Naruto: I Reign Supreme with Templates Across the Multiverse.

At this moment, Kakuzu, Hidan, and Sasori all had strange expressions on their faces. Despite being members of the Akatsuki, getting along was never their strong suit.

Although they wore the same cloaks and shared the same goals, none of them were particularly easy to cooperate with.

Take Kakuzu for instance—he had already killed three or four of his own teammates.

So, when the trio met, they'd already "greeted" each other in their usual fashion.

The result? A stalemate. None of them could kill the others.

Kakuzu had five hearts—five lives. Neither Hidan nor Sasori could finish him off.

Hidan, a devout follower of Jashin, was immortal.

Sasori was even more troublesome. If his puppet body was damaged, he could replace it.

None of them were truly immortal, but none could be taken down easily either.

"Hey! Who's taking care of this Jinchūriki?" Sasori asked in his dry, hoarse voice, staring at Utakata.

"Leave him to me!" Hidan replied, brandishing his bloodstained scythe with a fanatical grin.

"A Jinchūriki—I must dedicate him to Lord Jashin!"

Kakuzu grunted. "Enough chatter, let's get this over with. Time is money!"

Utakata had already realized who he was facing—the black cloaks with red clouds made it obvious. Akatsuki.

He said nothing, simply retrieved a small horn from his robe and blew it sharply.

Utakata's Bubble Ninjutsu was unique. He fought using chakra-infused bubbles.

These weren't ordinary bubbles. Some trapped enemies, cutting off their chakra flow entirely.

Suddenly, Hidan's scythe sliced across Utakata's skin. Blood dripped down the blade as it returned to Hidan's hand.

He licked it.

This was Utakata's first encounter with this kind of ritualistic combat. He had been caught off guard, his skin torn by the curved edge of the scythe.

Hidan moved swiftly, each motion designed to draw blood with practiced efficiency. He spun the scythe, letting the rope whip it back and forth toward his prey.

But just then, a storm of senbon needles came flying through the air, shattering the chakra bubbles before they could land.

Without hesitation, Sasori had activated his hidden puppet mechanisms.

Still, this wasn't an easy fight.

Utakata's bubbles could expand and trap enemies within, crushing them as they popped.

"The ritual begins!" Hidan shouted, his body turning black and white in a ritual pattern. He drew a symbol on the ground using his own blood.

A sharp spear pierced his chest.

At that exact moment, Utakata screamed and collapsed, clutching his heart.

"Lord Jashin! Do you see my offering?!" Hidan howled like a lunatic—until Kakuzu kicked him out of the ritual circle.

Furious at the interruption, Hidan raised his scythe, ready to fight Kakuzu then and there.

Kakuzu scowled. "Who told you to strike his heart? He needs to stay alive until we extract the tailed beast."

Sasori muttered, "Let's go. Inform Pain to begin the sealing."

The three took Utakata's weakened body and moved to a nearby uninhabited island.

There, Kakuzu used Earth Release to construct a temporary underground palace. They carried the half-dead Jinchūriki inside.

Sealing a tailed beast required time—and total silence from outsiders.

Elsewhere, Pain's Deva Path stood atop a high peak, overseeing the planned assault on Kumogakure.

The Hidden Village was already under pressure; both the Two-Tails and Eight-Tails had been captured.

Inside the carved-out mountain, Nagato and Konan had established a temporary base of operations.

Once inside the palace, Kakuzu activated his Akatsuki ring, contacting Deva Path Pain.

"Did Kakuzu, Uchiha Itachi, and Kisame Hoshigaki all succeed?" Nagato asked, channeling his voice through Deva Path.

The holograms of Akatsuki members materialized atop the fingers of the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path.

Deva Path Pain said, "You all completed your missions?"

Uchiha Itachi replied coldly, "The Three-Tails is under my Mangekyō Sharingan control. We're within a secure mountain range."

Kisame grinned. "Rōshi is with me. Samehada drained all the chakra from him—and from the Four-Tails too."

Kakuzu added, "We've secured the Six-Tails' Jinchūriki, but he's barely alive. That idiot Hidan stabbed him in the vitals."

"What did you say, Kakuzu, you bastard?!" Hidan shouted. "That was a sacred sacrifice to Lord Jashin!"

Pain ignored the outburst. "Very well, let's begin the sealing. Itachi, Kisame—your Jinchūriki can wait in the back row, yes?"

Itachi nodded. "The Three-Tails won't wake for at least a month. My illusion is absolute."

Kisame smirked. "Samehada is keeping Rōshi nice and drained. No problem here."

"Good," Pain said. "Let's start."

Though the optimal order was from One-Tail to Nine-Tails, the Akatsuki didn't follow it strictly.

The Five-Tails and Seven-Tails had already been sealed before Shukaku.

This disorder made the process harder—but their power made up for it.

Pain's projection appeared next to Kakuzu via the Akatsuki ring. He summoned the Gedo Statue, and the others appeared on its fingers.

The members pooled their chakra, activating the statue.

Nine dragons made of chakra erupted from its mouth, spiraling through the air.

They roared forward, impaling Utakata.

The unconscious Jinchūriki screamed as red Six-Tails chakra flooded out of him and into the Gedo Statue.

The sealing lasted three days and nights.

"Take a break. Two more tailed beasts remain," Pain said stoically.

Behind the scenes, Nagato exhaled deeply, his thin body trembling.

He was emaciated—barely holding on.

"The invasion will have to wait… at least another two weeks," he thought.

The sealing took too long, and Nagato's condition was worsening. He needed help.

If only Madara Uchiha would take over… sealing tailed beasts would be effortless.

With the power of the Gedo Statue, it was like leashing monsters with chakra chains.

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