"Shinra Tensei!"
Rumble!
While Shisui Uchiha sat atop the wooden giant's head, laughing it off, Deva Path Pain, who should have already been smashed to pieces...
Suddenly shouted from inside the deep crater.
Along with his shout came an utterly terrifying repulsive force.
In an instant, the wooden giant beneath Shisui's feet was torn into a sky full of splinters!
Was this guy finally getting serious?
Sensing Deva Path Pain's completely changed presence and the astonishing chakra erupting from him...
Shisui Uchiha rapidly formed hand seals, instantly becoming four.
Three Wood Clones stood before him, holding Kusanagi Swords to block the huge rocks hurtling toward him.
His real body formed another set of hand seals, then pressed his palms together.
"So this is the true strength of the Akatsuki's leader? Hahaha! What a rush! What a rush!"
"Watch this! Wood Release..."
"Banshō Ten'in!"
Before Shisui Uchiha could unleash his Wood Release, a terrifying attractive force surged straight from Deva Path Pain's hands, forcibly dragging him over and interrupting his jutsu.
Of course, Shisui Uchiha could have used his Body Flicker Technique to escape the area.
But a Body Flicker Technique of that caliber belonged to "Shisui Uchiha," not Forsaken.
So all he could do now was pretend to flail helplessly as he flew toward Deva Path Pain.
"You're strong, but it's time to end this."
"Forsaken, experience the organization's purpose through pain. Understand through pain just how right a choice joining us is."
"Hah!"
Rumble...
Before everyone's eyes, the rubble, dust, wooden giant, and Wood Dragon on the plain were all dragged into the sky by the terrifying attractive force.
Naturally, that included the "exhausted and injured" Shisui Uchiha!
"What's this?"
Shisui Uchiha feigned confusion as he looked up at everything around him, then suddenly shouted.
"What a rush! What a rush! It's only pain, isn't it? Come on!"
"As you wish, Forsaken."
A ruthless glint suddenly flashed through the eyes of Nagato, whose real body remained hidden. Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth as he recklessly poured out chakra.
To recruit someone this powerful as a comrade, he had to pay a price!
"Chibaku Tensei!"
As Deva Path Pain uttered those words, everything caught in the pull, including Shisui Uchiha...
Was compressed into an enormous meteor.
Then it exploded!
Boom!
"..."
Watching the raging winds overhead and the huge rocks and chunks of wood falling relentlessly, Konan turned her body into paper.
Sheets of white paper slipped past the obstacles and finally reached Shisui Uchiha, who was "covered in wounds," wrapping around him protectively.
But the moment she wrapped him up, her composure was shaken.
Because this arrogant guy, who should have been unconscious, was actually still giving her a thumbs-up!
What is wrong with this guy? He's still doing something so pointless at a time like this. Isn't he afraid I might suddenly kill him?
What an absolute idiot.
A month later, on the ravaged plain outside the Akatsuki's base.
"Shinra Tensei!"
"Banshō Ten'in!"
"Chibaku Tensei!"
Rumble!
A figure wielding the Kusanagi Sword and riding a wooden giant was knocked down by Deva Path Pain again and again.
Yet as time passed, the intervals between his defeats kept growing longer.
This gave Nagato quite a headache.
Ever since this man joined, the organization's overall fighting strength had increased considerably, and Nagato had needed to intervene far less often.
All of that was quite good.
Because Shisui Uchiha had dealt with every spy sent by the neighboring Land of Earth and Land of Wind.
As for spies from the Land of Fire...
Well, with Shisui Uchiha's Shadow Clones around, not a single border patrol assignment in the Land of Fire fell to any of its other ninja!
Shisui Uchiha handled them all himself!
But along with the benefits came the drawbacks!
Ever since joining the Akatsuki, Shisui Uchiha's real body challenged Deva Path Pain to fights whenever he had time, trading blasts with him at every opportunity.
And to avoid embarrassment and preserve his image as the invincible leader of the Akatsuki, Nagato had to take every fight seriously.
This left Nagato's already unhealthy body even weaker.
He was almost unable to take it anymore!
"..."
After Nagato unleashed several more major attacks that day, Shisui Uchiha suddenly waved a hand at him.
Then he plopped down on the ground, threw his head back, and laughed.
"What a rush! What a rush!"
Seeing that Shisui Uchiha had finally stopped, Konan deftly brought out the fruit she had prepared beforehand, picked up a grape, and put it in his mouth.
Shisui Uchiha shamelessly leaned sideways against her shoulder, looking utterly content.
"Joining this organization really was the right choice. I get to fight, and my partner even feeds me fruit. This is the life!"
"..."
Seeing that Konan had finally drawn his attention away, Deva Path Pain hurriedly tossed out an excuse, turned, and left.
"Get some rest. By the way, I have business elsewhere for the next few days. Spend a little longer on patrol each day."
"Going out again? Got it, got it. Just leave things here to me and her."
Shisui Uchiha waved dismissively, feeling thoroughly pleased.
For combat, he now had Nagato's Six Paths of Pain as sparring partners, allowing him to keep mastering his Wood Release and combine it into various fighting styles.
As for missions, his Shadow Clones were still strolling around the Land of Fire's borders, carrying out that patrol assignment with no end date.
As for his little brother, the Wood Clone he had left in Konoha was working with Teacher Chen, so there was no chance of anything happening to Uchiha Itachi.
Now, he only needed to wait for the approaching Nine-Tails' Rampage to begin, and he could utterly ruin that old bastard Danzo!
Everything was under control.
While these thoughts ran through his mind, Konan suddenly spoke beside him.
"Forsaken, what do you think of this world?"
Konan was trying to drill her ideology into him yet again.
Unfortunately, it was useless against him.
"It's great."
"Why?"
"Because there are fights to be had. To put it in the leader's words, we can make the people of this world feel pain and understand how precious world peace is."
Konan, who had initially felt uncomfortable hearing him call this world "great," suddenly relaxed, her mood improving considerably.
It seemed that although this guy was an idiot, he had actually been listening to her.
"Then what do you think of the organization's purpose?"
"I don't know about anyone else, but I think it suits me perfectly. When people are lost, I beat them up. Once they come to their senses, I enjoy the peace with you."
Konan's eyes lit up as though she had found a kindred spirit, and a faint smile appeared on her face.
"Yes, I feel the same way. I think the organization's purpose is wonderful."
And so, the days passed.
Nagato spent more and more time away from the Akatsuki to hide from Shisui Uchiha, while Shisui Uchiha grew increasingly at ease.
Until a strange Mangekyō Sharingan suddenly appeared in Konoha!
Before you continue