"Hanzo, I have come to hold your final funeral."
Looking at Hanzo in the distance, Pain said coldly, "This is the last mercy of a god."
As his words fell, the Asura Path and the Human Path spread out, forming a triangular formation that surrounded Hanzo in the center.
"A 'god,' you say?"
Hanzo frowned as he stared at that increasingly familiar face. Aside from the appearance, there was nothing left of the person he once knew. In a deep voice, he said, "Are you really Yahiko? And those eyes, why are they on you…"
"That person is already dead. Now, I am 'Pain.'"
With those nearly emotionless words, the Deva Path of Pain raised his arm expressionlessly, palm aimed at the distant Hanzo.
"Universal Pull."
Standing atop the salamander's head, Hanzo suddenly felt his body sink. An irresistible force seized him completely, violently dragging him toward Pain, who floated in midair!
A black rod slid from Pain's sleeve into his hand, ready to stab into Hanzo as he was pulled in.
"Attraction? What kind of jutsu is this?"
In that instant, Hanzo grasped the nature of the technique. His pupils shrank as he looked at the rapidly approaching Pain, then sharply flicked his wrist, throwing out his chain-sickle.
Clank! Clank! Clank!
The chain coiled around a pillar behind him like a serpent, forcibly halting his uncontrollable movement!
But the Deva Path's gaze darkened, and the gravitational pull acting on Hanzo suddenly intensified. The pillar groaned under the strain.
Hanzo's body was dragged further, his bones creaking under the force.
"No hand seals… a kekkei genkai? Is it the power of those eyes?"
Hanzo's thoughts raced. Making a split-second decision, he released his grip on the chain-sickle, allowing himself to be pulled forward at even greater speed toward Pain.
The overwhelming attraction couldn't be resisted, and it didn't seem to have a time limit?
"In that case…"
Hanzo fixed his gaze on Pain and rapidly formed hand seals. "Water Release: Water Cannon Technique!"
He could feel it, his chakra refinement speed and control were several times stronger than in his prime.
There was even greater power hidden in this body, but he had no time to explore it now.
Boom!
A heavy water cannon condensed around him and shot forward, carrying enough force to pierce iron walls as it blasted toward Pain.
All of this, his actions and decisions, happened within just three seconds. It was the instinct and experience forged from decades of battle.
But facing the incoming attack, the Deva Path did nothing, he simply pushed his arm forward.
"Shinra Tensei."
Buzz
An overwhelming repulsive force erupted from Pain.
The air warped with a piercing screech, and the surrounding rain was instantly blown away, forming a brief vacuum.
It was like an invisible hammer smashing down on Hanzo, who had no foothold.
Boom!!
The powerful water cannon was violently reversed by the repulsion.
"What?!"
Hanzo's expression shifted slightly.
Attraction and repulsion alternated abruptly, he had no time to react. The repulsive force and his own attack slammed into him.
His body was hurled toward the ground, while the Human Path appeared below like a ghost, fingers clawed, carrying a chilling intent to seize his soul.
But just as it was about to touch him, Hanzo's falling body suddenly turned into a pool of water.
Water Body Flicker Technique!
He had once used this to evade Orochimaru's Hidden Shadow Snake Hands and Jiraiya's Needle Jizo, and even to dodge Nagato's chakra dragon from the Demonic Statue.
Buzz
In the next instant, Hanzo silently reappeared behind the Asura Path. His chain-sickle was already back in hand as he spun and slashed.
This strike aimed for the head, silent and deadly, like the scythe of death itself.
Clang!!
Without even turning around, the Asura Path seemed to perceive him. With a mechanical snap, a serrated blade shot out from its back.
Sparks flew as blade met scythe, the shrill clash echoing through the battlefield.
Feeling the heavy force behind the collision, and realizing he had somehow been detected, Hanzo's expression turned grave.
'What's going on?'
'How did it see me?'
Before he could think further.
Click!
The Asura Path suddenly grabbed his arm. Another limb extended from its shoulder, transforming into a cold, menacing cannon. A blinding beam rapidly charged within.
"Asura Attack!"
A chill ran through Hanzo. He shouted, "Ibuse!"
At that very moment, a massive tail came crashing down with overwhelming force.
Crack! Boom!!
The Asura Path crushed Hanzo's wrist expressionlessly and leapt back just in time. The tail barely missed, smashing the ground into a web of cracks.
"Struggling is futile."
The Deva Path raised his arm again toward Hanzo. But just as he was about to use Universal Pull,
The giant salamander suddenly swung its enormous tail.
Everything in its path should have been crushed, but at the final moment, the tail halted as if it had struck an invisible barrier.
A powerful repulsive force rose, slowly pushing the massive tail back.
