Kill

Within the Tsukuyomi Space, Xu Wenwu was unable to move, feeling the red moon in the sky slowly descend, gradually crushing him into dust.

The feeling of his spirit being shattered and reassembled tormented him constantly, yet the crushing of his will was so slow, as if time itself had been stretched out.

Outside world.

To everyone's surprise, Hidan's Triple-Bladed Scythe had just been subdued by Xu Wenwu, and the next second, the opponent staggered and knelt down.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Hidan pulled back the chains, retracted the Triple-Bladed Scythe, and slashed a bloody mark on the opponent's face.

Because of the initial attack, Xu Wenwu tried his best to dodge but was still grazed on the face by the Triple-Bladed Scythe. He reached up and touched his cheek, looking at the bloodstains on his fingers.

He was injured; for the first time in many years, he suffered both mental and physical harm.

Xu Wenwu was furious. In a thousand years, even when he was searching for Ta Lo Village, he had never suffered such serious injuries.

"You have really angered me."

Xu Wenwu roared, and the Ten Rings on his body emitted a blue light, as if to illuminate the entire mountain range. However, just as he was about to use his ultimate move...

"Uh, ah~"

Xu Wenwu staggered, spitting out a mouthful of blood. The Ten Rings surrounding him fell to the ground, and the imposing aura that seemed to be about to unleash everything was gone.

"You... you... how is this possible?"

However, after Hidan obtained Xu Wenwu's blood with the Triple-Bladed Scythe, he immediately used the curse technique "Jashinism" to draw a circle and triangle formation under his feet, and then took out a spear and pierced himself through the heart.

Hidan was incredibly fast. Before Xu Wenwu could unleash his ultimate attack, he pierced his own heart with a spear. Despite being pierced in the heart, Hidan was completely unharmed and even let out a maniacal laugh.

"Wow! Ha ha ha!"

"Xu Wenwu, the Lord Jashin will gladly accept your soul."

"A thousand years of life—this is the first time I've offered a sacrifice to the Lord Jashin!"

After saying that, Hidan pulled the spear that had been stuck in his heart out, an action that undoubtedly worsened Xu Wenwu's injuries.

He coughed up another mouthful of blood and collapsed weakly to the ground.

Although the Ten Rings granted Xu Wenwu longevity and power, they did not grant him Undying Body; with his heart pierced, there was no chance of survival.

He lay on the ground, looking at the Ten Rings in front of him, and stretched out his right hand as if to call them back, but he had no strength left. At that moment, he seemed to see his wife, Xu Yingli, and he saw his wife waving to him.

Finally, Xu Wenwu stopped breathing, and his outstretched right hand lost its strength and went limp.

Meanwhile, Hidan lay flat within his Formation, a powerful force emanating from Formation, stronger than any previous sacrifice.

"Thanks to the Jashin god for the blessing!"

Hidan must lie within the Formation for thirty minutes; this is a ritual that members of the Jashin Cult must perform.

Itachi Uchiha and the others were already used to Hidan's increasing aura, but they didn't expect it to be so significant this time.

The group seemed to be deep in thought; it appeared that the more powerful the person sacrificed, the more benefits Hidan would gain.

Itachi Uchiha appeared before the Ten Rings. Looking at the equipment in front of him, he did not reach for it but instead took out a Sealing Scroll and sealed it inside.

As for Xu Wenwu's corpse, Itachi Uchiha did not let it go either. For ninjas, even a corpse can still reveal a great deal of secrets.

Charlotte Doyle sat on the rooftop watching the Akatsuki members' operation and nodded with great satisfaction.

As expected of a team fight, they immediately used their ultimate abilities to suppress Xu Wenwu, leaving him completely helpless. If they were in pairs, they might actually be giving the enemy team free experience points.

Xu Wenwu's defense, in particular, was exceptionally strong. He withstood one powerful attack after another, and even a single Tsukuyomi attack didn't break his spirit. He still had the energy to prepare for a fight. If Hidan hadn't Hidan, who knows what other trouble he might have caused.

