Two days later
Sasuke and Tobi returned to Akatsuki's base in Amegkaure.
As soon as they arrived, they encountered the undead duo, Hidan and Kakuzu, walking together.
"Yo~! Isn't this Sasuke-kun? Back from a mission?" Hidan greeted Sasuke with a grin.
He didn't like Itachi, but he was quite friendly toward Sasuke, who was also hostile to Itachi—so much so that he even wanted to cut him to pieces.
"Yeah, I just got back."
Sasuke nodded.
He had known Hidan and Kakuzu for a while now.
Kakuzu was a guy who only cared about making money and had little interest in socializing.
Hidan, on the other hand, had a personality somewhat similar to Tobi's. Of course, he wasn't as goofy as Tobi.
And since Hidan also had a certain friendliness toward him, Sasuke didn't mind making more allies—especially strong ones.
Hidan said, "That works out then. The leader called for a meeting, so you and Tobi should come too."
Meeting?
Sasuke froze for a moment before nodding.
To be honest, this was the first time he was participating in an internal Akatsuki meeting since joining.
For one, he was still just an intern. If not for his teacher, he wouldn't have any status in an organization like the Akatsuki.
For another, Akatsuki wasn't an organization that held frequent meetings.
Most discussions happened via projection. It was rare for a meeting to take place at the base in person.
Tap! Tap!
The sound of approaching footsteps echoed as figures clad in black and red cloud-patterned cloaks emerged.
This marked the beginning of Akatsuki's first full-member gathering of the year.
Even interns like Tobi and Sasuke were permitted to attend this time.
After all, whether it was Tobi or Sasuke, neither was weak. Both were Kage-level.
And…
While most members weren't aware of Tobi's true identity, Nagato and Konan certainly were.
This was, after all, the man masquerading as Madara.
As for whether he was the real deal?
To be honest, it didn't really matter.
"Sasuke, where's your teacher?"
After Hidan and Kakuzu entered, they glanced around but didn't see Menma. So, Hidan turned to Sasuke and asked.
"I don't know. He should be somewhere in the base, though." Sasuke replied, shaking his head.
He had just returned from outside, so he had no idea where his teacher was.
Hidan was about to say something when—
"Hidan, did you need something from me?"
A voice suddenly spoke from behind, startling Hidan.
Hidan exclaimed, "Ah~! You're as elusive as ever, Menma-sensei!"
Hidan patted his chest dramatically.
Menma glanced at him without a word.
"Menma-sensei!"
Sasuke stepped forward, standing behind Menma.
Menma acknowledged his disciple with a slight nod.
"Ah! It feels like Menma-sensei has gotten even stronger."
Tobi still had his usual goofy demeanor, but beneath the mask, his expression turned serious.
Just now, even he hadn't noticed how Menma had appeared.
That guy…
Obito couldn't help but feel wary.
Originally, he had invited Menma into the Akatsuki to keep an eye on Nagato.
But now—
Obito realized that this guy's growth was starting to exceed his control.
It wasn't just about raw power. Menma had already surpassed him in that regard.
But up until now, Obito had always been confident in his intangibility ability.
Yet today…
Even he hadn't sensed Menma's arrival.
If Menma had wanted to attack, would he have even realized what had killed him?
Of course, Obito could always hide in the Kamui dimension.
But he couldn't stay there forever—he had to exit after five minutes.
If Menma figures out his weakness and uses his near-instantaneous movement to strike the moment he reappears, it could be fatal.
Fortunately, Menma had never shown hostility toward him.
At least for now, they weren't enemies.
And in truth, Obito's instincts weren't wrong.
Menma was indeed much stronger than before.
The reason?
Just yesterday, a certain individual had withdrawn his Wood Clone that had been pretending to be Menma.
Now, this Menma was a newly created Wood Clone.
A clone that carried a portion of the original's strength.
The reason for this was simple.
Many of the abilities of the original couldn't be fully transferred to a Wood Clone.
In other words, Wood Clones couldn't handle that much power.
Even so, this clone still had multiple Kage-level chakra reserves and it could activate the Rinnegan and Tenseigan abilities.
This put it at the peak of the Six Paths level.
As for the original body?
Ryosuke's Rinnegan had already evolved to the six tomoe state some time ago, thanks to the [Guide of Tomoe Rinnegan].
However, progressing further would take time.
To reach the Nine tomoe state, he estimated that it would take at least another ten years.
Fortunately, this evolution didn't require Ryosuke to do anything on his own. Otherwise, spending ten years on it would be a waste.
After all, even a pair of Nine Tomoe Rinnegan would not significantly impact Ryosuke's strength.
Normally, as the number of Rinnegan's tomoe increases, Ryosuke's Rinne-Sharingan Chakra Mode also improves, and his power grows stronger.
But in reality, Rinne-Sharingan Chakra Mode is all about balance.
If the Rinnegan becomes too strong while Tenseigan lags behind, it disrupts this balance. This provides no real benefit to his overall strength.
Currently, his Rinnegan in its six tomoe state has already far surpassed his Tenseigan.
Ryosuke even has to suppress his Rinnegan's power actively to maintain the balance of the Rinne-Sharingan Chakra Mode. Otherwise, its power would go berserk.