The Deva Path stared at the monstrous salamander and said coldly:
"Move."
Boom!!
A deafening explosion erupted, stronger than its roar. The repulsive force overwhelmed the salamander's strength.
Ibuse's massive body slid back dozens of meters, carving deep trenches into the ground.
"…."
For the first time, Pain's expression showed the slightest frown.
Hanzo was known as the "poison weapon" of the battlefield, seventy percent of that reputation came from this salamander.
He hadn't expected Hanzo to still be capable of summoning Ibuse at this stage.
But…
"So what?" Pain said coldly. "All resistance is futile."
Hanzo reappeared atop the salamander, staring at the four figures in black cloaks. Enduring the pain in his wrist, his brow furrowed.
"What a strange power…"
If his guess was correct, that "Yahiko" could manipulate attraction and repulsion. The bald man clearly housed various weapons within his body.
Only the long-haired man and the woman remained unknown, but his instincts told him the long-haired one was extremely dangerous.
Dead men walking. No signs of hand seals. Identical eyes. Being detected without reason…
Hanzo continued to fight alongside Ibuse while rapidly analyzing their abilities.
Boom!!
Another of Ibuse's attacks was repelled by Shinra Tensei.
Hanzo suddenly paused.
He noticed a delay in Pain's movements.
'If there wasn't a limit on the number of uses…'
'Could there be a cooldown?'
"Ibuse!"
Realizing this, Hanzo immediately pressed the diamond-shaped mark on his palm against the salamander.
Chakra surged into it.
He had discovered Pain's weakness.
A gap of five to six seconds.
"So that's why he disabled my hand first…" Hanzo thought grimly.
But Pain wouldn't give him the chance.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
The Asura Path twisted its arm open, launching multiple rockets that sealed off all of Hanzo's escape routes.
"Ibuse!"
With his wrist crushed and unable to form seals, Hanzo sensed danger and shouted. The salamander lifted its thick neck and inhaled deeply.
Rainwater spiraled into its mouth like a white tornado.
Then.
Pshhh!!
A dense purple-black toxic mist erupted like a flood.
It spread rapidly and widely, sinking into the rain and forming a deadly domain.
The air filled with a foul stench. The ground hissed as it corroded.
The incoming missiles dissolved within seconds.
Even the Asura Path melted instantly, its internal machinery exposed and corroding.
At that moment, the Human Path appeared before the Deva Path.
The latter raised his arm.
Boom!!
A massive repulsive force blasted from behind the Human Path, launching it like a cannonball into the poison mist.
Its body began to dissolve, but its hand reached the salamander.
"Soul Extraction!"
The Human Path's Rinnegan glowed as its hand gripped Ibuse's abdomen.
Nagato concentrated most of his chakra into the Human Path, forcibly pulling the salamander's soul from its body.
This was the one Pain whose abilities Hanzo knew nothing about.
"What kind of technique is that?!"
Hanzo's expression changed.
At that moment, the Deva Path extended his hand again.
"Universal Pull!"
This time, it was used at full power.
Hanzo was instantly dragged through the air.
At the same time, his wrist cracked, fully healed by the "Kama."
But before he could form seals.
Bang!
The Asura Path's fist detached and slammed into him midair, sending him crashing down. The Human Path appeared beneath him and seized his rigid body.
Hanzo's pupils shrank.
His soul felt gripped by an invisible hand, pain and weakness surged through him.
"It's over."
The Deva Path floated above, looking down at Hanzo as his soul was being extracted.
"Challenging a god is folly."
The Human Path tightened its grip,
But suddenly, an overwhelming suppressive force emerged, like a nail pinning Hanzo's soul in place, halting its extraction instantly.
Nagato frowned, looking at the diamond mark on Hanzo's palm.
That mark… it was anchoring his soul.
"What is this?"
Black patterns spread from the mark, covering half his body, and even the soul that had been partially extracted.
Then, they extended onto the Human Path's arm,
Buzz!!
Without warning, Nagato's vision went black, then flooded with crimson.
When he opened his eyes again, he found himself in a chaotic void.
"This is…"
Looking at his own body, he realized immediately,
He had been forcibly dragged into a mental space.
'Someone had traced the Human Path back to him and pulled in his real soul?'
'How was that even possible?!'
In the deathly silence, a hoarse, cold voice echoed from the darkness:
"Insignificant insect… are you the one touching my soul?"
The voice paused slightly, as if noticing something.
"That is not an eye you should possess."
"Tell me… where did your eyes come from?"
'Not mine to possess?'
'What does that mean?'
Nagato suddenly looked up, a chill running down his spine.
In the distance, a massive, twisted silhouette loomed within the fog.
And at the far end of his vision, upon a towering throne made of pale bones,
A figure sat, faintly visible.