Naruto: The Otsutsuki Naruto

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At the seventh floor of the tower in Amegakure, within a quiet room...

Naruto stood before a mirror, examining himself in the Akatsuki's signature black cloak adorned with red clouds. He chuckled softly, "I never thought there'd come a day when I'd wear this outfit."

"Alright then!"

*Clap!* He smacked his fist into his palm, his cloak fluttering as he turned sharply and strode out of the room with purpose.

---

In the corridor, Konan leaned against the window, her bright orange eyes watching Naruto approach. "This cloak suits you well," she remarked with a faint smile.

Naruto waved dismissively, returning a casual smile. "Don't tease me."

"Here, take this."

Konan extended her hand, revealing a ring resting in her palm.

Naruto took the ring, which still carried the warmth of Konan's hand. Its center bore a light blue background engraved with the kanji for "zero" (零).

"Zero," Naruto murmured, his gaze sharpening.

Konan's expression turned serious. "The Akatsuki operates in pairs, and each official member has a codename. Pain's previous codename was 'Zero,' symbolizing nothingness. I hope you'll inherit this name."

As she spoke, Konan turned her hand to reveal the ring on her own middle finger, with a white background and white kanji.

"For reference, my codename is 'White,' symbolizing the White Tiger."

"I understand."

Naruto nodded solemnly and carefully slipped the ring onto his left thumb.

Seeing this, Konan's lips curved into a faint smile.

"And this," she continued, reaching to her waist and pulling out a bulging pouch, which she handed to Naruto. "These are soldier pills. I noticed your previous ones were damp and unusable."

Naruto scratched his head sheepishly. "Ah, yeah. When I went to retrieve Kisame, I spent a long time hiding underground in the damp."

Konan nodded. "Throw those away. Eating them could harm your body."

Naruto accepted the soldier pills with a serious expression. "Thank you, Sister Konan."

Konan smiled lightly. "We're on the same path. No need for formalities."

---

A few minutes later, the two stepped out of the tower. Orochimaru and Kisame were already waiting in the rain.

Naruto's mind was sharp and cautious. "Our presence in Amegakure might not go unnoticed. To be safe…"

He formed a hand seal.

*Poof!*

A shadow clone appeared beside him.

"I'll leave my shadow clone here to guard the base. If anything unexpected happens, I can return instantly using the Flying Raijin Jutsu."

The journey from Amegakure to Kumogakure spanned thousands of miles, requiring passage through the Land of Grass, the Land of Waterfalls, the Land of Iron, the Land of Sound, the Land of Hot Water, and the Land of the Moon before reaching the Land of Lightning, where Kumogakure was located.

Even for a jonin, such a journey would take ten days to two weeks on foot.

However, with the Flying Raijin Jutsu, Naruto could instantly teleport to pre-marked locations, such as the Land of Iron, cutting the journey time by more than half. He could even leave Flying Raijin marks along the way, enabling him to travel back and forth between Amegakure and their current location.

Such was the power of space-time ninjutsu.

"The last location where the Raikage fought Kisame was at the southern border of the Land of Waves. For the Raikage to return to his village, he'll need to travel from south to north, crossing the vast Land of Waves. Moreover, the Land of Waves has many waterways, which will drain his chakra and force him to rest along the way. With some luck, we might reach Kumogakure before the Raikage gets back."

Naruto slowly placed his mask over his face, his aura shifting dramatically.

Konan placed a hand on Naruto's back, while Naruto rested his hands on Orochimaru's and Kisame's shoulders.

"Let's move."

Before departing, Orochimaru glanced at the open space outside the tower. "Once we return from this trip, I should begin preparations to build my new lab."

---

Meanwhile, in the snowy mountains behind the Land of Iron...

"Argh!!" Two patrolling samurai fell to the ground with pained screams.

*Clang!*

Suigetsu Hozuki planted the Executioner's Blade into the ground, baring his sharp teeth in a grin. "I left one of them alive for you. Now's your chance."

