Chapter 48: Konoha's Ultimate Duo

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto

"Hmm…."- Bijuu

Chapter 48:

Konoha's Ultimate Duo

It wasn't everyday that one got to say that he was walking towards a battle to the death. Then again, Naruto knew that, in his life, nothing was close to being normal. The blond didn't know if he had been cursed at birth or what. But such was his life. An exciting life.

Next to him, Sasuke wasn't sharing his thoughts as he stared at the barren valley below them. They were both still wearing their black cloaks in order to shield themselves from the rain. But the never ending wet weather wasn't their concern. No. The two genin had more pressing matters to attend to than to worry about the rain.

And those matters were already standing on the other side of the valley with one man standing in front of them. If anything, Naruto was surprised that the man had even agreed to meet them. The blond had thought that they would have needed to do something flashy in order to get the man's attention. Then again, if Sasuke's theory was right, then the blond already knew why this was.

Hanzo didn't say anything as he watched the two boys walking closer towards him and his men. He had brought an entire battalion with him. They were his personal men whom he brought along in situations like this one. But Hanzo wasn't buying any of this. There was no way that the two brats in front of him were responsible for the small Konoha unit that had trespassed into his country. If anything, Hanzo had been expecting the Sandaime Hokage's student to show up after he had his men present themselves to them. After about an entire of week of keeping taps on them, of course. That was the sort of man Hanzo was. Careful. Crafty. And a planner. He hadn't gotten to where he was today by being reckless. At the very least, the masked man's information had been truthful. But Hanzo wasn't about to believe that he could trust him either. If anything, he was still trying to understand what the masked man would accomplish out of this. But for now, he would have to take care of this issue in front of him.

"You seem surprised," Naruto said, speaking first as he and Sasuke stopped in front of Hanzo several feet away.

Hanzo grunted. "That's because I don't appreciate being taken for a fool."

Naruto and Sasuke glanced at one another before turning their attention back to Hanzo. "What makes you think that?" Naruto asked with a small smile.

Hanzo grunted again as he pointed at them. "I don't want to escalate things any further. But if your superior doesn't show himself, then Konoha will find itself with two dead genin here."

It was a bluff, of course. Hanzo wasn't stupid enough to cause a ruckus with Konoha. At least, not yet. He had no idea how the other nations would react if a war did break out between his village and Konoha. Iwa might join them, but then Suna would most surely join Konoha's side. And from what he had last heard, both Kumo and Kiri were in no mood to take part in another war. Their losses had been that great from the last war. But somewhere in the back of his mind, Hanzo found it amusing that not long ago he would be greeting Konoha with open arms instead of thinking of the many ways that he could send them running back and out of his land. Then again, that had been when he was still a young naive man with a different outlook in life. Having lived through the last past two wars and other smaller conflicts with the surrounding smaller nations had changed that. But now wasn't the time to dwell on the past.

"Ah, you must be talking about Ero-sennin then," Naruto said as he scratched his cheek. "While it's true that he holds a higher rank than us for now, he's not exactly our superior either. We're here now because of us two. That's why we're here to talk to you."

Hanzo raised an eyebrow. "Are you telling me that you came to this country in order to meet me?"

"Not entirely," Naruto replied. "But it was a major reason too. Although we never would have thought that you would catch word of us before we did anything. It's a bit embarrassing really."

Hanzo's men tensed, already preparing themselves for a battle. To them, it sounded like Konoha was trying to deal with their leader for whatever reason.

But Hanzo remained unaffected as he continued to stare at the two boys in front of him. This caused Sasuke to smirk. Here, before him, was one of the most powerful shinobi from day's past. And Hanzo was certainly living up to this reputation. It was exciting to say the least.

Hanzo closed his eyes as he h'mphed. "Is that so? Then tell me, boy, what exactly is it that you want to talk to me about? If you're willing to put your lives in danger for it, then I'm sure it must be important."

"But it is," Sasuke responded, jumping in. "We already know of the situation that your country finds herself in. Your homes are used for the wars that the grand nations take part in. And you're left with nothing in return after everything is set and done. I'm sure that you and your people must be frustrated by this, no?"

Hanzo stared at Sasuke with an unreadable look. "What's your point? If you're only here to rail me with such stories, then-"

"It's more important than that," Naruto interrupted with a shake of his head. "We're here to present you with a solution, of course. A solution that will end the suffering of this country and your people."

