"The world shall…"
Sensing the terrifying chakra gathering in the sky around Pain, and hearing that strange chant, Ōnoki's eyes flew wide.
"Stop him!"
"You have to stop him!"
At that moment, every other thought vanished from Ōnoki's mind. All that remained was the need to stop Pain.
He had no idea what jutsu Pain was about to use, but if that monstrous chakra really erupted, all of Iwagakure would be in danger.
If it came to that, the village's losses would be beyond imagination.
"Dust Release: Detachment of the Primitive World Technique!"
Ōnoki was badly hurt already. Not only had he taken the damage from smashing into the Earth Wall earlier, he had also severed one of his own arms. And yet even now, he still forced out more chakra, trying to stop Pain from unleashing that technique.
A brilliant white light bloomed in the sky once more, forcing Pain to cut off the chant.
In the end, it was because the Asura Path was too badly damaged. If it had still been intact, it could have stopped Ōnoki's sudden counterattack.
But now…
"Universal Pull!"
Pain had no choice but to redirect the power he had been gathering for Chibaku Tensei back into Universal Pull.
Ōnoki's body was seized once more by a terrifying force of attraction, and he flew toward Pain like a kite with its string cut loose.
Another black receiver formed in Pain's hand. Clearly, he meant to repeat the same tactic from before.
And this time, there would be no Earth Wall from Kitsuchi to save him.
"Super Light-Weight Rock Technique!"
But being old had its advantages too—at the very least, Ōnoki's combat experience was second to none.
The instant he felt his body slip out of control again, he dispersed the Dust Release he had just formed and instead forcibly adjusted his body's weight, using Universal Pull's attraction to hurl himself toward Pain.
And this time, he had a kunai in his hand.
He had no intention of dodging the black receiver in Pain's hand.
Or rather, he had already given up on surviving.
On the other side, Pain clearly hadn't expected Ōnoki to be this fierce—so fierce that he was willing to throw away his life just to take him down.
As Universal Pull's force faded, a reverse summoning suddenly activated again, and the Asura Path appeared directly in Ōnoki's path. The kunai in Ōnoki's hand struck its body and did nothing more than throw off a few sparks.
At the same time, the Asura Path's arm transformed into a blade and slashed straight at Ōnoki's neck.
"Earth Release: Hardening Technique!"
By now, Ōnoki had realized that this second being with the same strange eyes wasn't actually human, and that it was already damaged. In fact, he had even guessed those injuries were probably the result of fighting Uchiha Chiizumi.
After his skin hardened into stone, the Asura Path's blade only threw out a shower of sparks when it struck his neck.
But the sheer force of the blow still sent Ōnoki flying, smashing hard into the ground.
"Cough, cough…"
Ōnoki struggled back to his feet from the crater, half his body already stained red with blood.
His wrist was still dripping blood. He had no idea how many bones were broken, and there was even a split in his neck that was still oozing blood.
He looked utterly wretched.
And yet his eyes were fiercer than ever.
He was still standing.
He still hadn't given up on fighting Pain.
"I am Ōnoki of the Two Scales!"
He slowly raised his head, and in his clouded old eyes burned an unyielding fire.
"I'll settle Iwagakure's mistakes with my own two hands!"
"But before that…"
His hands came together again, and the light of Dust Release flared back to life.
"I will never let you destroy Iwagakure!"
Pain looked down at the battered old man below him, and for once, the Rinnegan held a trace of respect.
But only that much.
"If that's how it is…"
Pain raised both hands.
"Then let Iwagakure know true pain!"
"Shinra Tensei!"
High in the sky, the moment Pain raised his hands, chakra so oppressive it made breathing difficult began to erupt from him.
And on the ground, a resolute smile spread across Ōnoki's face.
"Super… Light-Weight Rock Technique!"
This time, Ōnoki didn't use the technique on himself.
He used it on the ground beneath his feet.
Or rather—on all of Iwagakure.
By now, Ōnoki had no intention of surviving. He was practically burning away the last of his life force to unleash the strongest jutsu of his entire life.
Under the disbelieving gazes of Kakuzu, Sasori, Konan, and the others, they saw it happen—
the whole of Iwagakure began to shake violently.
"That old man… has he lost his mind?"
"He's trying to lift the entire village?"
Kakuzu considered himself a man who had seen the world, but even he had to admit this was pushing it. He had never imagined that an entire ninja village could actually take flight.
And yet, as Ōnoki's Super Light-Weight Rock Technique took effect, Iwagakure truly rose into the air in that instant.
"Earth Release: Mountain Earth Technique!"
Even after lifting Iwagakure into the air, Ōnoki still didn't stop.
By now he had already figured out what kind of power the Deva Path possessed. He had to move the village.
With that shout, huge pillars of earth rose up from the ground beneath Iwagakure's original location. Those towering earth pillars formed a massive sloped path, and Ōnoki actually began shifting the entire village through the air.
But his own condition only worsened.
Blood began pouring from all seven orifices. Even his voice had gone hoarse.
"Father!!"
Kitsuchi, who had been gathering the Iwa ninja and forcing them to retreat, was now crying openly. He could see it—he could see that his father had already reached the absolute end of his strength.
Even Pain couldn't help but feel a trace of admiration at this point, admiration for how fiercely Ōnoki wished to protect Iwagakure.
But Super Shinra Tensei still descended without hesitation.
A world-destroying force erupted above Iwagakure. The entire sky was swallowed by white light.
That unspeakably terrifying power exploded outward in an instant. Under that radiance, the place where Iwagakure had originally stood was completely erased. Earth vanished. Air itself seemed to evaporate. And yet a portion of Iwagakure still remained within the blast zone, not yet moved far enough away by Ōnoki.
"So… this is as far as I can go?"
Ōnoki watched helplessly as a gigantic crater replaced the old site of Iwagakure. Water was already surging up from the bottom, as if it meant to turn the pit into a vast lake.
But on Ōnoki's twisted, blood-covered face, there was only a trace of sorrow.