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Three figures in black cloaks with red clouds were surveying the Hidden Mist Village in the distance.
"This place looks pretty good," the short silver-haired youth, Hidan, said with a sinister smile. "I really want to sacrifice everyone to Lord Jashin, heh heh."
"Don't waste time," Kakuzu snorted. "Our mission is to capture the Three-Tails."
"Damn it, how is this wasting time?" Hidan said, displeased. "Sacrifices to Lord Jashin are necessary!"
Konan ignored their quarrel. Beneath her calm demeanor, her heart was quite surprised. The changes in Hidden Mist Village were simply too exaggerated. So exaggerated that she wondered if something had gone wrong.
The last time she came to Hidden Mist Village, Yagura Karatachi was the Mizukage. This place was ruled by bloodshed. Everyone lived in a purgatory, seeing no hope or smiles. At the same time, the buildings were old and dilapidated. Although it was one of the Five Great Villages, it was far inferior to the iron-forged houses of Amegakure. At least those looked quite magnificent and grand.
The Land of Rain, a place with only rain, managed to develop to its current state entirely thanks to the Akatsuki. A large portion of the money earned by these members, who were at least jonin, was used by Nagato for construction. Especially Amegakure.
Why did they do this? Naturally, because of their dream. In the beginning, Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan all dreamed of transforming their country. Later, this expanded to the grand dream of world peace.
But after Yahiko's death, Nagato and Konan gradually became cold and ruthless. However, the dream still remained. Only the method of achieving it had changed. They no longer hoped for world peace through human interaction. Instead, it was through pain. To make the world feel pain, thereby fearing war and longing for peace.
Konan's eyes flickered slightly. The current Hidden Mist Village had wide, clean, and bustling streets, tall and beautiful buildings, and people's faces were filled with smiles. This was quite similar to Yahiko's original vision of peace. She just hadn't expected to see this scene in Hidden Mist Village, not Amegakure. To be honest, while Amegakure had developed well, the atmosphere was too depressing.
"Hidden Mist Village, where did they get the money?" Konan turned to Kakuzu, asking in a cold voice. Since the Akatsuki members had increased, she rarely went out. Naturally, Kakuzu knew more about the changes in the outside world.
"It's the Thousand Sunny Merchant Guild," as expected, Kakuzu said, listing them off. "This merchant guild is currently the wealthiest in the ninja world, possessing countless assets. Their biggest source of income is the Land of Water's catering and mining industries. At the same time, they frequently commission Hidden Mist Village ninja to serve as escorts."
Konan pondered. So that's it. She had thought Hidden Mist Village had simply replaced its Mizukage with a more capable one. She hadn't expected it to rely on the Thousand Sunny Merchant Guild. This guild was truly rich. It was a pity it was in the Land of Water and not the Land of Rain. Otherwise, they could have cooperated to accelerate Akatsuki's construction. As for robbery or anything, she had no such thoughts. At this stage, Akatsuki was still quite law-abiding. Besides, robbery could easily attract the attention of the Five Great Villages prematurely. It wasn't worth it.
Konan regained her composure and said coldly, "First, find someone and ask where Yagura Karatachi is."
"Leave it to me!" Hidan waved his scythe. "I can't wait to offer sacrifices to Lord Jashin!"
"You can't do it," Kakuzu glanced at him. Hidan's sacrifice ritual was too cumbersome. If he were to capture someone, it would surely make the entire Hidden Mist Village aware, which would defeat the purpose. Although their combined strength far exceeded that of ordinary ninja, as one of the Five Great Villages, Hidden Mist had over ten thousand ninja. That would be quite troublesome for them.
"Hey! What do you mean?!" Hidan said with a ferocious expression. "Why can't I do it? Do you want to try? I've always wanted to sacrifice you to Lord Jashin!"
"Kakuzu, you go," Konan frowned slightly and ordered. Hidan was indeed too noisy. She didn't want to alert the enemy. Kakuzu nodded and immediately vanished from their sight.
