"Is this the 'dangerous person' that slippery creature was talking about?"
As the smoke slowly cleared, Sasori stared coldly at the figure walking toward them, his brows tightening slightly.
He hated people from Konohagakure. That hatred didn't lessen even after Orochimaru defected—it only deepened. But for Sasori, there were certain types he despised even more.
Konoha ninja.
White hair.
Sword users.
And by sheer coincidence—or perhaps fate—Natsuhiko checked every single one of those boxes. If you added ANBU into the mix, then he was practically the perfect embodiment of everything Sasori loathed.
Of course, Sasori didn't truly hate Natsuhiko himself.
The one he hated was Sakumo Hatake—the man who had killed his parents. That hatred naturally extended to Kakashi Hatake as well.
And Natsuhiko… with a mask on, lacking only the Sharingan and Lightning Release, could easily pass for Kakashi. He could even use that disguise to stir up trouble if he wanted.
That said, Natsuhiko himself had plenty of reasons to clash with Sasori. Counting his different identities, he had already made moves against Sasori twice.
"You—who are you?" Pain asked indifferently, his Rinnegan fixed firmly on Natsuhiko. For some reason, he felt a faint but growing sense of danger.
"Me?" Natsuhiko shrugged casually, a faint smile forming on his lips. "Just a passerby."
He paused for a moment before adding lightly, "You can take that as politeness if you want. But what you just did… that was pretty dangerous."
"I see. Then let me rephrase," Pain's expression grew colder, clearly displeased with Natsuhiko's attitude. "What is your relationship with Orochimaru?"
"What does that have to do with you?" Natsuhiko let out a soft, mocking chuckle. His gaze shifted toward Sasori. "Speaking of which, we've got quite a bit of history, don't we? That guy next to you has caused us quite a lot of trouble."
Trouble?
That wasn't a word to be taken lightly—especially coming from someone with this kind of attitude. It sounded less like a complaint and more like a warning.
This situation caught Nagato slightly off guard, but it confirmed one thing for him:
This man was most likely an enemy.
And if he was an enemy, then there was no need for unnecessary words. The only reason Nagato hadn't acted yet was because of Orochimaru's involvement.
Besides, even if they were enemies, it wasn't a big deal. If Natsuhiko had enough strength, persuading him to join them wasn't entirely impossible.
But before that, there were things that needed to be clarified.
Nagato turned his gaze toward Sasori.
At that moment, Sasori was frowning, studying Natsuhiko carefully. There was something familiar about him—something that stirred a deep sense of disgust.
After a moment of thought, realization suddenly struck him.
"You're that brat who released the lizard back then?" Sasori said, his voice low. "Or should I say… the Konoha Nightingale of the Senju Clan?"
"Konoha Nightingale…" Nagato murmured, clearly recognizing the name.
After all, that name had made itself known—whether through the chaos in Sunagakure or during the Nine-Tails Attack on Konoha.
According to the latest intelligence, this "Konoha Nightingale" had already become the commander of the ANBU. No matter how you looked at it, he was extremely dangerous.
Flying Thunder God Technique.
Wood Release.
Either of those abilities alone was enough to make anyone wary.
But to Nagato, they were nothing more than minor concerns.
After all, he was a god walking among men.
With the power of the Rinnegan, there was no way he would be intimidated by such techniques—nor defeated by them.
"It's me," Natsuhiko nodded lightly. The chakra within his body had already begun to stir and ripple outward. "You guys really don't know when to quit. No matter where I go, I keep running into you."
The air grew tense.
And just like that, the battle was about to begin.
Sasori stared at Natsuhiko with the same cold, lifeless gaze as before, his expression completely unchanged, as if he were nothing more than a corpse.
"I didn't expect the commander of the ANBU to be associating with a traitor of Konoha."
There was no surprise in his voice, no anger, no emotion at all—just emptiness.
Strictly speaking, the two standing in front of Natsuhiko both gave off that same feeling. In a way, they were perfect examples of the living dead.
Thinking of that, Natsuhiko was reminded of Kakuzu. That guy was technically still alive, but his body structure had long since drifted far from anything resembling a normal human.
