Itachi and Kisame's mission was simple: they were sent to gather general information about the Land of Wind. They didn't have any special tasks.
But because of that, Itachi couldn't figure out what Nagato was really planning.
"Itachi, you've seemed a bit distracted lately. Is it because of that friend of yours?" Kisame asked.
Itachi had told him about Shisui before, and lately, he had been looking troubled. Naturally, Kisame thought of Shisui.
"It's not about him. It's about our organization," Itachi replied.
"There might be some changes within the group soon—changes that could even put our lives at risk. But for now, I can't see anything clearly."
His tone was calm, as if he were just stating a simple fact.
Though he was speaking to Kisame, Kisame was momentarily stunned by his words.
A moment later, Kisame understood. Having been part of an intelligence organization before, he quickly grasped what Itachi meant.
And he also understood why Itachi was bringing it up now. The Land of Wind was in chaos, full of pirates and disguised ninjas.
A place this chaotic was also the easiest to hide in.
"Have you figured out who it is?" Kisame asked.
Itachi's meaning was clear—there was a traitor in the Akatsuki, or… they were being watched.
"No, it's just a suspicion. Kakuzu and I aren't on the list of suspects."
Hearing this, Kisame nodded.
"I'll stay by your side, Itachi."
The two of them stopped in front of an izakaya. Kisame stayed outside, looking slightly impatient with his shark-like face.
"I'll take care of those two little ones first. You go on ahead, Itachi."
"Alright."
Itachi nodded and pushed open the door to the izakaya.
Inside, a few burly men were drinking. One of them had white hair and wore a headband with the kanji for "oil" on it.
The next moment, Itachi closed the door of the izakaya.
"Jiraiya-sama, even if you're using a transformation jutsu, you should at least change your headband, hair, and accessories."
Itachi sat down, completely at ease.
"I didn't expect you to be the one coming."
Jiraiya was a bit surprised by Itachi's arrival. Even for him, Itachi was a genius who couldn't be taken lightly.
"A headband from Konohagakure… Are you Uchiha Itachi, the genius ninja of the Uchiha clan?"
A large man nearby spoke in surprise.
"And you are?"
Itachi's voice was always calm and cold—at least, that's how others saw it.
"Kumogakure Village, Killer Bee!"
Killer Bee introduced himself.
"Kirigakure Village, Chojuro!"
Another person on the side also answered.
None of them were using their real appearances. Since they were in the Land of Wind, it was better to use transformation jutsu for disguise.
"Killer Bee? The Eight-Tails Jinchuriki? But wasn't the Eight-Tails killed by Shanks?"
Hearing that it was Killer Bee, even Itachi was a little surprised.
Back then, their group had been watching the battle from the sidelines.
The Eight-Tails had clearly been slain by Shanks in a single strike, yet Killer Bee was still alive.
"The Eight-Tails did die, but not completely. It just needs time to revive inside my body."
Killer Bee didn't say much. After that battle, he had been unconscious for more than ten days before he recovered.
Right now, he couldn't sense the Eight-Tails inside him at all—just a faint chakra slowly growing stronger.
As for Killer Bee himself, his body hadn't suffered much damage, but his mind had taken a heavy hit.
Simply put, since the Eight-Tails was cut down by Shanks in one strike, Killer Bee's mental strength had been temporarily halved, which had greatly weakened his power.
Even so, he was still stronger than Chojuro.
"I see. So the team is set."
Itachi glanced at the people around him and understood who was chosen for this mission. But…
"What about Konohagakure?"
Itachi looked at Jiraiya.
"It's not time for Naruto yet."
Jiraiya shook his head. Konohagakure had already chosen its candidate, and from every perspective, Naruto was the most suitable.
But it was still too soon.
"So the Revolutionary Army's choice is Sasuke?"
Jiraiya asked.
In his view, Itachi had no need to be here. His presence was completely unexpected.
Which meant he had come for someone. And that person was obvious.
"Sasuke? Give him another year. Right now, he's not ready."
Hearing Itachi's response, Killer Bee and Chojuro were both stunned.
"So, the only ones entering the Three Great Sacred Lands for training this time are just the two of us?"
They exchanged glances. Before they set out, the Raikage had even told Killer Bee that he had gone to great lengths—practically throwing away his dignity—to secure this opportunity.
On top of that, since Killer Bee's Eight-Tails had been slain in the battle against Shanks, this chance to train in the Sacred Land had landed in his lap.