Hanzo was silent for a few moments at hearing this before he chuckled. "Believe me, this isn't the first time I've heard such words before. Although it is the first time I'm hearing this from two brats. But tell me, how exactly is it that you're planning on accomplish this?"

"That's simple," Sasuke said as he shrugged. "By joining all the villages together into one coherent unit. Except that each village will retain their individuality. You could call it a permanent alliance."

Hanzo stared at the two boys in silence, trying to make sense of what he was hearing. This meeting was not going the way that he had been expecting. If anything, he didn't really know how to react here. He didn't even know how to treat these brats as. Enemies. Fools. It was all a mess for him. After all, he had been expecting to meet the jonin instead of genin. But Hanzo was already realizing that thinking of these brats as mere genin wasn't a smart strategy for him. It was already becoming apparent to him through the way that they were carrying themselves. But just like with everything else, he didn't exactly know how to process all of this information.

But all of that went down the drain when an entire squad from Konoha appeared on the ridge above them, kunai and shuriken out in their hands.

Both groups looked up in a mixture of shock, Hanzo being the first one to come out of his as he roared out, "Treachery!"

Before Naruto and Sasuke could explain the situation, Hanzo was covered in a puff of smoke as his men split up into two groups. The first group took defensive positions around him while the second charged up towards the Konoha squadron.

"Oi, oi. This wasn't part of the plan! When did your perverted teacher do this!?"

'That's because he didn't do anything,' Naruto replied in return as he and Sasuke jumped back several feet.

"You two brats almost had me there," Hanzo said from within the smoke. A few moments later, the smoke cleared to reveal the Ame leader standing on top of his summon, the powerful salamander. The remainder of his men were in front of him, their weapons drawn. A kusarigama coated with poison also found itself in Hanzo's hands, said man gazing down at the two Konoha shinobi in front of him.

Sasuke glanced at Naruto who had closed his eyes. Understanding what his blond friend was trying to do, the Uchiha charged towards Hanzo's men. Said group was surprised for a second before they got their bearings. It didn't matter if the enemy was a child or an adult. He was still the enemy.

Sasuke h'mphed before he disappeared from their line of sight. Hanzo's men were shocked at the boy's speed, not having expecting it. And it was also the cause of their demise as the Uchiha reappeared in the middle of their group, lightning engulfing his entire body. He sent the powerful currents out from his body, shooting them towards the unsuspecting Ame shinobi.

Hanzo simply watched in slight surprise as his men were easily beaten by the boy from Konoha. It wasn't that his men were unbeatable. But for someone that age to do it with such ease…..well, Hanzo was really starting to realize that these weren't ordinary brats.

A few feet back, Naruto opened his eyes again, golden irises replacing his usual blue ones.

Hanzo narrowed his eyes, sensing something different with the blond now as said boy walked up to stand next to Sasuke again. Tilting his head back, Hanzo saw how his remaining men were still fighting the other Konoha shinobi.

"I must say that this is quite the trap that you set up for me," Hanzo stated as he turned to look back at the two boys. "Although I fail to see what Konoha will gain from any of this. I would have thought your village wouldn't want another world war after the last one. After all, even your precious Nidaime fell to it."

"This isn't our trap," Naruto said in return while shaking his head. "C'mon, you can't be so gullible to believe that the guy who told you about us wouldn't have any other motives for doing such a thing. That would be your specialty, right?"

Hanzo was silent at hearing this. It wasn't because he didn't know what to say. But because he was considering his options. At this point, he couldn't deny that the blond brat did have a point. All of this was far too convenient. At the same time, however…..

"Can you sense them?"

Naruto nodded, causing Sasuke to smirk. Their hunch had been true all along, after all. Now they just had to deal with this in front of them.

"Regardless of the reasons, I can't let this act of aggression go unpunished," Hanzo stated, already knowing that it was a complete lie. On the other hand, these two boys had caught his attention. And just like a child, he couldn't let things end until his curiosity was quelled. That was the whole motive behind this turn of events.

Naruto and Sasuke shared a look, already knowing this. While they were still worried about Jiraiya and the others, they had all agreed to this plan. And they were going to stick to it.

Biting their individual thumbs hard enough to draw out blood, the two looked up at Hanzo who was now staring at them intently with a look that could only be described as glee.

