"Hey, hey,"
"I've been meaning to say this for a while—"
"Itachi Uchiha of the Leaf Village... you seem to have some pretty serious injuries."
"What happened?"
A deep voice suddenly rang out at an inopportune moment.
The speaker was Kakuzu, who had remained silent until now.
At that moment, his eyes held a hint of suspicion.
As soon as he said that,
everyone's attention focused on Itachi once again.
They hadn't noticed until he brought it up.
But now that he mentioned it, he did seem to be right.
Judging by Itachi's weakened appearance, it was clear he'd suffered some fairly serious injury...
Orochimaru, standing nearby, narrowed his eyes and gave a sinister smile.
"Oh?
How curious..."
"According to my intelligence, the genius Itachi Uchiha has never suffered such a serious injury before..."
"I can't help wondering who could have done this to him."
"Could it be..."
"You, the intern?"
As he spoke, Orochimaru suddenly turned to look at the Masked Man.
At that moment,
the Masked Man put on a flustered, nervous act and hurriedly waved his hands as he explained:
"Wha—how could that be?"
"Please don't misunderstand, Senior Orochimaru!"
"I'm just a lowly intern in the organization. How could I possibly beat Itachi?"
"Actually, I know what happened—"
"Because I brought the person who slashed Itachi here!"
At those words, in an instant,
not only Orochimaru but all the other members nearby froze.
What was going on?
The person who injured Itachi—you brought him here?
Where...?!
After Masked Man Tobi finished speaking,
nearly all the members immediately began looking around.
And yet,
the cave remained completely silent.
There wasn't a single person hiding in the cave—
there wasn't even the slightest trace of an animal.
However,
Deva Path Pain suddenly exchanged a glance with Konan beside him, a flicker of surprise in both their eyes.
They knew the Masked Man's true ability.
His Mangekyo Sharingan: Kamui could transport anything he touched to another dimension.
If he hadn't been lying just now,
then—
the one who slashed Itachi Uchiha might really have been brought here!
And was probably inside Kamui Space!
At the thought,
their expressions turned serious.
But just then, Fujii, the man with an ordinary face, spoke up impatiently and loudly:
"Huh?
Where is this other person?"
"Hey, you intern brat, are you messing with us?"
At that,
Masked Man Tobi burst into laughter.
"Haha, don't rush, Senior Fujii..."
"This guy's really strong. The moment I bring him out, you might be the first one he kills~"
"What?!"
Fujii glared, his eyebrows shooting up as he shouted:
"Bastard! You're just an intern! Are you looking down on me?"
"No, no!"
The Masked Man quickly shook his head again. Then, as if utterly helpless, he spread his hands and sighed.
"Hey, I'm not exaggerating."
"After all, Itachi and I saw that guy's terrifying strength with our own eyes."
"If we hadn't relied on a little trick, we never would have caught him."
"But among everyone here, I think that apart from Lord Pain, only Senior Chen Xiaoxi could take him on!"
As he spoke, the Masked Man turned toward Chen Xiaoxi with what looked like deep admiration and chuckled:
"Heh..."
"After all, Senior Chen Xiaoxi is the only member here who's managed to kill a Kage Level fighter!"
"Right, Senior Chen Xiaoxi?"
"..."
The moment Masked Man Tobi finished speaking, Chen Xiaoxi's expression shifted. He rolled his eyes slightly.
So Obito, that "hey, hey" weeb, was putting on an act with me again.
Did he think I couldn't see what he was up to?
Heh...
He wanted me to be his hired muscle and take on that Fox Ghost he couldn't handle, right?
Fine.
I'd play the Actor for him this time.
At that thought,
a faint smile appeared on Chen Xiaoxi's face. He turned toward the Masked Man and waved a hand.
"Killing a Kage Level fighter is no big deal."
"Tobi, where's the guy who injured our new member?"
"Bring him out. I'll take care of him."
As he spoke, Chen Xiaoxi deliberately stepped forward and released a little of his Reiatsu.
In an instant, his black cloak fluttered without a breeze, making him look every bit the confident powerhouse!
"?"
Seeing this,
the Masked Man stared at him in a daze.
What was going on...?
I hadn't even started provoking him, and he'd already stepped forward and volunteered?
People could do that?
After only a moment of stunned confusion,
the Masked Man immediately grinned, looking as if his plan had gone perfectly.
Heh...
He'd fallen for it that easily.
So even with all his strength, this Golden-Eyed Brat was just an arrogant fool who couldn't resist a little praise...
Excellent!
Since he'd volunteered,
that saved me the trouble of provoking him myself!
After thinking it through in a flash, the Masked Man immediately put on a goofy act and laughed:
"Wow! Just as I'd expect of Senior Chen Xiaoxi!"
"You've made a bold promise that I wouldn't even dare to imagine!"
"Hehe! In that case, seniors, just wait a moment! I'll go bring that guy out!"
Before he'd even finished speaking,
the Masked Man spread his arms and sprinted out of the cave in an absurdly exaggerated stride, kicking up clouds of dust as if he were terribly excited.
Seeing this, all the Akatsuki members broke into a cold sweat.
Juzo Biwa, standing nearby, curled his lip in annoyance and said:
"Is that masked intern really that stupid?"
"He's just going to bring out an enemy, so why make such a big fuss about it... Tch."
Orochimaru and Kakuzu also found the whole thing strange.
But taking into account the intern's goofy personality, they could at least understand it a little.
After all, it was only natural for an idiot like that to have something wrong with his head.
But at that moment,
only Deva Path Pain, Konan, Itachi, and Chen Xiaoxi understood the meaning hidden beneath the Masked Man's ridiculous behavior—
he'd run outside simply to conceal his Kamui Space ability.
And that, in turn, suggested
that the person who'd slashed Itachi really had been absorbed into Kamui Space.
Deva Path Pain remained silent as he exchanged a glance with Konan. They both wondered what sort of enemy they were about to face.
Nearby, Itachi Uchiha wore a grave expression and didn't dare let his guard down for a moment.
He knew that the man wearing a white mask was a truly powerful being, like an evil spirit!
One careless move, and death could be waiting for him!
Chen Xiaoxi, by contrast,
looked completely unconcerned, despite being the one about to enter a fierce battle.
He simply smiled, his hands in his pockets.
His gaze was calm,
as if he didn't take the person who'd defeated Itachi seriously at all...
Before you continue