Nagato did not immediately refuse Konan.
Ever since Amegakure lifted its state of isolation and began cooperating with Kusagakure, it no longer seemed so mysterious to the outside world.
Naturally, the Akatsuki organization, active in Amegakure, also was not as secretive as it initially was.
Especially because Senshi and Kakuzu, wearing Akatsuki robes, were taking on missions like crazy.
Those two alone attracted countless eyes toward Akatsuki.
Right now, in Amegakure, there is no absolute secrecy regarding Akatsuki's existence.
And to realize the ultimate plan of Akatsuki, it will undoubtedly be a long process.
To ensure the plan goes smoothly, Akatsuki needs more personnel, more fresh blood.
Moreover, peripheral members have only very limited knowledge about Akatsuki.
Since some of the children in the village, as well as those in the refugee shelter, want to join Akatsuki, then let them join.
However, Nagato vaguely felt that he, the leader of Akatsuki, was on the verge of being turned into the "Amekage" by Senshi and Konan. The tall tower in Amegakure had practically become the "Amekage Building."
Now, Amegakure not only has a well-organized mission system that guarantees the basic interests of lower- and mid-level shinobi, but it also has Kusagakure as a partner. Both villages benefit from mutual exchange, and the living standards of villagers in both places continue to rise.
Beyond that, Nagato himself has been doing a lot of thinking and making decisions regarding the village's development.
Amegakure even has its own shinobi academy now, and the teaching staff is extremely competent.
Senshi has dispatched a large number of his Wood-Clone bodies to teach at the Amegakure Shinobi Academy.
Additionally, Amegakure hosts the largest refugee shelter in the entire shinobi world, accepting all homeless people unconditionally.
Now, even the children of Amegakure are clamoring to join Akatsuki.
Konan specifically came to ask Nagato's opinion on this matter—she truly seems to want him to handle the "Amekage's" work as well.
Nagato could even foresee that, in a while, Konan might come again to discuss with him what sort of missions would be appropriate for these children who have joined Akatsuki.
And if these children who joined Akatsuki were arranged into three-man squads, each led by a core member of Akatsuki as the jōnin sensei…
Nagato hastily shook his head to clear it.
When did Amegakure and Akatsuki start becoming so abnormal?
No, that's not right.
It might be more accurate to say they've grown similar to other shinobi villages…
At that thought, Nagato couldn't help but heave a long sigh.
Anyway, the ultimate plan of Akatsuki is proceeding steadily; there's no need to get tangled up in all these other details.
He then said to Konan, "If the children of Amegakure and the children in the refugee shelter want to join Akatsuki, let them become peripheral members."
Hearing this, Konan was quite happy.
She could tell those kids really wanted to join Akatsuki, and she did not want to return with disappointing news.
Now that Nagato had agreed, she was planning to prepare the black robes with red clouds of Akatsuki for those children.
Before long, maybe everyone in Amegakure would be dressed like that.
At this moment, Nagato spoke again: "You seem to be in a really good mood?"
Konan did not respond directly to Nagato's question but instead asked in return, "Nagato, do you like the current state of Amegakure?"
Hearing that, Nagato fell silent for a short moment.
As the leader of Akatsuki, there were certain principles on which he would never waver.
But he had to admit that the Amegakure of today looked very much like what he had once envisioned—his ideal.
In Amegakure now, even the poorest can have a temporary shelter that keeps out the wind and rain. No one will starve to death simply because they are poor.
Even refugees with nothing, as long as they reach Amegakure, can survive.
He, Senshi, and the other powerful members of Akatsuki can protect Amegakure with their formidable strength.
You could say that people in Amegakure now not only live well, but their lives keep getting better.
The village is developing rapidly. Every industry is creating jobs so that everyone can live with dignity.
The new generation of children can attend the Amegakure Shinobi Academy for free.
Things like these were unimaginable in the past.
Still, instead of explicitly saying whether he likes the current state of Amegakure, Nagato simply said, "Amegakure is not bad right now."
Hearing those words, Konan could not help but smile slightly at the corners of her mouth.
It was clear that Nagato was pleased with the state of Amegakure, but he was unwilling to alter the established path of Akatsuki, so what he chose to say was merely that Amegakure is "not bad."
Naturally, Nagato noticed the faint smile on Konan's lips, but he offered no response.
He did not want to continue the same discussion they had before.
Nor did Konan linger to chat further with Nagato. "I'll go prepare those children's robes now," she said.
