XX-level Hokage

With everyone gathered, the party proceeded as planned at Mashiro's villa. (I won't elaborate further here; there will be a bonus chapter if you're interested.)

After the party ended, Mashiro looked at the white papers scattered around the bed and muttered to himself, "Let's begin." For the second challenge, the village assigned Naruto, Sasuke, and Koro a task.

Soon after, news broke that a mysterious organization had attacked the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki. Following this, news of the Jinchuriki's disappearance began to circulate throughout the ninja world.

Meanwhile, Konoha dispatched envoys to Kumogakure to discuss matters related to Jinchuriki.

Chapter 131: The Great Battle of the Cloud Ninja (Part 1)

In a cave in Kusagakure, Kakuzu and Sasori were resting. Due to the severe damage to the drainage system, Sasori revealed his true form.

“We failed,” Kakuzu suddenly said. Sasori remained silent.

The order to capture the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki was given to them by Shinji.

Mashiro provided them with the location of the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki and told them not to use excessive force. Following Mashiro's directions, they successfully encountered the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, leading to a fierce battle. Ultimately, the capture failed, and the two wolves escaped.

At first, the two of them didn't really go all out, after all, they were just going through the motions because of Mashiro. But in the end, even if they went all out, they couldn't do anything to those three young people.

This was a significant blow to both of them, especially to Kakuzu. "What should I say when I get back?" Kakuzu muttered to himself.

"Give it back?" Scorpion countered. "That's true."

They no longer need to return to Xiao.

Kakuzu rose, and the two emerged from the cave, disappearing into the forest. Deep within the Tower of God in the Land of Rain.

"The Jade Maiden and the North Star have failed and their whereabouts are currently unknown." Obito appeared beside Nagato and said, "I understand." Nagato said calmly.

"We only need the Eight-Tails and the Nine-Tails to gather all nine tailed beasts. What are you planning to do?" Obito asked softly.

"I will take Rokudo and Konan to Kumogakure to capture the Eight-Tails. The Nine-Tails is yours to handle," Nagato said softly, looking at Obito.

Looking at Nagato, Obito seemed puzzled, but he didn't say anything. He simply nodded and then used Kamui Dimension to disappear from the spot.

After Obito left, a pile of white paper floated over and coalesced into Konan's face. She looked around and said, "He's gone?" Nagato nodded slightly, then his grey-purple Rinnegan gazed into the distance, and he whispered, "The plan is about to begin. Be careful in everything." Konan whispered, her eyes still showing some worry.

On the other side, on a cliff within the Land of Rain, Obito appeared, accompanied by Kaguya Mashiro. "Senpai seems to have known that Tamamo and Hokuto would fail," he suddenly said.

Obito scoffed at this, saying, "If the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki were really that easy to capture, I wouldn't have gone through all this trouble." "What? Does Senpai have any complaints about Zero's decision?" Shingo asked with a smile.

"It's nothing. I'm just a little surprised that he chose to go to Kumogakure instead of Konoha," Obito said, shaking his head slightly.

"After all, Killer Bee, the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki, is hailed as the perfect Jinchuriki. Perhaps he doesn't trust others and is preparing to take action himself," True Self said nonchalantly.

Upon hearing this, Obito nodded slightly, seemingly agreeing with the true self's statement. After all, in terms of strength alone, the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki is the strongest and most difficult to capture among all Jinchuriki.

"It doesn't matter anymore. After capturing the Eight-Tails, Nagato will be useless." Obito said coldly, then activated Kamui Dimension and disappeared from the spot with his true self.

At this time, the envoys sent by Konoha to Kumogakure had also set off. Although they were called envoys, there were only two people, Mashiro and Sakura.

The most important reason for bringing Sakura along was that, after Mashiro's suggestion and Shizune's own repeated consideration, she ultimately gave the summoning scroll of Shikkotsu Forest to Sakura.

In the plan, Nagato was definitely going to launch "Super Shinra Tensei"; otherwise, Mashiro didn't think many Cloud Ninja would survive.

Mashiro's goal was simply to trigger the Five Kage Summit, not to have the Cloud Ninja destroy the village, which highlights Sakura's importance.

In response, Mashiro specifically asked Tsunade to inform the Sage of Shikkotsu Forest beforehand, so that Koro could summon even more and larger ones.

Even so, there is still a huge problem that Mashiro needs to solve: Sakura's chakra. No matter what, Sakura's current chakra level is definitely not enough to deal with "Super Shinra Tensei".

Therefore, Mashiro would need someone's help, and coincidentally, Mashiro was very familiar with that person. Thinking of this, Mashiro smiled softly.

