"Is that all?"
"Lord Shukaku, you must understand, our Sunagakure simply cannot produce a hundred million Ryo."
Shukaku glared with its small eyes, as if counting the silver taels on the ground. Silver notes of various denominations were mixed together, along with gold of different shapes, and even a few pieces of jewelry were visible.
What was this?
Were they trying to make things difficult for Shukaku?
Shukaku raised its claw and pointed at Baki, saying, "Is this your Sunagakure's sincerity? You're making things difficult for me!"
"Lord Shukaku, please understand, this is all we have."
Baki looked heartbroken at a gold bracelet. It had been passed down from his ancestors and was intended as a betrothal gift, but now... alas!
Shukaku grabbed the silver and gold from the ground with one paw, and with another swipe, sent Baki flying. It said sharply, "You'd better pay the remaining balance, or I'll be back!"
Hmph, hmph.
Shukaku dragged its heavy body away and disappeared into the sandstorm. Baki, who had been sent flying by Shukaku, poked his head out of the sand, his eyes narrowing. Just as he was about to inform the Kazekage that the mark had been left, he saw a black sphere fly over his head and land in the distant Sunagakure.
Rumble...
With a deafening tremor, the mark Baki had left on Shukaku was shattered. Shukaku's sharp, smug voice echoed from the sandstorm.
"In the desert, this is my home turf. You and that stinky fox are nothing!"
Shukaku laughed twice and disappeared into the desert. Sunagakure was its money-making place, so it had held back some of its strength.
"Kazekage-sama!"
Baki no longer cared whether Shukaku had left and rushed towards Sunagakure. When he reached the entrance of Sunagakure and saw the scattered gold dust, he breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed the Kazekage had been prepared.
However, when Baki walked inside, he was stunned. What was with this giant crater?
Half of Sunagakure was gone?
On the roof of a circular building not far away, a man and a woman watched all of this with indifference. However, the woman showed a flicker of pain when she saw that civilians were affected and injured. After all, this was her village.
"Is that all? Aren't you going to kill him again?"
Pakura shook her head, looking at Sunagakure with a complicated expression. She didn't even spare a glance at Rasa, who was seriously injured in the pit. Although she was shocked to see Rasa alive and well again, it was only shock.
She had killed Rasa once, and naturally disdained to kill him a second time.
Lin Yu glanced at the wind shadow building, which had disappeared. He had originally intended to search inside, but after seeing Rasa and the others pooling money, he immediately dismissed the idea.
Sunagakure was truly poor!
"Then let's go."
"Wait a moment!"
Pakura reached out and stopped Lin Yu, hugging him and leaning her head on his shoulder, closing her eyes and whispering, "Can I lean on you for a moment?"
"Uh... sure!" But it'll be charged by the second!
Lin Yu didn't say the latter part of the sentence. It would ruin the mood, though there wasn't much scenery to speak of in Sunagakure anyway.
After a while, Pakura opened her eyes, glared fiercely at Lin Yu, and said, "Aren't you going to embrace me?"
"Mei Terumi, that vixen, said you were very bad. I think you're only capable of this much!"
Lin Yu glanced at Pakura's very natural hair color, his face showing more hesitation.
The color of your hair makes me feel very insecure!
"I say, Pakura, how about we go get a haircut first? I think a certain hair color would suit you very well, how about..."
"Go to hell!"
Chomp!
...
Amegakure, Akatsuki Base.
"I will be living here from now on."
"As if I'd want you to live here."
Kisame Hoshigaki pursed his lips, looking at the cool man who had just moved in next door. He couldn't help but inwardly complain, how was this guy's aura getting stronger and stronger?
The newcomer was his partner, Itachi Uchiha.
Although he was still a head taller than Itachi, he was completely outmatched in terms of aura.
Just as the two stood in silence, the atmosphere extremely awkward, Nagato's voice echoed throughout the base.
"Gather, we have a mission."
Itachi's eyes flickered, then he put on his uniform, tucked his forehead protector into his sleeve, and his figure disappeared down the corridor.
"Tch! So pretentious!"
Kisame Hoshigaki, afraid of Itachi hearing him, could only mutter softly, then shouldered Samehada and followed.
In the Akatsuki meeting room, Xiao Nan, Obito, Black Zetsu, and Tobi were all present.
Nagato stood in the center and said coldly, "Black Zetsu, you speak."
Black Zetsu first glanced at Tobi. With Tobi's nod, Black Zetsu cleared his throat and said, "Hidan, a ninja from the Land of Hot Water's Yugakure, became a rogue ninja for killing people arbitrarily due to his faith in the Jashin religion. He is suspected of being immortal."
"Oh? I'm interested in this Hidan!" Kakuzu's dark green pupils moved. Immortality? Then let the immortal ninja Kakuzu meet him!
"Don't interrupt!"
Black Zetsu glared at Kakuzu in dissatisfaction and continued, "Deidara, a disciple of the Third Tsuchikage, Onoki, of the Stone Village, possesses the rare Explosion Release Kekkei Genkai."
"Both of these individuals have the potential to become members of the organization."
"Did everyone hear clearly?"
Nagato picked up the conversation, saying, "Although these two have not fully matured, the organization is short-handed and needs new members to fill the gaps."
"Itachi, Kisame, and Sasori, the three of you will go to the Land of Earth to invite Deidara and, depending on the situation, capture a Tailed Beast."
"Xiao Nan, Kakuzu, and that so-called impostor Uchiha Madara, you will go to the Land of Hot Water."
"Hey, hey, hey, what do you mean impostor? Explain yourself!"
Nagato's words caused Obito's dissatisfaction. This would make him lose face in front of the organization members!
Nagato paid no attention to Obito and said coldly, "Meeting dismissed!"
Everyone glanced at Obito, then silently turned and left. They couldn't afford to provoke him.
Itachi also had a stiff expression. He knew Obito's identity, which was why he forcefully suppressed the smile within him.
"Nagato, you're such a *** (little cutie)!"
"Forget it, I won't argue with a lunatic. What if I am Uchiha Madara? Will the real Uchiha Madara crawl out of the ground to find me?"
...
In the vast starry sky, two people dressed in noble-like attire drifted on a desolate planet. The leader, a man, disdainfully swallowed a few pills in his hand and chewed, saying,
"This entire planet only yields this many pills. What a low-level planet."
"Momoshiki-sama, which planet do we go to next?" the tall and sturdy man beside him asked like a servant.
"Wherever. Time is the least valuable thing to us anyway."
Suddenly, another man wearing similar attire emerged from a spatial gate, holding a fishing rod-like object. He said to Momoshiki, "Senior Momoshiki, haven't you received the message from Senior Kinshiki?"
"Tch! Do I need you, Urashiki, to remind me? What about Kinshiki? Kaguya, that disgrace to the Ōtsutsuki, I will personally deal with her!"
"Kinshiki, let's go!"
Ōtsutsuki Momoshiki cast a disdainful glance at Ōtsutsuki Urashiki, then beckoned Kinshiki and flew towards the ninja world.
After the two left, Ōtsutsuki Urashiki remained in place with a playful expression, looking at Momoshiki's retreating back and mockingly saying,
"Little Momo is still as cold as ever!"