Naruto: I, Uchiha, Just Want to Die

Chapter 82: Cursed Technique · Death Controlling Possessed Blood Ritual, Hidan's Resolve

In the underground plaza, standing at the edge of the blood pool, Hayato Tōgō gazed indifferently at the two figures bound to the crosses. As the Jonin squad leader of Yumegakure and high priest of the Jashin Cult, he paused in silence before forming hand seals.

With the seals complete, a massive ritual circle inscribed with the symbol of a triangle within a circle illuminated the ground.

The earth trembled, and the blood pool began to ripple as if it were a glass of red wine, swaying rhythmically with waves lapping at the edges.

Hidan looked at the row of crosses surrounding him. The human sacrifices bound there seemed to have been silenced at the peak of their agony, life drained in an instant. Even his newly recognized "big brother," Uchiha Ci, appeared to have fallen into despair, eyes closed, awaiting death.

Feeling a surge of tension, Hidan lifted his trembling hand, pierced with a large hole, trying unsuccessfully to remove the iron nail pinning down his other hand. He gripped it, pulled, but his shaky fingertips kept slipping off the nail's head.

After several attempts, his hand was left bloodied and dripping, yet he still couldn't pull it out.

At that moment, Hayato Tōgō looked up coldly at Hidan and asked, "Doesn't it hurt?"

Hidan's nostrils flared, veins pulsing on his forehead, and he roared back, "Hell yes, it hurts like you wouldn't believe!"

"Then it's still not enough," Hayato sneered. "You must treat this pain as a gift, as pleasure, only then will Lord Jashin's continuous blessings be upon you!"

"Only then can you become—a son of Jashin!"

"Son of Jashin, my ass! Only a psycho would call that kind of crap 'pleasure'! Damn it!" Hidan cursed, raising his trembling hand to point. "I suggest you let me go right now, or this red-eyed guy next to me is gonna show you what real power looks like!"

"Just wait a little longer. Once he opens his eyes, he'll be taking a forty-meter-long sword right to your face!"

Hayato Tōgō frowned, turning his gaze to Uchiha Ci. Realizing something was off, he scolded in a heavy tone, "You... You're actually putting your faith in a Konoha shinobi?"

"What about your pride as a shinobi of Yumegakure?"

"Pride?" Hidan sneered at this. Leaning forward, he looked Hayato dead in the eyes with disdain. "This country, this village, and any shinobi who wears this headband—when have they ever had pride?"

Hayato Tōgō's frown deepened as he listened. He had already given Hidan the Jashin Code, thinking that once he read it, this kid would understand that only by worshiping Jashin and making sacrifices to him could his dreams be realized.

Before the priest could respond, Hidan snorted coldly and looked at him defiantly. "Who the hell are you to lecture me?"

After a pause, he declared, "I don't believe in that Jashin crap anymore!"

Looking around, Hidan took in the sight of a thousand crosses, each with a figure twisted in agony beyond recognition, and he felt a chill run through his core.

Then he raised his hand and pointed at the crosses, shouting, "Power obtained in such a way—no matter how strong—is no different from the big nations' shinobi!"

"I'm going to save the Land of Hot Water my own way!"

With that, Hidan gritted his teeth, leaned forward, and tore his hand free from the nail pinning it down, his palm dripping blood, flesh torn and raw. The intense pain made him clench his teeth even tighter.

With a thud, he dropped to his knees in the blood pool, groaning in pain, but he dragged his body resolutely toward the cross holding Uchiha Ci.

Seeing this, Hayato Tōgō's eyes flashed with a hint of surprise. He hadn't anticipated that, in just one day, a single Uchiha could have such an impact on Hidan.

Only yesterday, under Hayato's careful manipulation, this disciple of his had been the most devout follower of Jashin.

But now—what on earth had happened? Had this Uchiha poured some kind of bewitching potion down his throat?

"Save the Land of Hot Water? Ha!"

Taking a deep breath, Hayato Tōgō sneered, then squinted his eyes and asked, "But have you thought about the enemy you'll face? The Five Great Nations, the five strongest organizations in the entire shinobi world!"

"In times of peace, the Land of Hot Water can act as a buffer, but once war begins, this country will shatter in an instant!"

"Do you really think this naive kid can change all that?"

"Enough!" Hidan shouted, standing up with a fierce grip of his fist, pain throbbing in his forehead. "How could I know the answer?"

"All I know is, if this country has to grovel to survive, then I'll grovel and find the answer!"

He pointed at Uchiha Ci, his eyes blazing. "If this guy claims he'll overthrow the Five Great Nations and unite the entire shinobi world, and if that can change the future of the Land of Hot Water—then I'll bet everything I have on him!"

"That's far better than putting my faith in your damn Jashin cult!"

