"Where should I go next?"

  Uchiha Itachi, a subject of the Land of Fire, found himself in the bordernds of the Land of Birds. He had fled relentlessly and ended up here, unable to run any farther. He chose to sit down on the barren Desert, seeking temporary refuge to train.

  According to his original pn, all he had to do now was wait for the storm to pass. Then, either Shisui or Sasuke would deal with him. That was enough. In this way, the Uchiha cn's sacrifice would not be in vain. At least the bloodline would continue, preventing the entire cn from being wiped out like the Senju.

  "So, what's next? A life of exile in various countries?" Itachi muttered to himself, lifting a handful of murky water from a nearby stream. After taking a sip, he steeled himself, ready to move forward. No matter where he went, his life was now on a countdown.

  "Since you don't have a specific destination, why not come and help me?"

  The voice—familiar, like a specter from his past—echoed suddenly from behind him, sending a chill through his spine. It was the voice of the person he had been chasing in his dreams for so many years.

  "Hm?!"

  Itachi's expression shifted instantly. His eyes, on reflex, activated the Mangekyō Sharingan as he spun around, his body tensing for combat.

  Boom!

  An attack unched, simir to the one Tatsuya had used before, but with far less power than the bck fmes that whizzed toward the source of the voice. The strike was fast, relentless, and aimed straight at the person behind him.

  However, in the face of the eternal fmes of Amaterasu, the figure did not flinch. The individual remained motionless as the fmes hit. But instead of screaming or even moving, the Amaterasu fmes began to shrink, flickering out of existence.

  What? Amaterasu is useless?

  No...

  It was sucked into a different dimension.

  "Is this your new ability, something you have unlocked upon awakening your mangekyo? It's a pity, though, it doesn't work on me." Obito spoke with Uchiha Madara's tone, his voice calm and steady.

  Uchiha Itachi wiped the blood and tears from his right eye, his anger building. He drew his sword and charged toward his opponent.

  Although it made little sense to pursue the fight now, facing this true sinner who had pushed the Uchiha cn into the abyss, Itachi felt a personal need to act.

  With a fierce resolve, he swore to rid the world of this man, even if it meant putting aside logic.

  Suddenly, a sky-blue skeletal armor materialized from Obito's body, swiftly blocking Itachi's ninja sword.

  "Susanoo."

  In the next instant, a skeletal arm shot out, grabbing Itachi with an iron grip.

  "Can you calm down now, Uchiha Itachi?" Obito said coldly, his voice dripping with mockery.

  The darts in Itachi's eyes spun wildly as his body erupted in orange fmes. From the inferno, an orange skeletal figure emerged. In one swift motion, Itachi broke free of Obito's Susanoo arm.

  Itachi's own Susanoo shield extended an arm and collided with Obito's, cracking it upon impact.

  "I just awakened Mangekyō and can already use Susanoo? It's almost like when I was young," Obito said with a mocking ugh, seeing that Itachi wasn't so easily subdued.

  Obito quickly retreated about twenty meters using Kamui, watching Itachi carefully. Then, with a smirk, he teased, "But for someone who hasn't transpnted Hashirama's cells, can you endure the pain caused by Susanoo?"

  As expected, after Obito's words, Itachi stumbled, nearly falling to the ground. The pain was unbearable.

  It felt as if every cell in his body was screaming in agony. Is this the side effect of Mangekyō?

  "I'm not here to fight, Uchiha Itachi. I came to find you." Obito said, retracting Susanoo and speaking in a calm tone. "Let's talk."

  "You betrayed your comrades, your family, and your vilge. I don't think there's anything to discuss with you." Itachi replied coldly, keeping Susanoo at the ready.

  A fsh of anger crossed Obito's eyes beneath his mask, but he quickly suppressed it and ughed.

  "So, you want to kill me? In that case, I'll offer you a deal. Join my organization, help me with my work, and I'll give you the chance to kill me. How does that sound?"

  Itachi's eyes narrowed slightly.

  Suddenly, he recalled Tatsuya's earlier comment about Obito: "The behavior of a madman is unpredictable."

  Here, Obito, fully aware that Itachi wanted him dead, still dared to recruit him. It was clear—this man was truly a madman, even in the eyes of Uchiha Itachi, who had just sughtered 200 members of his cn and his father. Itachi had already resolved to meet his end. Perhaps the curse of the Uchiha cn was more contagious than anyone could have imagined.

  ...

  ...

  Thunder Cloud Canyon.

  Located at the southernmost tip of the Land of Thunder, it serves as an important border that separates the country from Yunokuni. But now, it seems likely that it will soon be renamed Fire Cloud Canyon.

  When Raikage led about 500 Cloud Shinobi back to this area, the canyon—once surrounded by white clouds year-round—was completely consumed by fmes. The entire mountain radiated unbearable heat, making it seem more like an active volcano than a natural formation.

  Just four days ago, Raikage received an urgent letter from his deputy, Tutai. The message cimed that Hatake Tatsuya had forcibly broken into Cloud Shinobi Vilge and nearly destroyed the entire settlement. According to the letter, Tatsuya demanded that Cloud Shinobi withdraw all of their ambushing forces around the Land of Fire immediately, or he would kill every st person in Cloud Shinobi Vilge.

  Upon reading this, Raikage was shaken to his core. Hatake Tatsuya? Why would this bastard attack Cloud Shinobi now, of all times?

  With little time to process, the Raikage quickly summoned Killer Bee, the Yugito Nii, and the 500 Kumo elites ambush forces stationed in the area, ordering them to retreat to the Land of Thunder as fast as possible.

  And then, just yesterday, news broke that Uchiha Itachi had massacred around 200 members of the Uchiha cn, including his father, Uchiha Fugaku. This devastating blow weighed heavily on the Raikage, leading him to try and connect the actions of Uchiha Itachi with those of Hatake Tatsuya.

  "Master Raikage," Yugito Nii members said softly, her voice filled with concern, "During Ninja War, Hatake Tatsuya demanded a huge sum of 10 billion taels from Cloud Shinobi Vilge. This time, who knows how much he'll ask for? If we return like this, are we walking into some kind of trap?"

  The woman was only a few years younger than Nohara Rin and was already a perfect Jinchūriki.

  "...What can we do?" Raikage muttered, his brow furrowed in frustration. He was certain that this bastard would demand more this time. One hundred billion taels, perhaps? But right now, he couldn't think of any other options.

  "...He's famous for his ruthlessness," Yugito Nii continued awkwardly. "If we could kidnap his woman... use her as leverage..."

  There was an uncomfortable silence as he finished his suggestion. Raikage gred at her, his expression dark.

  That's despicable... But does the frequency of conflicts between nations make such underhanded tactics any less common? After all, they were Shinobi, not Samurai.

  ---

  Enjoyed the chapter?

  You can read 40 chapters ahead and get exclusive access to more content on P*treon.c*m/Marioni