Kapitel 484: 449. Manhunt for Kabuto
A few minutes later,
"Hmm… I expected him to have a little more intel." Tobi shakes his head in disappointment.
"Still, it's better than nothing." Kabuto recovers Yamato in the Zetsu Shell.
"At least we got to know the location of the Daimyo's hideout from him. I will lead a few hundred Zetsu to capture them." Black Zetsu proposes.
"Alright! I will leave it to you." Tobi nods at Black Zetsu as the latter enters the ground and disappears.
"I will also take my leave. Farewell!" Kabuto casts a glance outside the Akatsuki hideout. He uses the same technique as Zetsu to leave the hideout.
"I can't even track him with Zetsu spores." Tobi clicks his tongue in disappointment.
He also glances outside the Akatsuki hideout and notices a group of shinobis rapidly approaching the hideout.
"It's time to vacate this place."
Swish… swish…
Tobi makes a series of hand signs and uses his Rinnegan to relocate the Gedo Statue.
Swirl…
Tobi teleports out of the headquarter using his Kamui.
A few seconds later,
Whoosh…
A bunch of shinobis in black anbu outfits arrive at the entrance of the Akatsuki hideout.
Hmm…
One of the Anbu removes his mask to reveal Itachi's face. He activates his Sharingan and glances at the entrance.
"All of you search every corner of this hideout. This must be Akatsuki's base from the intel. Form a group of three and be careful of traps!"
"Yes, Captain!" The members of Team Rōfollow his command.
Three teams guard the entrance of the enemy base while seven teams enter the headquarter with Itachi. Itachi takes the central most path and the rest of the team separates from him at every corner.
Soon, Itachi and a few other teams arrive in front of the underground stairs.
"Let's go!" The group ventured deeper into the hideout and one by one each team separate from them on every floor.
Soon, Itachi is the only person to reach the base of the hideout. He carefully walks forward while surveying the surrounding area.
"Huh!"
Itachi notices a giant dried flower tree located majestically in the center of the room.
"This chakra! Looks like Kabuto and Obito were here a few moments ago." He frowns and stares at the marks left by the Gedo Statue.
"Still, this place…"
Itachi notices the trunk of the giant dried flower tree located in the center of a lake.
Itachi carefully steps onto the lake and walks towards the trunk.
"This is…"
Itachi notices the figure of Hashirama Senju jutting out from the trunk of the tree.
"First Hokage Hashirama Senju!"
Shiing…
Itachi activates his Eye of Insight and glances at the chakra flow of the tree.
"Hmm… he is a living entity, but he has no spirituality. So, could it be that the Akatsuki cultivated their Zetsu army from First Hokage's cells?" Itachi frowns and places his hand on the trunk of the giant tree.
Swish… swish…
Suddenly, several needles sprout from the giant tree's branch and stab into Itachi's hand.
"What?"
Itachi swiftly draws his sword and slashes the needles.
"This tree can absorb chakra in contact!" Itachi glances at the tree.
"Could this tree be the legendary Chakra tree?" Itachi recalls the records of the Chakra tree from the Uchiha clan's library.
According to some old records, all chakra originated from the chakra tree. However, the chakra tree was destroyed a few thousand years ago and its chakra was distributed among all living beings.
"If that's the case, then I must seal this place. The Hashirama cells and the chakra tree are too great of a weapon to fall in hands of some evil organization."
Itachi retreats a bit and prepares to seal the place.
Suddenly,
Swoosh…
A figure leaps out from the lake and attacks Itachi from his blind spot.
Shiing… Slash…
Itachi draws his katana and slashes.
Splash…
A giant white arm falls into the lake and disappears at its bottom.
Hmm…
Itachi notices a giant white figure with multiple faces and Venus fly trap-like protrusion all over its body.
"Is that a Zetsu?" Itachi recognizes the white Zetsu clone.
"Hmm… Its features are a bit different from what I remember."
Zetsu regrows its arm and continues to attack Itachi in a frenzy.
"High-speed regeneration, but its senses are a bit lacking! Its attack pattern is predictable and there are multiple weak spots on its body."
Swish…
Itachi gathers some lightning chakra between his fingertips and throws a lightning senbon in the gaps between various Venus fly trap-like protrusions.