Nagato gave a slight nod, but just as Konan was about to leave, he stopped her with a troubled look.
He was simultaneously acting as leader of Akatsuki and de facto "Amekage," and there were simply too many things to handle!
While his real body was talking with Konan, his Deva Path (Tendō) Pain was talking with Sasori.
And with Sasori, there was a matter requiring Konan's assistance.
So he said to her, "Konan, wait!"
Konan: (O_O)???
…
About twenty minutes earlier, on the rooftop of Amegakure's central tower:
Sasori, controlling his Hiruko puppet, found Pain and spoke bluntly: "Pain, for a while I won't be able to take on missions assigned by the organization. I need to leave the group for a period of time."
Pain was taken aback. "Sasori, you want to leave Akatsuki?"
"Not exactly." Sasori denied any desire to withdraw from Akatsuki. Then he continued, "I just need to suspend missions temporarily so I can focus on studying puppet techniques, to elevate my art."
Pain: ?
What is going on?
Why do Akatsuki members keep acting strangely?
Senshi and Kakuzu are two workaholics completing missions non-stop!
Orochimaru, besides the tasks assigned by Akatsuki, seems also to be doing extra missions. Possibly because Senshi has earned too much money, Orochimaru, too, has gotten seriously interested in making money.
Zetsu disappears for ten days at a time, and on rare occasions when it shows up, it's lugging around a huge bag doing who-knows-what.
Hoshigaki Kisame is acting oddly as well.
Whenever Senshi is in Amegakure, Kisame adamantly refuses to accept missions, grumbling something about not daring to leave Senshi's line of sight. He claims he might never get to come back alive if he strays too far!
Even the most "normal" Konan has gotten a bit strange: first she tried to persuade him to alter the original plan; now she's functioning like the "Amekage's" advisor. Not long ago, she was talking about letting those little kids join Akatsuki.
As for the ally of Akatsuki, Uchiha Madara, he's totally out of contact.
Oh, right—Uchiha Itachi also seems to have vanished.
Both Uchihas missing?
And now Sasori, a longtime Akatsuki member, wants to take leave to research puppet art.
What is going on with Akatsuki?
When did so many changes start?
After a brief pause, Pain asked, "Sasori, why the sudden plan to step away from Akatsuki for a while and focus on your puppets?"
Sasori replied without hesitation: "I feel my power lags far behind the other members of Akatsuki."
"No matter whether it's the newly joined Senshi or Orochimaru, who has long been in the organization but spends every day shut in his lab, they both surpass me by too big a margin. It's shaken my faith in my own art."
Hearing this, Pain immediately responded, "Senshi's situation is special, so don't compare yourself to him. As for Orochimaru, the reason his strength surged so rapidly isn't just personal training—Senshi helped him."
Sasori: (O_O)???
He was startled that Orochimaru's astonishing power apparently came from Senshi.
To confirm, Sasori asked, "Pain, did you say Orochimaru's power became so strong because of Senshi?"
Pain nodded. "Yes."
Right now, Akatsuki needs all the manpower it can get, so there's no way Pain can casually let Sasori just quit missions.
Hearing Pain's words, Sasori was thoughtful.
But Orochimaru's path of development didn't suit him or his sense of artistic aesthetics.
He wants to keep getting stronger and more artistically refined; there are only two ways forward:
Either upgrade and iterate his existing puppets,
Or develop entirely new ones.
Before Sasori could clarify that he would be taking time off to research new puppets, Pain meaningfully suggested, "Sasori, it won't be easy to achieve a massive breakthrough in your puppet art in the short term."
"If you want to gain power quickly, you can look for Senshi."
Sasori found this surprising, recalling the events at the entrance to Kumogakure, where he had seen Orochimaru in a domineering battle against the A-B brothers. He also witnessed how casually Senshi had appeared and hauled Orochimaru over from who-knows-where.
By the looks of it, Senshi is indeed extremely powerful and possesses many incredible techniques.
His puppetry, which once felt sufficient, now clearly needs upgrading after all he's seen.
If even he himself isn't convinced by his own art, how could he convince others that his art is supreme?
As Sasori felt swayed by the idea of asking Senshi for help, Pain spoke again, his tone serious:
"Going to Senshi to become stronger might be the best option. But be aware: Senshi is a strange shinobi; his actions are hard to predict."
"If you approach him without preparation or determination, something unpleasant could happen. So I recommend you learn about him first before you do anything rash—otherwise, you might get into trouble."