"We'll be happy to be oblige to you!"

"Kuchiyose no jutsu!"

"Kuchiyose no jutsu!"

Tobi h'mphed to himself as he appeared inside Jiraiya's safe house. It had already been days since Sasori and Fuka's failed attempt at capturing Nagato. But Tobi wasn't one to give up so easily. Especially since manipulating Hanzo for his own gain had proven to be far too simple. Not to mention that both Naruto and Sasuke had fallen for his trap as well. Even now, Tobi was certain that a horde of White Zetsu clones disguised as Konoha shinobi were on the verge of attacking the meeting between the two sides. It would no doubt result in a physical confrontation between the two sides, which would give him the perfect diversion to sneak in and capture Nagato himself. The masked Uchiha wasn't worried about Jiraiya or the other Uzumaki. Neither had the speed required to block his Kamui. And so far, everything was going exactly as planned.

Until now.

Tobi narrowed his eye from behind his mask when he saw how Jiraiya and the other Uzumaki were already waiting there, no doubt for him. All the furniture had been moved out as well. There was no sign of Nagato and the other two brats either. It only made Tobi realize that they had been waiting for him all along.

"So, you're the bastard that causes so much trouble in the future," Jiraiya said with a smirk. "We've been waiting for you, Obito."

Tobi wasn't surprised that the man knew his real name. No doubt both Naruto and Sasuke had already informed him about his existence. But there was one thing that did catch him off guard, though.

"It seems that you were already aware of my intentions from the start," Tobi said as he tilted his head to the side. "Which makes me wonder why you two are the ones here. Do you really think that you can hope to stop me?"

Jiraiya shrugged as he pulled out a regular kunai from his pouch. "Who knows? But I do hope that you don't plan on running away from us now. I can understand why you did last time, why with both Naruto and Sasuke being there. But you already know that we don't have their skills."

Kaito didn't say a word as he unsheathed his katana from behind him.

As for Tobi, he simply looked at the two shinobi in front of him, deep in thought. In all honesty, he was at a loss. He had no idea how they had been able to figure out his plan so quickly. Nor did he know what they were trying to accomplish by putting him up against these two. It didn't make any sense. Even without his Kamui, he was more than a match for Jiraiya, especially since the man didn't have his precious senjutsu to rely on. One simple Uzumaki jonin didn't tip the odds in the man's favor either. He had also made sure that the Naruto who had gone to meet with Hanzo was the real one, not a simple shadow clone. So then what?

He wasn't able to dwell on it, however, as Kaito charged at him without a word. Tobi h'mphed again as he let the Uzumaki pass right through him without moving a muscle.

Both Kaito and Jiraiya narrowed their eyes at seeing this. This was the first time that they were seeing Obito's jutsu firsthand. And just like Naruto and Sasuke had told them, it really did make the man seem like he was some sort of ghost and untouchable. But they had already been told of the jutsu's weaknesses too.

Tobi went in for the counterattack in an instant, twisting his body around as he aimed to deliver a punch to Kaito's exposed back. Or would have if Jiraiya didn't suddenly appear behind him as well. But acting quickly, Tobi let the man pass through him as well, just like with Kaito. This made both jonin jump back in order to put some distance between them and Tobi.

"It seems that Naruto and Sasuke told you all about my jutsu as well," Tobi commented with a chuckle. "But with your skills, it doesn't change anything. While I don't know what you're trying to prove, I can't let this chance go to waste either. You two will die here today."

Jiraiya grinned. "Oi, oi. Don't be selling us short so soon, you brat. I'll be showing you the strength of the gallant Jiraiya here today!"

"I also can't let you ridicule the prowess of the Uzumaki," Kaito said, adding his two cents as he pointed his katana at Tobi. "It doesn't matter who you are. If it means saving the future, we'll stop you here and now."

Tobi sighed. "Hope. No matter the time, he always manages to infest those around him with it. But you will soon realize that all your efforts are meaningless."

"No effort is ever meaningless," Jiraiya retorted before throwing the kunai straight towards Tobi's head.

Said masked man didn't respond as the kunai went right past him.

"Katon: Gokakyu no jutsu!"

"Pointless," Tobi stated as the fireball engulfed him.

Jiraiya t'ched when he saw the Uchiha walking through the flames like they were nothing. And thanks to that jutsu of his, they pretty much were useless.

