Chapter 455: Konan-nee, We Respect You So Much
"Good thing we didn't get that technique that gives Reanimation bodies the sense of touch just so we could enjoy good food. Even if we get killed over and over, we won't feel pain anymore."
Kusuke spoke with emotion.
"That's right. This time, I'm going to show that bastard what I, Kyūsuke Idaten, can do!"
Idaten Kyūsuke gritted his teeth as he spoke.
Among the original Akatsuki cannon fodder members, Kyūsuke was the one who had used a mutual-destruction jutsu against the masked man in order to protect the others.
Only...
Everyone knew that the most important thing for cannon fodder characters was their strength.
If you were too weak, then it didn't matter whether your name was Idaten, Taishakuten, or Brahma.
So how exactly had Kyūsuke planned to die together with the masked man?
First, he trapped both himself and the masked man inside a Water Prison Jutsu. Then he used a special cement-style ninjutsu to fill the entire prison with cement and let it harden, hoping to kill both of them that way.
After learning about Kyūsuke's actions, Shiromo acknowledged his courage, but he had completely given up on commenting about his intelligence.
It wasn't that another method could have defeated the masked man or seriously hurt him.
If it were really that easy, then Konan wouldn't have needed six hundred billion paper bombs in the original story.
The problem was that Kyūsuke's "mutual destruction" plan made absolutely no sense.
Water Prison plus cement really was a decent combo. It could even count as a cheap version of Konoha's "microwave oven" combo jutsu.
But the problem was, why trap yourself together with the enemy inside the Water Prison?
There was no logic behind that at all.
Forget Zabuza trapping Kakashi. In the entire ninja world, aside from Kisame when he committed suicide, nobody casually trapped themselves inside their own Water Prison Jutsu.
It was almost like he thought trapping himself too would somehow make the prison stronger.
Of course, this kind of baffling human behavior wasn't rare in the ninja world.
For example, Deidara turned off Sasuke's Sharingan during their fight and immediately blew himself up.
Or Danzo using Izanagi as a substitution technique just so he could stab Susanoo once with a kunai.
One after another, these people gambled their lives on pure nonsense.
Even famous ninja acted like this, so maybe this nameless side character ninja could be forgiven too.
Still, his result was obvious.
Trying to trap a guy who could phase through objects using Kamui with cement was comedy at its finest.
His actions were about as meaningful as Danzo using the Four Symbols Seal just to seal half a bridge.
That feeling of "blowing himself up for absolutely nothing" made him especially resentful.
And so, under Kyūsuke's suggestion, the group moved forward, preparing to split up and search for the target separately.
However…
As soon as they reached the fork in the road, they saw a figure standing motionless beside one of the paths.
Kyūsuke scratched his head.
Was this their target?
From the back view, it didn't look like the masked man from back then.
Konan hadn't explained things to them in too much detail.
For one thing, as cannon fodder members, their strength and understanding were limited. Even if she explained everything, they might not understand.
Secondly, it was to prevent them from accidentally leaking information.
"Who are you?"
Kyūsuke stepped forward and asked.
As proper heroic side characters, they didn't immediately attack.
Even though Konan had told them their target was inside this place, what if they were mistaken?
What if this person was just some worker here?
"..."
Uchiha Madara slowly turned around and swept his gaze across them.
These people were Reanimation bodies, but their strength seemed extremely weak...
No, even calling them weak was giving them too much credit.
Back when he was alive, people like these wouldn't even count as ants in his eyes.
The Akatsuki and the Amegakure Village had sent these people here...
Were they here to clean the place or something?
Uchiha Madara thought about it for a long time and still couldn't understand why these people had come.
Surely they weren't sent to guard Obito?
True, Reanimation bodies didn't need food, drink, or sleep, and they didn't need to constantly open the entrance to bring in supplies. They really were suitable as guards.
But these people were just too weak.
After thinking it over, Madara decided to use his name to intimidate them.
If he could trick them into helping him get Hashirama cells from Obito, that would be even better.
And if that failed, he would simply retreat and leave this place first.
"My name is Uchiha Madara."
Madara wore a cold expression, arms crossed over his chest, chin slightly raised, looking down at them as if from above.
"Huh?"
The moment Madara spoke, the group froze.
That voice was far too familiar!
Wasn't this exactly the target they had come for?
"It's you?"
"That's right. I, Uchiha Madara, happen to need a small favor from all of you... What are you doing!?"
Madara was quite satisfied that his great name seemed to strike these ants with awe. He was just about to begin his persuasive speech when the people in front of him suddenly rushed over together and lifted him up.
Two of them even carried one leg each.
Was this their way of showing respect?
Were they trying to raise him high in admiration?
Probably?
"Uchiha Madara, where are your Sharingan? Why aren't you using them?"
Kyūsuke walked over and looked at the Uchiha Madara being carried by everyone, his legs nearly stretched into a full split.
"..."
Madara didn't answer.
"Reanimation body, but your chakra is still this weak. Looks like you've been restricted too."
Kyūsuke placed a hand on Madara's chest to sense his chakra, then smiled.
"That's right. So what? Sooner or later, I'll recover my power. Will you help me ascend to godhood, or wait until I recover and crush all of you without mercy?
"You may not fear death as Reanimation bodies, but I suggest you think about your friends and family."
Madara spoke in a cold voice.
Of course, the voice would have sounded more imposing if he wasn't still stuck in a split position.
Friends? Family?
The smiles that had just appeared on everyone's faces vanished instantly.
And Madara actually had the nerve to say that.
Their original families, including Nagato's parents, had all been killed by ninja from major countries like Konoha.
Their friends were the members of the Akatsuki.
And those friends had been torn apart by the man standing before them, leaving only Konan and Nagato alive.
Uchiha Madara.
The legendary ninja of the Uchiha Clan.
From Konoha.
"Hahahahaha!"
Kyūsuke burst out laughing loudly.
Just when everyone thought he had laughed from anger, he suddenly stopped and looked at the others carrying Uchiha Madara.
"What are you all standing around for? Why do you think Konan-nee restricted his abilities for us?"
"Huh? Oh right! This is Konan-nee's gift to us!"
"Konan-nee, we respect you so much!"
The group immediately reacted and carried Uchiha Madara deeper inside.
Inside the room, Obito heard the huge commotion and all the noisy voices. He knew it couldn't be Uchiha Madara returning alone—this time, a whole group of strangers had arrived.
To prevent any accidents, Obito quickly rolled off the stone bed onto the floor and used the height of the bed to hide behind it.
(End of this chapter)