"Sh... Shadow sama..."
Kisame Hoshigaki, upon seeing Ryun, immediately knelt on one knee and performed a salute.
His eyes at this moment held a trace of fear. This so-called Shadow of Otogakure was indeed Uchiha Ryun.
As a ninja from Kirigakure, there was no one who did not fear Uchiha Ryun.
Back when Ryun forcefully destroyed Kirigakure, Kisame was just a genin. He didn't even have the qualification to go to the battlefield, and yet he was still tossed about by that great flood, almost losing his life.
"I heard you want to pledge allegiance to Otogakure?" Ryun said, his back turned to Kisame as he sat on a stone chair in the garden with Orochimaru, tasting tea.
"Yes!"
Kisame nodded his head heavily.
"Reason?"
Ryun's voice remained aloof, as if he was completely indifferent to Kisame's defection.
Kisame actually felt this cold attitude was quite normal. To someone like Ryun, an S-Class Rogue Ninja like himself was just a minor character.
"I know the seven swords are all in your hands. I want one of the swords, so I came..." Kisame said with a sincere expression.
"How did you know I was in Otogakure?" Ryun asked again.
"Because I found out the whereabouts of Raiga Kurosuki. He is in Otogakure, and most likely pledged allegiance to you... Back then, six of the swordsmen were killed, only Raiga remained missing. I didn't think he could have escaped from you. The only possibility was that you subdued him."
"Considering the time you left Konoha, plus the time Otogakure was initially established, I deduced you were here..."
Kisame gave a very plausible reason.
"So? Why do you think our Otogakure would take you in? And even be willing to give you a sword?"
Ryun said, putting down his teacup, then walked straight to stand in front of Kisame.
"You, for the sake of a sword, didn't hesitate to betray your own village. Why couldn't you betray Otogakure, or betray me, for something else in the future..."
Ryun looked down at Kisame, who was kneeling on one knee. These words were filled with coldness, even mixed with an extremely terrifying mental pressure.
"The so-called assassination of the daimyo was just to gain my favor. I have to say, your preparations were thorough, your excuse was quite perfect."
"But I am not known in Kirigakure as someone easy to get along with. You even view me as an evil dragon. You actually dared to gamble your life on an uncertain outcome. Your thinking is too naive. I don't believe Kisame Hoshigaki is a naive ninja..."
Upon hearing this, Kisame was immediately shocked into a cold sweat. When he mustered the courage to look up, he saw a pair of blood-red, three tomoe Sharingan eyes coldly staring at him.
"Before these eyes of mine, no one can lie. Akatsuki sent you, didn't they?"
As soon as Ryun said this, all the hair on Kisame's body stood on end. A terrifying sense of mortal danger instantly enveloped his heart. His spirit also became dazed in an instant. Ryun easily used the Sharingan to control him.
"Was it Madara (Obito) who sent you to be a spy?"
When this sentence was uttered, not only was Kisame stunned, but even Orochimaru's expression changed nearby, his snake-like vertical pupils contracting sharply.
"No... it wasn't..." Kisame shook his head numbly, his whole person seeming as if he was being controlled.
"Why did you come?" Ryun asked this question again.
"For... the great sword... Samehada..."
Kisame showed a pained expression, his speech intermittent, as if struggling against something.
After hearing this, Ryun asked no further questions, but his expression remained exceptionally cold. He just watched Kisame quietly.
"Trying to break free from the Sharingan's Genjutsu bind? This guy seems somewhat capable..." Orochimaru's hoarse voice sounded appropriately. He thought Kisame was quite good, actually able to resist the Mangekyō Sharingan's pupil power. He indeed had the qualification to be taken under Ryun's wing.
It's just that, facing Orochimaru's assessment, Ryun remained unmoved. Even Orochimaru didn't know what he was thinking.
One minute later, Kisame forcibly broke free from the Sharingan's restraint. As soon as he reacted, he slumped onto the grass, drenched in sweat, his expression full of terror, as if he had experienced a life or death crisis and was scared out of his wits.
"Someone, take him to rest. From now on, this guy is a member of Otogakure!" Ryun called out again towards the outside of the Shadow's residence.
In the next moment, Kabuto Yakushi appeared instantly in front of Kisame.
"Let's go..."
Kisame didn't dare to bring up the matter of the great sword Samehada at this time. Uchiha Ryun's cold gaze made him shudder. He felt that this three tomoe Sharingan was far more oppressive than the masked Madara's Sharingan, simply making one dare not look directly at its sharpness.
"Thank you, Shadow sama, Sound Shadow sama, for taking me in. Kisame Hoshigaki is willing to offer his humble service from now on!" Kisame performed a final salute.
Ryun coldly waved his hand, indicating he could leave.
After the two had gone far, Ryun finally withdrew his gaze and spoke. "Teacher, keep a close watch on him for this period. Although this guy is already a member of Akatsuki, he still has his uses. Killing him would be too wasteful."
"!!!"
"You're sure he's a spy?" Orochimaru said in surprise. Kisame's performance, in his view, had no issues.
"Hmph, how could someone like Kisame Hoshigaki possibly resist my Mangekyō pupil power? If I wished, I could control him until he died. That guy's eyes likely have the pupil power of another Mangekyō Sharingan, protecting him at critical moments from being controlled by me."
Kisame had come fully prepared to Otogakure this time. Ryun was already certain that Obito had subdued him first, then sent him to Otogakure to gather intelligence.
"So that's it! Then who is the owner of the second Mangekyō Sharingan? Is it really Uchiha Madara?" Orochimaru's curiosity was piqued again. He was very curious about who the mastermind behind Kisame's arrival was.
"It's not Uchiha Madara. Just a minor character. A pair of Mangekyō Sharingan that awakened not long ago. He thinks he has the qualification to compete with us..."
Ryun never considered Obito as a rival. In his eyes, he was just a slightly larger pawn.
He also didn't explicitly point out Obito's identity. This wasn't because he distrusted Orochimaru, but explaining it would be very long-winded, and some situations were even difficult for him to explain clearly.
"Alright... Then I'll go send someone to monitor Kisame Hoshigaki now!" Orochimaru said, rising to leave.
"Mm, just monitor him covertly. Prevent him from going to the Tailed Beast cages and the various laboratories. Assign him missions as needed. A laborer delivered to our doorstep for free should still be used."
"Hehe, I understand..." Orochimaru nodded with a smile.
"These White Zetsu things, worse than beasts, endless in killing, are truly annoying..."
Ryun had already sensed White Zetsu infiltrating Otogakure. Over the years, he hadn't spared any effort in cleaning out these things. Not even White Zetsu spores could escape his Sage perception.
Next, he would personally take action to clean up these annoying creatures. Letting them infiltrate Otogakure would ultimately be a problem.
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
📖 Like the story? Read 120 chapters ahead!
🔗 patreon.com/atomelectron
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━