Sasori paused to ponder. He did not understand why there would be trouble when dealing with someone who was supposedly his comrade in Akatsuki.
He directly asked, "That guy Senshi—like Kakuzu, does he attack his own teammates?"
For once, Pain was silent for quite a while.
It's not exactly that Senshi attacks Akatsuki members, but he might do something bizarre to them.
Pain recalled how Kakuzu was once tortured so badly he looked emaciated, and now there's Hidan. Senshi basically drags Hidan around with him, and Hidan is constantly struck by lightning so often he might as well be a native of Kumogakure.
Because Sasori was a core Akatsuki veteran, Pain genuinely didn't want him to suffer too miserable a fate. So, noticing Sasori's eagerness to seek out Senshi for a quick power-up, Pain sternly reminded him:
"Sasori, there are things in this world far more terrifying and painful than death!"
"Don't seek out Senshi unless you are fully prepared!"
His words gave Sasori a bit of a chill.
If even Pain says so, then Senshi really must come with some serious risks.
As Sasori mulled over these thoughts, Pain spoke up once more:
"By the way, Senshi's former partner, Kakuzu, is heading to Iwagakure for a mission."
"Kakuzu currently needs a partner; you can go along. On the way, you can learn more about Senshi from him."
Hearing that, Sasori thought for a moment, then nodded. He was okay with pairing up with Kakuzu. He didn't mind working with Kakuzu, who seemed straightforward enough.
…
In the life-support chamber, Nagato withdrew his attention from the Pain-Sasori conversation and addressed Konan again:
"Konan, Zetsu found a very promising ninja in Iwagakure—someone suitable for our organization."
"I'm sending Sasori and Kakuzu together to recruit him."
"I've already talked this over with Sasori. Go find Kakuzu and coordinate everything."
Konan nodded and left. Kakuzu had recently been spending most of his time at the black market, so finding him there was the obvious choice.
…
Meanwhile, over at Kumogakure, beside a hot spring,
Orochimaru stood with arms folded, wearing a sinister smile.
From across, Jiraiya observed Orochimaru closely, sensing a subtle change in him. Orochimaru seemed more resolute and more confident than before.
Though Orochimaru's comprehensive abilities might indeed be stronger than his own, Jiraiya didn't think he fell that far behind in terms of raw strength. Yet Orochimaru had been looking at him this whole time with the gaze one would use on someone weaker.
Could Orochimaru's strength have grown tremendously over the past few years?
But that was secondary. After some thought, Jiraiya finally broached the real topic:
"Orochimaru, return to Konoha. Your talents shouldn't be wasted out here."
"If you're willing to come back, with your abilities, you could do a great deal to help the village flourish."
Orochimaru let out a cold chuckle: "Heh. Why would I go back there? Did you really come to see me just to say something so boring?"
He certainly had no intention of returning to Konoha. Setting aside everything else, how would he continue his experiments to provide Danzo with Wood-Style powers on par with the First Hokage if he returned?
At this point, Orochimaru just wanted to end this conversation and leave.
He knew Jiraiya's intentions: to convince him to go back and serve the village.
But that aligns with Konoha's interests, not his. Outside the village, no one restricts his experiments. Back there, he'd just be subject to the old limitations.
Moreover, having cooperated many times with Senshi, he now had a solid revenue stream and was growing stronger in a self-sustaining cycle. He had no need for the village's protection or research funding anymore. His own strength was enough to guarantee his safety wherever he conducted his experiments.
Thus, the village had lost its appeal to him.
However, from their brief chat, Orochimaru discovered something: Jiraiya truly hadn't come because of Danzo.
So Orochimaru silently wondered: "Even if Jiraiya has been wandering all these years, he should still have some contact with the village."
"If so, he can't be completely clueless about anything Danzo's been up to."
"Could it be that Danzo's huge fiasco hasn't been exposed yet?"
It was odd to Orochimaru. He'd scammed one billion ryō from Danzo, so how could no one have discovered it? But apparently Jiraiya didn't know about it, or surely he'd mention it.
Unless Danzo really managed to hide it all by himself?
Indeed, that was roughly what had happened. Though the other three of Konoha's "F4" leadership were sure Danzo was the prime suspect behind the missing ten billion in the village treasury, they had no solid evidence. As long as Danzo refused to admit it, they couldn't convict him.
Hence, Jiraiya had no clue that the stolen one billion ryō ended up with Orochimaru. He was simply trying to appeal to Orochimaru with sentiment.
