Kakuzu

A tall man stepped into the Underground Black Market.

He wore a Red Cloud Black Robe, a Takigakure forehead protector slashed across the middle, and a black cloth mask over his face.

His eyes were an eerie green, like two ghostly green flames. They looked horrifying enough to send chills down one's spine.

"It's Kakuzu, the S-rank rogue ninja!"

More than a dozen people searching for bounty missions were in the Underground Black Market.

Some were Wandering Ninja, while others were rogue ninja. All of them exuded an arrogant, vicious aura.

As ninjas without an organization, drifting among the various nations, they had spent their lives with blades at their throats. At the slightest disagreement, they would draw their weapons against one another, and were feared by many.

But when they saw the tall man enter, they were all startled. They hurriedly backed away as though avoiding a venomous snake, clearing a path for him.

Kakuzu, an S-rank rogue ninja from Takigakure, was extremely powerful—possibly even Kage-level.

He had spent years accepting high-paying bounties from the black market, with a mission success rate as high as ninety percent.

And that ten percent failure rate did not mean his assassinations had failed. It merely meant he had not encountered the assassination target.

"Lord Kakuzu, welcome!"

In this black market, the only one delighted by Kakuzu's arrival was a small-eyed man with two narrow mustaches who stepped forward to greet him.

His name was Mishima Kichi, the person in charge of this black market.

To everyone else, Kakuzu was a complete "monster," but to him, Kakuzu was walking money.

With Kakuzu's exceptionally high mission completion rate, once he accepted a mission, he almost never failed.

After all, the black market received a substantial commission for every completed mission. How could he not be pleased to see an S-rank rogue ninja with such an astonishing success rate?

"Any high-paying bounties lately?"

Kakuzu asked.

Because he found his teammates too noisy, he had killed them not long ago.

With no one chattering in his ear, he had been in a much better mood. He decided to visit the black market and see whether there were any new bounties.

"Yes, yes. There happens to be a bounty worth thirty million that was posted recently."

Mishima Kichi said with a broad smile.

"Thirty million."

Hearing that the bounty was as high as thirty million, Kakuzu's eyes could not help but heat up.

"What bounty?"

"It is a bounty on Uchiha Fugaku, the head of Konoha's Uchiha Clan."

Mishima Kichi respectfully handed over a bounty notice.

Kakuzu took it and glanced at the portrait of the target before shifting his gaze to the reward. Sure enough, the bounty listed on the notice was thirty million.

A bounty as high as thirty million was rare indeed, and it greatly tempted him.

"Do you have any recent information on him?"

"He has currently left Konoha Village. He was last seen yesterday evening near Fumino Town, within the Land of Fire."

Mishima Kichi answered.

"Fumino Town."

Tucking the bounty notice into his clothes, Kakuzu turned and headed out of the black market.

Watching his departing back, Mishima Kichi's eyes were filled with anticipation. He hoped Kakuzu would kill Uchiha Fugaku and complete this bounty.

A day later, Uchiha Fugaku arrived at the border between the Land of Fire and the Land of Rain.

Ahead, dark clouds stretched without end.

The sky seemed covered by a sheet of black cloth, pitch-dark and devoid of sunlight, leaving everything dim.

The Land of Rain was a country shrouded in dark clouds year-round, where rain fell often.

It lay between the Land of Fire and the Land of Earth.

Because it was caught between two great nations, it had become the battlefield of Iwagakure and Konoha Village in several ninja wars.

Uchiha Fugaku moved forward, preparing to enter the Land of Rain.

Suddenly, his eyes narrowed as he looked ahead.

A man had appeared before him.

The man wore a black cloth mask and possessed a pair of chilling emerald-green eyes.

He was tall and powerfully built, dressed in a Red Cloud Black Robe.

"S-rank rogue ninja Kakuzu."

With memories from his past life, Uchiha Fugaku naturally recognized Kakuzu at a glance.

The Red Cloud Black Robe on Kakuzu also confirmed that he had already joined the Akatsuki Organization.

Still, he had not expected to encounter an Akatsuki Organization member like Kakuzu so soon.

Originally, he had thought he would meet Kakuzu several years later, when the Akatsuki Organization began collecting tailed beasts.

"You actually know me."

Hearing Uchiha Fugaku call out his name, Kakuzu said with interest.

"One of the few S-rank rogue ninja in the ninja world. How could I not know you?"

Uchiha Fugaku said.

"You aren't afraid of me?"

Kakuzu asked, rather surprised.

As a famous S-rank rogue ninja in the ninja world, what he saw most often were people who fled in terror upon hearing his name or recognizing him.

Even Elite Jonin would run without hesitation upon seeing him.

Since becoming an S-rank rogue ninja, there had been very few who neither ran nor feared him.

"Why should I be afraid?"

Uchiha Fugaku asked calmly.

"Interesting."

Kakuzu was greatly surprised. The other man's calmness did not seem feigned; he appeared to have some sort of confidence.

Still, it was not as though no one confident had stood before him before. Aside from one person, all the rest had ended up being taken by him to the black market in exchange for their bounties.

He took out the bounty notice he had already read several times, compared Uchiha Fugaku's face with the portrait on it, and then asked,

"You are Uchiha Fugaku?"

"Looks like you have your eye on my bounty."

Seeing the bounty notice in Kakuzu's hand, Uchiha Fugaku understood why he had encountered Kakuzu.

But how had Kakuzu learned of his whereabouts?

He had deliberately concealed his tracks all along the way. By all rights, he should not have been exposed.

"Then I have the right person!"

The way Kakuzu looked at Uchiha Fugaku changed, as though he were looking at prey.

A terrifying aura erupted from him.

Like boulders tumbling down a mountainside, it struck with overwhelming force.

On a tree several hundred meters away, an orange-haired man in a mask watched from afar.

He was a Root member, codenamed "Fu." His name was Yamanaka Fu, and he was a member of the Yamanaka Clan.

Like the Aburame Clan, the Yamanaka Clan was closely associated with Shimura Danzō. That was why he had joined Root and become one of its members.

"Why has Uchiha Fugaku run into Kakuzu, an S-rank rogue ninja?"

As a Root member, he naturally recognized the renowned S-rank rogue ninja Kakuzu.

What puzzled him was that Uchiha Fugaku had concealed his tracks throughout the journey. How had Kakuzu learned of Uchiha Fugaku's whereabouts?

"Could it be...?"

His thoughts stirred, and he formed a guess.

At regular intervals, he reported Uchiha Fugaku's whereabouts. Kakuzu likely knew Uchiha Fugaku's location because Root had leaked it to the outside.

Lord Danzo wanted to use Kakuzu's hand to eliminate Uchiha Fugaku!

Though the conclusion shocked him, he had no opinion on the matter.

Root members only needed to carry out their missions. They did not need unnecessary emotions.