"Yuan Hua, stop calling me. I'm afraid Xia Luo might misunderstand!"
For some reason, as Uchiha Akira watched Konan refuse to return to the Akatsuki with the Six Paths of Pain, a random thought popped into his mind, making him chuckle.
Everything was going according to his plan, and that was quite satisfying.
Meanwhile, Deva Path Pain stared at Konan, his expression grim.
It had only been a few days, and yet Konan refused to return to the Akatsuki and would rather stay by Uchiha Akira's side?
Why? What could possibly have caused this change?
"Could it be… because of Kotoamatsukami?" Deva Path mused aloud.
"Did you use Kotoamatsukami on Konan instead of Orochimaru?" Pain questioned Uchiha Akira directly. "Or has enough time passed that your Kotoamatsukami can now be used a second time?"
After considering everything, Pain believed the only explanation for Konan's change of heart could be the influence of the powerful genjutsu, Kotoamatsukami.
"Leave now. My refusal to return to the Akatsuki has nothing to do with Kotoamatsukami!" Konan, with a soft but firm tone, urged the Six Paths of Pain to retreat.
It wasn't that Konan didn't want to tell Nagato the truth, but the mastermind lurking behind the Akatsuki was still shrouded in too much mystery. She didn't know the full extent of their power or influence.
If she revealed everything now, it might alert the mastermind.
So, Konan couldn't disclose her real reason for staying.
"What's this? Are you still thinking about continuing the fight?" Uchiha Akira asked when he noticed Pain hesitating to leave.
After staring deeply at Uchiha Akira with his Rinnegan, Deva Path finally said nothing and turned away, leading the Six Paths of Pain to retreat.
Nagato knew that with Naruto and Uchiha Akira together, defeating them was impossible.
Likewise, Uchiha Akira was well aware that the Six Paths were mere puppets.
Even if he managed to destroy them, Nagato, hidden somewhere, would still be a problem. It wouldn't accomplish much in the grand scheme.
In any case, the fact that Konan chose to stay with Uchiha Akira instead of returning to the Akatsuki was likely a more significant blow to Nagato than his failure to retrieve her.
Thus, Uchiha Akira's objective was achieved.
Nagato left, visibly shaken by his failure, while Uchiha Akira, along with the others, composed themselves and resumed their journey toward Iwagakure.
As for the Iwa shinobi who had spotted them from a distance? Uchiha Akira pretended not to notice them.
With the spectacle of the Advent of a World of Flowering Trees, if the Iwa patrol hadn't shown up to investigate, that would have been truly surprising.
"Is that... Uchiha Akira's power?" one of the patrolling Iwa shinobi murmured in awe.
From afar, the Iwa patrol had witnessed the battle between Uchiha Akira and the Six Paths of Pain, including the astonishing Advent of a World of Flowering Trees, which transformed the landscape.
Seeing the fight seemingly come to a standstill, with neither side able to overcome the other, the Iwa shinobi quickly retreated.
They promptly reported the situation back to Iwagakure.
"Hehehe, Akira, that Sage Mode power is really strong!" Naruto said with a broad grin as they continued their journey toward Iwagakure.
"That's because it was temporarily bestowed to you," Uchiha Akira replied. "You should focus on mastering the Toad Sage Mode of Mount Myōboku."
"I've been struggling to grasp Sage Mode, but now that I've had a taste of it, I think this experience will help me with my training!" Naruto responded with renewed determination.
Naruto's words gave Uchiha Akira pause. "Wait… could it be that my Bestow ability helps others in their training too?"
He pondered this new realization.
For instance, since Naruto had difficulty mastering Sage Mode, Akira's Bestow ability allowed him to experience it temporarily. Could this make his future training easier?
Or, what if Akira bestowed the power of the Susanoo to Sasuke?
Would it make controlling the Susanoo easier for him?
He even considered using Bestow to aid Rock Lee in opening the Eight Gates more easily.
As these thoughts swirled in his mind, Uchiha Akira realized that his Bestow ability had far more potential than he had initially realized.
With these musings, Akira and his group pressed on toward Iwagakure.
Without Konan, who had previously slowed them down, their travel speed increased significantly.
The sealing technique on Konan had been absorbed by Preta Path, and Uchiha Akira had no intention of restoring it.
Likewise, Konan made no effort to remind him to reapply the seal.
Both sides seemed to have silently agreed to let it go.
In any case, Konan hadn't fled when she had the chance, so there was no longer a need to restrain her.
