Chapter 344

A gray pompadour hairstyle, light purple eyes, and a triangular jacket with a circular pendant—there was no mistaking it, this was Hidan.

Konan tried to hide her exhaustion as she looked at Hidan, whose head had been severed but was still shouting nonstop. She couldn't help but marvel at the wonders of the world—how there were truly all kinds of bizarre things out there.

"Hey, hey! I said, let go of me! If you've got guts, fight me one-on-one, you bastard!"

"He really does seem to be immortal..."

Orochimaru, who had arrived unnoticed, licked his lips as his snake-like eyes glistened with greed while staring at Hidan.

Immortality—it had always been Orochimaru's pursuit.

"Orochimaru, why are you here? This mission has nothing to do with you, does it?"

Konan frowned slightly, questioning Orochimaru, who was standing alongside Huang Quan and Minato. Her mind stirred. Though Orochimaru's presence wasn't necessarily an issue, she was wary that he might notice her secret connection with Angolamanue.

"Please don't misunderstand, Angel. I volunteered to join this mission, and the leader has already approved."

Orochimaru's habitual action of licking his lips with his long tongue made Konan feel uncomfortable, so she quickly averted her gaze to Hidan, who was still yelling.

"I'm telling you, you can't kill me! Just release me, and I'll sacrifice you all to Lord Jashin! Hahaha..."

Wham! Annoyed by Hidan's constant talking, Huang Quan couldn't take it anymore and kicked Hidan hard.

"Shut up already!"

"Bastard! You'll be the first I kill afterward! I'll make sure you're a sacrifice to Lord Jashin!"

Ignoring the squabbling between Huang Quan and Hidan, Konan muttered, "It seems he really is immortal."

Hearing this, Shinji sneered. "Boring."

"Mr. Anri, it seems like he's truly immortal. Even with his head severed, his body cells are still functioning normally, and the wounds we inflicted on him during the fight have nearly all healed," Minato explained.

"Yeah, I know," Shinji replied casually, waving dismissively and turning away. "Whatever. Whether you kill or torture him, it has nothing to do with me. It's late, and I'm going to sleep."

"Kill or torture... but killing is pretty much impossible..."

Minato scratched his head awkwardly. From his point of view, letting a murderous madman like this live was just asking for trouble, so he had held nothing back when they tracked the killer to Hidan.

Watching Shinji walk away, uninterested, while Konan, Huang Quan, Minato, and Orochimaru all stood in matching attire, Hidan suddenly realized something.

"Are you guys... a rock band? And the one with different clothes—the blue-haired one—are you the lead singer? Since, you know, lead singers have to stand out, right?"

"Shut up! Big Bro is not someone you can discuss so casually!"

"I think having a lead singer act all high and mighty isn't great. Band members need to treat each other equally to make good music, right? Don't you think so, blue-haired guy?"

Upon hearing Hidan's shouting behind him, Shinji didn't get angry. Instead, he raised a hand dismissively, saying, "Minato, if you want to kill him, the simplest way is to chop him into pieces in some secluded place and bury him. Without the chance to absorb nutrients, he'll naturally die over time."

Hidan's heart sank upon hearing this.

How did this guy know the way to kill me? He only glanced at me once, right? Damn it, this time I've really met my match!

"Wait! I was just giving your band some advice! It's totally up to you whether to take it or not!"

"Hahaha, looks like he's figured it out."

Noticing Hidan's change in expression and tone, Orochimaru let out a sinister laugh.

"How about you guys chop him up while I dig a hole?"

With that, Huang Quan picked up a shovel from who knows where and started digging. His enthusiasm made Hidan curse uncontrollably.

"I'm telling you, I can't die! Even if you bury me, one day I'll crawl out of here..."

Still digging, Huang Quan didn't even lift his head as he said, "Just shut up and wait for your end. No matter what you say, Big Bro's never wrong. And while you're at it, make sure to take out his tongue during the dismemberment—can't have this idiot disturbing Big Bro's rest."

"Just you wait! The moment I crawl out, you'll be the first one I sacrifice!"

"Yeah, yeah, we'll talk when you manage that. I'm done digging."

"That was quick!"

"Sorry about this," said Minato, holding a kunai.

Hidan: ...

Does this black-haired guy have a screw loose or something?

What does apologizing before killing me even mean? Taking off his pants to fart?

Just as Minato steeled himself to strike, Konan finally spoke up.

"Wait, his abilities might be of use to the organization."

For some reason, at that moment, seeing Konan coldly say this, Hidan suddenly thought maybe there was a reason this woman was called an angel.

