Konoha Drunkard

"Payne should make a decision; we'll just have to wait..."

Actually, Itachi was also confused by this teacher. Regardless of the clan's records or legends, he had never heard of a tenth tailed beast. The Uchiha clan wasn't some nobody's clan; they, along with the Senju, Uzumaki, and Hyuga clans, were known as the oldest clans in the ninja world, with far more records than those lesser-known clans. However, he had never seen any information about a tenth tailed beast, let alone, as his teacher claimed, something the Sage of Six Paths had said on his deathbed…

This is obviously absurd. What kind of teacher would come up with this idea? To drag even the Sage of Six Paths into this for money... Only brainless people would believe it!

........

Pain with the round eyes, also known as the "Life-Sustaining Nagato," is currently very troubled...

The plan was nearing completion, and it was time to begin. Just as he was informing Itachi and Kisame to capture the Two-Tails, another tailed beast suddenly appeared in the ninja world! And this Konoha Shanks was making it sound so convincing that even the erudite Orochimaru couldn't tell if it was true. If the Sage of Six Paths were talking nonsense, that would be impossible, but Orochimaru had also analyzed it. The ninja world was founded by the Sage of Six Paths, and the Rinnegan is also his eye; anything impossible becomes possible when it happens to the Sage of Six Paths…

Although Orochimaru's words were philosophical and he didn't fully understand them, he did grasp one point: the Rinnegan was the eye of the Sage of Six Paths, and he now possessed it. Because he had the Rinnegan, he knew how powerful it was, and it was precisely because of its power that he had been delayed. Perhaps, as Orochimaru said, anything was possible. Meanwhile, Nagato spent his days studying the ugly creature behind him, but no matter how he looked, he only found nine holes, corresponding to the nine tailed beasts. Logically, the tailed beast betrayed by Shanks of Konoha was also the ugly creature's own chakra. So where was the tenth tailed beast to be placed? Could it really be, as Deidara said, either in the mouth or the anus...?

"Nagato, don't think about it anymore. Kisame has already informed us that he and Itachi have captured the Two-Tails, but Itachi seems to be having some health problems..."

At this moment, Tuhao Nan walked in and saw that his friend was still staring at the ugly monster. He had been staring at him for several days. He was worried that the monster was overworked and that his already fragile health would collapse.

"...After they return, have Itachi Uchiha go to Orochimaru for a checkup. By the way, has Orochimaru found anything?"

Nagato, clinging to life, didn't care about Itachi's body. After all, many would die once their plan succeeded, so one more death didn't matter... What he cared about was having Orochimaru investigate the suddenly appearing tenth tailed beast—was it a brother to the other nine? This was crucial to their plan. Everyone in the ninja world knew that Kawakugoku was struggling financially and could only pay Konoha's Shanks in installments. Shanks was keeping a close eye on Kawakugoku, and Nagato didn't want to run into that powerful figure unless absolutely necessary.

"They're still investigating, but I don't think there's much hope. But why don't they find that guy who calls himself Madara and ask him to clarify things? He's the one who gave us the plan to capture the tailed beasts."

Tuhao Nan asked, puzzled. She had never liked her masked partner, but she had to admit that he was better educated than orphans like them and his plans were very detailed. Since he was the one who proposed the plan to capture the tailed beast, he must have an explanation.

"...I've already contacted him, but he doesn't know anything about it either, so he needs time to investigate. However, Kisame and the others have already made their move, and we don't have much time left. Before those major villages can react, we need to capture the Tailed Beasts as soon as possible."

Nagato, shaking his head, explained that since awakening the Rinnegan, aside from fighting Shanks of Konoha and having half the country destroyed by his comrades, the organization had been doing incredibly well. They had money and manpower to spare. However, for some reason, things always went wrong whenever they were involved with Shanks. Last time, they almost made headlines after fighting Shanks. Luckily, they had kept Hanzo of the Salamander's death a secret, so they could still shift the blame to Hanzo. Now, because of Shanks, a tenth tailed beast had appeared. Could Shanks be his natural nemesis...?

750. Hiruzen Sarutobi, the second uncle.

"It's better to be prepared. I think we should also capture that tailed beast from Kawanin Village, but save it for last."