In the Hidden Cloud Village, Yugito was strolling through the streets when she suddenly felt uneasy. She looked up into the distance and muttered to herself, "Why do I always have this ominous feeling?"

"What's wrong?" Samui asked.

"Nothing, just a bit cold," Yukito said casually.

"Cold?" Samui glanced at Yukito's clothes, then at himself.

Yugito noticed Samui's gaze and said, "Not everyone is like you." Every time she looked at Samui's figure, she felt a deep sense of frustration.

Seemingly sensing Yugito's gaze, Samui rubbed his shoulders and said, "They're a little sore."

Because of the mysterious organization, Yugito hasn't taken on any missions lately; after all, she was captured once and is still traumatized. As for Samui, she's been resting recently.

As two outstanding female Jonin from Kumogakure, and sharing some similarities in personality, Yugito and Samui had a fairly good relationship, which led to...

We took a rare break and decided to go shopping together.

In Yukito's eyes, Samui had delicate, aloof features, fair skin, short, light yellow hair, an incredibly hot figure, and was mature, calm, knowledgeable, and taciturn.

Samui sees Yugito as having delicate and proud features, fair skin, beige braids, a tall figure, great strength, a proud personality, understanding, gentleness, and giving people a very cute feeling.

“Let’s go to the ice cream parlor and have some dessert,” Samui said.

Upon hearing this familiar name, Yukito paused slightly, then nodded gently.

Whether it's the Xuezhi family, the ice cream shop, or other industries, they have already established themselves in other countries. However, due to a lack of high-level support and suppression from local similar industries, they have not expanded as rapidly as Konoha. Nevertheless, these industries have still won the favor of many locals with their outstanding quality, especially the wealthy locals, since the ice cream shop takes a high-end luxury route.

Stepping into the ice cream parlor and taking a seat, Samui looked at the prices on the menu and couldn't help but exclaim, "They're really expensive."

Because of the inability to expand, coupled with the suppression of similar products in the local area, and the need to consider labor and material transportation, the price of ice cream shops in Kumogakure is much higher than that in Konoha.

As Yugi looked at the familiar desserts on the menu and their prices, she realized for the first time that the things she used to eat so often were actually so expensive.

They ordered a few things casually and started chatting.

"I wonder when I'll be able to live the carefree life of an ice cream parlor," Samui said softly.

Although she's usually quiet, she'll occasionally talk more when she's relaxed. Actually, I've already achieved that.

Yugito silently sipped his tea, then reminisced about his life in Konoha.

Although she has returned to the Cloud Village, she actually prefers life in the Leaf Village—prosperous, peaceful, and with no worries about food or clothing. It's truly captivating.

As she pondered, a figure surfaced in Yugito's mind. Yugito couldn't help but pull out the black card that Mashiro had given her earlier. "Is this a membership card?" Samui asked.

"I guess so, but it's a Konoha membership card, I don't know if it's still valid," Yugito said.

“The black card should be universal,” Samui said, having read some books on business models. “Really?” Yugito hesitated for a moment, then called for a waiter.

Hello, after verification, your membership card is valid at all stores and is the highest level membership card, which allows you to eat for free at the stores.

"All desserts are available for takeout." The shop manager said, respectfully handing the black card to Yugito.

This surprised not only Yugito, but also Samui, who was puzzled.

Chapter 132: The Great Battle of the Cloud Ninja (Part Two)

"I didn't expect you to have such an expensive membership card," Samui said with a smile. "A friend gave it to me," Yugito replied, flustered for a moment, then regaining her composure.

Samui didn't ask any more questions, and soon the desserts they ordered were served.

Meanwhile, Mashiro had already brought Sakura to Kumogakure. At the village gates, someone was already waiting to greet them.

"Are you two envoys from Konoha?" Omoi asked upon seeing Mashiro and Sakura. Mashiro nodded slightly and took out the documents.

Omoi took the document, glanced at it, nodded to Karui beside him, and then handed it back to Mashiro. "Please come with us, both of you."

After Omoi and Karui finished speaking, they led Mashiro and Sakura Koro into the interior of Kumogakure.

Walking through the Hidden Cloud Village, Mashiro observed the scenery inside. Unlike the lush Leaf Village and the Sand Village with its yellow sand, the most prominent feature of the Hidden Cloud Village was that it was shrouded in mist.

The buildings in Kumogakure are incredibly tall, even surrounded by clouds, giving the impression of being among the clouds and possessing a unique beauty. "Um, did you two come here, as rumored, for the safety of the Jinchuriki?" Omoi suddenly asked.

