Chapter 434: Starting the Mind Games
The masked man felt a headache coming on. His intangibility allowed him to ignore harsh environments, but the two chasing him were practically "undead." Their Impure World Reincarnation bodies were just as unaffected by environmental conditions.
Even if he dove into the depths of the sea, it wouldn't help, they would still catch up.
They were as persistent as glue.
What should he do?
Just as the masked man was thinking carefully about his next move, another explosive tag suddenly appeared, passed through his body, and detonated.
He immediately realized what was going on.
Senju Tobirama had deliberately driven him to the seaside.
They hadn't attacked earlier because that location was too close to Amegakure. If a large-scale battle broke out, especially something like Mutually Multiplying Explosive Tags with its endless chain explosions, it could easily harm innocent people.
So it wasn't that the technique had weakened, it was that the Second Hokage had intentionally refrained from triggering the chain reaction.
Careless.
He had been too focused on escaping and hadn't thought this through.
If that was the case, he should have run toward Amegakure instead. That way, even if he couldn't escape, the two Hokage would have to hold back.
Now this was a problem.
If he wasn't mistaken, he was about to truly experience the full power of Mutually Multiplying Explosive Tags.
"Hm?"
As the masked man cautiously scanned his surroundings, he suddenly felt a strange lightness beneath his feet, a sense of weightlessness.
What was happening?
Had he been so tense that he messed up basic water-walking and slipped into the sea?
Confused, he looked down,
Only to see that the churning sea beneath him had split apart into two halves, and the seawater itself was transforming into countless explosive tags, drifting toward him.
What is this?
The masked man was stunned.
The sea was fake?
Wait… this didn't feel like Mutually Multiplying Explosive Tags. It looked more like that woman's jutsu.
He looked up.
Sure enough, Konan, already using her Dance of the Shikigami, was floating in midair, staring at him coldly.
The masked man's heart sank.
He had gathered intelligence on all Akatsuki members.
In this form, Konan was essentially no different from him in terms of physical attacks, just like his intangibility, she didn't need to worry about explosive tags harming her.
She was practically… a living version of Impure World Reincarnation.
Thinking this, the masked man glanced toward the Senju brothers.
If not for seeing Impure World Reincarnation and Konan at the same time, he might never have connected the two concepts.
But now…
What was the weakness of Impure World Reincarnation?
Sealing techniques.
Impure World Reincarnation granted immortality, but the resurrected could still be sealed.
Similarly, Konan was immune to physical attacks, but she wasn't intangible. She could still be touched, and therefore sealed.
But…
The masked man gave a bitter smile.
Knowing how to deal with something and actually being able to do it were two completely different things.
How was he supposed to seal these three people right now?
Explosive tags continued to pass through his body and detonate.
This version of Konan was far more advanced than in the original story. Instead of unleashing a chaotic barrage like fireworks, her explosions were precise and targeted.
That was also a characteristic of Mutually Multiplying Explosive Tags.
Not to mention that the technique could continuously summon new tags, even relying solely on the ones in the sea, it would take far longer than ten minutes to exhaust them.
"I know your intangibility can only last for five minutes. So I originally prepared six hundred billion explosive tags here, planning to bombard you continuously for ten minutes and eliminate you."
Konan slowly descended as she spoke to the masked man.
Revealing critical information like this was usually meant to break the opponent mentally.
But villains often die from talking too much, if not handled carefully, it could backfire.
Hearing this, the masked man immediately understood that there was no normal way out today.
Fortunately, he had prepared a regular Sharingan in his other eye socket, which he could use to activate Izanagi.
However…
He couldn't help but regret it.
Why hadn't he prepared more Sharingan?
He didn't need to go as far as Danzo and implant several into his body, even carrying a few in his pocket would have helped!
If it were just Konan alone, he might have had a chance to use Izanagi for a surprise counterattack.
But now, with the two "undead brothers" watching nearby, even if he managed to take one down, what about the others?
"I know you have Izanagi, the ability to turn reality into illusion and negate all damage."
"?!"
The masked man had been racking his brain for a solution when Konan's words stunned him.
How did she know?
Was it that guy Itachi…
Or the Second Hokage, who specialized in studying the Uchiha?
Either way, if they knew, they were definitely prepared…
"You have Izanagi. I have Shiromo, and the help of everyone else. Six hundred billion explosive tags is only the limit of what can fit in this area, not my limit."
Konan's words made the masked man's face darken.
Since when did Akatsuki talk like this?
Weren't they all supposed to be lone wolves? What was this "help of everyone else"?
Was she about to start talking about something like the "Will of Rain", or "I won't die before the rain stops"?
"But simply blowing you up like this seems a bit too easy."
"Even if we revive you later with Impure World Reincarnation, give you sensory abilities, and force you to work in a red-light district selling your body, it still wouldn't make me feel satisfied."
"?"
The masked man froze beneath his mask.
For the first time, he realized with horror that Konan had a hidden sadistic side.
How could she say something so twisted with such a calm expression?
Had she been influenced by some pervert for too long?
"To truly break someone, you have to crush their heart."
"There's someone here I'd like you to meet."
As Konan spoke, she waved her arm. The sheets of paper surrounding the area parted, opening a path.
Someone he had to meet?
Could it be Rin?
A bad feeling rose in the masked man's chest.
However, that worry quickly disappeared.
Because the one who appeared was not Rin.
A pair of clearly visible Susanoo wings emerged, proof that it couldn't possibly be her.
"Who is she?"
The masked man looked at the approaching figure, puzzled.
Due to neither White Zetsu nor Black Zetsu reporting any intelligence about Uchiha Hikaru, and him not investigating personally, the masked man's knowledge in this regard was actually inferior to that of ordinary villagers in Amegakure or even Konoha.
"Uchiha Hikaru, a ninja from the early Warring States period. She was known as the 'weapon' of the Uchiha clan."
"But she's not the one I want you to meet. She's just the one who brought them here."
Konan gave a brief introduction.
Then, beside Uchiha Hikaru, another figure descended, landing steadily on a floating platform made of paper that Konan had prepared.
"This is the one I want you to meet."
"An Uchiha ninja from the late Warring States period, Uchiha Naori."
Konan introduced the purple-haired female Uchiha, whose hairstyle resembled that of class representative Kakei Sumire, now revived through Impure World Reincarnation.
(End of this chapter)