Chapter 101: Caged Bird

The choice Wang Bo offered was actually very simple.

“Submit.” He looked lightly at the three men before him and said slowly, “If you are willing to submit to me, I will pardon your crime of attacking my subordinate.”

Uchiha Itachi, Hoshigaki Kisame, and Kakuzu remained silent.

After a few seconds, Uchiha Itachi spoke, “Is there no other choice?”

“Die!” Wang Bo said bluntly.

If you are unwilling to submit, then die—what a simple and clear logic.

Kakuzu agreed almost without thinking, “I am willing to submit.”

He was undoubtedly afraid of death, unwilling to die like this, so he agreed to Wang Bo. If one can live, no one wants to die; death means nothing.

Wang Bo nodded, accepted Kakuzu’s submission, and then turned his gaze to Uchiha Itachi and Hoshigaki Kisame.

Hoshigaki Kisame glanced at his partner Uchiha Itachi, waiting to see how he would choose.

Uchiha Itachi remained silent, seemingly deep in thought.

Wang Bo said calmly, “I don’t have much time to waste with you. Give me an answer within ten seconds, or I’ll assume you refuse and kill you directly.”

With that, Wang Bo began the countdown.

A trace of cold sweat appeared on Hoshigaki Kisame’s forehead.

If he were killed in battle, he might accept it—after all, being outmatched and killed was only natural. He was a ninja and had long been prepared for that.

But now, when he could clearly live, being killed would be too unjust.

He was about to speak when he suddenly heard Uchiha Itachi say, “I am willing to submit.”

Hoshigaki Kisame’s eyes widened in surprise as he looked at his partner, never expecting him to surrender so quickly.

He quickly said, “I am also willing to submit.”

Wang Bo nodded. He was not surprised that Uchiha Itachi was willing to submit. In the original story, despite suffering from an incurable disease, Itachi stubbornly kept himself alive.

His purpose was to secure his younger brother Uchiha Sasuke, implanting his ocular power into Sasuke’s body to help him.

Now, Uchiha Sasuke was still in Konoha. Itachi certainly could not let Wang Bo kill him, leaving Sasuke alone and helpless. Even if he had to die, he would leave enough safeguards.

So submission was his only way out.

As for Hoshigaki Kisame, his thoughts were probably the same as the others: if one can live, no one wants to die.

“Good.” Wang Bo formed a hand seal and released a stream of chakra, splitting it into three and injecting it into Uchiha Itachi, Hoshigaki Kisame, and Kakuzu.

The three immediately felt as if something had been added to their minds.

Wang Bo did not hide it and said, “This is a jutsu. Uchiha Itachi, you were born in Konoha, so you should know what the Caged Bird technique is.”

Uchiha Itachi nodded and said, “It is a curse mark used by the main family of the Hyuga clan to control the branch family. It only disappears upon the user’s death and also allows the main family to destroy the brain tissue of the cursed person at will.”

“Correct. What I just performed is a variation of the Caged Bird curse mark, with effects similar to the original. Not only can I destroy your brains through this curse mark, but I can also monitor your every move. If I detect any betrayal of our agreement, I will kill you without hesitation.”

Wang Bo’s Caged Bird curse mark was, of course, obtained from the Hyuga clan. After he defeated Konoha, he not only acquired the Scroll of Seals but also many secret techniques of Konoha.

Among them, the effects of some secret techniques caught Wang Bo’s interest.

Wang Bo only needed a little study to master these techniques, and many of them he improved, making them more effective than the originals.

He had no trust in Uchiha Itachi and the others. Even if they submitted, Wang Bo would not believe them.

The Caged Bird curse mark was Wang Bo’s method of controlling these people.

This improved version of the Caged Bird curse mark was even more powerful than the original; Uchiha Itachi and his group had no way to break free.

Only by placing this curse mark on them would Wang Bo trust them.

Upon hearing this, Uchiha Itachi and the others felt a chill in their hearts.

Even Kakuzu was somewhat shocked and afraid. Although he had multiple hearts, he had only one brain. If the brain was destroyed, the hearts would be useless.

After saying this, Wang Bo reassured them, “But don’t be afraid. As long as you don’t betray me, I will not activate the curse mark and take your lives.”

Uchiha Itachi and the others nodded, indicating they understood.

Wang Bo waved his hand and said, “Alright, you may go. Find Haku; Haku will tell you what to do.”

Haku was Wang Bo’s deputy and knew the situation in the Land of Fire in great detail. Wang Bo believed he could arrange things well for these people, letting Uchiha Itachi and the others contribute to the Land of Fire and shine.

After dismissing Uchiha Itachi and his group, Wang Bo left a clone while his main body left the office and headed to the Land of Rain.

Although the attackers of Haku were Uchiha Itachi and the others, Wang Bo had not forgotten that Uchiha Itachi was a member of the Akatsuki organization, and the appearance of Pain’s Deva Path indicated that the Akatsuki had intervened in this matter.

Even though Uchiha Itachi and his group had submitted, Wang Bo still did not intend to let the Akatsuki off.

So he went alone to the Land of Rain.

After several days of travel, Wang Bo soon arrived in the Land of Rain and easily found his way to Amegakure. He had been there once before, so he did not get lost.

It rained year-round in Amegakure, and the rain contained faint traces of chakra.

This was the Rain Tiger at Will technique!

This jutsu is a sensory technique that infuses one’s chakra into the rain, allowing it to be freely controlled.

In fact, it uses Pain’s chakra to create rain clouds and then cause rain to fall. Each raindrop that falls during the technique is closely connected to Pain’s senses. Because chakra from outside the village blocks the rain, intruders can be detected.

Moreover, since this technique reacts to the area where it is activated, the rain continues to fall until Pain releases the hand seal.

When Wang Bo actively stepped into the heavy rain, Nagato sensed his presence.

Previously, Nagato had only regarded Wang Bo as a businessman, but ever since Wang Bo unified the Land of Fire, he no longer dared to see Wang Bo as a mere merchant.

Additionally, not long ago, their Akatsuki members had attacked Wang Bo’s subordinate Haku.

So when he saw Wang Bo appear, Nagato immediately realized one thing: they had been exposed.

If not exposed, Wang Bo would not have appeared in Amegakure at this critical moment.