Naruto: Uchiha Survivor Forced to Save the Shinobi World

The same meeting hall, the same people.

But this time, the Five Kage Summit felt far heavier. Even the usually hot-tempered Fourth Raikage remained uncharacteristically quiet.

The recent joint operation, involving an elite combined force from the Five Great Shinobi Villages, had not only failed but also resulted in significant casualties.

For instance, the Kirigakure team had been decimated, leaving Zabuza as the sole survivor.

Such a result left even the Third Tsuchikage, who had initially wanted to see Kumogakure embarrassed, lost in thought.

The "Upper Rank Two" had thus entered the Five Great Shinobi Villages' radar, triggering the Kage's already sensitive and fragile nerves.

The Third Hokage broke the silence, saying, "Let us discuss this matter."

The Third Tsuchikage glanced around at the attendees. "Is this 'Upper Rank Two' from the Akatsuki really that formidable?"

The leaders of the joint operation exchanged looks before Kakashi stood up. "The opponent is exceptionally powerful. Based on our evaluation, even with targeted preparations, it would take at least four to eight jōnin to match them."

As soon as Kakashi's words fell, a wave of hushed murmurs erupted from the smaller shinobi villages' seats.

Requiring four to eight jōnin, even with preparation, clearly indicated the opponent was not only an elite jōnin but someone of Kage-level strength.

And this was just one "Upper Rank Two."

Given what had already been revealed about "Upper Rank Six," it was clear that Akatsuki had at least six Upper Rank members, with "Upper Rank One" still a complete mystery.

If just "Upper Rank Two" was Kage-level, the combined strength of all the Upper Ranks was utterly terrifying—enough to make even the smaller villages tremble in fear.

The Third Tsuchikage asked again, "Did you gather any additional intelligence on the one using that space-time ninjutsu?"

Kakashi shook his head. "Unfortunately, no."

The Third Tsuchikage's face darkened.

For the Five Great Shinobi Villages, the mysterious Akatsuki member wielding space-time ninjutsu posed a far greater threat than "Upper Rank Two."

While "Upper Rank Two" was powerful, the Five Great Shinobi Villages could mobilize far more than four to eight jōnin—they could easily muster dozens if necessary. For villages capable of commanding tens of thousands of shinobi in wartime, this wasn't an issue.

But the space-time ninjutsu user was a different story.

As long as that member existed, any battle scenario would remain unpredictable.

Take the recent operation as an example. Although the joint force was far superior to "Upper Rank Two" in overall strength, their forces had been divided and isolated by the space-time ninjutsu, leaving them vulnerable to being defeated piecemeal.

"The Akatsuki's strength may be even greater than we had initially imagined," the Third Hokage said after a pause. "The same night the joint operation set out, the Akatsuki's 'A' infiltrated the Hidden Leaf and kidnapped the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki."

"What?!"

The Kage present all reacted with shock.

The Third Hokage raised his hands, gesturing for calm. "Rest assured, thanks to our efforts in the Hidden Leaf, we successfully rescued the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki."

The Fourth Mizukage squinted. "So their target really is the Tailed Beasts."

If the capture of Kumogakure's Two-Tails Jinchūriki had been insufficient proof of the Akatsuki's intentions, the abduction of the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki left no doubt.

As the Fourth Mizukage murmured to himself, the other Kage fell into deep thought.

The importance of Tailed Beasts to their villages was self-evident.

The Mizukage himself was the Three-Tails Jinchūriki. Akatsuki targeting Tailed Beasts meant they were targeting him directly.

The One-Tails Jinchūriki was the Fourth Kazekage's son.

The Eight-Tails Jinchūriki was the Fourth Raikage's brother.

The Nine-Tails Jinchūriki was the Fourth Hokage's son.

Even in Iwagakure, the two Jinchūriki were critical assets, serving as deterrents to the other great nations.

The confirmation of Akatsuki's goal eliminated any possibility of reconciliation between the Five Great Shinobi Villages and Akatsuki.

Even smaller villages like Takigakure, which also possessed a Tailed Beast, found themselves with no room to maneuver.

The Fourth Raikage suddenly asked, "Hokage, how did you rescue the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki? Did you defeat 'A'?"

The Third Hokage briefly recounted the operation to save Naruto, then sighed. "Alas, 'A' ultimately escaped."

The joint operation had been futile, and the Hidden Leaf's rescue mission had failed to capture a single Akatsuki member.

This meant the Five Great Shinobi Villages still lacked any substantial intelligence on Akatsuki's inner workings.

The Fourth Mizukage glanced at the other Kage, his gaze lowering as he thought, "It seems Kirigakure still holds the advantage."

He had already received Mei Terumi's detailed report.

Though the test site contained only a mysterious warrior set by Akatsuki, Mei Terumi and Kisame's brief appearance indicated Akatsuki's members had not fully revealed themselves, leaving Haku with a chance to infiltrate their ranks.

The Takigakure representative also had similar thoughts.

Though their first wave of shinobi sent to assist Karin had all perished, the subsequent squad had successfully extracted her.

Based on Karin's account, Akatsuki's test was solely about survival—if she had survived, she might have passed their evaluation.

If Karin managed to infiltrate Akatsuki, Takigakure would gain direct access to Akatsuki's secrets.

Elsewhere:

Orochimaru, disguised as the Otogakure representative, smirked, his lips curling upward.

As a former member of Akatsuki, his knowledge far surpassed anyone present. Watching the Five Kage fret over Akatsuki's intelligence filled him with amusement.

However, Kabuto's latest report weighed on his mind.

While the others were debating "Upper Rank Two," Orochimaru was preoccupied with "Upper Rank One."

To others, "Upper Rank One" was a shadowy figure who had never revealed themselves. But Orochimaru knew otherwise.

Not only did he possess information about "Upper Rank One," but he also knew they had recently clashed with Akatsuki's "A" and suffered defeat.

Listening to the Third Hokage's account of the rescue mission, a question nagged at Orochimaru:

How had Akatsuki's "A" traveled from the deserts of the Land of Wind to the snowy mountains of the Land of Lightning in just a few days?