All three turned to look at her at once, making her the sole focus in the gathering dusk.
A blush spread from Konan's cheekbones to her ears, and her face filled with unmistakable embarrassment and Rage.
She looked away from the bottom of the pit, down at the grass beneath her feet, then back toward the pit. She gave an irritated snort but said nothing.
These three bastards all thought she was beautiful. At least they had good taste! But a honey trap? Forget it!
She was a ninja. Her strength spoke for itself!
The dusk deepened as they talked. The moss at the bottom of the pit disappeared into shadow, leaving only a few broken trunks along its rim holding the last traces of dark red warmth in the evening breeze.
A Ninja Crow swooped down from the southern horizon, its wings tracing a brief arc through the dusk.
Konan raised her arm, and the Ninja Crow landed on her forearm. Its talons pressed lightly against her sleeve, then curled in.
She removed the thin tube tied to its leg, pinched it between her fingers, and quickly scanned the note inside. With a conflicted look, she handed it to Kakuzu.
Kakuzu took it. His green eyes moved down the page line by line, pausing on the last line for two beats. When he looked up, the hesitation on his face had given way to conviction.
"I once fought the First."
"Against someone at his level, surrounding him, gathering intelligence, devising tactics to counter him—it's all bullshit!"
"Our dream of collecting Tailed Beasts as a deterrent would be a child's joke to someone like that!"
"If Uchiha Yongye has reached that level, or even surpassed it, then only a honey trap can deal with him."
"Don't count on Pain. Pain