After their last encounter—when Natsuhiko had crushed him using the power of the Nine-Tails—he hadn't bothered to check what became of him.
But that kind of thing didn't matter much to him now.
To Natsuhiko, there were only two types of people: useful and useless. There was no such thing as someone needing to stay alive just because of some "plot importance."
"And why exactly should I explain myself to a traitor from Sunagakure?" Natsuhiko said with a dismissive shake of his head.
His gaze then shifted toward Nagato.
"The Rinnegan, huh? That's quite an interesting pair of eyes. I used to think the story of the Hagoromo Ōtsutsuki was just a legend… but it seems there's some truth to it after all."
"Why shouldn't legends be real?" Nagato replied calmly through Pain. His expression remained completely indifferent, his eyes steady and unmoved, as if nothing in this world could shake him. "The only reason you doubt them is because you lack the power to stand against them."
Behind Natsuhiko, Orochimaru slowly licked his lips, having listened to the entire exchange. His interest had been fully piqued.
The Rinnegan…
A pair of eyes spoken of only in legends had actually appeared in reality?
The thought stirred a dangerous curiosity deep within him. Orochimaru had always been fascinated by the unknown.
Still, he remained calm.
After being repeatedly forced back—once by Natsuhiko, and once by that mysterious man who controlled the Nine-Tails—he had learned the importance of patience.
And then there was Natsuhiko himself.
Those eyes…
A pair of strange, deep blue eyes that inspired both fear and fascination.
Orochimaru had no idea what they were. He had never seen or read about anything like them in any record.
More importantly, as a member of the Senju Clan, Natsuhiko shouldn't have possessed any special ocular power at all.
Yet those eyes… were not even afraid of the Mangekyō Sharingan—and could even overwhelm it.
"How intriguing…" Orochimaru murmured softly, his tongue brushing against his lips again. He could already sense it—Natsuhiko was about to make a move.
As for why, he didn't know.
But one thing was certain—
This was going to be interesting.
"You seem pretty confident I can't stand against you," Natsuhiko said with a light chuckle, his eyes filled with amusement as he looked at Nagato and Sasori. "But from where I'm standing… it looks more like you've come all this way just to deliver those eyes to me."
"Is that so?" Nagato replied coldly.
At that moment, the chakra within Pain surged to its peak. He slightly raised his head, his tone as indifferent as ever.
"Provoking a god is an act of pure stupidity. I am a god walking among men."
"A god?" Natsuhiko raised an eyebrow, a faint smile forming on his lips.
Then, slowly, he closed his eyes.
A strange, powerful chakra began to gather around him, building silently like a storm about to break.
"Let me see… if you're really worthy of that title."
The moment his words fell, Natsuhiko opened his eyes again—
And a brilliant, radiant blue light burst forth within them.
...
Not far from the battlefield, hidden deep within a forest, Nagato's expression finally changed.
Through the body of Pain, he could clearly see it—
The silver-haired "Konoha Nightingale"…
His eyes had shifted from black to a dazzling blue.
And the instant those eyes appeared, an overwhelming pressure surged toward him—so intense it felt almost unreal.
What kind of eyes were those?
Even in all the intelligence reports, there had never been any mention that the commander of Konoha's ANBU possessed something like this.
And yet, those eyes gave Nagato a strange, unsettling feeling—one that he didn't want to acknowledge.
They didn't seem inferior to his Rinnegan at all.
He couldn't explain why he felt this way, but the mere thought of it irritated him deeply.
To him, the Rinnegan should be the one and only supreme eye in the ninja world. No other eyes deserved to stand on equal ground with it.
"What's wrong, Nagato?" Konan asked softly from beside him, noticing the subtle change in his expression.
"It's nothing," Nagato replied after taking a slow breath, his voice calm and controlled. "Just something… interesting. It'll be over soon. Very soon."
"Nagato… are you sure you're okay?" Konan frowned slightly. She knew him too well.
This calmness of his was exactly what worried her the most. But she also understood that if he didn't want to explain, pressing him wouldn't help.