Hidan's expression froze. "Damn it!" he said, annoyed. He actually couldn't defeat Kakuzu. Because he didn't know any ninjutsu, and his combat experience was poor. He relied purely on curses. And curses could only be activated with blood. Did Kakuzu have blood? Even if he did, Hidan would have to curse him five times to kill him. By then, he would have long since escaped. Similarly, Kakuzu also had no way to deal with Hidan. He possessed immortality, making him too difficult to kill. Kakuzu had previously traded teammates for bounties. This behavior was forcibly stopped after Nagato assigned Hidan to him. After all, he couldn't die.
"Ah, Lord Jashin, please wait a little longer," Hidan prayed loudly, his face becoming devout. Konan glanced at him and lost interest. Most of the Akatsuki members had some issues. She was already used to it. Hidan was strange, but he was within her tolerance. As long as they truly worked for Akatsuki, it didn't matter.
Half an hour later, Kakuzu returned. He had faint bloodstains on him. Hidan sniffed and immediately became excited, but then he thought about Kakuzu killing them, and he lost all interest. After all, he had to kill them himself to sacrifice them to Lord Jashin.
"Yagura Karatachi is not in Hidden Mist Village," Kakuzu said. "He's on a deserted island not far away." Changing a jinchuriki was very dangerous. First, the seal was weak, and the tailed beast might go berserk. Second, the old jinchuriki was dead, and the new jinchuriki had not yet established much connection with the tailed beast, making them at their weakest. Either point would attract enemies. Therefore, moving to an unknown deserted island was clearly safer. Those who knew Yagura Karatachi had left were all jonin from Hidden Mist Village. They were strong and loyal. Ordinary ninja couldn't pry information from them. Unfortunately, they encountered the Akatsuki.
"Let's go," Konan nodded. She wasn't surprised. On the contrary, moving to a deserted island was more advantageous for them. Although it wasn't far from Hidden Mist Village, it would still waste a little more time.
"Hahaha, jinchuriki!" Hidan became excited. "Lord Jashin will surely love this!"
Kakuzu turned and led the way. Konan immediately followed.
"Hey, wait for me!" Hidan recovered, but both of them had already vanished. He quickly chased after them.
[Due to your actions, the fates of Konan, Kakuzu, and Hidan have changed. You have gained a total of thirty points of Destiny Value.]
[Your total Destiny Value has exceeded two thousand. After deducting the loan, your Destiny Value balance is nineteen points.]
"So fast? Do I look like someone who doesn't pay back debts?" Sasame couldn't help but complain. But if it's deducted, then it's deducted. He had Ōtsutsuki Kaguya now, so even without Destiny Value, he wouldn't encounter any life-threatening danger. Besides, someone was sending him Destiny Value again.
Konan, Kakuzu, and Hidan. Under normal circumstances, Sasame would have no interaction with them. But why could they contribute Destiny Value? And ten points each. This meant it was related to Sasame, but not particularly so. He could only think of Yagura Karatachi.
Sasame opened his Heavenly Net Communicator. He had already finished his vacation with Tsunade and was now in the Hokage Office. So, he had nothing else to do.
"Dear Mizukage-sama." Sasame's Heavenly Net Communicator, which he had given to Mei Terumi last time, came in handy. Not long after, he received a reply.
"Who's your 'dear'? Don't go making assumptions." Although she couldn't see her face, Sasame could already guess Mei Terumi's reaction. Probably shy and annoyed. Hmm, that's how all sulking girlfriends are.
"Oh, then what's our relationship?" Sasame typed mischievously. Mei Terumi saw the line of text and instinctively pursed her lips. What relationship? She remembered their previous kiss, and her heart trembled. Yes, what were they to each other? Lovers?
"No relationship!" Mei Terumi feigned composure. "What do you want? Don't talk nonsense!"
"How's your Fourth Mizukage doing?" Sasame stopped teasing her and got back to business.
"He's alright," Mei Terumi asked, puzzled. "Why are you asking?" "Alright" meant he was still alive.
Sasame thought for a moment and replied, "I received intelligence that someone plans to steal your Three-Tails."
"Who?" Mei Terumi's eyes narrowed, her face turning from slightly red to serious. The Three-Tails was the Hidden Mist Village's only tailed beast; they naturally couldn't lose it. Without a tailed beast to deter others, Hidden Mist Village would become one of the weakest of the Five Great Villages. Perhaps other small ninja villages would try to take its place. Like Amegakure.
