High above, on the barren, cratered surface of the moon, Izumi sat cross-legged atop the ancient lunar palace ruins. Around her, the vast emptiness stretched endlessly — a perfect place for solitude and cultivation, far away from the distractions of the world below.
Izumi's focus was absolute. She had embarked on a new stage of cultivation, one that promised not only immense strength but also a measure of immortality. This cultivation method was critical to her ambitions, and she poured every ounce of willpower into it.
From a young age, Izumi had absorbed spiritual energy with ease. This affinity, combined with the Divine Ink embedded within her body and the compatibility of her chosen cultivation technique, allowed her progress to soar far beyond that of an ordinary practitioner. The spiritual energy within her grew dense and vibrant like never before, fueling the rapid evolution of her most treasured gift: the Reincarnation Eye.
At last, a subtle shift occurred. Her Byakugan—the pure, white, and near-omnipotent eye of the Hyuga clan—began transforming. It morphed, evolving gracefully into the Reincarnation Eye, a new and unfathomable power.
Slowly, Izumi opened her eyes.
From the palm of her snow-white hand, an inky black liquid began to ooze forth, swirling and writhing. Within the dark pool, two exquisitely beautiful blue-white eyes emerged, each adorned with intricate white patterns that shimmered and moved fluidly, as if alive. The sight was both mesmerizing and terrifying, radiating an aura of mystery and overwhelming power.
Izumi threw her head back and laughed, a sound of pure exhilaration echoing across the moon's silent surface.
"Hahahahaha!" she cried out, before retracting the Reincarnation Eye into her body, allowing the divine power to settle within.
She closed her eyes briefly, then reopened them.
Her original black pupils had been completely replaced by the radiant, intricate Reincarnation Eye.
Izumi rose, spreading her arms wide as if embracing the universe itself.
Suddenly, a shimmering white chakra cloak enveloped her body, layered with delicate ink-wash patterns that shimmered faintly in hues of grey and black. Behind her, several Truth-Seeking Orbs materialized, glowing softly as they hovered in formation.
Her long black-and-white hair lifted gently, floating as if suspended by an unseen breeze. Her wide cloak billowed elegantly, lending her an ethereal and majestic appearance.
Izumi surveyed her new form and gasped in shock and awe.
"What powerful eyes!" she whispered. "As expected, the Reincarnation Eye is a terrifying force. The evolution of the Byakugan is truly formidable."
She paused, reflecting on the implications.
"But this is strange," Izumi muttered. "The chakra cloak is white with ink-wash hues, unlike the white and green cloak seen in the anime movies. Is it because of the Divine Ink within me? Or perhaps these eyes aren't Hinata's at all, but someone else's, and they have transformed after merging with me?"
A small smile played on her lips.
"Either way, it's not bad."
Suddenly, her figure blurred and vanished, only to reappear floating a few meters above the lunar surface.
She gazed down at the barren landscape below, then shifted her eyes to the Truth-Seeking Orbs hovering behind her.
Reaching out, Izumi touched one of the orbs.
"Is this... a Truth-Seeking Orb formed by the fusion of five types of chakra?" she wondered aloud.
At her command, the five orbs rose in front of her and began rotating rapidly, merging together to form a dense black-and-white chakra ring around her palm.
"It seems this is how it's used... Silver-Wheel Reincarnation Explosion!"
With a sharp motion, the fused orbs released a violent tornado of swirling chakra, surging toward the moon's surface like a raging storm.
The tornado grew exponentially larger, roaring as it slammed against the lunar ground with catastrophic force.
"Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!"
The impact was tremendous. The surface of the moon shattered, sending boulders and debris soaring into the void.
The entire moon trembled under the assault.
Izumi's eyes widened in surprise and alarm.
"Ah!" she gasped, quickly directing the storm upward, preventing it from tearing further into the moon's interior.
Despite her control, the storm carved a massive canyon-like gully across the surface—a scar as vast as a river, stretching for miles.
Floating above the enormous gully, Izumi felt a shiver of awe and humility.
She stared down at her hands in disbelief.
"This power... it's too immense," she murmured.
"My goodness, I now wield the ability to destroy worlds. I feel even stronger than the Rinnegan in the anime."
Her gaze shifted outward to the distant meteorites drifting through the universe, their massive forms tumbling in silence.
A playful smile curled her lips.
With another command, Izumi sent the Truth-Seeking Orbs into motion again. This time, the black orbs pulsed with alternating glows of black and white.
As they merged, a brilliant orange-red sphere of energy condensed in her palm, crackling with immense power.
Swinging her arm toward a distant meteorite, Izumi unleashed the attack.
"Golden-Wheel Reincarnation Explosion!"
The energy sphere elongated into a fierce beam of light, slicing effortlessly through the void.
The massive meteorite was cleaved cleanly in two, fragments tumbling apart as it continued its course through space.
Izumi laughed, her voice filled with pride and exhilaration.
"This time, I am truly invincible—hahahahaha!"
With grace, she landed back onto the moon's surface.
Raising her arm, countless bone spikes erupted from her flesh, sharp and gleaming.
With a flick, the bone spikes shot forward, embedding themselves deep into the rock beneath her feet.
Almost instantly, the rock around the spikes turned to ash, the area scorched and eroded.
Before her stretched a perfect, circular hole — a testament to her destructive power.
Izumi gazed at the crater and nodded in satisfaction.