Bringing his hands together, Tobi focused his chakra towards his right Mangekyo sharingan.

Both Jiraiya and Kaito were forced to retreat out of the house as a barrage of large Fuma shuriken came flying towards them, courtesy of Tobi himself.

Kaito frowned as he and Jiraiya knelt outside of the house, the rain pouring around them. "That jutsu of his really is a pain in the ass."

Nodding in agreement, Jiraiya said, "Yes. But he hasn't tried to absorbed us into his dimension yet. Probably because he's aware that we already know of what his jutsu can do. So he's being more cautious. That will give us the window of opportunity that we're looking for. You remember the plan, right?"

"Of course."

"Good. Then that's what we will try next."

"I don't know what your plan is, but it won't work."

Both men's eyes widened as Tobi appeared behind them, a kunai in hand. Kaito acted immediately as he blocked the kunai with his katana. Seeing his chance, Jiraiya went in with a low kick. But like before, he was too late as his kick passed right through Tobi's body. Tobi then sent a powerful kick of his own that had Jiraiya rolling back.

Seeing this, Kaito dived right in with a punch seeing as his katana was already blocked. But his attack had no effect as well as his fist and his whole body dived straight through the Uchiha like nothing.

The Uzumaki gritted his teeth as he rolled back up to his feet, looking at the Uchiha's back with narrowed eyes. At this rate, they were only wasting their energy. In other words, their planned strategy was the only way to go.

Tobi sighed as he looked at Jiraiya who was in the process of standing up. "You two are sneaky like cockroaches, I'll give you that. But in that case, I only have to wait until you two tire yourselves out before I make my move. And I can be very patient."

Jiraiya chuckled. "Don't worry. I guarantee you: this move will be the last."

Tobi narrowed his one visible eye, not understanding what Jiraiya was getting at. But he didn't have to dwell on it for too much as the man charged at him, another kunai in hand. Keeping Kaito in mind, Tobi readied himself as the white haired man got closer to him. But his shinobi instincts quickly went off, making him tilt his head back and catching sight of Kaito's katana heading straight for him. Kaito himself had his arm stretched out, leaving no mystery that he had been the one to throw the katana. Following his example, Jiraiya threw his kunai straight for Tobi as well.

This only made the Akatsuki member h'mph, not understanding their fruitless actions. After all, it didn't matter how many weapons they threw at him. He could dodge them all. Something that was proven true as both the katana and kunai passed right through him like nothing. Expecting Jiraiya to also dodge, Tobi's eye widened in shock when he saw Kaito's katana pierce the man's shoulder. A second later, Jiraiya was down on the ground, the katana embedded in his shoulder. This made Tobi freeze, wondering what had just happened. In the end, this proved to be fatal for him.

Realizing it a second too late, Tobi only managed to catch a yellow flash behind him.

"Rasengan!"

Tobi felt his whole body burn as he was hit by the same jutsu for the second time in his life. He was sent down to the ground face first, forming a small crater around him.

On the ground in front of him, Jiraiya smirked despite having a sword still impaled in his shoulder. From his spot, Kaito also had a small smirk. And on top of Tobi, it was none other than Naruto himself who had a small grin plastered on his face. Or to be more precise, it was a shadow clone of the blond. But the clone's eyes were instantly drawn to Tobi's back where he had just hit the man with one of his signature jutsu. It was a Hiraishin formula.

But the clone didn't have the time to look at it any further as Tobi jumped out from under him and onto the ground off to the side, holding his shoulder as he panted.

He growled as he looked at the shadow clone who was also holding the kunai that Jiraiya had thrown a few moments earlier.

Realizing what had happened, Tobi said, "To think that I was hit by the same strategy yet again…you really have turned into your father, Naruto."

The clone frowned. "No. My father was his own person. I'm Naruto. It's that simple."

Jiraiya chuckled as he removed Kaito's katana from his shoulder while said Uzumaki walked up to stand next to the clone.

Tobi didn't respond as he took his situation in. In short, the tide had been turned against him. But he hadn't expected the Hiraishin to be used again here. With Jiraiya's help, the blond had stored a shadow clone into a regular kunai with the Hiraishin seal to mix. Even though that had been surprising in of itself, Tobi had also been focused by Kaito's katana and how Jiraiya had also let himself be hit by it. In the end, though, it had all served as distractions for the real purpose of the attack. And he had fallen for it.

