Out in the desolate wilderness, Obito was visually locked with an accumulation of critical inquiries.
However, Uchiha Kaede was fundamentally not an asset that could be easily suppressed; a tyrannical, volatile wave of intense heat expanded outward from Kaede's physical vessel, generating a massive thermal repelling vector that forcefully compelled Obito to execute an immediate defensive retreat.
Obito's cognitive centers registered a sudden, jarring trace of familiarity regarding the baseline composition of that firestorm, yet his data parsing failed to establish an absolute lock. "Blue flames? Why do you possess the signature capability profile of the Fifth Kazekage?"
Brushing the baseline dust and debris from his garments, Kaede calculated with absolute certainty that this minor display of kinetic output was far from sufficient to permanently deter Obito's prying eyes and diagnostic probes.
"This is fundamentally distinct from the Blue Fire trait. It is a specialized, autonomous Kekkei Genkai lineage heavily structurally aligned with the parameters of Amaterasu.
Achieving this output merely requires the systematic deployment of advanced cellular cloning architecture."
Observing the complete, unmitigated blankness that temporarily blanked Obito's facial expression beneath the mask, Kaede let out a cold, mocking hum.
"If your processing matrix fails to compute the science, you can always seek out Orochimaru to schedule a baseline remedial course in biological engineering."
What is the meaning of this... why does it feel like my baseline intellect has been systematically insulted yet again?
At that exact micro-second, the specialized chakra chains Obito had deployed began to char and incinerate, fracturing into useless fragments under the intense heat.
Stepping forward with absolute dominance, Kaede closed the physical distance between them.
The hypnotic, spinning configurations of his Mangekyo Sharingan slowly rotated to life within his irises as his vision locked squarely into Obito's mask.
"Regarding the absolute volume of operational ocular chakra remaining within my system... has your diagnostic trial yielded sufficient data now?"
A miniature, highly concentrated orb of deep crimson fire flared to life directly atop Kaede's palm, radiating a highly pressurized, suffocating wave of thermal force that dominated the immediate atmospheric perimeter.
Witnessing that Kaede's baseline combat capability remained an exceptionally thorny, high-risk variable to contend with, Obito rapidly downshifted his tactical module and pivoted his engagement strategy.
"The specialized technique you engineered on that night—the one executing a wide-scale phenomenon mimicking the absolute script of a localized Infinite Tsukuyomi... can it be actively deployed a second time?"
It was glaringly obvious that this parameter carried the absolute highest priority in Obito's long-term macro-calculations.
Sensing the underlying, desperate urgency radiating from the masked man, Kaede ruthlessly severed his illusions with a singular statement: "The initialization sequence required the complete, absolute systemic sacrifice of the Uchiha clan's entire collective ocular network.
That configuration cannot be replicated under normal battlefield parameters."
In absolute systemic reality, backed by the operational assistance of the Sharingan Orb, executing that macro-formula again was completely within the realm of mathematical possibility.
However, because that specific asset was currently locked within the primary vault of Shiraishi's original body, Kaede engineered a calculated falsehood, deliberately convincing Obito that a massive, high-volume sacrifice of pure Sharingan ocular pressure was an absolute, unbendable prerequisite to trigger the technique.
Having personally cataloged the complete depletion of residual ocular data within the abandoned Uchiha residential sector on that fateful night, Obito found zero structural flaws within Kaede's narrative. He gave a low, leaden nod of comprehension.
"In that case, adjust your velocity and follow my coordinates. I shall formally introduce your asset profile to the public leader of Akatsuki."
At the exact micro-second Kaede was finalizing his convergence with the overt and covert leadership cores of Akatsuki, deep within a heavily reinforced underground laboratory inside Sunagakure, Shiraishi sat motionless at his desk, a specialized brush held firmly in his hand as he smoothly etched complex notations across the surface of a high-tier research scroll.
Although the immediate administrative crisis within Konoha had entered a stage of temporary stabilization, Shiraishi understood that this internal cohesion was merely an artificial byproduct generated by the terrifying, existential threat of Sunagakure hovering over their borders, forcing the Leaf's fractured factions to violently unify their parameters.
Even Danzo's deep Foundation networks had begun to initiate a baseline tier of systemic integration with the standard Anbu infrastructure, actively pooling intelligence data, logistical assets, and high-priority cross-border surveillance loops.
