The Animal Path wasn't just capable of summoning bizarre ninja beasts; its most vital function was the ability to summon the other Six Paths puppets at any time. As long as the Animal Path remained functional, the puppets could safely retreat whenever necessary.
The power of the Rinnegan was truly broken, practically a death sentence for anyone facing it for the first time. Even someone as powerful as Jiraiya in Sage Mode had once struggled due to a lack of information and ultimately met a tragic end.
Among the Six Paths puppets, Yahiko, serving as the Deva Path, was the core of cores. His Shinra Tensei and Bansho Ten'in were incredibly unpredictable. The ability to release them without hand signs caught many ninjas off guard, and his massive area-of-effect ultimate moves like Chibaku Tensei and Chō Shinra Tensei were practically peerless.
The Human Path's ability to extract souls was perfect for both close combat and interrogation. The Preta Path specialized in defense and could effortlessly crush ninjutsu-focused fighters; even taijutsu experts risked having their chakra instantly drained upon contact. The Hell Path focused on support, while the Asura Path provided continuous heavy firepower. Finally, the Animal Path could suppress enemies with its persistent and troublesome Multi-Headed Hounds. With the Six Paths puppets coordinating together, it was no wonder Nagato felt so confident.
Unfortunately, every 'perfect' plan has its flaw.
But in this case, the flaw was that Makiya possessed complete intelligence on Nagato. Furthermore, his raw strength was on par with—if not superior to—Nagato's. In a direct confrontation, Nagato held no advantage.
Hidden far from Konoha, Nagato's face grew grim. He had lost two puppets shortly after the battle began. This was a setback he had never encountered before, not even during his conquest of the Hidden Rain Village.
"Why have you gone silent? I thought you were going to talk more trash." Makiya lightly rolled his wrists and lowered his stance. "If you have nothing else to say, then get ready... because here I come!!"
As the last syllable fell, Makiya's figure vanished instantly, leaving only a faint blue afterimage in his wake.
A combination of Shunpo, Shunko, the mechanics of the Strength of a Hundred, Body Flicker, and High-Speed Movement... Makiya had integrated movement techniques from multiple worlds. The speed he generated in that short burst even startled himself; he nearly lost control of the momentum.
BOOM!
By the time the sonic boom reached the puppets' ears, Makiya was already behind one of them.
Of the remaining four puppets, excluding the newly arrived Animal Path and the Deva Path, it was a fifty-fifty choice. The probability of hitting the Hell Path was high.
He slammed a palm into the chest of the puppet before him. White flames erupted from his palm like a sharp blade piercing through the puppet's torso, the fire venting out of the puppet's mouth and nose.
The puppet reached out to grab Makiya as a strange ripple distorted the space. Makiya felt his soul shudder, as if it were on the verge of being separated from his physical body.
'This one is the Human Path. Dammit, I missed the coin flip.'
The Human Path's soul-snatching ability was lethal in a one-on-one fight, but Makiya's soul was incredibly resilient—far beyond what Nagato could shake.
The Human Path's eyes widened in shock. He hadn't been able to affect Makiya for even a second. It was the first time the Rinnegan's ability had failed so completely.
The flames crackled loudly. These puppets were created by Nagato using the corpses of ninjas. A normal person would have been screaming in agony from being incinerated by such high temperatures.
The Human Path was sent flying like a ball of fire. The Deva Path's eyes twitched. He had lost another one. The opponent's speed was so great that even with four pairs of eyes watching, they couldn't capture Makiya's movements.
"Dammit, how can he be this strong? It's impossible..." Nagato's true body was panting heavily, not because of chakra depletion, but purely out of shock.
The mindset of a god began to fracture.
"Nagato, maybe we should—" Beside him, Konan, the Angel dressed in her black cloak with red clouds, whispered with concern.
"Shut up!!" Nagato roared. "This is a clash between 'Gods'! I will bet everything on this battle!"
Konan was startled by his outburst. Since Yahiko's death, she had never seen Nagato lose his composure like this.
After his outburst, Nagato realized what he had done and quickly apologized. "I'm sorry, Konan. I shouldn't have yelled at you."
"It's fine," Konan shook her head. "No matter what you do, I will support you."
"Chō Shinra Tensei!!!"
The Deva Path's mouth pulled back into a snarl as he clasped his hands together in front of his chest. His fingers gripped tightly, veins bulging on his forearms.
