Naruto's breathing was a bit heavy.
Although Pain could not do much about him, and he could use his speed advantage to maneuver around him, his attacks were hard-pressed to cause any effective damage.
The battle had been going on for a considerable amount of time, and he could feel that the opponent's responses did not seem as airtight as they were at the beginning.
But this did not make the battlefield any easier.
The Six Paths of Pain's exquisite coordination and various strange abilities still brought immense pressure to the Konoha side.
It seemed that Kakashi-sensei's side had finally found a few ways to deal with the Preta Path's absorption ability.
Guy-sensei could suppress the Asura Path and pull away to help other Ninjas, so casualties had already decreased significantly.
"I must break this deadlock as soon as possible!" Naruto gritted his teeth, and just as he was about to attack again, he noticed something was wrong.
The Six Paths of Pain, who had been operating in coordination like a precision killing machine, suddenly stopped attacking proactively.
Deva Path Pain canceled his next round of attacks that were ready to go; he hovered in mid-air, his Rinnegan shifting slightly.
There seemed to be no change in expression on that indifferent face, but Naruto somehow felt that the cold "divine" pressure emanating from the other party had weakened slightly.
The Human Path's palm, which was about to touch an injured Konoha Chunin, suddenly retracted, and his figure drifted backward.
The Preta Path abandoned a large Fire Release he was absorbing and silently retreated to the side.
The Summoned Beasts called by the Animal Path stopped their onslaught and even wandered around aimlessly.
The Asura Path took a heavy kick from Might Guy head-on, used the force to slide backward, and did not pounce again.
The Hell Path simply stopped all movement, standing in place like a statue.
The entire tragic battlefield seemed to have had its pause button pressed.
Only the heavy breathing of the Konoha Ninjas, the crackling of Ninjutsu embers, and the suppressed groans of the wounded remained.
"What's going on?" Naruto was stunned, maintaining his attacking stance as he looked around alertly.
The keen perception brought by the Nine-Tails Chakra told him that the enemies' Chakra fluctuations were still strong, but their intent to attack had eerily vanished.
"Everyone, stay alert! Don't let your guard down!" Kakashi's sharp shout came, his Sharingan rapidly scanning every Pain, trying to find signs of a trap or conspiracy.
But all he saw was a near-programmatic stagnation.
Might Guy also stopped his pursuit, the green steam slowly receding, his thick eyebrows tightly furrowed.
"Hey, hey, what is this? A sudden halftime break? My youth doesn't accept such an inexplicable pause!"
However, the expected conspiracy or new tactics did not appear.
Under the suspicious and uncertain gazes of the Konoha crowd, the six Pains began to move backward, quickly closing Ranks and gathering on a relatively open patch of scorched earth.
There was no communication between them, not even an exchange of glances.
Then, under the completely bewildered gaze of the Konoha Ninjas—
"Poof! Poof! Poof! Poof! Poof! Poof!"
The six figures, like bubbles being popped, almost simultaneously turned into six clouds of white smoke and vanished from the spot.
They left no words, no signs indicating their next move, and even the Summoned Beasts vanished in a burst of smoke, leaving behind only a mess on the ground and lingering gunpowder smoke to prove the reality of the tragic battle just now.
The battlefield fell into a deathly silence.
"Va... vanished?" A Konoha Chunin rubbed his eyes, unable to believe the enemies had just disappeared into thin air.
"They escaped? Why?"
"Is it a trap? Or some kind of new tactic?"
"But they clearly still had strength left..."
Whispers rose among the surviving Konoha Ninjas, filled with confusion, incomprehension, and a daze like having survived a disaster.
Everyone's tense nerves did not relax because of the enemies' disappearance; instead, they became even more tense because of this completely irrational retreat. Many gripped their weapons tightly, alertly scanning every inch of the surrounding space, fearing the enemies would emerge again from the shadows or underground in the next second.
Naruto dispelled several Shadow Clones, his main body landing back beside Kakashi, golden Chakra still swirling around him, his brow furrowed.
"Kakashi-sensei, what... what exactly is going on? How did they suddenly..."
Kakashi shook his head, his Sharingan carefully sensing every trace of residual Chakra around them.
"No signs of an ambush. It seems... they really have retreated." His voice carried deep doubt and worry.
"But it was without warning, which doesn't fit their previous fighting style and goals, unless..."
"Unless what?" Asuma also walked over, his face covered in blood and fatigue, his cigarette long since lost.
"Unless something unexpected and major happened on their mastermind's side, and they had to go back to support."
"But that's just a guess. With the current lack of intelligence, it's impossible to judge."
Kakashi said no more and quickly issued orders.
"Medical Team, immediately give your all to treat the wounded! Barrier Team, reinforce all barriers and raise the alert level! Reconnaissance Squad, cautiously track in the direction of the enemy's retreat. Be safe, focus on scouting, and avoid engagement! Everyone else, rest in place, but do not let your guard down!"
The orders were quickly passed down, and the Konoha Ninjas began to transition from an extremely tense combat state to another kind of tight alert and cleanup state.
Although the enemies had retreated inexplicably, the sense of unease permeating the air became even heavier.
Naruto stood in place, looking in the direction where Pain had disappeared, the golden Chakra slowly receding into his body.
The sudden interruption of the battle did not bring relief, but rather a kind of unresolved irritability and deeper incomprehension.
Pain's words still echoed in his ears—those paranoid remarks about Pain and peace, and the terrifying power they displayed... How could such an enemy suddenly retreat without reason?
"What exactly... happened?" he whispered to himself, his blue eyes filled with confusion and reflection.
And at this moment, in that secret forest far away, Nagato, who had just retracted all of Pain's Chakra and consciousness, was plunged into an unprecedentedly fierce internal struggle.
Konan stood guard by the side, looking at Nagato's face, which had regained some color, and his red hair, which had become bright again. Then she looked at the Pain beside him, Yahiko's remains, with complex waves surging deep within her cold eyes that even she could not sort out.
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