"This is incredible," she said quietly.
"The Dead Bone Pulse is evolving rapidly. Soon, its corrosive power will rival Kaguya's."
Her thoughts turned somber.
"Kimimaro's weakness was probably due to the immense corrosiveness of his Dead Bone Pulse, which ultimately led to his early demise."
Closing her eyes once more, Izumi focused inward.
When she opened them, her pupils had reverted to their original deep black.
Her moment of tranquility was abruptly interrupted by a mental summons.
The Akatsuki had sent a signal calling for a meeting.
Without hesitation, Izumi used her Shapeshifting Jutsu to send a mental projection of herself to the assembly location.
One by one, members of the Akatsuki arrived.
Pain spoke first, his voice grave.
"Biwa Jūzō has been killed."
Orochimaru raised an eyebrow in surprise.
"Oh? His partner was Uchiha Itachi, wasn't it?"
Uchiha Itachi's expression remained cold and indifferent.
"The enemy was a Three-Tails Jinchuriki," he said tersely.
Orochimaru's eyes widened.
"So Itachi was able to escape unscathed after fighting the Mizukage?"
Pain continued, "There was another casualty."
Zetsu interjected smoothly.
"Rather than being killed by the enemy, it is more accurate to say he was eliminated by one of our own."
Kakuzu scoffed.
"Who told him to drag his feet?"
Zetsu projected an image for all to see.
The scene showed an Akatsuki member engaged in battle, who was then burned alive by a Fire Release attack from behind—an attack clearly delivered by Kakuzu.
Sasori spoke up.
"That was intentional."
Orochimaru agreed, "Deliberate."
Kakuzu asked defensively, "Couldn't he have just dodged?"
Orochimaru replied dryly, "You and your partner don't seem to get along very well, do you?"
Kakuzu shot back, "So what?"
Orochimaru smirked.
"You've wanted to kill him for a long time, haven't you?"
Kakuzu repeated, "So what?"
Orochimaru waved it off.
"Nothing. It's quite common."
Sasori glared disapprovingly at Orochimaru.
Pain then addressed the group seriously.
"The Akatsuki always operates in pairs. We need to recruit new members."
He turned to An.
"An, you will temporarily become a full member and partner with Itachi until a new partner is found for him."
An immediately raised a sign.
"Okay, I hope I don't get killed like Senior Kakuzu."
Kakuzu shot a cold glance.
"Are you dissatisfied with me?"
An shook her head vigorously, then raised another sign.
"No, that guy was too useless. I've never seen anyone burned to death by Fire Release before."
The room fell silent.
Kakuzu asked, "Are you saying my Fire Release isn't good enough?"
An frantically shook her head again, holding up another sign.
"I'm saying your Fire Release is amazing! Other people's Fire Release can't kill anyone."
Kakuzu snorted, falling silent.
An seemed relieved.
Then, she wrote a final message to Uchiha Itachi.
"Lord Uchiha Itachi, please don't kill me."
Pain reassured her, "Don't worry. Itachi won't kill you without reason."
An sighed in relief, then raised a sign.
"Then please take care of me during this time, Lord Itachi!"
Itachi simply nodded in acknowledgment.
Orochimaru scowled.
"Hey, I'm the one who's supposed to be paired with Itachi!"
Sasori snapped angrily, "Bastard, are you pretending I don't exist?!"
Pain intervened to calm things.
"Alright, the Akatsuki needs new members. For now, this is how it will be."
He turned to Kakuzu.
"Kakuzu, for the time being, you will operate alone. I have prepared a new companion for Itachi who will arrive soon."
As the meeting concluded, one by one the members disappeared, their mental bodies dissipating into the void.
Izumi watched with a faint sneer.
"What exactly is Pain trying to do?" she wondered, suspicion flickering in her eyes.
Before Izumi could meet with Itachi again, another summon arrived, this time for a full Akatsuki assembly.
Arriving at the new meeting point, Izumi found everyone gathered once more.
Pain announced gravely, "Orochimaru has attacked Itachi, then betrayed the organization and defected."
"Tch, as expected," Sasori muttered. "I always knew that kid couldn't be trusted, always putting his personal agenda before the organization."
Pain added, "Although I didn't want Orochimaru to escape, our numbers are too few right now."
Suddenly, Tobi (Uchiha Obito) blurted out excitedly, "Me, me! Can I join?"
Sasori yelled at him angrily, "Get lost!"
Tobi's voice deflated. "Yes."
Izumi immediately put on a cheerful expression, raising a sign.
"You clearly lack strength. Look at me—I'm already a full member! Hahaha."
Tobi pointed at her in irritation.
"You! You're only temporary with Mr. Itachi! Let's duel!"
Izumi gave him a comical glare, sprouting two makeshift wings and taking a fighting stance.
Tobi also prepared for battle, their impending fight seeming inevitable.
Sasori barked, "You two, cut it out and come here!"
The pair reluctantly complied, casting pitiful looks at each other.
Sasori turned to Pain.
"Leave Orochimaru to me. His subordinate Kabuto is like my puppet. I'll find Orochimaru's hideout quickly."
Pain nodded.
"Don't worry. I already have a lead on your partner. We'll discuss it once he arrives."
Kakuzu grunted.
"What about me?"
Pain replied, "For now, you'll act alone. I've arranged a new companion for Itachi who will be here soon."
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