Urashiki suddenly flew up and headed directly towards Nagato's location!
Seeing the direction Urashiki was headed, all the members of the Akatsuki were startled, and quickly followed behind!
This time, it was Nagato who had intentionally revealed his chakra to attract everyone's attention. Not only did Urashiki sense it, but the more perceptive members of the Akatsuki also sensed it!
Wasn't Tendo Pain supposed to meet Urashiki just a moment ago? But now, the leader's chakra was coming from somewhere else?
The Akatsuki members quickly realized what to do and chased after Urashiki.
After about ten minutes, in a dimly lit cave, Urashiki walked straight in.
Following closely behind, Itachi Uchiha and the other members of Akatsuki also entered!
Nagato appeared as thin as a skeleton, like a disabled man, with black rods protruding from his frail body, giving a shocking impression. His eyes were in the lavender Rinnegan form!
Standing beside Nagato were the remaining five Paths of Pain.
"They are all here... So, is this the true body of our leader?"
With the presence of the five Paths of Pain and Nagato's lavender Rinnegan, the Akatsuki members confirmed their suspicions. Their guess was correct—the leader only had one Rinnegan.
All the others were just puppets controlled by his Rinnegan!
"So, this is the true form of Akatsuki's leader?" Itachi's eyes flickered slightly!
After being in the Akatsuki for so long, he finally saw the true form of their leader. The level of secrecy in the Akatsuki organization ran deep!
"So today, Nagato decided to reveal his true identity?" Obito muttered silently.
However, he didn't think Nagato made the wrong choice.
Considering the current state of the shinobi world, Nagato revealing his true form to ally with other powerful figures to first deal with Akira seemed to be a reasonable move.
"I didn't expect it; our leader is the strongest puppeteer in the shinobi world!" Sasori of the Red Sand suddenly spoke, his tone filled with admiration.
He had worked alongside Tendo Pain for so many years without realizing that he was actually a human puppet?
Sasori was impressed by the puppetry abilities of the Rinnegan!
While the Akatsuki members contemplated Nagato's revelation, Urashiki looked at Nagato, a mocking smile forming on his lips.
"I thought it would be someone strong who dared to propose an alliance with me, but it turns out you're just a guy using someone else's Rinnegan!" Urashiki said bluntly.
"Someone else's Rinnegan!?" Hearing what Urashiki said, Nagato's expression changed slightly!
So what did that mean? His Rinnegan wasn't his own? Was that even possible?
"The power of the Rinnegan is not something just anyone can bear!"
"You've got quite the physique to survive using someone else's Rinnegan until now."
"But even so, it won't change the ultimate result. Your body will soon reach its limit," Urashiki shook his head, disappointment evident on his face.
Possessing the Rinnegan generally meant having Super Kage-level strength—it was practically a rule!
But Nagato? In Akira's eyes, Nagato's strength was merely the peak of the Kage-level, not yet reaching the Super Kage-level.
Therefore, Nagato's body, while wielding the Rinnegan, struggled to bear the burden it brought!
"Damn it, this guy figured out with just one glance that Nagato's Rinnegan doesn't belong to him. This might cause Nagato to become suspicious!" Obito, standing nearby, was secretly anxious.
Obito knew all too well about the origin of Nagato's Rinnegan!
"Could Madara's plan be exposed?" Similarly, upon hearing Urashiki's comment that Nagato's Rinnegan wasn't his own, Black Zetsu, the manipulative figure behind the scenes, felt a wave of tension.
Although Nagato was secretly suspicious, he showed no signs of revealing his true thoughts outwardly.
He simply looked at Urashiki quietly and said, "The condition of my Rinnegan doesn't need your evaluation. I just want to say that our goal is to deal with Akira. How about it? Do you want to join forces?"
"Join forces? And if I refuse? Do you think you can keep me here?" Urashiki said, casually carrying his fishing rod over his shoulder as he glanced dismissively at the Akatsuki members surrounding him.
Nagato said nothing, staring at Urashiki with his lavender Rinnegan.
Meanwhile, the other Akatsuki members silently stepped forward, forming a half-circle around Urashiki, clearly intending to surround him!
