The only person present who could still smile was Black Zetsu.
Because of Ronglin's changes, Black Zetsu held a far higher position in Akatsuki than he had in the original story. Grinning, he raised two fingers and continued, "Second, he should be looking for us."
"What makes you say that?"
Konan frowned, finding it hard to believe. Her impression of Ronglin was terrible. Their first meeting had left them thoroughly infuriated, and ever since then, her impression of him had been below zero.
"If he wanted the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path, Nagato, could you stop him?"
Obito glanced at Nagato. Nagato silently shook his head, though even that simple motion gave the impression that it exhausted him.
"He summoned the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path, but only tested it without seeing it through. That shows his main objective isn't the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path."
Black Zetsu Came Calling—Want to Kill Me?
Nagato spoke with certainty, his words filled with confidence.
He was completely certain that Ronglin had not done this for the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path. There had to be some other reason.
"Furthermore, Uchiha Ronglin has annexed the entire Land of Fire. According to the intelligence, he is currently busy stabilizing the Land of Fire's internal situation. He wouldn't come looking to make trouble for us without reason. Likewise, we're busy annexing the Land of Water and wouldn't provoke him. In that case, the possibility that we crossed his bottom line doesn't hold up—unless someone has a death wish."
As he spoke, Obito looked at Konan. "Has anyone in the organization carried out that kind of mission recently?"
"No." Konan rolled her eyes. "Since Danzo infiltrated Konoha, Konoha's people have been searching for their whereabouts. At a time like this, no one