Chapter 42: You Passed The Test
Hasumi Maki looked up at the hundred-meter-high tower and asked genuinely, "Do you two usually take the stairs up?" Was this how Akatsuki trained its members' stamina, endless climbs in the pouring rain?
Kisame didn't understand the question; was there any other way besides climbing the stairs, rain or no rain?
"You two go ahead." Hasumi Maki waved at them, an encouraging smile on his face. To show his sincerity, he even made a cheering gesture. "Go, Kisame! Go, Itachi!"
[Ding!]
[Human Malice Value detected: +50!]
[Cursed Energy converted to Chakra: +50!]
[Chakra (10,351,550 / 100,000,000)]
[Ding!]
[Human Malice Value detected: +50!]
[Cursed Energy converted to Chakra: +50!]
[Chakra (10,351,600 / 100,000,000)]
Kisame and Itachi's figures disappeared into the dark stairwell. Renji, on the other hand, sat in a shop opposite the tower, eating oden, savoring each steaming bite as the rain drummed on the roof.
"Is he trustworthy?" Uchiha Itachi, walking up the stairs, suddenly spoke, his voice cutting through the echo of footsteps.
Kisame shrugged. "That's for the leader to consider, isn't it?" His peripheral vision glanced at Mr. Itachi, whose expression was unclear in the darkness. Within Akatsuki, how many members were truly trustworthy, when every alliance was built on shifting sands?
After the brief conversation, the two remained silent until they reached the top and saw their leader standing in the rain, unmoved by the downpour that soaked everything else.
"Mission failed. Jiraiya, one of the Sannin, is with the Nine-Tails," Kisame reported, water dripping from his cloak as he stood at attention.
The next second, a figure appeared out of thin air beside him. The aroma of oden filled the small space. Renji was so clever. He let Kisame and Itachi exercise by climbing the stairs, while he simply used the Flying Thunder God Mark on them to come up. Whoosh—faster than a rocket, effortless and smug.
[Ding!]
[Human Malice Value detected: +50!]
[Cursed Energy converted to Chakra: +50!]
[Chakra (10,351,650 / 100,000,000)]
[Ding!]
[Human Malice Value detected: +50!]
[Cursed Energy converted to Chakra: +50!]
[Chakra (10,351,700 / 100,000,000)]
It seemed Kisame and Itachi had figured out why he let them go up first, their glares sharp enough to cut through the rain.
"Wow!" Renji walked towards Pain with shining eyes. "You must be the leader of Akatsuki, right? I didn't come to break you up; I came to join your family!" Renji looked at Pain with extreme sincerity. He was still chewing oden. Oden is so delicious, the broth rich and the skewers perfectly tender.
[Ding!]
[Human Malice Value detected: +2,000!]
[Cursed Energy converted to Chakra: +2,000!]
[Chakra (10,353,700 / 100,000,000)]
What was this supposed to be? A greeting gift? Renji blinked. Intense firelight reflected in his eyes. Wow! Young people don't play fair, he thought, the heat already building.
[Ding!]
[Human Malice Value detected: +2,000!]
[Cursed Energy converted to Chakra: +2,000!]
[Chakra (10,355,700 / 100,000,000)]
Bang!
The blazing red light expanded violently. An immense aura spread out, pressing down with the weight of divine judgment. After the explosion subsided, Renji's figure was nowhere to be seen, the platform scorched and smoking.
Suddenly, Konan looked behind her. Renji, twirling a kunai, gave her a brilliant smile. "Starting a fight as soon as I arrive, that's exactly what I like! Let's fight to our hearts' content!" His voice carried that wild edge, eager for the clash.
As his voice fell, countless explosive tags instantly surrounded him. The tags burst open all over his body. The immense destructive power shattered the top of the iron tower, metal groaning and twisting under the force. Countless steel fragments shot towards him at high speed like bullets, whistling through the rain-slick air.
[Ding!]
[Human Malice Value detected: +2,000!]
[Cursed Energy converted to Chakra: +2,000!]
[Chakra (10,357,700 / 100,000,000)]
Pinprick-sized holes appeared on his body, and blood splattered out. In the eyes of Konan and the others, Renji's body was riddled with holes, a brutal end. However, the wounds healed instantly. Their speed was so fast they couldn't react, flesh sealing over before the shards even clattered to the ground.
"Now it's my turn to counterattack." A strange, excited light flickered in Renji's pupils, his grin widening with predatory thrill. As his voice fell, his figure vanished. His explosive speed was so fast even his afterimage disappeared. The air shattered, emitting a chilling crack that echoed like breaking bone. A fist wrapped in black and red lightning landed mercilessly on Konan's chest, the impact rippling through her like a shockwave.
Poof!
Konan couldn't react in time. She fell towards the ground like a kite with a broken string, the world blurring as pain exploded in her ribs.
[Ding!]
[Human Malice Value detected: +2,000!]
[Cursed Energy converted to Chakra: +2,000!]
[Chakra (10,359,700 / 100,000,000)]
The sky around Renji was already occupied by explosive tags. Violent eruptions constantly exploded in the air, each blast a thunderous roar that lit the gray clouds. Mushroom clouds continuously bloomed over the Rain Village, shockwaves rattling windows far below. A powerful impact struck Renji's body, the force enough to pulverize stone. A spherical orb enveloped him, neutralizing most of the attack, the distortion in space absorbing the fury like a void.
Wings formed from white paper unfolded behind Konan, and her falling figure paused, slowly rising against the gale. Suddenly. Her pupils dilated, a chill running down her spine like ice water. Renji appeared out of thin air behind her, a joyful arc on his lips, close enough to feel his breath.
