"Now you should understand pain a little better."
After the Deva Path added a few more black rods, Orochimaru's chakra was completely sealed, leaving him without the ability to continue fighting.
In truth, Orochimaru's strength was not weak. If he had not charged in recklessly from the start and instead fought cautiously with probing attacks, he would never have been instantly defeated by the Deva Path in such a short time.
In the end, it came down to Orochimaru being overly confident in his own Steel Release. He believed it would provide him with plenty of margin for error no matter what, and in his past battles, it indeed had.
But unfortunately, today he encountered the Deva Path. Pain's one-shot kill was not something a single kekkei genkai like Steel Release could withstand, especially since Orochimaru was not particularly proficient in Steel Release or his other kekkei genkai.
He could only be said to know how to use them. His main focus was still on his forbidden technique, Kimera no Jutsu. Against weaker opponents, that was fine, but against evenly matched or stronger ones, he was finished.
"If I saw correctly, during the fight just now he used three different kekkei genkai: Swift Release to increase speed, Steel Release to enhance defense, and Dark Release to absorb ninjutsu. It's very similar to your ability."
"Indeed, but although the abilities are similar, he cannot compare to a god."
After Orochimaru's threat was neutralized, Konan flew back and casually chatted with the Deva Path as if no one else were there. The disdainful tone in the Deva Path's voice made Orochimaru, lying on the ground, look extremely ugly.
He still had other bloodlines unused, and the final ritual had not been completed. If he had been more careful, he would never have been defeated so easily or looked down upon like this. He hated this feeling of being belittled the most.
"I have long looked forward to seeing the leader take action personally. Now that I have witnessed it, it is even more powerful than I imagined. It seems joining the Akatsuki was indeed the right choice."
Seeing the Deva Path swiftly defeat Orochimaru, Shinnō—who had been ready to watch the show from the sidelines—hurriedly came over and began to fawn.
He had not expected that Orochimaru, whom he considered quite strong, would lose so quickly. Was this the power of eyes equal to those of the Sage of the Six Paths? Truly astonishing.
Fortunately, when he discovered the Rinnegan earlier, he had not harbored any crooked thoughts. Otherwise, his fate would probably not have been much better than this guy named Orochimaru.
"Leader, this guy actually dared to covet you. I don't know what he was thinking. For me, it doesn't matter who my teammate is. He's not indispensable."
Noticing that the Deva Path and Konan seemed to be pondering what to do with Orochimaru next, Shinnō proactively offered an out. Upon hearing this, the Deva Path lowered his head to look at Orochimaru again.
"Actually, I feel we can have a good talk. Before, I simply didn't understand your strength and thought you were just a group of big talkers.
That's why I wanted to teach you a lesson. After all, you beat my subordinates like that. But now I have a clear understanding of your strength."
Although the Deva Path's gaze remained emotionless, Orochimaru inexplicably felt a sense of crisis. Driven by his survival instinct, Orochimaru straightforwardly admitted defeat.
There was no choice. If he did not surrender now, his little life would probably be over. Moreover, his ritual was at the final step. How could he let everything go to waste? Besides, surrendering to the possessor of the Rinnegan was not shameful.
After all, in his understanding, this was the second person besides the Sage of the Six Paths to possess these eyes. And who was the Sage of the Six Paths? The legendary figure who brought chakra to the world.
The leader of the Akatsuki in front of him also possessed the Rinnegan. Whether it was recreating the ninja world to bring peace or, more realistically, ruling the world, both were achievable.
"So what you're saying is that you choose to join the Akatsuki?"
"Of course. You are the strongest I have ever seen. Even the Kage of the Five Great Ninja Villages are far inferior. With your leadership, I believe anything is possible."
"For a god, this is only natural."
As he spoke, the Deva Path also retracted the black rods piercing Orochimaru. He was not worried that Orochimaru might still be lying or anything like that, because there was no reason for it.
In the face of absolute strength, lying would only lead to a repeat of what just happened. He believed Orochimaru was not that stupid.
Orochimaru, who could develop Kimera no Jutsu, was naturally no fool. The brief clash just now had already made him realize the gap in strength.
Even if he went all out, he would probably still not be a match for the Akatsuki leader before him. The Rinnegan was clearly not something he could covet. Since that was the case, he might as well obediently join.
Orochimaru did not believe that if he refused, these three would let him live. Moreover, after joining, he could use the Akatsuki's power to help complete his final ritual.
Therefore, after weighing the pros and cons, joining the Akatsuki was his best choice.
"From what you said earlier, this guy is going to be my teammate in the future. He looks pretty mediocre."
After putting on the Akatsuki cloak, Orochimaru began to provoke his teammate Shinnō. He had just heard the implication in the other's words that he wanted him dead.
How could Orochimaru pretend not to notice something like that? He could not beat the Akatsuki leader, fine, but what kind of thing was this Shinnō?
"Are you looking for a fight?"
Faced with Orochimaru's provocation, Shinnō naturally could not remain indifferent. He immediately opened the sixth gate of the Eight Gates, his aura surging as he glared angrily.
His good attitude was only toward the leader and Konan, who seemed to have a good relationship with the leader. What kind of thing was this Orochimaru?
He had quite a few kekkei genkai, but Shinnō could tell the other was not proficient in any of them. He had just been beaten like a dead dog by the leader, yet he still had the face to provoke him.
Was it because he had pent-up anger he did not dare vent on the leader or Konan, so he turned to him instead? Did he really think Shinnō was a pushover? If he did not show some attitude today, Orochimaru would probably keep stepping on his face every day in the future.
"A fight? This is just a response to your earlier performance. Of course, if the leader doesn't mind, I could reluctantly teach you a lesson."
Seemingly in response to Shinnō opening the gates, dark thunderclouds rose around Orochimaru, casting half the sky in shadow.
"You two, have you had enough? Internal fighting is prohibited in the Akatsuki."
Just as the atmosphere between Shinnō and Orochimaru grew extremely tense, as if they would fight in the next second, the Deva Path's voice finally rang out.