Jūgo, in the form of a child, walked coldly toward the barely breathing samurai lying on the ground.

The samurai gritted his teeth. "You… you're shinobi!"

"Blame that blond shinobi for turning me into this!" Jūgo growled.

Mounting the samurai's back, Jūgo covered his mouth and nose, activating his Cursed Seal.

*Mmff!*

The samurai let out muffled cries as his body rapidly withered, leaving behind an empty suit of armor.

Absorbing the samurai's life energy, Jūgo reverted to his adult form.

Suigetsu smirked. "What a thrill. Doing something like this… if we get caught, we're definitely getting thrown into a death row cell~!"

As the cursed seal receded, Jūgo muttered darkly, "We need to get back to Sasuke. I can feel my killing intent rising again."

During the previous confrontation between the Five Kage and Naruto, these two had slipped away unnoticed. Instead of leaving the Land of Iron immediately, they disguised themselves as samurai, waiting for the right moment to act.

"Well, Jūgo, Suigetsu, fancy meeting you again so soon." A playful voice suddenly sounded behind them.

*Whoosh!*

The two spun around, instantly on guard.

Naruto stood there, flanked by Konan, Orochimaru, and Kisame.

Suigetsu's eyes widened in shock. "That was a dead end behind us just now! How did he get here?!"

Jūgo's voice was low. "He has the ability to jump through space. But to appear at this exact moment… what terrible timing."

"That's right. Life's full of coincidences." Naruto glanced at the samurai's corpse and the withered armor before shifting his gaze back to them.

Suigetsu's thoughts raced. *That monster who could pin Sasuke to the ground… better not provoke him. Wait! That cloak… and Kisame-senpai! Did he join the Akatsuki too?!*

Quickly, Suigetsu raised his hands. "We're on the same side! Don't attack!"

Naruto's tone was amused. "Aren't you part of Taka?"

Suigetsu replied, "Taka and the Akatsuki are allies, after all."

Naruto chuckled softly. "Unfortunately, we're not Akatsuki."

Jūgo asked cautiously, "What do you want? Did you come here specifically to find us?"

Naruto replied, "It's purely a coincidence. But since we've met here, it must be fate. Join us, or…"

The faint aura emanating from Naruto made Suigetsu's hair stand on end.

Jūgo's expression darkened. His loyalty to Sasuke made him reluctant to betray him.

Suigetsu, however, kept signaling with his eyes: *Hey, survival comes first!*

Naruto's tone deepened. "Jūgo, if you want to find Sasuke, it won't be easy. And you don't want your cursed seal to go out of control and hurt innocent people or animals, do you? Until you see Sasuke again, perhaps I can be the restraint you need."

As he spoke, Naruto slowly removed his mask, revealing his left eye—a Sharingan with three tomoe.

Jūgo's eyes narrowed. "Fine. I don't know what your goal is, but I'll stay with you for now. But I'll never betray Sasuke."

Naruto gestured to the carnage on the ground. "Suit yourself. But in exchange for covering up what you've done here, you'll need to contribute to our mission."

Jūgo hesitated briefly before nodding. "Deal."

"Phew." Suigetsu let out a long breath and joined Jūgo behind Naruto.

Orochimaru's lips curled into a sly smile. "Suigetsu, my dear subordinate, it wasn't long ago that you were pointing your sword at me. Who would've thought we'd be working together so soon?"

Suigetsu rubbed his hands together with a nervous grin. "Of course! I've always believed Lord Orochimaru is my destined master!"

Naruto placed his mask back on, his voice steady. "Let's keep moving. To Kumogakure!"

---

Their mission: infiltrate the village, locate the scroll detailing the secrets of the Lightning Release Chakra Mode, and take it.

Mission difficulty: Super S-Rank.

After this tense encounter, Naruto's group of six set off from the Land of Iron, heading toward Kumogakure!