Hidan grunted and staggered half a step back, nearly losing his grip on the Three-Bladed Scythe.
Biwa Jūzō tightened his grip on the Kubikiribōchō, planting both feet firmly on the phantom fingertip. His expression turned grim.
Every black tendril on Kakuzu's body drew taut, and all five faces stared at the center of the clash.
"This isn't a probe anymore."
He spoke under his breath.
"The leader is serious."
Konan said nothing.
Sheets of paper fluttered constantly beside her, but not one dared approach Lie Yang.
She knew perfectly well that the ocular power Pain had unleashed was anything but ordinary.
This was Nagato's final warning to Lie Yang, delivered through the Rinnegan.
If Lie Yang backed down, both sides could still preserve the Akatsuki Organization's outward order.
If he refused, a real fight would break out in the next instant.
Yet Lie Yang stood his ground against that mountain-like weight of ocular power.
His robes did not stir, his hair remained neat, and even his phantom projection from Demonic Illusion: Hiding in the Light did not tilt in the slightest.
Only the fortune surrounding him churned violently.
An invisible Balance emerged from the depths of the void.
One side bore Pain's Rinnegan and its immense ocular power, while the other held Lie Yang's own spirit, will, and fortune.
Both sides sank at once.
A force heavy enough to shatter an ordinary shinobi's consciousness continued to accumulate on both sides of the Balance.
"Refusing?"
Lie Yang raised his eyes.
He looked at Pain before him, a hint of coldness curling his lips.
"All I did was state my purpose. How does that count as refusing?"
Pain's Rinnegan slowly turned.
"You joined Akatsuki, yet you refuse to follow the organization's arrangements, accept its leader's ideals, or take part in its operations."