Just from the way they moved, it was obvious that the Akatsuki members shared a mutual understanding.
"Very well, if you are willing to help me, why wouldn't I agree?" After thinking for a while, Urashiki nodded, agreeing to form an alliance with the Akatsuki.
This response made Nagato and the others nod in satisfaction.
Regardless, since this guy had agreed, things were looking up. At the very least, they now had a powerful ally!
Once Akira was dealt with, facing Urashiki alone would be much easier than taking on both Akira and Urashiki simultaneously!
"Since we are allies now, let's introduce ourselves properly. My name is Nagato, Uzumaki Nagato, and they are..."
Nagato began with a self-introduction before introducing the rest of the Akatsuki members to Urashiki.
"Uzumaki!?" Except for Obito and Black Zetsu, the other Akatsuki members were secretly astonished upon hearing Nagato's surname.
Since the fall of the Land of Whirlpools, members of the Uzumaki Clan were rarer than pandas!
To think the leader of their organization was from the Uzumaki Clan!
"Urashiki, Otsutsuki Urashiki!" Since they were allies now, a sense of formality was required. Urashiki followed suit and introduced himself.
"Otsutsuki? I've never heard of this surname in the shinobi world, nor have I heard of this name!" The Akatsuki members silently pondered over Urashiki's introduction.
...
So, a mysterious figure? Truly unprecedentedly mysterious. No one in the entire shinobi world had ever heard of him!
"Hmm? Black Zetsu, what's wrong with you?" Just when all the members of the Akatsuki were quietly contemplating the mysterious surname, White Zetsu suddenly spoke in surprise.
"Nothing, I just shivered because I needed to pee!" Black Zetsu replied in a low voice.
"Urgent to pee? What does that feel like? You can even pee?" White Zetsu, diverted by the response, asked curiously.
"It's hard to describe. Even if I explain, you won't understand," Black Zetsu said calmly, showing no intention of explaining in detail to White Zetsu.
While Black Zetsu casually responded to White Zetsu, outwardly maintaining calm, he was internally ecstatic, almost wishing he could immediately acknowledge his kinship!
Otsutsuki! Others might not know what this surname meant, but Black Zetsu understood it all too well!
...0
He was a product born from the will of his mother, Otsutsuki Kaguya. In the shinobi world, the only ones qualified to call themselves Otsutsuki were his mother Kaguya, the Sage of Six Paths Hagoromo, and Otsutsuki Hamura!
While most in the shinobi world had no clue what the Otsutsuki surname signified from a thousand years ago, Black Zetsu knew very well!
This man claimed to be a member of the Otsutsuki Clan?
So? Could it be that he was of the same lineage as his mother?
At the very least, he couldn't be a descendant of those two unfilial sons, Hagoromo and Hamura!
Hagoromo inherited the Rinnegan, while Hamura inherited the Byakugan—their powers were divided!
But Urashiki possessed both the Byakugan and the power of the Rinnegan, just like Black Zetsu's mother, Kaguya Otsutsuki.
This had to be an even purer Otsutsuki bloodline than that of Hagoromo or Hamura!
"I never expected it... After hiding in the shinobi world for so long, without ever hearing that Mother had other clan members, and suddenly one appears!"
"If I could acknowledge him as kin, he could be a great help in reviving Mother, couldn't he?"
"Though there's only a fifty-fifty chance, it's worth a try!" Black Zetsu thought to himself, his excitement growing.
If it weren't for the presence of all the Akatsuki members, Black Zetsu might have rushed forward to acknowledge Urashiki right then and there!
Putting aside Black Zetsu's excitement, after verbally agreeing to the alliance, both sides naturally proceeded to share intelligence.
Next, they started formulating corresponding strategies!
With that, the Akatsuki shared all the intelligence they had on Akira with Urashiki.
From their words, Urashiki gained a deeper understanding of Akira's situation!
Not to mention the Akatsuki's side of the story.
At that moment, Akira and Sasuke were also discussing how to locate Urashiki and eliminate him...
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POWER STONE!!!
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