Form! The Immortal Duo

Kakuzu looked down at Hidan, who had been instantly defeated and lay motionless on the ground, and remarked with disdain, "What? Is that it?"

He couldn't help but glance at Uchiha Ye, adding with a tone of regret, "My apologies, I've made you waste your trip."

He assumed Hidan was already dead.

But!

"That hurt like hell, you bastard!"

Lying in a pool of his own blood, Hidan suddenly scrambled back up, shouting with a look of intense irritation: "I shall deliver divine judgment upon you!"

As he yelled, he used his foot to smear the blood on the ground, drawing a circle with a triangle inside: "The battle..."

Before he could finish, Kakuzu's fist, possessing immense piercing power, once again struck from a distance, impaling his chest.

Hidan was naturally even more incensed by this heavy blow. Gritting his teeth, he grabbed the black tendrils protruding from his wound and yanked them out, simultaneously securing some of Kakuzu's blood: "Prepare for the show of death, you bastard!"

"From here on out, it's my solo performance. Everything about you is now in my hands!"

The corners of his mouth curled up in a smug expression: "The ritual, begin!"

As he spoke, he licked the blood of Kakuzu from his hand and swallowed it. His body instantly turned black, and white markings appeared over his skeletal structure, making him look like a grim reaper.

Aside from Uchiha Ye, whose expression remained unchanged, everyone else couldn't help but look on in astonishment: "This is..."

They watched as a spike suddenly protruded from Hidan's hand. Amidst the stunned and bewildered gazes of the onlookers, he drove it directly into his own lower abdomen.

"Squish!"

Even though it was Hidan who had pierced his own abdomen, blood simultaneously appeared in the exact same spot on Kakuzu's body. Kakuzu groaned in agony, doubling over in pain.

"Hahaha, now you know how terrifying I am, you jerk!"

Hidan looked at Kakuzu's disbelieving eyes and the shocked gazes of those around him, a sense of immense pleasure welling up within him: "Keep feeling the pain!"

Squish, squish, squish!

He continuously pierced his own limbs, palms, and feet, as if he were incapable of feeling pain.

Kakuzu, on the other hand, kept letting out muffled grunts as he suffered repeated, severe damage to the corresponding parts of his body.

In the end, he lost the ability to stand and collapsed to the ground, gasping for air.

"Hey, you should thank me, old-timer."

"If I had pierced my own heart with that first strike, you'd be dead right now!"

Seeing Kakuzu lying in a pool of blood, a smug and satisfied Hidan immediately ceased the ritual.

"So this is... the ability of a Jashin Cultist—Jashin's Curse? That is truly insane!"

Sasori felt a sense of shock as well: "To be able to kill an enemy instantly with just their blood... what a terrifying ability. No wonder Ye was so wary of him."

For ninjas like them, who only had one life, this ability was nothing short of horrifying.

"Does activating the ritual require the enemy's blood and the drawing of that curse circle?"

Uchiha Itachi suppressed the shock in his heart and analyzed the situation calmly: "If Hidan were not standing within the curse circle, would this ability be rendered ineffective?"

He felt that if the opportunity arose, he might test that theory.

Konan couldn't help but sigh at the sight: "This is practically a super-weapon for dealing with Jinchuriki!"

An immortal body combined with an ability that could defeat an opponent in one strike—wasn't that the perfect way to deal with a Jinchuriki?

No matter how strong a Jinchuriki might be, they only had one life!

She couldn't help but look at Uchiha Ye, feeling a sense of suspicion: "How did he know about Hidan's ability during their first encounter? Could it be that he possesses the power of foresight?"

She felt that Uchiha Ye was truly a mystery.

It was one thing to possess a unique Lava Release that didn't belong to the Uchiha clan.

But to be so powerful at such a young age, and to be so mature in his social interactions?

Now, he even made her feel as though he knew everything about the Ninja World.

When she first heard the name of the Akatsuki, he hadn't seemed surprised in the slightest.

It was as if he had already known about their organization long ago.

And now, facing Hidan for the first time, he even knew his trump card.

Wasn't that the kind of ability only a prophet would have?

"I am truly impressed!"

At that moment, Kakuzu's body suddenly began to squirm, with black threads emerging from his skin to stitch his body back together from within.

Before long, he stood up from the ground. With his vitality fully restored, he looked at the smug Hidan, narrowed his eyes, and said: "Very well. I like you as a partner. Especially your immortality!"

It seemed he could now unleash his ninjutsu to his heart's content without worrying about his partner being too fragile.

"Heh heh, old-timer, I look forward to working with you."

Seeing Kakuzu's approval and the glint of admiration in the eyes of the others, Hidan said with a proud grin.

"It certainly will!"

A glimmer of light flashed through Kakuzu's indifferent eyes.

"The Immortal Duo is hereby established!"

Watching the mutual 'acknowledgment' between Kakuzu and Hidan, Uchiha Ye couldn't help but think with a touch of mischief.

"Now, all that's left is to wait for word from Orochimaru."

Orochimaru had defected, but since there was no specific information on his current whereabouts, it was impossible to pursue him rashly.

They would have to wait for news from Zetsu, the organization's intelligence expert.

"I should take this opportunity to further increase my own strength!"

Amegakure was a very suitable place for his training.

It had rivers, lakes, and seas!

This was favorable for developing his fruit abilities and tempering his physical constitution!

Meanwhile!

Somewhere in the Land of Fields, Orochimaru licked his lips. "I wonder who the Akatsuki will send to hunt me down?"

A face with deep nasolabial folds involuntarily appeared in his mind, and a look of wariness immediately crossed his features. "Uchiha Itachi is quite a troublesome fellow!"

Thinking of Uchiha Itachi inevitably brought another person to mind.

"Uchiha Ye... he is also no simple man!"

His gaze sharpened. "Even if Sasori of the Red Sand hadn't appeared that day, I think I would have had to be prepared to pay a certain price to take him down!"

"To have hidden himself so well that no one noticed a flaw before the Uchiha Clan Downfall Night—in terms of cunning, this guy is even more terrifying than Uchiha Itachi. If he grows up, he will surely become a formidable overlord!"

He licked his lips and smiled. "The stagnant waters of the Ninja World are finally beginning to stir!"

Of course, knowing that both Uchiha were not to be trifled with, especially given that genjutsu was their specialty, Orochimaru felt it necessary to strengthen his own capabilities in that area.

He couldn't afford to be instantly defeated by Uchiha Ye's genjutsu the next time they met!

That would be too humiliating!

Amegakure!

"It's becoming difficult to make any significant progress with my fruit abilities for the time being!"

Beneath a certain waterfall, Uchiha Ye, his body flowing with scorching red magma, sat cross-legged on a giant boulder. He was using the water's suppression of the lava to continuously raise the temperature of the magma.

For him, temperature meant destructive power!

"The only other areas where I can improve my strength right now are the precise control of my power and the development of my genjutsu!"

The more precise his control over his power, the more condensed his magma attacks would be, and the more terrifying their explosive destructive force would become.

At the same time, his reaction time and speed would also be able to improve in perfect harmony.