Letting out a quiet sigh, she could only hope that nothing unexpected would happen this time.
Under normal circumstances, this mission shouldn't have posed any problems.
Even though Orochimaru was a legendary ninja, someone once mentioned in the same breath as Jiraiya, Konan still didn't believe he could stand against Nagato.
After all, Nagato wielded the Rinnegan.
And with that power, he had once slain Hanzo—the so-called demigod.
With strength like that, Konan had every reason to trust him.
Still, there was one thing she remained clear about, even if she had never said it out loud—
She didn't believe Nagato was a god.
In her eyes, there was no such thing as a god. And even if there were… it wouldn't be someone like Nagato.
What kind of god ends up crippled by their own power?
"Don't worry," Nagato said calmly, unaware of her thoughts. "I'll be fine. It's just a minor issue. I need to focus now."
"…Be careful, Nagato," Konan said after a brief hesitation, ultimately choosing not to press further.
...
On the battlefield, the chakra of Pain had already reached its peak.
He watched Natsuhiko closely, a rare sense of unease creeping into his mind. Something about this man felt… wrong.
But Natsuhiko gave him no time to think.
The moment that strange, overwhelming chakra burst forth and wrapped around Natsuhiko's body—
Pain, Sasori, and even Orochimaru all felt it.
A sudden, instinctive tremor ran through them.
Their hearts tightened.
Fear.
It was a feeling they thought they had long since outgrown.
Each of them had fought countless battles, walking the line between life and death more times than they could remember. They had faced horrors beyond imagination and survived.
And yet—
At this moment, they truly felt it again.
That long-forgotten sense of dread.
That suffocating pressure.
It made one thing painfully clear—
Natsuhiko, right now, was unbelievably dangerous.
"Are you ready?"
Natsuhiko's voice rang out slowly.
His figure had already become blurred, almost impossible to see clearly, as if his very existence was fading in and out of reality.
At the same time, he seemed more distant… more mysterious.
"I already told you," he continued calmly, "coming to stand in front of me is no different from handing over your Rinnegan."
A faint smile curved his lips.
"So I won't hold back—I'll gladly accept it."
The moment his words fell—
He moved.
In an instant, Natsuhiko turned into a streak of afterimage, shooting straight toward Nagato!
This time, he was going all out.
Although he wasn't using the Nine-Tails Chakra Mode, he was combining two different states at once.
It had to be said—
The compatibility of Sage Mode was absurdly powerful.
In the world of ninja, almost any transformation could be layered together with Sage Mode.
In the original story, Naruto Uzumaki had already demonstrated the combination of Nine-Tails Chakra Mode and Sage Mode.
As for whether his Six Paths form also incorporated Sage Mode…
Even Natsuhiko wasn't entirely sure.
But Natsuhiko clearly remembered something—
When Naruto Uzumaki tried to sense the power of the Ten-Tails, what he felt wasn't chakra in the usual sense, but an endless flow of natural energy.
And the Ten-Tails was a being on the level of the Six Paths.
Did that mean that once someone truly stepped into that realm, their power itself became indistinguishable from natural energy?
Natsuhiko didn't have a definite answer.
But one thing he was certain of—
Right now, as he used his Jōgan chakra mode in combination with Sage Mode, there wasn't even the slightest sense of conflict between the two. The fusion felt completely natural, as if they were meant to exist together.
"Damn it!"
Nagato reacted instantly. As the wielder of the Rinnegan, his perception was extraordinary—he caught Natsuhiko's movement the moment it began.
Chakra surged wildly through his body, and his eyes unleashed an overwhelming force.
"Shinra Tensei!"
In an instant, a terrifying repulsive force exploded outward from him, sweeping across everything in its path—
And at that exact moment, Natsuhiko's fist arrived.
"Buzz—!"
For a split second, it felt as if the world had frozen.
Natsuhiko's fist stopped less than ten centimeters away from Nagato.
So close—
Yet he couldn't push forward even a single inch.
