Chapter 44: It’s Been Hard for the Akatsuki All These Years!

Chapter 44: It's Been Tough for the Akatsuki All These Years!

Hearing Kisame Hoshigaki's straightforward response, the other two glanced at him, surprised—even if they were wearing masks that hid their expressions. A two-meter-tall warrior like him was expected to be defiant to the end, not to surrender so easily.

If Kisame knew how rigidly they saw him, he'd probably roll his eyes.

Defiance, my foot! What good is stubbornness when you're staring death in the face?

If he had practiced that combo move a little more, he would've sprinted over and bowed low the moment he saw Uchiha Yi, showing the utmost respect.

Of course, that's just a joke.

The main reason Kisame agreed so readily was that he'd already grown disillusioned with his village. He wasn't brilliant, but he wasn't a fool either.

When he took out his superior and the Fourth Mizukage protected him from becoming a rogue ninja, he initially thought it was because the Mizukage despised people like Fuguki Suikazan and saw potential in him, hoping to recruit him into his faction.

But the truth was far from that.

Kisame realized that the Mizukage had used him to eliminate a rival.

From that moment, he sensed something was wrong with the village. His actions unintentionally set a troubling precedent for the village, as if sending the message that it was acceptable for members of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen to act in such ways.

The village soon fell into a vicious cycle, with ambitious individuals eyeing the positions of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen. This led to endless rivalries, vengeance, and feuds, with families seeking revenge generation after generation.

All of this was his doing—Kisame Hoshigaki was to blame for restarting the Hidden Mist's bloody Blood Mist policy.

If he hadn't been there, perhaps the village would have reverted to the old Mist Village.

With a heavy heart, Kisame fought challengers for his position, knowing they weren't just after his title—they wanted to kill him as a symbol of the Blood Mist's corruption.

Deceit, betrayal, and assassination became a regular part of Kisame's life, filling him with growing disappointment in his village.

Sometimes he'd wonder, "I only killed a man who wanted me dead—how could that be wrong?"

Without his act, would the Blood Mist still exist today?

And most importantly, was the Mizukage really just using him?

This question haunted Kisame. It was what kept him enduring all this pain.

"I'll join the Akatsuki," Kisame said seriously, his expression resolute, "but there's something I need to clear up first."

After all, the Fourth Mizukage was a perfect Jinchuriki, and Kisame had no idea how his quest would turn out.

The Akatsuki's offer and Uchiha Yi's invitation were timely, but Kisame would've likely left and gone rogue even without them.

"That's fine."

"If you need help, just let me know."

"And welcome to the Akatsuki. This is your identification—a ring with the code name 'South.'"

As the main figure in recruiting Kisame, Uchiha Yi tossed him a ring and authorized him to settle his personal affairs before formally joining.

"Thanks."

Kisame caught the ring, thanked him, and hurried off.

Now, only Obito and Uchiha Yi remained.

"Well, well!"

"Senior Ah-Huo, you're truly remarkable!"

"That storm of fire, like a divine wrath!"

"Absolutely god-like!"

Once Kisame had walked a bit, Obito sprang to life, his tone exaggerated and praise insincere, his visible eye shining with excitement and admiration.

Anyone else might have been fooled by this performance, but Uchiha Yi knew him too well to fall for the act.

Since Obito liked playing games, Yi decided to play along.

"Shut up, you useless fool!"

Yi's face twisted into a sneer, his eyes conveying his disdain as he coldly rebuked Obito.

Obito flinched, shocked, but he forced himself to keep up the charade, enduring the humiliation.

"I'm sorry, Senior Ah-Huo!"

"I don't know what I did to upset you, but I apologize!" Obito said, pretending to be humble while secretly bristling with resentment.

"What's wrong?"

"Are you still upset after I insulted you?"

"Tell me, what have you been doing these past few months?"

Yi mocked him, reading Obito's expression.

"I…"

Obito was about to explain but stopped himself. Revealing his actions would shatter the persona he'd crafted and risk the Moon's Eye Plan.

Obito had adopted his carefree, absent-minded persona to lower everyone's guard. After all, if you seemed deeply cunning all the time, wouldn't everyone realize you were scheming and keep their distance?

Truthfully, apart from his space-time ninjutsu, Obito's raw combat skills were not particularly impressive. Without his phasing ability, he couldn't match most of the Akatsuki members. And his weak Wood Release jutsu wasn't likely to cause much damage.

Without Pain's obvious power to keep others in line, his claim to be Uchiha Madara would only invite ridicule.

While Madara's identity was useful, it could only fool some people, and the more Obito used it, the more he risked exposing the truth.

Thus, he only revealed his "Madara" persona to Pain, Konan, and Itachi.

Originally, he had considered using the Madara persona when he failed to recruit Kisame, but in the end, he held back—a significant change from the original story.

"What's with the 'I'?"

"When I call you a failure, it's because you're a failure!"

"It's been months, and all I asked you to do was recruit Kisame Hoshigaki."

"Was that so hard?"

"Even though you joined the Akatsuki before I did, have you realized that you're still an intern?"

"Maybe you should reflect on yourself."

"The Akatsuki has been struggling all these years!"

"We've been supporting a failure who can't even handle a small task!"

Before Obito could respond, Yi cut him off, verbally trampling him.

"…"

Obito was fuming, his chest heaving with anger. His whole body tensed, a burning rage building inside him, and he almost tore off his mask to lash out.

Sensing Obito's breaking point, Yi softened his tone and patted Obito on the shoulder, his voice more compassionate.

"Afei, I know my words are harsh."

"But I'm doing this for your own good!"

"Think about it—the Akatsuki is in a period of growth, and this is your chance to become a full member."

"Pain trusted you enough to assign this task to you!"

"Yet, you've let us all down! It's truly disappointing."

"Anyway, take my words to heart, and think carefully about what I've said."

Yi left Obito with a look of feigned disappointment, patting his shoulder like a teacher disappointed in a student.

"Th-thanks…"

To keep up his act, Obito pretended to be overwhelmed with gratitude, even though he felt like crying from the frustration.

He thought, I never expected Ah-Huo to care so much for me—I could almost cry!

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