At the seventh floor of the tower in Amegakure, within a quiet room...
Naruto stood before a mirror, examining himself in the Akatsuki’s signature bck cloak adorned with red clouds. He chuckled softly, “I hought there’d e a day when I’d wear this outfit.”
“Alright then!”
*Cp!* He smacked his fist into his palm, his cloak fluttering as he turned sharply and strode out of the room with purpose.
---
In the corridor, Konan leaned against the window, her bright e eyes watg Naruto approach. “This cloak suits you well,” she remarked with a faint smile.
Naruto waved dismissively, returning a casual smile. “Don’t tease me.”
“Here, take this.”
Koended her hand, revealing a riing in her palm.
Naruto took the ring, which still carried the warmth of Konan’s hand. Its ter bore a light blue background engraved with the kanji for "zero" (零).
“Zero,” Naruto murmured, his gaze sharpening.
Konan’s expression turned serious. “The Akatsuki operates in pairs, and each official member has a ame. Pain’s previous ame was ‘Zero,’ symbolizing nothingness. I hope you’ll i this name.”
As she spoke, Konan turned her hand to reveal the ring on her own middle finger, with a white background and white kanji.
“For reference, my ame is ‘White,’ symbolizing the White Tiger.”
“I uand.”
Naruto nodded solemnly and carefully slipped the ring onto his left thumb.
Seeing this, Konan’s lips curved into a faint smile.
“And this,” she tinued, reag to her waist and pulling out a bulging pouch, which she hao Naruto. “These are soldier pills. I noticed your previous ones were damp and unusable.”
Naruto scratched his head sheepishly. “Ah, yeah. When I went to retrieve Kisame, I spent a long time hiding underground in the damp.”
Konan nodded. “Throw those away. Eating them could harm your body.”
Naruto accepted the soldier pills with a serious expression. “Thank you, Sister Konan.”
Konan smiled lightly. “We’re on the same path. No need for formalities.”
---
A few mier, the two stepped out of the tower. Orochimaru and Kisame were already waiting in the rain.
Naruto’s mind was sharp and cautious. “Our presen Amegakure might not go unnoticed. To be safe…”
He formed a hand seal.
*Poof!*
A shadow e appeared beside him.
“I’ll leave my shadow e here to guard the base. If anything ued happens, I return instantly using the Flying Raijin Jutsu.”
The journey from Amegakure to Kumogakure spahousands of miles, requiring passage through the Land of Grass, the Land of Waterfalls, the Land of Iron, the Land of Sound, the Land of Hot Water, and the Land of the Moon before reag the Land of Lightning, where Kumogakure was located.
Even for a jonin, such a journey would take ten days to two weeks on foot.
However, with the Flying Raijin Jutsu, Naruto could instantly teleport to pre-marked locations, such as the Land of Iron, cutting the jourime by more than half. He could even leave Flying Raijin marks along the way, enabling him to travel bad forth between Amegakure and their current location.
Such was the power of space-time ninjutsu.
“The st locatiohe Raikage fought Kisame was at the southern border of the Land of Waves. For the Raikage to return to his vilge, he’ll o travel from south to north, crossing the vast Land of Waves. Moreover, the Land of Waves has many waterways, which will drain his chakra and force him to rest along the way. With some luck, we might reach Kumogakure before the Raikage gets back.”
Naruto slowly pced his mask over his face, his aura shifting dramatically.
Konan pced a hand on Naruto’s back, while Naruto rested his hands on Orochimaru’s and Kisame’s shoulders.
“Let’s move.”
Before departing, Orochimaru g the open space outside the tower. “Once we return from this trip, I should begin preparations to build my new b.”
---
Meanwhile, in the snowy mountains behind the Land of Iron...
“Argh!!” Two patrolling samurai fell to the ground with pained screams.
*g!*
Suigetsu Hozuki phe Executioner’s Bde into the ground, baring his sharp teeth in a grin. “I left one of them alive for you. Now’s your ce.”
Jūgo, in the form of a child, walked coldly toward the barely breathing samurai lying on the ground.
The samurai gritted his teeth. “You… you’re shinobi!”
