348. Shocking Revelation

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Somewhere In a secret hideout in the Land of Ancestors.

Swirl…

A swirling portal opens up. A yellow one-eye masked figure clad in black robes with a red cloud pattern walks out of it.

"How are the preparations?"

Swoosh… swoosh…

Multiple origami papers swarm the area. The papers coalesce together to form Konan.

"Pain is waiting inside for you!"

Konan turns around and enters the room. Tobi follows her.

Inside the room, Pain is sitting on a black rod throne with four other pains standing beside him.

"The preparations are complete. After three years of exploration, I retrieved what you asked."

Pain withdraws a scroll from his robe and tosses it toward Tobi.

Tobi grabs the scroll and glances at it.

"This should be enough to ensure our victory in the upcoming war. However, we still need time to prepare for war."

"How is the cooperation with Kabuto?" Pain asks him.

"Are you sure about the co-operation with that snake? What if he backstabs us, just like Master?" Konan voices her concern.

"That won't happen! I already have his weakness in my hands." A scroll appears in Tobi's hands.

"This is the thing that Kabuto desires the most. Fortunately, it happens to be in my hands. If he wants it, then he must have to work for me." Tobi closes his fist, and the scroll disappears.

"Also, it's about time for me to formally introduce myself to the rest of the Akatsuki members. Gone are the days when I was known as Tobi!" Tobi's demeanor changes as he speaks.

"Izuna Uchiha was a throne, stuck in the path of Akatsuki. Now, it has been two years since he disappeared from this world. So, after ample preparations, we can finally make a move on Konoha to capture the remaining One-tail and Nine-tails."

Tobi takes out two magatama beads and one circular glass bead from his pocket. He passes them to Pain.

"Even without Izuna Uchiha, Konoha still has multiple powerful shinobis within it. Sakumo Hatake, Tsunade Senju, Minato Namikaze, Fugaku Uchiha, Yagami Uchiha, Akira Uchiha, Kakashi Hatake, Might Guy…" Tobi continues to count the elite shinobis of Konoha.

"… and finally, your sensei Jiraiya." Konan's expression flinches slightly at the mention of Jiraiya.

Even Tobi himself is surprised by the sheer number of powerful shinobis present in Konoha.

'Current Konoha is a force to be reckoned with. Fortunately, I was able to get my hands on that thing or else…' He assures himself.

"Fighting a head-on battle against Konoha will be a mistake even with your Rinnegan." Tobi analyzes the current strength of Konoha.

"Summon the rest of the members to initiate our plan."

Pain taps the ring on his finger.

Half an hour later,

The projection of every Akatsuki member gathers inside the secret hideout.

"It has been a while since I last saw your face." Kakuzu glares into Pain's eyes.

"Hey man! I thought you were dead. Too bad, you would have made a great offering to Lord Jashin." Hidan clicks his tongue.

"I am not here to listen to the blabbering of a walking antique zombie and a lunatic cultist of a shady God. If there is nothing else, I will return." Sasori opens his mouth and mocks Hidan and Kakuzu.

"Looks like someone is itching to meet the death God." Kakuzu clenches his fist in anger.

"His soul will be a sacrifice to my Lord Jashin, not some death God!" Hidan readies his scythe.

Fufu…

Deidara chuckles slightly.

"Sasori my man! Looks like they have already planned a funeral and afterlife home for you."

"Shut up!" Sasori glares at him.

"Enough!"

Pain who has his eyes closed the entire time opens them and speaks, inducing fear in every Akatsuki member present.

"I haven't summoned you here for the useless blabbering." Pain glares at every member of Akatsuki.

"Before we begin, I have someone to introduce." Pain turns to a dark corner as a figure walks out of it.

The Akatsuki members recognize him.

"Tobi?!"

They are surprised to see Tobi.

"Before we begin, let me re-introduce myself…"

"… so, except for Fushin and Kisame who will attack the Eight-Tails, the rest will attack Konoha with me. Kabuto will also provide some backup to both teams. So, let's meet outside the Land of Fire in the next seven days." Pain concludes the meeting.

