The Akatsuki Base.
Ninjas from every village had long tried to gather information about the Tailed Beasts hidden inside this base. However, with Madara and Sasuke Uchiha standing guard, those ninjas never stood a chance. Sneaking into the Akatsuki base was an extremely dangerous operation.
If one hundred ninjas tried to infiltrate, all one hundred would die. It was exactly as dangerous as it sounded.
At this moment, Kakashi Hatake appeared, waiting quietly outside the base. He planned to wait until Madara left.
Inside the base, Madara Uchiha received a message from a White Zetsu clone. This clone brought genuinely good news.
"Lord Madara! We've found Kisame Hoshigaki!" the White Zetsu reported, unusually excited. "We tracked Kisame and also found Obito Uchiha. They're hiding not far from the base, looking for a chance to sneak inside!"
"Heh… he's even gutsier than I thought," Madara said with a cold laugh.
He leaped from a high platform and looked back, giving orders to Sasuke. "Sasuke, you stay here and guard the base. There shouldn't be any issues, right?"
"Just a bunch of small-fry," Sasuke replied, looking down on any enemies who might try to infiltrate. With his current power, even standard jounin were no match for him.
"…"
Madara narrowed his eyes at Sasuke, thought for a second, and then hurried off with the White Zetsu clone in the direction Obito had appeared.
The distance wasn't far. Even if there was real trouble at the base, Madara was confident he could return quickly. He didn't think Sasuke would have any trouble defending it. This sixteen-year-old… no jounin from the other villages could challenge him.
But after Madara left, Sasuke encountered a worthy opponent—one of his former teachers.
Kakashi Hatake managed to sneak in. He was carefully moving through the shadows when he suddenly saw a familiar figure inside the base. Even though he had expected it, Kakashi hadn't thought they'd meet so soon.
Sasuke Uchiha sat on the steps, a slender ninja sword in hand. His scarlet Sharingan spun in his eyes as he spotted the intruder.
"Kakashi," Sasuke's cold voice echoed through the base. "No need to hide. I already see you. This isn't where you belong."
On every level, Kakashi shouldn't have been there.
Of the eight Tailed Beasts the Akatsuki held, none were from Konoha. And while the strongest member, Shirou, was leading a team toward Konoha, Kakashi, as a Konoha jounin, should have been guarding the village.
"You shouldn't be here either," Kakashi sighed as he stepped out of the shadows, looking up at his former student.
"That's not your concern." Sasuke gripped his sword as a dark, sinister chakra swirled around him, making him seem like a stranger to Kakashi. "Leave, Kakashi. I could kill you anytime. I'm only sparing you to save my chakra for real threats."
Sasuke continued, "You should be in Konoha. While Shirou leads the Akatsuki to attack the village, a Konoha jounin wouldn't be foolish enough to come after a missing-nin like me."
"I didn't expect…" Kakashi sighed again. Sasuke had changed so much that Kakashi was at a loss for words. "I never thought… you'd end up like this."
But… how to put it?
He hadn't strayed as far as Kakashi might have thought. Though Sasuke seemed arrogant and dismissive, he'd been like that even back in Konoha.
"It doesn't matter what I become." Sasuke didn't see it that way.
He believed his heart and his strength were far greater than when he'd been in Konoha. "As long as I can kill Itachi Uchiha, I don't care if I help Shirou and Madara overturn the world."
"Enough. Leave. There's no point in you being here." Sasuke once again pushed Kakashi to leave, giving his own reasoning. "Konoha wouldn't be after the other Tailed Beasts at a time like this, would they?"
Of course, Konoha wouldn't. But Kakashi didn't leave. His mood tensed, because he was about to do something Sasuke would never expect.
"Konoha doesn't want the Tailed Beasts," Kakashi said, slowly lifting the headband that covered his Mangekyo Sharingan. "But we also can't let them fall into the dangerous hands of the Akatsuki."
"So that's your purpose?" Sasuke casually gripped his sword tighter, drawing it lazily. "These tailed beasts don't matter to me, but I can't let them slip through my fingers either."
A battle between former teacher and student seemed about to break out in the narrow base. Sasuke stood, spinning his sword in his hand, then stepped down the stairs toward Kakashi.
But Kakashi stepped backward.
As Sasuke felt a mix of surprise and a subtle sense of relief, he saw Kakashi's Sharingan morph into the Mangekyo shape. A space-time vortex appeared in Kakashi's eye.
Within the swirling vortex, a figure appeared—long hair tied neatly, with tear lines on his face like permanent creases. He quietly looked up, his red Sharingan gleaming.
Uchiha… Itachi.
Sasuke's expression changed instantly. He had thought Kakashi was no threat—that he could deal with him easily—but he had never expected Kakashi to bring Itachi Uchiha with him.
Itachi simply stepped out from the space-time swirl Kakashi's Mangekyo had created. He calmly hid one hand in his clothing, peacefully watching his brother's stunned face. "Sasuke is on guard duty? Then let me handle this, Kakashi-san."
"Thanks, Itachi." Kakashi disappeared at full speed, moving deeper into the Akatsuki base.
Kakashi had long suspected there was more to the Uchiha massacre. He wasn't truly worried for either brother in their fight, but he felt a bit bitter, knowing Sasuke would surely be angry about this reunion.
But there was nothing to be done. He had no time to waste here.
After he and Obito had scouted the Akatsuki lineup targeting Konoha, they were certain only Madara and Sasuke were left at the base. As for Madara, Obito and Orochimaru would handle him.
Sasuke… that was clearly Itachi's responsibility.
Itachi's eyes glowed scarlet. His failing vision let him only faintly see the grown-up shape of his little brother. His steady voice held a trace of hidden complexity.
"Long time no see, Sasuke."
"Hmph." Sasuke narrowed his eyes, ignoring Kakashi's disappearance. All his focus was fixed on the brother who had killed their parents and their entire clan.
"Long time no see… Itachi Uchiha. So Konoha really is working with traitors like you."