Chương 108

The team 7 after that was never the same. Sasuke, Kakashi and Sakura, all went on what we call as a happy trip. Full of problems for sure, but happy problems. All while Naruto wasn't happy about it at all. He wanted a new ability like others, but Rei had refused, all while promising him that if he received a good one, only then he would share. Thus, though Naruto was grumbling inside he didn't voice his discontentment.

Rei had been his best friend since a long time and his words had always been marked with gold, so there might be something good waiting for him later. While the rest were training individually, Rei was doing his own things. Danzo had sent some of his underlings to kidnap him, and though he had taken care of them, while also keeping him out of the limelight, it didn't mean Rei had forgotten that.

After receiving Senjutsu from Jugo, he also had access to communication with the animals and birds around, and he had tasked them to find the Root's location. It was just to gather information and asked them to be on the lookout. Rei was sure that he would be able to find them out, and then his plan would start. As Rei was talking to the birds and animals, his sensing range suddenly picked up someone with huge amount of chakra.

It was so absurd that Rei almost thought that the person was a Jinchuriki, but then he remembered who it might be and this brought a huge smile on his face.

"Mom, I am going out."

"Okay.. Be safe.." Hana hollered from the yard, as she was trying to tend to the flowers. Gardening was one of the huge complaints of his mom, since she received Thor's powers. She couldn't tend to them the way she was able to and had already uprooted two plants by mistake. She wasn't happy and thus she was more than ever determined to control her new physique. While her husband was having the time of his life. He had come to realize that normal kunai and other attacks didn't have any affect on him.

He was virtually resistant to fire and water attacks, and thus it gave him a sense of superiority that he had never felt before. Of course Rei had told him to hide his feelings as he wasn't invincible. Rei casually strolled along one of the quieter paths on Konoha's outskirts with both hands tucked behind his head, looking no different from an ordinary genin enjoying the afternoon breeze. To anyone watching, he appeared completely relaxed. In reality, every one of his senses had already been pushed to their limit.

The enormous chakra signature he had detected hadn't moved much since he first noticed it. And beside it... Another equally terrifying presence.

"So there really are two of them..." Rei thought, keeping his breathing perfectly steady.

"Just like the original timeline." He deliberately chose the shortest route toward them instead of avoiding them. If they were here for Naruto, changing his path would only make him look suspicious. And besides he wasn't here to change that. Jiraya was around Naruto, as he had already checked and thus it didn't matter to him. Besides, there was Itachi. He wouldn't do anything that would be bad for Konoha. A few minutes later, two figures slowly came into view.

Both wore long black cloaks decorated with crimson clouds. Wide straw hats hung low enough to conceal their faces, while small bells dangling from the brim softly chimed with every step. Even without seeing their faces, Rei recognized them instantly. Itachi Uchiha. Kisame Hoshigaki. The pair walked calmly toward the village. They too were being a bit cautious and were very professional. As expected from the top two spies of the ninja world. When you think about it, these two people were the greatest spies.

One was spying Konoha, and the other was spying for bullshit. Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. Yeah, it did fit perfectly. Rei lowered his gaze like any ordinary civilian would after noticing two intimidating strangers. As the distance between them closed, he subtly adjusted his pace. Three meters... Two... One... Their shoulders brushed a bit more strongly than he intended to. Or maybe this too was deliberate.

"... Ah!" Rei stumbled backward with perfectly rehearsed surprise.

"S-Sorry!" Kisame immediately stopped walking.

"The hell?" he growled, turning toward the teenager. His large hand instinctively moved toward Samehada.

"You got a death wish, brat?" The sheer killing intent leaking from the swordsman made the surrounding air noticeably heavier. Rei widened his eyes in apparent terror before instinctively taking several hurried steps backward.

"I-I didn't mean to! I wasn't looking where I was going!" Kisame clicked his tongue.

"You bump into people and that's your excuse?" His fingers tightened around Samehada's bandaged handle as though seriously considering teaching the boy a lesson. Before he could take another step, a calm voice interrupted him.

"... Kisame." Itachi said.

"It was an accident."

"Tch."

"Our objective hasn't changed." Kisame continued glaring at Rei for another few seconds before finally snorting.

"... You're lucky. It isn't worth delaying the mission over something this insignificant." Only then did Rei dare lift his head slightly. Beneath the shadow cast by the straw hat, he briefly caught sight of a pair of crimson eyes. One tomoe Sharingan. Itachi used genjutsu on him in order to make Rei forget that he saw them, and Rei, just like the good Oscar actor he was allowed Itachi to do his genjutsu. He himself had Sharingan, so he could easily get out of this second grade genjutsu.

But that would be counter productive.

"... Sorry..." Rei bowed once more before hurriedly scrambling away, almost tripping over his own feet in his rush to leave. Itachi had given that prompt too. Only after the teenager disappeared around the bend did Kisame speak again.

"Scared him half to death."

"He was just a child," Itachi replied evenly.

"Still annoying."

"Perhaps." Silence returned between the two Akatsuki members as they resumed walking toward Konoha. Neither of them spared another glance behind. Meanwhile, several streets away, Rei finally slowed his pace. The frightened expression vanished from his face almost instantly.

"So that's how it feels..." Rei thought as she remembered the eyes of Itachi.

The story went as exactly as expected. Itachi and Kisame were trying to find information on Naruto, and Kakashi noticed them. It had been some days since gaining the Uchiha bloodline, thus by now he had full control over his eyes, though his other eye still stayed hidden. While Sasuke was slowly getting used to his newfound powers. But the new bloodline didn't much help him in countering Itachi's Tsukuyomi.

This came hard and fast, and made Kakashi useless and was only saved by Guy at the end and his non-conventional ways. The two escaped and went for Naruto while later Sasuke being around got to know that his brother was back and that sent him off the rails. He went straight to find Naruto, and nobody could stop him. And Sasuke finally came to face to face with Itachi. Sasuke arrived just in time to see the the duo standing in front of Naruto, who was confused at the moment.

"... Itachi." The name escaped his lips almost like a whisper, yet the hatred contained within it was enough to chill the surrounding air. His heartbeat accelerated as years of suppressed rage resurfaced all at once. Every nightmare, every scream and every corpse lying inside the Uchiha compound flashed before his eyes. He had imagined this moment countless times, and now that it had finally arrived, there was no hesitation left inside him. The two Akatsuki members turned around.

Kisame immediately noticed the Sharingan glaring at them while Itachi simply remained silent beneath his straw hat. For several long seconds neither brother uttered a single word. Sasuke had grown taller since they last met, his posture straighter and far more confident than before. But the hatred burning within those crimson eyes hadn't diminished even slightly. He remembered the last time he saw his brother, he was so young and supple, and now he had grown up. He couldn't help but smile inside.

Sasuke, meanwhile, looked at Kisame and Naruto. He knew why they were here and he wasn't going to let them have their way. Naruto, even though he was dead last, was one his close friends, especially after spending so much time together, in both the worlds. There was no way he would let them touch his friend. He wished Rei was here, but it's fine even if he wasn't. He wasn't the same weak guy anymore.

"... Move Naruto." Sasuke's voice was calm, yet every syllable carried unmistakable killing intent.

"I'm only here for him." Kisame glanced sideways toward Itachi before letting out an amused chuckle.

"Looks like your little brother finally found us." The shark-man stepped forward, casually resting Samehada upon his shoulder as though facing nothing more than an angry child.

"You'll have to wait your turn, kid. Itachi-san is busy."

"I don't have time for you."

"Too bad."