"…As expected, something's off. Good thing I watched Cautious Hero in my last life—er, I mean, Overly Cautious Hero."
In less than two days, Izayoi, monitoring the Land of Fire with his Shadow Clone, sensed trouble.
He spotted a familiar figure.
During his time in the Land of Rivers, his Tenseigan had caught a glimpse of this person in the neighboring Land of Rain.
One of Jiraiya's students, the angel of the Hidden Rain, the Akatsuki's White Tiger—Konan.
She rode a sharp-beaked bird, entering the Land of Fire, heading in a specific direction.
Since Nagato's health began declining, Konan rarely left the Hidden Rain.
After the Akatsuki gathered its members, she never took solo missions, staying in the village to handle Nagato's affairs and care for him.
In the original story, where Konan went, Nagato or the Heavenly Path of Pain was never far behind.
Her presence in the Land of Fire was no vacation.
Izayoi had a hunch—she was likely here for him.
Half a day later, his guess proved right.
Fifty kilometers northwest of the black market, on a small hill, Konan leaped from her Yata Bird. Cracks spread across her body, and sheets of paper peeled off, forming wings behind her. Like an angel descending, she landed in the forest below.
The Yata Bird dove, landing smoothly before dissolving into a massive cloud of white smoke.
As the smoke cleared, a tree made of paper took shape.
From bottom to top, it colored itself, blending perfectly with the forest in a few blinks.
Through the Tenseigan, the tree glowed with blue Chakra, tadpole-like runes surging from it, forming a perception-blocking barrier.
Even the Kagura Shingan probably couldn't detect that Chakra.
But it couldn't stop Izayoi's Tenseigan.
In his view, the tree held eight Chakra signatures—Konan, Nagato, and the Six Paths of Pain.
"Hiding in the bird's beak—that's how they move. I thought Konan's lip piercing summoned it."
Watching the whole process, Izayoi nodded in realization.
Then he couldn't help but gripe, "The shinobi world's strongest, coming for me personally? Talk about overestimating me."
But then, he fell silent.
The tree split open, and the Heavenly Path of Pain stepped out.
Floating upward, he landed on a cliff.
Moments later, space twisted beside him, a fist-sized black hole forming.
Two warped figures emerged from it.
Obito Uchiha and… Itachi Uchiha, the filial son Izayoi had seen a few times at the academy gates in his first year.
Staring at the trio lined up like a world-famous painting, Izayoi couldn't resist cursing in his native tongue, "Bloody hell!"
The Super Kage gatekeeper, Six Paths of Pain; Itachi Uchiha, who'd pushed the Mangekyo Sharingan to its limits with a deck full of trump cards; and Obito Uchiha, who could spam Kamui without going blind. Even Onoki, the pinnacle of the Five Kage, would be toast against this lineup.
Any one of them could take on the Five Kage combined.
If they dropped their guard against each other, even the Five Kage together wouldn't stand a chance.
This crew, coming for him? What did he do to deserve this?
Just then, his Shadow Clone's voice piped up in Mandarin, "Quick, look—something's happening at the black market."
Izayoi's gaze snapped to the market.
The suited middleman had a branch skewered through his body.
A white creature morphed into the man's likeness.
"Mayfly Technique—even the Tenseigan can't spot it," Izayoi said, his expression darkening.
"Its Impersonation Technique is flawless too. Worthy of the shinobi world's ultimate transformation," the clone added. "If the Tenseigan's second awakening or final evolution can't see through it, we'll need the Kagura Shingan to sense good and evil."
Izayoi frowned, deep in thought.
His mind raced, searching for anything in the shinobi world besides the Kagura Shingan that could pierce the Impersonation Technique.
Ideally, something to counter the Mayfly Technique too.
Black and White Zetsu's real threat wasn't the Impersonation Technique or possession—it was the Mayfly Technique, bypassing barriers, moving at high speed, and melding with earth and plants.
Even Six Paths-level powerhouses couldn't detect it.
The thought of those eyes watching from the shadows made Izayoi's skin crawl.
But for now, he couldn't think of a counter.
He shelved the idea.
Sweeping his Tenseigan over the White Zetsu clone in the black market and the ultimate trio on the cliff, Izayoi chuckled lightly. "I was gonna give you a welcome gift, but no point wasting energy. Enjoy standing guard for a while."
This was good news in disguise.
Their blatant stakeout meant Black Zetsu didn't know about the Tenseigan—or at least its abilities.
That was Izayoi's edge.
He couldn't squander it.
"Good thing I had a backup plan, or this would've been a huge loss. This grudge is noted—I'll repay you with a big 'gift' later."
With a final glance at the trio, Izayoi dispelled his Shadow Clone and returned to the cave to retrieve Zabuza.
…
Three days later, as agreed.
At dusk, Itachi Uchiha gazed at the sun's northern hemisphere, then turned to Obito, also watching the sunset. "Still no sign of the target?"
"Ask Zetsu," Obito said cryptically.
Black and White Zetsu, half-buried in the ground, piped up. "The goods reached our clone, but the guy hasn't shown. The clone's fine," White Zetsu said.
"Was he onto us?" Itachi asked.
"It's possible," Black Zetsu replied, his mood sinking further.
If this mystery man was Hamura's descendant, his Byakugan's purity could be extreme, its far-sight surpassing the Hyuga clan's limits.
But they'd stayed fifty kilometers out, often hiding in barriers or pocket dimensions today. Could he still have been spotted?
That outstripped even the Uzumaki's Kagura Shingan.
"Wait one more day. Itachi and I will pull back," the Heavenly Path said flatly, turning to leave.
Itachi followed.
Obito slipped into his Kamui dimension.
Only Black and White Zetsu remained, using the Mayfly Technique and White Zetsu clones to monitor the black market while widening their search, checking if the target was nearby.
Another day passed, and with no sign of the man, the ultimate trio left, each carrying different emotions.
Missing him this time meant catching him next time would be harder.
Perception like that put them on the back foot before a fight even started.
…
Six days later, in a forest near the Land of Fire's border.
"Sir, here's what you wanted. It cost twenty-nine million eight hundred seventy thousand ryo."
Fresh from the Land of Rivers, Haku set down three large scrolls and spoke respectfully to Izayoi.
"Good work. Keep the change—it's yours."
Izayoi used gravity to lift the scrolls, then shot into the sky and left.
Watching him vanish, Haku and Zabuza—who'd feared a double-cross—breathed sighs of relief.
"Zabuza-sama, where to next?" Haku asked, supporting Zabuza, who'd recovered enough to stand with a crutch.
"Time to eat the rich," Zabuza said darkly, his eyes glinting as if a new world had opened to him.
Schooled by Izayoi, the Demon had grown!
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