Konoha Village.
The afterglow of the setting sun lazily sprinkled across the bluestone paths, covering the usually bustling village in a tranquil, golden haze.
Samui, who had been laughing and chatting with the other won, suddenly gasped, a sharp, invisible pain piercing her heart. Her hands flew to her chest, her fingers digging into the fabric of her clothes as she put her hand on her heart and whispered with bad premonition.
"Atsui!!!"
Her voice was a thin, trembling whisper, each syllable squeezed from her lungs, carrying an endless, crushing sorrow. Tears stread from the corners of her eyes, unconsciously. The warm evening air suddenly felt biting and cold, a chill that had nothing to do with the temperature and everything to do with the pain that had sunk its icy claws deep into her soul.
"Samui, what's wrong?" Tsunade and the others rushed to her side, their faces etched with confusion and concern.
Kagami was there in an instant, gently pulling her into his arms. "What happened?" he asked, his voice a soft, steady anchor in her sea of grief.
"My love, I..." Samui's eyes were red, her voice cracking. "I felt... sothing bad has happened and it is related to Atsui." She didn't know how she knew; it was a feeling that had erupted from the depths of her being, a primal, undeniable certainty. It has happened before as well when her parents died. She knew before the ninja ca at ho with the news and now it has happened again.
Hearing this, Kagami didn't hesitate. He held her tightly, his embrace a fortress of comfort and power. "Don't worry," he said, his voice resolute. "I will imdiately send a clone to the Hidden Cloud Village to see what has happened. Atsui will be fine."
With a thought, he created three shadow clones, which flickered out of existence as they instantly sped towards the Land of Lightning. Samui was his wife. Her pain was his. He would not stand for it.
"Thank you, my love," Samui whispered, deeply moved. She knew the power Kagami now wielded; even a single one of his shadow clones was a force capable of destroying a nation. Yet for her, he had sent three without a second thought. How could she not be moved?
"There is nothing to thank for," Kagami smiled softly. "You are my wife. Your business is my business."
The other won gathered around, offering their own words of comfort. "Samui, your brother will be fine. Don't worry. Let's pray for him together"
Though the ache in her heart remained, Samui managed a small, grateful smile and nodded. With Kagami acting on her behalf, she believed that as long as Atsui was still alive, he would be saved.
The Hidden Rain Village, Akatsuki Headquarters.
All the mbers of the Akatsuki were gathered.
"Nagato," the Sage of Six Paths said, his ancient, majestic voice echoing strangely from Naruto's young face. "Have you collected all the Tailed Beasts?"
"So the leader's real na is Nagato," Itachi and Orochimaru thought in unison, their expressions unreadable. But while Itachi processed the information with his usual cool detachnt, Orochimaru's mind was already racing. His initial surprise was quickly replaced by an all-consuming scientific curiosity. His interest in this legendary being, this god made flesh, now surpassed everything else.
"I must study him," Orochimaru thought, a flicker of his tongue tracing his lips, his body thrumming with an excited energy. He knew his limits, however. The being known as Pain, who called himself a god, was clearly terrified of the Sage. And he, Orochimaru, had been defeated instantly by Itachi. He would not be so foolish as to make a move... yet. But if an opportunity presented itself, he would not hesitate.
The other mbers of Akatsuki stood in a tense, silent circle, their eyes shifting between the impassive form of Deva Pain and the small boy who contained a god. Though Pain had briefed them on the Sage's existence, seeing him in person was another matter entirely. They were an organization of S-rank criminals, murderers, and monsters, but they were now in the presence of a legend, and their hardened exteriors couldn't completely mask their awe and apprehension.
Only Black Zetsu felt nothing but pure, unadulterated terror. He had assud the man claiming to be the Sage was a fake, an imposter using a legendary na. But now, seeing him, feeling the aura of that soul... it was him. It was truly Hagoromo Otsutsuki. The sa ancient, overwhelming presence he had sensed long ago. Fear, cold and sharp, lanced through him. He wanted to flee, to lt into the shadows and disappear. He was certain that if the Sage discovered his true nature, his true purpose, he would be erased without a second thought. He had not yet resurrected his mother, Kaguya. He could not die here.
But he knew that to run now would be to draw the Sage's attention directly to him. He clung to the hope that his existence, born in secrecy from Kaguya's will, was still unknown. Forcibly suppressing the urge to flee, Black Zetsu stood silently at the back of the group, reducing his presence to the barest minimum, hoping to beco nothing more than a shadow on the wall. He had no way of knowing that the Sage, who had observed the ninja world for a millennium, was already well aware of his existence, his plans, and his mother. He was simply another piece on the board, a pawn whose every move had been anticipated since the day he was born.
Hearing his na spoken so familiarly, Nagato, controlling Pain from afar, felt a flicker of annoyance. He was the leader of this organization, a god in his own right. But he suppressed the feeling. He was deeply wary of the Sage's power and would not risk a confrontation over such a trivial matter.
Through Pain's eyes, he felt the Sage's gaze, a look that seed to see through all pretense, and the ripples of unease in his heart grew. He controlled Pain to nod. "Yes. All the jinchuriki have been gathered. I have also ford an alliance with the four great ninja villages. They have agreed to attack Konoha with us."
The Sage of Six Paths noted Nagato's dissatisfaction but dismissed it as irrelevant. He held a deep, unshakable contempt for all the mortals of the ninja world. He had gifted them chakra, and he, as its true master, could take it back whenever he wished. Their chakra was a mixture of their physical and spiritual energy; to take it back would an their certain death. All the shinobi standing before him, all the ninjas in the world, were nothing more than livestock for him and their only purpose was to help him ascend. If he did not need them to deal with the variable, Kagami, he would not have deigned to speak to them at all.
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