Fortunately, Ryosuke has recently found a solution to this problem.
It's actually quite simple. The key lies within the giant golden Tenseigan on the moon.
Ryosuke discovered that he could enhance his own Tenseigan by absorbing energy from this colossal Tenseigan.
If he were to absorb its full power, his Tenseigan could potentially surpass even the current six tomoe Rinnegan.
Perhaps it could even become stronger than a Nine Tomoe Rinnegan. However, absorbing the entire power of the giant Tenseigan isn't a quick process.
When Ryosuke's Rinnegan had evolved into a Three Tomoe, it had awakened a brand-new ability—one that allows him to shrink any non-living object within his visual range.
The smallest size?
A single picometer in diameter!
A picometer is an even smaller unit than a nanometer. One picometer is equivalent to one trillionth of a meter.
Even the most advanced picometer microscopes in his previous world couldn't detect anything at that scale, as their limit was only 45 picometers.
Anything smaller than that?
It would be invisible!
But Ryosuke can shrink objects down to 1 picometer using his technique.
Forget about seeing them with the naked eye—even his six tomoe Rinnegan can't detect them.
He can only perceive their existence because he's the one using the ability.
This technique bears a striking resemblance to Ōtsutsuki Isshiki's Sukunahikona. However, it is far superior.
Isshiki's version was never capable of reducing objects to such a minuscule scale.
Ryosuke's ability could reach this level due to his unique talent entry-based enhancements.
Therefore, Ryosuke named this power Sukunahikona out of convenience as he was too lazy to think of a new name.
When Ryosuke's Rinnegan evolved into six tomoe, he awakened two brand-new abilities.
The First Ability: Daikokuten
This technique works in perfect synergy with Sukunahikona.
Ryosuke wasn't entirely sure how Isshiki's version functioned, but his Daikokuten had a remarkable effect.
It not only serves as a storage space for objects shrunken by Sukunahikona, but it also acts as a small world of its own.
Within this space, there is an actual sky and land.
If Ryosuke wills it, light can manifest out of nowhere, illuminating the entire realm.
Moreover, people can live inside it. There's even proper air circulation.
The sheer size of his Daikokuten's space was absurd.
Ryosuke even theorized that he could fit the entire earth inside—without shrinking it.
Clearly, this was yet another enhancement caused by his unique talent entry-based abilities.
The Second Ability: Cleave
This ability is something Ryosuke had never heard of before.
Cleave allows him to instantly cut anything, living or non-living within his visual range.
And the most terrifying part?
It can slice an object hundreds of millions of times in an instant, down to its smallest possible particle size.
Ryosuke had tested it.
No matter how hard the material, if it's within his sight, it gets cut instantly as if it was always separate.
When it comes to living beings, he only conducted small-scale experiments.
So far, he hasn't found a single limit.
But there should be a threshold.
Otherwise, wouldn't this technique make him invincible?
For now, Ryosuke lacked a worthy target to push its limits.
But, even with a limit, this power was undoubtedly on a god-tier level.
At the very least, below the god level, there is likely nothing it cannot cut.
Cleave is an ability exclusive to Ryosuke's Six tomoe Rinnegan, meaning Wood Clones cannot use it.
Clearly, even his clones cannot withstand the sheer force of six tomoe Rinnegan.
But even as a mere Wood Clone, Menma's presence within Akatsuki still exuded an overwhelming sense of oppression.
This wasn't something he deliberately projected.
Rather, the sheer difference in life levels between him and the others triggers a subconscious fear in their bodies.
An instinctive reaction.
"Do you think I spend my days just eating, drinking, and having fun?"
Menma's gaze swept over Tobi.
It carried an aura of absolute pressure.
Tobi let out an awkward chuckle and immediately fell silent.
Even for a White Zetsu like Tobi, this level of presence was frightening.
Hidan, standing nearby, glanced at Tobi, then instinctively rubbed his nose before stealing a wary glance at Menma.
He didn't dare speak either.
At that moment—
Two more figures entered.
Sasuke, who had been quietly standing behind Menma, suddenly tensed up.
His gaze turned icy cold.
Because one of those figures was—
Itachi!
Sasuke's fists clenched tightly.
Seeing Itachi inside Akatsuki's base from time to time was one of his biggest motivations to grow stronger over the past year.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have awakened his Mangekyō so quickly.
Of course, this was also thanks to his teacher's relentless training.
If Menma hadn't constantly subjected him to genjutsu-based stimulation, his pupil power wouldn't have progressed this fast.
Moreover, Menma's genjutsu were uniquely powerful.
After each session, Sasuke forgot everything he experienced.
All he knew was that his pupil power had increased significantly.
After repeating this over a dozen times, his Mangekyō Sharingan awakened with ease.
In truth, the ability to forget was the main reason Sasuke's Mangekyō had awakened so fast.
Replaying the Uchiha Clan Massacre via Tsukuyomi, like Itachi had done, wouldn't have worked.
After all, the first experience of trauma is always the most impactful.
But if one forgets everything after each experience?
Then, every time feels like the first time.
The result?
A drastically accelerated awakening process.
***
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