Within the space of the Astral Projection Jutsu.
Pain opened his pale purple eyes.
The once-crowded space now held only five people: Pain, Konan, Kakuzu, Sasori, and Deidara.
Kakuzu glanced at Pain, hoping to confirm whether he really was a puppet.
But within the Astral Projection Jutsu, all he could see was a blurry projection, so there was no way to tell.
Pain glanced at him without asking where he had gone during the battle.
Kakuzu offered no explanation, either.
After all, Kaguya Gaito's combat strength had already reached that level.
No matter how many hearts Kakuzu had, each would only take a single slash to destroy.
"Leader, are you all right, hm?"
Seeing Pain unharmed, Deidara couldn't help breathing a sigh of relief.
He quite liked this organization.
Not only could he go around blowing things up with bombs, but the others also acknowledged him.
The organization also gave him plenty of freedom, with few restrictions.
It was the ideal place for someone like him.
Pain gave Deidara a slight nod.
"There have been some changes within the organization. Twin Blades has returned to the Hidden Mist Village, and Twin Eyes has returned to Konoha."
"The organization has suffered some losses, and our strength has diminished."
"But we will continue recruiting new members."
Pain's behavior left everyone a little surprised.
Usually, Pain had an arrogance that made him look down on everyone equally.
He also almost never admitted to being wrong or making mistakes.
It seems the failed mission in the Hidden Mist Village dealt Pain quite a blow, too.
Similar thoughts crossed everyone's minds to varying degrees.
With his opening remarks finished, Pain moved on to the main subject.
"Iwagakure just issued a public mission, specifically requesting that we, the Akatsuki, take it."
He paused, and Konan picked