“Bme that blond shinobi for turnio this!” Jūgo growled.
Mounting the samurai’s back, Jūgo covered his mouth and nose, activating his Cursed Seal.
*Mmff!*
The samurai let out muffled cries as his body rapidly withered, leaving behind ay suit of armor.
Abs the samurai’s life energy, Jūgo reverted to his adult form.
Suigetsu smirked. “What a thrill. Doing something like this… if we get caught, we’re definitely getting thrown into a death row cell~!”
As the cursed seal receded, Jūgo muttered darkly, “We o get back to Sasuke. I feel my killing i rising again.”
During the previous frontatioween the Five Kage and Naruto, these two had slipped away unnoticed. Instead of leaving the Land of Iron immediately, they disguised themselves as samurai, waiting for the right moment to act.
“Well, Jūgo, Suigetsu, fancy meeting you again so soon.” A pyful voice suddenly sounded behind them.
*Whoosh!*
The two spun around, instantly on guard.
Naruto stood there, fnked by Konan, Orochimaru, and Kisame.
Suigetsu’s eyes widened in shock. “That was a dead end behind us just now! How did he get here?!”
Jūgo’s voice was low. “He has the ability to jump through space. But to appear at this exaent… what terrible timing.”
“That’s right. Life’s full of ces.” Naruto g the samurai’s corpse and the withered armor before shifting his gaze back to them.
Suigetsu’s thoughts raced. *That monster who could pin Sasuke to the ground… better not provoke him. Wait! That cloak… and Kisame-senpai! Did he join the Akatsuki too?!*
Quickly, Suigetsu raised his hands. “We’re on the same side! Don’t attack!”
Naruto’s tone was amused. “Aren’t you part of Taka?”
Suigetsu replied, “Taka and the Akatsuki are allies, after all.”
Naruto chuckled softly. “Unfortunately, we’re not Akatsuki.”
Jūgo asked cautiously, “What do you want? Did you e here specifically to find us?”
Naruto replied, “It’s purely a ce. But since we’ve met here, it must be fate. Join us, or…”
The faint aura emanating from Naruto made Suigetsu’s hair stand on end.
Jūgo’s expression darkened. His loyalty to Sasuke made him relut to betray him.
Suigetsu, however, kept signaling with his eyes: *Hey, survival es first!*
Naruto’s tone deepened. “Jūgo, if you want to find Sasuke, it won’t be easy. And you don’t want your cursed seal to go out of trol and hurt i people or animals, do you? Until you see Sasuke again, perhaps I be the restraint you need.”
As he spoke, Naruto slowly removed his mask, revealing his left eye—a Sharingan with three tomoe.
Jūgo’s eyes narrowed. “Fine. I don’t know what yoal is, but I’ll stay with you for now. But I’ll never betray Sasuke.”
Naruto gestured to the age on the ground. “Suit yourself. But in exge for c up what you’ve done here, you’ll o tribute to our mission.”
Jūgo hesitated briefly before nodding. “Deal.”
“Phew.” Suigetsu let out a long breath and joined Jūgo behind Naruto.
Orochimaru’s lips curled into a sly smile. “Suigetsu, my dear subordi wasn’t long ago that you were pointing your sword at me. Who would’ve thought we’d be w together so soon?”
Suigetsu rubbed his hands together with a nervous grin. “Of course! I’ve always believed Lord Orochimaru is my destined master!”
Naruto pced his mask ba, his voice steady. “Let’s keep moving. To Kumogakure!”
---
Their mission: infiltrate the vilge, locate the scroll detailing the secrets of the Lightning Release Chakra Mode, and take it.
Mission difficulty: Super S-Rank.
After this tense enter, Naruto’s group of six set off from the Land of Iron, heading toward Kumogakure!
Annouhe neter update is here! Additionally, the advanced chapters of this book are now avaible on Patreon, This el is expected to feature 15 books, with each book receiving an additional 3-5 early chapters updated weekly. It will always maintain a signifit lead along with extra side stories. Feel free to visit, and happy reading, everyone!
Scroll of Seals