Tuhao Nan understood his companion's dilemma. They had only just begun their operation and had just captured the first tailed beast. They needed to keep a low profile because the entire ninja world's attention was focused on the tailed beast in Kawagakure. If they rashly went to capture it, it would be much more difficult to capture the other tailed beasts in the future. However, if they captured the Nine-Tails first according to the original plan, then it would be no problem to deal with the other one later.

"Let's do it this way then. The Four-Tails and Five-Tails from Iwagakure have escaped again. Let Kakuzu and Hidan go with them..."

After the wealthy Nan finished speaking, Nagato also thought it was a good idea. One more beast wouldn't hurt, and as long as they captured the first nine tailed beasts, the safety of the last one becoming apparent wouldn't matter. His friends were definitely the most reliable...

...........

"What? The Four-Tails and Five-Tails from Iwagakure have escaped again?"

In the Konoha office, Hiruzen Sarutobi ate a whole pound of food...

It was only bought back not long ago, and it's already run away again. Did Onoki grow up eating shit?

"Our spies over there have reported back that Iwagakure has mobilized all its personnel; everyone who can go out is out looking for the Four-Tails and the Five-Tails."

Minato rubbed his aching head and said, "Just what I feared has come true. I thought Onoki would be more careful after being tricked by Shanks, at least keeping a closer eye on the Tailed Beasts and preventing them from escaping again. But before I could even relax for long, the Four-Tails and Five-Tails escaped again. It seems Onoki is getting old and his brain isn't working as well..."

In fact, Minato and Hiruzen Sarutobi really misunderstood Onoki. After realizing that they had been tricked by that bastard Shanks, in order to prevent a recurrence, Onoki kept the two tailed beasts by his side every day from that day onwards. Except when he was sleeping, he took them with him wherever he went.

But the only thing to blame is that Rōshi and the Five-Tails Jinchūriki were such good actors that even Ōnoki, a director with a wealth of experience, was fooled.

Ever since they were captured, Old Zi and the Five-Tails Jinchuriki seemed resigned to their fate, actively cooperating with Onoki every day. Sometimes they would arrive at the Hokage Building ten minutes early, and they would constantly say things like, "The Tsuchikage-sama is working so hard, the Tsuchikage-sama is so great..." which made Onoki feel flattered. Onoki, that old man, just loved hearing these words of praise. He had been occupying the position for so many years without doing anything, just so that someone would praise him later. Seeing that Old Zi and the Five-Tails Jinchuriki seemed to know their mistakes and could correct them, he lowered his guard. When he deliberately relaxed his surveillance on them twice and they didn't run away, Onoki felt very gratified. So, in a good mood, Onoki stopped letting them follow him and told them to go do whatever they wanted.

Roshi and the Five-Tails Jinchuriki were shrewd individuals. For the first few days, they behaved themselves obediently in the village, going about their business as usual, without any intention of running away. This was because, after their previous escape attempt, Onoki had changed the locations of all the sentry posts around the village. Before they could figure out the locations, they stayed in the village during the day, secretly scouting the sentry positions in the mornings. After a week of scouting, they had found out the locations of all the sentries, and only then did they sneak away without a trace...

By the time Onoki found out, the two of them had been on the run for over a week. Onoki was furious. "Damn it, are all these bastards this cunning? I, the second generation of the ninja world's representative of cunning, have actually been tricked twice in a row!"

This time, Onoki didn't bother looking for Kakuzu. He already knew that the bastard Kakuzu was in cahoots with Shanks, so this time he went crazy and sent out all the henchmen he could find, determined to break those two bastards' legs!

..........

It seems that Old Purple and the Five-Tails Jinchuriki learned their lesson this time when they ran away. They couldn't fight alone like before. Although it was easier to hide, it also made them easy to be picked off one by one. Just like last time, when they encountered Shanks from Konoha, the tailed beast inside their stomachs immediately went invisible, and they had no chance to fight back. If the two of them had stayed together, even if they encountered Shanks from Konoha, they could at least give each other courage and then run away separately... Maybe they could have escaped.

