Now,
In the highest room at the top of the former steel building…
"Reincarnation Technique!!" ×5
Five White Zetsu surrounded the lifeless body of Uzumaki Nagato, their pale hands placed against him as they channeled their chakra. Bright, glowing seals spread from their palms.
Off to the side, Konan watched intently, her expression tense yet hopeful.
Zheng———
In the next moment, a faint light of life began to pass from the five White Zetsu into Nagato's corpse. The chakra spread like threads of golden warmth, weaving through his lifeless form.
Slowly but surely, Uzumaki Nagato's broken body began to recover.
His withered, pale skin regained color.
His white hair darkened, taking on that unmistakable Uzumaki red.
His breath, once gone, returned as a faint rise and fall in his chest.
Standing nearby, Leo formed a long string of seals, controlling the five White Zetsu through his Sharingan. He guided their technique, synchronizing their chakra to perform the forbidden Reincarnation Jutsu—a sacrificial resurrection forbidden to almost all.
This was a gamble, but one Leo was willing to make.
He recalled that his sign-in system gave him one free lottery draw per day—anything could appear, from insignificant to powerful.
And until recently, he'd drawn mostly worthless items.
Like:
[A pack of napkins!]
Utterly useless—until yesterday.
Yesterday, Leo finally drew something extraordinary.
[Reincarnation Jutsu]
It was a technique resembling the one Chiyo of the Hidden Sand used to bring Gaara back from the dead after the extraction of Shukaku.
Leo knew instantly: this was no ordinary forbidden jutsu.
This was his golden ticket.
Even better, if he could revive Nagato with it and perfect the method, he could exploit the loopholes and perhaps use it many times over, avoiding the price of death that usually came with it.
For now, Uzumaki Nagato was his perfect test subject.
...
From the side, Uchiha Madara watched closely.
His arms were folded, his eyes gleaming with anticipation.
As the faint red hair of Nagato came back into view, a thought formed in his mind.
"If this works..."
"Then maybe—just maybe—Izuna can be brought back too..."
The memory of his long-lost brother flashed in Madara's mind, his stoic face cracking just slightly with hope and excitement.
Nearby, Uchiha Sasuke stood quietly near the door, watching with little expression.
Still too young, he didn't yet realize what this moment meant.
If Nagato could be brought back to life…
Then perhaps one day, so could his own parents—Uchiha Mikoto and Uchiha Fugaku.
The implications were enormous.
...
"Madara!"
Leo suddenly called out.
The five White Zetsu were weakening, their chakra nearly exhausted.
Nagato was nearly revived—but not quite.
"Here!"
Uchiha Madara stepped forward with a grin.
Scarlet Sharingan spinning, he summoned five more White Zetsu from the shadows and pushed them toward Leo.
Zheng———
Leo immediately cast his genjutsu to control the new set of White Zetsu.
"Reincarnation Technique!!" ×5
The original five Zetsu, now shriveled and lifeless, were discarded to the side as the new ones took over.
The golden chakra surged again.
And then…
"Nagato..." Konan whispered, tears welling in her eyes.
His breathing was normal now.
His chest rising and falling steadily.
He was alive.
Nagato… had returned.
———
Three Days Later
The Akatsuki's new base, deep underground—
An emergency order was issued to all members:
"Assemble. In person."
No proxies. No projection clones.
Everyone had to be there physically.
And now, three days later—
"Three whole days!" Kakuzu muttered irritably, arms folded.
"I could've earned a fortune by now!"
He looked around, unimpressed.
Deidara leaned back, resting his hands behind his head.
"One of my art pieces was almost done. What a waste…"
"Only explosion is true art. Hmm!"
Sasori gave a quiet grunt of agreement, his cold puppet-like eyes focused on the room.
"Itachi and I just got back. Is there another mission already?" Kisame asked, glancing sideways at his silent partner.
Uchiha Itachi stood silently, his arms crossed, eyes half-closed.
He wasn't focused on missions.
His thoughts were elsewhere—on Konoha.
He'd heard troubling rumors…
Rumors that his younger brother Sasuke had aligned himself with Uchiha Madara.
That he had fought against the Konoha elite… and won.
This worried Itachi more than he could admit.
...
Hidan clicked his tongue.
His weapon—a gruesome triple-bladed scythe—rested lazily against his shoulder.
Everyone was here now.
Tension hung in the air.
Then—
cough
A flurry of paper wings entered the room.
Konan landed in the center, her eyes calm but unreadable.
"Yo, White Tiger!" Hidan smirked. "Where's the leader?"
"Yeah, why'd he summon us but not show up?" Deidara echoed, frowning.
The others remained silent, but their eyes narrowed with curiosity.
Konan had always arrived with Pain.
Today, she was alone.
Where was Nagato?
But Konan said nothing.
Instead, she turned to the entrance of the room.
Waiting.
And then—
Ta-da-da
Footsteps echoed down the corridor. Slow. Steady. Confident.
"Is the leader finally here?" Hidan sighed, twirling his weapon.
"No..." Kisame muttered, eyes narrowing.
"Huh?" Hidan glanced over.
Something felt… off.
Even Kakuzu felt uneasy.
Then, from the shadows at the entrance—
Two tall figures emerged.
Both wore black cloaks with red clouds.
Both had long, dark hair.
Both had the unmistakable aura of power.
"Uchiha…" Kakuzu muttered.
"Madara?!" Itachi's eyes widened.
"Who the hell are you?" Deidara barked, stepping forward.
"If you came to the wrong place, I'll happily send you to the afterlife!" Hidan snarled, spinning his scythe.
"Wait..." Kisame took a half-step back, a cold sweat trickling down his neck.
He had heard the rumors.
That Madara had returned.
That he had split the entire Konoha village with a single sword strike.
Was this… that man?
...
Suddenly—
Konan dropped to one knee in front of them.
"Leader!"
The room froze.
"What the hell?!" Hidan shouted, pointing his weapon at her.
But before he could move—
ZING—
A single blast of energy erupted from the fingertips of one of the figures.
The Yata no Magatama!
The spiraling, glowing projectile slammed into Hidan like a meteor, pinning him into the wall.
BOOM!
The entire underground base trembled from the impact.
Dust and stone crumbled. The walls cracked.
"Shit!!" Deidara stepped back, raising a hand to defend.
"Don't move!" Sasori suddenly warned.
"Huh? Brother Scorpion, what's wrong?" Deidara asked.
Sasori didn't respond. His eyes were fixed on the two newcomers.
Everyone turned toward them again.
Their auras… were unmistakable.
Their power… undeniable.
And then—
Leo stepped forward.
His voice calm but firm.
"Everyone… from this day forward—"
He glanced at Madara beside him.
"We are your new leaders."
--