As for Chojuro, his entry into the Sacred Land was something Terumi Mei had paid a price to arrange.
Besides, Kirigakure didn't have many candidates for this kind of opportunity, which is why Chojuro got his chance.
But looking at Konohagakure, it seemed like this opportunity wasn't a big deal at all.
Well, to Jiraiya, it really wasn't that important.
And Itachi—he didn't seem to care much about it either.
"Yeah, looks like it's just the two of you. But with fewer people, the three sages from the Sacred Lands will be able to guide you more personally, which means better training."
Jiraiya nodded. He wasn't exactly sure what it would be like to have three sages teaching at once, but he knew one thing—it wasn't going to be easy.
As for Itachi, he had learned about Sasuke's situation from Shisui. Given Sasuke's current mindset, he wasn't ready for this kind of training.
The same was true for Naruto, in Jiraiya's view. Naruto had grown in both maturity and determination, but… it still wasn't enough. There was another, broader path waiting for him.
With that thought, Jiraiya glanced at Itachi.
It was unexpected to see Itachi here, but since he was, Jiraiya knew one thing—Itachi was someone to be trusted.
Not because the Revolutionary Army trusted him, but because… Konohagakure did.
So no matter how you looked at it, this was clearly some kind of deal between Itachi and Nagato.
But… Itachi's identity—no, it didn't matter what his identity was. After everything that had happened, there was no going back for him.
To all of Konohagakure, Itachi was a criminal.
That's just how things worked sometimes. There were always people who had to make sacrifices. Jiraiya couldn't judge Itachi's actions—just like he couldn't judge everything the Third Hokage had done.
Itachi seemed to understand what Jiraiya was thinking and gave him a small nod.
"Sasuke is in Konohagakure, and Naruto has looked after him quite a bit. With a friend like Naruto, he's probably doing well, right?"
"They're the future of the ninja world. And with Kakashi there, they won't run into trouble."
Jiraiya nodded. Everything Itachi had done was just to secure a future for Sasuke.
Of course, it wasn't just Itachi—Shisui was also working to secure a future for Sasuke.
Right now, the only surviving Uchiha in the ninja world were the three of them, and Sasuke was the youngest. As his elders, Itachi and Shisui would never just leave him to fend for himself.
That's just how things worked.
And speaking of connections, Naruto's own network was even more ridiculous.
His father was the Fourth Hokage, Jiraiya was now his Ninjutsu teacher, and the Revolutionary Army leader—currently the strongest fighter in the ninja world—Shanks, was an Uzumaki. That meant Naruto was somewhat connected to him as well.
In short, in the ninja world, if you didn't have the right connections, you weren't going anywhere.
Look at Nagato—why did he suddenly make a move? Besides realizing he had been deceived, the biggest reason was that he couldn't solve his problems alone anymore. He needed to rely on his background.
And what was Nagato's background? Jiraiya, of course, and the Three Great Sacred Lands behind him.
As for Shanks' connections?
Shanks was a crew member on the Pirate King Roger's ship—the very person Roger entrusted with the "Straw Hat."
Of course, this was what Shanks used to think about his own "connections" long ago. But once he set sail, he realized that he was actually the biggest background player in this world.
Still, being a background player had its perks—people would naturally rely on his influence. Even if he did nothing, others would still take him into account when making decisions.
"They're here too?"
Hearing Jiraiya mention that Kakashi was with Sasuke and Naruto, Itachi frowned.
"For them, the Land of Wind is actually the best training ground, and there's no real danger."
Jiraiya nodded.
Most of the Genin from Konohagakure had been sent here.
Along with them were also some soldiers previously trained in the Land of Fire by Konohagakure.
These soldiers were carefully selected from among the civilians. Although they had only trained for a month, with Genin and Chunin leading them, they should be able to hold their own against pirates.
"Alright! Then let's begin on our side too."
Itachi didn't ask further questions. This mission was led by Jiraiya.
He was only assigned here as a representative from the Revolutionary Army.
Since one of the legendary Sannin, Jiraiya, was in charge, there was no need to worry.
The four of them got up and left the tavern. As soon as they stepped outside, Kisame, towering in stature, stood at the door, holding two unconscious people—"Kamira" and "Fugai."
"Two Devil Fruit users, but they're not that strong. What should we do with them?"
---
You can read 50 advanced chapters at my patreon.com/YeyeQiu