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Mastermind of the Akatsuki 422
🕑 Added 2025-06-27 16:00:07 +0000 UTCChapter 422: The Natural Enemy of Edo Tensei
Dan Katō was never considered a notable figure across the five great shinobi villages. He was merely an average jōnin. Besides his proficiency in Spirit Transformation Technique and his support of Tsunade’s medical ninja system, there was little else remarkable about him.
It was precisely Dan Katō’s mediocrity that filled Tsunade with dread.
He had been dead for over twenty years. How did Madara Uchiha learn that he had been her lover, and why resurrect him specifically as her opponent? Madara’s information-gathering abilities were simply terrifying.
At that moment, Dan Katō also noticed Tsunade and hesitantly asked, “Tsunade… is that you?”
Tsunade gave a small nod. Then, recalling her current identity, she steadied her gaze and said firmly, “Dan, it’s been a long time. You still look as young as you did back then… but unfortunately, the you standing here now is no longer you. You’re just a puppet being controlled by Madara Uchiha.”
“…I know.”
Dan sighed lightly and said apologetically, “I never imagined we’d meet again like this… but since we’re now enemies, I ask that you don’t hold back. Finish what you must do quickly.”
“I understand. I’m no longer a child. I am the Fifth Hokage of Konohagakure!”
With that declaration, Tsunade activated her Strength of a Hundred Seal, determined to use her full strength to defeat Dan and minimize the pain he would feel.
Not far from her, both Kakashi and Might Guy had each encountered formidable opponents.
Kakashi’s opponent was none other than the former White Fang of Konoha, Sakumo Hatake, his own father. In the days before the rise of the Three Legendary Sannin, Sakumo had terrified the entire Sunagakure with his White Fang Short Blade.
From the moment he laid eyes on Kakashi, Sakumo instantly recognized him and asked with a calm tone, “Kakashi, have you been well these past years? How is Konoha doing?”
Expressionless, Kakashi replied, “I’ve been fine… but the village isn’t doing so well.”
Sakumo nodded slowly. “As I expected. For an enemy to force Konoha and the other villages to unite… it must be quite the threat. If I’m not mistaken, that ninja sitting on the high platform must be the Demon of the Shinobi World, Madara Uchiha. If dead shinobi like us can be brought back, then of course he could be revived too.”
Kakashi gave a slight nod and said, “Father… your insight is as sharp as ever. But it’s unfortunate we now stand on opposing sides of the battlefield. Before we fight, though… I have something I’d like to ask.”
“What is it?”
Sakumo paused, then as if recalling something, said, “You want to ask why I chose to commit suicide back then, right? Why would the great White Fang of Konoha end his life in such disgrace?”
Kakashi fell silent. That was the answer he had been seeking all these years.
After a brief moment, Sakumo chuckled softly. “Kakashi, I didn’t die because of the Third Hokage. A ninja who fails a mission must accept punishment. Nor did I die because of Danzo. I saw through all his little schemes and also witnessed how rumors can kill. These things are nothing new to those born into privilege and power.
I simply felt that what the Third and Danzo were doing went against the Will of Fire that the First Hokage passed down. It seemed the villagers and ninja had also forgotten that Will. Since my existence made things difficult for them… I might as well die, and test which is more important: their regulations, or the Will of Fire.”
Sakumo sighed softly, then added, “Someone has to sacrifice their life for the Will of Fire. Why can’t that person be me? Kakashi, tell me… in today’s Konoha, which is more important, rules, or comrades?”
Kakashi was silent again.
He had always believed his father died due to the weight of rumor and disgrace. He never imagined Sakumo had willingly chosen death to challenge the village's failing values. But what was the cost of that decision? Was it truly worth sacrificing one’s life to make the village reflect on its rules? Kakashi didn’t know the answer.
Yet, if not for his father’s sacrifice, which had shifted many people's perspectives, he might have perished in the previous Shinobi World War.
As Kakashi fell into a daze, Sakumo raised his short blade and looked at him.
“Kakashi… I can sense your inner conflict. Then let’s speak through our blades, just like we used to.”
