Land of Fire Border - Twilight Forest
The last rays of the setting sun filtered through the treetops, casting dappled shadows on the leaf-strewn ground. Kakuzu counted the stack of silver notes he had just received, his dark green pupils gleaming coldly in the shadow of his straw hat.
"Three million taels... 500,000 less than the bounty." His hoarse voice carried a murderous intent. "Next time, I should let the client experience what it feels like to have their heart ripped out."
"Hey~" Hidan, carrying his blood-stained Triple-Bladed Scythe, kicked at pebbles listlessly. "What's the point of counting this little bit of money? Why not find a small village to hold the ceremony? The Lord Jashin hasn't received any decent offerings lately..."
Before he could finish speaking, the tree trunk in front of him suddenly twisted and wriggled, and half of the White Zetsu's body emerged from the bark.
"Ah~ I found you guys~"
Kakuzu Chakra coalesced. "If you dare to suddenly appear again, I'll twist your head off as a bounty."
White Zetsu shook his head with a grin. "The Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, from the eastern part of the Land of Hot Water, alive!"
"Hmm?" Kakuzu's pupils contracted slightly. "Is the leader finally going to attack the Tailed Beasts?"
"Fifty million taels..." he muttered to himself, the four Earth Grudge Fear Masks stirring restlessly beneath his black robe.
Hidan suddenly brandished his scythe excitedly. "Finally, a big order! That priest from the Land of Hot Water last time prepared the best altar for me!"
White Zetsu added, "However, Nine-Tails is accompanied by Jiraiya and six Anbu, while Itachi and Kisame are already on their way."
Kakuzu let out a low laugh, unbuttoning his shirt to reveal a chest stitched with black threads. "When I fought the First Hokage, that brat was still playing in the mud."
"Ha!" Hidan slashed his palm with his scythe, licking the blood as he revealed a maniacal smile. "What do I care about the Legendary Sannin? They're all sacrifices before the Lord Jashin!"
White Zetsu's body slowly sank into the tree trunk. "Well then~ have a pleasant hunt~"
As dusk deepened, the two figures disappeared into the depths of the forest. Hidan hummed a strange hymn, then suddenly turned and asked:
"Hey Kakuzu, do you think we should go to Yugakure? I really miss my old colleagues!"
Kakuzu's cold snort drifted in the wind, "No unauthorized complications are allowed during the mission."
On the mountain road leading to the Land of Hot Water
The crimson sunset cast long shadows of the two men. Hidan used his Triple-Bladed Scythe to clear away the thorns blocking their path, then suddenly grinned:
"Hey Kakuzu, you've been bragging about fighting the God of Shinobi all this time..." He deliberately poked his companion in the back with the tip of his scythe. "But the First Hokage playing on the Heavenly Screen —that's a monster capable of destroying the world! How did you even survive?"
Kakuzu paused almost imperceptibly. Under the shadow of his straw hat, the stitching seemed to deepen.
"Shut up."
Those two simple words caused the surrounding temperature to plummet. But Hidan, oblivious to the danger, moved even closer:
"Don't be so stingy~ We're bored on the road anyway, tell me what you think...?" He grinned mischievously, "You were actually killed in one move, and the so-called 'battle' was just throwing Shuriken from afar?"
Boom!
Suddenly, black tentacles erupted, slamming Hidan into the rock wall. Kakuzu's robes fluttered without wind, and four Earth Grudge Fear masks emerged from his back.
"Say one more word," the aged voice, brimming with eighty years of murderous intent, said, "And I'll shove your heart into the body of the cheapest wanted criminal."
Hidan crawled out of the rubble, but unusually, he didn't erupt in rage. He tilted his head, his scarlet eyes flashing with a morbid curiosity. "Wow... it seems it's true?"
Kakuzu snorted coldly and continued on his way. But once the floodgates of memory were opened, those long-forgotten scenes surfaced like a revolving lantern—
Takigakure, 60 years ago
The young Kakuzu knelt on one knee in the dimly lit conference room, while Takikage's voice came from above:
"Assassinating Hashirama Senju... this is an opportunity to demonstrate our village's might."
When he accepted the mission, he had no idea it would be the beginning of a nightmare. The man standing in the sea of trees froze his blood with just one look...
"Wood Release: Deep Forest Emergence!"
A forest that blotted out the sky was formed in an instant. His prized Water Release Ninjutsu was as laughable as a child playing in the water before a true god.
"Go back." Hashirama Senju reached out and pulled him to his feet. "Young people shouldn't die in pointless battles."
