Chapter 219: Are You Faithful to the Boss?
Chapter 219: Are You Faithful to the Boss?
The appearance of the colorful, translucent projection startled Kisame Hoshigaki and Kakuzu, halting the impending battle.
"Leader?"
"Boss?"
The sudden appearance of the projection, known as a "Phantom Body", beside them took Kakuzu and Hidan by surprise, but they were delighted nonetheless.
Although they didn't understand why Pain would project himself to them, it was undoubtedly a fortunate turn of events, as they could at least call for assistance.
Unlike Kakuzu, who could hold out until reinforcements arrived, Hidan was eager to shout for help:
"Boss! Someone's trying to take the Jinchuriki of the Five-Tails! Come and help me, huh?"
Hidan suddenly realized something was amiss as he spoke. He widened his eyes and stared intently at the projection that had appeared beside him.
The appearance and attire of this person were not those of their boss, Pain. Instead, Uzumaki Izanagi and Uzumaki Magatsu respectfully greeted the figure:
"Lord Huyi!"
"Hey, what's this about Lord Pain? Isn't the Human Path supposed to be the boss's technique? Where's my big boss then?" Hidan grumbled, his mood plummeting from heaven to hell.
Projecting himself through the Zero Ring taken from Pain, Huyi Xuan Yue turned to Hidan, his interest piqued:
"The immortal body of the Evil God sect has some intriguing value for anatomical research."
Hidan's hair stood on end as he felt the weight of Huyi Xuan Yue's scientific gaze upon him, and he blurted out in a panic:
"Hey now! Listen to yourself! Do you have any moral compass? There's such a thing as taking your curiosity too far, you know!"
"Where's the boss? I miss our wise and valiant leader. Where has he gone?"
"He's dead," Huyi Xuan Yue replied nonchalantly.
Hidan: ".Useless boss! If you're going to get killed, what good are you?"
On the other side.
Kakuzu had already guessed the outcome when he realized that the Body Path that appeared beside him was not the familiar Pain.
Then, when he saw the face of the projection, ancient memories flooded back to him.
"Huyi Xuan Yue!"
The figure that had once been out of reach now stood before him once more.
Sadly, nothing had changed.
The once insurmountable gap remained, perhaps even wider than before.
"I heard you also lived through the Warring States era and even fought Hashirama Senju. Did you ever come across me back then?" Huyi Xuan Yue asked, his eyes indifferent as he looked at Kakuzu.
Kakuzu took a deep breath. "Back then, I only caught a glimpse from a distance. As for Hashirama Senju, it was only because he spared me that I managed to escape with my life."
Kakuzu might have exaggerated his abilities to others, claiming that he had emerged unscathed from a battle with Hashirama Senju.
But standing before him now was someone from the Warring States era, renowned alongside Hashirama Senju and intimately familiar with the era's intricacies. To repeat such a claim now would only invite ridicule.
"At least you know your place," Huyi Xuan Yue remarked indifferently.
Times change, and what may have seemed absurd to people of the previous era can become the norm for those of the next, even being defined as the right and proper way.
Take Clearmind, for example. In the Warring States era, he was merely an artisan, yet his self-aggrandizing last words were taken as gospel by later generations, who became convinced that a resurrected Clearmind would conquer the ninja world.
Kakuzu's claim to have "escaped unscathed from Hashirama Senju" was already stretching the truth, considering the man himself was no longer around to refute it, and very few from the Warring States era had survived.
Without further ado, he presented a choice: "Pain is dead. Akatsuki now falls under my command. Kneel or die."
At these words, Kakuzu released the Five-Tails jinchuriki and replied calmly, "I choose to kneel."
The members of Akatsuki were all S-rank missing-nin from the major shinobi villages. Their loyalty to their leader, Pain, was non-existent, and Pain himself knew it.
Kakuzu had joined Akatsuki after being soundly defeated by Pain. It was only logical that he would submit to someone even stronger.
Especially now that the new leader of Akatsuki was none other than Huyi Xuan Yue.
Kakuzu, a contemporary of Huyi Xuan Yue, was all too aware of his brilliance.
Becoming his subordinate was not a bitter pill to swallow; as long as he could continue making money, Kakuzu had no complaints.
And so, Kakuzu readily joined Huyi Xuan Yue's camp.
Across the way, Hidan lamented, "Kakuzu! How could you betray Boss like this? I thought you were reliable, but here you are, turning your back on him. How can you face him?"
"I can," Kakuzu replied solemnly, nodding.
Before joining Akatsuki, every penny he earned was his. But after joining, he had to hand over a portion of it.
For Kakuzu, a miserly man, this was his way of showing loyalty to Pain.
Hidan couldn't believe that Kakuzu had surrendered with such a straight face.
He wanted to say more, but Huyi Xuan Yue's other Phantom Body spoke up: "From the sound of it, are you prepared to pledge your loyalty to Pain?"
"Me? Hahahaha!" Hidan laughed heartily before composing himself and saying, "Of course not! Dear new boss, I'm just surprised that Kakuzu here beat me to it. Though I'm a step late, dear new boss, rest assured that my loyalty to you will far surpass what I felt for that useless old boss!"
Like Kakuzu, Hidan was pragmatic. After all, it made no difference who he followed.
Besides, his head and body were now in their possession. Though he couldn't die, having his head constantly dangled like this was excruciating.
Having declared his allegiance, Hidan eagerly looked up at Uzumaki Izumi and pleaded, "That fierce—cough, cough—I mean, that beautiful lady up there~~~ now that we're all on the same side, please take my head down. Put my body back together, please."
Uzumaki Izumi listened expressionlessly and then turned to Huyi Xuan Yue, awaiting his instructions.
Huyi Xuan Yue glanced at Hidan and said, "Now that you've joined, you must be prepared to make sacrifices. Hidan, your task is to cooperate with the organization and contribute to our scientific research."
Without another glance at the ashen-faced Hidan, Huyi Xuan Yue instructed Uzumaki Izumi, "Leave it hanging there. It'll save us the trouble of dismembering the body later."
"Yes," Uzumaki Izumi nodded.
"Wait," Hidan interjected, unwilling to accept his fate.
Uzumaki Izumi pulled out two scrolls and stuffed them into Hidan's mouth.
The world fell silent. The situation was resolved, and the mission was a success.
Huyi Xuan Yue's Phantom Body dissipated.
Now, only two places remained.
(End of Chapter)
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