Jiraiya sighed and went on: "Orochimaru, the Third Hokage is old now; he's gradually losing the energy to handle the village's matters."
"The conflicts between you and the village aren't beyond mending. If you're willing to make some changes, the village will welcome your return. With your brilliance, you could do so much for Konoha, and sensei still has a high opinion of you."
There were other things Jiraiya didn't say: if Orochimaru truly repented his sins, he might well gain acceptance and even a top leadership position in Konoha. His betrayal stemmed mostly from two things: the forbidden experiments that harmed the village, and his dissatisfaction when the Third Hokage chose Minato rather than him as Fourth Hokage.
Yet Orochimaru couldn't care less whether the village would accept him back or not.
What he did care about was gleaning intelligence from Jiraiya. So after a brief pause, Orochimaru asked offhandedly, "My biggest gripe with Konoha, aside from what's on the surface, has always been Danzo. Speaking of which, does that old codger still run Root?"
Jiraiya looked puzzled. Orochimaru and Danzo were at odds, too?
He answered honestly: "I'm not too sure about Danzo and Root."
"But regarding your return, you don't need to worry about him. Danzo is old as well; in a few years, he'll retire. He was seriously injured not too long ago and is still in the hospital."
Orochimaru was surprised that Jiraiya only mentioned Danzo's old age and injuries, not a peep about the one billion ryō fiasco. This suggested Danzo's theft truly hadn't been revealed.
Which meant Orochimaru might indeed try to interact with Konoha again. As he saw it, Konoha and the Sarutobi clan's wealth was massive. If he could secure enough funds, he could make Senshi do all sorts of things for him!
Thus, Orochimaru felt a bit tempted at the thought of reestablishing some connection with Konoha. Still, he maintained his frosty manner: "I'll think about it. That's all I have to say today."
With that, Orochimaru rose and walked off to find Senshi to teleport him away.
Although Orochimaru's attitude was cold, Jiraiya was still pleased. Orochimaru seemed at least somewhat willing to consider going back to the village, which could be a huge boon to Konoha if it happened.
After leaving the hot spring, Orochimaru headed to a nearby restaurant across the street, looking for Senshi.
Senshi, seeing Orochimaru return so soon, tilted his head skeptically. "Already done? Don't tell me you just got up and left halfway. He's my big bro—at least treat him well!"
Orochimaru felt utterly speechless, silently thinking, "And I'm your 'snake bro,' no?"
Of course, he would never say that out loud.
…
While Senshi was enjoying a leisurely time in Kumogakure, Konan and Sasori were in pursuit of Kakuzu.
After leaving Amegakure's central tower, they searched the black market but had yet to find him.
Like Sasori, Kakuzu is an old member of Akatsuki. Before Senshi joined, Kakuzu's only real flaw was that he sometimes killed his own teammates.
But since Senshi's arrival, Kakuzu hasn't committed that offense anymore. He has, however, become more and more extreme about something else: if he's not turning in a mission at the black market, he's out completing one.
Whenever Nagato needs Kakuzu for something, he can't necessarily reach him right away.
Sasori followed Konan a while, eventually asking, "Can't we just tell Kakuzu to come to us? At this rate, who knows how long we'll be looking?"
Konan knew Sasori didn't understand how Akatsuki now operated. If they told Kakuzu to come find them, who could say how many more missions he'd squeeze in before showing up?
So the best plan was to catch him at the black market itself—he'd have to come there to turn in completed missions and pick up new ones.
Without looking back, Konan continued forward and said, "If you don't want to waste time waiting, then follow me straight to the black market lobby."
Her words pinned Sasori down. He hated waiting—especially after the fiasco at Kumogakure, he hated losing time. So he said nothing and simply continued on with Konan to the black market lobby.
Sure enough, Konan knew her fellow Akatsuki members very well. They arrived at the entrance just in time to see Kakuzu walking out, a thick stack of mission scrolls in his hand.
Sasori, noticing that pile of commissions, felt a mild headache. Kakuzu had undergone a major transformation too. He used to love doing missions and making money, but not on this scale.
Kakuzu also saw them. He nodded curtly by way of greeting and prepared to step past them into the black market lobby to turn in his tasks.
"Wait!" Konan called out as he was about to hurry in.
Kakuzu stopped, frustrated, and looked back at Konan. "What is it?"
Konan spoke in her usual calm tone: "Zetsu discovered someone in Iwagakure with potential to join Akatsuki. Pain wants you and Sasori to handle the recruitment."