It was time for a retreat.

But as if reading his mind, the clone shook his head. "You don't think this is over, do you?"

Not knowing what he meant, Tobi felt a powerful punch at his abdomen. Looking down, the masked Uchiha was shocked to the core when he saw another clone in front of him. But how!? Next to the second clone was also Miyuki who the clone had transported from her dimension. Grinning, the woman grabbed a hold of Tobi's shoulders in an instant, bringing both Tobi and the second clone with her back into her dimension.

"It seems like everything worked exactly as planned," Jiraiya said after a few moments. Walking up to the clone and Kaito, the man handed the older Uzumaki his katana back who took it with ease.

The clone simply nodded. Even though he had been planning on placing a Hiraishin seal of his own, the clone was still surprised that one had already been put there. Of course, he could only think of one reason for that being the case. And the implications that came along with it were surprising.

But for now, this part of the plan was done.

Hanzo smirked as he saw what appeared from the clouds of smoke. If anything, this was turning out to be more surprising and exciting than he had first thought.

Naruto had his arms crossed in front of him as he stood on top of none other than Gamabunta himself. The chief toad had his infamous pipe in hand, taking the situation in.

Next to them, Sasuke had a hand on his hips as he stood on top of Manda, the giant snake keeping his eyes locked on towards Hanzo and his salamander summoning.

"I never expected you to first summon me in this situation, brat," Gamabunta said before glancing at Manda. "Especially to fight alongside this guy."

"Get in line," Manda retorted. "I'm not exactly fond of this either. But orders are orders."

Gamabunta looked up at Sasuke. "What the hell did you do to make this cold blooded bastard so obedient? I would like to try it myself."

"Why you-"

"You can save your banter for later," Sasuke cut in, activating his sharingan. "We have a battle to win."

Manda h'mphed. "That's something that we can both agree on."

Gamabunta smirked. "Right."

Naruto chuckled. "Well, isn't that nice? We're all friends here! So let's fight for victory!"

The others all sighed at the blond's enthusiasm but didn't comment. They did have to win here, after all.

Hanzo h'mphed before looking down at his summoning. Getting the message, the salamander, whose name was Ibuse, opened his mouth.

This alerted both Naruto and Sasuke along with their respective summonings.

Narrowing his eyes, Gamabunta said, "Hold on tight, brat. We're about to take off." Naruto simply nodded to that.

Manda didn't comment.

A powerful burst of purple colored poison mist shot straight out from Ibuse's mouth and towards Naruto and Sasuke.

Having expected this, Gamabunta shot straight to the air, finding the skies to be a lot safer than the ground right about now.

Manda on the other hand slithered back from the poisonous mist at an incredible speed, Sasuke clinging to his head via his chakra. The Uchiha looked back to see Hanzo staring at him with a look of anticipation.

'So, he's not entirely an old fossil, after all.' Sasuke smirked at the thought.

Up in the air, Gamabunta pulled out his infamous tanto as he screamed out, "Oi, brat. Get your jutsu ready. We're heading straight through that mist!"

Understanding what the toad wanted, Naruto brought his hands together, gathering as much chakra as he could into his next jutsu.

Sensing this, Hanzo looked up in slight surprise. Ibuse's poison was already around them, serving as a shield from anyone that tried to counterattack them. Ibuse was immune to the poison as he was the one to produce it. And his mask served as a filter to protect him from the poison.

And yet, this blond brat was thinking of attacking him head on.

'Interesting…..'

"Futon: Daitoppa!"

Hanzo was treated to a surprising sight of his summoning's poison being pushed aside with ease by the simple wind style jutsu. The powerful chakra behind it was the one to make it such a powerful jutsu at the moment.

Coming out of his thoughts, Hanzo brought his kusarigama blade forward just as Naruto came in flying towards him, having had jumped from Gamabunta's head. Naruto's Hiraishin kunai clashed with Hanzo's weapon. Less than a second later, Ibuse cried out in pain, having been pierced in the shoulder area by Gamabunta himself.

"It seems that I have underestimated you too much," Hanzo admitted as he tried to push the blond back. But Naruto held his ground.

It didn't remain that way for too long, though, as Manda came into the picture. The powerful snake summoning wrapped himself tightly around Ibuse's body, bringing the powerful salamander down to the ground.

