Now Ashveil appeared like a great demon king, his presence commanding and unshakable.
Deidara finally began to regain his composure, though the fire of his pride still burned fiercely.
"Bastard, who do you think I am? I am Deidara!" he shouted, voice trembling with both fury and humiliation.
"Since my other bombs can't affect you, then I'll show you my ultimate, the self-destruct C0!" Deidara added, his anger and frustration boiling over.
Being defeated so completely, aside from his confrontation with Uchiha Itachi, this was the first time Deidara had felt such utter shame.
His temper flared, and he longed to annihilate Ashveil on the spot.
Ashveil felt a faint bead of sweat form on his forehead.
This Deidara truly was reckless; if he couldn't win, he would immediately resort to self-destruction.
Sighing inwardly, Ashveil thought: I haven't harmed you, so why the desperate urge to blow yourself up?
Since he wished to join Akatsuki and had no ill feelings toward Deidara, Ashveil decided to prevent him from ending his life.
With barely a motion, an invisible force radiated from Ashveil, like two immense hands, gripping Deidara's wrists tightly, halting any self-destruct attempt.
Cold sweat streamed down Deidara's face.
Is this person a demon?
It wasn't just that he couldn't defeat him—he didn't even have the strength to die with him.
Controlling someone's hands like this, in the Shinobi world, was essentially crippling them.
Ashveil's calm voice broke through the tension.
"Deidara, you don't need to self-destruct at every opportunity. Your boss is Pain, correct? I have business with him—lead the way."
His faint smile made it seem as though the battle had never happened.
Boss?
Deidara's self-destruct thoughts halted.
He wasn't foolish; repeatedly exploding would have killed him countless times already.
If Ashveil wished to meet their leader, let him.
If he turned out to be an ally, so much the better.
If an enemy, with Akatsuki's formidable members, even this prodigy could be subdued.
"All right, follow me. I'll take you to our boss. No tricks," Deidara said firmly, eyes locked on Ashveil, wary of this unpredictable force.
Deidara noticed Tobi at his side and threw a punch upward, rousing him.
"Deidara-senpai, have you subdued him already?" Tobi feigned confusion but leapt into action when he saw Ashveil standing calmly.
"This guy isn't dead… isn't dead… hurry, kill him already!" Tobi cried dramatically.
Deidara rolled his eyes.
"Shut up, Tobi! He's here to see our boss. Lead the way!"
Tobi froze for a moment, then masked his surprise.
"Ah… I see, he must be a new member. Hahaha, hello, I'm Tobi. I'll lead the way!"
Ashveil chuckled faintly.
"Lead me to Akatsuki's boss, Tobi."
He gave Tobi a sidelong glance, noting something peculiar about his demeanor.
Despite his doubts, Tobi continued, careful not to reveal too much.
He kept one eye on Ashveil, suspicious.
This one is not simple… I'll find out his true intentions later.
At Akatsuki's headquarters, all members awaited Ashveil.
Konan floated gracefully, her expression serene yet alert.
"I saw your battle. You are indeed strong, but defeating Pain alone is impossible," she said, her voice carrying authority.
The other members observed him carefully.
Kisame Hoshigaki smirked.
"I didn't expect Deidara to fail. When are you free to fight me?"
Itachi's gaze lingered on Ashveil, surprise evident in his eyes.
Nagato, as always, remained impassive.
"I hear you came to see me. What is your purpose?" Pain's voice was calm yet commanding.
Ashveil reclined casually on a rock.
"Nothing much, I want to join Akatsuki," he said with indifferent confidence.
The announcement stunned everyone.
A spy from Konoha?
No—they had not anticipated a genuine request to join.
"Those who join Akatsuki are typically renowned rogue ninjas. Yet you bear no village symbol. Which village do you hail from?"
Ashveil's tone remained light.
"I have no country. My village was a small one affiliated with the Village Hidden in the Rain."
"Without a country? Even a small village cannot contain someone of your strength. Great nations would surely have recruited you," Pain pressed.
"I said no country, no country. Are you recruiting or not? If not, I'll leave," Ashveil replied, casual and confident.
Konan, ever the diplomat, approached gently.
"Please, do not be offended. Akatsuki is in a delicate period, so we scrutinize powerful individuals carefully. We welcome your joining."
Ashveil shook her hand, noting its smoothness with a faint smile.
"But I have one request," he added.
Akatsuki exchanged curious glances.
"State your request," they prompted.
"All future Tailed Beast missions, regardless of the number of tails, assign them to me," Ashveil declared boldly.
His goal was battle.
His Conqueror's Haki would only advance through fighting strong opponents, and nothing was more formidable than Jinchuriki.
Every word from Ashveil commanded attention, leaving the organization momentarily speechless.
"You just defeated Deidara and Tobi and are already so audacious. Should I fight him?" Kisame challenged, eyes narrowed.
"Calm him," Itachi interjected.
Deidara's outrage boiled over.
"When did this brat defeat me? I would've self-destructed on him!"
Even Tobi and Akatsuki's members reassessed Ashveil carefully.
A recruit capable of joining in Tailed Beast missions warranted scrutiny.
Obito spoke, calculating.
"He has a point, Deidara-senpai. Let Ashveil join. Compete to see who excels at capturing Tailed Beasts."
Nagato subtly nodded in agreement.
Deidara protested, flustered.
"Akatsuki has always paired members. How can we allow this?"
"It's unavoidable. Ashveil will temporarily join your team. Future recruits will adjust partnerships," Pain declared.
Deidara seethed, taking his frustration out on Tobi with a scissor kick.
He had no idea that the man beneath him was the true mastermind of Akatsuki.
"Meeting's over," Nagato's projection vanished, leaving Deidara fuming.
Kisame grumbled, "This newcomer wants all Tailed Beast missions. What about us, Itachi?"
Ashveil's faint smile revealed his resolve: he would take on the Tailed Beasts, even if it meant challenging Akatsuki itself.
"Let him. Tailed Beasts are not easy to capture," Itachi said, eyes narrowing.
Tobi, ever the playful one, approached Ashveil.
"We have the Three-Tails mission now. Let's go, junior Ashveil."
Ashveil ignored everything but the mission, his sole focus on capturing Tailed Beasts to strengthen himself for the coming conflict with the space-time pendulum.
Deidara, reluctantly acquiescing, summoned his clay dragon.
Ashveil, Tobi, and the others mounted it, though Tobi fumbled clumsily.
Ashveil, with Overlord Conqueror's Haki, flew gracefully onto the dragon midair, eliciting awe.
"Holy crap, Deidara-senpai, he can fly!" Tobi exclaimed.
Deidara narrowed his eyes.
"Then why didn't you fly during our previous battle?"
Ashveil sprawled casually atop the dragon.
"No reason. I didn't need to. Even without flying, I could have defeated you."
"What!?" Deidara roared.
Infuriated, he turned his rage on Tobi.
Ashveil couldn't help but smile at the irony—both Deidara and Tobi possessed world-ending potential, yet were now allies in this strange trio.
And thus, the unlikely trio officially formed.
____
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