Starting as the mastermind behind Naruto

Chapter 53 Uchiha Itachi, a Master Storyteller

"I'll go back to base first."

After Pain finished speaking with Uehara Naraku, he coldly instructed, "Uehara, you should also return to Akatsuki's base immediately. Don't let your teacher worry."

After speaking, Payne dispelled the psychic summons and vanished into smoke.

Because Pain was too far from his original body Nagato, the chakra within Pain was nearly exhausted after releasing two eye techniques.

If Pain cannot obtain Nagato's chakra transfer, he won't be of much use, and there's no point in him staying here.

We should go back as soon as possible and try to get information from Itachi Uchiha.

Uehara Naraku did not linger. He summoned Pain, only to make Uchiha Obito, who was hiding in the shadows, realize the truth: his identity as an actor had been stripped away.

By now, Obito Uchiha should have come to terms with the facts, right?

The only pity is that Orochimaru secretly slipped away.

Now that everything was over, Uehara Naraku, along with Kisame Hoshigaki, Mangetsu Hozuki, and Haku, left the Land of Water and embarked on their journey home.

After everyone left.

A shady spot in the mountains and forests.

The mysterious masked man was revealed, muttering to himself with a hint of melancholy, "I miscalculated. That brat can actually summon Pain..."

My identity is about to be completely exposed!

However, the mysterious masked man had already prepared for the worst.

If Nagato wanted to get rid of him and start collecting the Tailed Beasts on his own, it would be impossible, because only Zetsu could gather all the information on the Tailed Beasts.

This exposure of his identity only affects his status and image, but it does not prevent him from continuing the Eye of the Moon project.

The mysterious masked man did not leave empty-handed.

He suspected that Orochimaru had discovered his identity and leaked it to Kakashi, since Orochimaru had appeared in the Land of Water for no reason.

Logically and emotionally, Orochimaru is the most likely candidate.

"Fine, we'll just have to give up on blocking the news..."

A glint flashed in the masked man's eyes, and a spacetime vortex appeared behind him, pulling him into it.

The land of rain.

The base of the Akatsuki organization.

Pain had just returned here after dispelling Uehara's summoning jutsu when he was greeted by Konan, who looked worried.

After Konan, Kakuzu, and Itachi recruited Hidan, they returned to Akatsuki's base in the last two days.

"Nagato, is there a problem with your main body?"

"No, it's Uehara."

Pain shook his head, his expression grim. "Perhaps we can uncover the truth from twelve years ago. First, we need to subdue Uchiha Itachi; we absolutely cannot let him escape!"

"What happened?"

"That man who calls himself Uchiha Madara is actually a ninja named Obito. He's very likely a Konoha spy trying to use us!"

Payne's expression was grim, and he continued in a deep voice, "Uehara has discovered his true identity and is being hunted down by him!"

"I'm going to save Uehara!"

Xiao Nan's paper wings unfurled, signaling her departure.

Pain stopped her and explained in a low voice, "Don't worry, we just ran into Orochimaru in Uehara, and I've already taken care of him; he's protected by three members of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, so there shouldn't be any problems..."

"Then let's go see Uchiha Itachi first!"

Fragments of origami fluttered around Xiao Nan as she said in a cold voice, "Get information from him!"

Since Uehara has not yet returned and Itachi Uchiha has no new teammates, he cannot go out on missions and can only sit by the lake outside the base contemplating life.

A swarm of paper butterflies suddenly drifted down in front of him, coalescing into a blue-haired woman standing on the lake, creating ripples.

Konan looked at him, her brows slightly furrowed, and said, "The infamous Weasel of the Extinction Clan, could he also have some worries?"

"Senior Konan, is there something you need?"

Itachi Uchiha was feeling somewhat depressed. He just wanted to sit quietly by himself for a while and didn't really want to have a heart-to-heart talk with the woman in front of him.

Konan, however, didn't care about his feelings and coldly asked, "Uchiha Itachi, you're a Konoha rogue ninja. Did you ever hear the name Obito when you were in Konoha?"

"Obito?"

Itachi Uchiha recalled a funeral he had attended long ago, and looked up in confusion, adding the full name Konan had spoken: "Obito Uchiha?"

Konan frowned slightly, carefully observing Itachi Uchiha's expression. Seeing that he did not show any abnormality, she was somewhat surprised.

Uchiha Itachi didn't know the masked man's identity either?

Konan continued in a deep voice, "You're all from the same clan, so you should know that person named Uchiha Obito, right?"

"Um?"

Uchiha Itachi lowered his head, gazing at the lake as he softly replied, "Uchiha Obito died during the Third Shinobi World War. Because his body could not be found, he is the only hero who was not buried in Konoha's memorial tablet."

"Oh?"

Xiao Nan nodded with great interest: "Go on!"

Judging solely from Itachi Uchiha's words, there's at least an 80-90% chance that the mysterious masked man is Obito Uchiha.

However, judging from Itachi Uchiha's expression, he doesn't seem to know the true identity of the mysterious masked man.

If you think about it that way, Itachi Uchiha might not be a Konoha spy, after all, he killed the entire Uchiha clan.

"..."

Itachi Uchiha looked at Konan with some confusion. Obito Uchiha had been dead for a long time, so why was he still being asked to say anything?

What else is there to say!

Should I recount Obito's entire life story?

Why would someone who has long since passed away pique Xiao Nan's interest?

Itachi Uchiha carefully observed Konan's expression and continued softly, "It is said that Obito Uchiha's grades were not very good. Perhaps for this reason, when the Konoha ninjas were assigned to their graduating classes, Obito was paired with Kakashi Hatake, the most talented ninja at the time, and became the Fourth Hokage's disciple..."

The story of a loser is told in detail by Itachi Uchiha.

Itachi Uchiha gleaned information from other members of his clan, combined with his own understanding and embellishment, to create a positive and inspiring coming-of-age story of a loser who ultimately becomes a hero of Konoha.

Konan couldn't help but glance at it sideways as she listened; she hadn't expected that Uchiha Itachi would have such a talent for storytelling.

Itachi Uchiha's ninja stories were much more engaging than Jiraiya's.

What kind of nonsense is Jiraiya's "The Story of the Strong-Willed Ninja"? It's so obscure that it's unreadable. It's really not as good as Itachi Uchiha's story.

"...In the end, Obito Uchiha became a hero of Konoha and rests in peace in a foreign land, while Kakashi Hatake, the genius ninja who carried the will of his comrades, also achieved the honor of Sharingan Kakashi with the Sharingan given to him by his old friend."

This story doesn't count as a leak of information; much of its content is already well-known, and it's a story about spreading the Will of Fire.

After telling the story, Itachi Uchiha was even moved by Obito in the story. He slowly turned his head to look at the composed female ninja, still feeling a little puzzled...

Isn't his story interesting?

Did the Will of Fire not reach Konan's heart?

"Are you done talking?"

Konan frowned. If she hadn't known that the mysterious masked man was Uchiha Obito, she might have actually admired him.

"Um…"

Itachi Uchiha's expression was rather unpleasant, as if this woman was somewhat hopeless: "Konan-senpai, why are you interested in Obito Uchiha's affairs?"

Xiao Nan didn't answer him, but instead spread the paper wings on her back and said coldly, "Come with me, Payne wants to see you!"

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

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(End of this chapter)