Chapter 49: The Man Who Fell from the Sky!
Join my Patreon to be 30 chapters ahead of the webnovel releases:
patreon.com/ZeroMoney
For every 5 new paid members I get I will release fifteen chaps in total before 15 August.
I would appreciate your help if you could join my Patreon and support me because it would keep me motivated.
******
Sasori turned his head, giving Deidara a deep, thoughtful look. His eyes flickered with contemplation.
A moment later.
"Let's go together, then."
Sasori nodded, agreeing to Deidara's request.
However...
A lingering doubt remained in his heart.
Even he couldn't quite explain why.
Let's just call it intuition!
Sasori sensed something was wrong with the tower, but Deidara's behavior suggested it wasn't anything serious.
Relieved by Sasori's decision, Deidara felt a weight lift from his shoulders. He guided the giant white bird to circle in the air before descending, landing just behind Itachi and Kisame.
...
Land of Rain.
At the entrance.
Itachi and Kisame walked side by side towards the tower.
Unlike Deidara and Sasori's group, these two spoke very little during their journey. Both maintained a stoic silence, their faces expressionless and aloof.
"Itachi, Deidara and Sasori are flying over."
Kisame glanced upward with his round eyes, noticing the circling white bird. It seemed something was going on up there.
"Ignore them."
Itachi didn't even look up, continuing his steady pace towards the tower.
"Understood."
Kisame didn't waste any more words. After speaking, the silence between them resumed.
After a few more steps, the giant white bird landed not far behind them. Once Deidara and Sasori dismounted, they followed Itachi and Kisame towards the tower.
"That Uchiha Itachi infuriates me! He clearly saw us but didn't even greet us!"
Deidara clenched his fists, glaring at Itachi's back, pouting like a child in a sulk.
"Don't you hate Itachi?"
Sasori's deep voice echoed again. It sounded less like a question and more like a taunt.
"I... I do hate Itachi! I hate his smug look, as if he's in control of everything. It's so annoying!"
Deidara complained vehemently. Every time he encountered Itachi, the latter always had that same expression.
"Isn't our leader the same?"
Sasori posed another probing question. This wasn't just for argument's sake; he genuinely thought that Pain's Rinnegan gave off an even more arrogant vibe.
"Brother Sasori, it's different. The leader is the leader, but Itachi isn't. We're equals, so why does he act so superior?"
Deidara curled his lips and muttered dissatisfiedly. In his heart, he was still worried that Itachi didn't say hello to them just now, even though he said he didn't need Itachi to say hello.
"You have a point,"
Sasori remarked, seeing through Deidara's facade but not calling it out. He followed Itachi and Kisame, listening to Deidara's complaints without adding more.
The distance between Itachi and Kisame walking in front and Deidara and Sasori behind were not far away.
Deidara's grumbles were clear to both of them.
Kisame's lips twitched, almost smiling but holding it back, finding Deidara amusing. Itachi, on the other hand, acted as if he hadn't heard anything.
The four people walked to the square of the Land of Rain in twos and one in two. They immediately saw the vines all over the ground, intertwined and densely packed.
For a moment,
Itachi and Kisame stopped, their gazes fixed on the vines.
Not far from the vines lay a meteoric-like object.
"Itachi-san, there was a battle here, wasn't there?"
Kisame observed the vines, vibrant with life, clearly not naturally grown.
Besides...
The last time they were here, there was nothing like this. Trees couldn't grow so quickly.
"I think this is why the leader called us back,"
Itachi examined the star-like object, suspecting it to be the leader's doing.
Itachi and Kisame saw the scene.
So did Deidara and Sasori, who also stopped.
"What's going on?"
Sasori's voice turned grave. He glanced at Deidara, asking, "Didn't you see this earlier?"
"Of course, I did!"
Deidara replied matter-of-factly, looking at vines in front of him, there was a question mark in his heart, but it was not big, and it was not as dignified as a few others.
"Why didn't you mention it?"
There was a trace of helplessness in Sasori's slightly reproachful tone. Such important information was actually left out. Instead, he showed the same hesitant look just now.
"Brother Sasori, it's always raining in the Land of Rain. It's not that strange for some trees to grow, right?"
Deidara argued, though he began to realize it did seem odd. Still, he was too stubborn to fully admit it.
After all, in Iwagakure,
Finding new rocks after some time wasn't uncommon.
"Things have become more complicated."
Sasori's voice was serious. He looked up at Itachi and said gravely, "Itachi, what do you think?"
"A powerful enemy."
Itachi spoke only a few words, maintaining his usual aloof demeanor.
...
Hashirama stood at the window.
His eyes fell on the group of four beside the tree and vines not far away.
"Interesting!"
He had just calculated that these four were the only remaining members of the Akatsuki that he hadn't defeated yet.
Once he took down this group, he would have single-handedly conquered the entire Akatsuki.
"It seems they won't come easily, and this place is too cramped to move freely."
Hashirama lifted his right foot and stepped onto the windowsill, then suddenly pushed off with great force.
Boom!
A loud explosion echoed from the tower's windowsill, sending rubble flying as the entire windowsill collapsed.
Whoosh!
Hashirama's body shot out like a cannonball, his red armor tracing a vivid arc through the air.
"Eee~"
The little sprite, bound to the area around Hashirama, was forced to follow him as he flew out, fluttering its wings and watching the scenery pass by, resembling a kite being flown.
Of course...
It wasn't the one flying the kite but the kite tethered to a string.
The descending red figure immediately caught the attention of the four by the vines.
Instantly,
Each of them retreated several meters, creating distance.
Boom!!!
Hashirama's body crashed heavily into the ground, causing it to crumble and sending up a cloud of dust that obscured their vision.
Then,
Out of the dust,
A figure emerged.
The four hadn't yet seen the person's features clearly, but the sheer impact of his arrival made them all tense up.
(End of Chapter)