Facing the siege of the many Konoha ninjas, the undead duo also encountered unprecedented troubles.
Hidan was held back by Kakashi and couldn't get away at all.
A layer of flesh was cut off by Kakashi with his blade.
He grinned and screamed in pain.
And Kakuzu was also besieged by a large group of Konoha Jōnin, many of whom were even Jōnin.
Faced with the siege of so many ninjas, even though Kakuzu's strength was considered top-notch among the Kage-level, he was still beaten in an extremely embarrassing manner.
In just a moment, he lost a heart.
"Damn it!"
Kakuzu was already cursing in anger.
It was clear that this was a setup.
He could see through all of it, but he had no way to resist.
Was there even a chance that surrendering now would mean that these Konoha ninjas would let him go?
Obviously not!
So, Kakuzu could only fight.
But what was that Hokage from Konoha thinking?
Their organization hadn't gone to Konoha to collect tailed beasts, so why were they interfering?
Wouldn't it have been better to just stay out of it?
Kakuzu didn't understand. But he didn't have time to think about these things.
Because his second heart had already been blown out by an Elite Jōnin from Konoha.
Facing such an overwhelming number of Jōnin, no matter how strong Kakuzu was, he couldn't hold on.
If he could pilot a giant construct, then maybe none of this would have been a problem.
Even at the peak of Kage-level, those with such constructs and those without were completely different when facing a large number of enemies.
The former could annihilate the opposition.
But the latter could only struggle.
Very frustrating!
Just like Kakuzu right now.
It was unbearable!
Elsewhere
Other members of the Akatsuki stood in the way of the forces from the other four villages.
For Iwagakure, Deidara and Sasori took charge.
Against the Kumogakure faction, three Paths of Pain engaged.
As for the weaker Kirigakure and Sunagakure factions, two Paths of Pain were sent against Kirigakure, while Sunagakure was left to a lesser-known operative and reinforcements.
Even though Amegakure's forces were weak, they had been focused on handling Sunagakure's fighters, along with backup from others.
So it wasn't a problem.
After all, Sunagakure's forces weren't strong either.
And so, the entire Amegakure was filled with the sounds of battle.
Fighting erupted everywhere. Someone was dying every second.
At the same time—
Deep inside the base of the Akatsuku
Within a massive rock cavern—
The sealing of the Eight-Tails was reaching its final phase.
Meanwhile—
After Naruto had distracted Sasuke, he stopped at the edge of a forest.
Whoosh!
Sasuke landed behind him.
Naruto turned to face him.
"Sasuke, what's going on?"
Naruto looked at Sasuke excitedly and asked.
"Sasuke…"
Sasuke met his friend's gaze and then firmly said, "Naruto, we are enemies now. There's nothing more to say."
Naruto said, "Sasuke, what nonsense are you talking about?"
Naruto didn't understand and asked, "Weren't things fine when we last met?"
"That was before!"
Sasuke shouted, "It's different now."
"Different? How is it different? Tell me, Sasuke!" Naruto asked anxiously.
Hearing this, after a moment of hesitation, Sasuke decided to reveal the truth about his clan's destruction.
He wanted Naruto to understand why he was now an enemy of Konoha.
Truthfully, Sasuke didn't want to fight Naruto.
They were once best friends. Naruto was the only person in the village Sasuke considered a true friend.
So, if he had a choice, Sasuke would still want to be friends.
But he knew Naruto's devotion to Konoha. He knew how much Naruto wanted to become Hokage.
Therefore, Sasuke understood that if he sought revenge on Konoha, Naruto would inevitably stand in his way.
That meant their friendship was doomed. And they would have to fight.
After Sasuke finished revealing the truth, he stared at Naruto intently.
Sauske asked, "Naruto, if I seek revenge on the village… will you stop me?"
"I—"
Naruto hesitated, unable to answer immediately.
Would he stop him?
Naruto already knew the answer in his heart.
But he couldn't say it.
Sasuke, however, could already tell from Naruto's hesitation.
Sasuke said, "You can't abandon the village. And I won't give up on revenge."
"So… Naruto, from now on, we are enemies!"
Whoosh!
Sasuke unsheathed his blade and pointed it at Naruto.
An enemy?
Would Sasuke and he truly be enemies from now on?
Did that mean he would have to kill Sasuke?
No!
There was no way he could do that!!
Naruto shook his head firmly.
Then, looking straight at Sasuke, he declared, "Sasuke, I don't want to be your enemy."
"Then are you willing to abandon Konoha?" Sasuke asked, his gaze sharp.
Naruto shook his head.
He couldn't abandon Konoha—it was his home!
His friends, his teachers, all his memories, both good and painful, were there.
So he couldn't abandon it!
"No, I won't abandon the village either!" Naruto declared.
Sasuke said, "Naruto, Menma-sensei once told me that you can't have everything."
"You have to make a choice."
Two options?
Why couldn't he have both?
Naruto didn't understand.
But even if he didn't fully grasp it, he understood what Sasuke was saying.
Naruto said, "Sasuke, it was the previous Konoha leaders who were responsible for what had happened to your clan."
