A base of the Akatsuki in Amegakure.
Rain pattered down the rusted steel pipes and splashed onto the muddy ground. A damp, oppressive air hung all around.
Two figures approached slowly through the curtain of rain, their steps steady.
"Shisui, you'll be working with me from now on."
Uchiha Shisui said calmly, patting Shisui on the shoulder.
"I understand, Shisui, big brother. Since I'm following you, I'll carry out your will to the very end."
Shisui replied, his eyes full of resolve.
Shisui stayed close behind Uchiha Shisui. His black Akatsuki cloak, patterned with red clouds, snapped in the wind and rain. Though he was younger, his spirit was every bit as strong as Shisui's.
Uchiha Shisui looked at the determined Shisui and nodded with satisfaction. "Is that so? Then you'd better work hard. The Shinobi World will soon have a new order, one that we establish."
They entered a dimly lit room side by side. The light inside was faint, and the air smelled of rust.
"You're a little late, Shisui."
A cold voice broke the silence. Deva Path Pain raised his head slightly and looked at Uchiha Shisui.
He sat in the darkness, his expression stern and his eyes filled with a chilling indifference.
"I hate waiting for people more than anything."
Hiruko crouched on the ground and spoke in a hoarse voice.
Its grotesque form loomed in the darkness, its eyes gleaming eerily like those of a beast ready to devour its prey.
"Oh, Uchiha Shisui, a shinobi with a bounty of over a hundred million. Akatsuki really knows how to surprise me."
A hint of greed showed in Kakuzu's eyes as he spoke slowly.
His face, crisscrossed with black stitches, showed no emotion, but the greed in his eyes revealed just how desperately he craved money.
His hands twitched slightly, as if he were already calculating how to pocket Uchiha Shisui's enormous bounty.
"So it's you, brat. You got away back then, and the Mizukage gave the Seven Ninja Swordsmen a real dressing-down!"
Biwa Juzo hefted Kubikiribōchō and glared at Uchiha Shisui.
Kubikiribōchō gleamed coldly in the dim light.
Biwa Juzo was burly, and the red markings across his face only added to his fierce appearance. At the sight of Uchiha Shisui, the anger he'd felt when the Mizukage reprimanded him seemed to flare up all over again.
"Looks like everyone's in a bit of a bad mood."
Uchiha Shisui looked at the new Akatsuki members and curled his lips into a carefree smile. In the dim room, that smile seemed almost brazen, as if he couldn't care less about the hostile or greedy stares around him.
His Sharingan shifted slightly, its light glimmering as if he were reading everyone's thoughts.
"Hmph! Your head is worth a pretty penny!"
Kakuzu's patience snapped. The greed in his eyes turned to fury.
With a cold snort, his arm, reinforced by writhing black threads, shot forward like a bizarre, extendable whip.
At the same time, he activated Earth Spear. His arm turned black and seemed indestructible as it hurtled toward Uchiha Shisui by the doorway with a roar of wind, as if it would crush him to a pulp in one blow.
Shisui hurried forward and kicked the arm aside. Its trajectory changed, and it smashed into the wall beside them, bringing it crashing down.
Shisui moved at the same time, slipping past Kakuzu.
"How is this possible? It was just one exchange—when did he...?"
Kakuzu's eyes widened in disbelief. All he'd seen was a shadow flash past.
Now he felt one of the hearts inside him crack without warning, while another had vanished from his body.
A chill shot from the soles of his feet to the crown of his head, and cold sweat instantly soaked his back.
His breathing grew quick and heavy, his eyes full of fear.
"Sorry, I'm not a fan of things stitched together with threads."
Uchiha Shisui remained calm, as if the fierce attack that had just occurred were nothing more than a trivial interruption.
He held a mask in his hand. Beneath it was a strange mass of black threads—the Earth Grudge Fear Kakuzu had been so proud of.
As he spoke, he tightened his grip. The mask shattered like fragile glass with a crack, and fragments scattered to the ground, like Kakuzu's confidence now.
"That kid..." Biwa Juzo narrowed his eyes. Even he might not have been able to withstand an attack of that caliber.
"Perhaps he'd make an interesting material."
Inside Hiruko, Sasori's face showed a flicker of interest.
After seeing some of the new members' arrogance tempered, Deva Path Pain looked at Uchiha Shisui and said, "That's enough, Shisui. They're new members of Akatsuki. From now on, they're our comrades."
"Of course. I was only testing them. This level of skill isn't enough to get me interested."
A faintly contemptuous smile played on Uchiha Shisui's lips as he strolled unhurriedly toward his seat.
He turned and sat down, crossing his legs and resting his hands casually on the armrests, utterly at ease.
Uchiha Shisui stood silently behind him.
Deva Path Pain tilted his head slightly. His emotionless eyes turned toward the young man behind Uchiha Shisui, and his voice carried a hint of authority. "Is he the comrade you found? Didn't you say you'd work alone?"
At the sound of his voice, Shisui looked up at Deva Path Pain but said nothing.
"Yeah, but I changed my mind. I only worked alone before because I was worried someone would hold me back."
Shisui's expression was calm, his tone utterly even, as though he were stating something perfectly ordinary.
"I see. So the one behind you has earned your approval."
Deva Path Pain gave a slight nod. Though his expression remained unchanged, his words seemed to acknowledge Shisui's place among them.
At that moment, a black vortex twisted into existence in the middle of the room. As everyone watched, Obito, wearing a mask, stepped out of it. The Sharingan visible through the mask glinted with an eerie red light.
"Everyone, save the chatting for later."
Obito's low, raspy voice echoed through the dim, oppressive room. Every gaze in the room turned toward him.
"Konan has already left for Yugakure to recruit a new member. We can't let up, either. Kakuzu, head out and support Konan."
He paused briefly. The aura around him grew even more imposing, as if to emphasize the urgency of the situation.
"We need to fill out Akatsuki's ranks as soon as possible. Our plans depend on it. We also can't neglect gathering intelligence; it's crucial to our operations."
As he spoke, Obito's gaze slowly swept across the group before settling on Zetsu and Sasori.
"Zetsu and Sasori are good at this. I'll leave it to you two for now."
His tone allowed no argument, carrying the authority of a leader.
Zetsu's bizarre body, half white and half black, swayed slightly as he let out a mocking laugh. "Heh heh, leave it to me. Nothing will escape my notice."
Hidden inside Hiruko, Sasori merely gave a slight nod. The cold light glinted off the puppet's shell in the dim room, as if silently acknowledging Obito's orders.