216 Naruto: Snatching the Mangekyō

Boom!

Suddenly, the six severed tails began to move. They writhed and twisted before morphing into six massive roots that pierced into the ground with incredible force.

Thankfully, Akira had ordered this room to be built with ample space, otherwise, a collapse would have been inevitable.

"What is this?" Tsunade asked, her face filled with shock as she stared at the massive tree that nearly pierced through the ceiling.

Looking at the enormous tree before him, Akira replied, "This might be another form of the Ten-Tails—its Divine Tree state!"

"Divine Tree? You mean this is the final form of the Ten-Tails?" Tsunade turned to Akira, still unable to hide her astonishment.

"Maybe," Akira said uncertainly.

"But this is just a fragment of the Ten-Tails' body. How could it transform into the Divine Tree?" Tsunade asked, frowning in confusion.

"The Ten-Tails is the Divine Tree, and the Divine Tree is still a tree. Perhaps it retains some of the characteristics of trees in the natural world," Fugaku speculated, his gaze fixed on the massive tree.

In nature, many trees can propagate through cuttings.

He guessed that the Divine Tree might have a similar ability to reproduce.

"That's the Divine Tree, not some willow by the riverbank!" Tsunade shook her head, unconvinced by Fugaku's explanation.

At that moment, Uchiha Shisui, who had entered Sage Mode, spoke up, "It's absorbing natural energy!"

Likewise in Sage Mode, Akira added, "It's too early to draw conclusions. It's still growing."

Tsunade frowned. "Fifth Hokage, we should have turned it into a pseudo-Jinchūriki for the Ten-Tails before it could transform."

Now that the Ten-Tails' body had undergone this unexpected change, they had no idea whether it would be beneficial or disastrous. In her opinion, it would have been better to act earlier.

"A pseudo-Jinchūriki is still just a pseudo-Jinchūriki. It'll never compare to the split Jinchūriki we had planned, like the Nine-Tails' fragments," Akira said, shaking his head.

Besides, becoming the pseudo-Jinchūriki for the Ten-Tails' fragment was only a fallback option in case they couldn't use the Shimera Technique in time.

What Akira wanted was to use the Ten-Tails' fragment as a material for the Shimera Technique.

According to the original plan, after the clone of Ōtsutsuki Toneri awakened the Tenseigan, Akira would use Yin-Yang Release to grant life to the Ten-Tails' incomplete body, creating a fragment of the Ten-Tails similar to the split Nine-Tails.

Eventually, he would fuse all the materials with the Shimera Technique, achieving a qualitative leap.

However, before the Tenseigan could even manifest, the fragment of the Ten-Tails had begun transforming on its own.

"We'll have to take things one step at a time now," Tsunade said, shaking her head. Her gaze fell on the still-unchanged severed hand of the Ten-Tails, and she let out a sigh of relief. "At least we still have that fragment—it's not the worst-case scenario."

"It might not be a bad thing," Akira said calmly, showing no signs of panic.

The presence of the severed hand gave him confidence.

...

Time passed day by day, and in the blink of an eye, six months had gone by. The year was now nearing Konoha's 55th year.

Over the past half-year, the results of Konoha's reforms had become increasingly evident.

The expanded Konoha was now thriving, bearing no resemblance to the small village it had once been.

Today, Konoha was a bustling metropolis, fully comparable to the major cities of the Land of Fire.

With the reforms in full swing, Konoha was experiencing rapid growth in all areas.

The construction and medical sectors had established companies that were now giants in their respective industries, pushing towards monopolies.

The agricultural sector, though the last to begin, had started promoting high-quality crops, gradually capturing the market.

It turned out that Mokuton was an unparalleled tool for cultivating superior plant varieties.

Under the nurturing care of Mokuton users, new and improved grains, fruits, and vegetables had been developed.

It was clear that before long, Konoha would dominate the agriculture of the Land of Fire—or perhaps even the entire ninja world—from the very roots.

While Konoha's reforms progressed smoothly, Nagato finally received rare good news from Zetsu.

A White Zetsu emerged from the ground, looking at Nagato as he stood by the window, watching the falling rain.

"We've found the Seven-Tails' Jinchūriki!"

Hearing this report, Nagato turned sharply, a smile forming on his face. This was truly excellent news.

Now, only the One-Tails and Seven-Tails remained to revive the Ten-Tails. With their chakra, its revival would be within reach.

"Where exactly is the Seven-Tails' Jinchūriki?" Nagato asked.

"She's just a little girl," Zetsu said with a sly smile. "We searched for a long time and finally found her. She's been hidden in Takigakure, raised as an ordinary civilian. It was right under our noses."

"I see. The safest place is often the most dangerous—there's truth to that saying," Nagato mused.

"When should we bring the Seven-Tails back?" Zetsu asked.

"No rush. Wait until you locate the One-Tails' Jinchūriki as well. Keep monitoring the Seven-Tails in the meantime," Nagato instructed, waving a hand.

Now that things had reached this stage, caution was critical. Any misstep could ruin their plans.

If word got out that the Seven-Tails had been captured, Sunagakure would undoubtedly relocate the One-Tails' Jinchūriki, and they'd have to start infiltrating all over again.

"Don't worry. We'll find the One-Tails' location soon. Rasa can't hide it for much longer," Zetsu replied with a sly grin.

The One-Tails, Shukaku, was unique among the Tailed Beasts, possessing natural sealing abilities. With Sunagakure's level of expertise in sealing techniques, keeping Shukaku contained was far more challenging than other Tailed Beasts.

While it might not go berserk, chakra leaks were a frequent occurrence.

Once or twice wouldn't matter, but repeated incidents would inevitably draw White Zetsu's attention.

In fact, just a week after finding the Seven-Tails, Zetsu pinpointed the hidden location of the One-Tails' Jinchūriki.

With both Jinchūriki located, Nagato immediately summoned Akatsuki's members for action.

In a brightly lit meeting room, all active members of Akatsuki were gathered: Nagato, Konan, Uchiha Hikari, Orochimaru, Sasori, Kakuzu, and Zetsu—a total of seven people.

"Leader, judging by the lineup, are we planning a full-scale assault? Is it Konoha or another village?" Sasori asked calmly, glancing at Nagato.

Since joining Akatsuki, none of the members had truly exerted themselves in any major battles.

If this were a company, it would've been a dream job.

"No," Nagato replied, shaking his head. "Zetsu has located the One-Tails and Seven-Tails' Jinchūriki. This time, our mission is to capture them both."

"Finally found them? We've been waiting for this," Hikari said, flashing a radiant smile. Her scarlet Sharingan gleamed coldly.