Amegakure.
Rain drizzled from the gloomy sky, thunder flickering in the clouds. Inside a dim, metallic building, several figures cloaked in black robes with red clouds began to appear.
"Leader!"
As the figures materialized and the Rinnegan was revealed in one eye, everyone's faces grew solemn.
All around Amegakure, the damaged state of the metal buildings clearly showed signs of a recent battle.
"The Akatsuki's goal has always been one thing: peace! Yet now, that beast Uchiha Obito has stolen the fruits of our efforts. This time, I declare as the Akatsuki leader:
Akatsuki and all of Amegakure will move out together to purge the traitor, Uchiha Obito!"
Nagato, dressed in the Akatsuki uniform, spoke with authority. Although he'd lost one eye, he'd transplanted an ordinary eye in its place.
His strength was somewhat diminished, but with only one Rinnegan left, the strain on his body was also halved.
"I knew the boss would seek revenge!"
The talkative Hidan shouted excitedly. For him, nothing was more attractive than spreading his religion.
Especially after reading Uchiha Shirou's writings about religion over the years, even he had become addicted.
So heresy was to use killing to stop killing! To kill off those who would destroy the ninja world.
"Idiot!"
Kakuzu snorted coldly beside him. For him, nothing was more trustworthy than money.
But in the illusion world created by Uchiha Obito, all illusions were fake, so the money in that world was also fake.
Counterfeit bills!
That's what made Kakuzu angriest. He hated fake money most of all.
Hidan, Kakuzu, Sasori, Deidara, and other Akatsuki members, under Nagato's command, instantly entered battle mode.
Even countless ninja from Amegakure followed Akatsuki's lead and hurried toward their destination.
Across the ninja world, the major and minor villages were all doing the same. The entire continent's armed forces were rapidly gathering and heading toward the border of the Land of Lightning.
...
At the border of the Land of Lightning, in a secret, damp cave—
"Damn it, Uchiha Shirou has already gathered all the ninja forces in the world, and they're all on their way here. If your hundred thousand White Zetsu don't show up, we won't be able to hold out!
Kumogakure has at most thirty thousand ninjas. The Daimyo coalition might look like they have fifty thousand, but they're even more scattered..."
The Fourth Raikage, A, spoke angrily about the tense situation, hinting he still wanted to preserve his strength.
But of course, Obito could see through this little calculation. He sneered, his eyes—one Sharingan, one Rinnegan—giving off an eerie look.
"Relax. I'm just preparing a big present for Uchiha Shirou."
Inside the damp cave, rows upon rows of wooden coffins stood, numbering in the hundreds.
All the ninjas worth Obito using Edo Tensei on were at least elite jonin, even many Kage-level veterans from centuries of war.
"You'd better."
A was stifled and frustrated—if he could win a fight, he'd have started one by now.
At this moment, both Raikage A and the elite of the Land of Lightning felt an unprecedented hatred and fear toward the Sharingan.
...
At the border between the Land of Lightning and the Land of Frost—
The Kumogakure ninja and the Daimyo coalition camped in the rocky desert next to the sea.
At the same time, the ninja armies of Fire, Wind, Water, and Earth—most of the world's remaining power—were pouring into this area.
The commanders were: Fifth Kazekage Pakura, Fifth Mizukage Mei Terumi, Fourth Tsuchikage Kurotsuchi, and Konoha's Fourth Hokage, Uchiha Shirou.
The mighty ninja coalition assembled; Konoha alone had nearly fifty thousand ninjas, and the combined numbers from Iwagakure, Kirigakure, and Sunagakure were also close to fifty thousand.
One hundred thousand ninjas massed in the desert rocks. If they broke through here, they could march straight into the Land of Lightning and crush the last resistance.
Inside the camp—
"What!? You want me and Sasuke to take this mission? But we've just arrived on the front lines—they need us here!"
Naruto and Sasuke looked puzzled that, at such a critical moment, they were being sent elsewhere.
Kakashi, who had come to notify them, just smiled and shook his head. "Not just you two. It should be all of Team 7."
At that moment, Suigetsu, following Kakashi, spoke up, "And me, too!"
Suigetsu grinned, revealing sharp teeth, as Kakashi handed them the mission scroll.
"Naruto can use Flying Thunder God, Suigetsu is best at fighting on water, and Sasuke is the strongest overall. No one's more suitable than you three."
"Your mission is to go to sea. According to Intel, the world's largest remaining resistance group is hiding on Kumogakure's most mysterious 'Turtle Island'..."
As Kakashi explained, Naruto and Sasuke finally understood the importance of their mission.
"Shirou-sensei's Will of Fire is for peace, while those people are just greedy for their gain. Don't worry, Kakashi-sensei. We'll complete this mission."
Naruto confidently patted his chest, already considering another possibility.
Sasuke snorted in dissatisfaction but finally nodded, muttering,
"Kakashi-sensei, you just want to protect me—the Nine-Tails' jinchuriki. I get it."
Kakashi simply nodded calmly.
Sasuke was also a jinchuriki for half the Nine-Tails—a fact that couldn't be hidden from those with keen eyes.