After traveling from the border of the Land of Earth for three to four days, Uchiha Akira, focusing on chakra and ninjutsu training, once again improved his strength.
Finally, near the rocky hills about twenty or thirty miles from Iwagakure, Uchiha Akira's group reunited with Kakashi and the others.
"Wait, how did you end up with two extra people? And isn't she part of the Akatsuki?" Sasuke asked, surprised to see both Karin and Konan, especially with Konan still wearing the Akatsuki's black cloak with red clouds.
"This is Karin, a member of the Uzumaki Clan. We found her along the way and decided to bring her with us," Uchiha Akira explained.
"Hello, I'm Karin!" Karin introduced herself with a smile, seemingly unbothered by Uchiha Akira's casual remark about "finding" her.
After all, what he said was the truth!
However, when she saw Sasuke, Karin couldn't help but think to herself how handsome he was—almost as handsome as Akira!
So, the Uchiha Clan was full of handsome men?
"And this is Konan, a former member of the Akatsuki," Akira continued, introducing Konan. "You could say she's my prisoner of war for now."
A prisoner of war? So they had captured an Akatsuki member while aiding Sunagakure? That was quite the achievement!
Afterward, Uchiha Akira and Kakashi exchanged updates.
Kakashi's group hadn't encountered any major issues. Upon meeting Iwagakure shinobi along the way, they were recognized as Konoha envoys and were not given any trouble, even with their captive.
However, according to the original plan, Kakashi and his group should have arrived at Iwagakure several days earlier. They had lingered on the road, waiting for Uchiha Akira to rejoin them.
"Alright, we're close now. Let's head over!" Uchiha Akira said.
"It's been seven years. I wonder how that old man Ōnoki is doing now?" Akira mused aloud. "He's missing a leg now, so I imagine life must be more difficult for him."
After briefly catching up, the group headed straight for Iwagakure.
At that moment, the Third Tsuchikage, Ōnoki, sat quietly in his office, reviewing the information sent from the border.
Uchiha Akira had entered the Land of Earth's territory and had even fought with the Rinnegan wielder from the Akatsuki, though neither side had emerged victorious.
Now, Uchiha Akira was approaching Iwagakure.
"So that's how it is!" Ōnoki muttered to himself as he pieced together the situation.
He had already been informed that Kakashi and Uchiha Sasuke were accompanying the Iwa shinobi back, but they had been lingering outside Iwagakure for days.
Now it made sense—Kakashi's group had been waiting for Uchiha Akira to join them!
But why hadn't they all traveled together from the start?
And why had Uchiha Akira clashed with the Akatsuki on Iwagakure's soil?
"A single battle transformed the landscape for kilometers around?" Ōnoki marveled at the report in front of him.
"And there were six figures, each with Rinnegan? How deeply hidden is the Akatsuki?"
Ōnoki sighed heavily. "Uchiha Akira has come in person…"
Reading the report, Ōnoki couldn't help but feel the weight of the situation.
Kakashi, the Hokage's son, and even Uchiha Akira had personally come to Iwagakure?
Was such an impressive lineup from Konoha really necessary just to return Iwagakure's war criminals and discuss reparations?
In the end, Ōnoki surmised that Konoha still harbored resentment over the attack.
"Tsuchikage-sama, the Konoha envoys have arrived. Uchiha Akira is leading them, and they're already at the village gates!" a shinobi reported as he entered Ōnoki's office.
"Let's go. This old man will personally go out to greet them!" Ōnoki sighed and stood up, deciding to give the Konoha envoys a warm welcome. He knew that giving them respect might soften their stance during discussions, especially on matters like war reparations.
As Ōnoki approached the village gates, he could see Uchiha Akira and the group making their way toward Iwagakure.
"Akira, it's the Third Tsuchikage Ōnoki, and he's personally leading the Iwagakure shinobi to greet us!" Sasuke remarked as they neared the gates.
Ōnoki, for all his history, seemed to be playing his cards well, knowing when to humble himself for the sake of diplomacy.
When Uchiha Akira and his group finally arrived at the gates of Iwagakure, they were greeted by the sight of Ōnoki, leading the Iwagakure higher-ups in a formal reception.
"Uchiha Akira, it's been seven years!" Ōnoki said with a touch of nostalgia, gazing at the now-teenage Uchiha. "The boy I once knew has grown into a young man."
Time truly flew by, as the seven-year-old prodigy had now become a formidable warrior in his teenage years.
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Next bonus chapter if we reach 200 Powerstone
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Note: If you are interested, you can read up to chapter 270+ at patreon.com/Emik01.