Furthermore, because of Tsunade's formal return to the executive branch, the comprehensive diagnostic and healing metrics of Konoha's Medical Corps had experienced a massive, sweeping upgrade across all sectors.
When it came down to managing the high-value assets of Uchiha Sasuke and Uzumaki Naruto, Tsunade had deployed the absolute limit of her administrative authority to construct a flawless defensive perimeter around them.
The former represented the singular, vital emotional anchor preventing Uchiha Itachi's strategic module from completely desynchronizing from the Leaf; the latter was the village's primary Jinchuriki—a cornerstone component mapped to dictate their future heavy combat output.
However, Konoha's total military evacuation from the Land of Hot Water had cleanly, unmitigatedly exposed their baseline structural exhaustion to the continental stage.
This massive, sweeping contraction of the Land of Fire's forward deployment vectors was more than enough to trigger a wave of profound, highly volatile destabilization across the shinobi mainland.
Confronted with this apocalyptic macro-shift, both Iwagakure and Kumogakure forced themselves to temporarily suppress their systemic greed, actively routing strategic financial resources and raw logistical aid to shore up Konoha's defenses.
This was especially pronounced within the Hidden Cloud; even though Konoha's abrupt retreat had left Kumogakure's western flank entirely isolated and forced to shoulder the absolute brunt of the defensive burden alone, the Raikage refrained from launching a diplomatic retaliation.
The Fourth Raikage possessed the strategic intelligence to fully comprehend Konoha's methodology.
Had he been tasked with administering a broken Leaf under identical parameters, his first directive undoubtedly would have been to execute a total systemic contraction of available forces, consolidating every scrap of military hardware to prepare for the inevitable, crushing collision against Sunagakure.
Yet, while intellectual comprehension was one thing, the ground reality dictated that this maneuver had caused the structural defensive pressure squeezing the Cloud's frontlines along the Land of Hot Water vector to spike to an astronomical degree.
Although the Hidden Sand had desisted from executing high-profile macro-offensives over recent seasons, the continuous, massive influx of highly trained graduates emerging from their six major specialized Academy complexes into the active military roster had caused the Sand's standing conventional forces to cross a staggering baseline of forty thousand active shinobi—a number that mathematically equated to the collective standing armies of the other three major hidden villages combined.
And according to the deep-espionage dossiers compiled by foreign intelligence networks, this metric was on a trajectory to continuously scale upward over the coming years.
Facing a military juggernaut of these terrifying proportions, how could the leadership modules of the remaining hidden capitals fail to experience a constant, paralyzing spike of instinctual terror?
Furthermore, data indicated that these newly minted Sand shinobi were fundamentally distinct from the historical standard of wartime cannon fodder thrown into the meat-grinder immediately upon graduation; on the contrary, they possessed exceptionally high comprehensive tactical metrics, modern technological literacy, and highly structured squad synchronization.
A total continental war was a mathematical certainty on the timeline, prompting the Feudal Lords of the various nations to aggressively funnel their state treasures into funding their respective hidden villages to construct a desperate containment wall against the Sand's expansion.
Even though the Feudal Lord of the Land of Wind still routinely materialized to conduct public ceremonies, the high-level administrative cabinets of foreign nations were far from foolish.
They calculated with absolute clarity that the Wind Daimyo had long since been reduced to nothing more than a highly polished, passive puppet operating under the absolute executive direction of the Kazekage.
The entire foundational architecture of the state, along with its bureaucratic and civilian management frameworks, had been systematically overhauled and modernized from the root up within the Land of Wind.
It was precisely because of this structural reality that the ruling classes of foreign empires harbored an absolute, visceral resistance toward Sunagakure, openly categorizing the village's administrative ideology as an apocalyptic, unstoppable force of nature.
Even the Feudal Lord backing the Hidden Mist Village—the Sovereign of the Land of Water—had recently begun to voice a profound, intense dissatisfaction regarding Kirigakure's current, ironclad strategic alliance with the Sand.
However, following a highly covert, localized operation where that specific Sovereign inexplicably and cleanly perished during a sudden, unattributable assassination event, the newly installed Daimyo showed zero structural inclination to question the parameters of that alliance moving forward.
