The Mangekyō Sharingan, the purple Susanoo, and a final trait: a knack for Lightning Release. Taken together, those three points gave even Tsunade and Jiraiya—who least wanted to believe Sasuke was the Akatsuki Organization's "E"—plenty to consider.
Still, in public, they stated firmly, "There's no way Sasuke Uchiha is the Akatsuki Organization's 'E.' We've already confirmed that!"
"Hmph!" The Fourth Raikage snorted. "If I encounter the Akatsuki Organization's 'E' again, I won't hold back!"
Seeing that the Fourth Raikage had only left them with a threat, the Third Tsuchikage dropped the subject as well.
After all, the Five Great Shinobi Villages had only allied under pressure from the Akatsuki Organization. They weren't exactly getting along. Without catching the Akatsuki Organization's "E," there was no way they could make Konoha hand over one of its own Mangekyō Uchiha just by making claims without evidence.
Then the Third Tsuchikage turned to Shinji. "'Upper Moon Two' may or may not have died at your hands. We haven't reached a verdict yet. We'll discuss the bounty once we've confirmed it!"
The Fourth Raikage immediately chimed in. "Exactly. The bounty can't be paid until we verify 'Upper Moon Two's' death!"
Shinji was taken aback, but quickly caught on.
To hunt down "Upper Moon Two," Iwagakure and Kumogakure had offered bounties through various channels. One promised thirty million to anyone who killed "Upper Moon Two," and double that—sixty million—if someone captured the demon alive.
Before Shinji could respond, the Third Tsuchikage and Fourth Raikage hurried off.
Watching the two Kage walk away, everyone on Tsunade's team stood dumbfounded. Shizune couldn't help blurting out, "That's—that's shameless!"
Jiraiya chuckled. "Two old foxes!"
Everyone knew that when demons of the "Upper Rank" died, they turned to ash, leaving no body behind. So their talk of "verification" was nothing but