"V-Vice Leader?!"
When Kakuzu opened the door to the meeting room and saw the scene of two heads, one blue and one black, huddled together, reciting from a book, he was completely stunned.
'I, who switched jobs, was suddenly caught by my former boss…'
The thought that sounded like a Light Novel title appeared on Kakuzu's head.
In short, Kakuzu was feeling a little embarrassed now.
He had never even dreamed of a scenario where the Vice Leader of the Akatsuki and a high-ranking leader of the Land of Waves would be studying together.
Kakuzu didn't believe that Konan, the Vice Leader of the Akatsuki, would appear in the Land of Waves for no reason. So, he instinctively assumed she was here for him.
He had already began calculating whether he should go easy if a fight broke out. After all, back in the Akatsuki, he had always thought highly of her. Otherwise, he wouldn't have entrusted her with managing the finances.
Hearing the commotion, both Konan and Izumi looked up at Kakuzu.
When Konan saw Kakuzu, although she had suspected this might happen, she still felt a bit awkward. After all, she had come here under a hidden identity, and now her cover was directly blown by him.
She decided to play it off as if she were really here to sell explosive tags. After all, she did have a lot of explosive tags on her, and the Land of Rain was running low on funds after Kakuzu left.
"It's been a while, Kakuzu."
Konan controlled her expression, and greeted Kakuzu with her usual calm demeanor.
'Vice Leader?'
Izumi glanced at Kakuzu, then at Konan, quickly piecing things together. She jumped back, putting some distance between herself and Konan.
Her Sharingan activated, the three tomoe spinning in her eyes. She held her books tightly, her entire body on high alert as she stared at Konan, who remained seated.
"Uncle Kakuzu, aren't you going to introduce us properly?"
She had initially thought Konan was someone who could be brought into the fold, given her genuine praise for their leader and her interest in the Land of Waves' culture and education.
But she didn't expect that the other party was actually a spy sent by another organization.
'What a shame. An explosive tag supplier... If the Land of Waves could acquire the technology to produce explosive tags, its national power would rise to another level, bringing us closer to the leader's goals.'
Konan had been about to introduce herself briefly, but she paused when she saw the Sharingan in Izumi's eyes. She recalled the conversation between the girl and the staff member earlier.
'This little girl was the clan head of the Uchiha Clan?'
While Konan was still processing this, Kakuzu spoke up, his expression complicated.
"Her name is Konan, and she's the Vice Leader of the Akatsuki."
"The Akatsuki? The organization you and Orochimaru used to be part of?"
Izumi's guard went up even further. After all, an organization that could accommodate figures like Kakuzu and Orochimaru couldn't be weak.
'Moreover, from what Uncle Kakuzu had mentioned before, their leader claimed to be a god, and his strength was likely on par with Naruto-sama.'
'Since she's the Vice Leader of such a powerful organization, her strength couldn't be underestimated.'
Kakuzu sighed and nodded, also preparing to form hand seals as he asked, "Konan, are you here for me and Orochimaru?"
After a long silence, Konan slowly shook her head. "If I were here for you, would I have shown myself so openly?"
Konan had only hidden her identity, not her appearance. After all, there were very few Jutsu in the Ninja World that could perfectly disguise one's appearance, and she didn't know any of them.
Besides, she hadn't expected to run into Kakuzu so soon. She had originally planned to first understand the situation in the Land of Waves, see what kind of place it was under the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki's rule, and then make contact with him.
Hearing this, Kakuzu was puzzled. "Then why are you here in the Land of Waves?"
Konan turned to Izumi. Admittedly, even though she had only seen a small portion of the Land of Waves' educational materials, she had already gained a lot of insight.
Under Izumi's increasingly suspicious gaze, Konan said, "I've heard that the leader of the Land of Waves is a great leader with lofty ideals, dedicated to achieving peace in the Ninja World and creating a new world. The Akatsuki shares the same goal, so I wanted to exchange ideas with the leader of the Land of Waves."
Konan told a small lie. Nagato's mission for her was actually to recruit Naruto, but after what she had seen so far, she realized that openly stating her intention to recruit him might provoke the anger of the Land of Waves' people.
So, she decided to frame it as an exchange of ideas.
"Of course, selling explosive tags is also one of the purposes of my visit."
"This..."
Kakuzu was already half-convinced. Although he only cared about money, he knew the Akatsuki's goals.
Pain wanted to gather the Nine Tailed Beasts to create a terrifying weapon, using it to conquer the Ninja World and make the nations feel pain, thereby deterring them from starting wars.
In a way, the current Kakuzu felt that the Akatsuki's approach was too conservative.
Because while the Akatsuki aimed to conquer the world, they never intended to replace the Five Great Nations. They only wanted to intimidate them into not starting wars.
Ultimately, they were still operating within the rules of the Ninja World. But Naruto was different, as he planned to flip the table entirely.
However, Kakuzu didn't care about any of that. He just wanted to make more money.
Moreover, if Naruto really unified the Five Great Nations, all the money in the world would be in his hands. Just thinking about it made Kakuzu excited.
Kakuzu noticed the questioning look Uchiha Izumi gave him and nodded, confirming the situation. However, he still had some doubts.
"Since when did the Akatsuki start selling explosive tags?"
When Konan heard this, she looked at Kakuzu with a very complicated look and said, "The Akatsuki's funding has taken a significant hit, and we need to make up for it from other sources..."
In the past, Kakuzu had been the one earning money for the Akatsuki, bringing in millions each month, providing a stable source of funds.
Now that he was gone, the missions the Akatsuki took on could hardly meet the financial requirements they had envisioned.
This funding was crucial for the upcoming war, and it couldn't afford to falter.
All of a sudden, the atmosphere at the scene became a little silent again.
Izumi remained on high alert, ready to act immediately if Konan made any unusual moves.
Kakuzu, on the other hand, wasn't sure what to say. His moral standards weren't particularly high, and Naruto had offered him an offer he couldn't refuse, so he had accepted.
Seeing that the silence wasn't helping, Konan asked, "So, when can I meet your leader?"
"Or should we discuss the explosive tags first?"
Izumi frowned and said, "The leader is currently occupied with other important matters. You won't be able to see him right now. As for the explosive tags..."
She glanced at Kakuzu, who shook his head and said, "We'll discuss the explosive tags after you've met the leader."
Kakuzu had a feeling that Naruto had some plans for the Akatsuki. After all, not only had he joined Naruto, but so had Orochimaru and Hidan, who were originally supposed to be part of the Akatsuki.
Now that Konan had shown up, Kakuzu believed Naruto would surely have some ideas.
After all, Naruto had even managed to recruit Mei, who was just passing by, into the school. In Kakuzu's eyes, Konan's Paper Release could be highly profitable.
Moreover, he had already seen Naruto's eyes with his own. He could sense that Naruto was terrifyingly strong now!
Perhaps not only would the Akatsuki's Vice Leader, Konan, be recruited, but even their leader, Pain, could be brought over as well.
In the end, the two decided that Izumi would stay behind to keep an eye on Konan.
As for Kakuzu, he immediately returned and used the Magic Lantern Body Technique to contact Naruto.