"Kakuzu, what's going on?" Deidara placed the fruit basket on the nearby table, but Kakuzu remained sulking, refusing to even glance at it.
"Oh, I suppose I forgot the proper etiquette." Deidara handed the fruit basket back to Kurotsuchi and turned to her. "Pass me your wallet."
"What for?" Kurotsuchi asked, puzzled, as she handed over her wallet.
Deidara pulled out a stack of bills and counted them. "The fruit basket cost 1,500 ryō. Let's just pay him directly in cash."
"We'll take the basket back and eat it ourselves."
Deidara slapped the 1,500 ryō onto the table. Kakuzu, who had been completely unresponsive until now, turned his green bean-like eyes toward the money. A brief flicker of hesitation crossed his gaze before he swiftly snatched the cash and tucked it into his pocket.
Then, without a word, he turned his head away again, maintaining his aloof demeanor.
"Haha! It seems Kakuzu is still fine after all!"
"At least he still knows how to grab money," Deidara joked, eliciting relieved smiles from the others.
"Curse you all! Get out of here, you brats!" Kakuzu roared, his dignity clearly wounded by their laughter.
Given his age, calling everyone in the room "brats" wasn't entirely unreasonable.
Hearing Kakuzu's angry tone, Hidan started yelling again. "Kakuzu, just say what's bothering you!"
"Why are you sulking like a child?"
"What's the matter? Just spill it already!" Hidan was practically dying of impatience.
"What could possibly be wrong with me? I'm immortal! Nothing can affect me!" Kakuzu shouted defiantly.
"Hey, Konan," Deidara whispered as he sidled up to her.
"Could it be that your secret has been exposed?"
Konan's expression became slightly uneasy. In the past, her extreme lack of security had led her to convert the organization's funds entirely into supplies. Even though those supplies were now being distributed throughout the Hidden Rain Village, it was estimated that it would take over ten years to fully utilize them.
And most of that money had come from Kakuzu.
"No way. We didn't let Kakuzu find out about that," Konan denied.
"He's been like this ever since he returned from rescuing the Deva Path," Nagato interjected.
Rescuing the Deva Path?
"Were there any unusual occurrences during that mission?" Deidara asked.
"No, nothing unusual happened," Nagato replied.
"Brother Sasori, during the battle to rescue the Deva Path, was there anything out of the ordinary?" Deidara turned to Sasori for answers.
"No," Sasori responded similarly.
"If anything, he might be upset about being crushed by the Raikage. That kind of defeat can leave a sour taste," Sasori speculated, recalling his own frustration from past experiences of feeling powerless.
Ah, that makes sense!
Deidara stroked his chin thoughtfully.
"Alright, alright! I've got it figured out. Everyone, you can leave now!" Deidara raised his hands to dismiss the group.
Once the room was cleared, only Deidara and Kakuzu remained.
Deidara didn't address the issue directly but casually brought it up in conversation. "Kakuzu, I heard you lost two hearts during the last mission in Konoha and haven't found suitable replacements yet. Is that true?"
"Do you have any leads? I happen to have some free time lately—I could help you out."
"Who needs help from a brat like you? Do you think I can't handle finding a few enemies on my own?" Kakuzu snapped, clearly irritated. As expected, his depression stemmed from his declining strength.
It was understandable. The ninja world was evolving rapidly. In the past, someone like Kakuzu, with ordinary Kage-level power, could dominate the battlefield. But now, he was increasingly relegated to a supporting role.
For someone who had once fought against the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju, it was only natural for Kakuzu to feel a deep sense of loss in the face of such changes.
Of course, the specifics of how he had "fought" Hashirama were known only to Kakuzu himself.
"By the way, can your Earth Grudge Fear use Kekkei Genkai? For example, if you collected the heart of a ninja with a Kekkei Genkai," Deidara asked curiously.
"No!" Kakuzu refuted the idea. "Even if the heart belongs to a Kekkei Genkai user, Earth Grudge Fear can only utilize basic elemental ninjutsu. And I must have one heart for each of the five chakra natures—having duplicates of the same nature would disrupt the chakra system in my body."
So that's how it works. Without the ability to use Kekkei Genkai, the strength of Earth Grudge Fear was significantly limited.
Still, there were ways to grow stronger—for example, through Sage Mode.
"Kakuzu, I actually have two suggestions for how you could enhance your abilities."
"Hmm? What are they?" Kakuzu asked, his interest piqued.
"First, there's something called Sage Mode. I'm not sure if you've heard of it," Deidara said, raising one finger.
Kakuzu nodded. "I've heard of it. The First Hokage, Hashirama Senju, possessed Sage Mode."
"Additionally, it's said that the three major summoning realms each have their own Sage Mode techniques, but I've never had the opportunity to see them."
Obtaining Sage Mode from the three summoning realms was indeed challenging, as their selection criteria for contractors were strict.
However, there was an exception.
"Sage Mode primarily involves harnessing natural energy. While it's usually exclusive to the three summoning realms, there are occasional exceptions in the outside world."
"Orochimaru has a subordinate named Jūgo, who naturally possesses Sage Chakra. We could try reaching out to Orochimaru."
Kakuzu's green bean-like eyes glimmered with interest. "Alright."
"What's your second suggestion?"
"Konoha has a rogue ninja named Hiruko who invented a forbidden technique called the Chimera Technique. It allows him to integrate other people's Kekkei Genkai into his own body."
"If you could obtain the Chimera Technique, you might be able to adapt it to fuse Kekkei Genkai into your hearts."
"Hiruko? I've never heard of him," Kakuzu frowned. As someone deeply entrenched in the underground world, he was familiar with most rogue ninjas of any renown, but Hiruko's name didn't ring a bell.
"He's probably still in his early stages, accumulating Kekkei Genkai and keeping a low profile. Hiruko was a friend of Orochimaru and the other Sannin—if you ask Orochimaru, he should be able to provide information on Hiruko's whereabouts."
"Then let's go find Orochimaru!" Kakuzu declared, standing up. The old man was determined to reignite his glory days and refused to let these younger generations look down on him!
"Brother Deidara, you're finally out! Let's keep shopping!" Kurotsuchi cheerfully grabbed Deidara's arm.
"Sorry, Kurotsuchi, maybe next time," Deidara said playfully, tapping her forehead. Nearby, Itachi remained as composed as ever, but he couldn't help glancing over at the scene.
"Let's go, Deidara," Kakuzu said as he stepped out of the house.
"Wow! Kakuzu, you've really recovered!" Hidan exclaimed, surprised.
"But where are we headed now?"
"To find Orochimaru," Kakuzu replied.
"Orochimaru?" Hidan scratched his head, clearly uninterested. Suddenly, an idea struck him, and he clenched his right fist against his left palm.
"Hey, wasn't the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju, summoned by Orochimaru last time?"
"Perfect! This time, we can have him summon Hashirama again and ask about your battle with him back in the day."
"Finally, we can solve this annoying mystery!"
Hidan looked smug, as if he had just come up with a brilliant plan.
"Hidan!" Unable to tolerate him any longer, the old man delivered a swift kick.
~~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~~
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