Kakuzu frowned. "Seriously? I have to waste time on something like that instead of doing missions? Can't Sasori go alone?"
But Konan gave no room for negotiation. "That's the order. Gather your things and head out with Sasori."
Kakuzu opened his mouth, wanting to refuse, but he couldn't. This was from Pain, after all.
So he said to Konan and Sasori, "Hold on. Let me go hand in these tasks first," and quickly disappeared inside.
A short while later, he came out again.
By this time, Sasori couldn't contain his curiosity. "Kakuzu, what happened to you? You used to love money, sure, but you weren't this…extreme."
Kakuzu shrugged. "It's because of Senshi. I guess I'm learning from him."
These days, Kakuzu wasn't just obsessed—he was practically mirroring everything Senshi did. If he wasn't on a mission, he was on the way to one.
Sasori recalled Pain's cryptic remarks about Senshi. Now that he saw how Kakuzu had turned out, he began to grasp Pain's point.
While Sasori was pondering, Kakuzu emerged once again, verifying he had turned in all commissions. He glanced at them and said, "Let's go. We're leaving now to recruit that newcomer to Akatsuki."
Sasori was surprised. "Right this moment? You just finished a bunch of tasks—aren't you going to rest first?"
Kakuzu shook his head. "No need. Let's move out now."
Sasori: ?
He simply couldn't understand why Kakuzu was this driven. He'd just completed at least fifty consecutive missions without rest, and now he wanted to head straight to Iwagakure.
Even Konan silently shook her head, while Kakuzu suddenly seemed to remember something: "Oh, by the way, Sasori, wait here a moment. I'm going to pick up an escort mission along the route—might as well earn something on the way."
Without waiting for Sasori's reply, Kakuzu darted back inside.
Sasori felt at his wit's end.
Do I really want to go to Senshi for help? Is the price going to be too high?
It didn't take long for Kakuzu to return—he knew the black market inside and out, so it was easy to pick up just the right tasks.
Clutching another handful of mission scrolls, he declared: "Luck is on my side. I got a bodyguard mission from Amegakure to Iwagakure, plus some other tasks I can do en route. Let's hurry up and go!"
As they set off toward Iwagakure, traveling with a caravan of merchants, Sasori was confronted head-on by Kakuzu's changes.
Kakuzu barely paused for a moment, continuously going off to complete side missions. If Sasori was exasperated before, now he was speechless.
At one point in the journey, they were in the rear of the caravan, riding on the last cart. Kakuzu flipped through his thick stack of commission scrolls again and said to Sasori, "Guard these merchants for me—I'm off to do another task. I'll be right back."
Without giving Sasori time to respond, Kakuzu vanished with a Body Flicker Technique.
Watching him go, Sasori felt utterly helpless.
He realized that if he wanted to ask about Senshi, the only chance was the brief periods Kakuzu came back. If he waited too long, Kakuzu would be out on yet another mission.
Sure enough, Kakuzu returned half an hour later, reeking of fresh blood. Before he could vanish again, Sasori quickly said, "Kakuzu, do you really need that much money? You're going non-stop."
Kakuzu snorted. "Money's fun to make, but it's not my sole purpose."
"As for rest—why would I waste precious mission time on that? Don't you know that doing missions is resting? You really ought to learn from me and spend as much time as possible on jobs, instead of letting it pass by doing nothing."
Sasori: ?
He nearly choked on Kakuzu's logic. "If doing missions is resting, then what's real rest supposed to be?"
He might have gotten a bizarre answer had he asked: Kakuzu would likely say real rest is basically lying in a grave, waiting for death.
Luckily, Sasori wasn't that easy to sidetrack. He remembered his real reason for traveling with Kakuzu: he needed information on Senshi.
Sasori immediately pressed on: "You must know a lot about Uzumaki Senshi, right?"
At those words, Kakuzu visibly became cautious. He couldn't guess why Sasori was so curious about Senshi. Did Sasori want to be Senshi's partner? That would be troublesome.
Seeing Kakuzu's reluctance, Sasori continued, "I saw that guy in Kumogakure. He seemed as obsessed with missions as you are. I'm curious about him, plus I want his help to become stronger, fast."
At that, Kakuzu dropped his guard somewhat. So Sasori wasn't trying to partner with Senshi; he just wanted a quick power-up—how lame!
Kakuzu sneered, "So you just want to get stronger? That's such a weak goal."
"If that's all you've got, you're not qualified to stand beside Senshi. You're not qualified to be his partner at all!"
~~~
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