"It's that mysterious organization I told you about last time," Sasame said casually. "I sent Jiraiya to investigate them, and this is what he reported to me."
Jiraiya? Mei Terumi immediately believed what Sasame said. After all, the Sannin were not inferior to the Kage of the Five Great Villages. Their strength and abilities were trustworthy.
"Thank you," Mei Terumi hurriedly disconnected the communication. At the speed of ninja, that mysterious organization might already be in Hidden Mist Village. She was worried about the jonin left on the deserted island.
"Haku," Mei Terumi looked up and called. The next moment, Haku, dressed in Anbu attire, appeared before her.
"Go inform Zabuza and Ao. Come with me to the deserted island," Mei Terumi stood up. "I'll wait for them at the village gate. You come too."
"Yes!" Haku's eyes flickered. He probably realized what was about to happen. Instantly, he vanished.
Mei Terumi pushed open the door and, in less than a moment, arrived at the village gate. Zabuza Momochi, Ao, and Haku were already waiting. However, they had just arrived as well.
"Mizukage-sama, what happened?" Ao immediately stepped forward and asked.
"It's about the Fourth Mizukage. I received information that someone plans to steal the Three-Tails," Mei Terumi said with a grave expression.
"Is that so?" Ao's expression hardened, and he said seriously, "Let's go quickly." He didn't doubt Mei Terumi's source of information. After all, as Mizukage, she naturally had her methods. Haku, however, was a little puzzled. This message certainly wasn't from the Anbu. So who else? But the situation was urgent now, so he could only suppress his doubts.
The four of them rushed at full speed, arriving at their destination in less than a minute.
"The situation seems to be alright," Ao scanned the area. "No sounds of fighting."
Mei Terumi, however, didn't relax at all and continued walking deeper inside.
"Wait!" Zabuza Momochi drew his Kubikiribōchō. "Why is there no one?" Ao and Haku also looked stern. To protect Yagura Karatachi's safety, nine jonin were assigned here. It was extremely tight security. But now, not a single one was seen. Mei Terumi's heart sank. After passing through the corridor, a strong smell of blood assailed them. She saw that all nine jonin she had assigned were lying there, their lives unknown.
In the center of the courtyard, a ninja with his coat half-off was laughing wildly. His exposed skin was covered in black and white, including his face. At his feet was a strange blood diagram of an inverted triangle. In short, he didn't look like a normal person at all. Not far from him, two other ninja were heading deeper inside.
"Stop!" Mei Terumi roared, looking at the three with a solemn expression. She didn't have time to check the lives of the nine jonin. Because ninja who could easily deal with them were definitely extraordinarily powerful. And their combat range could be confined to this courtyard. That was something only extraordinary people could do. It meant they won by overwhelming force.
"So fast?" Konan raised an eyebrow, somewhat surprised. They had tried to minimize their movements to make Hidden Mist Village arrive a little slower.
"I'll stop them," Kakuzu glanced at them. "You go to Yagura Karatachi. He's close to death now and poses no threat. Just take him away."
"Okay, thank you both," Konan nodded and pushed open the door.
"I told you to stop!" Mei Terumi formed hand signs without hesitation, and with a soft shout, her mouth slightly opened.
Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet!
Chakra condensed into rapidly rotating water. In an instant, a giant water dragon roared out. Its target was Konan.
Kakuzu flew to block between the two.
Fire Release: Headhunter!
He possessed five hearts, corresponding to the five elements: fire, water, earth, lightning, and wind. This meant he could use all five elemental ninjutsu. A fist-sized fireball rapidly shot out. Upon landing, it transformed into a raging sea of fire, engulfing the water dragon.
Mei Terumi's pupils contracted violently. So strong! Water was supposed to counter fire. Although Mei Terumi's Water Dragon Bullet was hastily cast, its power was definitely not weak. For it to disappear so easily proved Kakuzu's terrifying strength. However, Mei Terumi was a little confused. Was he not concerned about his companion?
"Damn it!" Hidan, in the sea of fire, roared furiously. "Kakuzu, what are you doing? You ruined my sacrifice!"
