Kisame Hoshigaki

"I've found Itachi's new partner."

After Kisame, long deceived by Obito, arrived in the Hidden Rain Village, Obito brought him before Pain and spoke softly.

Pain stared blankly at Kisame Hoshigaki before nodding.

He and Madara were partners, not superior and subordinate.

Besides, since the other party was strengthening the organization, he naturally had nothing to say about it.

"Go get some proper rest first. You must be exhausted from the journey."

After a moment of silence, Pain spoke softly.

At the same time, he summoned a ninja and had a room prepared for Kisame.

Kisame nodded, with no intention of speaking.

As an outstanding spy, he naturally would not speak carelessly in unfamiliar surroundings.

Besides, his elder brother was here too, so he could not act rashly.

He greatly yearned for the world Obito had painted in his mind, a world without falsehood, with only truth. A world without any falsehood was within reach... Madara's Eye of the Moon Plan was the destination he would pursue in the future.

After the two left.

Pain walked out of the room and stood atop the tallest building in the Hidden Rain Village, overlooking the peaceful village below.

A moment later, his body floated upward, quickly rising above his office.

His hands began forming seals, then stopped moments later.

As chakra stirred within Pain, a rain cloud he had created appeared in the sky above the Hidden Rain Village.

A fine drizzle began to fall, every raindrop closely connected to his senses.

This was his A-rank sensory ninjutsu, the "Rain Tiger at Will Technique."

Every Sunday, he would make it rain over the Hidden Rain Village for an entire day, thereby increasing his control over the village.

Or whenever he left the village, he would leave this technique active there as well.

"Madara? When did he get so close to Zetsu? Could it have been a few days ago in the Mist Village?"

Pain, who had resumed reviewing documents in his office, stopped and muttered to himself in confusion.

Madara had always hidden behind the scenes, yet now he had exposed himself before Zetsu. What was he trying to do...

Pain suddenly realized where the problem lay.

Itachi had been brought in by Madara, Kisame had been brought in by Madara, and at some point Zetsu had also come into contact with Madara. Konan and he himself knew Madara too.

For someone supposedly hiding behind the scenes, Madara sure had hidden for nothing, hadn't he?

In the entire organization, only Sasori of the Red Sand, Kakuzu, and Kakuzu's utterly forgettable partner had been kept in the dark. Just three people...

Alarm bells rang in Pain's heart, and his view of Madara changed slightly.

Though he disliked scheming, he was no fool.

If Madara kept this up, wouldn't the Akatsuki become nothing more than an empty shell...

Wouldn't Pain himself become a commander without troops...

"Pain has noticed us."

As they walked, Zetsu spoke quietly to Obito.

"So what? He's just a foolish kid. Now that the Three-Tails is in our hands, pay closer attention to the whereabouts of the other eight tailed beasts and investigate them thoroughly. Gather intelligence on them."

That was precisely why Obito had arranged to meet Zetsu.

Because Itachi had suddenly changed his mind and directly captured the Three-Tails.

Capturing the tailed beasts had become an urgent matter.

They also needed to determine the locations of the other tailed beasts. Then they could launch a lightning-fast operation and quickly collect the One-Tails through Seven-Tails.

No one was better than Zetsu at gathering intelligence.

Of course, investigating intelligence would take time, and during that period, the more important task was finding several capable people to fill the vacancies.

They needed to familiarize them with Akatsuki's combat methods, so that nothing went wrong when they captured the tailed beasts.

"Leader, did you call for me?"

A female voice sounded in Pain's office. The visitor was Konan.

She could not quite understand why Pain had called her over again...

"Yes, I called you here because there's something I need to discuss..."

Pain looked at Konan, who wore her ninja forehead protector and the standard Akatsuki cloak, and spoke softly.

"Mm, did something happen again?"

Konan asked in surprise.

"What do you think of Itachi Uchiha?"

Rather than answering Konan's question, Pain suddenly brought up Itachi.

"He's alright. A pretty good young man."

Konan thought for a moment, then answered somewhat helplessly as Pain brought up Itachi Uchiha again.

"I want you to form a team with Itachi Uchiha. What do you think?"

Hearing Konan's answer, Pain spoke softly.

His feelings were complicated. He did not want Konan to go out on missions and risk her life.

But after Madara's move, he had no choice but to take precautions.

Though he was powerful, he could not personally handle everything.

He still needed subordinates.

So, he planned to have Konan partner with Itachi for a while. On one hand, it would replenish the organization's missing combat strength; on the other, it would allow her to gain a deeper understanding of Itachi and draw him to Pain's side.

His relationship with Madara had now become somewhat delicate.

Pain intended to restrain whatever Madara wanted to do.

He would not let Madara achieve his goal.

Hearing Pain's words, Konan froze slightly before nodding.

"Alright."

In the past, whenever she wanted to do something for the organization and go out on missions, Pain would reject her for one reason or another. He did not want her to leave the village and risk herself.

Though she felt somewhat disappointed, when she thought of how Yahiko had died protecting her, and how Nagato's legs had been crippled in that battle, her heart was filled with bitter sorrow. Even if she did not want to be a mere ornament...

"Mm, go get some proper rest."

Pain looked deeply at Konan and spoke softly.

His eyes were clearly dull and his voice cold.

Yet they seemed to contain boundless emotion.

Meanwhile, Kisame, who had been brought to his room by one of Pain's subordinates, was starting to feel bored.

It was still early. How could he possibly sleep?

After giving it some thought, he changed into Akatsuki's rather decent-looking robes, slung Samehada over his back, and left the room.

He could no longer wait to meet his partner, who was also the person assigned to monitor him.

Looking at the overall situation, compared to Itachi entering Akatsuki as an undercover agent.

Obito would eventually be redeemed.

Nagato would be talked down by Naruto.

Konan only cared about Nagato and had little attachment to Akatsuki.

Orochimaru was merely going through the motions in Akatsuki and slacking off.

Zetsu used Akatsuki to revive Kaguya.

Sasori used the organization's convenience to collect puppets.

Kakuzu used the organization to make money and collect hearts to prolong his life.

Hidan used the organization to spread his religion.

Deidara used the organization to spread art.

Only Kisame regarded Akatsuki as his home and his partner Itachi as family. He carried out missions diligently and without ambiguity, and even in death, he would never reveal the slightest Akatsuki secret... He remained loyal to the organization from beginning to end, never abandoning it. Kisame could be called Akatsuki's most professional talent...

One wondered whether Kisame's mind would be in utter turmoil if he knew all this.

Kisame: "Had I known things were like this, I wouldn't have played along with you people."

P.S. The Mizukage controlled by Obito: I know your character, so I trust you. Only you, who carried out countless vile missions for the sake of the nation and village, and who betrayed others countless times to complete those missions, understand that this world is nothing but something false.

Kisame Hoshigaki: From the moment I first killed my comrades, I already understood that. As a Mist ninja, I had to kill fellow Mist ninja. Then what kind of person was I? Enemy or friend? What was my purpose? Where did I stand? Where was I going? Where could I find peace? The only thing I could truly feel was my own falseness.

Obito: Then let me free you from the pain of falsehood. I'll build a place for you to belong... All this time, you fought to kill your comrades, but from now on, you will fight as my comrade.