Chapter 95: The Assault of Kakuzu

The concept of the Rinnegan interested Sasuke, but only a little. What truly failed to appeal to him was the idea of swapping eyes with Naruto. He was not worried about losing his own eyes; it was simply that he had no desire to spend the rest of his life dependent on anti-rejection medicine.

He scoffed, saying that he still had to restore his clan, marry many wives, and enjoy the life of a man of leisure. If he had to swallow handfuls of medicine every day just to keep going, what quality of life would that be?

He was not ignorant of the fact that many shinobi in the world would casually transplant the organs of other bloodline limit users into their own bodies without needing anti-rejection drugs. But in his view, those people had chosen to make themselves into weapons and lived lives hanging by a thread. All they cared about was surviving until the next day. They had never once considered a distant future, and they were not worth imitating.

If that is how you feel, then fine. Let us exchange chakra every day and nourish our eyes separately, Naruto said, forming a large crystal of chakra in his palm and handing it to Sasuke.

Sasuke accepted it and replied, Wait for me. I will give you your crystal this afternoon. I am not as skilled as you yet at creating chakra crystals. His mastery of spiritual mechanical energy still was not precise enough, so he still needed to rely on a sturdy sealed container for assistance, just as Naruto had done when he first learned how to make chakra crystals.

By the way, speaking of yesterday afternoon, I ran into two strange men.

Sasuke frowned as he continued, The Chunin Exams are about to begin, so shinobi from every country have come to the Leaf. Yesterday a ninja from the Village Hidden in the Waterfall came looking for me, said all sorts of baffling things, and claimed he wanted to see what I could do.

And there was another ninja beside him, with a sacred rope tied around his waist. He said he was from the Ryuzo Association of the Land of Sound, and he also wanted to see my abilities so that he could report back to Orochimaru.

But Orochimaru already knows what I can do, does he not? It is not as if we have never sparred before.

Sparred was putting it politely. In truth, it had been Orochimaru beating Sasuke down single-handedly.

Naruto suspected that the Ryuzo Association ninja might be an Uchiha sent to contact Sasuke. Perhaps they did not know Sasuke's exact progress, and wanted to test him in person.

Sasuke went on, What I found odd was that the ninja from the Village Hidden in the Waterfall gave me a strangely familiar feeling when he attacked. It was as if I had seen him somewhere before.

And he always seemed so at ease, holding something back against me, like he was deliberately going easy on me.

I mean, if he really had the ability to go easy on me, then why come to the Chunin Exams in the first place? Why not just take on some...

It was not only Sasuke who found it strange. Naruto did as well.

That ninja from the Village Hidden in the Waterfall reminded Naruto of one person: Itachi Uchiha. In Naruto's eyes, only Itachi would treat Sasuke in that same way, as though teasing a child.

As the two of them were talking, Naruto suddenly felt a chill of malice course through him. He immediately became alert.

What is it, Naruto? Sasuke, seeing Naruto's guarded expression, tensed as well.

Someone nearby bears hostility toward me, Naruto said, scanning the surroundings warily while continuously sweeping the area with his sensory ability. He knew this sensation all too well. It was the feeling that came when Kagura's Mind's Eye detected malice. Yet after scanning for a long while, he still found no trace of anyone nearby.

Could not find them? Sasuke asked. Did they already leave, or what?

I do not know, Naruto answered simply. I will widen the search and look more carefully.

When Naruto pushed his sensing ability to its limit, that malicious aura vanished without a trace. However, he did pick up an extremely pure will. It had been stripped down to a single emotion: greed. Like a venomous snake, that greed pointed directly toward a certain direction in the Leaf Village.

That direction is where the Hyuga clan lives, Naruto said, frowning. Someone has set their sights on the Hyuga clan, and their intent is pure greed.

Why the Hyuga clan again? Sasuke rubbed his forehead in exasperation. I remember that a few years ago, someone targeted the Hyuga clan and even abducted Hinata.

Let us go take a look first and find out exactly who it is, Naruto suggested.

So the two of them followed that pure scent of greed all the way to the vicinity of the Hyuga clan compound. There, Naruto finally saw the owner of that greed.

It was a figure wrapped head to toe in a black cloak, the garment marked with unmistakable red cloud patterns. His head was covered by a hood and mask, revealing only a pair of eyes that gleamed with a sinister light. On his forehead he wore a headband, its symbol slashed through with a vicious scar.

Huh? That looks like a headband from the Village Hidden in the Waterfall, Sasuke said in surprise.

Was the one who provoked you yesterday him? Naruto asked, turning to Sasuke.

Sasuke shook his head. No, it was someone else, much younger than him.

Idiot, Naruto!

At that moment, the Nine-Tails within Naruto suddenly spoke. Have you forgotten? That little brat Jiraiya told you yesterday. In this world, only one organization wears those black cloaks with red clouds!

The Nine-Tails' voice turned grave.

That man is a member of Akatsuki!

Naruto's expression instantly darkened. He knew Akatsuki had long been keeping watch over the jinchuriki of the various nations, and he also knew that this mysterious organization was constantly collecting powerful ninjutsu while raising vast sums of money on a massive scale. But no matter how he thought about it, he could not understand why Akatsuki would set its sights on the Hyuga clan.

The Akatsuki member was clearly highly skilled in stealth. In the blink of an eye, like a specter, he slipped through the Hyuga clan's layered defenses without making a sound and headed straight for the back courtyard. There, he finally found his target: Hinata Hyuga, who was absorbed in training.

Why is it Hinata again... Naruto shook his head helplessly. Come on, we need to save her at once!

At that moment, Hinata had not the slightest idea that she had already been targeted. She stood quietly in the serene back courtyard of her family home, wholly immersed in her training. Her pale white eyes were like the purest jewels in the world, radiating a bright, crystal-clear light.

Those eyes really are different from the other Hyuga eyes. No wonder they are worth so much.

In the shadows, Kakuzu's eyes flashed with shrewd, greedy light. I wonder what special power those eyes have? But it makes no difference. Whatever ability she may have, once I rip out her heart, everything will become clear.

Kakuzu formed hand seals at speed. From his sleeves, a mass of gray-black threads poured onto the ground, writhing and shifting as they gradually took human shape. A mask emerged where the head should have been. This was Kakuzu's proud technique: Earth Grudge Fear. Satisfied with his creation, Kakuzu nodded and slowly stepped out of the darkness with his stitched-together construct.

Only then did Hinata realize that an attack had come. She immediately assumed a battle stance and pointed toward Kakuzu.

Ho ho ho, little girl, do not rush to act, Kakuzu said in a low, hoarse voice, like a demon rising from the depths of hell. Little girl, your eyes are very valuable. Come with me, and do not resist pointlessly. I do not want to fight you, and I certainly do not want to damage those priceless eyes.