Chapter 470: Akatsuki Makes Its Move!

Chapter 470: Chapter 470: Akatsuki Makes Its Move!

No sooner had Kagami smashed Satori to the ground with a single punch than the enraged Tsunade leapt high into the air and brought her fist crashing down upon it.

BOOM...

Another deafening explosion abruptly erupted in everyone’s ears!

Taking Tsunade’s furious blow head-on, Satori’s enormous monstrous head was smashed straight into the earth with a tremendous crash. The sheer force of her monstrous-strength punch caused the entire ground to fracture inch by inch, with cracks spreading outward for several hundred meters!

Even Jiraiya and Gamabunta, who were standing some distance away, staggered as the ground shattered beneath them, nearly falling over.

Watching this scene from midair, Kagami’s eyelid twitched involuntarily.

"If I took that punch head-on... would I just straight-up die?"

The power behind an enraged Tsunade’s monstrous-strength punch was simply terrifying.

Satori’s swollen, oversized head had been flattened by a single blow and buried deep in the ground. For quite some time, it didn’t move at all.

Jiraiya swallowed hard. "Uh... she didn’t just kill it, did she?"

Tsunade rolled up her sleeves, clenched her fist, and clicked her tongue. "Tch. It shouldn’t be that fragile, right?"

Fukasaku, perched on Jiraiya’s shoulder, sensed the area for a moment before warning them with a grave expression, "It’s not dead yet. Don’t let your guard down!"

At that moment, Mui began walking toward Satori one step at a time, murmuring to himself, "The mistake I made... I’ll undo it with my own hands. Muku, I’ll accompany you on the road to the Pure Land!"

Soon, he stopped before Satori’s enormous, hideous body and reached out, gently touching one of its vicious claws.

Whoosh...

The instant Mui touched Satori, he jerked his hand back as though he’d been electrocuted.

In that brief moment of contact with Satori’s body, countless dark and evil emotions had surged into him all at once, making him feel as though he’d been plunged into a boundless hell.

"So this is the torment you’ve been enduring all this time... I was wrong... I was wrong..."

Mui had only touched it for an instant, yet the agony had already been unbearable. At last, he truly understood the suffering Muku had endured within the Box of Ultimate Bliss, and two trails of tears silently rolled down his cheeks.

"I’ll set you free right now!"

With that, Mui slowly raised both arms and began forming hand seals!

"Seal!"

After completing the hand seals, Mui gave a tearful shout.

As Mui activated the Great Fire Heavenly Prison, the technique binding Satori immediately began glowing with streaks of crimson light. A moment later, those crimson markings began burning from the inside out.

In an instant, Satori’s enormous body was completely engulfed by flames that surged toward the heavens.

The inferno soared into the sky, illuminating the entire village beneath the deep night in a blood-red glow!

"AAAAARGH!"

Satori’s agonized screams soon echoed throughout the entire village.

It rolled and thrashed wildly across the ground, struggling desperately, yet no matter what it did, it could not break free from the restraints of the Great Fire Heavenly Prison.

The Great Fire Heavenly Prison seemed almost as though it had been tailor-made specifically for Satori, dragging the monster that had been so overwhelmingly arrogant just moments ago straight down into hell.

......

On a high cliff some distance away from Konoha.

A group of shinobi dressed in black cloaks patterned with red clouds stood or crouched in a line, gazing from afar at Konoha, where flames were soaring into the night sky.

They were none other than the members of Akatsuki, the organization that now roamed unchecked throughout the shinobi world.

At their head stood Hiruko, his entire body wrapped in bandages. His arms hung naturally at his sides as he quietly stood at the edge of the cliff, his expression calm and indifferent, as though he were merely a traveler admiring the night scenery.

Beside Hiruko was Sasori, concealed within Hiruko, as well as Kakuzu, who stood with his arms crossed. A little farther away, Uchiha Shinichi crouched lazily on the ground with a carefree expression.

The four members of the Mist Squad—Biwa Juzo, Kisame Hoshigaki, Renge, and Ryu—stood even farther away.

Hearing Satori’s distant screams of agony, Hiruko said with a hint of regret, "So it’s reached its limit..."

Sasori replied coldly, "That monster was considerably stronger than I expected. We should’ve attacked alongside it!"

Hiruko smiled. "It doesn’t matter. That was nothing more than an appetizer. It won’t affect our plan. No matter how they struggle..."

His gaze settled upon the burning village in the distance.

"Konoha will perish tonight!"

Shinichi curled his lips dismissively.

Just then, Konan descended from the sky and landed atop the cliff.

Hiruko asked, "We can make our move now, right?"

Konan gave a slight nod. "Recover the Box of Ultimate Bliss. That box may prove useful to us in the future. Also, if possible, capture that member of Kamigami alive."

Her expression remained cold as she added,

"Nagato wants to interrogate him personally!"

"No problem," Hiruko replied.

Konan stared at Hiruko and emphasized, "Be careful of Kamigami!"

Hiruko smiled. "Don’t worry."

He then snapped his fingers, and a moment later, his fusion summon flew over to the edge of the cliff.

Hiruko called out to the others, "We’re moving out!"

The Akatsuki members gathered on the cliff wasted no words. One after another, they leapt onto Hiruko’s fusion summon.

......

Inside the village.

Supporting each other as they walked, Shizune and Rei slowly made their way to the edge of the battlefield.

Watching Satori wail amid the raging flames, the two couldn’t help but sigh in relief.

"It’s finally over!"

Kagami landed beside them at that moment.

"Over?" He snorted coldly. "Hmph. It’s only just beginning."

Shizune immediately looked at Kagami warily.

Although this member of Kamigami had been helping the village fight the monster Satori this entire time, Kamigami was ultimately just as mysterious an organization as Akatsuki. Naturally, Shizune remained extremely guarded toward Kagami while he was dressed as a member of Kamigami.

Like Shizune, Rei also wore a guarded expression. But remembering what had happened earlier, she still said gratefully, "We truly owe you our thanks for what you did earlier!"

The overwhelming strength Kagami had displayed caused Rei to unconsciously address him with considerable respect.

Pretending to casually glance at Rei, Kagami urged, "There’s probably an even more brutal battle coming. Stop hanging around here and getting in the way. Hurry up and evacuate."

Shizune replied, "We’re Konoha shinobi. Protecting Konoha is our duty!"

Rei nodded firmly in agreement.

Tsunade glanced over at them.

She was somewhat surprised that this incredibly powerful member of Kamigami would be kind enough to warn her student, but she also knew that his warning was correct.

Although the monster Satori had been subdued for the moment, not a single member of Akatsuki had shown themselves yet.

The crisis was far from over.

And neither Shizune nor Rei possessed enough strength to handle the situation that was about to unfold. For the two of them, evacuating was actually the best choice.

Thus, Tsunade shouted from a distance, "You two, head to the shelter immediately! It should be packed with wounded by now, so go there and help treat them!"

With Tsunade’s order, Shizune and Rei no longer insisted on staying. Supporting each other, they began making their way toward the shelter.

Kagami secretly breathed a sigh of relief as well.

As long as Rei remained on the battlefield, it was difficult for him to fully concentrate. He constantly felt restrained, as though his hands were tied and he couldn’t truly cut loose.

And when facing powerful enemies, that was obviously a fatal weakness...