An unprecedented and terrifying repulsive force erupted from the Deva Path. This pressure, capable of blowing away a Tailed Beast, instantly peeled away over ten meters of topsoil, crushing it deep into the ground.
Makiya gripped the Kusanagi Sword, pouring a massive amount of Senjutsu chakra into the blade. An invisible sword intent erupted, slicing the clouds drifting overhead in two.
"Sage Art: Ultimate Sword Art: Drawing Slash!"
An azure blade light flashed for an instant, colliding with the terrifying repulsion. A visible semi-transparent barrier kicked up countless rocks and trunks, yet its advance slowed before the upward-surging blade light.
The blade light and the repulsive force locked in a struggle. The semi-transparent barrier looked like a balloon filled with air, being squeezed down the center by a thin wire, bulging on both sides and denting in the middle.
The air went silent for a brief second. In the next moment, a massive explosion erupted.
BOOM!
The flawless repulsive barrier was cleaved in two. The blade light dimmed slightly but continued to fly through the chaotic turbulence of the repulsion before finally dissipating.
The severed Shinra Tensei spiraled out of control. No longer expanding in a single direction, the chaotic turbulence of repulsive force began attacking everyone on the battlefield indiscriminately, including the Deva Path himself.
Nagato controlled the Deva Path to retreat constantly. Meanwhile, the Hell Path used the chaos to stealthily hide its presence, creeping along the edge of the battlefield. It was clearly up to something.
Makiya seized the opportunity to shadow the Deva Path. He deliberately led the fight toward the woods away from Konoha. To avoid the village being destroyed by the shockwaves of their battle, he wanted to drag the fight as far away as possible, which also favored his own combat style.
"Summoning Jutsu!"
A massive array appeared. As the white smoke cleared, a horde of summoned beasts roared and lunged at Makiya. Though they weren't as gargantuan as the primary summons, they were still a force to be reckoned with.
Makiya wondered how Nagato had even raised them. They clearly started as ordinary animals, but it was as if they'd been fed some super-growth formula to become so massive.
The Deva Path took the chance to rest and wait for his ability's cooldown. The summoned beasts fought without fear of death, using their lives to delay Makiya's advance.
White flames slashed through the air amidst a cacophony of beastly roars.
While Makiya was occupied with the Deva Path, the Hell Path had crawled toward the ruined body of the Asura Path. Of the three destroyed puppets, only the Asura Path had a chance of being repaired; the other two had been burned to ash.
The special metal within the Asura Path's body was miraculous, as even Makiya's white flames hadn't completely melted it.
A massive, demonic face appeared beside the Hell Path, resembling the King of Hell emerging from the depths. Its abyss-like mouth slowly opened, and a pink, arm-like tongue reached out from the darkness, wetly grabbing the battered remains of the Asura Path.
Pshhh!
A white blade pierced through the back of the Hell Path's neck, exiting through the front of its skull. Flames incinerated it instantly, and the smell of charred flesh wafted from the corpse.
"I've been keeping an eye on you. You really thought you could revive them right in front of me?" Makiya appeared behind the Hell Path, his Kusanagi Sword swinging down heavily. The poor Hell Path was cleaved in two, falling to either side while wreathed in white flames.
On the remains of the Asura Path, the character for 'One' was etched—it was Makiya's Flying Raijin mark.
Although he wasn't particularly fond of using Flying Raijin in the middle of a brawl, an occasional use could produce miraculous results.
On the other side, the Deva Path's expression became exceptionally grim. He had already lost four of the Six Paths. The battle had turned dire; it was time to go all out.
"Haaa!!!"
The Deva Path let out a low roar. Simultaneously, hidden within the paper barrier, Nagato also roared, coughing up a pool of fresh blood.
"Nagato..." Konan clenched her fists tightly, her face full of worry. She didn't dare disturb him and could only pray in silence.
"Makiya Uchiha, since you could withstand the Chō Shinra Tensei, I acknowledge your strength. But can you survive this..." The Deva Path's face looked like it was breaking apart, his eyes wide with a manic intensity. "Chibaku Tensei!!!"
An inconspicuous black sphere flew from the Deva Path's hand, slowly rising into the high altitude, soaring higher and higher under the glow of the moonlight.
Simultaneously, a mysterious gravitational pull began to release. Rocks, vegetation, and all surface debris began to float slowly, as if gravity had suddenly vanished.
Whoosh!
Minato appeared in front of Makiya, his expression grave. "Makiya, how is the battle... wait, what kind of jutsu is this?"