Hanzo jumped up into the air just as this happened but was forced to duck down in midair as Sasuke came flying up at him with a Chidori in hand.

'I should watch out for that jutsu,' Hanzo thought to himself as he landed a distance away from his fallen summon. Both Naruto and Sasuke landed in front of him, a matching grin on their faces.

"It seems that we've pushed you back," Naruto said.

Hanzo merely h'mphed, bringing his hands down to the ground. Both Naruto and Sasuke tensed up, wondering if the man was going to try and summon another salamander.

But instead, it was a more troublesome situation as a giant horde of explosive tags shot out from the ground and onto both Naruto and Sasuke, wrapping themselves around their legs.

"Katon: Kibaku Enjin!"

Sasuke t'ched while Naruto narrowed his eyes, a gigantic explosion overtaking them a moment later.

"You didn't think that I would come out here unprepared, did you?" Hanzo said in a chiding tone as he stood back up, looking at the still raging flames in front of him.

'I guess they weren't so special, after all,' he thought to himself. Just as he was about to turn around, though, a giant figure shot out from the smoke and flames, making Hanzo narrow his eyes.

Said figure was none other than Sasuke's Susanoo in its stage two form with its powerful bow and arrow. Inside the Susanoo were both Naruto and Sasuke, the latter having had used the Susanoo in order to shield both himself and Naruto from the powerful jutsu.

Naruto scratched his head as he looked at Hanzo. "Well, I guess we were the ones underestimating you back there." And that was an understatement. If Sasuke hadn't acted as fast as he had, that last attack would have caused them both major damage. Hanzo wasn't the leader of Ame for nothing, that was for sure. Even without his summoning, he was more than a powerful match for them.

But even though Hanzo wasn't a pushover, he was no match for them in the end, especially since they were together.

It was something that Hanzo was starting to realize as he stared at Sasuke's imposing Susanoo. It was the first time that he had seen such a thing.

Hanzo was more of an old style shinobi. He prioritized in traps and poison. In many ways, it was specializing in such skills that had gotten him to the top in Ame. But he wasn't one for all those fancy jutsu that many shinobi tried to achieve in their lives. What was the point? One dose of poison and the battle was his. It was through his cunning that had gotten him his well deserved S-rank name.

But in face of such a powerful jutsu, Hanzo realized that none of his tricks were going to be able to penetrate it. And looking back, the man saw how Ibuse was still being held down by both of the brats' summonings.

Sighing, Hanzo turned his attention back to the two in front of him. "You two…what are your names?"

Naruto chuckled as he placed a hand on Sasuke's shoulder. Understanding, the Uchiha deactivated his Susanoo.

"Uzumaki Naruto."

"Uchiha Sasuke."

Making sure to memorize them, Hanzo then said, "It does seem that it will be fruitless to continue. Even I know when to not put my pride over my life. It is your win." The duo was too much for him, as surprising as that was. He could already see it. "Konoha's Ultimate Duo" had a nice ring to it.

Naruto smiled. "Glad to hear it. I guess you will finally hear what we have to say?"

Hanzo didn't reply instantly. Instead, he looked up to where the rest of his men were fighting against the other Konoha shinobi. The fight was almost done, with his men having the upper hand. But even after observing for just a few moments, Hanzo could tell that something wasn't right.

Looking back towards Naruto, Hanzo stated, "Tell me what is going on here."

Tobi gritted his teeth in frustration as he stared at the shadow clone in front of him. But if he were honest here, he would have to say that he was much more surprised with what the unknown woman had done. It was a mirror of his own jutsu. But he would have to file that information for later. For now, he needed to find a way out of here.

"You can't escape this place," the clone stated. "Trust me. I've tried before."

Looking around, Tobi realized that this dimension was nothing like his. It was pitch black and empty. But such details soon left him as he realized that he was at his enemy's mercy for the moment.

Standing back up, Tobi didn't say anything as he looked at the clone. There were so many unknowns. If he used his Kamui, could he get out of here? Because that would solve the whole situation. But the problem was that he had no idea if it would work or not. And then there were the clone's words…but it could be a bluff.

'Ugh, this is becoming more and more annoying.'

Not taking notice of Tobi's plight, the clone began to circle him. "So. Who else have you recruited so far?"

"H'mph. Do you really think I'm going to tell you anything? Don't be so naive."