Rōshi held a high position in the village and was a senior figure to the Five-Tails Jinchūriki. The Five-Tails Jinchūriki was completely subservient to Rōshi this time, doing whatever he said. The main reason was that Rōshi's fists were large enough to perfectly combine with the Four-Tails...

Is Shanks still in the village?

Xiaochun, who was turning over to her new room, suddenly asked.

"I had the Anbu ask Haruko-sama, but she hasn't gotten up yet..."

Minato naturally understood what Koharu Utatane meant, but he was also worried that his teacher was going out to do big business... Ever since he tricked Onoki last time and Onoki found out, Minato had been on tenterhooks, fearing that Onoki's hot temper might cause another fight. If Konoha started fighting, all the other ninja villages would definitely join in, and Konoha would have to go back to a one-against-many situation, which was not what they wanted to see.

Upon receiving news of the Four-Tails and Five-Tails' escape, Minato immediately ordered the Anbu to monitor Shanks' movements. If Shanks were to trick Onoki again, being tricked twice in the same way would be unbearable, not to mention Onoki's explosive temper, even someone with a good temper like him would find it unacceptable.

"Phew... That's good. No need to send anyone to help look for them. Send someone to tell Onoki about the Akatsuki organization and tell him to hurry up so they don't take advantage of any loopholes."

After taking two puffs of his opium, Hiruzen Sarutobi said.

......

"Snapped!"

"Hurry! Hurry up and kill Hiruzen Sarutobi's grandpa! It's not like it's their Nine-Tails Jinchuriki who ran away. He makes it sound so easy, and he even has this Akatsuki organization! That bastard is definitely watching me make a fool of myself! Have you found them yet?!"

After reading the note in his hand, Onoki slammed his hand on the table in a fit of rage. Every word on the note seemed to him like a mockery of his lack of intelligence. The fact that two Jinchūriki had escaped in quick succession had enraged Onoki. He turned to Aoki Nozomi, who stood silently to the side. Aoki Nozomi had been the one who had devised the methods to test Rōshi and the Five-Tails Jinchūriki twice, and instead of speaking up, he had been used by them. He was prepared to take the blame for the Four-Tails' escape this time. Having followed Onoki for so many years, he knew Onoki's habits best; many people had taken the blame for him over the years.

751. Konoha is still the most reliable.

"Lord Tsuchikage, Rōshi has followed you for so many years, and he has learned all of your tracking and counter-tracking abilities. In addition, as a Jinchūriki, his sensory abilities are very strong, so it won't be easy for our people to find them."

Aoki looked hesitant and first flattered Onoki before speaking.

"Snapped!"

"Hmph! You have to find it for me, even if it's not easy! I'm sure Hiruzen Sarutobi is laughing his head off right now. Do you want the whole ninja world to laugh at me?!"

Aoki's attempt to flatter him backfired spectacularly, and Onoki slammed his fist on the table, smashing it to pieces in anger.

........

"Hahahaha! The Four-Tails and Five-Tails have escaped again? Onoki's red nose has a really big hole in his head. Hahahaha!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi didn't laugh like a dog, but Shanks was the one who laughed like a dog the moment he heard the news. Bah! Serves him right!

"…Teacher, the Akatsuki's current target is the Tailed Beasts. Aren't you worried at all? Lord Orochimaru has sent word that they've already captured the Two-Tails."

Minato said to Shanks with a rather helpless expression.

"It's just one two-tailed one. Aren't there eight more? What's the rush?"

Shanks pursed his lips. He was never worried about the Akatsuki. Nagato was only the lowest-ranking boss, after all. Otherwise, if Black Zetsu, Kaguya's youngest son, were to run away, he would have wiped out the Akatsuki. Half of the Akatsuki were his friends, his good brothers. They weren't like Nagato, with their extreme personalities. The world was still a beautiful place; why destroy it...?

His biggest worry right now is his beloved disciple Itachi's health. Orochimaru examined Itachi last time, and what Shanks feared has finally come to pass. Even Orochimaru, with decades of clinical experience, couldn't diagnose Itachi's illness, only that it was terminal. This undiagnosable disease is causing Itachi's life force to drain rapidly, which is a real problem for Shanks. Kishimoto is ruthless to his own sons, as if he's determined to kill them to prove his own path. His eldest son Minato's Nine-Tails attack is an external force, which is easy to deal with. As long as Kushina is still alive, Minato won't commit suicide for love.