Though it pained him to admit, Naruto still said it because he wanted to save Sasuke.
"The village isn't the same now. The new higher ups are different. And Ryosuke is being groomed as the next Hokage."
"Your enemies are already gone. You don't need to hate the village anymore."
Naruto pleaded, trying to reach Sasuke.
But although Naruto's persuasive words were powerful and could move almost anyone, they seemed to have little effect on Sasuke.
"Even if the mastermind is dead, the accomplices still remain. Unless Konoha is willing to hand them over to me so I can deal with them myself, there's nothing more to discuss."
Sasuke's tone was ice-cold, showing no sign of being swayed by Naruto's reasoning.
This left Naruto scratching his head in frustration, unable to think of a better argument to convince him.
Seeing Naruto's troubled expression, Sasuke continued, "Enough, Naruto. Stop wasting your breath. My mind is already made up, and that won't change!"
Realizing Sasuke's unwavering stance, Naruto understood that words alone wouldn't make him abandon his grudge against Konoha.
There was no choice.
Since talking wouldn't work, he'd have to resort to other means.
"Sasuke, no matter what, I hope you'll change your mind!"
Naruto declared firmly. "If you want to take revenge on the village, you'll have to defeat me first! Because I won't let you harm Konoha!"
Sasuke: "....."
Idiot!
Sasuke cursed inwardly, keeping his indifferent gaze locked on Naruto.
"Naruto, do you think I can't beat you?" He asked.
"My strength has grown even more since our last encounter!"
"Even so, I won't back down!" Naruto shouted.
"Naruto!"
"Sasuke!"
"Naruto!!"
"Sasuke!!"
With a final yell, both of them vanished from their spots, colliding mid-air in a clash that sent shockwaves rippling outward.
...
Deep within Akatsuki's base
Pain sealed the final remnants of Eight-Tails' chakra into the Gedo Statue.
The process was finally complete, and he let out a relieved sigh.
"Now, only one remains." Pain muttered to himself.
But now was certainly not the time to seal Nine-Tails.
Someone had leaked the location of their base, and now, ninja from all five great villages had surrounded the area.
Even though Pain had sent Akatsuki members to hold them off, they alone couldn't stop such a massive force.
In fact, casualties had already begun to appear on Akatsuki's side.
"Menma... Madara..."
Pain muttered those two names.
At this very moment!
Deep within a tower—
Seated weakly in his chair, Nagato suddenly opened his eyes.
"Who's there?!"
His head jerked upward.
But before he could react, a hand materialized from the void behind him and ripped out his Rinnegan.
"AHHHH!!!"
Nagato let out a bloodcurdling scream as blood streamed down his face.
At that instant, Obito's figure emerged from the distortion of space.
He held the stolen Rinnegan in a glass container and swiftly stored it away.
"It's you!"
Though blind, Nagato recognized the familiar chakra before him.
"Madara... So this was your plan all along?" He spat coldly.
"That's right."
Obito replied indifferently, "Your usefulness has ended. From here on, I'll take over personally."
Hearing this, Nagato let out a bitter laugh.
He had always been wary of Madara, yet he had still fallen into his trap so easily.
How ironic!
He had once declared himself a god, yet in the end...
"Where's the Nine-Tails?"
Obito demanded, "I know you have it! Hand it over!"
Nagato chuckled and said, "You want the Nine-Tails? The tailed beast sealing process was nearly complete, and now you want to swoop in and claim it?"
Nagato smirked and said, "Madara, you think I wasn't prepared for this?"
Obito's expression darkened beneath his mask.
He had waited until Nagato had sealed the Eight-Tails before making his move—both to prevent him from controlling the Ten-Tails and because time was running out.
After all, the allied ninja forces were closing in fast.
But he hadn't expected the Nine-Tails to be missing.
Where had Nagato hidden it?
"Nagato, don't you still wish to bring peace to the world?"
Obito attempted to manipulate Nagato once more.
He knew Nagato had always dreamed of achieving peace, and was even willing to sacrifice himself for it.
So, if that was his goal, perhaps he could still be convinced to hand over the Nine-Tails?
"Peace?"
Nagato scoffed, "Do you really think I still believe your lies? Someone like you can never bring peace to the world!"
Obito: "..."
What?
What's wrong with someone like him?
Why can't he bring peace to the world?!
Nagato's words stung.
"You can forget about finding the Nine-Tails. I won't tell you where I hid it."
Nagato coughed up blood as he spoke.
His life force was quickly fading.
He was dying!
"What are you doing?!"
Obito instantly noticed something was wrong.
Nagato's body had always been weak due to the strain of wielding the Rinnegan—far worse than what Kakashi had suffered.
But now that the Rinnegan was gone, he should have been recovering.
Yet his condition was worsening.
Something wasn't right.
In a flash, Obito moved forward to check on him.
But in that instant, Nagato pulled out a kunai and slit his own throat.
Blood erupted from the wound like a fountain.
Obito couldn't even react in time. Nagato had been too ruthless.
Too decisive!
***
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