But when he returned to the village in humiliation, he was met with cold shackles and the infamy of being a "good-for-nothing." In the darkness of the dungeon, he touched the wet tear stains on his face—the mercy of the God of Shinobi was more deadly than any Ninjutsu.
Memory Jump - First Shinobi World War
He lurked on the edge of the battlefield, watching the Second Hokage's Flying Thunder God Slash through Ginkaku's throat; watching Kinkaku Tailed Beast Transformation in extreme rage, his Chakra tail leveling the Kumogakure Village's forest...
"So that's how it is..." Kakuzu licked the blood splattered on his lips. "This is the world of true powerhouses."
The sound of rain gradually rises
The cold rain pulled Kakuzu back to reality. He then realized that his palm was unconsciously pressed against his chest—where there should have been a heart, now only a writhing black line remained.
"Hey old man," Hidan suddenly pointed to the lights in the distance, "We're almost at the Land of Hot Water! After this mission, I need to find that priest from last time..."
There was no response from Kakuzu. In the rain, he looked at his hands covered with stitches. For eighty years, these hands had ripped out the hearts of countless powerful people, but they could never fill the void in the heart of that Takigakure missing-nin from Takigakure.
"Fifty million taels..." he muttered to himself, the tentacles of the Earth Grudge Fear undulating within his sleeve.
The rain grew heavier. The two figures gradually disappeared on the mountain road leading to the hot spring town, leaving only a few crushed dead branches, which were quickly washed into the mud by the rain.
Two days later...
Border of the Land of Hot Water - Crimson Sunset
The maple leaves on both sides of the mountain path were a dazzling red, as if they were soaked in blood. Hidan suddenly used his Triple-Bladed Scythe to pick up a fallen leaf and stared at the veins of the leaf with fascination.
"Old man, do you know why the maple leaves here are so red?" His tongue slowly licked the sickle blade. "Twenty years ago, every tree here was laden with offerings from the Jashin Cult."
Kakuzu slightly raised his straw hat, revealing a mocking smirk. "So you're changing careers to become a tour guide now?"
"Tch!" Hidan suddenly and violently chopped down a bush. "I mean, this is my hometown!"
He whirled around, his crimson pupils flashing in the twilight. "Those idiotic priests back then, chanting all day long about 'the power of immortality' and 'the ritual of eternal life'... The scythe drew a dangerous arc in the air, and as a result, hundreds of people died in the experiment, until—"
Hidan suddenly ripped open his Akatsuki cloak, revealing a pale body covered in eerie cursed patterns. On the skin near his heart, there was a deeply etched, bone- Jashin Cult.
"The day I willingly lay down on the altar was on a full moon night." His voice rose and fell, as if he were lost in some kind of frenzied memory. "Those fools even mispronounced the incantation... But when the dagger pierced here--"
He suddenly jabbed his finger into his heart, making a dull, teeth-grinding sound.
"I saw it! The real Lord Jashin!" Hidan's eyes bulged abnormally. "He said... I am the chosen vessel!"
Kakuzu's Earth Grudge Fear twitched silently. In the past eighty years, he had seen too many madmen, but someone like Hidan, whose soul was twisted, was truly rare.
"So you killed them all?"
"Of course!" Hidan twirled his scythe with ecstasy. "The blood of those false believers has stained the entire altar red—just like the maple leaves right now!"
In the distance came the distinctive bells of the Land of Hot Water, the signal that the hot spring village was beginning to welcome guests. Hidan suddenly fell silent, tilting his head to listen:
"Listen, that's the evening bell of the Jashin Cult... Oh no," he laughed maniacally, "It's been converted into a mixed-gender hot spring now."
Kakuzu suddenly stopped. Through the deepening twilight, he could see the lights of the Land of Hot Water below the hillside. For a moment, he seemed to see a young Hidan —that problematic genin who wore an ordinary ninja vest but always Genin excessive violence during missions.
"No unforeseen complications are allowed during the mission." Kakuzu had repeated this countless times, but this time his tone carried an unusual warning.
Hidan, however, had already leaped and bounded down the hillside, his Akatsuki cloak fluttering in the wind.
"Okay, okay~ Once I catch the Nine-Tails, I'm going to use that blond brat's blood to draw the biggest sacrificial circle in my hometown!"
Maple leaves fell softly. Kakuzu followed silently behind, the four Earth Grudge Fear Masks appearing and disappearing in the shadows. He suddenly remembered the scroll he had seen at the Bounty Station:
"The entire Jashin Cult Order of Yugakure is dead..."
"The power of immortality..." Kakuzu's cold laugh was swallowed by the evening breeze. "Foolish."