The tribulation of the youngest son, Itachi, is even more difficult. Shanks has neither a system nor is he a top student in medical school. Even Orochimaru doesn't understand what's wrong with him. What can he do? Orochimaru said that if this disease isn't cured, no matter how many red potions he gets, it won't help. Even if he can survive for a few more years, his body will collapse.

The thought of his precious disciple dampened Shanks' smile. He still needed an heir; otherwise, what was the point of working so hard to earn so much money...?

"But Kakuzu and Hidan have already gone to capture the Four-Tails and the Five-Tails. Shouldn't we do something about it?"

Minato frowned deeply. Once the Four-Tails and Five-Tails were captured, the next targets would be the Three-Tails and Six-Tails from Kirigakure. The Three-Tails should be resurrected by now, and he didn't know the Six-Tails' current situation. The Land of Water's position was too advantageous; Konoha hadn't been able to plant many spies there over the years, and even if they did, it was difficult to get information out. Therefore, information about Kirigakure had been extremely scarce in recent years. As for the Seven-Tails from Takigakure, it would be far too easy for Akatsuki. Takigakure simply didn't have any members capable of withstanding Akatsuki's attacks. Sunagakure was also plagued by old and young members; among the younger generation, only Maki, who was easily defeated by Garp, showed any promise, but he was still quite ordinary and couldn't withstand Akatsuki at all.

As Minato pondered this, he suddenly realized that Konoha seemed to be the most reliable village. If they had a more ambitious leader, Konoha could truly unify the ninja world—how terrifying...

"What can we do? Didn't you already tell Onoki about Akatsuki? But I doubt he'll believe it. He'll probably just think we're making excuses to make fun of him. You haven't known that old man Onoki enough. He's just like my second uncle, his head is full of conspiracy theories..."

Shanks leaned back on the sofa, stretched, and said nonchalantly.

"Ahem! The teacher has been gone for many years, so please be mindful of your words."

When Hiruzen Sarutobi heard this bastard slander his teacher, he took a few deep drags on his pipe to calm himself down.

"...Lord Orochimaru has already said that their goal in capturing all the Tailed Beasts is to turn them into world-destroying nuclear weapons. It's impossible for us to stop these so-called Tailed Beasts. Even if we announce Akatsuki's target to the ninja world, probably only a few people will believe it. It would be much easier for us to focus our attention on one or two Tailed Beasts. Our main concern in Konoha is the half of the Nine-Tails in Naruto's body. As long as we keep an eye on Naruto, there won't be any problems. As for Kumogakure, since the Two-Tails has already been captured, we should inform them. If possible, it would be best if our two villages could gather both Jinchuriki in one place."

Seeing that his father-in-law was about to start another verbal battle with Hiruzen Sarutobi, Big Cannon quickly stood up to interrupt him, otherwise the meeting would be canceled and he could just be their cheerleader.

"Shikaku's method is not bad. The safest place is definitely our Konoha. With so many double-flowered red staffs protecting us, even if the First Hokage were to be resurrected at full health, he would have to consider whether he could withstand it. However... given the Raikage's arrogant nature..."

Shanks shook his head repeatedly, saying that the Fourth Raikage was just as arrogant as his father. His father had time to escape after all his underlings had joined the crew; after all, if he wanted to, even Onoki couldn't stop him if he wanted to. But because of his stubborn nature, he recklessly fought his way to become a match for ten thousand men. The Fourth Raikage was the same. Just seeing him challenge Minato to a duel and keep his word showed he was just as proud as his father. How could someone like that entrust the safety of his brothers to someone else? He would protect them himself.

"...Notify all the villages, and we'll make plans later."

Koharu, after a moment of silence, suggested that whether they believed it or not was their business. Based on the idea of ​​being a loving family, they had informed everyone properly, so if anything happened, they had no reason to blame Konoha.

"Xiaochun is right. We still need to send out the message. Whether they believe it or not is up to them. Our main task is to protect Naruto."

Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded in agreement with Koharu Utatane's statement.