Having the Akatsuki launch a team attack was indeed a good choice. If these individuals could improve their coordination, their combat strength would increase significantly.

Just as Charlotte Doyle was pondering, Uchiha Itachi appeared in front of him in a flash.

Itachi Uchiha presented the scroll and said respectfully, "My lord, this is the Ten Rings you requested."

Charlotte nodded and accepted the two scrolls offered by Itachi Uchiha.

"Very good, I'm very satisfied with your efforts."

He then glanced at the crowd and said, "We've got the stuff, let's retreat!"

With Charlotte's command, even Hidan, who was lying on the ground, stood up. As a puff of smoke appeared, the Akatsuki members disappeared.

Seeing that there was no more movement outside, Tony Stark finally emerged from his hiding place.

As Tony Stark was leaving, he saw Itachi Uchiha glance in his direction, indicating that Itachi had noticed his presence.

As for Itachi Uchiha, he had also met this ninja before. Before the boy defected from Konoha, he had seen him with Charlotte Doyle. He was a taciturn person, but he never expected that the boy's strength would be so terrifying.

The other party didn't reveal his existence, either because they didn't care or because they had met before and chose to let him go.

Tony didn't know the specific reason, but what happened this time greatly shocked him.

He realized he was still too weak. The aliens in the Battle of New York, the gods of Asgard, ninjas, missing-nin, and the Hell Dimension that was constantly trying to invade—all of this assaulted his mind.

Tony glanced at the Ten Rings headquarters, which had been razed to the ground, and looked somewhat bewildered.

Just then, Jarvis's voice rang out. "Sir, Mark 42 Suit is about to arrive."

Tony looked up at the sky, watched the Mark Suit flying towards him, and stretched out his arms in a hugging gesture.

As the Mark Suit landed and was put on, Tony Stark glanced around before taking to the skies.

He no longer cared whether the Ten Rings's headquarters still had remnants underground.

Tony Stark, hovering in the air, said, "Jarvis, the remaining two Suit don't need support for now."

"Yes, sir!"

"Dial Charlotte Doyle's virtual phone number."

Charlotte Doyle, who was in her office listening to Ginny's report on the financial situation, received a call from Tony.

Red Queen: "Master, Tony Stark has a video call!"

"Connected!"

As soon as Charlotte Doyle finished speaking, a virtual projection of the Red Queen appeared in front of him.

"Hi, Tony."

"So, have you gotten your revenge?"

Tony saw Charlotte Doyle and Ginny beside her on the video call. Was the girl genuinely unaware, or was she teasing him?

"Dude, do you know I almost died today?"

Charlotte asked in confusion, "What happened?"

Tony observed Charlotte Doyle's facial expression before speaking, "I never fought the Ten Rings; I almost got killed by them."

Charlotte waved her hand and said, "How could that be? If you hadn't killed him, you wouldn't be in the mood to chat with me here."

"Tell me, buddy, what did you find there?"

"If there's anything I'm interested in, we can make a deal."

Tony said seriously, "I'm not lying to you, I almost died at their hands."

"If someone hadn't intervened, you might not be seeing me now."

Charlotte asked in surprise, "The Ten Rings is that powerful?"

Who's here?

"Thor Hulk?"

"Or someone else I know?"

"I can't exactly tell you they're mages from the Magic World, can I?"

Tony shook his head and said, "It wasn't them."

"It's the missing-nin Akatsuki!"

"Their numbers have grown again; I saw seven people, and Itachi Uchiha was among them."

"But they didn't lay a hand on me; it was as if they were ignoring me."

Upon hearing Tony Stark's words, Charlotte Doyle stroked his chin and pondered for a moment.

Why would they go after the Ten Rings?

"Tony, what did they do after they got there?"

Tony recalled the scene he had witnessed and then said, "They killed the leader of the Ten Rings and took his body and weapons."

"Corpses and weapons..."

"That thing is extraordinary; it must be something from the transcendent realm."

Tony nodded and said, "Yes."

"His weapons were incredibly powerful, far more powerful than I expected. My armor was like paper in front of him."