"That's right. Because of the attack on our village's Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, we investigated the attackers and discovered they all belonged to a mysterious organization composed entirely of rogue ninja. This organization is incredibly powerful, and they've already captured six tailed beasts. Just in case, we're here on behalf of the Hokage to discuss the Jinchuriki's safety with the Raikage." Mashiro said softly. (The Gedo Mazo only absorbed half of the Two-Tails; the other half remains inside Yugito's body.)

"Tch, the Jinchuriki from other villages were too weak back then. With Raikage and Killer Bee in Kumogakure, even if that mysterious organization came, they would definitely not return alive," Karui said with a touch of arrogance.

"Really? That seems best." Mashiro glanced at Karui and said with a smile.

Soon, Omoi and Karui brought Mashiro and Sakura to the Raikage Building, which, in particular, looked more like a structure suspended in mid-air. At the entrance of the Raikage Building, a beautiful woman with black skin and white hair was waiting.

Upon seeing the group, she smiled and walked forward, seemingly waving for Omoi and Karui to leave first. Then, she said to Mashiro and Sakura, "Please come with me. Lord Raikage is waiting for you two in his office."

Mashiro nodded slightly and followed Azaburo into the building, with Sakura closely following behind. "Are you Raikage-sama's secretary?" Mashiro asked softly.

“Yes, my name is Mabui. If the two envoys need anything in Kumogakure, please feel free to contact me,” Mabui said gently. [Name: Mabui]

Gender: Female Age: 28 Favorability: 25 Relationship: Strangers

Affection Reward (50): Ninja Art: Heavenly Delivery Technique

Affection Reward (90): Instant Teleport. Closing the panel, Mashiro's message became even stronger.

Soon, they arrived at the Raikage's office. Mabui gently pushed open the office door and led Mashiro and the other person inside.

In the office, a man with dark skin, light yellow hair, a very strong build, and wearing a white cloak was sitting in the Raikage's chair. He was the Fourth Raikage, A.

After Mashiro and Sakura took their seats.

Ai asked, "What is Konoha's intention in sending an envoy here? Is it really just to protect the Jinchuriki?" Ai's personality has always been impatient and straightforward.

"What, does Lord Raikage suspect we have ulterior motives?" Mashiro asked with a light laugh.

To be honest, two of our Kumogakure's Jinchūriki were also captured, but they later escaped on their own. Based on the clues she provided, we roughly deduced the identities of the two ninjas who captured her: Sasori, an S-rank rogue ninja from Sunagakure, and Kakuzu, an S-rank rogue ninja from Takigakure.

After Konoha revealed information about the so-called mysterious organization, we also investigated the disappearances of Jinchuriki from other ninja villages and have now clarified the situation regarding that god.

Members of a secret organization.

Besides Sasori and Kakuzu, whom I just mentioned, there's also Deidara, the genius ninja from Iwagakure; Hidan, the heretical ninja from Yugakure; Itachi Uchiha, the rogue ninja from Konoha; and several other rogue ninjas of unknown origin. A slowly began to speak.

"I wonder why Lord Raikage would say such things?" Mashiro asked, somewhat puzzled.

“What I mean is, this mysterious organization is just a bunch of rabble with some strength. As long as we are on high alert, I don’t think they can take the Jinchuriki from Konoha or Kumogakure. The Hokage should know that too, so what exactly is her purpose in sending you here?” Ai asked.

Ai was very confident in the strength of the Cloud Ninja. Even if all of these members were to be dispatched, he did not believe that they could successfully capture Killer Bee from the Cloud Ninja.

In fact, A's speculation didn't involve any village. Now, the Hidden Cloud Village not only has him, but also the Eight-Tails and Two-Tails Jinchuriki, as well as dozens of Jonin and others.

With countless Chunin rank members present, it would have been impossible for the other members to capture Killer Bee if Nagato hadn't personally intervened.

“Logically, that’s correct, but Lord Raikage, the Cloud Ninja’s intelligence network seems insufficient. The real reason the Hokage decided to discuss this with you isn’t because of these members of the mysterious organization, but because of their leader,” Mashiro said, taking a sip of tea.

"Leader?" Ai's expression turned serious. Yun Hu had indeed not been able to find out any relevant information.

"According to Jiraiya, one of the Legendary Sannin of Konoha, we have obtained crucial information: the mysterious organization is called Akatsuki, and their leader is Pain, who possesses the Sage's Eyes and the Rinnegan," Mashiro said earnestly.

"The Rinnegan?!" Ai's pupils contracted slightly; he had naturally heard the legends about the Sage's Eye.

"Are you sure?" Ai asked. Mashiro nodded gently.

"And their goal is to collect all nine tailed beasts and create an ultimate weapon to rule the entire ninja world," Mashiro added.

A bombshell