Everyone Passes!

The meeting neared its end.

"Those who agree to replace the current plan with the Shirozumi Plan, stay where you are. Those who disagree, take half a step back."

Pain swept his gaze across the people below.

After his words fell, not a single person moved.

It could be said that Shirozumi's words had convinced almost everyone.

Among them, Sasori had the most indifferent impression of Shirozumi.

That was because Sasori had transformed himself into a Human Puppet and possessed no strong desires or pursuits of his own.

Faced with the change in plans, he couldn't be bothered to argue, whether in favor or against.

The most critical person to convince was, naturally, Black Zetsu.

Black Zetsu might be evil, but it was certainly not stupid.

Shirozumi had laid out the pros and cons, and the choice was obvious.

As for whether or not to believe what Shirozumi said, Black Zetsu felt the credibility was quite high.

First, if the other party wanted to deceive them, what would be the purpose?

Second, according to Shirozumi, if they wanted to find Otsutsuki Isshiki, this task would inevitably be handed to it and the White Zetsu; they would be the first to know whether this matter was true or false.

"Hey, so what are we supposed to do now?"

Deidara asked.

"Kakuzu is responsible for preparing the economic development plan for Amegakure, and Black White Zetsu will go collect 'materials.' The rest of you have no specific tasks. You can assist Kakuzu, or continue doing whatever you usually do—whether it's training or developing ninjutsu, that's up to you."

Shirozumi knew that before the start of Shippuden, the Akatsuki Organization didn't have any major operations anyway.

Therefore, there was no need to deliberately assign tasks.

However, according to Shirozumi's speculation, it was highly likely that the others would not go to assist Kakuzu.

These people truly disliked working in teams.

They would most likely go off to research ninjutsu or train on their own.

After all, they were now under the pressure of the Otsutsuki Clan.

"Fine then..."

Deidara was lost in thought.

Shirozumi's description of the "Otsutsuki" made Deidara feel a sense of crisis once again.

Deidara had already been working quite hard to overcome Itachi's Mangekyo, but now he felt that what he had done before was not enough.

Wait, Itachi?

"So, about today's business, Itachi and Kisame aren't here. Who's going to tell them?"

Deidara asked again.

"I will tell them personally. As it happens, the next mission requires their team to step out, so I'll explain it to them on the way."

Shirozumi said.

"Are you referring to that mission in the Land of Waves?"

Kakuzu, who had been silently observing, spoke up.

When Shirozumi said earlier that the others had no tasks, Kakuzu had been confused as to why the Land of Waves mission Shirozumi mentioned earlier wasn't assigned to him.

Unlike before, when Kakuzu would have suspected that Shirozumi was being contradictory or deceiving him, now, Kakuzu was only wondering if Shirozumi had talked too much and accidentally overlooked it.

He hadn't expected to hear about it here.

"The Land of Waves is the intermediate node between the Land of Water and the Land of Fire. If it were just about getting that money from Gato, then you, Kakuzu, could go. But if we want sustainable development, it's best to have people from both Konoha and Kirigakure go there."

Shirozumi explained briefly.

"Konoha and Kirigakure, what a coincidence—that team has one of each... forget it, contact me when you need my help..."

As Kakuzu said this, he suddenly thought of something and looked at Pain. "Leader, does he have a ring? Otherwise, how will we contact him?"

"Suzaku and Nanto, who are operating with him, can assist with communication."

Pain spoke indifferently.

"Fine."

This meeting came to a complete end.

After everyone dispersed, Konan stopped Shirozumi.

"Since you already know Uchiha Itachi is a spy, do you still intend to operate with them alone?"

Konan cared deeply about Shirozumi's safety.

Shirozumi's life was now the future of Amegakure and the Akatsuki Organization.

"This was part of the plan from the start. As for spies, you either eliminate them or utilize them; you can't just keep them hanging there indefinitely.

If they discover something, we would end up in a passive position instead."

"So you didn't let us deal with him or expel him because this was your goal?"

Konan frowned slightly.

"As long as our interests align and we share a common enemy, anyone can become a 'teammate.'

So don't worry about my safety. Even if I were an ordinary person with no Chakra and no Ninjutsu, I could still handle him."

Shirozumi smiled confidently.

What he spoke of was not mere theory, but the reality that had played out countless times in the Shinobi World.

It was the underlying logic of how people and factions interacted with one another.

The higher a person's intelligence, and the more calm and rational they were, the easier they were to get along with and the less dangerous they actually were.

Currently, the only one who had truly attacked Shirozumi was Hidan.

If he were truly an ordinary person, he might pass the test of Pain and the trials of the other Akatsuki members, but he might have died at the hands of someone as mentally unstable as Hidan.

Even Kakuzu, who was a bit deranged, was capable of weighing his options and knew that Shirozumi's "brain" was more useful than his "heart."

What's more, he was not an "ordinary person."

"Very well, be careful and cautious. Nagato will issue the mission to the two of them."

After Konan finished speaking, she also departed.

After flying a distance away, Konan raised her hand, and a bunch of yellowed paper flowers emerged from her sleeve.

These were items Shirozumi had taken out while organizing his belongings two days ago and "gifted" to her.

The faint trace of Chakra remaining on the flowers clearly indicated that this was something she had left behind.

Three days later, on the border of the Land of Fire.

Two figures wearing conical hats were sitting in a dumpling shop, eating Glutinous Rice Dumplings.

"What is so good about these Glutinous Rice Dumplings? Why does everyone like them so much?"

Shirozumi, holding a cup of Oden, walked over from the neighboring stall and sat down across from them.

"You are the new Strategist the Leader mentioned?"

Kisame Hoshigaki stared at Shirozumi with his dead-fish eyes.

"That's right. I trust you have already received the mission Zero issued to you..."

"To assist you and fulfill all your requests."

Uchiha Itachi spoke suddenly, interrupting Shirozumi.

Before Shirozumi appeared, Uchiha Itachi had been contemplating whether to use Genjutsu to probe this "Strategist."

After careful consideration, he abandoned the idea.

According to the situation Pain described when contacting them via their rings, the other Akatsuki members had unanimously approved and recognized this Strategist.

If he rashly chose to attack, he would likely expose his identity as a spy.

For a ninja, Genjutsu was the simplest and most brutal way to gather intelligence, but it was not the only way.

In any case, they would be spending a period of time together, and he would have plenty of opportunities to probe him slowly.

Therefore, Uchiha Itachi spoke up, which served as a proactive gesture of goodwill.

Kisame Hoshigaki respected Uchiha Itachi, and seeing Itachi's attitude, he didn't say much else and indicated to Shirozumi that he would follow orders.

"Good."

"The two of you were on a mission last time and didn't attend the gathering. Once we set off and there is no one around, I will explain it to you again."

The "explain it again" that Shirozumi mentioned would naturally be selective and edited.

Hearing Shirozumi say this, both of them felt a sense of curiosity.

After quickly finishing their dumplings, the three of them set off.