"Dude, do you know what Akatsuki's goal is?"

"Their strength is a bit too great; I'm a little worried..."

Charlotte shook her head and said, "They are a mercenary organization that accepts commissioned missions, but no one knows their specific purpose at the moment."

Tony was slightly disappointed to hear that Charlotte didn't know either, then said, "Then I'd like to ask you to investigate further and find out what this organization's purpose is."

"I'll be responsible for any expenses incurred. By the way, could you help me find out how to contact them if I want to hire them?"

Charlotte nodded, then said, "Sure, but investigating an organization whose entire members are S-rank missing-nin... I'm afraid you can't afford it."

Tony shook his head and said, "Dude, you've got something wrong. I just want to know their purpose."

Charlotte, however, thought of Jiraiya in the Naruto World, who paid with his life to investigate the Akatsuki.

"Tony, you're underestimating this."

"Investigating them would be life-threatening even for someone at the Kage Level, or even Super Kage."

"Finding ways to trade with them is much easier than investigating their targets."

"Without becoming one of them, who can guarantee they know their goals? Even if they join, they may not know their thoughts in a short time."

Hearing Charlotte Doyle's words, Tony thought for a moment and nodded, "You're right, I oversimplified things."

"If you ever learn about their goals, let me know. I'm willing to pay for that information."

Charlotte nodded. "Yes, no problem."

"Tony, is there anything else?"

Tony looked at Charlotte and asked, "Dude, do you have any Vibranium?"

"I think I need to use it to upgrade my armor. I think Jiraiya's Kunai were made from this."

Upon hearing Tony Stark mention Vibranium, Charlotte pondered for a moment. He actually possessed quite a bit of it, even though he had already used up a great deal, and had even equipped the ninjas during the Battle of New York with a considerable amount. He still had some surviving pieces.

However, considering the timeline, Tony might be starting to research Ultron soon, so sending Vibranium at this time would probably just cause trouble for himself.

"Tony, I don't have any extra Vibranium. I've used it all to make Ninja Tools."

"If I have any next time, I'll trade some with you."

Tony didn't care when he heard that Charlotte didn't have any for the time being. In his memory, this thing should normally be depleted, so he didn't pay any attention to it.

"Alright, if you have any Vibranium, remember to leave some for me. I'll trade you some New Element."

OK!

Tony Stark hung up the video call after it ended.

At this moment, a thought was swirling in his mind: was the emergence of the Akatsuki related to Charlotte Doyle, and was it all just a coincidence?

It's somewhat illogical that an organization full of S-rank missing-nin didn't attack him. Am I really that weak?

On the other side.

After Charlotte Doyle hung up the phone, she looked at Ginny beside her and said, "Golden Secretary, transfer $2 billion to my account. I have other purposes for it."

"Yes, Boss!"

Ginny didn't linger in the room. After giving her report, she turned and left, knowing that the man before her was not Charlotte Doyle's true form, but rather his Wood Release Clone.

The Summoning Realm.

Charlotte Doyle looked at the Akatsuki members in front of him and then said:

"I have a new task for you."

"As time goes by, the world will face even more formidable adversaries."

"In order to bring more companions, I need more resources to help me bring more ninjas from the River of Time."

Charlotte waved her hand, and a Stone Coffin appeared before everyone.

"This is Vampire created by Orochimaru using Catherine's bloodline."

"He possesses the same ability as the previous Vampire: biting someone can turn them into Vampire within Queen of Asgard, causing Blood Core to form."

"Since Hidan is Hunt down Mo and performing a sacrifice, then I'll give you a task."

"That means turning them into Vampire before Hunt, extracting their Blood Core, and then sacrificing them."

"It's also a way of letting them contribute a little more to us."

Upon hearing Lord Charlotte's request, Hidan grinned and said, "No problem."

"My lord, please entrust this task to me with confidence."

Charlotte nodded. "Use him only to infect Mo, don't let it spread."

"Yes, sir!"

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P. S.: I'm sweating buckets after writing this chapter, and I feel like tomorrow's chapters will be even longer 5555...