"Heh, why should I tell you?"
Uchiha Ye pulled his arm free and scoffed.
Tell someone else about his abilities?
Was he an idiot?
Then he turned to look into the forest, his aura surging once more. "Since you're all after my head, then you can all stay here!"
Through Observation Haki, he sensed not a single trace of goodwill.
If that was the case, then none of them were innocent. He could kill them all!
"Great Eruption!!"
A terrifying fist of molten rock, at least ten meters across, erupted into the air, scorching the surrounding trees black from a distance. It was as if they'd been plunged into Blazing Hell in an instant, their hearts gripped by despair.
"Not good!"
The people lurking nearby had never imagined Uchiha Ye would be so ruthless. By the time they tried to flee, it was already too late.
"Boom!"
The burning fist struck, and all things were destroyed!
The dense forest was reduced to a vast wasteland, thick smoke billowing into the sky.
After a brief chorus of screams, not a single person remained alive within a hundred meters.
But Uchiha Ye didn't leave. Instead, he looked toward the forest in the distance to his left, his gaze dark. "You two. How long do you plan on watching?"
Through Observation Haki, he sensed two powerful auras that made his heart shudder.
"Heh heh. You're young, but your methods are ruthless. I can see why Pain sent me here with Angel."
A low voice rang out from the woods. "If Angel had come alone, she might not have been able to bring you to heel!"
A hunched man wearing a black cloak patterned with red clouds stepped out. A segmented steel tail hung behind him.
Behind the man, a woman with a paper flower pinned in her hair and a pale blue-violet bun floated into view. She wore the same black cloak patterned with red clouds, and a pair of enormous paper wings spread out behind her.
They were none other than Sasori of the Red Sands, controlling Hiruko, and Angel—Konan.
"How interesting. I never thought I'd run into the two of you here!"
Seeing who had arrived, Uchiha Ye wore an intensely amused expression.
At his words, Konan's gaze sharpened. "From the sound of it, you weren't surprised we came?"
Uchiha Ye smiled. "Why would I be?"
Since they'd come to him, it saved him the trouble of seeking them out.
"Enough. Let's get to the point. Tell me why you're here. It can't be that you just happened to be passing by!"
Hearing this, Konan immediately said, "Uchiha Ye, our Akatsuki organization needs talents like you. We've come to invite you to join us!"
"What do you say?"
Uchiha Ye answered at once. "Sure, I accept!"
Now it was Konan's turn to be surprised.
In her eyes, a young man like Uchiha Ye—powerful, ruthless, and still so young—would never willingly place himself beneath someone else.
Just like Sasori of the Red Sands back then.
She'd expected to put in some effort to persuade Uchiha Ye.
But she hadn't imagined he'd agree so readily.
Wasn't the usual course of things for him to ask what the Akatsuki was, then refuse to join, and finally for them to "persuade him" with their fists?
Why wasn't Uchiha Ye playing by the rules at all?
She felt she couldn't see through him.
"What, surprised again?"
Watching Konan's expression, Uchiha Ye grinned in a way that was positively infuriating. "Of course, I have a condition too!"
Konan's brows drew together slightly. "Let's hear it. But if it's too much, I can't agree."
Uchiha Ye looked toward Sasori of the Red Sands, his fighting spirit rising. "I want to fight him! That's not too much to ask, is it?"
Konan nodded, then glanced at Sasori with a questioning look.
"Hmph. Boy, are you treating me like a sparring partner?"
Sasori of the Red Sands spoke with evident displeasure. "You're really getting on my nerves. Believe me, I'll turn you into one of my works of art. I'm still missing a Sharingan Human Puppet, after all."
Konan frowned at once. "Sasori, don't do anything reckless!"
Sasori gave a low grunt and stepped forward. "Relax. I know my limits. But I'll have to teach him a thing or two about his."
"That attitude, like everything's under your control, is really annoying!"
They were both joining the Akatsuki, after all.
He'd resisted back then, and Konan had beaten him into joining.
But this kid was taking it all so casually.
Didn't he care about Sasori's pride?
"Heh heh, how terrifying."
Uchiha Ye licked his lips. "Come on, let me experience the skill of the genius puppeteer, Sasori of the Red Sands."
He'd nearly finished digesting what he'd learned from his Shadow Clone's battle with Uchiha Obito not long ago.
Now he needed a strong opponent like Sasori of the Red Sands to test his newfound knowledge.
"Hmph. Then watch yourself. I'm not just skilled in Puppet Technique. My poison is pretty good too."
"Your ability is impressive. Ordinary blades can hardly hurt you. But if you think I'm on the same level as those two idiots from earlier, you're sorely mistaken."
Uchiha Ye grinned. "Of course I don't!"
Though Sasori of the Red Sands hadn't yet reached the strength he'd shown in the original story,
there was no doubt he was a genuine Kage Level fighter.
A true top-tier shinobi.
How could Uchiha Ye afford to underestimate him?
"Here I come!"
His whole body glowed red-hot in an instant. With a whoosh, he vanished from where he stood.
Naturally, he had to give his all against an opponent like this.
"Over here!"
Sasori of the Red Sands suddenly targeted a spot, his sharp steel tail stabbing out from behind him.
In the next instant, Uchiha Ye had only just appeared when the icy sting of the tail rapidly filled his vision.
"So fast..."
Uchiha Ye's pupils contracted. "So this is... a Kage Level fighter? What terrifying perception!"
Fortunately, his Observation Haki had already sensed the attack. His body immediately turned into magma.
"Squish!"
As the tail pierced through his body, he swung his fist, unleashing a rain of molten rock. "Meteor Fire Rain!"
Sasori of the Red Sands praised him. "Good!"
Controlling Hiruko, he tore open its mask and spat out a sealing talisman. "Mechanism Rain!"
With a bang, a storm of kunai burst from the talisman. Even after piercing through the high-temperature magma by sheer numbers, many of the kunai continued toward Uchiha Ye.
Taking advantage of the moment, Hiruko pulled back its iron tail, which had been melted through.
"Poison Mist Spray!"
Hiruko thrust its right hand forward. The sealing talisman in its palm burst open, and a cloud of green poison immediately engulfed Uchiha Ye.
It gave him no chance to catch his breath.
The strength of a Kage Level fighter was plain to see.
Puff! Puff! Puff!
Piercing sounds rang out repeatedly from within the poison mist, but Sasori of the Red Sands didn't relax in the slightest.
The next instant!
"Hellhound!"
Uchiha Ye seemed to transform into magma. He burst through the poison mist and closed in on Hiruko, driving a blazing fist forward at incredible speed.
But a shield wrapped in dense chakra had already risen behind Hiruko.
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