Chapter 102 : Earth Grudge Fear!!

[Kakuzu is very old, and he has lived through several major wars in the ninja world.] 

[The Book of the Slayer states that in his early years, as an elite ninja from Takigakure, he was given the mission to assassinate the first Hokage, Hashirama Senju, by the top leaders.]

In Tobirama's office, Senju Tobirama was intrigued by Kakuzu.

Tobirama wasn't surprised that someone would attempt to assassinate his older brother.

As the first Hokage of Konoha Village, who brought peace to the Land of Fire, Hashirama Senju faced countless assassination attempts before and after the founding of the village.

Some of these ninjas who tried to kill Hashirama were fugitives from the Land of Fire, while others were sent by rival ninja villages. It made sense why they targeted him; they didn't want Konoha to grow stronger.

However, none of these assassins succeeded, all meeting their end at the hands of Konoha ninjas.

Kakuzu, on the other hand, not only attempted to assassinate Hashirama but also managed to survive.

This earned Tobirama's respect.

"Teacher, should we send an ANBU to find this man?" 

Sarutobi Hiruzen, recognizing that Kakuzu was from this era, immediately wanted to capture him for Konoha's benefit.

"Don't rush; wait until you finish reading," Tobirama replied.

"Yes, teacher."

As for the fifth Hokage, Jiraiya, he was also very interested in this topic.

"I didn't think what he said was true."

"Orochimaru, what are you talking about?" 

Looking at Jiraiya, Orochimaru licked his lips and said, "Kakuzu has a habit. Before fighting, he likes to boast that he has fought the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju, to demoralize his opponents. I thought he was just bragging, but it turns out he really did attempt to assassinate the First Hokage."

"I understand. It seems this man, Kakuzu, is very powerful."

"No one who becomes a formal member of Akatsuki is a good person."

"True, that's what you said."

The fifth Hokage, Jiraiya, nodded in agreement with Orochimaru.

But the Third Hokage was still puzzled. "He survived after attempting to assassinate Hashirama-sama, which proves he is very powerful, but why haven't I heard of his name?"

The Third Hokage understood very well how powerful Hashirama Senju was.

To put it simply, very few people in the entire ninja world could match Lord Hashirama in strength.

Apart from Uchiha Madara, only the first-generation Kage from the other four major ninja villages can be considered notable.

These individuals are all famous in the ninja world, so why is Kakuzu, who was able to fight Shodaime without dying, unknown?

"Orochimaru, do you know why?"

Orochimaru shook his head and replied, "I don't know either."

"Well, I hope the light curtain can help us solve this mystery."

[As the founder of Konoha and a giant in the ninja world, Senju Hashirama would never allow a scoundrel to insult him.]

[Perhaps because of Hashirama's mercy, Kakuzu was defeated by Wood Release but still managed to save his life.]

[Logically speaking, a battle with the God of the Ninja World should be enough to be remembered in the village's history.]

[But when Kakuzu returned to the village, he was met with punishment for a failed mission.]

[ was ordered to serve the village, so it didn't matter if I died in a foreign land, but my loyalty was wasted.]

[Kakuzu escaped from prison filled with anger, took the village's secret technique, Earth Grudge Fear, and used it to take the hearts of high-ranking ninjas from Takigakure.]

[At this point, Kakuzu transformed from a passionate young man into a lonely S-rank rogue ninja and developed a psychological issue that made him want to kill whenever something went wrong.]

[As a twist of fate, with the help of Earth Grudge Fear, Kakuzu discovered the secret to longevity.]

[He can use this technique to steal other people's hearts to extend his life.]

[With a long life and no one to accompany him, he chose to believe in the philosophy that money is above all.]

[At least money won't betray him.]

"Earth Grudge?" Orochimaru said, drooling as he looked at the official book introducing the Earth Grudge on the screen.

To achieve immortality, he developed a technique to take over other people's bodies. 

However, this forbidden technique has serious side effects. 

Each time he uses it, his soul weakens a little more. 

He was once a powerful ninja, but he created a flaw in his soul which makes him weak to genjutsu. 

If he had a complete soul, he wouldn't feel so humiliated when facing Itachi's Tsukuyomi. 

After seeing the introduction of Earth Grudge Fear, he instantly thought about stealing it. 

With it, he wouldn't have to rely on the Living Corpse Reincarnation Technique, and his soul wouldn't weaken further. 

If cloning technology succeeds, there shouldn't be any side effects when using the Living Corpse Reincarnation Technique. 

Still, having another option is always a good thing. 

For Orochimaru, the more paths to immortality, the better.

"Orochimaru, do you have any ideas?" 

The Fifth Hokage, Jiraiya, and the Third Hokage knew Orochimaru well; they could tell what he was thinking just by looking at his eager expression.

"Of course, I have an idea." 

Orochimaru didn't deny it and even wanted the village's help to deal with Kakuzu. 

"We will face Akatsuki in the future, so why not take the initiative and eliminate Kakuzu first? This way, Akatsuki will lose a strong ninja, and I'll get what I want. Isn't that perfect?" 

Hearing this, the Third Hokage replied, "Don't be reckless, Orochimaru. It's better to stay quiet than to act. We can't alert the enemy. To take the initiative, we need to gather information on all Akatsuki members first." 

"Old man, you're still so stubborn." 

"This isn't stubbornness; it's caution." 

Orochimaru didn't care about getting support. 

In his view, Kakuzu's Earth Grudge Fear was already his; it was just a matter of when he would claim it. 

Senju Tobirama's interests differed from Orochimaru's. 

Orochimaru was focused on Earth Grudge Fear, while Senju Tobirama was more interested in Kakuzu. 

Seeing that Kakuzu valued money, he was already considering how to invite Kakuzu to join Konoha.

Tobirama had already considered inviting Kakuzu to join Konoha deep down in his heart.

It would be a waste to leave such a powerful combat force outside.

It would be better to invite him to join Konoha and help build the village.

Senju Tobirama was someone who could even tolerate the Uchiha psychopaths. As long as Kakuzu wasn't the kind of person who killed for no reason, it would be fine.

As for how to invite Kakuzu, it was quite simple.

Three words: courtesy before force.

When Kakuzu faced the Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama, the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki Uzumaki Mito, and Mangekyō Uchiha Kagami, he would likely be happy to accept Konoha's invitation.

If he refused, they wouldn't hesitate to use some tougher methods.

If he still refused, they would say, "Kakuzu-san, we have a job here that pays 10 million ryo a year, works from 9 to 5, and has weekends off. Would you like to check it out?"

Kakuzu: "Really? Are you guys trying to scam me?"

*****

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