Naruto: Ghosts of the Warring States

Chapter 414 414: Operation: Teuchi

Nagato and Konan's wedding went off without a hitch.

Akio gave them his wholehearted blessing. For once, he didn't stir up any chaos. In fact, he personally kept an eye on Killer B, just in case the man decided to drop a surprise rap in the middle of the vows and turn a joyful ceremony into a disaster scene.

Maybe Akio's last "lesson" had left a lasting impression. Killer B behaved.

The next day, Akio joined the younger generation for a relaxed family dinner. After that, he officially launched what he privately dubbed:

Operation: Hunt the "Dangerous Organization" (a.k.a. Track Down Teuchi).

It did not go well.

If Teuchi had managed to hide his "extraordinary side" right under Akio's nose for decades, disappearing on purpose was hardly going to make things easier.

So now the Akatsuki had two top priorities:

The mysterious young man who stole the Rinnegan.

The former owner of Ichiraku Ramen, Teuchi.

To be fair, the Akatsuki had never been great at "world peace." Nations still skirmished whenever it suited them. Their most practical function was distributing wanted posters across borders and branding targets as "Most Wanted in the Shinobi World."

Of course, Akio didn't rely on them alone. Whenever he had time, he traveled across the Five Great Nations and beyond, hoping to get lucky. With his current speed, he could circle the entire continent in two hours but even then, finding one person in a world this large was like searching for a needle in a haystack.

Months passed. No Teuchi. No Rinnegan thief.

But he did have an unexpected side quest.

In a small nation called the Land of Demons, Akio eliminated a creature named Mōryō. The thing simply refused to stay dead, no matter how many times he blasted it apart, it regenerated. In the end, he used a truth-seeking ash-bone technique to reduce it to nothing for good.

The reward? A hefty pile of witness points.

Only then did he vaguely remember, this was one of those theatrical, "movie-arc" events.

Unfortunately, Akio's memory of those side stories was spotty at best. He vaguely recalled something about a coup in the Land of Snow, but the details were gone. If he wanted to capitalize on those events for more gains, he'd probably have to wait until Naruto was older… assuming those incidents even unfolded the same way.

Still, there were brighter moments.

Little Tsukika had started talking.

Her tiny, sweet voice calling him "Great-Grandpa" nearly melted his heart on the spot. And she was getting cuter by the day. With parents that good-looking, she was practically guaranteed to grow into a beauty.

As for Naruto…

Akio could only sigh.

The kid had not inherited the best angles.

Konoha Year 57 – Mid-May

Akio temporarily paused his manhunt.

The "Fat Sheep Casino" in the Land of Fire shut its doors amid a chorus of gamblers' wails.

It had to.

When the casino owner, Hashirama Senju started shedding chunks of glowing material mid-game, customers understandably found that unsettling.

His summoned body had reached its limit.

" Mito," Akio asked quietly, "how much longer can your vessel last?"

She considered it.

"Until the end of the year, perhaps."

Akio nodded, glancing at Hashirama and Tsunade, who were squeezing every last minute out of their gambling session.

"Mito… I've got good news."

He explained his spiritual space, the internal realm where souls could exist independently of the afterlife.

Mito's eyes widened slightly.

"So the afterlife isn't what we thought… If we enter your space, it would feel no different than being alive?"

Akio chuckled.

"It's a bit quiet in there. Mostly just me dropping by and Kagami keeping things orderly. Once you and Hashirama move in, though… poor Kagami might lose his sanity."

Mito laughed softly.

"You're still the same."

"Don't tell Hashirama yet," Akio said with a grin. "Let it be a surprise."

She nodded.

"In that case, we're almost immortal already. You don't need to trouble yourself trying to revive us."

Akio waved a hand.

"If I can revive you, I will. The living world has better food, better scenery, better everything. But if I can't? I'll just bring your souls into my space. One way or another, we'll keep this party going."

"Very well," she said gently.

Suddenly

Hashirama stomped the ground, vanished, and reappeared behind Akio, fist swinging toward the back of his head.

Akio smiled faintly.

A burst of repulsive force froze Hashirama mid-strike.

"What's this? Couldn't find an opening all this time, so you're taking a cheap shot at the buzzer?"

"Tsunade!" she gasped.

Hashirama's voice changed colder, unfamiliar.

"Uzumaki Akio. Next time we meet, I won't be so humiliated."

Mito focused carefully.

"He's being controlled?"

"No," Akio replied calmly. "He left you alone on purpose, so you wouldn't sense him."

He tilted his head.

"We're talking across space right now. Care to tell me who you are? I'm certain we've never met."

"You'll remember me."

Akio twitched.

Remember you? My memories are fully restored, you lunatic.

"Well then," Akio said lightly, "thanks for letting Hashirama spend this time with us. Feel free to summon him again next time, to attack me, of course."

"As you wish."

Inside, Akio smirked.

Go ahead. Once Hashirama's soul is inside my spiritual space, you'll be summoning him straight into my territory.

"Second Grandfather… sorry about that," Hashirama's voice returned as his body began dissolving into glowing particles. "Is it time?"

He turned slowly.

"Mito. Second Grandfather. Tsunade… maybe gamble a little less."

Tsunade's eyes snapped wide.

"Grandfather!"

Hashirama smiled warmly.

"These days have been wonderful. Maybe the dead really do have fewer worries."

Akio bared his teeth in a grin.

"Oh, you're about to have even more fun."

Hashirama blinked, then dissolved completely. His soul rose upward.

Akio looked skyward and said cheerfully:

"Hashirama, get in the bowl."

His spiritual power surged

He froze.

"What the Six Paths, you've got nerve!"

Another wave of soul-piercing spiritual pressure crashed down. Tsunade and Mito, however, remained unaffected.

"Grandma… what's happening?"

Mito quickly pieced it together and explained Akio's spiritual realm.

"So Grandfather is?"

She nodded.

"He's simply relocated. And I imagine his new gambling partner… is Kagami."

Half an hour later, the spiritual assault subsided.

Inside Akio's spiritual realm

Akio grinned wickedly.

"Six Paths, old man, if you slip away this time, I'll admit defeat."

Floating cross-legged in midair, the Sage of Six Paths stared in stunned silence.

I only tried to snatch one soul as a test…

You really dragged me in instead?

Was that necessary?!