Chapter 18: In short, the mission to subjugate the Hidden Grass Village is going to cost extra!

Uzumaki Sisha understood that Pain intended for the Akatsuki to pursue an elite-only strategy. Consequently, the organization’s core members were almost exclusively S-rank rogue ninjas from the major hidden villages.

However, after weighing his words carefully, Sisha voiced his thoughts.

"Lord Pain, your approach is lacking."

"The Akatsuki intends to capture the Tailed Beasts to create weapons of mass destruction. The Five Great Shinobi Nations possess these beasts, while the smaller villages do not. During the development of the Five Great Nations, the living space of these smaller villages has been severely squeezed by the larger ones."

"Since that is the case, why don't we subjugate or form an alliance with these numerous small villages to oppose the Great Nations together? Do you truly believe we can take on the Five Great Shinobi Nations with only the few core members we can count on our fingers?"

Sisha's words left Pain in silent contemplation; this was a path he had never envisioned. The enemy of one's enemy is a friend. In this context, the Akatsuki and the Hidden Rain Village indeed had a vast number of potential allies.

The Akatsuki's current path was strictly elite. Kakuzu, Sasori, Orochimaru, Hoshigaki Kisame, Uchiha Itachi, and their predecessors like Biwa Juzo—all were S-rank defectors. They were exceptionally talented, but for various reasons, their respective villages could no longer accommodate them. Beyond these core members, the organization had few, insignificant peripheral members.

According to Nagato’s original plan, the Akatsuki needed to continue this elite path, absorbing powerful rogues. Yet, Sisha’s argument was indisputable. The competitiveness of small villages could not compare to the Five Great Nations, and the growth of the latter consistently challenged the survival of the former. Conflicts between them were inevitable. Thus, the idea of subjugating and uniting these small villages to oppose the Five Great Nations was entirely feasible.

While Pain pondered and weighed these options, Sisha internally critiqued the organization.

"Because the Akatsuki follows an elite path, they certainly look impressive and prestigious. However, there are so few core members that you can count them on one hand. For most missions of even moderate difficulty, these core members have to be deployed. When manpower is short, Nagato even has to control the Six Paths of Pain personally to capture targets."

Thinking this, Sisha shook his head. Managing the organization this way was not only undignified but exposed two fundamental flaws: a lack of top-tier combat power and a complete absence of a talent cultivation system.

Top-tier power could be bolstered by recruiting more defectors or training their own. As for a cultivation system, if one only wanted to foster powerful ninjas, it was not overly complex. With a large enough base of low-level ninjas, gifted individuals would naturally emerge.

Nagato, controlling Pain, was aware of the organization's shortcomings, but he had never considered these factors before. In his view, if his subordinates could get the job done, he would use them; if not, he would handle it himself.

Things were different now. Sisha had offered a brilliant suggestion. By adopting this strategy, the Akatsuki could consolidate more power and achieve its goals much faster.

While Pain was still deliberating, Sisha continued, "The Hidden Rain Village doesn't actually lack missions right now. The number of employers coming here to commission tasks has reached an all-time high. With Kakuzu and me here, that number will only increase. As our reputation in the black market continues to ferment, more clients will come."

"Subjugating or uniting the Hidden Grass Village would bring immense gains. Once we control them, we can utilize their learning capabilities and research prowess to serve our ends. We would accumulate more wealth. With a larger base of lower-level ninjas, outstanding individuals will inevitably rise. They could serve as subordinates to our core members, handling high-difficulty—though not extreme-difficulty—missions. In short, following this line of thinking, there is much we can do that would benefit the organization’s development."

When Sisha finished, the members present on the tower platform looked surprised. They knew little of Sisha, previously viewing him only as a mission-obsessed maniac. Now, they realized that beyond his combat prowess, he possessed deep strategic insight. Could Sisha serve as the Akatsuki's strategist, much like the Nara clan for the Hidden Leaf?

The thought crossed their minds, but vanished just as quickly. There was no need to ask; if given the choice between going on a mission or staying behind to devise strategy, Sisha would undoubtedly choose the mission without a second thought.

Pain looked at Konan. They shared a silent understanding: Sisha was right.

As the others pondered, Sisha felt a sense of self-satisfaction. He knew these things because he was a transmigrator; his previous life provided a vast repository of decision-making knowledge. These strategies were universally applicable. His suggestion was essentially "vertical and horizontal alliances"—uniting the smaller villages to confront the giants. Even if they didn't produce core members, they would certainly produce talent worth cultivating. Many legendary ninjas started as underachievers—like Might Guy, Jiraiya, or even Obito. The Akatsuki and the Hidden Rain certainly possessed the resources and technology to train them.

After weighing the options, Pain reached a decision. He looked at Sisha with a serious expression. "Your proposal is excellent. I have decided to adopt your strategy and subjugate the Hidden Grass Village."

Sisha beamed, rubbing his hands together. "That'll cost extra!"

Pain: "???"

Sisha chuckled sheepishly. "Ah, haha, every job has its own price! Different missions and services require different fees. Besides, setting facts aside, who would put in the effort without a little extra incentive? If you want the horse to run, you have to feed it, right?"

Pain had no temper left for someone as bizarre as Sisha. He could either compromise or send someone else, but no one else in the organization was capable of completing this task so perfectly. Furthermore, the long-term benefits to the organization were undeniable.

Pain compromised. "Very well. The organization will pay you and Kakuzu 10 million ryo to subjugate the Hidden Grass Village."

Sisha shook his head. "Lord Pain, the situation in the Hidden Grass is complex. They are split into two major internal factions that are not only constantly fighting but are also extremely xenophobic. They are not easy to deal with. Moreover, their ninjas are adept at studying the techniques of other villages. They are rumored to possess powerful ninja tools, some supposedly dating back to the Sage of Six Paths."

As Sisha prepared to elaborate further on the difficulties, Pain cut him off. "I understand. Get to the point!"

Sisha rubbed his hands again, grinning. "In short, for this mission, the price needs to go up. It’s not much—let's make it equal to the bounty on Master Chiriku."

Pain and the other members twitched at the mention. Sisha had spent too much time with Kakuzu and picked up his bad habits—like measuring people by the value of their bounties, which was undeniably rude.

Pain turned his gaze toward Kakuzu, as he didn't know the current market bounty on the former Guardian Shinobi of the Fire Temple. "How much is Chiriku’s bounty?"

Kakuzu answered without hesitation, "36 million ryo!"

He was very familiar with these figures. Before Sisha joined, he spent most of his time planning how to take down those with high bounties. As for now, Kakuzu was exhausted by Sisha’s "mission-perpetual-motion machine" energy and just wanted a break.

Hearing the figure, Pain began to consider: to offset this massive expense, should he go and kill Chiriku himself?