The defense of Konohagakure has ended, but the effects of the battle are still ongoing.
Various villages are in turmoil, closely watching the latest developments.
"Ah-choo!"
Land of Rain.
As Kakuzu stepped into the Akatsuki base, he couldn't stop sneezing repeatedly.
However, because he was wearing a mask, most of the liquid just got sucked back in, which made Konan, not far away, feel uncomfortable.
Out of concern for her Akatsuki members, she had to ask:
"Got a cold? The weather in the Land of Rain is different; you need to stay warm."
Stay warm, my ass.
Kakuzu twitched his mouth, completely unaware that his zombie-like body could even catch a cold. To be accurate, he was like a living dead; he couldn't really get sick. If his heart had issues, he could just replace it with a younger one.
"It's nothing. I've been sneezing a lot these past few days for some reason; it's just an old problem."
Kakuzu found it a bit strange. Ever since the shocking defense of Konohagakure a few days ago, he had been sneezing from time to time, almost like he was cursed. By now, he had gotten used to it and always carried a spare mask with him.
"Where's the leader?"
After changing his mask, Kakuzu asked Konan in a muffled voice.
He was back to report on a mission. Most of the valuable items in the underground market had already been dealt with, but he thought the organization would still need funds, so diligent as he was, he wanted to help.
"Pain is busy with other matters."
Seeing that Kakuzu was fine, Konan returned to her cold demeanor, sounding much more distant.
It couldn't be helped; she had just recently become the White Angel of Akatsuki and was still getting used to the atmosphere of being an angel. Her previous habit of caring for her subordinates was a habit formed in the earlier days of Akatsuki.
"Then should I go make some money?"
After thinking for a moment, Kakuzu still felt a bit restless. He had heard that the Land of Fire was quite chaotic lately, and he figured he could land some high-paying assassination jobs.
"Wait a minute. There's a job where the employer specifically requested you, but it's still uncertain if you'll take it."
Konan hesitated for a moment and then stopped Kakuzu from his eager actions.
"Specifically requested by name?"
Kakuzu was taken aback, his expression a bit uncertain.
In this day and age, was there still someone who remembered him?
"Not really. From what I heard, they want a skilled person who fought against the first Hokage, but they didn't mention your name."
Konan shook her head and explained.
So that's how it is!
Kakuzu smiled in relief. Had the news about his assassination of Senju Hashirama finally come out?
Kakuzu cleared his throat and, with a serious face, pretended to be someone important, pondering:
"Can this job pay well?"
Well, it seems he was still concerned about the payment; nothing is more important than money!
"It can pay a lot, but it's also very dangerous."
Konan nodded gravely.
"How dangerous can it be compared to Senju Hashirama? I'm not afraid of the god of ninjas!"
Kakuzu sneered, fully embracing the role. However, as the one in charge of logistics for Akatsuki, Konan still had to follow the process. After calming down the finance minister Kakuzu, she went to find Pain, who was lost in thought nearby.
"What did Uchiha Madara say? Should we take this job?"
Konan's cold voice carried, but Pain remained where he was, completely unresponsive.
He's spaced out again.
Or maybe Nagato has fallen asleep.
Konan shook her head quietly and jumped onto a nearby balcony, using her paper wings to fly toward a tall tower not far away.
It turned out Nagato was indeed as she guessed. He was slouched in his wheelchair, resting.
However, as the inheritor of the Rinnegan, Nagato's perception was obviously sharp. After Konan approached, he opened his eyes and looked over.
"Next time before you sleep, remember to bring back Pain. It doesn't matter for the others, but you wouldn't want to ruin Yahiko's body, right?"
Seeing Nagato looking a bit confused, Konan reminded him disapprovingly.
She had previously opposed turning Yahiko's body into Pain, but Nagato stubbornly believed it was necessary to carry out Yahiko's will and show him a peaceful future. There was nothing she could do to stop it.
But as Nagato became more attached to Yahiko's body, he hardly maintained it, so anyone close to Deva Path could smell a terrible odor, which Konan found completely unacceptable.
"The Hell Path will be improved soon, so don't worry. Yahiko's body won't keep stinking."
Nagato said calmly as he steadied himself in the chair.
He hadn't overused his Rinnegan yet, and while he still looked thin, he appeared much healthier.
Tilting his head, Nagato activated the Deva Path to the Hell Path and then looked back at Konan.
"We can take the job."
Nagato was already aware of the request from Iwagakure Village. However, since he couldn't contact Uchiha Madara at that time, he hadn't made any decisions on his own.
After all, the true leader of Akatsuki wasn't Nagato but the man who called himself Uchiha Madara.
According to their agreement, most decisions were guided by this self-proclaimed leader of the Rinnegan. However, a few days ago, when the defense of Konohagakure took place, the masked man, who was the actual leader, had mysteriously been absent during the meeting.
That meeting was quite important.
Not long ago, Nagato had used Pain to defeat Hanzo the Salamander and become the true leader of Amegakure, so there were many issues he needed to resolve.
Uchiha Madara is not here.
Some things have come to a standstill.
"Has Uchiha Madara responded to you?"
Konan raised an eyebrow.
"No need to ask for his permission."
Nagato's tone remained calm.
In fact, both he and Konan knew that Uchiha Madara wasn't trustworthy. Even if he claimed to be the guide of the Rinnegan, it was Nagato himself who developed the Six Paths of Pain. He really hadn't seen Uchiha Madara be of any help.
Besides, this was also the Akatsuki that Yahiko and they built with their own hands. If they always listened to Uchiha Madara, how could his limited thinking come into play?
"Konohagakure should pay for its arrogance."
A cold light flashed in Nagato's eyes.
Like Konan, he had only been playing the role of "god" for a short time, and some personal grudges hadn't been completely set aside.
If it came to a point where Nagato completely immersed himself in the role of a god, he might start thinking about things from a divine perspective.
For instance, when it came to capturing the Nine-Tails, if it weren't for a few words from Tsunade, Nagato wouldn't have planned to use his Super Shinra Tensei to destroy Konohagakure.
After all, at that time, according to Tsunade, if he didn't destroy Konohagakure, he couldn't expect to leave. As a god, Nagato naturally responded and agreed, ready to punish anyone who provoked him.
But right now, Nagato wasn't that "god-like" yet. He had only just defeated Hanzo the Salamander, and his time as a god was still short. So when he saw the news about Konohagakure, he was just waking from a dream and remembered his parents, who had been killed by Konohagakure ninjas.
Even if it was just to do something for his deceased parents, he could let his subordinates take down a few Konohagakure ninjas to say goodbye to his old self. From now on, he would be a god maintaining world peace, no longer the naive Nagato.
"You and Kakuzu go on a trip. Since Tsuchikage has given the signal, let him go. If you really can't win, help out, and if the opponent is too strong, retreat. Wait for Uchiha Madara to return to handle it."
The payment from Iwagakure Village was quite substantial, which was very tempting for Nagato, who urgently needed to stabilize the situation in Amegakure. If it weren't for just taking over Amegakure, he would definitely go personally to ensure everything went smoothly.
Konan nodded at this, turned, and flew back to find Kakuzu.
"Going to make a lot of money?"
"Yeah."
"Where?"
"Fire."
"Alright, should we take down a few guarding ninjas on the way?"
"Sure."
Kakuzu watched Konan. In the end, he shook his head and decided not to say anything. In the silence, the two of them headed toward the Land of Fire as mercenaries.
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