Konoha, moments ago a scene of festive peace, was plunged into chaos as war erupted. Central Street descended into pandemonium.
Villagers and ninja alike were caught off guard by sudden assaults from their allies, the Sand ninja, and the Sound ninja, who'd infiltrated unnoticed.
While fighting back, they followed Konoha's safety protocols, swiftly splitting forces to escort villagers to shelters.
Short on manpower, Konoha's defenses faltered, quickly losing ground, giving Sand and Sound ninja the illusion that Konoha's forces were weak.
The Anbu and major clans mobilized.
Most Anbu rushed to the plaza to protect the Third Hokage, while clan members guarded their kin and villagers, heading to the Hokage Rock shelter.
This left the Hokage Tower and clan grounds at their most vulnerable, with minimal defense and sensory coverage.
Pop—
A sound like a bursting balloon echoed through a forest outside the village.
Vast white smoke, barely spreading, was swept away by a gust.
Three hundred and one puppets in black cloaks embroidered with red clouds materialized.
Most had faces wrapped in white bandages, revealing only foreheads and eyes, making it impossible to distinguish which were crafted from materials and which were human puppets made from corpses, retaining their former abilities.
At their forefront stood another figure in the same black cloak.
Any Akatsuki member present would've cried out "Leader!"
Indeed, it was Pain's Deva Path.
Or rather, Izayoi, transformed into Pain's Deva Path.
His golden-tier chakra control granted him unparalleled precision, not only fusing two or three nature transformations via Ultra Hurricane Linked Spheres but also perfecting his Transformation Technique.
Sensory ninja, unless exceptionally skilled and familiar with Izayoi's chakra signature, couldn't pierce his disguise.
Releasing all puppets from the large scrolls, Izayoi wasted no time. Forming a single seal, he spawned three shadow clones with ample chakra, then his real body flickered away.
Yes, the Pain before the puppets was Izayoi's true self.
The Izayoi in the plaza was merely a shadow clone.
Hence, the clone hadn't indulged Gaara's "ninja games"—its durability was too low.
The three shadow clones split tasks instantly.
The first used Transformation Technique, becoming Pain's Deva Path, then flickered off to act alone.
The second transformed into an ordinary man with sunglasses, speeding toward the Naka River.
Simultaneously, Izayoi's Tenseigan remotely activated the chakra cores of three hundred puppets.
They sprang to life, scattering in blurs.
Only the smallest, the three hundred and first puppet, stood still, distinct from the rest.
Its bandaged face revealed eyes far clearer than the others', gleaming like gems with a red glow.
This was Ranmaru, crafted into a human puppet.
The third shadow clone's task was to guard Ranmaru and supply chakra to his core.
Ranmaru's eyes blazed red.
Around the scattered puppets, red powder appeared, their forms warping like mirages before vanishing.
Even Byakugan's piercing gaze couldn't detect them.
This was Byakugan's nemesis—Ranmaru's red eyes, manipulating chakra to create visual distortions.
With their aid, two hundred puppets, like Hayate Gekkō using Transparency Escape, silently infiltrated Central Street, observing the clashing ninja.
The war had already claimed lives. Streets, rooftops, alleys, and hidden corners held silent corpses or gravely wounded ninja, unable to fight, hiding in shadows.
Some clever ones blended with surroundings using props.
But before the Tenseigan's far sight and penetration, they were exposed.
Some puppets moved.
Red powder materialized, revealing their forms. They scooped up dead ninja, vanishing again.
Ninja catching glimpses thought their eyes tricked them, suspecting genjutsu.
Too busy with enemies, they couldn't investigate.
The puppets spared no corpses—Konoha, Sand, or Sound.
For the gravely wounded, except Konoha's ninja, puppets delivered finishing blows.
Shnk—
Blades built into puppets sprang out, piercing throats, chests, or severing heads, always sparing the heart.
Human puppets required intact hearts to craft chakra cores.
"Nothing."
"Nothing."
"Still nothing…"
The shadow clone beside Ranmaru watched the puppets' actions, muttering emotionlessly.
The desired outcome hadn't appeared.
Undeterred, the clone signaled, whispering, "Activate Plan B."
As if hearing, the shadow clone in the Naka River cave, controlling the puppets, swapped in a new batch for kills.
These were human puppets, made from corpses, retaining their former skills.
Moreover, they surpassed their living selves.
Their chakra was Izayoi's, and his shadow clone controlled them.
Lacking Yin-Yang Release black rods, they couldn't use Tenseigan powers, but Izayoi could channel ninjutsu through them.
The clone split their tasks: some finished off wounded ninja, others dropped stealth, joining the fray.
A flash of lightning—a human puppet appeared behind a Sound ninja aiding Sand, its modified arm deploying a blade laced with Lightning Release, piercing and twisting through their back.
"So… fast!"
Unaware of a fourth faction, the Sound ninja gasped their last words, falling silent.
"Who's that?"
"Anbu? No, that's not their uniform—who is he?!"
"Stay sharp. His flicker's fast, and his stealth is strong."
The sudden puppet drew wary glances from Konoha, Sand, and Sound ninja mid-battle.
Swish—
After one-shotting the Sound ninja, the puppet raised its palm, revealing a hollow that fired a blinding golden bullet at a Sand ninja.
"One of ours—go!"
A Konoha ninja's eyes lit up, fooled by the puppet.
"Wind Release…"
As he formed seals for a Wind Release attack, the puppet flickered before him, its blade piercing his chest.
Blood soaked the clan crest on his clothes.
The Shimura clan, adept at Wind Release.
After the kill, the puppet froze.
Slash—
A short sword decapitated it.
The special Jonin who'd used Konoha-Style swordplay grimaced at the bloodless puppet. "Why's a Suna puppet killing allies?"
Losing one puppet, Izayoi's shadow clone didn't care.
Instead, all clones—and Izayoi himself—grinned.
It dropped!
In their vision, as the puppet killed the Shimura ninja, a green beam shot from the body toward Izayoi's real self.
A green trait, worth mere double-digit points when broken down, a fraction of a purple trait.
But Izayoi was thrilled.
At his current strength, low- and high-tier trait drops were rare.
How rare?
Bad luck meant even elite Jonin like Zabuza Momochi or Raiga Kurosuki, or kekkei genkai users like Haku and Ranmaru, might yield nothing.
Likewise, Izayoi hadn't gotten traits from Sasuke or the Hyuga sisters in ages.
Since graduation, only Rock Lee had given him two blue traits.
Now, a puppet's kill dropped a green trait.
This meant puppets defeating or killing enemies could earn Izayoi traits.
If it wasn't a fluke, his theory was right: even at his peak, the talent trait system hid mechanics to boost drop rates!
He'd figured out trait tiers himself.
There had to be more mechanics.
The heavens left no one without a path—dare to dream, dare to act!
To confirm it wasn't a fluke, the shadow clone had the street puppets attack indiscriminately.
Sand and Sound ninja were killed mercilessly.
For Konoha ninja, they'd knock them out when possible or sacrifice a puppet to disable them, feigning a killing blow to bait nearby Konoha ninja into intervening.
After several Sand and Sound kills, another blue beam shot from a vested Sand ninja toward Izayoi's body.
The mechanism was real!
As Pain's Deva Path, Izayoi's lips curled uncontrollably.
The Naka River clone, before Jiraiya noticed the Akatsuki-clad puppets, withdrew the strongest ones from Central Street using Ranmaru's red eyes, sending them to Izayoi's true target—the Root organization!
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