"I'm inviting you to join our Akatsuki. In exchange, you get to live. Accept or refuse?"

As Konan asked this in a cold voice, Hidan immediately revised his assessment—this angel was nothing short of a devil!

"Are you kidding?! How could Lord Hidan be threatened by a beauty with heavenly looks, graceful elegance, exceptional charm, unparalleled beauty, and captivating allure like you, you witch?!"

Minato: ...

Huang Quan: ...

Orochimaru: ...

As it turned out, pride didn't stand much of a chance against survival—not even for villains.

"Alright then, bury him."

Konan turned and walked away, for some reason feeling a sudden sense of satisfaction.

At that moment, Konan thought she might finally understand how Angolamanue had felt when he'd coerced her into giving up her body in exchange for her life.

It must have been something like this!

"Missy, don't think just because you're pretty that I won't curse at you! Lord Jashin doesn't care about men or women!"

Ignoring Hidan's ranting, Huang Quan picked up his head and said, "Alright, the angel said so—let's get ready for the burial. Tongue first..."

As he said that, a translucent black dragon-head-shaped tendril, about five centimeters thick, formed from sinister chakra, appeared on Huang Quan's body and plunged straight into Hidan's mouth.

Maybe the scene was indeed quite disturbing. Minato silently turned away, while Konan blushed, and Orochimaru watched with great interest, not blinking an eye.

"Mmph... Wait... Wait a moment!"

...

"Angel, do we really want someone like this joining Akatsuki?" Huang Quan pointed at Hidan. To him, he could take on ten like Hidan. Plus, Hidan had a glaring weakness—without nutrients, he'd die.

It was far inferior to his own situation, where he could survive indefinitely by feeding on human desires. Adding or not adding someone of Hidan's caliber made no difference.

"Hey, hey! What's with the 'someone like this' talk? Show some respect! By the way, does anyone have any thread and needle? Could someone help sew my head back on?"

"I'll do it."

Orochimaru, with his own motives, volunteered. Stepping forward, he took out a surgical kit he always carried.

"Man, you look like a woman, and now you're carrying something only housewives carry."

"Hahaha, always good to be prepared."

Orochimaru chuckled, not minding at all as he placed Hidan's head back on his body and began stitching it together.

Of course, what Orochimaru didn't mention was that this entire kit had originally been prepared specifically for Hidan. An immortal body—such a thing had to be thoroughly studied.

...

"It hurts a bit, but your stitching skills are quite good."

Hidan twisted his neck, then suddenly smirked when no one was paying attention, swiftly grabbing his nearby weapon—the triple-bladed scythe.

"Hahaha! I tricked you! As if I'd join your organization! Today, you all will be sacrificed to Lord Jashin!"

Perhaps out of some resentment towards Konan, Hidan targeted her first. But...

Seeing the pieces of paper scattered from what he thought was Konan's body, Hidan was stunned.

"Huh? Where's the blood? Why isn't there any blood?"

Perhaps wanting to test Hidan's combat abilities, Konan didn't take it too seriously. Instead, she spread her wings and silently flew into the sky, observing Hidan, who now seemed confident again.

"Tch! Weird woman!"

Realizing he wouldn't succeed, Hidan cursed under his breath, then turned his focus to Huang Quan. After all, this was the guy who had humiliated him with those tendrils. And also...

He looked like the easiest target.

But...

"Huh? Why aren't you dead?"

Huang Quan looked confused as he stared at Hidan, who stood in a strange ritual circle, his entire body black with white markings. He had hurt himself after getting a bit of Huang Quan's blood, but...

"Why should I be dead because you stabbed yourself?"

"No, you should be dead! This is just too strange!"

"But why should I die?"

"According to logic, you should be dead!"

"What's that supposed to mean?!"

"It's the Jashin way!"

Hidan yelled in frustration, but he wasn't stupid. This seemingly easy target was far more complicated than he'd imagined. His curse had no effect.

He glanced at the remaining opponents—Orochimaru and Minato. He quickly ruled out Minato. No way—this guy was too fast; he couldn't even touch him during their encounter earlier. Minato had jumped behind him in an instant and taken him out. Not an option.

The only one left was that long-tongued one whose gender was ambiguous.

"Die!"

Faced with Hidan's attack, Orochimaru purposely held back.

He wanted to figure out what made Hidan's immortality work.

Jashin, sacrifices, that strange ritual, and the emphasis on blood...

Dodging and retreating, Orochimaru pondered the information Hidan had shared, quickly coming to a bold hypothesis!