The remaining Chimera Beasts seemed to receive a shared command, their roars blending into a single thunderous bellow as they converged toward the center of the battlefield.
Each of the grotesque creatures, stitched and fused from the limbs of various animals and shinobi experiments, began to glow faintly with a strange, purple gum-like light. The eerie radiance pulsed across their sinewy bodies, and then, one after another, they began to merge—muscles stretching, bones creaking, flesh melting together in unnatural harmony.
Within moments, the entire battlefield quaked under the process. The ground split apart as the hulking masses fused, forming an even larger, abominable creature—a towering monstrosity that blotted out the afternoon sun.
Its shadow swallowed the scorched plains completely.
Compared to this behemoth, the earlier Chimera Beasts were no more than kittens before a tiger.
What was most disturbing, however, were its arms. The limbs seemed composed of countless smaller arms—remnants of each absorbed creature. They wriggled and coiled like a living centipede, densely packed and nauseatingly alive, twitching and flexing with every subtle movement.
"A dying struggle." Sasori murmured coldly.
Having already shed his Hiruko puppet armor, the red-haired puppet master stood revealed in his true form—a youthful boyish face with lifeless amber eyes that glinted faintly beneath the sun's dim light.
His calm, measured tone suggested he had foreseen this outcome long ago.
The colossal Chimera Beast let out a guttural roar that sent shockwaves across the battlefield. With one thunderous step, it raised a gigantic foot and brought it crashing down.
*Boom!*
The impact obliterated a nearby puppet instantly, scattering broken wooden fragments across the earth like shrapnel.
Its sheer mass translated into unimaginable destructive power. Every movement shattered stone and tore the ground apart.
Yet despite its overwhelming size, its centipede-like arms were a grotesque hindrance—powerful but unwieldy, flailing wildly and smashing anything nearby, including its own body parts.
Sasori, analyzing the creature with cold detachment, did not move to confront it directly. Instead, he manipulated the chakra threads in his fingers, recalling the remaining puppets to retreat a few paces back. The battlefield became eerily silent, save for the heavy breathing and shrill roars of the dying monster.
He exhaled once, his face emotionless.
Then, from the rows of scrolls affixed to his back, he removed the first one.
With a sharp click, the mechanism in his palm activated.
*Whoosh—!*
From the pipe embedded in the center of his hand, a torrent of flames erupted. The fire burst forth like the breath of a dragon, surging outward in a wave of incandescent heat. The temperature spiked instantly, searing the air itself.
Because of its immense size, the gigantic Chimera Beast had no means of evasion. The blazing inferno engulfed it completely.
Its monstrous scream pierced the air—a howl so agonizing it seemed to shake the heavens.
The thick hide of the creature began to char and peel, its flesh blackening and curling under the heat. A nauseating smell of burnt meat filled the air, mixing with the scent of scorched sand.
Sasori's expression remained utterly blank. He raised his palm slightly, intensifying the flames.
This was the first of his scrolls—the Scorching Stream, a weapon designed precisely to counter overgrown beasts and mass opponents.
A massive creature like this, once caught in its radius, had no escape.
Minutes passed. The purple glow faded from the Chimera Beast's skin, replaced by dull black ash. Its movements slowed, then faltered. The once-towering abomination let out a final, weak groan before collapsing with a tremor that sent dust spiraling into the sky.
The giant's body lay smoldering, reduced by nearly half its size. The thick fur that once covered it was gone; yellowish oil dripped from the charred remains, sizzling where it touched the molten ground.
Sasori lowered his hand, the flames dying down. His cold gaze lingered on the carcass.
"It's finally over." he muttered quietly.
His puppet eyes turned toward the pitch-black cave entrance nearby. "As the loser… can you come out now, Hiruko?"
A resentful growl came from within the shadows.
"When," a hoarse voice snarled, "did I ever offend an enemy like you?!"
From the darkness emerged a stunted shinobi, wrapped entirely in bandages—even his mouth was covered. Only his eyes, seething with hatred, were visible beneath the wrappings.
His steps were slow, deliberate, his glare fixed upon Sasori with venomous resentment.
These Chimera Beasts—the abominations he had painstakingly cultivated over years of experimentation—were gone, reduced to ash before his eyes.
"You should ask Orochimaru." Sasori replied coolly, a faint, icy smile touching his lips.
In truth, his mission had been to recruit Hiruko into the Akatsuki. That was the order of the leader.
But looking at this disgusting user of flesh-based ninjutsu, Sasori had already decided otherwise.
'He's worse than Orochimaru.' Sasori thought, his disdain deepening.
With a flick of his fingers, one of his puppets raised a cleaver, the steel blade glinting ominously as it flew toward Hiruko.
If the leader wasn't here, Sasori could simply dispose of him, then claim later that Hiruko refused recruitment and died in battle.
Perfect.
Just as the puppet lunged forward, a sharp voice cut through the air.
"Sasori! What are you doing?!"
Sasori's expression froze.
'Tch.'
'She came at the worst possible time.'
