"Not good—!"
Seeing the Asura Path puppet get obliterated, Nagato's expression changed abruptly. His hands flew through seals as terrifying ocular power erupted from his Rinnegan.
"Shinra Tensei!"
In the next instant, under Nagato's control, the Deva Path released a vast repulsive shockwave at extreme speed, trying to blast Uchiha Ren away.
Unfortunately—
The Deva Path was disappointed.
That all-repelling Shinra Tensei hadn't even reached Ren's body before it was forcibly shattered by a surge of tremor-force.
"How is that possible?!"
Realizing his attack had done absolutely nothing, the Deva Path's expression shifted. He immediately canceled Shinra Tensei, retreating while once again driving the Rinnegan's power to its limit.
"Super Shinra Tensei!"
Buzz—!
In an instant, an even more terrifying repulsive shockwave swept outward. The sheer pressure was so intense that visible cracks formed in the air itself.
"Heh. It's useless."
Ren remained completely unfazed. As tremor-force and Armament Haki surged together, he clenched his fist and struck again.
Boom—!
A deafening roar echoed through the sky.
Before countless stunned eyes, Ren's fist slammed head-on into the repulsive wave, detonating an overwhelming collision of energy.
Then—
That seemingly invincible Ultra Shinra Tensei lasted only a few seconds before being violently shattered.
Yes.
Smashed apart—by force.
"Summoning Technique: Multi-Headed Hellhound!"
"Summoning Technique: Eight-Headed Bird!"
"Summoning Technique: Giant Bull!"
Taking advantage of the brief opening the Deva Path had bought, the Animal Path rapidly formed seals and summoned a hellhound, an eight-headed bird, and a massive rhinoceros. All three reeked of foul stench as they lunged straight at Ren.
"This is boring. I'm done playing."
Ren frowned at the three grotesque beasts. He clenched his fist—
And pale-white tremor-force, visible to the naked eye, flooded the air, engulfing the monsters and the remaining Paths of Pain.
"Shock."
The low word fell.
In the next instant, the white light erupted into a massive vibrational shockwave. Space itself trembled slightly—then the force crashed down on the remaining Paths of Pain.
Seeing this, Nagato's expression tightened. He gritted his teeth and hurriedly maneuvered the Preta Path to the front, attempting to absorb the incoming power.
But—
Reality was cruel.
The Preta Path could absorb chakra and ninjutsu—but against this terrifying vibrational force, it didn't even last a second before being shattered.
Bang—! Bang—! Bang—!
A chain of explosive sounds rang out.
The hellhound, the eight-headed bird, the giant rhinoceros, the Deva Path, the Human Path, the Animal Path, and the Naraka Path—
All of them were pulverized in an instant.
Silence.
Absolute silence fell over the battlefield.
From Ren's first strike to the complete annihilation of the Six Paths of Pain, less than half a minute had passed.
Even Uchiha Obito, Black Zetsu, White Zetsu, and Konan were too stunned to react.
"How… is this possible?"
The Six Paths of Pain—erased without the slightest chance to fight back.
What kind of monstrous power was this?
As the shock finally set in, Obito, Black Zetsu, White Zetsu, and Konan all felt their hearts seize, disbelief rippling through them.
"He's not from the Ōtsutsuki… so how did Uchiha Ren reach this level? He's even more terrifying than Senju Hashirama or Uchiha Madara ever were—and he knows so many secrets of the shinobi world…"
Among them, Black Zetsu felt the most conflicted.
As Kaguya's will incarnate, he could clearly sense that Ren carried neither Indra's nor Asura's aura.
In truth, ever since the night of the Uchiha massacre, Black Zetsu had suspected Ren might be from the Ōtsutsuki main line.
But after investigating, he'd found nothing—
Ren was simply a native Uchiha. Ordinary. Unremarkable.
Pfft—!
Blood sprayed through the air.
Suspended in the sky, Nagato vomited violently. From excessive use of ocular power, thin trails of bloody tears were already leaking from his Rinnegan.
"Nagato, we need to retreat!"
Seeing Nagato continuously coughing up blood, Obito spoke with a grave expression.
"The Fifth Hokage is far too strong. We can't fight him at our current level."
"…Alright."
After learning that both he and Nagato were merely Madara's pawns, Obito felt a rare sense of shared misery toward him.
If they were both pieces on the board—
Then all the more reason to stick together.
"No."
Nagato glanced toward Konan, standing atop the tower. A cold glint flashed through his Rinnegan.
"This is the Rain Village. I can't retreat."
He brought his hands together—
And once again forced the Rinnegan's power into motion.
"…Is he planning to—?"
Seeing this, Obito, Black Zetsu, and White Zetsu all frowned.
If that technique was used—
The Rain Village would be finished.
"Hahahahaha!"
Nagato didn't care anymore.
He laughed wildly in midair, his expression twisted with madness.
"Fifth Hokage! Even if I'm a pawn—this is the ninja way I chose for myself!"
"I'll show you the true power of the Rinnegan!"
"Chibaku Tensei!"
Buzz—!
As the words left his mouth, Nagato's chakra and ocular power surged violently. Under his control, a pitch-black sphere formed and rose into the sky above the Rain Village.
The next moment—
Without any warning—
That black sphere unleashed an attraction even more terrifying than Banshō Ten'in, instantly enveloping the entire Rain Village.
Boom—!
Under that overwhelming gravitational pull, the Rain Village began to tremble violently. Deafening rumbles echoed as buildings cracked apart and the ground shattered.
In the end—
Countless chunks of stone tore free from the earth, rising uncontrollably into the sky.
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