Starting as the mastermind behind Naruto

Chapter 64 Don't try to fool me with explosive tags!

Uehara Naraku watched as Konan distributed red cloud black robes, rings, and nail polish to Kisame Hoshigaki, Mangetsu Hozuki, and Zabuza Momochi, and couldn't help but feel a pang of envy.

He wants it too!

Side Quest: Wear Akatsuki's red cloud black robe uniform and bear the name of Akatsuki (0/1), reward unknown.

How popular is Xiao?

They're known as the number one ninja group in the world!

A high-reward mission was right in front of him. All Uehara needed to do was give him a uniform and agree to let him become a member of Akatsuki.

Unable to contain himself, Uehara Naraku moved closer to Konan and said, "Konan-sensei, I've recruited three new members for Akatsuki. Could I have a uniform now?"

"Don't think about these nonsense things."

Konan tapped Uehara Naraku's forehead: "Pain told me you used explosive tags to force Obito Uchiha back. You've used up all the explosive tags I gave you before, haven't you?"

Before Uehara Naraku could react, Konan pulled out several scrolls and stuffed them into his arms, ruffling his hair: "These contain a billion explosive tags. Consider it your reward for completing the mission..."

Naraku Uehara: "..."

Side Quest: Collect one billion explosive tags (1000000000/1000000000). Quest complete. Reward: 400 gold coins.

How could his teacher do this...?

This guy's trying to fool him with the explosive talisman!

Kisame Hoshigaki, Mangetsu Hozuki, and the others were utterly shocked when Konan casually tossed a scroll containing a billion explosive tags to Naraku Uehara!

What an amazing teacher!

He casually sends out hundreds of millions of explosive tags!

Xiao Nan didn't seem to care about her extravagant spending. In normal battles, she didn't use many explosive tags. She only used a larger number when she used the Divine Paper Technique to conceal an array of explosive tags in advance.

Uehara Naraku reluctantly accepted the scroll, unsealed it, pulled out a tall stack of explosive tags, and handed it to Kisame Hoshigaki: "I've paid back the money I owed you."

"..."

Kisame Hoshigaki took the explosive tags from Naraku Uehara in a daze, and then distributed some to Mangetsu Hozuki and Zabuza Momochi.

They really didn't care about Uehara repaying the money.

If it were just money, that would be one thing, but this is an explosive tag!

Even in the cheapest countries, explosive tags can sell for two thousand taels of silver, and they're not easy to buy.

Relying on teachers really makes you rich and powerful!

Upon hearing Uehara's words, Konan frowned and stared at him, asking, "How come you owe them money?"

"…this…"

Uehara Naraku began to think of a suitable excuse.

Kisame Hoshigaki, ever the understanding one, immediately came to his rescue: "We encountered Lady Tsunade of Konoha earlier, and Lord Uehara gambled with her twice, losing several million ryo..."

"..."

Uehara Naraku slowly turned his head and stared intently at Kisame Hoshigaki, casting a look of despair at him. What's wrong with Kisame Hoshigaki?

I clearly told him before that he shouldn't reveal that he lost money in Tangren Village, and didn't I already return the money to him?

The next moment, Uehara felt a cold gaze fall on him.

Konan stretched out her palm and slowly turned Uehara's head to look at herself. Her face was gloomy, which made Uehara feel a little uneasy.

The woman's hand slowly moved downwards, caressing the young ninja's cheek, her fingers stopping near Uehara's earlobe.

Konan's voice turned incredibly cold, tinged with a hint of exasperated anger: "Naraku, have you learned to gamble yet?"

"I didn't do it, I didn't, don't overthink it..."

Uehara Naraku shook his head repeatedly and explained, "I just saw that Tsunade-senpai was living a frugal life, after all, she's Jiraiya-senpai's teammate, and my main purpose was to get Tsunade-senpai to help Kimimaro with his medical treatment..."

Actually, he was just doing it to complete a task!

Could he possibly have any other intentions?

Konan's death stare lasted for a long time before finally softening: "You can't gamble anymore, understand? And Jiraiya... said... that Tsunade-senpai is beyond redemption. No matter how much money you give her, she will become penniless because of gambling."