After finishing, Hidan shakily pulled himself up by the cross, spreading his arms to shield Uchiha Ci, his eyes unwavering. "Until he opens his eyes, I'll be the one protecting him!"

Hayato Tōgō snorted, "You've got spirit, but unfortunately, you chose the wrong answer."

He looked at Uchiha Ci behind Hidan, who was standing with his eyes closed as if paralyzed by fear, and sneered, "This kid's body is on the brink of collapse. He won't be your strength, nor will he fulfill such an absurd promise."

Then, forming his final hand seal, Hayato Tōgō pressed his hands to the ground, and the ritual array on the floor blazed to life.

The blood within the pool surged, crawling up Hidan's body, staining his face with streaks of black. White stripes resembling skeletal patterns spread over his skin, marking him in the form he would later adopt as Hidan of the Akatsuki, adorned with black and white skeletal tattoos for his "Death Blood Ritual."

With that, Hayato Tōgō stepped into the blood pool, drawing a pitch-black spear from within his sleeve and striding toward Hidan.

"Let's begin, Hidan!"

Hidan raised his head, eyes filled with apprehension as he watched the man in the hood draw closer.

Hayato Tōgō's heart raced with excitement, for this disciple of his clearly possessed the necessary constitution. The Jashin Cult's so-called "immortality" merely enhanced healing; a decapitated body would still die. But, paired with another ritual—Curse Technique: Death Controlling Possessed Blood—one could create a terrifying kill-on-contact ability.

With such a skill, even a Kage could be killed with a single drop of their blood, and it could serve as a potent deterrent against the leaders of the major nations, bringing peace to the Land of Hot Water.

But Hayato Tōgō wanted more than that.

He wanted to create a monster—one that would carry out the Cult's goal to the letter, annihilating all life in the shinobi world.

Only to curse this world, so that everyone alive would be buried alongside him for all the suffering he had endured!

However, immortality and Death Controlling Possessed Blood are separate powers.

One who possesses immortality does not necessarily qualify to use Death Controlling Possessed Blood, and vice versa. Moreover, each offering to Jashin is a major sacrifice, and organizing a second ceremony quickly is almost impossible.

Thus, he had been searching carefully for someone with the qualities to master both powers.

And his disciple, Hidan, was precisely such a person!

By now, Hayato Tōgō had fallen into madness. To him, it didn't matter if it were Hidan or anyone else—no matter how close the disciple, he was ready to sacrifice him to please Jashin and attain power.

Now, all that remained was…

Hayato Tōgō stood before Hidan, gazing coldly down at him, then stabbed the black spear into the ground at Hidan's feet with a mocking smile. "Come on, let's start the ritual!"

His eyes shifted to Uchiha Ci and, with a cruel smile, he taunted, "Hidan, would you prefer to kill your friend first, or would you rather start with your comrades from Yumegakure?"

"Choose whichever; either way, they'll all be dead by your hand."

"You're insane!" Hidan stood resolutely in front of Hayato Tōgō, body trembling but his voice firm. "I won't let you hurt him!"

"You're wrong!"

Hayato Tōgō sneered, "It's not me hurting him—it's you!"

With that, he pressed his hands together, drawing ten chakra threads that shot into Hidan's body.

Against a Jonin, Hidan had no chance to resist.

Powerless, he watched the threads pierce his limbs.

Then, to his horror, he found he had lost all control over his own body.

Hayato Tōgō watched, expressionless, as Hidan turned, picked up the black spear.

Hayato Tōgō's gaze remained indifferent as he controlled Hidan, turning him around and pulling the pitch-black spear from the ground.

Then—

Hidan could only widen his eyes helplessly, watching himself lift the spear, use its tip to slice open Uchiha Ci's arm, and collect a pool of blood.

Bringing the blood from the spear into his mouth.

Immediately, a ring of crimson light emerged within the pre-drawn ritual array.

Curse Technique: Death Controlling Possessed Blood activated in full force!

Hidan instantly recognized this technique, recalling that it was the same ability the cult leader of the Jashinists had used when fighting Uchiha Ci and the three Jashin followers in the village.

In this state, any harm inflicted on himself would equally harm Uchiha Ci!

The terror of this realization struck Hidan, who widened his eyes and, with great difficulty, turned his head to look at Hayato Tōgō, shouting in horror:

"Wait, what are you trying to do?!"

"You bastard, let go of me, let me go now!"

He struggled fiercely, yet still found himself trembling as he raised the spear in his hand, reversing it,

and aiming it toward his own abdomen.

Hayato Tōgō's smile grew increasingly twisted, a strange flush rising to his cheeks:

"Relax, Hidan, I have plenty of experience with this."

"Before your pain has sufficiently pleased Jashin, and you've truly gained immortal life, this kid won't die so easily."

"Of course, if he does die, then he's just unlucky. Heh heh heh…"