The sudden appearance of Obito and Zetsu immediately caught the attention of Kakuzu, Sasori, and the other Akatsuki members. Arriving beside Nagato, Obito's gaze briefly swept over him, assessing his condition, before turning his focus to the ravaged battlefield ahead. Nagato's existence was absolutely crucial to his intricate, long-term plans; Obito had to ensure Nagato's safety at all costs.
In past confrontations, when facing other opponents, Obito naturally wouldn't have harbored such pressing concerns. But today, their adversary was an Uchiha capable of manifesting a Perfect Susanoo, a being of terrifying power. Nagato, for his part, was not at all surprised by the arrival of Obito and Zetsu; his own intense gaze remained fixed on the area where the battle had climaxed.
Suddenly, Nagato's pupils constricted sharply. In the distance, as the thick clouds of dust and smoke slowly began to settle, a battered blue figure gradually came into his view. It was Jizo!
At this moment, Jizo was still enveloped by the protective aura of a blue Susanoo. However, unlike the massive, awe-inspiring Perfect Susanoo from before, the Susanoo currently surrounding Jizo was only maintaining its most basic, initial skeletal arm form. Moreover, even this rudimentary stage of the Susanoo was rapidly dissipating, flickering like a dying flame. Jizo himself was kneeling heavily on one knee, his body rising and falling with labored breaths. Clearly, although Jizo hadn't been grievously injured by the direct blast of the Super Shinra Tensei, the toll on his body and chakra reserves had still been immense.
As if sensing Nagato's unwavering gaze, the distant Jizo also raised his head, his eyes locking with Nagato's across the scarred earth. In his eye sockets, a pair of crimson Mangekyo Sharingan still blazed with power, though perhaps a little dimmer than before. The two powerful dojutsu users stared at each other from a distance, neither appearing to be in optimal condition.
Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh!
Not far away, six figures flickered one by one through the air, appearing before Nagato and his group. It was the Six Paths of Pain. The Animal Path, Preta Path, and Asura Path—previously obliterated by a single, devastating slash from Jizo's Perfect Susanoo—had all been swiftly revived by the Naraka Path's unique ability. The six puppets, with Tendo Pain at their center, immediately fell into a practiced battle formation. The Asura Path was the first to act, its metallic feet pushing off with explosive force as it charged straight towards the weakened Jizo. As it flew through the air, multiple menacing, serrated blades emerged from its wrists, ready to tear its target apart. The Asura Path's surprise attack was incredibly fast; in the blink of an eye, it had almost reached Jizo.
Swoosh! Just as it seemed Jizo, in his depleted state, was about to be struck by the Asura Path's vicious attack, the sound of something cutting sharply through the air was heard.
BANG!
Following that almost instantaneous sound was a violent, crushing impact; the Asura Path's entire head was brutally smashed into the ground by a single, powerful fist from a newcomer. Its reinforced body crumpled, utterly shattered once again.
The masked Tatsuya had appeared in front of Jizo, shielding him. After annihilating the Asura Path with one decisive punch, Tatsuya moved to Jizo's side. He extended his right hand, placing it on Jizo's back, and began transferring a steady stream of his own chakra into Jizo's depleted system, working to restore his clone's fighting strength. At the same time, the potent Body Activation Secret Technique within Jizo's own body also began to operate, accelerating his recovery.
Watching Tatsuya appear before Jizo and destroy the Asura Path with such casual, overwhelming force, the hearts of all the Akatsuki members present leaped into their throats. A chilling realization dawned upon them: it was only then that they truly remembered that this masked individual before them was the true leader of the Divine Court. His strength might even surpass that of the Uchiha prodigy they had just faced, the one who could manifest a Perfect Susanoo.
At this terrifying thought, the hearts of seasoned Akatsuki members like Kakuzu and Sasori were in their mouths. They were all, in their own right, powerhouses who had once stood at the very pinnacle of the ninja world; each possessed their own considerable pride and arrogance. But before Jizo, who could casually manifest a Perfect Susanoo, their pride simply couldn't assert itself; it felt insignificant, almost laughable.
Within the Akatsuki's inner circle, Nagato and Obito perceived Tatsuya's true strength even more directly and with greater alarm. Both could clearly sense the absolutely immense, almost boundless chakra reserves coiling within Tatsuya's body. Compared to Jizo's earlier display, Tatsuya's chakra felt even more vast, more profound.
"He's healing that man," Obito observed, his visible Sharingan narrowed as he watched Tatsuya stand beside Jizo. His voice was laced with undeniable apprehension. After scrutinizing the scene for a few tense seconds, he spoke, his tone heavy.
"Mm! That man's physical condition is rapidly recovering," Nagato, beside him, also sensed Jizo's swiftly improving state, and his already grim expression turned even darker.
