"They're finally here." Taka weren't the only ones who noticed Nagato slowly approaching. The three Akatsuki members had also spotted him as he reached the entrance.
Kisame grinned, curious about just who this mysterious "leader" really was.
Until now, Kisame had never seen Nagato's true form. All he'd seen was the Deva Path among the Six Paths of Pain.
Obito didn't care. Zetsu had said Nagato had gotten stronger, but could he really be stronger than the Ten-Tails? Obito didn't think he had any reason to panic.
Yeah, he, Madara Uchiha, was invincible!
Everyone in the meeting room turned toward the entrance in unison. First, they saw Nagato's bright red hair. Then they saw the Rinnegan, radiating an overwhelming pressure.
Nagato walked in with Konan and another shinobi wearing an Akatsuki uniform, a one-eyed mask, and pale blond hair.
Almost as soon as she saw Nagato in person, Karin clutched her arms and hid behind Sasuke. Jugo and Suigetsu shuddered as if facing a great enemy, then took up positions on either side of Sasuke.
"Isn't that Tsunade?" Obito stared at the leaf-shaped mark on Nagato's forehead and the pale blond-haired shinobi behind him, baffled. What was going on with this world?
Sasuke's expression instantly darkened.
I'm no match for him. One look at the other man's terrifying Rinnegan was enough for Sasuke to reach that conclusion.
Beneath the table, his right hand gripped his right leg, tightening harder and harder in frustration. Just like Karin moments earlier, his body trembled uncontrollably. Inside, he screamed, Impossible! What kind of ocular power is this? How could there be eyes more powerful than the Sharingan?
Although Nagato had entered the room with two others, most people's eyes locked onto him as soon as he took the lead. They couldn't look away, and barely noticed anyone else. Nagato alone filled their vision. Gradually, the world seemed to shrink until all they could see was that pair of Rinnegan, radiating immense ocular power as their cold, merciless gaze pierced them through.
Nagato entered the meeting room and surveyed everyone's reactions. As his metallic, coldly gleaming Rinnegan swept across the room, everyone felt as if a drawn blade were pressed against their throats.
It seemed that life and death rested on this man's whim.
Under his gaze, the members of Taka couldn't muster the will to resist. The entire meeting room seemed to freeze in an instant. Karin, a sensory-type shinobi, was so tense she forgot to breathe.
His Rinnegan seems even more powerful than before, Obito thought silently.
"Oh my, is this the leader?" Kisame's mouth fell open, and he stood stunned for a moment when he saw Nagato.
He realized that a thin sheen of sweat had appeared on his forehead. What kind of monster was this? The feeling he gave off was downright terrifying.
"Kisame?" Nagato smiled when he saw him.
To be honest, he was disappointed in the four members of Taka. They were so inexperienced. The moment they saw him, they stared as if they'd seen a ghost and even trembled. His nickname might not be "Redhead," but they could at least show him some respect.
Kisame, on the other hand, had better manners. He'd greeted him, after all. And Kisame was one of his "longtime employees." Though he'd always been loyal to Obito, and was admittedly rather ugly—not quite human, not quite fish—he was an honest man. He'd worked tirelessly at capturing the Tailed Beasts, and was such a good shinobi that he kept forming Hand Seals right up until the moment he died. He practically radiated the unassuming sincerity of an honest man.
In an instant, as Nagato smiled, the Rinnegan that had filled the entire world and radiated its cold ocular power seemed to recede from the fragile edges of Taka's minds.
The suffocating, oppressive atmosphere in the meeting room vanished with that smile. Only then could the four members of Taka truly notice Nagato's bright red hair. It was like a blazing flame, radiating an intense vitality, like an active volcano sending up smoke. A warm current rose from deep within them.
The terrifying ocular power of two Rinnegan was more than Taka could withstand at their current level. Late in the Fourth Shinobi World War, even Sakura Haruno, who had survived the Ten-Tails' assault, had trembled at the knees when she first saw Madara's two Rinnegan. If she hadn't had plot armor, Madara would have taken her out in an instant.
"I'm sorry I never met you in person before."
There wasn't a trace of apology on Nagato's face. He strode forward, passed Obito, and held out his right hand to Kisame.
Kisame stood frozen, staring at Nagato's Rinnegan from close range. His scalp prickled, and it felt as if the blood in his body were about to freeze. He mechanically extended his right hand, following Nagato's gesture, and Nagato clasped it firmly. "Before we knew it, you and Madara were the only ones left in the organization," Nagato said with a hint of emotion.
What is this feeling? Kisame's expression went blank. Only one thought remained in his mind: I actually feel honored? Just because the leader shook my hand? The difference between us... is this huge?
At that moment, Kisame recalled how excited he'd been when he first met the Mizukage as a young man. In a world where strength ruled, the instant he laid eyes on Nagato, Kisame had instinctively placed him on a far higher pedestal than himself and lowered his head.
Someone like him is supposed to be Lord Madara's puppet? The closer Kisame got, the more he felt the powerful aura radiating from the man before him. That undisguised air of absolute supremacy couldn't be faked. Would someone like this really obey another's orders?
"The two of us?" Zetsu murmured from the side, feeling targeted.
"Oh, besides those two, there's you as well." Nagato heard Zetsu and glanced at him before adding.
......
Zetsu tilted his yin-yang face in confusion. Why did it feel like Nagato was calling him less than human?
Well, he should be more confident and drop the words "why did it feel like."
Only after Nagato had gone over to shake Kisame's hand did Sasuke and the others have a chance to take a good look at the two Akatsuki members who'd entered with him. One was Konan, with purple hair, delicate features, and a cool bearing. The other was Tsunade, with pale blond hair and a one-eyed mask.
Konan was fine. She simply found a seat and sat down quietly.
Tsunade, though, gave them a very strange impression. She was so haughty and imposing that she seemed to think she was the host. Striding along with a swagger that said she didn't care who she ran into, she acted as if no one else existed, found herself a seat, and sat down without greeting anyone. She folded her arms and looked around as if she disliked everyone she saw. And the worst part was that she'd tied her hair into twin tails like a little girl. It didn't suit her mask or her bearing at all.
Nagato shot Tsunade an annoyed glance. The only reason they were so late was that the old hag had suddenly made a fuss about wanting to attend the Akatsuki meeting. Nagato had planned to brush her off by saying she wasn't an official member. But to his surprise, she already knew quite a lot about the meeting's attendees. She immediately demanded to know why Taka had been allowed to attend, then pointed at his nose and asked if he thought nothing of her, the organization's reserve member.
Konan had looked a little awkward at the time. Nagato glanced at her and immediately understood that Tsunade must have gotten the information from her. With no other choice, Nagato had reluctantly agreed. He comforted himself with the excuse that "it's a good thing when your subordinates are this enthusiastic." After Tsunade changed her clothes, he brought her along.
At that moment, Tsunade was sitting grandly on a stone chair. Clearly not used to wearing a mask, she'd tried to pick her nose to show her disdain for everyone present, only to realize that the mask didn't even have a realistic opening for her nostrils. She couldn't just smash it in a fit of anger and reveal her true identity, so she had to give up.
Feeling Nagato's gaze, Tsunade glared right back at him without backing down, looking downright fierce.
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