At this time, Sasuke was a prime target, so sending him out to sea was both a diversion and protection.
And if Obito targeted him, Sasuke could serve as bait. Nowadays, it wasn't just Minato and Naruto who could use space-time jutsu in Konoha.
Sasuke felt helpless—being a jinchuriki was both an advantage and a flaw.
The advantage: he never lacked chakra and could use any jutsu he learned without worrying about chakra cost.
The flaw: in the ninja world, the first thing schemers targeted was tailed beasts—jinchuriki was always unlucky.
"Let's go! I have summoning hawk jutsu. If we don't leave now, we'll miss the final battle."
Sasuke huffed arrogantly, summoned three eagles, and the trio disappeared into the sky.
Kakashi smiled as he watched them leave.
After the coalition assembled, all ninja changed their forehead protectors to the "Shinobi" symbol, signifying the end of the era of divided villages.
Although names like Konoha and Iwagakure remained, that was all.
As more and more high-level combatants gathered, the command tent was filled with the strongest: Kazekage Pakura, Mizukage Terumi Mei, Tsuchikage Kurotsuchi, Third Tsuchikage Onoki, Kakashi, Minato, Shisui, Itachi, and others.
"To think, all the former village leaders are gathered together."
Onoki, who had seen the founding of the villages and now witnessed the world's upheaval, felt deeply moved as a new era was about to begin.
Among them was also Amegakure's leader, Nagato, head of Akatsuki.
"Hey, old man, this isn't the time to get sentimental," Kurotsuchi joked, and the tent was filled with a sense of excitement.
This war was the largest in history—they all wanted to leave their mark.
Ninjas were people too, with ambitions. Previous wars were just about scraps, but this time, it was different.
This was also due to Uchiha Shirou's policies—Konoha had made its people proud of their history, and anyone who contributed to the new era would be recorded in the history books and remembered for a thousand years.
Such fame was irresistible.
"Alright, since we're all here, we know most of the enemy's tactics and capabilities, although they may have hidden tricks."
Tsunade was the first to speak, her gaze calm as she began the briefing.
"Based on Orochimaru's research on Edo Tensei, Obito has been preparing for a long time. The battlefield will surely see countless powerful ninjas from the past.
Intelligence should compile a list of all strong ninjas from every village to prepare for them."
Mei Terumi nodded in agreement:
"Good idea. Konoha ninjas are mostly fire jutsu users, Sand ninja wind, so this is our best battlefield. But many ninjas from other villages are still unfamiliar with each other."
Years of close cooperation among Konoha, Kirigakure, and Sunagakure had made them well-coordinated—this mainly referred to the smaller villages and Iwagakure, which joined last.
Seeing Kurotsuchi's embarrassment, the cunning Onoki spoke up.
"Perfect! Iwagakure specializes in earth jutsu—this terrain is perfect for us, and our earth defenses are famous."
In terms of shamelessness, no one could outdo Onoki.
Nagato looked at everyone and said calmly:
"Obito is a traitor from Akatsuki. Most Akatsuki members aren't used to large-scale battles, and Amegakure has few ninjas. We're willing to split up and join Konoha to speed up integration."
Indeed, Nagato was the strongest driving force for peace.
"This place is near the sea, making it a paradise for water-style and especially Mist ninja."
Mei Terumi studied the map, and everyone's expression grew serious.
They all prepared for what might be the ninja world's final war.
...
Meanwhile, Uchiha Shirou wasn't at the front, but in a certain cave.
"Of course, both versions of Obito are in the same secret base."
Shirou smirked, looking at the cave with a giant skeleton outside.
This was Obito's secret base—the same one in the original story where he brought Sasuke to swap eyes.
"Lord Shirou, there are only a few spare Sharingan and a frozen female corpse in the cave," reported Hikari after searching.
Shirou was speechless—it was easy to forget that this world's Obito was broke.
With the Uchiha clan still alive, there was no wall of Sharingan.
All the secret jutsu scrolls, precious ninja tools, and the Uchiha fan left by Madara had gone to Shirou, not Obito.
In other words, compared to the other universe, this Obito was a pauper.
Shirou smiled at Hikari, gently ruffling her hair.
"This frozen corpse is already the greatest gift. I think that bastard will love it."
"And Hikari, I think you'll give Madara a big surprise on the battlefield."
Thinking of Hikari versus Madara, Shirou got excited.
"Lord Shirou."
Hikari narrowed her eyes in delight. Outside, atop the skeleton, Kaguya stood calmly, watching. Only when Shirou and Hikari appeared did she smile.
"Husband."
Kaguya followed him, observing the changes in the ninja world.
...
Back in the Land of Lightning, Obito, hiding in the damp cave, suddenly felt his seal break and grew enraged.
"Rin! Damn it! It must be Uchiha Shirou—I won't let you get away with this!"
His Kamui space was his strongest weapon—he couldn't store Rin there, or if a fire jutsu got in, she'd be instantly burned.
He never expected Shirou would reveal his identity, strip him of the Uchiha name, and—most importantly—touch Rin, his greatest sore spot.