In the timeline of the Third Hokage, Obito had already obtained Madara's rib bone and was heading toward Konoha.
In Tobirama Senju's timeline, the Anbu ninja he sent out had successfully located Kakuzu.
"It's been nearly a month. Finally, we've found him. Where is he now?"
"Reporting to Lord Hokage, Kakuzu is currently in Izumo City, near the border of the Land of Lightning."
"You've earned two days off. Go and rest well."
"Thank you, Lord Hokage."
Now that they knew Kakuzu's location, things were easier to handle. Tobirama immediately started gathering people.
First, he visited his sister-in-law, Uzumaki Mito, and invited her to join. She didn't even ask what Tobirama planned to do; she simply agreed cheerfully at the thought of leaving the village.
Next, Tobirama gathered his four disciples who were still in the village: Shimura Danzo, Mitokado Homura, Utatane Koharu, and Akimichi Torifu.
The four didn't ask many questions either and happily accepted their teacher's invitation.
As for Uchiha Kagami and Sarutobi Hiruzen, Tobirama used his Flying Thunder God Technique to visit the Fire Capital. After a brief conversation with the Daimyo of the Land of Fire, he successfully secured a few days off for both Hiruzen and Kagami.
"Hiruzen, Kagami, you two go to Izumo City first and wait there. I'll join you soon with Mito and the others."
"Yes, Sensei."
While chatting with the Daimyo, Tobirama also took the opportunity to restore his chakra. Now mostly recovered, he quickly teleported back to Konoha.
"Alright, we've gathered everyone. Let's head out."
Knowing that time was crucial, Tobirama didn't bother with any diversions to hide their movements. He led his five companions openly out of the village.
Spies from various villages who were hiding in Konoha noticed and quickly used their own methods to contact the outside world, revealing that Tobirama Senju had left the village with his disciples.
Since Uzumaki Mito was well-protected in the village and wore a mask, the spies had no idea that the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki had also left the village with them.
The Land of Lightning is located in the northeast of the Land of Fire, with the Land of Rice Fields lying in between.
In the original storyline, the ninja village in the Land of Rice Fields was created by Orochimaru as the Hidden Sound Village.
However, in Tobirama's current timeline, the events of the original story have not yet begun, so this country doesn't have its own ninja village yet.
This works out well—without any ninja interference, Tobirama's group managed to pass through the Land of Rice Fields in just over a day and arrive at the border of the Land of Lightning.
Now that they were here, they couldn't move as openly and recklessly.
After all, the Hidden Cloud Village in the Land of Lightning is one of the Five Great Ninja Villages.
Although Tobirama had extorted a large amount of supplies and money from the Hidden Cloud Village half a year ago, the village has the support of the Land of Lightning, so they should have recovered quite a bit by now.
To avoid unnecessary trouble, Tobirama's group began to conceal their movements.
Of course, he knew they wouldn't be able to stay hidden for long.
But as long as they moved fast enough, they could find Kakuzu, beat him until he surrendered, and then head back to the village immediately.
If they were fast enough, anyone with plans against them wouldn't have time to catch up.
Another day passed, and Tobirama's group successfully reached Izumo City.
They found the markers left by the Anbu ninja, Hiruzen, and Kagami, allowing the Konoha side to regroup.
"Kagami? Where is he? Why isn't he here?"
"Kagami is following Kakuzu."
"Oh? What's going on? Explain it to me."
"Well, sensei, you arrived a bit late. Kakuzu already claimed his bounty from the Bounty Station and left Izumo City. To avoid losing track of him, Kagami followed him out of the city."
"I see."
Tobirama had already considered this possibility on the way, so he wasn't surprised to hear that Kakuzu had left Izumo City.
"Alright, then let's follow the signs Kagami left and catch up."
With that, Tobirama turned to look at the six Anbu ninja wearing masks and continued, "You all can return to Konoha now. We won't need you for the rest of the mission."
"Yes, Lord Hokage."
"Not bad at all! Luck's been on my side these past couple of days~"
"Finally got some business!"
Walking down a shaded path, Kakuzu looked genuinely pleased.
Ever since he became a rogue ninja from Takigakure, he had put all his energy into making money.
As a ninja, though, he didn't really have any skills beyond cutting people down.
After thinking it over, he decided to work as a bounty hunter.
Fortunately, nearly every major city across the nations had at least one Bounty Station where bounties were handled.
These exchanges became the perfect source for him to make a living as a bounty hunter.
Taking jobs, killing the targets, collecting rewards—it had been a simple routine for many years.
Kakuzu, having earned a substantial amount of bounty money, never grew tired of it. He found it endlessly entertaining.
It allowed him to enjoy the thrill of combat (or rather, overwhelming his opponents) while raking in large sums of cash. He could keep doing this for another hundred years without getting bored.
Lately, though, his luck had taken a bit of a downturn.
Either he'd accept a job, track down the target, and then find that someone had already taken their head, or there wouldn't be any jobs worth his time.
Taking on small-time bounties worth just a few tens of thousands of ryō was a complete waste of his efforts.
Luckily, two days ago, after entering the Land of Lightning, he spotted a bounty for a rogue ninja from Kirigakure worth three million ryō.
No hesitation—after a long stretch without any real work, he immediately took action, killed the rogue, and collected his bounty from the Bounty Station.
He had planned to stay in Izumo City for a few more days to rest.
However, with his sharp senses, he noticed that someone in the city was keeping a close watch on him.
After receiving the bounty, Kakuzu immediately left the city.
In the bustling crowd, he couldn't easily tell who was watching him.
But if anyone followed him out of the city, they couldn't blame him for what would happen next.
With this thought, Kakuzu felt he had already put enough distance between himself and Izumo City. Even if a battle broke out, it would take the Cloud Village's shinobi some time to arrive.
"Well then, let's see if these rats will follow me out."
Kakuzu stepped behind a large tree, quietly laying down a few black threads.
These threads were a product of his Earth Grudge Fear technique; they could be used to attack enemies, stitch up his body, or even scout the area.
To throw off any potential trackers, Kakuzu created a clone to continue walking forward while he hid himself in a secure spot.
With the large tree as cover, Uchiha Kagami didn't notice Kakuzu's subtle movements.
After Kakuzu left the tree, Kagami followed in his footsteps and arrived at the spot.
The presence of the black threads alerted Kakuzu, hidden nearby, that someone truly fearless was tracking him from behind.
There was nothing left to discuss.
If they dared to follow him, then it was time to strike!
Kakuzu raised his right hand, lifting his index and middle fingers slightly. Instantly, the black threads buried beneath the tree shot out, aiming straight for Uchiha Kagami's neck.
Hearing the sharp sound from behind, Kagami quickly dodged the attack and formed a hand sign. He used the Great Fireball Jutsu to burn the black threads to ashes.
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