Bang!
Under the immense power of Black Flash, Konan's body was sent flying like a cannonball, the air compressing around her in a sonic boom. This time, she could no longer create paper clones to cushion the blow, and her body smashed through the houses on the streets, roofs caving and walls crumbling in her path. Her body tumbled on the ground, showing no signs of stopping, debris trailing in a chaotic wake.
[Ding!]
[Human Malice Value detected: +10,000!]
[Cursed Energy converted to Chakra: +10,000!]
[Chakra (10,369,700 / 100,000,000)]
Renji curled his lips into a smile, tilted his head, and his provocative gaze fell on Pain. Ten thousand Malice Value, Nagato's regard for Konan was only so-so, a faint crack in the god's armor.
"Universal Pull!"
Bang!
Renji's body flew uncontrollably towards Pain, the gravitational yank inescapable. His shoulder was pierced by a black rod, the metal cold and unyielding as it bit deep.
[Ding!]
[Human Malice Value detected: +2,000!]
[Cursed Energy converted to Chakra: +2,000!]
[Chakra (10,371,700 / 100,000,000)]
Renji grabbed the black rod in Pain's hand, and his other hand transformed into a long blade, piercing Pain's shoulder as well, blood welling dark against the piercings.
"Almighty Push (Shinra Tensei!)" Renji's body was repelled by the repulsive force, the Almighty Push slamming him back with enough power to crater the platform.
The next second, he vanished again at extreme speed. He appeared beside Pain. The distance between his shoulder and Pain's was less than a centimeter. Who told Pain to hold the black rod? The Flying Thunder God Mark was already hard to discover. What's more, the rod was entirely black. How could anyone find that, hidden in plain sight!
Renji suddenly turned into a sea urchin. Countless two-meter-long spikes easily pierced Pain, turning him into a sieve, the vessel's body jerking as holes bloomed across it. This was Renji's first time trying the rogue fighting style brought by shapeshifting. Although it was sanity-draining, pushing the limits of form and control, it was truly exhilarating, a rush that set his blood on fire. There was a kind of beauty that disregarded the lives of the opponent and the spectators, raw and unfiltered chaos in every spike.
"What kind of ninjutsu is this?" Kisame Hoshigaki, watching from a distance, looked at the sea urchin that had pierced their leader and asked sincerely. In his knowledge, Itachi was learned and should know, the go-to for unraveling mysteries like this. Kisame received only silence, the rain filling the gap.
A series of thoughts flashed through Uchiha Itachi's mind. He had never seen a jutsu that could freely transform the body into a weapon, fluid and lethal in ways that defied logic, but he had heard of the other jutsu Renji used earlier. The forbidden jutsu that shook the ninja world, the Fourth Hokage Minato Namikaze's Flying Thunder God, a technique that had turned wars on their heads with its instantaneous strikes.
[Ding!]
[Human Malice Value detected: +2,000!]
[Cursed Energy converted to Chakra: +2,000!]
[Chakra (10,373,700 / 100,000,000)]
A massive shadow rapidly enlarged in Renji's retina. A giant splitting dog bit down towards him, jaws unhinging with feral hunger.
Screech!
A sharp, deafening sound erupted, metal and flesh grinding. Renji's hands transformed into two long blade-whips, slicing the dog into several pieces, chunks tumbling away in sprays of blood and chakra.
Boom!
A missile followed closely. The air exploded again, the blast wave scorching the rain to steam. Renji's body rapidly shrank, clinging to the wall like sticky slime, the viscous form absorbing the shock. The missile missed, hitting the vast ocean in the distance. Waves surged, a distant roar echoing back.
[Ding!]
[Human Malice Value detected: +2,000!]
[Cursed Energy converted to Chakra: +2,000!]
[Chakra (10,375,700 / 100,000,000)]
Slime-Renji returned to his original form. He did some stretching, rolling his shoulders as the adrenaline hummed in his veins, looking at the six Paths of Pain that had all appeared. Oh, no, five Paths. Pain had already been punctured and deflated by him, the Deva vessel slumped like a discarded puppet. Only after becoming a real person did he realize how exhilarating real combat was, the pulse-pounding truth of life on the edge.
"You passed the test," the Deva Path said, its voice carrying that unyielding calm, the Rinnegan's judgment final after the onslaught—power tested, will measured, the chaos weighed against Akatsuki's unbreaking path.
Renji stared at its bald head, eager to try, his fists clenching with leftover fire. "Can't we keep fighting? It's so much fun!" The words burst out with that manic glee, the thrill still buzzing under his skin.
[Ding!]
[Human Malice Value detected: +1,000!]
[Cursed Energy converted to Chakra: +1,000!]
[Chakra (10,376,700 / 100,000,000)]
Renji walked over to the injured Konan. Her face was pale, her forehead covered in sweat. She was being supported by the Animal Path. As Renji approached, Pain stared at him intently, the collective gaze probing deep, assessing the whirlwind who'd withstood the Paths' fury and emerged grinning.
"Remember to raise my salary!" Renji placed his hand on Konan's face. Her entire body was suddenly enveloped in blue firelight, the healing chakra flaring bright and precise. After it extinguished, all her injuries had healed, bruises fading and bones realigning in a rush. She looked at him in shock, her eyes widening at the effortless miracle.
"Ha, are you captivated by me?" Renji leaned on her shoulder, his fingers playing with her hair, and winked suggestively, the flirtatious edge cutting through the tension like a spark in dry air.
[Ding!]
[Human Malice Value detected: +100!]
[Cursed Energy converted to Chakra: +100!]
[Chakra (10,376,800 / 100,000,000)]
Renji felt great.