It was precisely because of this concern that the Fourth Raikage chose to conceal the existence of the mysterious Hogan elder. Even at the Five Kage Summit, he did not mention it.
"The clues are in the Hidden Leaf, within the Hyuga clan!" The Fourth Raikage waved his large hand and said, "Cee, I'm entrusting this task to you. You must find out who that Hyuga clan boy is!"
Cee nodded heavily, "Please rest assured!"
Back on the battlefield, when he was gravely injured, he witnessed Uchiha Shinji taking away Yugito and Neji.
He naturally recognized Yugito at first glance, but the unconscious Neji was unidentifiable to him. However, based on Neji's attire, it wasn't hard to deduce that he was from the Hyuga clan.
The later appearance of the mysterious Hogan elder was also likely related to this.
So, after analysis, the Fourth Raikage felt that if he wanted to uncover the identity of the mysterious Hogan elder, Neji, who had been captured by Uchiha Shinji, was undoubtedly a breakthrough point.
The Fourth Raikage then glanced at Killer Bee and ordered, "Do not leave the base for the time being. Wait until your chakra has completely recovered."
Killer Bee nodded.
Chakra is the product of combining a shinobi's physical and mental energy, so severe chakra overuse can genuinely lead to death.
If an ordinary person had their chakra instantly drained, even if they didn't die, their body would suffer irreversible damage, losing the qualification to continue being a shinobi.
The Fourth Raikage turned to a nearby attendant and asked, "Does the Intelligence Division have any news on Yugito?"
The attendant bowed his head, "I'm very sorry!"
Suppressing his anger, the Fourth Raikage said, "Keep searching! You must find Yugito's whereabouts!"
"Yes!"
...
Hidden Stone temporary base.
The Third Tsuchikage, Ōnoki, quietly thought for a moment, then waved his hand.
Swish.
Instantly, a figure landed in front of him, bowing respectfully, "Tsuchikage-sama, do you have any orders?"
Ōnoki commanded, "Send a secret communication to the village, ordering Roshi and Han to enter Shelter No. 5. Without my orders, they are not to leave!"
Roshi and Han were both jinchuriki from Hidden Stone—Roshi being the Four-Tails jinchuriki, and Han the Five-Tails jinchuriki.
However, their control over their tailed beasts was relatively average. Unlike Killer B and Yugito, who could fully release their tailed beasts for complete transformation, their combat abilities were significantly weaker compared to Killer Bee and Yugito from Hidden Cloud.
"Understood!"
Ōnoki continued, "Go. Also, have Kurotsuchi come over!"
With a swish, the figure disappeared.
Moments later, Kurotsuchi entered the room, "You called for me?"
Ōnoki asked, "What are your thoughts on today's meeting?"
Kurotsuchi thought for a moment and replied, "If the Akatsuki's target really is the tailed beasts, we must eliminate them as soon as possible!"
Ōnoki's eyes flickered, "Why?"
"Huh!?"
Kurotsuchi was taken aback.
He didn't understand why his seasoned father would ask such an obvious question.
Ōnoki glanced at Kurotsuchi, then sighed, "You truly aren't suited to be the Tsuchikage!"
Kurotsuchi merely smiled indifferently.
Ōnoki's gaze turned profound as he looked out the window, "My intuition tells me that the Raikage wasn't being entirely truthful. At the very least, he didn't tell us everything!"
Kurotsuchi's smile faded, and he furrowed his brow slightly.
Ōnoki continued, "Orochimaru once joined the Akatsuki. Though the latest information suggests he defected from them, I still have my doubts. There are currently four or five defectors from the Hidden Leaf within Akatsuki. Can anyone believe Akatsuki has no ties to the Hidden Leaf? Who would dare believe it?"
Kurotsuchi asked in a low voice, "So, what are you suggesting?"
Ōnoki instructed, "Arrange for trustworthy people to make contact with the Akatsuki."
"You?" Kurotsuchi was shocked, then said, "Contacting the Akatsuki? If the other villages find out, the consequences will be severe!"
"Do you think they haven't had similar thoughts?" Ōnoki sneered, "Handle this matter discreetly. Currently, there are no irreconcilable conflicts between Hidden Stone and the Akatsuki, so there's no harm in having a talk."
Kurotsuchi nodded, "Understood."
Almost simultaneously, in the camps of Hidden Grass, Hidden Waterfall, and Hidden Hot Water, discussions were ongoing about contacting the Akatsuki.
The Akatsuki had demonstrated enough power to prompt them to secretly align.
Because of this, even though, on the surface, all shinobi villages were closely monitoring the Akatsuki due to the direction set by the Five Kage Summit, beneath the surface, there was a hidden surge of activity. Countless spies and information brokers operated in the shadows.
At night.
After leaving the lab, Uchiha Shinji filled his stomach at a small shop on the street, then changed clothes and sneaked into Karin's apartment.
"How have things been these past few days?"
Uchiha Shinji asked bluntly.
Karin looked at Uchiha Shinji, but the pale dojutsu in her eyes had no light, "Leader, I can feel that my eyes are recovering."
Uchiha Shinji waved his hand in front of Karin's face, and seeing that she had no reaction, he asked, "No light perception at all?"
Karin shook her head slightly, "No. The damage to these Mangekyō Sharingan is far more severe than the previous pair. I fear they won't fully recover in a short time."
Uchiha Shinji fell silent.
It seemed that recovering a completely damaged pair of Mangekyō Sharingan was indeed much harder compared to a partially damaged pair.
Seeing his silence, Karin quickly said, "Leader, please rest assured. I will do my best to recover these Mangekyō Sharingan!"
Uchiha Shinji said, "It's alright. As long as they're recovering, one day they'll see light again."
After confirming Karin's condition, he left her apartment.
Currently, he was simultaneously advancing both the "Rinnegan Plan" and the "Tenseigan Plan."
In the "Rinnegan Plan," Karin and Sasuke were key figures.
Karin currently possessed the bloodlines of both the Uzumaki and Senju clans, and had also acquired a small portion of the Divine Tree's traits from White Zetsu cells.
Once she recovered her fully intact Mangekyō Sharingan, she would be the best candidate for Rinnegan experimentation.
Sasuke, being the reincarnation of Indra Ōtsutsuki, was the backup plan for the "Rinnegan Plan." If Karin failed, Sasuke would be Uchiha Shinji's key to obtaining the Rinnegan.
As for the "Tenseigan Plan," Neji and Kimimaro were crucial.
Neji was currently Uchiha Shinji's first choice to achieve the Tenseigan, while Kimimaro was the backup.
If these two plans succeeded, Uchiha Shinji would obtain both a pair of Rinnegan and a pair of Tenseigan.