Next, Minato instructed all the ninjas in Konohagakure to memorize the faces of these two individuals. Any ninja below Jonin level who encountered these two or any members of Akatsuki should run as far as possible. Even if they failed their mission, they wouldn't be punished.
After this incident, Akatsuki became completely famous.
"We have already captured the One-Tail and the Two-Tails, but this pace is too slow. We are running out of time. Itachi, Kisame, you two need to speed up. So far, you haven't made any progress."
In this Akatsuki meeting, Pain frowned and looked at Uchiha Itachi and Hoshigaki Kisame.
"Understood, leader. We have already reached the territory of Iwagakure Village. It won't be long before we make some progress."
Hoshigaki Kisame showed his sharp-toothed smile.
"If that's the case, then that's the best."
Then, Pain gave Itachi a deep look but didn't say anything.
"Every time I see the leader's eyes, they are full of pressure."
After the projection technique ended, Hoshigaki Kisame opened his eyes in Iwagakure Village and spoke to Uchiha Itachi.
"The Rinnegan, the legendary eyes, it's normal to feel pressure."
Uchiha Itachi said calmly.
"But I'm more curious about which is stronger, the leader's Rinnegan or your Mangekyou Sharingan, Itachi-san."
Hoshigaki Kisame said with a wicked smile. As Itachi's teammate, he had spent years with Uchiha Itachi, and ever since Itachi's terminal illness was cured, Hoshigaki Kisame felt that Itachi was becoming more and more terrifying. This was his beastly intuition.
And this intuition was something he had never felt from Pain.
"I haven't fought him, so I don't know, but I believe the Mangekyou Sharingan won't lose."
At this point, there was a hint of confidence in Uchiha Itachi's tone, of course, this was without knowing that the Rinnegan was the final evolution of the Sharingan.
"Itachi-san, you really are confident."
As Kisame finished speaking, several Iwagakure Village Anbu suddenly appeared and surrounded Hoshigaki Kisame and Uchiha Itachi.
"With those red cloud black robes, are you from the Akatsuki organization?"
One of the Iwagakure Village Anbu asked seriously.
"Itachi-san, it seems our organization is quite famous now. Should I take care of them?"
"No need, your Ninjutsu is too loud, it will alert them."
As soon as Itachi finished speaking, the Iwagakure Village Anbu surrounding them suddenly fell one by one.
"As expected of Itachi-san, your Genjutsu is so masterful that I didn't even notice when you cast it."
Kisame's expression suddenly changed, and he spoke with a serious tone.
He had always wanted to spar with Uchiha Itachi, but never had the time or opportunity. Now, seeing such terrifying Genjutsu, Kisame's desire to challenge Itachi was gradually fading away.
"My Genjutsu doesn't rely solely on the Sharingan."
This was the confidence of a Genjutsu master. Even without the Sharingan, Itachi could use any part of his body to cast Genjutsu. Even a flick of his finger or the movement of his clothes in the wind could be a medium for Genjutsu.
"But after Hidan's commotion, Iwagakure Village will probably hide their Jinchuriki well. Finding the Jinchuriki won't be easy, right?"
"It's simple, just ask the Third Tsuchikage."
Uchiha Itachi said the most arrogant words in the calmest tone. Directly asking the Third Tsuchikage where their village's Jinchuriki was, was something only Pain or Uchiha Itachi would do.
"As expected of Itachi-san, you say such things with such confidence."
At this moment, Hoshigaki Kisame was increasingly shocked. He didn't know how to describe his feelings.
This was practically a declaration of war against Iwagakure Village.
"Because no one can resist the Mangekyou Sharingan's Genjutsu."
Finding the Jinchuriki's location was difficult, but finding the Third Tsuchikage's location was easy.
Soon, night fell, and everyone in Iwagakure Village was resting. The bright moonlight shone on Iwagakure Village, adding a rare bit of light.
But no one noticed that the surface of the moon had a Three Tomoe Sharingan pattern, which only lasted for a moment.
Outside Iwagakure Village, Uchiha Itachi's face was somewhat pale, but due to the cells of the First Hokage in his body, his complexion quickly returned to a healthy color. This showed just how terrifying the regenerative abilities of the First Hokage's cells were.
"As expected of Itachi-san, you actually hypnotized everyone in Iwagakure Village. Even if we killed everyone inside now, no one would probably notice."
"Don't do anything unnecessary, Kisame."
"Yes, Itachi-san."
Although the Akatsuki squads didn't have official leaders, Kisame usually listened to Uchiha Itachi.
Just now, Itachi had cast a large-scale hypnotic Genjutsu over the entire Iwagakure Village, making those who had just fallen asleep immediately enter a deep sleep, those who were drowsy fall asleep instantly, and those who were awake feel extremely sleepy.
However, since this Genjutsu was carried out silently and resembled a natural phenomenon, no one in Iwagakure Village noticed.
After about half an hour, Uchiha Itachi, who had been resting with his eyes closed, opened his eyes.
"Let's go, Kisame."
According to Uchiha Itachi's estimation, there were probably no conscious people left in Iwagakure Village. Even if there were, they would be very few and wouldn't hinder their plan.
"Yes, Itachi-san."
The two moved like shadows, openly traversing above Iwagakure Village. It was hard to imagine that such a large ninja village hadn't noticed these blatant intruders.
The barrier protecting Iwagakure Village was like nothing to Uchiha Itachi. By controlling a gatekeeper ninja, they could easily pass through.
They quickly reached the Third Tsuchikage's bedroom, a place they had already located during the day.
Looking at the sleeping Third Tsuchikage, the two stared at him expressionlessly.
(End of Chapter)