- In Marvel: I Start by Marrying Scarlett Witch [Complete]
- MWM Chapter 292
At the same time, at the Akatsuki’s secret base, the Nine-Eyed Cemetery.
Uchiha Itachi, now accompanied by a conscious Kisame, was standing on the ten fingers of the Gedo Statue along with the other Akatsuki members, recounting the events of their failed attempt to capture the Nine-Tails.
Of course, Itachi left out the part about his collaboration with Leo.
“I didn’t expect someone to severely injure Kisame in a single blow, forcing you to retreat in such a humiliating manner. This prince of the Land of Fire—how powerful is he? I’ve never even heard of him before,” the projection of Pain, standing on the thumb, remarked after hearing Itachi and Kisame’s report. He then turned his head towards Zetsu, who looked like a pitcher plant.
“Do you have any intel on this prince from the Land of Fire?”
“Well, what a coincidence, I was just about to report to you. The mysterious ninja who killed Hidan—the one you asked me to investigate—is none other than this prince of the Land of Fire, Yuan Chuan,” Zetsu replied with a sly grin, his pitcher plant shaking as he spoke.
Among Akatsuki’s official members, apart from Nagato’s Deva Path Pain, Konan, and Zetsu, most were S-rank rogue ninjas from various villages:
Uchiha Itachi and Orochimaru, rogue ninjas from Konoha in the Land of Fire.
Kisame Hoshigaki and Juzo Biwa, rogue ninjas from Kirigakure in the Land of Water.
Hidan, a rogue ninja from Yugakure in the Land of Hot Water.
Kakuzu, a rogue ninja from Takigakure in the Land of Waterfalls.
Deidara, a rogue ninja from Iwagakure in the Land of Earth.
Sasori, a rogue ninja from Sunagakure in the Land of Wind.
The last member was an elite jonin named Tofuka, who was part of Akatsuki when it was first founded.
Among these official members, three had already died, and one had defected.
The defector was Orochimaru, while the three deceased were Juzo Biwa, who died fighting the Fourth Mizukage to protect Itachi; Tofuka, who was killed by Kakuzu for being too slow during a mission; and finally, Hidan, who was killed by a mysterious ninja while teamed with Kakuzu.
After Hidan’s death, Nagato immediately tasked Zetsu, the best at gathering information, with investigating the mysterious ninja. Through bounty exchange records and covert intel, it was confirmed that the person behind it all was none other than Yuan Chuan, the prince of the Land of Fire.
“So, it was him. That bastard tricked me out of my money! Let me take care of him!” Kakuzu, filled with rage, shouted before Pain could speak.
He wasn’t angry about Hidan’s death at all—what infuriated him was the loss of all the money involved. Money was the one thing Kakuzu loved most in the world.
Losing that money hurt him more than losing a comrade.
“Calm down, calm down! Getting upset won’t help your health. How about we go to the hot springs in the nearby town to cool off?” said a cheerful, masked figure beside Kakuzu, his yellow spiral mask showing only one eye.
This was Tobi, the new member who replaced Hidan.
“Shut up! I hate noisy people. If you keep talking, I’ll send you to join Hidan!”
“So scary! I’m just a newbie!” Tobi whimpered, feigning fear.
“Kakuzu, calm down,” Pain ordered, casting a glance at him. Despite his frustration, Kakuzu fell silent.
Pain turned back to Zetsu. “Continue.”
Zetsu grinned and resumed, “Yuan Chuan, prince of the Land of Fire, twenty-one years old. His mother died in childbirth, and his father was killed in a horse-riding accident when he was four. He’s been quiet and reclusive, spending most of his time in the prince’s residence, rarely going out.
He entered the Fire Temple a year ago to begin learning ninjutsu. He appeared in the Land of Waves, helping the locals fight against the merchant Gato, and later led the nobles of the Land of Fire to observe the Chunin Exams in Konoha.
During Orochimaru’s and the Sand’s attack on Konoha, he saved many injured ninja and villagers with his exceptional medical ninjutsu and was taken in as a disciple by the Third Hokage.”
“Are you certain he only started learning ninjutsu a year ago?” Pain’s brow furrowed, and several of the other Akatsuki members looked skeptical.
They were all among the most talented ninjas from various villages, many of whom had the strength of jonin at a young age.
But to go from an ordinary person to someone who could kill Hidan, effortlessly defeat Kisame and Uchiha Itachi, and possess extraordinary medical skills, all in just one year? It seemed impossible. Even reincarnating as the Sage of Six Paths wouldn’t grant such talent.
“We can’t be certain. That’s the intel we’ve gathered so far. It’s only confirmed that he joined the Fire Temple a year ago. It’s possible he had been secretly training in ninjutsu at the prince’s residence before that—or perhaps he wasn’t even in the residence at all, training elsewhere. After all, he rarely showed his face, sometimes going an entire year without being seen.”
Zetsu shrugged, finding it hard to believe someone could grow so powerful in just a year.
“This man’s strength is troublesome. Let’s leave him be for now,” Pain said after a moment of contemplation. He then issued an order:
“Since the Nine-Tails capture has failed and the Three-Tails won’t be reborn for another three years, suspend all Tailed Beast captures. Focus on gathering funds and continue instigating conflicts between small nations…”
Even for the Akatsuki, dealing with someone strong enough to defeat Kisame and repel Itachi wouldn’t be easy.
Moreover, Konoha had somehow caught wind of some information about Akatsuki. If they were too conspicuous now and Konoha discovered Akatsuki’s ultimate goal, it would be problematic.
Until they collected all nine Tailed Beasts, Akatsuki didn’t have the strength to face all the ninja villages at once.
The meeting concluded, and one by one, the projections disappeared. Before he vanished, Itachi overheard Kakuzu muttering:
“Hmph, if I can’t kill him in Konoha, I’ll go to the Fire Temple and kill his master. That monk Chiriku has a 30-million-ryo bounty on his head—sounds like a worthy target.”
…
**At Leo’s residence in the Sarutobi compound, Konoha Village.**
“This dynamic vision is quite impressive.”
Inside a temporary space he had expanded with the Seamless Extension Charm, Leo was testing the abilities of his newly transplanted Mangekyo Sharingan.
During these tests, he realized that he had previously overlooked some of the Sharingan’s more basic yet valuable abilities.
Initially, he had chosen to transplant the Sharingan primarily for its Tsukuyomi and Susanoo abilities. But as he adapted to the eye, he found that even its basic functions were incredibly useful.
The Sharingan’s users possess exceptional perception, capable of seeing the flow of chakra, breaking through and casting genjutsu, and copying taijutsu and non-Kekkei Genkai ninjutsu.
The Mangekyo Sharingan takes all these abilities to the next level.
For Leo, a powerful taijutsu user, the enhanced perception provided by the Mangekyo Sharingan was a game-changer in close combat, allowing him to react even faster to his opponent’s attacks.
This would be especially valuable when facing opponents like the Gold Saints, who had even greater close-combat skills than himself.
…