Upon hearing the masked man's words, Danzo first felt a surge of anger.

Ridiculous!

Who do you think you are to dare question me?

But what followed was mostly confusion.

Danzo had assumed Itachi was secretly colluding with outsiders. The Uchiha clan's Sharingan was rightfully his—yet not only were the corpses burned to cinders, but the Sharingan had also been taken...

And now you're trying to pin this on me???

Danzo felt like he'd heard the most absurd joke of his life. He let out a few exasperated laughs while shaking his head.

"Danzo, I've fulfilled my promise to you."

"I hope... you'll honor yours as well."Itachi's form dissolved into crows, vanishing from the spot before suddenly reappearing behind Danzo.

He raised his Kaleidoscope Sharingan, his gaze alone making Danzo's hairs stand on end.

"If I find out you've laid a hand on my brother, I will leak all of Konoha's intelligence to enemy nations."

Obito: ?

To Danzo, Itachi's warning-laden words sounded perfectly reasonable.

But to Obito, hearing this now only confirmed his suspicions.

So much for asking for my help…

This was clearly a trap meant for me!

Damn it!!

Uchiha Itachi lied to me!!

By the time Obito realized something was wrong, the grief-stricken Itachi had already dispersed into crows and left the scene.

Danzo cast a glance at the masked man surrounded by his forces, his expression dark and terrifying. His voice was icy as he spoke.

"I don't care what you're planning…"

"But if you've taken the Sharingan, you'll pay the price!"

The moment his words fell, the surrounding Root ninja lunged at the masked man, intent on capturing him alive. Interrogation would surely reveal where he had hidden the Uchiha clan's Sharingan.

"Ha… hahahahaha…"

"Good, very good!"

"This world… is truly laughable!"

Obito was so enraged by Danzo's words that he let out a bitter laugh. In one swift motion, he drew a kunai and charged straight at Danzo…

Meanwhile, in another corner of the battlefield.

Uchiha Kaito, with Hikari in tow, quickly sought out Pain and Konan.

"I need you two to help divert the others' attention."

At this moment, after the three Kage had been defeated, the remaining shinobi had scattered across the outskirts of Amegakure.

To wipe them all out in one go, the Heavenly Tribulation would need an enormous range.

But here lay the problem—

If the range was too large…

The clansmen hiding within Amegakure might also be caught in his body-tempering lightning tribulation.

So now, he needed Pain to lure the others out. Once they were gathered, he could begin his tribulation.

"How?"

Pain flicked the blood off his Black Rod, replying indifferently.

Yet his gaze remained fixed on the girl.

After witnessing the power she possessed, Nagato was convinced that the boy's confidence in killing everyone stemmed solely from his teacher.

Kaito stroked his chin, deep in thought for a full half-minute before speaking with utmost seriousness.

"A rare treasure has appeared… The great Sects will surely be unable to resist their greed and fight over it."

Hikari: ???

The old ancestor, who had been watching from the sidelines, nearly lost her composure at his sudden declaration.

Her trembling pupils locked onto him in disbelief.

This idiot…

What the hell is he doing…?

Unlike Uchiha Hikari's shock and confusion, Pain showed no strange reaction, merely nodding in agreement and continuing the conversation.

"I lure them out, and then you kill them?"

Though Kaito's words were bizarre, Nagato roughly understood his meaning.

The Samsara Eye was clearly the "rare treasure" he spoke of, and the "great Sects" likely referred to the forces of other villages.

The two communicated almost seamlessly—yet Hikari listened in cold sweat, her stunned gaze shifting between them in disbelief.At this moment, Uchiha Hikari really wanted to crack open these two guys' skulls to see what was inside their heads.

[Ding—]

[Triggered Mission: Rare Treasure Emerges.]

[Mission: You and your fellow cultivators have discovered a Secret Realm, but elite disciples from various Sects have gathered here. Ambush and eliminate all these Heaven's Chosen disciples to ensure your safe entry into the Secret Realm.]

[Reward: Mystic realm key.]

Just as Kaito had expected, Nagato—a deeply chuunibyou-afflicted individual—responded to his words without any psychological burden whatsoever.

Merely engaging in casual dialogue had triggered the mission.

A Mystic realm key...

The task was straightforward, but to ensure its successful completion, Kaito immediately set his sights on the three individuals present.

"I have an idea..."

Over the next few minutes, Kaito began outlining a role-playing mission.

For example...

Their group had discovered a Secret Realm and needed to eliminate all others before anyone else could find out.

Konan and Hikari were utterly speechless upon hearing the details of this "Secret Realm" mission.

Especially Konan, whose gaze kept flickering toward Hikari, as if asking...

How long has this kid been like this?

Hikari merely twitched her lips awkwardly in response, quickly distancing herself from Kaito to signal that she wasn't actually familiar with this guy.

"Secret Realm?" Pain repeated the words, narrowing his eyes slightly as he spoke with interest.

"Indeed, such a place would be worthy of a deity's dwelling."

Nagato always managed to learn fresh and intriguing terms from Kaito, which made him—someone who only knew "kami"—feel that only such novel descriptions could truly match his own status.

Konan fell silent again. Faced with the girl's stare, she swiftly took two steps back, putting distance between herself and Nagato.

"I don't care what you two are talking about..."

"Can we just hurry up and end this already?!"

Uchiha Hikari had completely had enough of these two lunatics. Dealing with Kaito alone had already made her want to die, and now with another patient added to the mix, she was on the verge of losing it.

All she wanted now was to finish this as quickly as possible. Any more torment, and she feared she might actually resort to murder.

"Fine." Kaito nodded in agreement, clasping his fists toward Pain in a martial salute. "Fellow cultivator, after you."

Pain froze for about three seconds before mimicking the boy's tone, declaring with utmost arrogance,

"I shall ensure these so-called Heaven's Chosen meet their demise within the Secret Realm of Amegakure, under this god's dominion."

"Outside it."

Worried about failing the mission, Kaito corrected him. Pain considered his words and found them reasonable—after all, those people needed to die outside Amegakure.

That would indeed count as outside the Secret Realm.

The two departed one after the other, muttering bizarre phrases as they walked, completely oblivious to the pained expressions of the two left behind.

Hikari and Konan stood rooted in place for a full ten minutes. Only when the figures of the two were about to disappear from sight did they exchange glances, forcing awkward grins at each other before finally giving chase.

For a fleeting moment...

They actually found themselves sympathizing with one another.

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