"...Yes, I understand."

Uehara Naraku nodded seriously.

It's unbelievable that Jiraiya secretly badmouthed his old teammate more than a decade ago, and what he said is true.

What good was it for that woman Tsunade to win so much money from him?

In the end, they'll all lose everything!

Kisame Hoshigaki had already donned the red-cloud black robe. He glanced at Uehara's embarrassed state and chuckled, "Lord Uehara, I'll go out and meet my teammates now."

"...Go!"

Uehara Naraku spat out two words through gritted teeth in bitterness.

Despite Kisame being the spy he planned to plant, the first thing Kisame did after joining Akatsuki was to "inadvertently" reveal his secrets to Konan.

This guy isn't as honest as he thought!

Don't you understand the importance of keeping your mouth shut?

If Uehara hadn't been clever enough to come up with a barely plausible reason, Konan wouldn't have given him a kind look for days!

"Don't blame me, Lord Uehara."

Kisame Hoshigaki shrugged, his smile widening. "I just think Lord Uehara shouldn't be doing things he shouldn't be doing at his age. Konan-senpai should really discipline her disciple!"

"I understand, thank you for reminding me."

After Konan nodded, her gaze towards Kisame Hoshigaki suddenly softened with friendliness and trust.

After leaving the logistics base.

Zabuza Momochi couldn't help but chuckle at Kisame Hoshigaki, "Hmph, you've really offended that brat Uehara this time!"

"Yeah?"

Kisame Hoshigaki's smile remained unchanged. He glanced at Zabuza Momochi as if looking at an idiot: "Well, I really didn't notice!"

Hozuki Mangetsu glanced thoughtfully at Kisame Hoshigaki and said softly, "Actually, you must really respect your teacher, right? When we came back, he seemed to mention his teacher quite often, almost unintentionally."

"Looks like there aren't too many fools among us after all!"

Kisame Hoshigaki chuckled lightly, his words carrying a hint of disdain for Zabuza Momochi, before parting ways with them to meet his new partner.

Lakeside.

Uchiha Itachi is contemplating life here again.

Itachi Uchiha was feeling a mix of regret and wonder. Could it be that there were other people like Hozuki Mangetsu in the ninja world?

If given the chance, should he try to find out how Hozuki Mangetsu manipulates his younger brother?

The sound of Samehada slashing into the ground interrupted Itachi Uchiha's thoughts. Kisame Hoshigaki stood behind him and said softly, "What are you thinking about? The infamous Itachi, the one who annihilated the clan..."

"..."

Itachi Uchiha closed his eyes, not wanting to answer.

Kisame Hoshigaki walked step by step towards Itachi Uchiha, approaching him and saying, "Do you need me to help you guess? For example, how can we prevent others from noticing... that you're actually like that brat Mangetsu Hozuki, wanting to protect your younger brother?"

Itachi Uchiha's expression remained unchanged. He simply reached out and slowly brushed aside his wind-blown hair, saying softly, "If you're just here to say these meaningless words..."

"It has meaning."

Kisame Hoshigaki's smile was exceptionally kind: "I'm just confirming. If you really don't care about your younger brother, I can plan to kill him now and get a pair of Sharingan. My chakra is plentiful, so the consumption of Sharingan should be negligible for me."

"..."

Itachi Uchiha's fingers trembled involuntarily.

Perhaps this new teammate with the shark-like face is the most difficult test he has faced since joining Akatsuki.

The members of Akatsuki were all extremely mentally ill, and even when Itachi Uchiha listened to Kisame Hoshigaki's words, he couldn't tell whether they were true or false.

Kisame Hoshigaki subtly noticed Itachi Uchiha's fingers, and his smile grew wider. It seemed that his superior, Naraku Uehara, had once again proven his judgment right!

Just as Itachi Uchiha was about to finally lose his temper and say something, Kisame Hoshigaki cut him off.

The shark's smile turned somewhat sinister: "Alright, I was just kidding... I'd rather see a duel between brothers than just a pair of Sharingan eyes."

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

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(End of this chapter)