Oh!
A pale-white tremor force roared outward—
Crack—
The sound of air shattering.
In the next instant, a heaven-shaking surge of tremor power slammed into the repulsive shockwave unleashed by Shinra Tensei at lightning speed.
With an earth-splitting boom—
Before countless eyes, the repulsive shockwave twisted unnaturally, spiderweb cracks appearing across it in midair. Then, with a final violent tremor, it detonated above Konoha.
For a heartbeat, the entire village—civilians and shinobi alike—fell into a stunned silence.
Even some jōnin and elite jōnin stood rigid, their bodies locked in place.
Because just moments ago, facing that mysterious attack, they had all felt that Konoha was about to be erased.
And yet the Fifth Hokage had arrived in time—and smashed everything apart.
"Hah…"
"We're saved… thank goodness for the Fifth Hokage-sama!"
After the initial shock passed, many civilians finally exhaled. As they steadied themselves, they began moving in an orderly rhythm toward the shelters.
Meanwhile, Konoha's shinobi all snapped fully into combat readiness.
"How is this possible… th-this…"
At that moment, one of the Three Sannin—Jiraiya—had just stepped out of a bathhouse. He stared up at the figure hovering in the sky, and his whole body went stiff, as if he'd been struck by lightning. Waves crashed through his heart.
Impossible.
It was Yahiko.
Even though Yahiko had grown up… Jiraiya recognized him at a glance.
The man in the sky was one of the three students he had taken in at the Hidden Rain near the end of the Second Great Ninja War.
"It's time to move…"
"As long as Konoha falls into chaos, we can act."
"Once the Fifth Hokage appears, it's all on you, leader."
Watching Deva Path in the sky, Hidan, Kakuzu, Uchiha Itachi, Jūzō Biwa, Kisame Hoshigaki, and the others all tensed instinctively, slipping into combat posture.
They understood clearly: the instant Konoha was destroyed would be their best chance to show their hand.
"Deva Path… Pain."
In the sky, Uchiha Ren loosened his fist. A thread of icy intent flashed in his eyes as he said coldly, "You're truly reckless."
Then his voice turned sharper.
"Did you come to Konoha to die?"
"Heh."
Deva Path stared at Ren without expression. He spread his hands and spoke evenly. "Only by experiencing pain can peace be born."
"Super Shinra Tensei!"
Boom!!
In the next instant, a repulsive shockwave several times more terrifying than before burst forth, whipping up a massive wave in the air as it smashed toward Konoha.
"Fine."
Ren's gaze held a chill. He couldn't be bothered to say more.
His right hand closed—
Murakumogiri appeared in his grip.
As tremor force and Armament Haki surged together, he swung.
Tch!!
Air split.
A pale-white tremor force rode a sword slash hundreds of meters long, sweeping out and colliding head-on with the repulsive shockwave.
A thunderous explosion rang out. The repulsive shockwave held for less than a second—
Then the Super Shinra Tensei was cleaved cleanly down the middle.
And the moment it split—
The tremor force clinging to the blade wave erupted wildly.
With crushing momentum, it smashed into the repulsive shockwave again and again, forcibly collapsing it—until the entire attack shattered apart in midair.
"How is that possible?!"
Deva Path watched his Super Shinra Tensei crumble in a single strike, as if he couldn't accept what he was seeing.
This was Super Shinra Tensei—one of the Rinnegan's core abilities.
It carried power like the end of the world. Destroying Konoha would have been effortless—destroying ten Konohas would have been just as easy.
And yet—
It had been broken, like rotting wood.
"There's nothing impossible about it."
Ren spoke without inflection.
"Even with the legendary Rinnegan… you're still too weak."
"And the weak," he continued coldly, "don't get to talk about peace."
Whoosh!
Ren vanished.
A split-second later, he was directly in front of Deva Path. His fist drove forward—wrapped in a pale-white glow—
"Super Shinra Ten—"
He didn't even get the words out.
Ren's punch was already on him.
"Why…"
As his body began to fracture, Deva Path looked at Ren—and saw it.
At some point, Ren's eyes had shifted into the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan.
In that instant, Deva Path seemed to understand something.
Bang!!
A crisp sound rang out.
Deva Path's body was shattered by Ren's fist—vibrated into dust.
Far away, inside that mysterious underground cavern in the Land of Fire—
Pfft!
Nagato, who had been controlling The Deva Path, spat a mouthful of blood. His face drained, and in an instant it seemed as though he aged years.
"Nagato!" Konan's expression tightened with worry. "Are you alright? Did something happen to Deva Path?"
"…Impossible."
Nagato didn't seem to hear her. His eyes were wide, his breathing ragged—teetering on madness.
He couldn't understand it.
How could this happen?
He had the Sage of Six Paths' eyes—the Rinnegan.
He had always believed that meant he stood above the shinobi world.
And yet against Uchiha Ren…
He hadn't even lasted two exchanges before being blown apart.
This wasn't "losing."
This was total domination.
The impact shattered Nagato's confidence.
Konan seemed to realize the same thing. Her lips parted… then closed again.
In the end, she fell silent, not knowing what to say.
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