Sage Art: Demonic Illusion – Toad Confrontation Chant!
It was a special sound-based genjutsu. Once the melody was heard, the enemy would be trapped within the illusion's barrier, unable to move.
From the vision of the Five Paths of Pain, they were trapped inside a cube-shaped water prison. In the four cardinal directions stood statues of wrathful toads, each shouldering a giant sword and glaring down at them with fury.
The five Paths of Pain struggled within the bindings of the barrier, completely immobilized. Their breathing grew ragged. Even though they were corpses, they felt as if they were suffocating.
"Shinra Tensei!!"
The Deva Path had not fallen under the genjutsu. He stepped in front of Jiraiya and unleashed repulsive force, blasting them away.
"Are you alright, dear?"
"Waaah, at my age using that jutsu really wears me out," Shima croaked.
Jiraiya said, "It failed. Looks like the six are functioning as one. What a troublesome technique."
"Indeed. But for now, five of them can't break free from our illusion. That leaves only him. We can take him!" Fukasaku puffed out a thin water blade. With a flick of his head, it swept sideways, slicing through everything in its path.
"Shinra Tensei!"
The Deva Path shielded the others. Countless fiery meteors fell from the sky.
They struck against his repulsive barrier, flames erupting in all directions. The Deva Path said,
"You cannot defeat a god. Still... you've shown some skill."
Even bound for just a moment, they had managed to strike at the Pains. Their battle experience was formidable indeed.
"Hm?"
A flame surged toward him, forming into Kiyosuke's shape. The Deva Path immediately thrust a black rod into Kiyosuke's chest.
Boom!
The shadow clone vanished instantly, unable to turn intangible.
"A shadow clone?!"
When he turned, he saw the real Kiyosuke—his lower body transformed into fire—driving a blazing spear through the heart of the Naraka Path.
"Here's a little surprise!" Kiyosuke hurled the corpse aside, only to be blasted away by the Deva Path's repulsion.
With the Naraka Path destroyed, the others could no longer be revived so quickly. Without it, the cycle was broken.
"Here's another gift."
From the sky, Kiyosuke's laughter echoed. The figure before the Deva Path was another clone. With a snap of his fingers—
Snap!
"Ah, I'm dead!"
The clone cried out as fire engulfed its body. Chakra swelled violently within, and with a thunderous boom, it exploded—taking four of the Pains with it.
The Deva Path's face remained stone cold.
Jiraiya said, "Nagato, you've lost."
"I haven't lost yet."
"No—we're leaving."
A spatial vortex swirled open beside the Deva Path. Out stepped a figure in an Akatsuki cloak, wearing an orange spiral mask—Obito.
"We must retreat. Against Asakawa Kiyosuke and one of the Sannin, Jiraiya, you stand no chance."
His lone eye fixed on the slowly descending Kiyosuke, unease creeping through him.
"Well, isn't this Obito? Been a while."
"Obito?!" The Deva Path's gaze snapped to him. "Didn't you claim to be Uchiha Madara?"
Just as expected.
Obito had always masqueraded as Madara to manipulate Nagato. Appearing now meant exposing himself, but the Deva Path absolutely could not be lost. Konan and the immobilized Nagato would stand no chance without him.
He had taken the risk of showing up solely to pull them out of danger.
"You only need to know that I carry the will of Madara-sama," Obito said coldly. "For the sake of peace, nothing else matters."
"Obito? You mean Minato's student?" Jiraiya muttered. "I remember him dying in the Third Great Ninja War."
Kiyosuke said, "No. He's under the control of Uchiha Shisui's Kotoamatsukami, manipulated by Madara. Many things happening now are his doing. Even Akatsuki's current form exists because of him.
"Pain, do you know how your original Akatsuki comrades died?"
The Deva Path wavered. Akatsuki had been founded by Yahiko. Later, because of Hanzō the Salamander and Danzō, it had been destroyed—leaving only Nagato and Konan alive.
At first, Nagato believed his comrades had died at Hanzō's hands. But hearing Kiyosuke's words now... could there have been another truth?
Kiyosuke pointed at Obito.
"It was him. Your comrades were all eliminated by him. I went through Danzō's Root mission reports. Their orders only targeted Yahiko, Akatsuki's leader. Kill him, and the group—a new movement striving for peace—would collapse. Rain would return to chaos.
"To Danzō and Hanzō, only Yahiko mattered. The others were insignificant. So tell me—if it wasn't Rain shinobi or Konoha who struck... who else could it have been? Who was there at the scene?"
The Deva Path turned his gaze on Obito. His usually expressionless eyes now burned with anger.
Obito's heart sank. Damn it. Nothing good ever came from this man's mouth. He couldn't admit it. If he did, everything would spiral out of control.
"You'd believe a Konoha shinobi over me?"
"I trust no one. But his words hold weight. And you—your very identity is false. You've deceived us all this time. You're no longer worthy of trust." The Deva Path's voice was cold.
Nagato was beginning to doubt everything—Obito's purpose in approaching him, the reason for collecting tailed beasts, the restructuring of Akatsuki. Was it all manipulation?
"You... Asakawa Kiyosuke!!!"
Obito roared in fury. Kiyosuke lunged forward, thrusting his hand through Obito's body. When he pulled back, Obito solidified and counterattacked.
But just as Kiyosuke couldn't harm him, neither could he harm Kiyosuke.
What's more, Kiyosuke's blows carried searing flames. Each punch ignited with fire.
"Tch. If only Kakashi were here... this would be easier," Obito thought grimly.
Their battle took on a bizarre rhythm—attacks passing harmlessly through each other, yet still exchanging blows. The scene was almost comical.
The Deva Path rose into the air. He no longer engaged Jiraiya, choosing instead to retreat.
He had to take Konan and his real body away. Amegakure was no longer safe. They needed a new refuge.
Akatsuki itself would need restructuring. Obito wasn't the only hidden player among them.
"Be careful of Zetsu," Kiyosuke warned. "That thing can take over bodies."
If Zetsu forcibly controlled Nagato and used the Samsara of Heavenly Life Technique, Kiyosuke's entire plan would be ruined. Nagato wasn't yet weak enough to die, so Black Zetsu couldn't easily seize him... but still.
"You bastard. Every time you show up, nothing good happens!" Obito's composure finally broke. He and Kiyosuke clashed in earnest.
"Hahaha! Obito, prepare to die!!"
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