Kakashi nodded, activated his Sharingan, drew his short sword, and charged.
The fight between Kakashi and Sakumo was simple and unadorned, nothing but taijutsu and swordplay. There were no flashy techniques, only pure martial skill.
Rather than a shinobi, Sakumo Hatake was more akin to a samurai wielding chakra. He had little talent for ninjutsu or genjutsu, but his blade was fast, so fast most ninja couldn’t even form hand seals. Fast enough to sever chakra threads attached to puppets.
Before Sakumo, Kakashi couldn’t even use normal ninjutsu, only techniques that required no hand seals.
He brought his hands together, generating lightning in his palm, then dashed toward Sakumo with a Chidori. Sakumo didn’t dodge. He tried to cut through the lightning with his White Fang blade.
While their fight intensified, Might Guy charged at his own father, Might Duy.
Despite his plain appearance as a genin, Might Duy was a shinobi capable of fully opening all Eight Gates.
During the Third Shinobi World War, Duy had sacrificed his life to defeat the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, paving the way for Guy to rise through the ranks and become an elite jōnin, elevating a civilian-born shinobi into the elite of Konoha.
“To be able to fight you after death… it seems even in the afterlife, my youth isn’t over yet! Guy! Show me how passionate your youth is! If you can’t defeat me… tonight, you must run fifty kilometers!”
“Yes, Father!!”
Before the words even fully left his mouth, Guy entered the Sixth Gate state, his body wrapped in green chakra. This was the strongest he could go without risking injury.
In an instant, two green shadows collided, releasing a massive shockwave.
To the spectators, this wasn’t a battle between taijutsu masters, it was like two mythical beasts clashing in the wilderness. Each blow was earth-shaking.
Similar scenes unfolded across all the arenas.
The Shinobi Alliance couldn’t help but feel both terrified and exhilarated. It was rare to witness elite jōnin and even Kage-level battles up close.
If they survived this war, the benefits they’d gain would be immeasurable.
From the high platform, Madara Uchiha found himself struggling to keep track of all the intense battles, but at the same time, he was deeply satisfied. The thought of eventually fighting the winners made his blood boil.
However, weren’t the pairings a little too… intentional?
Madara turned to Byakuya and said, “Byakuya, you’ve gathered quite a lot of intelligence from the great villages over the years. I just had a glance, the matchups are all father versus son, master and student, lovers or brothers… You’ve got quite the twisted sense of humor.”
Byakuya accepted the remark as praise and replied with a smile, “All this information was collected for the sake of reviving the Ten-Tails. As for that ‘twisted sense of humor’, I admit I have a bit of it. But don’t you enjoy watching clashes between the past and the present, Madara-senpai?”
Madara didn’t answer; he simply smiled.
Yet, in his heart, a shadow stirred.
He was thinking of Uchiha Obito.
Obito really was a failure all these years, not only did he fail to resurrect Madara according to the original plan, but even his intelligence gathering was sloppy, completely inferior to Byakuya’s. Madara even suspected that if Byakuya truly pressured Obito, Obito might not have revived him at all.
At that moment, Byakuya seemed to receive some kind of message and smiled as he passed it on, “By the way, Madara-senpai, according to intel from the main body, the Four-Tails and Five-Tails have already been captured, and the Eight-Tails and Nine-Tails are on their way. I believe it won’t be long before we can revive the Ten-Tails.”
“Until then, we might as well continue observing this tournament. Tell me, do you think today’s shinobi are stronger, or are the ones brought back with Edo Tensei superior?”
Madara narrowed his eyes slightly and didn’t answer Byakuya’s question immediately.
Shinobi revived through Edo Tensei, while having their strength capped, gained an immortal body and nearly unlimited chakra in return. From that perspective, they obviously had the upper hand.
However, Edo Tensei shinobi had two fatal weaknesses: they were vulnerable to sealing techniques and could not resolve their lingering regrets.
Sealing techniques needed no elaboration. The most powerful ones could imprison even Tailed Beasts, let alone ordinary Edo Tensei shinobi. As for their unresolved regrets, that wasn’t something even they could control.