Descending from above, Konan landed gracefully, her paper wings scattering into fluttering sheets of white that dissolved into the air. Her black-and-red cloud robe rippled in the heat as she stood before Hiruko.
"Konan," Sasori said flatly, irritation flashing in his tone, "weren't you with the leader, recruiting other members?"
"It's already over." Konan replied curtly.
Sasori blinked. "Over? That fast?"
By his calculation, the leader's group should still be in the Land of Hot Water. The round trip alone should've taken days.
Konan folded her arms, sighing. She turned her gaze toward Kakuzu and Pain, who had just arrived with her, and said helplessly, "That guy talked too much. The leader lost patience and… made a move himself."
Sasori frowned. "Where's the newly recruited member, then?"
"Here." Kakuzu grumbled, clearly annoyed. He heaved the large sack slung over his shoulder and dumped it unceremoniously onto the ground.
A muffled cry emerged from within.
"Damn it! You rice-carrying thief! How dare you treat me like this! Jashin-sama will punish you!"
Sasori glanced inside.
Half-conscious, drenched in blood, and somehow still alive, Hidan glared back at him from inside the sack, his limbs bent in unnatural angles, his mouth half torn—and yet, still ranting.
Konan looked away, a flicker of disbelief crossing her calm face.
"The leader wanted to kill him," she said, "but his ability is… troublesome. Even like this, he won't die."
The air went silent except for the faint sound of Hidan's endless curses—"rice-carrying thief", among many other creative insults.
Sasori exhaled slowly. 'Seems their recruitment was far more dramatic than mine.'
As the others exchanged glances, Hiruko began inching backward.
He had no interest in joining such an insane organization.
Just a few moments observing them was enough to understand—this was not a group to be trifled with.
But before he could slip into the shadows, a soft, cold voice froze him in place.
"Hiruko. Where do you think you're going?"
Konan's paper wings fluttered faintly as her sharp eyes locked on his back.
Hiruko swallowed hard and turned around with a strained laugh. "I… I just remembered I left an experiment unfinished…"
"You're not trying to escape, are you?"
"N-No! Of course not!"
"Good." Konan said coolly. "As you can see, we are Akatsuki. We're here to recruit you."
"Can I refuse?" Hiruko asked meekly.
"You can," Konan said, glancing meaningfully at the sack beside her, "as long as you can be like him—unable to die even when smashed into a hundred pieces."
"..."
Hiruko immediately fell silent.
…
Later, within a dimly lit underground grotto, Tendō Pain stood atop the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path (Gedo Statue), his rippled purple eyes surveying the members gathered below.
At last, all of Akatsuki's fingers—those towering stone hands—were nearly filled.
A faint smile of satisfaction crossed Pain's usually expressionless face.
"Everyone," he said, his deep voice echoing across the cavern, "welcome to Akatsuki."
The assembled shinobi remained silent. Some looked indifferent; others wore faint smirks.
Each had their own reasons for standing there, and none of them were simple.
"Konan, distribute the uniforms."
With a nod, Konan unfurled her paper wings once more, carrying stacks of black robes patterned with red clouds.
"These robes symbolize Akatsuki." she said. "Never take them off—under any circumstances."
(T.L Note: Should've listened to her.. The moment they took it off, it was over for them)
Whether anyone would obey that order was another matter entirely.
Nearby, Hiruko scanned his new companions, his eyes gleaming faintly. 'If I can use Akatsuki's resources to collect five Kekkei Genkai corpses… then the ultimate form of my Chimera Technique will be complete.'
Beside him, Shinno stood in silence, his face unreadable. He, too, had joined for his own ends—the awakening of the Zero-Tailed Beast. If Akatsuki captured the Tailed Beasts, he could siphon chakra from their immense power for his own experiment.
Pain raised a hand. "These are Akatsuki's rings—the medium for our communication."
Each ring floated through the air, landing neatly in its owner's palm.
Then, in a tone as calm as it was commanding, Pain announced:
"It's time to issue Akatsuki's first mission."
All eyes turned to him.
What grand, world-shaking task would mark the organization's beginning?
Pain's gaze swept over the gathered figures. "Secretly transport the Land of Fire's rice to the Land of Rain."
A stunned silence blanketed the room.
Then, from somewhere in the back, Hidan's muffled laugh burst out uncontrollably.
"Hahaha! I knew it! The Rice-Carrying Organization! Our first mission is really carrying rice!"
*****
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✓ Killed For 100 Years in Hueco Mundo, Aizen Invited Me To Soul Society!
✓ Naruto: Senmei Asahi
✓ Naruto: Uchiha's Intelligence Dealer
✓ Naruto: The Fifth Hokage Is Naruto's Uncle
✓ Naruto: Who Made Him a Ninja?
✓ Bleach: In My Second Reincarnation, I Became The Ninth Kenpachi
✓ To Love-Ru: Spoiler Route [R-18]
✓ Naruto: The Accidental Incubus [R-18]
✓ The Academy's Saint Is Too Popular, But He's Not the Protagonist [R-18]