Back when the two of them had been talked into joining the Akatsuki,
they had been fed all kinds of grand promises.
Yet, to their surprise, when they joined the Land of Shadow this time, Naruto made no promises about what he would give them in the future.
Instead, he said that as long as they joined the Land of Shadow, he would personally keep them safe.
Compared with empty promises, that was perhaps the most direct and sincere offer of all.
After everything the two had experienced in the Land of Rain, they finally understood.
Everyone who approached them had an agenda.
This time, however, they had come to join the Land of Shadow of their own accord.
They knew Naruto Uzumaki could have refused to take them in.
"Thank you for taking us in."
Now that everything was out in the open, Kisame and Kakuzu stopped putting on airs as elite fighters.
After all, they had heard their leader Pain speak of Naruto Uzumaki's terrifying power more than once.
If they put on airs here, Tsunade and Jiraiya might beat them up.
Seeing the respect in their eyes, Naruto rose with a smile. "Now that you've joined the Land of Shadow, we're friends. There's no need to be so stiff with friends. Just treat me the way you'd treat any friend. You don't have to call me Daimyo, either. Just call me Naruto."
Accustomed to walking on eggshells in the Akatsuki, the two found it hard to adjust to being treated this way by their new leader.
"Naruto."
"Naruto Uzumaki."
"Yep."
Naruto smiled at them. "Is there anything you'd like to do now that you've joined the Land of Shadow? Of course, I'm not asking because we're short on people. If you want to live here in seclusion,