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The room felt heavier after Alex's last words, a thick fog of curiosity and unease settling over the Akatsuki like a second layer of air.
The flickering light from the torches in the stone walls made shadows dance across the table, stretching over the tense faces of everyone.
Pain's Rinnegan eyes locked onto Alex with unwavering intensity.
"We will think about your proposal," He said slowly, his voice cold and resonant, "but first… tell us how you can help us achieve a peaceful world."
Alex's grin returned immediately, sharp as a blade. He clapped his hands together once — the sound rang through the chamber like a gunshot.
"Now that," He said, leaning forward slightly, "is the right question to ask. And I have just the answer for you."
He let his gaze sweep across the table, meeting each pair of eyes. His voice lowered, drawing them in.
"Your initial ide... I mean to bring peace to a world drowning in war is noble. Surprisingly noble, considering the company I see here. But your methods…"
He let the word hang in the air like a drop of poison. "…are all wrong."
He turned suddenly, pointing at Pain. "Let's start with you first."
Nagato's true body was hidden far away, but through Yahiko's corpse, the faintest twitch of expression crossed his features.
"You wanted to create the ultimate weapon of mass destruction," Alex continued, "one so terrifying that nations would tremble at its very mention. A weapon that would act as a deterrent so great that war itself would become unthinkable."
Alex began to pace around the table slowly, his boots echoing off the stone floor.
"Even though what you'd end up creating isn't a weapon at all, but the Ten Tails, the core idea itself, the deterrence is decent enough."
He stopped pacing, turning back toward Pain. "But there's a problem you didn't think through."
He stepped closer, his voice dropping into a dangerous whisper that still carried to every corner of the room.
"Even if we pretend the Ten Tails doesn't exist, and you do create your super-weapon… how do you actually control it?"
The question hung in the air like an axe about to fall.
"You, Nagato," Alex went on, "are already in a fragile state. Every time you use the Rinnegan's more… extravagant abilities, you shave off pieces of your own life. Your body is already cracking under the strain. That weapon you dream about? It would drain you dry in days."
Pain's expression shifted, barely noticeable, but Alex caught it.
"I was going to pass the Rinnegan on," Pain said after a moment, his voice low, "to someone else. To carry the mission forward."
Alex's laugh was soft, almost pitying. "And who, exactly, would that be? Another Uzumaki? Do you know how rare your bloodline is now? That monstrous life force, that ocean of chakra, it's the only reason you're still alive."
He straightened and looked around at the others. "Without that, the strain of controlling such a weapon would kill anyone in days. Maybe Kisame could handle it for a time, he's practically a tailed beast himself... Maybe Obito here too can do that, with those Hashirama cells coursing through him. But all of them… all of you… are still mortals. You will die one day."
"And after your deaths?" Alex's grin sharpened. "The weapon will fall into other hands. And then?"
His eyes glinted, catching the firelight. "There will be another war. Not just war but it would cause hatred to bloom like wildfire."
The silence pressed down over the table.
Alex began to move again, circling slowly like a predator. "I can already hear the screams, smell the ash, and even see the rivers running red. All because your plan has no true anchor."
Konan's paper wings rustled faintly, but she said nothing.
Alex stopped pacing and tapped his chin. "And besides… there are hardly any Uzumaki left to even consider. But… funny thing."
His smirk widened. "Ah, now that I remembered it, I saved one a few years ago."
The words drew a ripple of surprise through the room.
"She was a red-haired woman from Konoha.," Alex continued. "She sure was feisty and sharp-tongued."
Obito blinked once, slow and sharp. "You… saved Kushina?"
His tone was incredulous, almost mocking. "How is that possible?"
"Oh, I understand your shock," Alex said, the grin never leaving his face. "After all… she wasn't supposed to live that night, was she? Not when you crazy bastard, unleashed the Nine Tails in Konoha."
The revelation detonated like a bomb.
Heads turned toward Obito instantly. Kisame's shark grin faded. Deidara's eyes widened. Hidan gave a low whistle.
"So it was you," Kakuzu said flatly, his voice cutting through the air. "All those years ago."
Konan's eyes narrowed into razor slits. Her voice was ice. "You almost destroyed an entire village and killed so many. And you… never said a word."
Obito didn't answer. His lone Sharingan glowed faintly in the torchlight.
Alex waved a hand casually, like swatting away a gnat.
"I have no interest in his little grudge against his teacher, or his family, or the village that treated him like their own. Not my problem. If anything, I should be thanking him."
He leaned back in his chair, smirking. "Because thanks to Obito here, I had the perfect opportunity to strike a deal with that woman. I changed her fate… and her son's future… in exchange for a small price."
That got Orochimaru's attention immediately. His golden eyes gleamed with sudden interest.
"You can… change fates?"
The question was drawn out, dripping with hunger.
Alex's grin turned into something almost charming. He spread his hands.
"Of course I can. But there's always a cost... you know some sort of an equal exchange. The greater the change, the higher the price. As long as the price is right, even reviving a dead person was no big deal for me."
Konan, who had been silently processing every word, caught it.
"What did you just say?" She asked, her voice suddenly sharper.
The others were watching him now, their gazes like knives. Even Sasori's cold eyes seemed more alert.
Alex tilted his head innocently. "What? That making a deal require an equal exchange? You give something, you get something in retunr. It is a fair trade."
Obito's voice cut in, quieter, but laced with suspicion. "Not that. You said something about… reviving the dead."
For the first time, Alex paused, just long enough to make them wonder if they'd imagined it. Then he smiled again, that same infuriating, confident curve of his lips.
"Oh… that," He said lightly. "Yes. I can do that. Bring someone back to life, it is pretty simple, really."
The room tensed as one.
"But," Alex continued, his tone playful again, "it's not free... Nothing worth having ever is. The other party must give something of equal value. And the nature of that price…"
His eyes gleamed dangerously. "…is different for each person."
He leaned forward, resting his forearms on the table. "And if you ever reveal the terms of your deal to someone else, the contract would turn void and you lose everything you bargained for."
Konan's fingers curled at her sides, her mind racing.
Orochimaru's lips twitched into a faint smile.
Kakuju's eyes sparkled with chaotic curiosity.
Pain's Rinnegan remained fixed on Alex like a hawk tracking prey.
"What you're suggesting," Orochimaru said, his voice low, "is… dangerous."
Alex's grin turned sharp. "Oh, it's more than dangerous. It's absolute. My word in such matters is… binding."
Zetsu tilted its head, the white half smirking, the black half silent. "And why tell us this? You're just dangling temptation."
"I'm giving you options," Alex said simply. "The kind of options you didn't know existed. The kind of options that can change everything."
He turned toward Konan again, his gaze holding hers a moment too long.
"You, for instance. What would you give… to bring someone close and important to you back to life again?"
Her breath caught almost imperceptibly, but she said nothing, clenching her hands.
Alex sat back, satisfied.
"Peace," He said finally, "isn't built on fear of destruction."
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