Around his fist, violent currents of force spiraled outward, tearing through everything nearby. The ground beneath them shattered instantly, cracks spreading in all directions.
The trees that had already been blasted away by Shinra Tensei were now completely shredded into pieces by the sheer force of Natsuhiko's punch.
Seeing this, Sasori immediately leapt backward, retreating without hesitation.
At the same time, Orochimaru grabbed Kabuto Yakushi and fled in the opposite direction.
He had no intention of getting caught in this clash.
That boy—Kabuto—was someone Natsuhiko had deliberately left for him. And after witnessing this level of battle, Orochimaru had no desire to provoke Natsuhiko any further.
Because that man…
Those radiant blue eyes…
They were far more terrifying than he had imagined.
"Not bad. Your reaction speed is pretty quick," Natsuhiko said with a faint smile as he looked at Nagato, whose expression remained as indifferent as ever.
Of course, Natsuhiko knew very well—
The one in front of him was nothing more than a corpse.
Unless he beat him to the point of distortion like Naruto had once done, there would never be any change in his expression.
Still, that didn't stop him from teasing him a little.
Because at this moment—
Natsuhiko felt as if everything was within his control.
With the support of Sage Mode, his already absurdly powerful Jōgan chakra mode had been pushed to an entirely new level.
It was similar to how Naruto, after entering the second stage of the Nine-Tails Chakra Mode, could combine it with Sage Mode to fight—and even stand against someone like Six Paths Obito Uchiha.
Natsuhiko didn't think he had reached that level yet.
After all, his Jōgan was still in its early stage.
But he was confident in its growth potential. Even now, its power was already comparable to the first stage of his Nine-Tails Chakra Mode.
'Let's call this the budget version" Natsuhiko thought to himself. "If Sage Mode Naruto could beat Pain, I see no reason why I can't!'
The conclusion was clear in his mind—
There was no way this opponent could defeat him in his current state.
Unless…
Nagato could somehow use all abilities within a single body.
Still, Natsuhiko didn't let his guard down.
With ninjas, nothing was ever certain.
And this time, he intended to go all out—to truly test his limits and see just how far he could go.
With that thought, his figure suddenly vanished from in front of Pain.
In the next instant, he reappeared behind him like a ghost.
"Boom!"
Another punch exploded forward.
This time, the force behind it was even greater. With Sage Mode amplifying his strength, Natsuhiko had reached a terrifying peak.
"Damn it!"
Pain's body trembled slightly under the impact, and that subtle disturbance immediately made Nagato, controlling him from afar, curse under his breath.
Even now, Pain was still under the protection of Shinra Tensei—
And yet, within that overwhelming repulsive force…
Natsuhiko's punch still managed to shake him.
Just how terrifying was this guy's strength?
There was no time to think. The moment Natsuhiko disappeared again from behind him, Pain immediately realized what was happening—
This was the Flying Thunder God Technique.
Was it really possible to reach this level using nothing but taijutsu and space-time movement?
"Your repulsive force just faded."
Natsuhiko's voice suddenly echoed beside Pain's ear, calm and gentle, almost like a friend whispering casually.
But that very calmness sent a sharp chill through Nagato.
A terrible sense of danger rose in his chest.
"Boom!"
Right as the words fell, Natsuhiko's kick landed hard against Pain's body.
The impact sent him flying instantly, his body dragging across the ground and carving a long trench behind him. Everything in his path—rocks, trees, anything in the way—was completely smashed apart.
And he didn't stop.
That kick had been delivered with full force.
Pain's body continued hurtling backward for a long distance before he finally managed to stabilize himself. Fortunately, this body was already dead and strengthened by the power of the Rinnegan.
Otherwise, that single blow might have completely destroyed the body that once belonged to Yahiko.
"Not over yet."
Just as Pain regained his footing, Natsuhiko appeared in front of him again without any warning.
He moved instantly, grabbing Pain's arm and twisting it hard, not giving him even a moment to react.
But at the same time, Natsuhiko noticed something—
Chakra was already gathering rapidly within Pain's eyes.
Without hesitation, he released his grip and delivered another powerful kick, sending Pain flying once more.