Sacrifice? Although Mei Terumi didn't know about Jashin, she understood the meaning of sacrifice. This meant those people might not be dead.
"Haku, stop that female ninja. The rest of you, save the people." Mei Terumi formed hand signs at an extremely fast speed. Almost instantly, a five-meter-high wall made of water blocked the flames. At the same time, she flickered, appearing in front of the unconscious jonin. She grabbed one in each hand and threw them backward. In mid-air, chakra formed a mass, catching them and allowing them to land safely. Although the Three-Tails was very important, Hidden Mist Village also couldn't afford the painful cost of losing nine jonin.
"Damn it!" Hidan had to interrupt his ritual. He looked at Mei Terumi, who was saving people, and was extremely enraged. His Triple-Bladed Scythe was about to be thrown when he heard the roaring wind. Zabuza Momochi leaped into the air, his Kubikiribōchō whistling as it flew out. Hidan was forced to defend. Although he possessed immortality, he wasn't immune to all attacks. If he suffered dismemberment or decapitation, he would need a teammate's help for reattachment. Otherwise, even if he didn't die, he would lose his ability to move. Also, he was afraid of pain. Being cut by the Kubikiribōchō would surely be excruciating.
The two blades collided, producing a dull sound. Hidan was forced back a step by the immense force. Zabuza Momochi sneered at the sight. He had thought he was much stronger. In reality, Hidan, aside from his curse and immortality, was completely useless.
On the other side, Ao formed a single hand sign.
Water Release: Water Shockwave!
He spat out a waterfall-like torrent of water, rushing towards the sea of fire. Mist rose. Haku used the Body Flicker Technique, moving quickly through the mist, and instantly caught up to Konan.
Water Release: Thousand Flying Water Needles of Death!
Chakra transformed into water, and the water then transformed into senbon, which are needle-shaped ninja tools. Konan raised her hand. Countless paper sheets poured out, rapidly condensing into shuriken in the air, completely destroying the senbon. Paper was usually afraid of water, but Konan had modified her paper so it was only afraid of oil.
Haku was slightly surprised. What kind of ninjutsu was this? The next moment, two large wings extended from Konan's back. Her speed increased again.
Ice Release: Demonic Mirroring Ice Crystals!
Haku quickly formed hand signs. Several ice mirrors appeared. He entered one, instantly blocking Konan's path.
Ice Release? Konan raised an eyebrow. Although somewhat surprised, it was nothing special. She could tell that Haku's strength was rather ordinary. Mainly because of his young age.
Konan elegantly waved her hand. Paper sheets transformed into butterflies, overwhelmingly engulfing Haku.
Ice Release: Ice Rock Dome of Magnificent Nothingness!
Haku reacted quickly, and an ice dome made of ice immediately appeared around him. But the next second. The butterflies exploded with a roar. They were explosive tags. The violent explosion caused the surrounding buildings to burst into flames and turn to dust.
"Haku!" Mei Terumi had saved all nine jonin. She turned around and saw such an astonishing scene, her face showing anxiety. She quickly used the Body Flicker Technique to approach, and a water dragon appeared, expanding its range and extinguishing the flames.
Haku reappeared. However, he was completely red all over, with large areas of his skin burned, and blood continuously gushing from his wounds. But fortunately, he was not dead. Mei Terumi sent the battered Haku away. When she looked back, Konan was already gone.
Zabuza Momochi was suppressing Hidan. But Kakuzu was chasing Ao all over the place. Mei Terumi gritted her teeth and turned to chase after Konan. At the same time, she used her Heavenly Net Communicator to send a distress signal to Sasame, briefly explaining the situation. She knew he had the Flying Thunder God Technique and could arrive quickly, so saving Ao shouldn't be a big problem.
Sasame received the message and immediately appeared in Hidden Mist Village. He formed hand signs, entered Sage Mode, and expanded his perception. He put on his mask and used the Body Flicker Technique to leave. The next second, he was on the deserted island. He glanced at Kakuzu and Hidan. According to Mei Terumi's instructions, he first rescued the injured and brought them back to Hidden Mist Village. His appearance also stunned the four people present.
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Every 20 Power Stones==Bonus Chapter