Clearly, Byakuya had arranged the matchups with the intention of not letting the Edo Tensei combatants find peace.
But Byakuya’s question also concealed a deeper trap; he and Madara were bound to clash eventually. So the real question was: who would emerge victorious when that moment came?
After pondering for a while, Madara finally said, “Naturally, Reanimated shinobi are stronger. The experience and skills of the previous generation are beyond what the new generation can match. I don’t believe they can defeat them.”
“But isn’t a world that’s forever stagnant a little too dull?”
Byakuya seemed to be talking to himself, yet his voice carried clearly across several hundred meters to Madara’s ears.
Madara froze slightly before realizing something. He looked at Byakuya with growing wariness. He had already estimated Byakuya’s capabilities generously, but clearly, it still wasn’t enough.
This remote voice transmission technique clearly involved the Yamanaka clan. The number of jutsu Byakuya had mastered was staggering.
Could it be that in the short time since gaining the Rinnegan, Byakuya had already unlocked some of its abilities? Could he actually be stronger than Madara himself?
But on second thought, Madara dismissed the idea.
Many of the Rinnegan’s abilities could only be used by him alone, and his real trump card was Black Zetsu. Even if Byakuya became the Ten-Tails’ Jinchūriki, Black Zetsu would still be able to control him.
While Madara and Byakuya were quietly vying for dominance, the battles in the arena began reaching their conclusions.
After deceiving the Second Tsuchikage with a rock clone, Ōnoki fully enveloped his opponent with Dust Release. Taking advantage of the time needed for the Second Tsuchikage to regenerate, Ōnoki performed a sealing jutsu.
In the blink of an eye, the Second Tsuchikage was buried beneath layers of rock, unable to move.
Even after sealing the Second Tsuchikage, Ōnoki didn’t lower his guard. He focused his senses, then went to another corner of the arena and performed a second sealing jutsu.
As a spatial barrier took shape, a hidden figure was forced out of invisibility, wrapped tightly in sealing bands.
This was one of the Second Tsuchikage’s signature abilities, splitting his body into two separate entities. Unlike normal clones, this jutsu created two independent bodies, but at the cost of being unable to use Dust Release.
Feeling his body lose control, the Second Tsuchikage showed a look of approval and sighed lightly, “Ōnoki, your current strength has already surpassed your master’s. I’m proud of you.”
Ōnoki calmly accepted the praise. He was no longer the child he once was.
Unlike Ōnoki’s clean victory, the battle between the Third and Fourth Raikage was locked in a dead heat. The Fourth Raikage was faster than his father, but couldn’t break through the Third’s defense.
At this rate, even if he exhausted himself, he wouldn’t be able to defeat his father.
Just then, a spark of insight struck him. Although he couldn’t pierce his father’s defenses, his father wasn’t a body of hardened flesh and blood anymore, just a false shell.
An immortal body could never surpass one that had been tempered in real battle.
When they clashed again, the Fourth Raikage used Liger Bomb. He was going to test whose body was more rigid.
With a thunderous boom, the Third Raikage’s reanimated body cracked, while the Fourth’s arm was soaked in blood.
Waving to the spectators, several elite Kumo jōnin joined in to perform a sealing technique. The Third Raikage was sealed on the spot.
With the Fourth Raikage as an example, shinobi on the other battlefields began to follow suit.
Haku Yuki used large-scale Ice Release to encase the Second Mizukage in crystal. Tsunade shattered Katō Dan’s body with a single punch and sealed him on the arena floor.
Kakashi and Might Guy both defeated and sealed their fathers through sheer strength.
More and more shinobi began to discover Edo Tensei’s weaknesses and focused on targeted sealing. The matches quickly turned one-sided.
There was no need to defeat Edo Tensei shinobi outright; just limiting their movement temporarily was enough.
After all, Edo Tensei bodies weren’t made of real flesh. Once disconnected from the outside world, their chakra would slowly weaken, and they’d lose the ability to fight.
Seeing this, Madara finally showed signs of restlessness. His expression changed slightly as he stared intently at Byakuya.
