To be honest, Itachi and Kisame had initially found the leader's special assignment rather puzzling.
Even if they wanted to make money, there was no need to pick such a boring mission.
But after witnessing Moxi's terrifying power, they instantly realized just how dangerous this curse spirit truly was!
If allowed to grow unchecked, humanity might one day face a monster far stronger than all nine Tailed Beasts combined.
This was no exaggeration, but a logical conclusion drawn from understanding her terrifying potential.
Rumors had it that even Kumogakure, which had always adopted a strategy of "rooting out evil completely," had recently been forced to slow down their campaign against curses in the Land of Lightning. It seemed they had run into some serious trouble.
If even the Raikage—who was more brawn than brain—had hit a wall, then these curse spirits were definitely not to be trifled with.
"Akagi Shinji, how about we set aside personal grudges for now?" Itachi suddenly spoke up.
His meaning was clear: when facing an enemy of humanity, internal conflicts could be temporarily put aside.
Much like the Allied Shinobi Forces in the original story.
For the sake of humanity, even if the Five Great Nations hated each other, even if the person standing beside you had killed your father, you would have to put down your hatred and fight side by side!
Such unity was incredibly difficult to achieve. It usually only happened when humanity faced extinction, forcing such a miracle into existence.
But here, with just a few people involved, Itachi had already stated his position. Now it all depended on Shinji's response.
After all, there was no deep-seated hatred between them.
At most, there had been some friction regarding Sasuke, and the consequences of Pain's two failed "invitations" a while back.
Shinji laughed loudly. "Cooperation isn't necessary. Temporary teammates don't trust each other anyway. But... we can each do our best!"
Itachi nodded slightly. "That works too."
Shinji's meaning was clear: No infighting, focus on the enemy first. That was fine.
But forming an alliance? Forget about it.
As long as no one provoked him, he wouldn't attack them first.
That was exactly what Itachi wanted.
Otherwise, if they were wary of each other, they would only give the enemy an opening.
Kisame always listened to Itachi. Since Itachi proposed it, he naturally wouldn't object. He just let out a few mischievous laughs.
"Hey, what's with that fox outside? Is she a new member of Akatsuki?"
Out of caution, Shinji asked.
Itachi gave him a blank look, too lazy to even reply.
Just then, Moxi's fourth tail finally materialized. It was a red tail lined with rows of black volcanic rock.
As the face on the front of her head shifted to that of an ape, she opened her mouth wide and spewed out terrifying, scorching magma.
However, she didn't aim at anyone—she aimed at the ground itself.
The ground cracked under the intense heat, and fueled by cursed energy, a small volcano slowly rose up...
"I've already hidden away here to work as a courtesan! What more do you want from me?! Do you really think I'm afraid of you?!"
"Tailed Beast Spell: Volcanic Eruption!"
Moxi leaped high into the air. Her arms suddenly swelled up massively, and she slammed them down hard onto the cracked, superheated ground.
BOOM!
Shocked by the impact, the "volcano" erupted violently!
Countless boulders and scorching lava shot up into the sky, then rained down like meteors upon Shinji and the others.
Kisame grinned wildly and quickly formed hand seals. "Hahahaha! Damn it! Water Release: Great Waterball Jutsu!"
Shinji and Itachi both glanced at him sideways. They thought it was lame, but said nothing.
Crimson Manipulation Art: Hexagonal Blood Crystal!
No longer needing to worry about his blood supply, Shinji used his technique with overwhelming extravagance.
The largest crystal was a massive ten meters tall!
Inside it, every meter, another smaller hexagonal crystal was nested, like Russian dolls, layer upon layer.
While his blood defense wasn't the sturdiest, he could always rely on quantity to make up for quality.
Outside, sharks were literally swimming through the lava. Truly deserving of his title as a "Tailed Beast in Human Form," Kisame used his Water Release to stop the flow of magma completely.
As for the falling boulders, Samehada made short work of them, slicing them apart effortlessly.
As for Itachi? He was having an even easier time.
Because the guy had quietly hidden himself behind Shinji's ten-meter-tall blood crystal wall!
As long as the barrier wasn't completely destroyed, he could hide there forever.
If Shinji had seen this, he would have instantly dropped his defense and tried to blow both of them up.
He simply hated being taken advantage of.
"So scary..."
"Nope, I'm outta here."
Watching from a distance, the giant white fox fled while trembling in awe.
She had thought her own strength was pretty decent even in the grand scheme of the shinobi world, but today was a harsh wake-up call.
"Are these people even human? Or just monsters wearing skin suits?"
Confused and humbled, she decided to keep a much lower profile in the future.
She quickly canceled her fused form, hopped onto the back of her now much-smaller companion, and fled quickly.
It was truly a beautiful sight—a graceful maiden riding a pure white fox.
Unfortunately, everyone else had already run away, so there was no one left to appreciate it.
The 'volcano' raged for nearly half a minute, turning the surrounding area into scorched earth.
Shinji's layered blood crystals were melted and eroded until only the last two layers remained.
Crack!
Sensing the attack had stopped, Shinji dismissed his defense. The crystals shattered into beautiful sparkling dust.
Thick steam rose from the blackened ground, the heat so intense it was unbearable to approach.
"Just how many abilities does she have now?"
Shinji suddenly jumped. "Shit! Why are you sneaking up behind me?!"
Itachi walked out from behind him, completely unashamed. "Oh, it was 'raining' just now. I came over here to take shelter."
Shinji was speechless. "How can you say that so casually?! Is being shameless a hereditary trait of the Uchiha clan?"
Itachi pretended not to hear. "Don't you think her power resembles something... familiar?"
Shinji replied grumpily, "Anyone with eyes can see it! And this is only the fourth tail! If you keep slacking off like this, I'm leaving first!"
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