Bzzt… Crackle…
A surge of lightning jolts and paralyzes Zetsu's body.
Aarghh…
The giant white Zetsu clone grimace in pain.
"Hmm… it's slightly resistant to lightning. Next up…"
Itachi makes a series of hand signs and fires multiple fireballs toward him.
AAARGHH… AAAH…
This time the white Zetsu clone screams and frantically rushes and dives into the water to extinguish the fire. The Zetsu splits into multiple bodies to quickly douse the fire.
"So, they are vulnerable to fire. Perhaps this is because of the Wood Release. Since that's the case… Amaterasu!"
Itachi activates his Mangekyo ability and burns the white Zetsu clones to cinders.
Huh…
Itachi glances at his body and notices multiple white spores.
"Do you think you can escape my senses?"
Itachi pats his shoulder and infuses lightning chakra throughout his body. The lightning jolts the Zetsu spores and ejects them from his body.
Slash… slash… slash…
Before the Zetsu spores could sprout, Itachi slashes them all into pieces.
"What a powerful concealment ability! I have to report this to the headquarter since this wasn't a part of the intel."
As for this place, Itachi takes out a bunch of scrolls from his pocket. He makes a series of hand signs and activates the fuinjutsu seals on the scrolls.
The seals on the scroll glow with a bright hue and several sealing rune floats in the air. Itachi covers the entrance of the current floor with a bunch of seals. He climbs higher and continues to place more and more sealing formations. Finally, Itachi retreats to the ground and seals the underground entrance with yet another powerful sealing formation.
'I have to report this to Minato-san. This secret should be safe in the hands of In Yō.'
Itachi takes out a special communication scroll from his pocket and scribbles the information about the chakra tree and the Hashirama clone on it. He rolls the scroll and stores it.
The rest of the members of the team Rōgather at the entrance of the Akatsuki headquarter.
"How was the investigation? Did you find something?" Itachi asks his vice-captain.
"Nothing much! A few of our members encountered some Zetsu clones, but they made quick work of them. However, we did find someone in one of the labs."
The Vice-captain points toward an unconscious Anko. A medic-nin of the anbu team is treating her wounds.
"Looks like she is the only survivor." The Anbu adds.
Hmm…
Itachi inspects every member of his anbu team and separates a few of them from the rest. The anbu members curiously glance at Itachi's back and wait for further instructions.
"All of you were infested with Zetsu spores during your battle with the Zetsu clones. These Zetsu spores will slowly drain your chakra and will manifest and attack you once you are exhausted." Itachi informs them.
"Infuse some of your chakras and cycle it through your skin to activate the spores. The rest of you help them get rid of these Zetsu clones. Meanwhile, I will seal the entrance of this hideout and send a message to the headquarter." Itachi issues an order and walks in front of the entrance.
"Did you find any other hidden entrances?" Itachi turns to his vice-captain.
"Captain, there are two hidden exits located on either side of this mountain." The vice-captain informs him.
"Very well!" Itachi performs the sealing jutsu with the aid of Fuinjutsu scrolls and seals all entrances.
He makes a communication request with the headquarter and informs them of the situation.
"So, Kabuto and Obito abandoned their headquarters. Looks like they were expecting us. Continue your search for Kabuto. We have to neutralize his threat as soon as possible." Minato cuts off his connection with Itachi.
Hmm…
Itachi glances at the communication ring on his finger.
'A message from In-Yōmembers.'
Itachi flickers to some desolate place and opens the communication channel.
"Pride here! I read your message about the Akatsuki headquarter. Wraith and I are in the vicinity. We will handle the matter."
"Very well!" Itachi sends the coordinates of the place to him.
Soon, Itachi returns beside his anbu team and departs the place while searching for Kabuto's tracks.
'With Kabuto's concealment skill, it will be an arduous task to find his tracks.' Itachi shakes his head and focuses his attention on the clues at hand.
'Since Kabuto is sending lots of Edo Tensei soldiers into the war, he will require numerous living sacrifices to resurrect them. The sacrifices must be shinobis to maintain the quality of his soldiers. So, he must be hiding somewhere near the battlefield to collect bodies.' Itachi narrows down the scope of his search.
"Let's search all the battle sectors in the vicinity."
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