinchūriki, Utakata, had once had a teacher who researched a way to extract a tailed beast while keeping the host alive.
Kitazawa's eyes narrowed thoughtfully.
Could he get his hands on that method?
From what he remembered of the original story, that method was most likely in Kirigakure's possession.
If he asked directly, he probably wouldn't get it.
Even if he did, Kirigakure would definitely demand heavy conditions.
So… start with Utakata?
Kitazawa roughly knew where Utakata was—connected to the Tsuchigumo clan.
The Tsuchigumo clan possessed a forbidden technique called Fury.
At the cost of one's own life, it could absorb natural energy and turn the user into a super bomb, annihilating everything across hundreds or even thousands of kilometers.
That technique was exactly why the Tsuchigumo clan was nearly extinct.
Only four people remained now:
The clan leader En no Gyōja; his granddaughter Hotaru; a servant named Tonbē; and a traitor named Shiranami.
Konoha had once made a deal with the Tsuchigumo clan.
In exchange for the Tsuchigumo clan permanently banning Fury, Konoha would provide them protection.
In the original story, Hotaru wanted better control of the forbidden technique, so she tried to become Utakata's student.
Shiranami was the classic villain—he kidnapped Hotaru and killed the clan leader En no Gyōja to seize the secret art.
In the end, with the help of Uzumaki Naruto and Utakata, Hotaru defeated Shiranami.
After everything, Utakata planned to take Hotaru as his student.
But when they said goodbye to Naruto and began their new life, Tendō Pain attacked and captured Utakata.
As for Hotaru, she survived—but had no further presence in the plot.
Kitazawa felt he could capture Utakata first, then trade with Mei Terumi.
As for Hotaru—if her talent was high enough, he could bring her into the Advanced Class.
The Advanced Class was missing one student anyway.
And that forbidden technique was interesting too—absorbing natural energy, of all things.
Kitazawa really wanted to trigger a system task related to Sage Mode.
Maybe this forbidden technique could be the key.
As for bringing the Six-Tails back to Konoha—there was no need.
Better to wait until he was truly unbeatable, then take the tailed beasts back from the Akatsuki with a righteous justification.
"Go rest for now," Kitazawa said, rubbing Konan's head.
"Mhm," Konan turned and left.
After watching her go, Kitazawa headed toward the Hokage Tower.
But not to see Tsunade—he was going to see Uchiha Itachi.
He planned to hand the search for Utakata over to him.
Hokage Secretariat.
Kitazawa knocked and entered.
"Kitazawa-sama," Uchiha Itachi immediately stood and greeted him.
"Itachi, I need you to handle something," Kitazawa said with a smile.
"Please tell me," Itachi said, energized.
After all, Kitazawa hadn't called on him in a long time.
"There's a Mist Village rogue-nin named Utakata," Kitazawa said directly. "According to Anbu intel, he's been seen near the Tsuchigumo clan."
"The Tsuchigumo clan with the forbidden technique?" Itachi asked after thinking.
The Tsuchigumo clan had made a name for themselves in the Third Great Ninja War, so he'd heard of them.
"That's right," Kitazawa nodded. "Also, investigate a Tsuchigumo shinobi named Shiranami."
"Understood," Itachi agreed without hesitation.
[Current Mission: Defeat the Six-Tails Jinchūriki, Utakata.]
[Mission Reward: 20% Byakugan Purity.]
[Accept?]
Kitazawa was thrilled.
He already had 80% Byakugan purity. With this additional 20%, he'd reach 100% purity.
Because of his Byakugan purity, he'd gained two abilities: Byakugan: Puppet Control and Byakugan: Pressure.
After reaching 100%, would it evolve into the Tenseigan? Or would it grant a new ability?
Kitazawa felt the latter was more likely.
In the original story, there were two ways to obtain the Tenseigan.
One was gathering an enormous number of Byakugan into a single giant Tenseigan.
There was a massive Tenseigan on the moon, but it was too large to fit into a person's eye sockets and could only function as a kind of tool.
The other was combining Ōtsutsuki chakra with a Hyūga's eyes.
In the original story, after Ōtsutsuki Toneri implanted Hyūga Hanabi's Byakugan, it automatically evolved into the Tenseigan.
But Kitazawa's Ōtsutsuki bloodline was only 10%.
Even so, his Byakugan strength already far exceeded the Hyūga clan's.
After finishing the discussion, Kitazawa returned to the ninja academy.
Even though Amegakure and Sunagakure had conflicts, it didn't affect Konoha in the slightest—much less the academy.
The Advanced Class students trained as usual.
Kitazawa found a spot and continued practicing the Flying Thunder God Technique.
Even though there was still some time before the Eye of the Moon Plan moved, he felt a growing urgency.
If he mastered Flying Thunder God, he'd feel far safer.
Time moved into October.
Inside the Anbu office.
After reading the documents in his hand, Kitazawa fell into thought.
They summarized the war between Amegakure and Sunagakure.
Overall, it was lukewarm—not too hot, not too cold.
On Amegakure's side, the person in charge was Sasori.
Of course, Sunagakure and Konoha didn't know it was Sasori.
He hid inside the puppet Hiruko—no one knew his true body.
Kitazawa felt the fighting looked intense, yet it produced no real results.
Combined with what Konan had said earlier about the Akatsuki's strategy, it was obvious:
Sasori had used his mind-control sand to control Yūra, making Sunagakure put on a show with them.
Kitazawa put the documents away and turned his thoughts back to the Advanced Class.
For the final exam this semester, he planned not to hold a team battle, but switch to individual fights.
First, it had been a long time since they'd done individual battles.
Second, he wanted Shion and Chino to participate in the ranking placement matches.
But finals were still two months away. The pressing issue now was the midterm exam.
Kitazawa planned to make the Tsuchigumo clan traitor Shiranami the target of this mission.
The question was: who to bring?
Last time, he brought Hyūga Hinata, Yamanaka Ino, and Haku.
This time, he definitely needed to rotate.
Kitazawa suddenly made a small sound of surprise.
This mission would likely run into Utakata as well.
Should he bring Tsunade?
After becoming Hokage, she rarely had chances to go out.
A Six-Tails jinchūriki was absolutely worth a trip.
Thinking of that, Kitazawa decided to bring Uzumaki Naruto, Uchiha Sasuke, and Karin.
Especially Naruto.
He was a jinchūriki too.
Letting him see how Utakata used tailed-beast power would let Kitazawa teach him naturally afterward.
After all, Naruto still had a system mission about becoming a perfect jinchūriki.
~~~
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