"Since your asset has successfully breached the perimeter and arrived, you may as well materialize into the physical plane."
The exact millisecond Shiraishi laid down his calligraphy pen and completed his vocalization, an anomalous, highly specialized displacement occurred within the flooring of the secure chamber.
A bizarre, entirely pitch-black entity slowly extended its head upward through the solid architecture—it was none other than Black Zetsu, the entity that had successfully executed a high-velocity escape from Shiraishi's tracking vectors during their prior historical encounter.
An eerie, scraping laugh resonated hollowly throughout the dimensions of the closed room as Black Zetsu fixed his gaze on Shiraishi. "Keke, Lord Kazekage... it appears our trajectories have converged once more."
Shiraishi's focus remained lightly anchored on the research documents sprawled across his desk; even upon registering Zetsu's physical manifestation, he did not bother to elevate his gaze. "You still possess the baseline audacity to project your presence directly into this sector?"
Letting out a sequence of low, raspy chuckles, Black Zetsu's voice downshifted into a ghostly, lingering murmur.
"Had the great Kazekage not intentionally left behind a highly specialized, customized invitation marker during our previous engagement outside the Leaf, my module would never have risked executing a physical insertion into this absolute stronghold."
During that fateful night outside Konoha's perimeter, while Shiraishi was deploying his high-density Water Silk Chakra Threads to systematically liquidate the surrounding White Zetsu divisions, he had intentionally branded Black Zetsu's spiritual signature with a specific, high-tier space-time coordinate marker—a beacon calibrated to provide a direct, unhindered transit pathway leading straight into this isolated inner sanctuary.
It was glaringly obvious to Zetsu that this titanic Kazekage's motivation for engineering this high-level rendezvous was backed by an exceptionally profound, non-trivial macro-objective. This was a core piece of operational intuition that Black Zetsu trusted implicitly—it was the exact analytical mechanism that had successfully guided his survival across a thousand years of continuous continental manipulation.
When it came down to interfacing with Black Zetsu, Shiraishi harbored zero desire to waste computational cycles on meaningless diplomatic posturing; he bypassed all standard conversational filters to lay his absolute objective cleanly on the board:
"I can systematically coordinate my village's military and technological assets to assist you in harvesting the nine-tailed beasts, ensuring the absolute, total resurrection of the Ten-Tails."
Backed by the highly specific, deep historical data unlocked from the third transmigrator's memory bank regarding the definitive architecture of the Naruto universe, Shiraishi no longer required an asset like Yamato to painstakingly gather fragments of macro-espionage from the field.
He possessed the capability to reverse-engineer the entire canonical timeline, executing highly precise, devastating containment arrays across all critical vectors.
Naturally, openly declaring his awareness of Black Zetsu's true ancestral heritage—specifically, identifying him as the definitive, hidden third son generated by Otsutsuki Kaguya—would be an administrative move that was exponentially too destabilizing and conceptually paradigm-shattering for the current phase.
Consequently, Shiraishi elected to utilize the absolute reconstruction of the Ten-Tails as the primary transactional bait, systematically enticing Black Zetsu to formalize a direct, high-level operational partnership with his faction.
A precisely calibrated injection of high-value intelligence was more than enough to hook an asset of Zetsu's profile.
The definitive, physical harvesting of the nine-tailed beasts would, by default, be executed through the modernized military apparatus of Sunagakure.
"Heh... an operation of that cosmic magnitude should logically be negotiated directly with 'Uchiha Madara' or the public figurehead of Akatsuki, Pain. I do not possess the executive authority to finalize terms on a matter of this scale."
Black Zetsu's defense modules remained exceptionally active and guarded. Before Shiraishi's true macro-intentions were completely, transparently mapped out, he had zero intention of compromising his deep-cover parameter.
"Prior to the official initialization of the Fourth Shinobi World War on the continental stage, my primary strike force will launch a direct, high-velocity insertion into the Land of Rain, systematically executing the physical extraction of the Rinnegan from Nagato's skull.
Once Akatsuki is stripped of the Rinnegan's absolute reality-warping metrics... precisely what is the mathematical probability that your initial phase of Tailed Beast extractions will achieve successful completion?"
The exact millisecond Shiraishi finalized that verbal sequence, the baseline composure of Black Zetsu's form experienced a catastrophic, violent distortion...
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