"Done."
Naruto clapped the dust off his clothes and rejoined the others.
At the same time, Gaara had also been restored by the Totem of Immortality.
After being resurrected, he stared blankly at the body he had prepared, his eyes dull and lifeless.
Sasori and Deidara stood silently beside him.
Naruto had announced earlier that he wanted to complete the organization's mission of capturing the One-Tail.
Now it was caught…
But the One-Tail was sealed inside him!?
How the hell were they supposed to explain that to Pain?
What was Naruto going to do? Go back, sacrifice himself, and hand over both the One-Tail and the Nine-Tails at the same time?
Minato was equally confused.
He saw that Naruto was perfectly fine, which confirmed that what Kurama had said earlier was true.
But…
Why did it feel like this raging Nine-Tails beast was completely different from before?
Minato didn't understand, but he was deeply shocked.
He desperately wanted to know what Naruto had gone through all these years—what had happened in the outside world.
But he didn't have much time left.
This chakra of his had originally been preserved as a last resort for sealing the Nine-Tails. After what had just happened, it was now almost fully depleted and would soon vanish.
"Naruto."
"Take care of yourself."
"I... I have to go now."
Minato's voice echoed in Naruto's ears. Back in the sealed space, Minato hovered in the air, his entire body glowing with golden light.
"Even though I don't fully understand what's going on, seeing you like this… it makes me happy."
"Forgive me... for everything I couldn't do."
He smiled warmly, though his heart was full of mixed emotions.
His son clearly enjoyed playing tricks on him.
Just a moment ago, while the other two were chatting, he'd overheard that Gaara was now the Kazekage.
Naruto's personality... really reminded him of Kushina.
"Dad!"
"Next time we meet, help me settle the score with Kakashi!!"
Minato: ...
Yup. Just like Kushina.
Naruto shouted cheerfully, completely ignoring the fact that his father's chakra form was about to fade away.
Technically, this thing was like a residual soul. If they wanted to truly resurrect the two elders, they'd have to pull their souls out of the Pure Land.
While Naruto was still saying goodbye, Kankuro—the second-in-command of the new Sand Village—noticed that both the Saint Son and the Kazekage hadn't returned yet, and a massive battle seemed to be happening in the distance.
Gaara, thrilled by the news of the bishop's return, had forgotten to inform Kankuro.
But Kankuro clearly remembered Gaara's previous orders…
If the Akatsuki ever attacked, they were to strike hard using the coordinates provided by Senior Sasori.
There was no doubt in his mind: the fight outside was an enemy attack!
"Turn all guns around!"
"Fire on the Akatsuki headquarters!!"
At Kankuro's command, dozens of chakra cannons mounted on Manekomo puppets adjusted their aim. Three seconds later, vibrant chakra blasts filled the sky.
The barrage lasted only two minutes, and as soon as it ended, Kankuro immediately ordered a retreat to avoid any counterattack from the Akatsuki.
And as for those chakra cannons? The technology had been borrowed—cough, learned—from the Society for Scientific Truth.
Even if the Akatsuki found out, they'd probably think twice before messing with the Mechanicus.
"You..."
"Fireworks in broad daylight?"
Naruto had just exited the sealed space when he looked up—and saw the Sand Village launching an array of colorful chakra blasts into the sky.
The trio beside him immediately fell silent.
Gaara and Sasori exchanged a glance. Yeah... maybe better not to tell the bishop the truth.
Deidara looked like he was grinding his teeth into dust.
He'd realized something horrifying: the Mechanicus had shamelessly stolen tech from the Society for Scientific Truth.
If not for the three heretics standing here—and the Grayl Stone that Naruto had promised—he would've flown into a rage on the spot.
Forget it!
He'd report everything once they got back!
"Yeah…"
"It's always worth celebrating when the bishop returns."
Naruto: !
The moment Gaara said that, Naruto's expression froze. He immediately shut up and stopped asking.
He had no intention of becoming the leader of a cult again.
"Alright, go back to your work."
"We've got things to handle, so we'll head out first."
Naruto grabbed Sasori and Deidara and bolted in the direction they came from, not giving Gaara any chance to make him stay.
---
Hidden Rain Village, Akatsuki Base—
Nagato, who had been resting with his eyes closed, suddenly opened them wide and stared ahead with his Rinnegan.
"Who is it!?"
"Who the hell is attacking us!?"
He sensed hundreds of incoming projectiles from above and quickly activated the Six Paths puppets to defend.
The Deva Path Pain floated into the air and used the Rinnegan's power to deflect as many of the attacks as possible.
But they were too fast and too scattered—he only managed to block two-thirds.
The remaining blasts struck the Akatsuki base directly.
"Cough…"
"Damn it!"
"Who the hell did this?!"
Nagato first coughed up blood from chakra overuse, then vomited again in rage after seeing the destruction.
Their base had been discovered. They'd been hit with a long-range assault. There was only one explanation…
There was a traitor in the organization!!
Nagato nearly fainted from fury.
I trusted you all so much!
Which bastard did this?!
He took several deep breaths, composed himself, and sent Pain to find Konan.
He was going to gather everyone and find that damn traitor!!
---
"Bishop..."
"I think we should run."
Sasori was looking increasingly anxious. He knew very well the Mechanicus had just bombarded the Akatsuki.
And then there was the matter of the tailed beasts...
Sure, they'd captured one, but it was sealed inside the bishop. There was no way he wanted Naruto going anywhere near the enemy again.
"You're right."
"Our mission technically failed."
"Don't tell me you plan to go back and pull out another one."
Deidara looked uneasy too.
Something felt very off about the Mechanicus suddenly and publicly flaunting Scientific Truth Society tech.
"What do you mean, failed!?"
Naruto bristled at the suggestion they should cut and run.
If everyone in the organization was like these two...
Could there ever be peace in the world!?
"What if I just take a little of the One-Tail's chakra and report back with that?"
"You guys said Pain is easy to fool, right?"
As he spoke, Naruto shifted his consciousness back into the sealed space to check things out.
Inside, Shukaku was running like mad in a hamster wheel, little legs flailing furiously.
Kurama sat beside the cage, casually holding a whip in one paw and reading a novel with the other.
"Stupid fox!"
"I swear I'll—Ah!"
"Stop hitting me! Stop! I'll run, okay!?"
Shukaku was bawling, tears already forming at the corners of his eyes as he continued running.
"Hey, Big Fox."
"Give me some of Shukaku's chakra."
"Get it yourself."
Their conversation sounded more like a casual exchange at a vegetable market than anything serious, utterly disregarding Shukaku's feelings.
The poor raccoon was trembling with rage and shouting furiously at the both of them.
"You... You're going too far!!"
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