Swoosh… swoosh…

One by one, the projection of every Akatsuki member disappears from the room.

Tobi also retreats with Zetsu to meet with Kabuto to finalize their plan. Only Konan and Pain are left in the room.

"After removing the only obstacle in our path, the 'Eye of the Moon Plan' will finally come to fruition. I will bring peace to this forsaken world." Pain slowly walks out of the hideout.

"Nagato!" Konan has a hesitant expression on her face.

"Will this plan really bring peace to the world? Wouldn't we end up sacrificing hundred and thousands of people if a war starts now?" Konan clenches her fists as she murmurs.

"This is not what Yahiko envisioned Akatsuki to be… a terrorist organization responsible for mass murder." She questions Nagato's decision again as she recalls Izuna's words from the past.

"These hundred and thousands of people are the necessary sacrifice to propagate a new future. These heartless people… never even once… spared a glance when their nation attacked other nations for resources. We had to survive another day as they enjoyed their life. They brutally crushed our peaceful attempts to rise. They never showed mercy to us. So, why should we reciprocate? Konan… you can't change my mind."

Deva Path leaves the place with other paths.

Sigh…

Konan sighs helplessly.

"Nagato… you have changed… you have changed a lot. Your power has corrupted your mind. But I will still stand with you and see this to the end, for that is my promise to Yahiko." Konan closes her eyes as tears fall from them.

"Yahiko…"

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Somewhere in a forest outside the Land of Rice Paddies,

A figure in a black cloak is sitting on a rock. A white snake slithers around the figure. Kabuto gently pats the snake.

Swirl…

Tobi walks out of a swirling portal.

"I am not late, am I?"

"No! You are just on time." Kabuto raises his head and turns to Tobi.

"Have you brought it?" Kabuto has an eager expression on his face.

Swoosh…

Tobi summons a storage scroll.

"It will depend on your contribution." He tosses the scroll to Kabuto. Kabuto grabs the scroll and checks its content. His expression turns ugly.

"This is not what you promised?" A scary expression appears on Kabuto's face.

"You have yet to make any noteworthy contribution. So, this is all I can spare for now." Tobi calmly crosses his hands in front of his chest as he plays Kabuto on his fingertips.

"You!" Rage appears in Kabuto's eyes. However, it soon disappears, and a calm expression is on his face.

Kabuto smirks and speaks in a chilly tone.

"Contribution, it is!?"

Swish… swish…

He makes some quick hand signs and slams his palm on the ground.

"Edo Tensei!"

Poof… Poof…

Eight wooden coffins pop out of the ground. One of the coffins slightly differs from the rest.

BANG… BANG…

One by one, the lid of the six coffins falls to the ground.

"How is it for contribution?" Tobi's expression changes drastically as he stares at the summons.

"YOU?!" His eyes narrow as he stares at the summons in the coffin.

Kuku…

"I have perfected the technique which Orochimaru-sama failed to. With my modifications, each of these shinobis retained their peak strength… no, they are beyond their peak strength since they don't feel pain, hunger, and exhaustion. They can't die by normal means and will never run out of chakra."

Kabuto tickles the chin of the white snake wrapped around his body.

Hmm…

Tobi's expression turns normal.

"This should be more than enough. Once the war is over, I will give everything to you. That's the term of our agreement."

"NO!" Kabuto shakes his head.

"We need to slightly change the terms."

BANG…

The lid of the final two coffins falls to the ground.

"IMPOSSIBLE!"

For the first time, Tobi loses his calm as he glares at the two figures in the coffin. Tobi is shaken to his core as Kabuto calmly walks towards him.

"You know… while researching, I came across a shocking revelation. The rest was quite easy to figure out. I connected a few dots and…"

Kuku…

Kabuto smiles ominously as he mutters.

"Isn't that right, Mr. Obito Uchiha?"