The ground was a wreck, and for a long while, no one dared get up.
The entire crowd fell silent.
The second was a one-eyed Missing-nin from Sunagakure. Kneeling on one knee, he rasped, "My village abandoned me! I want to join Akatsuki and take revenge on them! Make Kirigakure—"
"Your pain belongs to you alone."
Pain hovered in the rainy sky. His voice was flat, devoid of emotion, and it cut the man off mid-shout.
"God has no need for personal grudges."
Another repulsive force struck.
The one-eyed Missing-nin grunted as he was thrown to the ground. He struggled twice and did not rise again.
The third had learned his lesson. He shouted at the top of his lungs:
"This disciple is willing to follow God's justice! God's pain shall be the pain of my entire life! I swear to serve you until death, without a second thought!"
His shout seemed to shake the rain itself.
Pain lowered his gaze to the man.
One look was enough to see through every lie.
"There is no pain in your eyes," he said coldly, each word cutting deep. "Only opportunism."
Boom!
The third man went flying too.
Three people, three answers, the same fate.
The surviving candidates turned paler still.
Money, revenge, loyalty—every reason humanity could conceive of was worthless before this god.
Then... what did he want?
At the end of the line, Orochimaru stood with his arms folded and his eyes lowered, as though watching a play that had nothing to do with him.
Only he knew that the hand hidden inside his sleeve had never unclenched.
Here we are.
Now let's see how this mysterious big shot answers.
"Yasuo."
Konan's voice softened as she read the name.
While sorting through the files last night, she had spent