"Let's retreat!" After a few more seconds of charged silence, Obito said gravely. Jizo alone had pushed them to their absolute limits, forcing Nagato to expend a massive amount of life force. Now, with the Divine Court's enigmatic leader, Ryujin, whose full strength was still an unknown but terrifying quantity, also present, Obito didn't believe Akatsuki had any realistic chance of winning this confrontation.
Hearing Obito's pragmatic assessment, Nagato didn't answer immediately. His eyes were fixed with deadly intensity on Tatsuya and Jizo, his face a mask of profound, bitter unwillingness. This retreat, he knew, would mean Akatsuki was thoroughly outmaneuvered and would suffer a significant blow to their prestige and momentum.
Moreover, a nagging doubt echoed in Nagato's mind. Why hadn't this Divine Court leader, Ryujin, actively attacked them yet? Could it be that his actual strength wasn't as formidable as they imagined, or was he perhaps operating under some kind of unseen restriction or limitation?
Obito, with his keen insight, guessed Nagato's unspoken thoughts and continued, his voice low and persuasive, "His aura… it feels somewhat familiar to me. It's possible we actually know the identity of this Divine Court leader. His reluctance to attack us directly now might be due to that desire for anonymity. However, if we push him too far and a full-blown, desperate battle erupts, very few of us here might be able to escape with our lives. Such losses would be critically detrimental to our overarching plans. Now is not the time to settle scores with them or engage in a battle of attrition. The absolute priority is to restore the Gedo Statue as soon as possible. As long as our plan can be implemented smoothly and successfully, then in the end, not even the Divine Court will be able to stop us."
Nagato remained silent, the internal conflict evident on his face.
Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh! With a series of whooshing sounds, the remaining Akatsuki members, sensing a shift in the atmosphere, gathered closer to their leaders. Opposite them, Kagutsuchi and Suijin also leaped over to rejoin Tatsuya and the recovering Jizo. For a tense moment, Akatsuki and the core of the Divine Court faced off, an unspoken challenge hanging heavy in the air.
Tatsuya, however, offered no provocations, no taunts. He merely continued to quietly channel his chakra into Jizo, aiding his recovery. For now, events were unfolding largely according to his strategic calculations. As time went on, Tatsuya's own strength, and that of his organization, would only continue to grow. There was no pressing need for him to risk exposing his true identity by engaging in a fight to the death with Akatsuki at this particular juncture. Furthermore, with Obito and his troublesome space-time abilities present, Tatsuya wasn't confident he could decisively capture or eliminate Nagato and the others, even if he went all out. And as long as Obito and Nagato survived, Akatsuki could always regenerate, always reform to become a threat again.
"We're leaving." After a tense, drawn-out standoff that seemed to stretch for an eternity, Nagato finally spoke, his voice laced with a palpable, bitter unwillingness. After speaking, he didn't utter any harsh parting words or threats. He merely gave Tatsuya's group a deep, long, unreadable look before decisively turning and departing with Konan by his side.
Once Nagato and Konan left, the remaining five Pain puppets, along with Kakuzu, Sasori, Hidan, Deidara, Kisame Hoshigaki, Uchiha Hiroomi, and the others, all followed without a word, a somber procession of defeated power. Before Uchiha Hiroomi departed, his gaze towards Jizo still held an undisguised, burning, almost covetous desire. He, too, yearned to possess that kind of overwhelming power.
Only Obito and Zetsu remained on the scene, continuing the silent standoff with Tatsuya's group for a few moments longer. Then, at the entrance of the spatial passage, a flash of white light occurred, and Nagato and his entire contingent vanished from the Moon's inner world. Only after confirming that Nagato and his group had truly left did Obito slowly disappear into one of his signature spatial vortexes, and Zetsu, with a final, lingering glance, sank back into the ground, melting away as if he were never there.
Akatsuki, having mobilized their full, terrifying force, had returned empty-handed, their invasion a resounding failure.
Watching the last of the Akatsuki members disappear, Tatsuya slowly removed his hand from Jizo's back. "Clean up the battlefield," he instructed his clones. "We should also leave as soon as possible." Tatsuya still had clone bodies remaining in the ninja world, strategically placed, so he wasn't overly concerned about Nagato and the others attempting to destroy the spatial passage.
Back in the ninja world, in a dense forest not far from the subterranean entrance to the hot spring, two Sunagakure ninja lay prone on the thick branch of a large tree, carefully concealed, their hearts pounding. In the distance, at the entrance to the underground cave, figure after figure clad in the infamous black robes with red clouds leaped out from the darkness below. After emerging, the Akatsuki members didn't delay, exchanging no words, and quickly, silently, departed from the area, vanishing into the wilderness like ghosts.