"Boom!"
Another heavy impact echoed as Pain was blasted away again.
This time, however, there was a mountain about a hundred meters behind him.
Like a bullet, his body shot straight toward it—
"Rumble!"
In less than a second, a deafening explosion shook the surroundings.
The entire mountain trembled violently, cracks spreading across its surface as chunks of rock broke loose and crashed down.
It took quite a while before everything finally settled.
The mountain, after taking such a direct hit, now looked like it could collapse at any moment.
Standing at a distance, Natsuhiko could clearly see through his Jōgan—
The center of the mountain had been completely hollowed out by the impact.
Of course, it wasn't purely the result of the collision.
Nagato wasn't foolish. The moment he realized he couldn't fully control the situation, he had activated Shinra Tensei again.
The repulsive force had blocked part of the impact against the mountain. While it couldn't completely cancel out Natsuhiko's attack, it at least prevented things from becoming even worse.
"Honestly… I'm disappointed," Natsuhiko said calmly. "The Rinnegan is wasted on you."
Pain slowly stepped out from the rubble at the base of the mountain.
His black cloak with red clouds was already torn to shreds.
His body could endure the impact—but his clothes clearly couldn't.
Yet the moment he emerged, Natsuhiko's voice sounded by his ear once again.
Nagato, controlling Pain, slowly raised his head and looked forward.
In the distance stood Natsuhiko—
His figure almost unreal, wrapped in that same radiant blue chakra that shone as brilliantly as his eyes.
Pain's expression remained unchanged, but far away, Nagato's anger surged uncontrollably.
He couldn't accept this.
He truly couldn't accept what was happening.
Why did this man possess such overwhelming power?
What exactly were those blue eyes?
And why—
As the self-proclaimed god walking among men—
Was he unable to defeat him?
One question after another flashed through Nagato's mind.
But no one could give him an answer.
Even if someone had explained the truth to him, Nagato probably wouldn't have accepted it.
After all, he had lived his entire life believing that possessing the Rinnegan made him the living embodiment of the Sage of Six Paths.
Even if someone told him he was nothing more than a pawn—that his eyes had been deliberately given to him by Madara Uchiha as part of a plan for resurrection—he likely wouldn't believe a single word.
"…What exactly are your eyes?" Pain finally asked after a long silence. His voice was still cold, but the emotion hidden beneath it had clearly changed.
"My eyes?" Natsuhiko tilted his head slightly, then let out a soft sigh. "Even if I told you, it wouldn't make a difference. You're convinced your Rinnegan is the strongest, aren't you?"
"The Rinnegan is the eye of the Sage of Six Paths!" Pain's voice suddenly rose, his gaze locked onto Natsuhiko. "The Sage is the creator of the world—the one who built the entire shinobi world!"
"If you mean the ninja system, then sure—you're not wrong," Natsuhiko replied, shaking his head faintly.
At that moment, he actually felt a bit of pity for Nagato.
"But if you're saying he created the entire world… sorry, that's not how it works. And who told you the Rinnegan is unbeatable?" His tone turned calm, almost indifferent. "In the end, it's just that your understanding of this world is too shallow. You don't really know anything."
With that, Natsuhiko stopped.
He did feel some sympathy—but only that.
Giving Nagato a glimpse of truths he could never fully grasp was already more than enough.
Whether he accepted it or not had nothing to do with him.
What mattered now—
Was testing his own limits.
Natsuhiko wanted to go all out and see just how far his current power could take him.
If the opportunity presented itself…
He might even consider taking Nagato's Rinnegan.
Of course, not right now.
He had only recently planted Fugaku Uchiha's Mangekyō Sharingan, and he still didn't know what results it would bring.
Trying to obtain another Rinnegan at this stage—even if it came with benefits—might not align with his long-term plans.
Leaving Nagato alive, much like he had done with Danzo Shimura, could prove more valuable.
After all… they might end up bringing him an even greater surprise.
"Alright, enough talk," Natsuhiko said with a faint smile as he looked at the Deva Path of Pain. "Try not to disappoint me any further."
