"Danzō... is he dead?"
Sasuke looked at the Kusanagi sword in his hand, then at the severed head in the distance, his expression still bewildered, as if in a dream.
"Yes, he's definitely dead."
Itachi gave a definite answer.
"Brother, but why don't I feel any satisfaction at all?"
Sasuke sheathed his sword, looking at the distant sky.
There was a strange feeling of emptiness after the climax of revenge.
Like entering a 'wise' phase, having no desire for anything in the world.
'Who am I?'
'Where did I come from?'
'Where am I going?'
Fundamental philosophical questions filled Sasuke's mind, leaving him confused.
"That's natural. Revenge doesn't change anything; it's just another form of desire wrapped as a release."
Itachi continued to guide Sasuke.
He wasn't sure if letting Sasuke kill Danzō himself could eliminate his hatred.
But now there was no other way. If even after killing Danzō himself, Sasuke was still not aware, he could only find other ways to straighten his thinking.
"Then brother? Don't you want revenge for the Uchiha clan? For Shisui?"
"..."
Itachi was silenced by Sasuke's question.
He sighed inwardly; his younger brother had indeed grown up!
He didn't know who he learned it from, but his words were getting sharper!
"It's different; all of that is in the past."
"So for you, brother, the village is more important than family and friends?!!"
"You're still young; you'll understand later. Without the village, no matter what ninja or clan, they will only become food in this chaotic world..."
"I don't agree with that kind of thing..."
Sasuke still argued. Although he loved his brother, he didn't think Itachi's choice was right!
*WHOOSH!*
Nagato and the others descended, appearing beside Itachi and Sasuke.
"Is it over?" Nagato asked.
Although Danzō was also his enemy, if it weren't for wanting to accompany these two brothers in their 'revenge play,' he would have already used Chibaku Tensei to kill Danzō, no need to linger.
"It is. But wait a moment, I'll take the Sharingan."
Itachi stopped his discussion with Sasuke and answered Nagato. Then he approached Danzō's corpse, taking the remaining right Mangekyou Sharingan of Shisui.
"The heart is mine!" Kakuzu suddenly requested.
Although not as powerful as the Raikage, Danzō was still Kage-level; the quality of his heart was quite good.
"The corpse is mine."
Sasori also immediately claimed.
He was in need of a new puppet; using Danzō's corpse was no problem.
"Ew~ Sasori, you even want such an old corpse?"
"Shut up! It's still better than you constantly eyeing the Uchiha!"
Deidara scoffed, looking back at Itachi and Sasuke: "This place is suitable. Uchiha Sasuke, you won by luck yesterday; let's fight again!"
Sasuke glanced at Deidara, not wanting to pay attention to this madman.
He clearly had no issues with this person; why was he so obsessed with him?
Truly insane!
If it weren't for them helping to surround Danzō, Sasuke would have already given him Amaterasu.
"Deidara, don't forget our agreement! Defeat me first before you think about Sasuke." Itachi protected Sasuke, looking at Deidara.
"Tch! Boring, you're the most shameless." Deidara grumbled annoyedly.
This bastard Itachi was actually more arrogant than Sasuke; and always held back when fighting his younger brother but was serious when fighting others.
So cunning!
Deidara now had no confidence in defeating Itachi, so he didn't want to cause trouble.
◆━⊰✧⊱━◆
Itachi asked Nagato again: "Leader, what else needs to be done?"
The Kage Summit had been destroyed, Black Zetsu and Danzō had been killed; this mission seemed to be over.
Itachi also had to face the next big problem: what would Akatsuki do under Nagato's leadership?
Continue collecting the Bijuu?
Or try to destroy the five great nations?
Whatever it was, it would likely threaten Konoha.
Itachi, who was loyal to Konoha, had to think about how to handle the conflict between Akatsuki and Konoha. Therefore, he needed to ask Nagato's next plan.
This was also one of the main reasons he remained in the new Akatsuki.
"The next plan? Return to Amegakure first, then..."
Nagato hesitated.
Actually, he hadn't yet determined the next step either.
He previously only wanted to unite the new Akatsuki, kill Black Zetsu and Danzō, fulfill the agreement with Tenshou Sennin, and see the future.
The five great nations, Konoha... The road ahead, he hadn't fully decided either.
But, now he had fulfilled the agreement, right?
Where was that Tenshou Sennin? Could he meet him again? Would he keep his promise?
"What's wrong, looking for me?"
Lux's voice suddenly sounded, appearing beside Nagato without any signs.
As an early investor, Lux was naturally also one of the spectators. He observed all the events in Parallel World 5.
First, to enjoy the drama.
Second, to assess whether Nagato and the new Akatsuki were worthy of further support?
With the Edo Tensei body and sufficient information. If Nagato and the others still couldn't defeat Black Zetsu and the five Kage, there was indeed no hope.
It was better to cut losses and switch to the other side.
But, now that they had succeeded. The new Akatsuki under Nagato had proven themselves, almost killing all the Kage, meaning they were worthy of funding.
Lux had no problem appearing in front of them, fulfilling the agreement with Nagato while also strengthening his authority.
The Akatsuki members were all talented but also difficult to manage.
◆━⊰✧⊱━◆
Lux's sudden appearance shocked everyone.
"Who are you?"
Deidara, Sasori, Kakuzu, immediately became alert.
This sudden, undetectable appearance meant the opponent could kill them at any time!
Just thinking about it sent shivers down their spines.
"Calm down, this is the Tenshou Sennin I mentioned before!"
"Sir, they are a bit surprised, please forgive them."
Nagato quickly calmed Deidara and the others, signaling that there was no need to be too vigilant.
If this Tenshou Sennin really wanted to harm them, there would be no chance of resistance.
"Nagato, good job. It seems you have fulfilled the initial agreement."
Lux was quite satisfied with Nagato's performance.
Indeed, many new people only truly become aware after dying once, fully understanding themselves.
"This is nothing, all thanks to Sir's information; otherwise, it wouldn't have been this smooth."
Nagato was not arrogant; he knew most of this success was due to the information advantage.
The enemy was in the open while they were hidden, fighting ignorance with complete knowledge.
This advantage of 'seeing the whole map' was very enjoyable.
Even Nagato himself didn't act much, already completing most of the targets, very satisfying!
He had never fought so easily in his life; if he had known from the beginning, he wouldn't have been played by Black Zetsu.
...