Naruto: Sasuke Uchiha Returns from Soul Society

Orochimaru was slightly taken aback by Sasuke's leaps in thought, but he still reported all the information he had gathered over the past few days in detail.

"Some time ago, the Akatsuki suddenly made a major move." Orochimaru's voice turned serious. "According to intelligence gathered by my spies in various locations..."

"Besides the Two-Tails and Eight-Tails of the Land of Lightning, the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki of Konoha, and the Tailed Beast inside Sasuke..."

"The remaining tailed beasts have all been captured by the Akatsuki."

"For this reason, the five great ninja villages felt threatened."

Orochimaru glanced at Sasuke's still calm face and continued, "Just yesterday, the five great ninja villages simultaneously announced that they plan to hold a meeting in the Land of Iron a week later, a meeting that hasn't been held in decades..."

"The Five Shadows Conference".

"The Five Kage Summit?" Aizen turned his head and asked gently, "Is that similar to the Captains' Meeting in Soul Society?"

"More or less," Sasuke replied casually, leaving the lab and heading outside.

Orochimaru and Aizen followed in unison.

Sasuke stood in the open space, his fingers spread, palm down, gently pressing the ground.

"The art of spirit communication."

As he spoke calmly, his golden Rinnegan eyes turned silently.

The entire underground base trembled violently at that moment, and cracks spread wildly across the walls like a spider web.

The rocks at the top fell with a "rustling" sound, kicking up clouds of dust.

"Sasuke-kun?!" Orochimaru stared at Sasuke in shock, not understanding why the other party would suddenly attack.

"Roar--!!!"

A roar erupted from the depths of the earth!

Then, before everyone's eyes, a grotesque giant hand, resembling withered wood and rock, suddenly burst forth from the ground beneath their feet.

It tore the ground apart, and the five grotesque knuckles still bore the remnants of chains binding them.

"This, this is..."

Orochimaru stared blankly up at the giant hand that blocked out all light, his voice hoarse.

During his time with the Akatsuki, he saw the Gedo Mazo.

But he never imagined that one day he would "reunite" with it again in this way.

Sasuke calmly examined the enormous creature he had summoned from his hand.

He didn't know what this thing was called, nor did he know what it did.

The moment the Rinnegan is activated, its "existence" and "summoning" methods are imprinted into one's soul.

With a slight thought, Sasuke sank into the sealed space within his body.

"Hey, you guys."

Sasuke's consciousness appeared in that space of consciousness, looking down at the various tailed beasts. "Do you recognize these things?"

"..."

A deathly silence fell over the Thunderous Wasteland.

Yin Jiuwei turned her head to one side and made an unintelligible "gurgling" sound in her throat.

Within the lake, the Three-Tailed Isobu buried its enormous head deep inside its shell.

Even Shukaku, at this moment, put away its arrogance and curled up into a ball.

Sasuke frowned slightly at their collective feigned death.

Not right.

These guys must know something.

Sasuke's eyes turned icy cold instantly, and the ominous blood moon in the sky shone brightly.

"explain."

"I have no idea!"

Almost the instant the lightning flashed, Yin Jiuwei roared in rebuttal, "I know nothing! I've never seen this piece of junk before!"

That overtly suspicious attitude only intensified Sasuke's doubts, but he was too lazy to ask any further questions.

Sasuke's consciousness faded, and he murmured softly.

"Pity."

He could sense that this thing seemed to be able to replenish the "incomplete" power within him, but it itself seemed to be "incomplete" as well.

That sense of incompleteness does not stem from a lack of strength, but from a kind of core emptiness.

So be it.

Since we cannot yet know all its secrets, let's just return it to it for now.

Anyway, I can take it back anytime I want.

With a thought, Sasuke caused the enormous golem that had already torn the earth apart to vanish in a silent ripple.

"Sasuke-kun, what's wrong with you...?" Orochimaru looked at him with some confusion.

Sasuke didn't explain, but turned his head to the side, his Rinnegan seemingly able to see another space far away.

Let me see how you plan to restore its power.

.............

Meanwhile, in the Land of Rain, inside a dimly lit cave.

Payne's mood was off; just moments ago, the Gedo Mazo had abruptly vanished from his senses.

But this disappearance lasted for less than a moment.

The next second, that familiar aura returned to the same spot, as if everything just now was just an illusion.

But Payne knew that it wasn't an illusion.

"..."

He stood quietly atop the golem's head, remaining silent for a long time.

He didn't know what had just happened, but the unknown itself was the greatest threat.

Before all of this is clear, any rash action could jeopardize the entire plan.

"It seems the plan to contain the Tailed Beasts will have to be put on hold for a while."

Chapter 211 First Meeting, I am Aizen, Aizen Sousuke (5k)

The mountains of the Land of Lightning stretch out like the spines of a lurking beast.

A fresh scent filled the air.

Sasuke leaped up a vertical cliff and landed silently on the cliff face.

Beneath my feet were rugged, uneven rocks, and in the distance, even more magnificent and precipitous mountains.

He looked down at this unfamiliar land, his long, silvery-white hair fluttering slightly in the fierce wind on the mountaintop.

"Is this the Land of Lightning?"

Aizen's gentle voice came from behind him as he looked around at the scenery with interest. "The mountains are indeed steep."

"Ah."

Sasuke gave a faint reply, his gaze sweeping over the towering peaks on either side of the road. "Because of the unique geographical environment, thunderstorms are frequent here all year round."

"That's why most of the Cloud Village ninjas living here are skilled in Lightning Release and swordsmanship."

"Swordsmanship...?"

Aizen seemed to remember something and turned to look at Sasuke. "Speaking of which, are you sure that man named Orochimaru can really research anything of value?"

Aizen recalled that before he left, Sasuke had specially created a "shallow slash" for Orochimaru.

Sure enough, after getting the new toy, that guy immediately lost interest in coming along and, along with Yakushi Kabuto, plunged back into the dark underground.

"Who knows?" Sasuke replied casually. "With his talent, if given enough time, he might actually surprise me."

"Even if we don't figure anything out, that's within my expectations."

"hehe......"

Aizen chuckled softly, offering no further comment on the topic.

He gazed at the endless mountain range, then suddenly changed the subject.

"So, Sasuke-kun, when do you plan to take me to see that so-called Pure Land?"

This question caused Sasuke to pause slightly.

"No rush." ​​He turned his head to the side, his golden Rinnegan standing out brilliantly against the dark clouds. "Let's talk about it after we've dealt with things here."

"Hehe... I'll wait and see."

After Konoha declined, Kumogakure became the strongest military village among the five great ninja villages, and also the most forceful in its actions.

Sasuke's original plan was to wait for the Akatsuki to collect the remaining tailed beasts for him, and then he would make his final move to seize the spoils from the Akatsuki.

However, the fact that the Two-Tails and Eight-Tails are still alive and well in Kumogakure means that the Akatsuki organization also has some reservations about Kumogakure.

The Akatsuki organization didn't dare to make a move, so he planned to come in person.

The two continued on their way, flying over the mountain peak, where their view suddenly opened up.

The continuous mountain range stretches into the distance, and looking into the distance, you can see the view of the mountains embracing the landscape.

Aizen suddenly raised his head, his brown eyes narrowed slightly, and his gaze passed over the mountains, landing in a very distant direction.

"It seems there are people who are more anxious than we are."

Aizen's voice remained calm, even somewhat leisurely, "Sasuke-kun, someone's here."

“There are forty-four people in total.” He gave the exact number. “Most of them have very weak auras, so weak that they can be almost ignored.”