The clone sighed. "And here I thought you would make this easy…."

Tobi chuckled. "Nothing is ever easy. Haven't you learned that already? No matter how simple you want things to be, reality always has other plans in store for you. Our lives are perfect examples of that. Look at where we are right now. Can you really call this simple?"

The clone shook his head. "I guess the boss was wrong. You still don't plan on changing."

Tobi scoffed. "Not everyone can believe in the same fairy tales that you do, Naruto."

The clone raised an eyebrow. "That's far fetched, don't you think? What you're planning is nothing but a fairy tale."

Tobi chuckled. "Yes. But it's doable. And I don't try to hide it. Yours, though…it can never come to pass. Hasn't this time period told you that by now? Your own family was slaughtered for simply defending themselves. Do you really find it in yourself to forgive people like that?"

The clone was silent for a few moments. Miyuki looked at him with a worried gaze. But the clone didn't let that deter him.

"I can. Just like I already have. I wouldn't be standing before you right now if I hadn't."

Tobi sighed. "You're still such a child. You never learn. Which is why you will fail."

The clone shook his head. "And you still think that escaping reality to your dream world will bring people true happiness. Which is why you will fail. Life isn't something that is meant to be perfect. People will stumble and mess up. That's just a fact. No one is perfect, after all. But if you think that stumbling is reason enough to turn your back on the real world, then you will only find yourself with an empty and shallow truth. In other words, a lie. Because that's what your Infinite Tsukuyomi is. You're also wrong about something else." The clone spread out his arms with a grin. "I don't see any of this as an inconvenience. I see it as a blessing. I now have a chance to fix all the wrongs that have occurred even before my time. One of which is what happened to you. Although you fail to see that yourself."

"What's the purpose?" Tobi asked with a shrug. "It doesn't change what happened to me. It doesn't change that Rin has already died. It doesn't change all the other darkness in the shinobi world. Unlike you, I don't scrape over the cracks. The world I'm trying to build will overcome all of that. That is my belief."

The clone sighed. "I guess there's no meaning in talking anymore, is there?"

"Not for you. But we have much to say."

Naruto, Miyuki, and Tobi all looked to the side to see a portal opening up in the dark dimension.

Miyuki narrowed her eyes, already knowing the only person that could be responsible for this.

And true to her belief, the ones to come out of the portal were none other than Wrath and Lust, both looking at Naruto in amusement.

The clone groaned. "Not you guys again. The boss really should have put you guys out for good last time."

Lust had a mocking look of sadness on her face. "Oh, don't be like that, Asura-kun. I quite enjoyed our last meeting. It's been such a long time since a man was so…hard on me."

The clone shuddered as he took a step back. "I can see where you get your name from all right."

Wrath rolled her eyes. "Take it easy, sister. We have a mission. Besides, it's only a clone. It won't last long."

Lust pouted. "A pity."

While Tobi was silent as he observed all of this, Miyuki frowned. "Do you really think that I will let you get away so easy?"

Wrath looked at her. "No, we don't. But you don't get a choice in this. Don't forget that it was only through Hagoromo that you were able to get the upper hand against my master in the past. But now that the geezer is finally gone, your jutsu doesn't stand a chance against his. A fake can never beat the original."

Miyuki growled, making Wrath smirk. The redhead knew that she had hit a nerve. But that was exactly what she had been looking for.

Lust on the other hand turned her attention to the masked Uchiha. "Uchiha Obito, I presume. If you want to get out of this mess alive, I suggest that you come with us this instant."

Taking the situation in, Tobi realized that his best bet was with these two unknown individuals.

But the Naruto clone and Miyuki weren't about to stand by and do nothing.

Lust was instantly on guard as Miyuki came charging at them while Naruto focused his attention on Tobi.

Bringing out a set of blades of bones, both Lust and Miyuki clashed with one another, one with a smirk and the other with gritted teeth.

Wrath on the other hand looked over at Tobi to see the masked Uchiha taking a step back away from the Naruto clone. Realizing why the man was hesitating, Wrath brought her hands down.

Sensing imminent danger, the clone jumped up as a pillar of sharp bone spikes shot out from under his feet. Seeing his chance, Tobi shot straight towards Wrath.

The clone frowned as he landed. Reaching for his kunai pouch, the clone fired a barrage of shuriken straight for Tobi's retreating form. On instinct, the Uchiha activated his Kamui. And to his surprise, the shuriken passed right through him.