"By the way, speaking of Naruto, where is Naruto?"

Shanks suddenly remembered that he hadn't seen Naruto since Shima, that old toad. They'd been discussing things for ages, but the main character was nowhere to be found. What was the point of talking then?

752. Why aren't any of my great Cloud Village people here?

"Jiraiya-sensei got tired of staying in the village, and Naruto wanted to go out with him, but Kushina disagreed and locked him in the house..."

Minato said with a sigh, "I don't know why my son seems to have a special connection with Jiraiya-sensei. And Kushina is the last person her son wants to be near Jiraiya. Letting him teach Naruto in the village is already a huge favor. To want him to leave the village with Jiraiya is bound to make Kushina furious. She even set up a barrier near the house to prevent Naruto from leaving."

"...This is good. Let him stay here. Maybe it will even help him change his impulsive personality."

Upon hearing Minato's words, Shanks rolled his eyes. This was a method long ago used by Shina; the barrier was supposed to prevent her son from escaping... If Onoki knew how to create such a barrier, it would be much harder for Roshi and the Five-Tails Jinchuriki to escape...

Minato's style of doing things differed from Hiruzen Sarutobi's procrastination. As soon as the meeting ended, he sent his ANBU to deliver his heartfelt letters to the various villages, hoping to gain their attention...

Mei Terumi, the Mizukage of Kirigakure, took the letter quite seriously, as she had uncovered some clues about Akatsuki over the years. However, she didn't know how to act in a way that would make it clear how much they valued it...

Because their Six-Tails Jinchuriki has been wandering around for years, completely out of sight, and they don't even know the exact time and place of the Three-Tails' resurrection. How can they possibly take it seriously? They simply melted the letter away, out of sight, out of mind...

The low-key Takigakure village chief also values ​​this highly. The Fourth Hokage has such a good reputation and character, he certainly wouldn't lie to him. Besides, there seems to be no benefit in lying to them. Konoha has more of what Takigakure has, and Konoha also has what they don't.

So, the unassuming Takikage received Minato's loving letter and immediately had all his subordinates surround the Jinchuriki's residence in layers. But upon entering, they were shocked! The Jinchuriki was gone! And looking at the thick layer of dust covering the place, he had clearly been out partying for a long time. The unassuming Takikage stared at the empty house, tears welling in his eyes. He hadn't brought back the new Tailed Beast, and the old one had escaped—this was a huge loss. He had indeed neglected his old comrades recently because of the new Tailed Beast, but you can't just wander around like that; the ninja world is too dangerous…

After reading Minato's letter, Gaara carefully put it away, then picked up the endless pile of documents on the table and began to read them...

The Fourth Hokage, a man of high moral character, wouldn't laugh it off so easily. He took this matter very seriously, but as a Jinchūriki himself, he was constantly surrounded by bodyguards; this level of vigilance was already extreme. If the so-called Akatsuki could capture him under these circumstances, he would have no choice but to accept his fate. Besides, as the Kazekage, he wasn't weak; he wouldn't be so easily captured...

"Mabuyi, what do you think about this?"

After reading Minato's letter, the Fourth Raikage solemnly handed it to Mabui. The letter from Minato to the Fourth Raikage contained the most information and was the most detailed. Apart from not mentioning Orochimaru and Itachi, the two super aces, everything else about the Akatsuki crew, such as their combat strength and personnel configuration, was written down in detail.

After watching the video, the Fourth Raikage felt a chill run down his spine. He couldn't believe that Hanzo the Salamander was already dead, and now the leaders of the Land of Rain were the Akatsuki. And look at the personnel and combat strength they had.

The legendary Rinnegan with the big head is just a legend, let alone the fact that the super rich girl who was the head butler had billions of explosive tags that were nuclear weapons. It turns out that the huge explosion in the Land of Rain was caused by that super rich girl. If that happened to the Land of Lightning... I don't even want to think about it.

Orochimaru, who could release snakes to poison his father... needless to say, this was the greatest humiliation of his father's life, even more heartbreaking than the scar left by the Eight-Tails.

Kakuzu, the number one bounty hunter in the ninja world and now a pharmaceutical tycoon.