"Looks like they're gone."
By the ti Konan and Nagato arrived at the barren battlefield, Shinji had already disappeared without a trace, taking Hidan with him.
Shinji didn't have any particular objection to the Akatsuki organization Nagato had built—he simply had no interest in working for soone for free.
No benefits whatsoever, just drawing a big, empty pie in the sky and expecting people to risk their lives for you? Where do you find deals like that?
Even when Kakuzu first joined, he probably cursed them as idiots in his heart. If, at that ti, Kakuzu had seen even the slightest chance of escaping from the Deva Path of Pain, he definitely wouldn't have joined the Akatsuki.
And look at the others—Konan and Nagato were childhood friends. As for Zetsu, everyone knew what kind of scher he was.
Kisa was practically talked into it by Obito. Itachi was outright a multi-layered spy whose true allegiance was always unclear.
After defecting, Sasori barely considered himself human anymore. He didn't care where he went—he only wanted to pursue his eternal art.
Deidara was even more ridiculous. Three people showed up at his doorstep. When he tried to resist, Itachi knocked him out with a single glance. Join or die—what would you choose?
And then there was Orochimaru. Knowing full well how strong the Akatsuki was, why would he rather be hunted down than stay?
Partly because Itachi had beaten him senseless. But more importantly, Orochimaru was fed up with being exploited for nothing. Once he realized there was no hope of obtaining the Sharingan or the Rinnegan, he decisively cut his losses and left.
Looking at it this way, notice sothing?
Not a single Akatsuki mber joined because they believed the organization had a promising future.
Every single one of them was an exploited wage slave!
And if you refused to join, they beat you until you did.
To be honest, Shinji didn't care at all about the Akatsuki's ideology or Nagato's chuunibyou dreams.
He cared even less about Black Zetsu's ridiculous sche to revive Kaguya.
If anyone wanted him to join any organization, it was simple—just make sure his efforts matched his rewards.
You couldn't expect him to work every day to earn money, then hand it all over to the organization, and when danger struck, have him charging at the front lines—
If that wasn't stupidity, what was?
Was this charity work?
Selfless devotion?
Don't talk to him about so grand dream of world peace in the shinobi world—that was just bullying nonsense!
So unless Nagato could offer him sothing he absolutely couldn't refuse, even if soone pointed a Shinra Tensei at his head, he still wouldn't join!
That was the real reason Shinji had refused.
Nagato lowered his head to look at Yahiko's corpse and frowned slightly before speaking as if to himself, "Did you see how the Deva Path was destroyed?"
The mont he finished speaking, a pitcher plant sprouted from the ground nearby. Inside it was Zetsu.
"I really don't know."
"Oh?"
"At first, I used the Mayfly Technique to hide nearby and watch the battle. But when the Deva Path used Super · Shinra Tensei, I ran imdiately. I have no idea what happened afterward, nor what exactly went wrong with the Deva Path. But later, I did see sothing interesting…"
The explanation was reasonable. Nagato himself knew just how devastating his Super · Shinra Tensei was.
"Tell everything you saw afterward."
Under Nagato's questioning, Zetsu had no choice but to recount in detail everything he had seen after resurfacing.
The more Nagato and Konan listened, the more shocked they beca.
Especially when they heard that the opponent—Shinji—not only survived the Super · Shinra Tensei but appeared completely unhard, they were stunned. It sounded impossible!
"Oh, right. That guy seed to write sothing under the Deva Path's corpse."
Nagato imdiately had Konan gently move Yahiko's body aside. There, they saw a ssage soone had left—either for him or for the Akatsuki.
"Hello, would you like to link the fire… uh, wrong script. Let's start over."
"Recruitnt Advertisent: If your organization goes under, or if anyone wants to job-hop to our Jashin Cult, I guarantee full benefits, double salary, holiday gifts, and even organized travel."
"Tell your boss to take notes—this is how you recruit and poach employees."
"If you don't have the ability, then don't co out causing trouble."
After reading the ssage expressionlessly, Nagato imdiately used a small-scale Shinra Tensei to obliterate it.
He was furious!
Not only had his attempt at intimidation failed, he had even been mocked in return.
"Which direction did they go?"
Nagato wore an expression that clearly warned others to stay away.
Zetsu casually pointed in a direction. "That way."
"Continue tracking their movents. I need to return first to repair the Deva Path."
"Nagato, you…"
"Don't worry. I haven't let anger cloud my judgnt. But next ti, I'll bring the Six Paths of Pain and have a proper discussion with them about 'benefits and salary.'"
Clearly, this inexplicable setback was sothing Nagato could not let go.
Moreover, according to Zetsu, the opponent had taken a Super · Shinra Tensei at point-blank range and erged completely unscathed. That alone made Nagato extrely curious.
Even if it hadn't been unleashed at full power, it was still Super · Shinra Tensei. No one should have been able to walk away without a scratch—unless that guy was so kind of Tailed Beast.
More importantly, the qualification Nagato had set before attacking was simple: "survive."
Which ant Shinji and Hidan had technically both passed his initial assessnt. At the very least, their strength t the Akatsuki's recruitnt standards.
The problem was—they didn't think much of his Akatsuki.
And their mockery had been blunt. Offering no benefits yet expecting people to risk their lives—wasn't that a bit too wishful?
For the first ti, Nagato felt a flicker of doubt.
He had recruited Kakuzu and the others the sa way before. Why had it suddenly stopped working?
But on second thought… perhaps the other party did have a point.
"Nagato? Are you alright?"
Seeing the concern on Konan's face, Nagato shook his head. "I'm fine. I just used up a bit too much chakra at the end. Let's go back."
Konan nodded, completely unaware that Nagato had been affected by his enemy's verbal assault and was now lost in thought.
The two of them took the Deva Path's corpse and quickly departed.
Zetsu also used the Mayfly Technique to sink back into the ground.
But what occupied his mind now wasn't Shinji and Hidan—those insignificant players.
Even if he didn't know what thod they had used to destroy the Deva Path.
All he could think about was intelligence regarding Cursed Spirits and the potential problems they might cause.
After scheming for so long, he would never allow any person—or monster-like Cursed Spirit—to ruin his plans at the crucial mont.
"Is there a way to use the power of Cursed Spirits to accomplish sothing… to push the plan forward even further?"
Even during the previous eting, when Nagato had tested everyone's attitude toward Cursed Spirits, it had actually stemd from one of his ideas—spoken through Nagato's mouth.
Because he was the one who truly didn't care whether the party he cooperated with was human or ghost. As long as the ultimate goal could be achieved, any price was acceptable.
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