Black Ops: Anbu Naruto

That evening, 

Tayuya was dispatched to the continuously advancing front line in the northwest, as were Tenten and the rest of Team Guy. 

All members of Team 8 were mobilized. 

Sakura stayed behind in Sunagakure as part of the rescue team. 

Kakashi had been sent to a known combat hotspot along the western border of the Land of Fire, where most of the fighting was expected—either at the border of Kusagakure or Amegakure. 

Team 10 remained in the village waiting for intelligence reports from the base. 

Naruto Uzumaki had already been waiting at the Jonin standby station for several hours, awaiting orders. 

Someone tapped him on the shoulder, and Naruto turned around to see Sai smiling at him. 

"Sai? What are you doing here?" 

"I'm an Anbu ninja, Naruto-senpai," Sai explained. "I go wherever I want, pretty much." 

He motioned for Naruto to follow him out of the building, and after walking some distance, he pulled out a scroll and handed it to Naruto. 

"Your first war mission—directly assigned to me by Lady Hokage." 

Naruto raised an eyebrow and took the scroll from Sai's hand, mildly confused. 

"Why didn't she just call me in and give it to me herself?" 

He opened the scroll, scanned it briefly, then quickly shut it again, eyes wide as he stared at Sai. 

"You're saying she knows about everything?" 

Sai nodded. 

"Lady Hokage is aware of our team's existence, so she'll be cautious. She'll monitor me to make sure our actions align with Konoha's interests, but beyond that, 'business as usual.' If you keep reading, there's more." 

Naruto's face went blank, and Sai urged him to continue reading. 

"Well, looks like I'm heading out tomorrow… to the border of Kusagakure. No squad assigned—I'm meeting my contact there to receive my real assignment." He frowned. "No squad?" 

"Do you need backup?" Sai asked as they continued walking along the normally deserted streets. 

"No, I'll be fine," Naruto assured him. "Save them for when they're really needed. Don't waste resources on me. Sai… Are you actually worried I'm gonna die?" 

"Not exactly me, no," Sai replied. "More for Maki's sake. You know how I am." 

Naruto rolled his eyes at that old excuse. He couldn't use Maki as an excuse anymore, even if it was true. 

"I do consider you a friend. It would be a shame if you died on the battlefield." 

****** 

## Amegakure – Pain's Tower 

It was rare for Amegakure to see anything other than unyielding sheets of rain, yet there was no time to appreciate the weather. 

Pain had used his power to convey the troop deployments for the upcoming battle to the senior ninja of Amegakure. 

This was their chance to exact revenge against villages like Konoha—a moment they might never get again. 

All he needed now were the four remaining Jinchuriki. 

He possessed the Rinnegan, and within the Naraka Path already lay the sealed tailed beasts.

Once the war ended — or even if it didn't — his ultimate plan would still come to fruition. He had ensured this by creating an ultimate Ninjutsu using the Chakra of all nine tailed beasts and their combined power.

Deva Path Pain and Konan stood before a glowing map of the elemental nations, analyzing the situation.

"Sunagakure is irrelevant to us. Those smaller opportunistic villages will seize this chance to wipe them out and take control of that region. Our main focus remains on Konoha. Several others, including Kusagakure, think the same way."

"Joint operations, perhaps?" Konan offered, suggesting a possible approach for how Amegakure would handle the matter.

If they did nothing, that in itself would be worth considering.

Though she didn't want to get dragged into the whole conflict, this was still her village, and Konan would still stand up for her people.

"What should we do when Kirigakure begins sending ninja to join the war effort?"

"Due to the proximity, they'll assist Kumogakure first. I believe this will create new problems."

Konan nodded slightly in agreement.

Kiri had remained isolationist for decades, never taking part in any major battles since its founding. Most of its time had been spent dealing with internal affairs, just as it had done even before the previous internal conflict. Then their forces were vulnerable when landing. This was another significant problem.

"Our village is the safest among the Five Great Countries," Pain said confidently.

Surrounded from all sides by a vast lake, the towering high-rises offered excellent vantage points to spot anyone trying to enter — deterrence enough. But Pain's rain could locate any intruders, so long as he could sense their Chakra.

"Your trump Ninjutsu is ready too, right?"

"Yes. If necessary, my strongest technique has already been prepared," Konan confirmed. She took great pride in it — it could have halted an invading army before they even reached the village.

She was protecting the village she'd vowed to bring peace to… in her own way.

Deva Path Pain accepted everything Konan told him without question. He knew that, as his most trusted and closest confidante, Konan might be the only person he doubted not one bit.

"Until that moment arrives, we will continue expanding our territory around Amegakure and strengthening our defensive borders. We should rely primarily on booby traps and ambush teams until an opportunity arises."

"Kusagakure will be more aggressive in their tactics."

They were the most confident, convinced they could stand up to larger villages. Over the past two decades, they'd carried out a string of operations supporting this belief.

"Let them be," Pain said, stepping onto the balcony and gazing at his village. "Perhaps they'll become the very opportunity we've been seeking."

Outside, the weather finally cleared up… even if only for a little while.

******

Two days later, Naruto arrived at the base camp set up along the northwest border of the Land of Fire.

The place was far more developed than he'd expected. It looked less like a camp and more like a full-fledged miniature village.

A quiet border town had transformed into a bustling military base, its wooden structures seeming to have stood there for ages.

The only clue that this was actually a functioning military base was the presence of guards wearing Konoha forehead protectors and armor-plated vests.

His curiosity over the origin of these buildings quickly gave way to the joy of recognizing a familiar face. She sat by the supply table in the armory, distributing basic weapons to those not yet fully armed.

"Tayuya-chan!"

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