Pain's words fell.
The entire scene instantly fell into dead silence.
Complete silence.
Everyone was naturally lost in their own thoughts.
And Uchiha Itachi,
Although his expression seemed unchanged,
Inside, it was already a stormy sea!
He never imagined,
The capture of the Kyubi Jinchuriki would be placed first by Pain!
Logically,
The most troublesome Kyubi... shouldn't it be dealt with last?!
Could it be...
That this was related to Kyo's recent mission...?
Realizing this,
Itachi's sharp gaze imperceptibly glanced at Kyo in the distance.
But,
Kyo's expression remained completely calm, not a ripple showing.
However, even so,
Itachi's mind involuntarily recalled the past.
Just when he and Kisame accepted the mission,
He had sought out Kyo specifically to ask what his special mission was...
The result,
Kyo replied, "Crush Konoha".
At the time,
Itachi naturally didn't believe it at all.
After all, Konoha, as one of the strongest powers in the Shinobi World, was incomparable to the weak Sunagakure.
Crushing it wasn't something that could be done just by talking. At least, Itachi believed,
For now, relying on Kyo's strength alone, he probably couldn't achieve this.
But now,
After Kyo's mission returned,
Pain suddenly came out with something like this...
It was hard not to suspect that something had happened in Konoha...
Thinking this,
Itachi decided to test first.
His heart sank slightly.
Then he began to utilize his acting skills, gazing at Pain with an extremely indifferent expression, and calmly spoke:
"Pain,"
"Konoha's strength has always been formidable."
"The Kyubi Jinchuriki doesn't seem suitable to be dealt with first."
"If they become wary of us this time, capturing Jinchuriki from other Shinobi Villages might also become troublesome in the future."
At these words, everyone's expressions varied.
Kyo's gaze flickered slightly,
His heart stirred.
Tsk,
This actor Itachi still hadn't quite calmed down.
As soon as the topic involved Konoha, his mindset seemed to show signs of impatience...
However, even realizing this,
Kyo's expression remained unchanged.
After all, there was no need for him to expose this under the circumstances.
And naturally,
No one else could know Itachi's thoughts.
It was only after a moment,
That Pain also expressionlessly replied indifferently:
"There's no need to worry about that."
"Kyo just went to Konoha under the guise of participating in the Chunin Exams a while ago."
"According to the intelligence he brought back,"
"Due to Orochimaru, disguised as Sunagakure's Fourth Kazekage, launching a war against Konoha, Konoha's Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, is now dead."
"Konoha is currently in a leaderless state."
"Additionally, Kyo has also obtained detailed intelligence on the Kyubi Jinchuriki, Uzumaki Naruto."
"Therefore, there's no need to continue worrying about Konoha's power."
"Seizing the Kyubi first,"
"Then taking the other Tailed Beasts in one go is not a problem."
Pain's gaze was indifferent,
Speaking with a resolute tone, without hesitation.
His leadership qualities were fully displayed.
However,
After hearing this,
Itachi was instantly frozen!
Although his expression seemed calm, his gaze involuntarily shook violently!
The vast amount of information in Pain's words instantly stunned him!
Wh-what...?!
Orochimaru invaded Konoha???
And disguised as the Fourth Kazekage to launch a war to destroy Konoha???
And...
The invincible Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, is dead???
In an instant,
Uchiha Itachi's train of thought was completely interrupted, his mind almost blank!
This...!?
I just went on a mission...
And such earth-shattering events happened in Konoha???
And coincidentally during the time Kyo was in Konoha...?
Itachi's eyes flickered slightly.
Back then,
Kyo's mention of crushing Konoha... was it really just a joke...?
Or,
Did he also participate in this incident of Orochimaru, who is disguised as the Kazekage...?
These hidden details,
Itachi naturally couldn't know now.
Nor could he ask Kyo.
After all, if he asked, he would instead be suspected...
That is to say,
For now, he could only accept it and figure out a way...
Realizing this,
Itachi finally composed his mind, slowly closed his eyes, and pretended to be calm, saying:
"Understood."
"..."
Since Pain had already laid out the plan to this extent,
If he continued to question,
He would be a fool.
The most important thing now was,
How to cleverly sabotage this Tailed Beast capture plan, and... to find a way to convey the intelligence to Konoha...
Itachi's expression was calm,
But his mind was racing.
And hearing this response,
Pain naturally didn't think much of it,
He turned his gaze back to the front and said calmly:
"As I just said,"
"This time, we need to simultaneously complete two plans."
"First, is to go to Konoha and capture the Kyubi Jinchuriki, Uzumaki Naruto."
"Second, is to recruit Akatsuki's ninth member, the Missing-nin from Yugakure, the Jashin Cultist, Hidan, to prepare for the Tailed Beast Extraction."
"Based on the current situation,"
"I've temporarily formulated the following mission assignments --"
Having said this,
Pain paused slightly.
Everyone focused their attention.
