"I think you've misunderstood sothing, Kakuzu."
nma's voice ca through the fox mask, those eyes hidden behind it looking directly at Kakuzu.
"Whether you're interested in my ideals or not, you must join [Ember]."
All of Kakuzu's muscles tensed as he stared fixedly at the figure before him. He'd never imagined that simply going out to earn so quick money would attract the attention of an existence of this level.
As a bounty hunter who'd road the black market for years, Kakuzu knew all too well just how terrifying this man was. On the black market's bounty lists, the kage and daimyo of the great nations had always been the highest-value targets—until a few years ago, when one na surpassed all bounties with an overwhelming sum.
[Ember] organization leader, nma.
This man's achievents were horrifying: completely annihilating the Kumo delegation, grievously wounding the Raikage near death, single-handedly attacking Konoha... each feat was enough to shake the entire ninja world. And he remained at large to this day.
Kakuzu still rembered his shock upon seeing that astronomical bounty. He'd imdiately set out for the Konoha area, wanting to find this priceless prey.
However, when he stood at Konoha's outskirts and saw that massive crater nearly as large as the village itself, all his greed vanished instantly.
Even Kakuzu, who had lived nearly a century, had to acknowledge one fact: trying to hunt nma for his bounty was basically a death wish. He'd thought that after Senju Hashirama's death, the ninja world would never again see monsters of that caliber.
"Should I say I'm honored?"
Kakuzu's voice carried deliberate mockery. "With your power, Ember doesn't need anyway."
As he spoke, he used his peripheral vision to survey the surroundings, secretly planning possible escape routes. Though money was his beloved, Kakuzu wasn't stupid—no prey was worth trading his life for.
nma suddenly spoke: "Kakuzu, you've lived too long... In your lengthy life, are you satisfied with rely chasing money?"
This statent made Kakuzu's movents imperceptibly freeze.
"I know the inside story of that ti." nma's voice continued. "Those parasites gave you a suicide mission, yet you actually went and challenged the God of Shinobi."
The green light in Kakuzu's black sclera flickered violently. Those humiliations he thought had long been buried by ti were now being laid bare.
Fragnts of sealed mories suddenly surged up—the faces of Takigakure's leadership, the prison's coldness, and that twisted pleasure when he claid his first heart...
"Laughably, they feared Senju Hashirama's retaliation, so they used you as a discarded piece." nma stepped forward slowly. "Though the village betrayed you, they ultimately pinned the traitor's cri on you."
"How... could you know these things?"
Kakuzu's voice wavered. For nearly a century, he'd thought those past events were buried along with the witnesses from that era.
Could nma... also be a monster who'd lived from that era to now?
This thought secretly alard Kakuzu. He'd originally planned to use "having fought the First Hokage" as intimidation, but now it seed anyone with even slight knowledge of that period would understand he'd only survived because Senju Hashirama had shown rcy.
nma seed to see through his thoughts, a light laugh coming from behind the mask. "No need to guess—I know more than you imagine... For instance, how many hearts are still beating in your body right now?"
These words struck Kakuzu's heart like thunder. The Earth Grudge Fear's secret was his greatest trump card for survival.
"Co."
nma slowly extended his hand toward Kakuzu. "My target is precisely those ambitious figures who issue commands from on high while pushing all dangers onto ninja."
The breeze stirred his robes as the Nine-Faced Beasts shifted restlessly behind him. "My organization doesn't pursue illusory peace... I want to build a world where the strong need not betray and the weak need not beg."
Kakuzu's fists clenched tight, black threads writhing uneasily across his skin's surface. These words... decades ago in Takigakure's dark prison cell, this was exactly the salvation he'd most longed to hear.
"Kakuzu, and you—" nma's hand remained suspended in air. "Can beco its foundation."
"Fellow immortal, stop your wandering..." The voice beneath the fox mask suddenly softened. "It's ti to put down roots."
Kakuzu gripped his fists with all his strength, nails digging deep into his palms. Decades of lonely drifting had long since transford that hot-blooded Takigakure elite into today's cold, ruthless bounty hunter. His life's creed had been reduced to nothing but obsession with money...
"It seems... you're determined to have ?"
nma nodded calmly. "Yes, that's correct."
"I see... then I have one condition." Kakuzu's voice suddenly turned dangerous as those black threads began writhing violently. "I know you're strong, but..."
His body suddenly erupted with trendous chakra, the surrounding earth cracking under this force. "Trying to gain my loyalty with just big talk is far too simple!"
"Fight . Let see what kind of existence this bounty target that terrifies the great nations really is."
nma was silent for a mont, then the chakra around his body began fluctuating violently. "I see."
The Nine-Faced Beasts simultaneously let out deafening roars. "Then let's have a fight."
"If I win... I'll take you back to join Ember."
*****
220 chaps at patreon/Eatinpieces
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