The Old, Weak, Sick, and Disabled Gathered Under One Roof

A haven of gentle pleasures, a graveyard for heroes.

Unlike Orochimaru's carefree life, the Akatsuki, the top Ninja World Akatsuki in the Amegakure, had a much harder time.

"This is the new member, Shinno, who will replace Orochimaru!"

Upon hearing Pain's introduction, the people standing on the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path's fingers all turned their gazes to the old man.

These gazes contained suspicion, disdain, indifference, and mostly strangeness; none of them were kind.

Shinno ignored the reactions of everyone present, his face still bearing a faint smile, his gaze as kind as if he were looking at a junior.

He was originally the leader of the Sora Village, possessing the famous Sky Fortress known as the Zero-Tails, and had a group of henchmen under his command. He also harbored the ambitious dream of unifying the Ninja World.

He usually travels the Ninja World as a doctor; this is just a cover for his true identity.

If it weren't for the elusive Black Zetsu discovering him, he would have continued to lie low.

In the end, it was Pain himself who brought him back, and what happened in between remains unknown.

"We work in pairs here, so you'll be paired with Daibutsu from now on!"

As he spoke, Pain tossed him a ring and introduced his partner, the Daibutsu.

The Akatsuki now has ten members. Apart from Kakuzu, Kisame, Hidan, Deidara, who were poached by Orochimaru, many more have joined over time.

Perhaps Orochimaru Weidatian Jiuzhu his butterfly wings a little too hard, because the Daibutsu, who should have died long ago, are still alive.

These two are veteran members of the Akatsuki, having joined during its early days.

Later, due to Obito's forceful intervention, both of them died at his hands.

Although these two didn't have many scenes in the Original Work, they were quite strong, and even Obito at that time had to retreat when they fought to the death.

The two filled the positions of Kisame and Kakuzu, Hiruko, who joined later, filled the position of Hidan. With the addition of Shinno, the position vacated by Deidara has also been filled.

As for Obito, who had been pretending to be crazy and slacking off in the Original Work, he also had to step forward. The ring on his hand was codenamed "Void," which was left behind by Orochimaru.

The ring in Shinno's hand is Azure Ring, representing the most energetic person.

It's funny to think that an old man was wearing this ring, which is why everyone was giving him strange looks.

Little did they know that this old man's muscles were stronger than anyone else's in a fight, and he had even mastered Palm Technique and the Eight Gates.

His Regeneration Technique can even restore the body to youth, so it's not wrong to say he's energetic.

"You are all ambitious and purposeful people, but now that you're here, you should all be mentally prepared to serve the organization!"

Pain scanned everyone present, and anyone who met his gaze felt an inexplicable sense of oppression. Even Obito had to stand obediently.

In the Ninja World, no one can compare to Deva Path Pain in terms of oppressive presence, not even Uchiha Madara.

Although the quality of the members was not as high Original Work, and even the old, weak and disabled were gathered, the arrogant Pain did not care about these things. In his opinion, he alone could be better than everyone present!

"You all prepare well, there will be a big move coming soon!"

After finishing his speech, Pain left first, followed closely by Konan.

The Akatsuki is not lacking in missions; it has been almost constantly tasked with missions since its inception.

After all, an organization needs to operate, and funds are essential. Although there is no money-making expert like Kakuzu, the Akatsuki's development is still proceeding in an orderly manner.

Konan's six hundred billion Explosive Tag may be slightly reduced, but it will not affect her final fate.

"Should missions to other countries be halted?"

Walking behind Pain, Konan spoke up at the opportune moment. These were topics about the organization's development that she and Pain would only discuss when they were alone.

The decisions of the two individuals are fundamental to determining the organization's future; Obito can only offer suggestions at most.

"Continue with the tasks currently in progress. As for the others, you can handle them yourself. Anyway, these cadres need to be on standby at any time!"

Pain spoke in a deep, resonant voice, his tone remaining completely unchanged even when talking to Konan.

The Akatsuki is now on the right track. Previously, it required a lot of money to build an intelligence organization in order to expand its power, but the situation is different now.

Some time ago, they received a mission to sabotage the supply routes of the Land of Gold, but they refused because the price was too low.

Having reached this point, the Akatsuki has completed its initial accumulation of resources and gathered all its members. It's time to plan for the next stage!

"Are you ready to execute that plan?"

Konan's voice rang out again. At this moment, the two had arrived at a high-rise building in Amegakure, which was also where they usually discussed things.

"No rush, let's assess the situation first!"

Pain did not specify what situation he was looking at, whether it was the situation of a few executives within the organization or the overall situation in the Ninja World.

As soon as they finished speaking, the space in the room distorted, and the two seemed to have become accustomed to this situation.

Almost at the same time, a pitcher plant also emerged from the floor, with a half-black and half-white head mixed in with it.

"The team is assembled. When do you plan to make your move?"

The Masked Man arrived and sat down on the sofa with an air of nonchalance, his gaze fixed quietly on Pain by the window.

"Didn't you already know that?"

Pain continued looking out the window at the night view, speaking without turning his head, his tone devoid of joy or sorrow.

Hearing the other party say that, the Masked Man was not angry, nor did he feel embarrassed about being exposed for asking a question he already knew the answer to.

"I'm just reminding you!"

"Hmph! I know what to do, you don't need to say anything!"

The two seemed to get along poorly, and their conversation died down after just a few words. Pain, who considered himself a god, wouldn't allow anyone to tell him what to do, let alone ride roughshod over him.

The last time someone treated him so rudely, that scoundrel, his grave is now over three meters high with grass growing on it.

The Masked Man didn't speak again; he didn't dare push Pain too far.

"Oh dear! This is a discussion, so let's speak freely!"

Sensing the tense atmosphere, Zetsu quickly interjected. On the surface, he favored the Masked Man, but he had no choice but to listen to the leader, Pain.

You could say he was caught in the middle, acting as a buffer between the two.

"That Northern Hidden Village has been quite active lately, with frequent business dealings with various countries!"

Jue brought up the topic, and his words successfully caught the attention of the group.

"If it were just business dealings, it wouldn't matter, but I heard they're also planning to co-host the Chunin Ninja Exams with Konoha..."

Konan was the first to respond, which raised another question.

The Akatsuki's intelligence came from Zetsu and Konan, and Nagato wouldn't entrust such an important source of intelligence to just Zetsu.

"It's not just the Northern Lands; besides Kirigakure, the other three major hidden villages have also gotten involved. Should we do something about it?"

This time, it was the Masked Man who spoke, naturally speaking to Pain and intending to hear his thoughts.

"There's no need to take a mere Chunin Ninja Exams to heart!"

After a pause, Pain continued:

"But this Northern Hidden Village..."

"The Seven-Tails Jinchuriki is with them too!"

Seeing that Pain had not made any further progress, Zetsu couldn't help but mention it again, hoping that Pain would take this force more seriously.

The fact that the other party was able to build up a considerable force in a short period of time and unify the surrounding ninja villages and small countries shows that he is definitely not simple, judging from his experience!

"Jue! Tobi! You two go and investigate their strengths and weaknesses!"

Seeing how concerned the others were about this matter, Pain simply sent two of them to check the situation, knowing that their speed wouldn't cause any delays!