And Pain, with a calm expression, said indifferently:
"For the capture of the Kyubi Jinchuriki,"
"Kyo and Deidara team, and Zetsu will be jointly responsible."
"For the recruitment of Hidan,"
"Uchiha Itachi, Hoshigaki Kisame, and Kakuzu will be responsible."
"Any objections?"
"...?"
As these words fell,
Everyone's expressions varied.
For Deidara, having just joined and being fortunate enough to participate in capturing a Jinchuriki was naturally very exciting!
However, Kyo beside him stirred slightly.
A helpless feeling arose in his heart.
Hmm?
What's going on...?
Again?
I just got back from Konoha, and now I have to go back to capture the Kyubi Jinchuriki?
What the hell... Pain trusts me a bit too much, doesn't he?
...
And at this moment,
Kakuzu and Kisame's expressions were relatively calm, and they successively said:
"Understood."
"No objections."
The only ones left who hadn't clearly expressed their stance were naturally Zetsu and Itachi.
Zetsu, of course, needed no explanation.
He was just a brick in Akatsuki, moved wherever needed.
The key point was,
The remaining Itachi.
Pain looked at Itachi on this side and said indifferently:
"What's your decision, Itachi?"
"..."
As his words fell,
Itachi slowly withdrew from his thoughts,
Then,
With a calm and unfazed expression, he glanced at Kyo and Deidara over there, and then calmly said:
"I have an objection."
"I believe the Kyo and Deidara team... is not suitable for this Kyubi capture mission."
"...Hmm?"
At these words, Pain subconsciously paused.
What?
And at this moment,
Kisame and the others beside him were naturally all stunned.
There actually was an objection...?
And upon hearing this,
The one who reacted most strongly was Deidara in the distance.
His expression immediately darkened, and he shouted somewhat unhappily:
"Hey hey! That red-eyed guy!"
"What are you saying?! Are you doubting the strength of me and Kyo-senpai?!"
"It's just capturing a Tailed Beast Jinchuriki, right?!"
"Easy for us, right?!"
At this moment,
He naturally didn't know Itachi's strength, so his tone was quite aggressive.
As his words fell,
Pain slightly lowered his eyes and said indifferently:
"Deidara, be quiet."
"This is a plenary meeting of Akatsuki. Everyone has the right to express their opinions."
Saying this,
Pain looked at Itachi again and said calmly:
"Itachi, tell us, why do you disapprove of them going?"
"Could it be..."
"That you don't trust Kyo's strength?"
Pain asked calmly.
The reason he and Konan formulated this team assignment,
Was for no other reason,
Fundamentally because -- Kyo was too strong.
He was so strong that there was no need for doubt; even handing the Kyubi Jinchuriki to him to capture alone would be fine...
Giving it to him was completely the safest approach.
But he didn't expect,
The usually taciturn Itachi would actually raise an objection.
"..."
Hearing Pain's words,
Itachi's expression didn't change, his eyes still slightly lowered, and he said calmly:
"I naturally have no doubt about Kyo-senpai's strength."
"I once witnessed firsthand his immense power single-handedly shaking Sunagakure. Therefore, if he wanted to capture the Kyubi Jinchuriki, it might indeed not be a problem."
"But..."
"You might have overlooked one point."
"...Hmm?"
Everyone's expressions showed slight surprise.
Itachi raised his eyes, gazing at the calmly composed Kyo ahead, and said calmly:
"Previously,"
"Whether Kyo-senpai went to Sunagakure or Konoha, he went under the guise of being an Amegakure Shinobi."
"But this time, if he suddenly goes to capture the Kyubi as Akatsuki,"
"Wouldn't that be directly equivalent to telling Konoha,"
"That Akatsuki is in Amegakure?"
"Afterwards,"
"If Konoha learns that Tailed Beasts from other villages are also targeted, then they will certainly choose to ally with other Shinobi Villages and launch an attack on Amegakure and Akatsuki..."
"Surely, such an outcome... is not what we want, right?"
Itachi's expression was indifferent, calmly stating.
"--!?"
As his words fell,
In an instant, everyone's hearts were shaken.
Deidara, who had been arrogant just a moment ago, was instantly rendered speechless...
After all,
What Itachi said indeed made some damn sense...
If the Tailed Beasts weren't all collected yet,
And they directly exposed Akatsuki's base, wouldn't that be game over???
Instantly,
The whole scene fell into complete silence.
At this moment,
Even Kyo, who had always remained calm, couldn't help but slightly raise an eyebrow upon hearing this, feeling somewhat surprised.
"..."
It was only after a moment,
That Pain's gaze slightly darkened, frowning slightly, looking at Uchiha Itachi, and saying calmly:
"Then what do you suggest...?"
"..."
Itachi slightly raised his eyes,
His expression indifferent, his Sharingan slowly flickering in the darkness.
In an extremely calm tone, he calmly said:
"Let me go."
"Konoha's Kyubi Jinchuriki will be... captured by me."
"--!?"
"???"