The moment his words ended—
The chakra within him surged violently.
He brought his hands together, and the ground began to tremble once more. The sheer force of it made it difficult to even stand steady.
"Wood Release: Deep Forest Emergence!"
Without any unnecessary flair, Natsuhiko chose the technique he was most familiar with.
As his chakra erupted, countless massive trees burst from the ground, rapidly spreading outward and restoring the forest that had been destroyed in their battle.
But this time, the scale was completely different.
Each tree was enormous—towering, suffocating in size—as they expanded wildly in every direction.
Wherever they spread, they wrapped around everything in their path.
Trees. Animals. Nothing was spared.
The surrounding vegetation withered instantly upon contact, while slower creatures were drained dry of life in an instant.
Those massive, trunk-like branches surged forward like a relentless tide, charging straight toward Pain with unstoppable force—as if they intended to devour the entire world.
"…This level of Wood Release…"
Watching the apocalyptic scene unfold before him, Nagato couldn't help but feel a trace of fear.
And then, to his shock—
He realized that the direction of the advancing forest… was heading straight toward his hidden location.
If those trees reached him, both he and Konan would be caught in it.
He had no doubt about the power of this technique.
This wasn't something a human should be able to use.
"…I have no choice."
"I'll have to go all out!"
Nagato took a deep breath and slowly closed his eyes, focusing entirely on controlling the Deva Path of Pain. At the same time, the chakra within his body began to surge wildly, rising at an alarming rate.
This change immediately caught Konan's attention.
She could clearly sense it—Nagato's chakra had grown to an almost unbelievable level.
She didn't know what was happening outside. All she could feel were the continuous tremors shaking the ground and the deafening roars echoing from afar.
But her duty was to protect Nagato.
There was no way she would leave his side to check.
Biting her lip slightly, Konan remained where she was, standing guard in silence. She didn't know what was going on—but she knew one thing for certain:
She had to protect him.
...
On the battlefield, Pain's expression remained as cold as ever, but the chakra surrounding him had reached a level that was almost suffocating.
Natsuhiko stood quietly atop a branch, his gaze fixed forward.
Through his Jōgan, he could clearly see it—
The chakra that had once been as thin as a wire, flowing from afar into the black receivers embedded in Pain's body, had now transformed into a raging torrent.
The sheer scale of it made even him click his tongue in surprise.
It felt… even greater than the amount of chakra he currently possessed.
"As expected of the Uzumaki Clan…" Natsuhiko murmured softly.
He knew he was often called the "Shame of the Senju" in terms of reserves, though he blamed his age more than his lineage.
Having massive chakra reserves came with too many advantages. But some things simply couldn't be forced.
At that moment, Pain suddenly raised both hands.
Under the influence of the Rinnegan, that vast chakra was rapidly refined and transformed.
In that instant, Natsuhiko felt it—
Danger.
He had never underestimated the Rinnegan, not even once.
Even though Nagato had only ever used its most basic abilities and had never fully combined them in life, that didn't mean the eye itself was weak.
When pushed to its limits, even a single ability of the Rinnegan could become terrifying beyond measure.
"…In that case."
Natsuhiko didn't hesitate.
The blue glow in his eyes flickered, and he quickly formed a hand seal with one hand.
At once, the raging forest came to a halt.
The countless trees and branches, like perfectly obedient soldiers, instantly stopped advancing. Then, they rose upright, intertwining and stacking upon one another, forming a dense, impenetrable wall of wood that completely enclosed Natsuhiko within.
And in the very next moment—
Pain's accumulated chakra erupted.
A blinding white light burst from his body, shining even brighter than the sun.
The world fell silent.
The air grew heavy, the pressure suffocating, as if the end of the world had arrived.
Then—
From his position as the center, an indescribable repulsive force exploded outward.
Everything in its surroundings was annihilated.
The mountain behind him was instantly flattened into barren ground. The earth collapsed downward, as if struck by divine punishment itself.
A technique like the wrath of a god descended upon the battlefield.
"Super Shinra Tensei!"
...
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