Uchiha in Zenless Zone Zero

Since its founding, the Akatsuki organization had only three members besides Zhong Yan.

Due to the small number of members and the lack of a clear objective, Zhong Yan rarely assigned them missions.

But this time, things were different.

The trail on the Exaltists had gone cold. Zhong Yan no longer had a way to track them, but taking a step back to investigate Hollow Zero posed no such issue.

Back when massive Ethereal outbreaks occurred, he had already begun to suspect that deep within Hollow Zero, there might be an even more powerful being.

Such an entity would hold absolute dominance over the Ethereal species, possessing power far beyond even the colossal Ethereals they had previously encountered.

Because of his children, Zhong Yan had shelved this mission. But with Ying now part of the team, their overall strength had jumped a tier—so he decided it was time to explore the deepest regions of Hollow Zero.

Of the three members, the one most familiar with Hollow Zero was undoubtedly Airi.

She had escaped from the Exaltists using the twisted and labyrinthine terrain of Hollow Zero to her advantage.

Moreover, as a half-human, half-Ethereal being, her unique physiology meant Ethereals would not attack her within Hollow Zero. As such, she could access areas most people couldn't, and her understanding of Hollow Zero even exceeded Zhong Yan's.

With her as team leader, guiding the investigation into Hollow Zero was clearly a wise choice.

The combined strength of the three meant that even colossal Ethereals might not be able to wipe them out—let alone the Exaltists, unless they deployed three or more of the Twelve Shields at once, which was highly unlikely.

"Speaking of which, Boss, I've heard rumors... there's a big guy deep in Hollow Zero. They say it's the ruler of all Ethereals—but I've never seen it with my own eyes," said Airi, brushing off some dust from her clothes with a serious expression.

Zhong Yan responded calmly, "If there's a rumor, then it increases the likelihood it's real. Your mission is to find out whether this being actually exists. For safety's sake, I'll be going with you."

The three exchanged glances. Only Ying didn't quite grasp what Zhong Yan meant—she hadn't yet seen his power and was still unaware of what he was truly capable of.

But that would change soon enough. Once the organization began handling more missions, not just the trio—Zhong Yan himself would be taking action more frequently.

"Boss... if we really do find that thing, what are you going to do?" Chi suddenly asked the question that was on everyone's mind.

If Zhong Yan was determined to confirm the being's existence, what would he do once it was found? Would he try to destroy it?

That seemed possible. With his strength, it wouldn't be hard. But... could he actually win?

This was said to be the strongest entity among the Ethereals—far more powerful than anything they'd encountered before.

If it could be destroyed, Hollow Zero as a whole would likely shrink dramatically.

That was exactly why they were worried—whether or not Zhong Yan could defeat it.

"I know what you're thinking," Zhong Yan said slowly in response to Chi's question. "I do intend to destroy it... but not now. For now, we're just confirming its existence. The rest—we'll decide later."

Shrinking Hollow Zero would be a tremendous win for all of New Eridu. And Zhong Yan certainly intended to go that far—but only after unlocking the Rinnegan.

At his current pace, it would take only a few more months before he could purchase the Rinnegan from the system's store. Once that happened, his power would leap to a truly terrifying level—far beyond what it was now.

Only with the Rinnegan would Zhong Yan be confident enough to sweep through Hollow Zero with ease. As for now... it was best to wait. He couldn't afford any unexpected accidents in his current state.

"All right, I won't waste any more words. From here, do as you see fit. Just coordinate with me when necessary," he said, casting a glance over the three before activating Kamui and absorbing them all into the dimensional space.

When they reappeared, they were already deep inside Hollow Zero.

They had arrived at one of its innermost regions—a place untouched by official personnel, ensuring they wouldn't be discovered.

It also served as an ideal starting point. From here, heading deeper wouldn't take long, and they'd soon reach Hollow Zero's deepest zone.

Zhong Yan's current worry was that there might be more than one such being. That's why he had brought the team along—otherwise, even just his shadow clones could've swept the entire Hollow.

...

Soon, the investigation began.

At first, Airi, Chi, and Ying moved together, but it quickly became clear that their pace was too slow.

So, they synced up their communication systems and, once assured they could alert each other to danger immediately, split up.

Airi headed north, Chi east, and Ying west.

Before long, the three entered the core of Hollow Zero—once the most prosperous district of Old Eridu. Now, all that remained were endless ruins.

Ether crystals blanketed the streets. Packs of Ethereals wandered through the area, some of them massive and powerful.

The deeper one went into Hollow Zero, the more giant Ethereals appeared—and eventually, even colossal ones.

Ying was the first to encounter one. Tasked with scouting the west, she spotted a hulking figure in the distance. Rather than recklessly approach, she immediately informed Airi and Chi.

Zhong Yan received the message as well. But since their target wasn't the giant creature, they decided not to alert it.

Ying pressed on, leveraging the mobility of her mech to reach Hollow Zero's deepest sector.

Even Zhong Yan had rarely ventured into this area. The density of Ethereals here was staggering—even he found it troubling to move through unscathed.

Ying was no exception. Along the way, she had already cut down many Ethereals. Though their plan had originally been to stay undetected, that goal had clearly already failed.