At the entrance of a mountain valley leading to Iwagakure, a tall man dressed in a black cloak adorned with red clouds sat idly on the stone steps.
The steps led to one of the key roads back to the village.
The man wore a mask that covered his face, revealing only a pair of green eyes with red sclera. Over his gray head wrap, he had tied a triangular cloth band, which, at first glance, resembled a pair of men's underwear.
However, the cloth band was adorned with the forehead protector of Takigakure, marked by a horizontal slash—a sign of a rogue ninja.
"So boring..."
Kakuzu gazed lazily at the small streams flowing from the base of the rocky peaks on either side of the road.
But today, the water from the streams wasn't the usual crystal clear. Instead, it was a deep crimson. Upon closer inspection, the upstream area was piled with horrifyingly mutilated corpses, their faces twisted in agony.
The streams had long been blocked, and the liquid flowing downstream was blood, seeping from the countless wounds of the corpses.
"These Iwagakure guys... not a single one of them is worth anything..."
"Their hearts are weak and useless, not even worthy of being kept as spares..."
Kakuzu rested his hands on his knees, muttering softly.
But soon, the sound of hurried footsteps reached Kakuzu's ears.
Not long after.
A massive man appeared before Kakuzu, leading a team of shinobi. He wore a red ninja hat, sported a prominent nose and a full beard, and was clad in a red, tight-fitting combat suit overlaid with brown chainmail. His left arm was covered by a red sleeve, while his muscular right arm was exposed.
Though Kakuzu, standing at over 180 centimeters tall, was already considered quite large, he seemed diminutive next to this towering Iwagakure shinobi, who was nearly half a head taller.
"Are you from the Akatsuki?!"
Kitsuchi's expression turned grim when he saw Kakuzu blocking the entrance.
However, his face quickly darkened further as the heavy stench of blood reached him, and his gaze fell upon the corpses, drained of blood, littering the area.
"Lord Kitsuchi!"
A short and stout Iwagakure shinobi, noticing the scene, was instantly consumed by rage as he spotted the body of a close friend among the dead.
Compared to Kitsuchi, the stout shinobi looked like a dwarf. Kitsuchi raised his hand to signal silence and said in a deep voice, "Against enemies, Iwagakure has only one stance—leave no one alive!"
He then lifted his head, glancing toward the direction of Iwagakure with a faint hint of worry. But his expression quickly steadied.
No one understood the terrifying power of Dust Release better than he did, and he had absolute confidence in his father's strength.
For now, the priority was to deal with this Akatsuki member before heading back to wipe out the audacious invaders once and for all!
...
In Iwagakure, the once-gray buildings had all collapsed into rubble, reduced to piles of debris at the base of the crumbling rocky peaks.
At the center of the area, a massive crater had been formed. However, due to the hardness of the dark gray soil, the crater was only a few meters deep.
Even in its ruined state, Iwagakure was far from peaceful. Enormous summoned beasts rampaged through the village, their massive feet crushing everything in their path. Explosions echoed as fiery blasts erupted continuously.
High above, an elderly man hovered in the air. His hands occasionally formed glowing white shapes—cones or cubes—which he hurled toward six black-cloaked figures.
Each time the attacks neared their targets, a rotund figure with a round face would step forward to intercept, absorbing the Dust Release attacks completely.
"The legendary Rinnegan..."
"It really does have the ability to absorb all ninjutsu!"
"Even my Dust Release..."
Ōnoki's thick white eyebrows furrowed into a tight knot, resembling two slanted blades.
After numerous attempts, Ōnoki had come to realize that these six mysterious individuals were undoubtedly connected in some extraordinary way.
Each of them possessed the legendary Rinnegan!
This celestial eye couldn't possibly exist in such abundance, like the mass-produced Byakugan of Konoha.
Six pairs appearing simultaneously, and all gathered in Amegakure—it was an incredibly eerie phenomenon.
Coupled with their perfectly coordinated teamwork and the ability to summon their comrades using summoning techniques...
Ōnoki was gradually piecing together the abilities of these eyes.
But...
The immediate concern was to eliminate these intruders and secure the Rinnegan for Iwagakure, where it could be studied at length.
With that thought, Ōnoki's floating form began to descend, landing on the ground.
The rotund figure, as if fixated on him, continued to block every angle from which Ōnoki tried to attack the other black-cloaked individuals, absorbing his Dust Release techniques.
If ninjutsu wouldn't work, then there was only one option...
Ōnoki's fingers began forming seals at lightning speed. In an instant, he pressed his hands to the ground.
"Earth Release: Golem Technique!"
Boom!
After a loud rumble, the ground shook violently, and a massive stone golem, over twenty meters tall, emerged.
Ōnoki stood atop the gray-black golem's shoulder, his presence imposing as he charged toward the six black-cloaked figures.
At that moment, a black-and-white head suddenly emerged from the ground beneath Pain's feet.
"Leader..."
"Sunagakure hasn't deployed a large force. Only Sōmi and Scorpion have gone out. They're likely dealing with the Four-Tails right now."
The white half spoke in a light, playful tone.
"In that case, there's no need to wait any longer. Let's finish off Ōnoki and Iwagakure first, then deal with those two from Sunagakure!"
Tendo Pain's expression remained calm, as if everything was under his control.
From that moment on, Pain had no intention of prolonging the standoff with Ōnoki.
With a single thought, the Six Paths of Pain gathered around Tendo Pain in unison. They no longer retreated while fighting, nor did they continue slaughtering the survivors buried beneath the rubble.
The bald Asura Path tore off its own wrist and arm.
"Five-Finger Missiles!"
From the severed arm, a series of missiles launched, trailing flames as they shot toward the stone golem.
The Animal Path also summoned a massive charging rhinoceros, which barreled forward.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The missiles struck the stone golem, erupting into fiery explosions. But in the next instant, the golem raised one arm to shield Ōnoki, charging out of the flames with only minor fragments chipped off.
"Earth Release: Added-Weight Rock Technique!"
The golem's right fist lifted high before slamming down onto the charging rhinoceros.
Boom!
The immense force crushed the rhinoceros into a puff of white smoke, dispelling the summoning technique.
The golem's unimpeded fist then struck the ground, creating an explosion akin to a cannon blast. A massive cloud of dust billowed upward.
At this moment, the battle between Ōnoki and the Six Paths of Pain had officially begun!
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