Realizing that he had been cautious for nothing, Tobi t'ched to himself. But before he could teleport himself out of this mess, Wrath grabbed a hold of his shoulder while shaking her head.

"Oh, no you don't. You're the whole reason we're here. You're coming with us."

Before Tobi could object, he was sucked into another portal. Looking up, Wrath smirked to herself when she saw the clone coming down on her. But it was already too late.

The clone was too slow to react to a horde of bone spikes shooting out from Wrath's back, impaling him.

With a smirk, she said, "Relay that to the original, will you?"

But the clone simply went out with a poof.

Glad that it was only a shadow clone and not the original, Wrath turned her attention to Lust to see her sister still dueling with Miyuki, neither getting the upper hand on the other. And while Wrath would love nothing more than to take care of Miyuki right now, she also knew that it wouldn't be long before Naruto and Sasuke both found their ways in here. And then they would be in a real mess.

"Oi, let's get out of here already. Our mission is complete."

Looking at her sister, Lust merely nodded before pushing Miyuki back. Jumping back a second later, she rejoined Wrath, the two disappearing into another portal, leaving an annoyed Miyuki behind.

It had been a long day, after all.

Nagato looked at an annoyed Sasuke as they all sat around the main table in one of the other safe houses that Jiraiya had prepared for them. He, Yahiko, and Konan hadn't taken part in the last battle. And the boy understood why. At the moment, the enemy wasn't someone whom they could fight against. They were still too weak. It was something that still infuriated Yahiko. But Nagato knew that they would have a chance to take a more active role in whatever plans Jiraiya-sensei found himself in in the future. For now, though, they could only be bystanders.

It was for that reason that he didn't know why the Uchiha was so ticked off.

Next to him, Naruto was tapping his fingers on the table. On the far end, Kaito had his eyes closed with his arms crossed in front of him. The only one missing was Jiraiya. Miyuki was still in her dimension. But she had already informed them of what had happened. Not that there had been any need. The clone Naruto had left behind had told him everything.

And that was the reason why Sasuke was so annoyed right now. Not at Miyuki. But at Nori. The man was really going to be a huge pain in their ass until the end. In all of their planning, they had never imagined that Nori would get involved, though. At the very least, they had protected Nagato. And they now had Hanzo willing to listen to their plans. For now. But Sasuke still wanted to go and take care of Nori right this instant. It would at least take care of one of their headaches. It was only after Naruto had smacked him that the Uchiha had calmed down…..sort of. He still hadn't registered the need to smack Naruto back. It was only then that the Uchiha would be one hundred percent calm.

But right now they were still waiting for Jiraiya. The man had told them that he had received an urgent message, one that he needed to take care of instantly. But Naruto wasn't holding his breath. Knowing his teacher, it probably had something to do with women and peeping. Or his books. Or all three.

Unfortunately for the blond, his prediction didn't come true as Jiraiya walked into the living room, a serious look plastered on his face.

All the others turned their attention to him, wondering what had him so serious.

"Things have turned for the worst out there," Jiraiya began with a sigh as he sat down on the other end of the table.

"What's wrong, Ero-sennin?"

Not bothering to correct his blond pupil, Jiraiya looked at the gathered members.

"Iwa invaded the Land of Wind a few hours ago with Suna declaring war in retaliation."

Taking a small breath in, the man stated, "It's the start of the Third Shinobi War."

"I still fail to see what you plan to gain from this."

Nori looked down at Tobi from his throne with an amused look. "We all have our own agenda. But don't worry. I have no intention to get in your way. If anything, I hope to see your plan succeed. I'm even willing to give you a gift as a token of my good will. Not including getting you out of that mess you were in of course."

But Tobi wasn't so trusting. He had learned that from Madara. "Again, I don't see your intentions for doing such a thing."

Nori chuckled as he stood up. "As you, I have one enemy. I want to see his ultimate defeat at my feet. And I'm throwing my bet behind you to get that done."

Understanding began to shine in Tobi's Mangekyo sharingan eye. "Is that so? Then how exactly is it that you plan on helping to further Akatsuki's goals?"

Nori merely smirked as two shadows appeared next to him.

Off on the side, the female figure from before watched all of this in silence, knowing that the future for Naruto and his dream was going to get a lot tougher from now on.