"You're back already?" Hiruzen looked up in surprise as he saw them enter.
Akira responded gravely, "The situation was unexpected. We felt it was crucial to report this immediately."
"Unexpected?" A serious expression crossed Hiruzen's face, a foreboding feeling settling over him. He glanced over the two, then realized something and asked,
"Yamanaka Juro and Aburame Shiga… have they fallen?"
"Our opponent was formidable. Yamanaka Juro gave his life in battle," Akira answered solemnly.
"Ah… such a loss." Hiruzen sighed before looking around, "And where is Aburame Shiga? Why isn't he here?"
Akira's voice was steady. "Lord Hokage, Aburame Shiga may have been a spy for a foreign country. After our encounter with the enemy, he attempted to ambush me. When that failed, he took his own life."
As much as he suspected Danzō's involvement, it was better to leave that unspoken—at least until they had concrete proof.
"What?" Hiruzen's eyes went wide with shock, wondering if he had misheard. He quickly turned to Kaori.
"Is it true, Jonin Kaori? Is this how it happened?"
"Yes, Lord Hokage," Kaori replied with a respectful bow, her tone grave. "Just as Akira described, Aburame Shiga attempted an ambush but ultimately took his own life."
"Damn Danzō…" Hiruzen muttered darkly, clenching his jaw. He could easily guess who might have orchestrated this.
Hiruzen's face softened slightly as he looked at Akira.
"Akira, I apologize deeply for Aburame Shiga's actions. I failed to see his true nature… I'm just grateful you're safe."
"No need to blame yourself, Lord Hokage. Who could have predicted that someone from the Aburame clan would defect to an enemy country?" Akira replied calmly.
"Yes… I'll have the Aburame clan head stay vigilant on this." Hiruzen picked up his pipe, taking a deep drag before exhaling in frustration, as though trying to dispel his anger.
Akira and Kaori exchanged a glance before each laid a scroll on Hiruzen's desk.
"Lord Hokage, these contain the full details of the mission. Reviewing them will give you a clearer picture of what we encountered."
"Good, let me take a look. I need to understand what happened."
Hiruzen opened Kaori's scroll first, scanning its contents. His expression quickly shifted to one of intense shock, as though he'd read something inconceivable.
"The Rinnegan…" he muttered, the lines on his face deepening with unease. Setting Kaori's scroll aside, he opened Akira's and continued reading.
"Another Rinnegan user with different abilities… The last one we encountered had summoning abilities, but this one can manipulate repulsive and attractive forces…" As he read on, Hiruzen's frown deepened.
"Repulsion, attraction, summoning colossal, unidentified beasts… even enduring the force of lightning across miles…" The more he read, the heavier his heart grew.
"Uchiha Madara?!" Hiruzen's hand shook as he read about a man claiming to be the legendary Uchiha.
"Did he really call himself Uchiha Madara?" Hiruzen's tone was dead serious as he locked eyes with Akira.
"Yes, he did. I suspect he possesses space-time jutsu. His arrivals and departures were abrupt and seemingly effortless," Akira replied calmly.
"Space-time jutsu… Could Uchiha Madara have wielded such a power?" Hiruzen murmured, visibly troubled as he continued reading the intelligence Akira had gathered on the enemy's abilities.
"Rinnegan with immense repulsive power… five-second intervals… an unknown interval for attraction… limited battle experience, likely young… Possibly a puppet, not the true body…" Hiruzen muttered the words aloud, feeling the weight of the situation sink in. After a long, contemplative silence, he thudded a fist on his desk.
In an instant, three ANBU operatives appeared, kneeling before him.
"Notify the councillors, Jiraiya, Orochimaru, Minato, and the heads of each clan. Have them convene in the third-floor meeting room within the hour."
"Yes, Lord Hokage." The ANBU vanished as swiftly as they had appeared.
"Akira, Kaori, I want you both to attend the meeting as well," Hiruzen instructed.
Half an hour later, the meeting room was filled with the Leaf Village's highest-ranking members. Once everyone was seated, Hiruzen passed out copies of the mission scrolls.
"This intelligence was gathered in Amegakure. I ask that each of you review it."
"Amegakure…" Jiraiya's expression shifted, his thoughts drifting to his former students. "I wonder how Yahiko and the others are doing. With them there, I'd hoped things were improving…"
But as he opened the scroll and read its contents, Jiraiya froze, as if struck by lightning. Shock and disbelief filled his face.
"This… This can't be…"
Orochimaru and Minato exchanged a puzzled glance, intrigued by Jiraiya's reaction.
"So Jiraiya has a connection to the Rinnegan user… It seems they may share a complex history," Orochimaru thought, picking up on the implications.
"Jiraiya-sensei appears to have a deep bond with this Rinnegan user," Minato mused.
Jiraiya's reaction hadn't gone unnoticed by the others, who watched him intently. While the Rinnegan's appearance was startling, it hadn't yet matured, and the village might still have ways to address it.
Hiruzen's voice cut through the silence, now tinged with frustration. "Jiraiya!"
But Jiraiya, lost in his thoughts, didn't respond.
"Jiraiya!" Hiruzen's voice boomed, his chakra flaring with such intensity that the room itself seemed to tremble. Hiruzen was still at his peak, his chakra was notably powerful, even among Kage-level shinobi.
Hiruzen glared at him, visibly irritated.
"What's going on, Jiraiya? Do you know the one wielding the Rinnegan?"
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