Land of Demons.
Mōryō suddenly turned his head toward the seas off the Land of Lightning. He sensed the aura of a divine battle emanating from that direction.
"So, has something happened to Yamata no Orochi?"
He decided to investigate personally. After all, Yamata no Orochi was a pawn he had painstakingly orchestrated into existence, and he couldn't afford for it to meet an untimely demise.
However, just as he reached the gates of the Land of Demons, a red-haired man in a black cloak adorned with red clouds floated silently in the air. Two horns protruded from his head, Truth-Seeking Balls hovered behind him, and he held a staff in his hand.
It was none other than Nagato of the Six Paths.
"Mōryō, where do you think you're going?" Nagato questioned.
Nagato had stationed himself at the battlefield in the Land of Demons, maintaining a delicate balance with Mōryō.
Mōryō, knowing that venturing out alone without allies would be pointless, had avoided unnecessary conflict with Nagato.
Nagato, on the other hand, had heeded Jiraiya's warnings. According to the Great Toad Sage, Mōryō was the strongest of all ancient gods. Even as the new Jinchūriki of the Ten-Tails, Nagato had to exercise extreme caution when facing him.
After all, Mōryō had once waged a war to enslave the entire ninja world centuries ago. He had escaped the barrier overseen by the Six Paths brothers and the Three Great Sages, catching them off guard and nearly succeeding.
Ultimately, it was a selfless priestess who appeared, sacrificing herself with the help of the Sage of Six Paths. She fused her soul and pure intentions with Mōryō's essence.
This act introduced impurities into Mōryō, weakening his powers significantly. Since then, he had been lying dormant in the Land of Demons and the Land of Swamps, perpetuating the narrative of being sealed by generations of priestesses.
Over time, uninformed mortals came to believe that Mōryō was a demon from another dimension, requiring each generation's priestess to sacrifice herself to keep him at bay.
In truth, Mōryō could have broken free long ago. The pure-hearted priestess who had sealed him was long dead. His continued slumber was merely a way to alleviate his boredom and feign weakness.
"New Jinchūriki of the Ten-Tails, are you here to stop me?" Mōryō asked, gazing at Nagato in the sky.
Though his power had waned, Mōryō remained a formidable force among Six Paths-level beings. He doubted this laughable Jinchūriki could stop him.
"Of course. You and your subordinates may remain in the Land of Demons and the Land of Swamps, but you are forbidden from venturing beyond," Nagato replied.
"And what if I insist?" As a being born of pure malice, Mōryō had no patience for negotiation. Without waiting for Nagato's response, he launched an attack.
Mōryō was formless and intangible, lacking a fixed physical body. This made him extraordinarily terrifying and difficult to confront.
However, after the priestess merged with him, impurities had formed within Mōryō, gradually giving him a corporeal form—a body of flesh.
This corporeal form was both a blessing and a curse. It made him susceptible to injury, limited his methods of attack, and restricted the extent of his abilities.
Mōryō often joked that he and the priestess were essentially one entity.
His physical form was grotesque, with a dark purple-black hue and multiple heads, each adorned with a pair of crimson eyes.
Several of Mōryō's heads detached and lunged toward Nagato in the sky, attempting to bite him.
"Almighty Push!"
An invisible repulsive force materialized. The heads collided with an unseen barrier, as if crashing into a solid glass dome, and were flung back violently.
But Mōryō was unfazed. More heads surged forward, fully aware of the cooldown period for the Almighty Push ability of the Rinnegan.
"Wood Release: Advent of a World of Flowering Trees!"
A vast, dense forest sprang up instantly. Each tree resembled a tentacle, reaching out to ensnare the flying heads of Mōryō.
"Such pathetic power," one of Mōryō's heads sneered, casually sweeping aside a large swath of forest with a single motion.
Nagato responded without hesitation. The Truth-Seeking Balls behind him shot forward one after another. These spheres, embodying the essence of the Six Paths' power, posed a significant threat even to Mōryō.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The seemingly unremarkable Truth-Seeking Balls exploded upon contact with Mōryō's heads, unleashing devastating blasts far exceeding the power of a Tailed Beast Ball.
Mōryō's attacking heads were obliterated, but he remained indifferent. His power was nearly limitless. As long as his main body wasn't entirely destroyed, he could regenerate endlessly.
"Interesting. But how about this?"
Mōryō unleashed a shockwave composed entirely of negative energy. Everything it touched decayed instantly, creating an overwhelming sense of impending doom.
"Nagato!" Konan called out anxiously.
"Almighty Push!"
The repulsive force deflected the shockwave just as it approached Nagato. However, he suddenly felt an unusual strain.
"Have you realized it now?" Mōryō taunted.
"If it were merely a force of repulsion, my attack would indeed be ineffective. But the Almighty Push is fundamentally a ninjutsu—a creation of the mortal realm. And as such, it is susceptible to my corrosion."
"Do you have any other tricks up your sleeve? Show me how you plan to stop me."
Part of Mōryō's massive body began to emerge from the Land of Demons, as if it were expanding to fill the entire world.
Nagato's expression grew grim. This time, he channeled the chakra of the Ten-Tails, clasping his hands together to form a small black sphere.
"Planetary Devastation!"
As the sphere emitted an immense gravitational pull, Mōryō looked up.
"The Sage of Six Paths' technique. Impressive, indeed."
"But you're still too weak."
Mōryō raised dozens of heads, violently smashing into the core of the Planetary Devastation and shattering it with brute force.
What...
Confronted with Mōryō's overwhelming power, Nagato froze momentarily, realizing the harsh truth:
He could never defeat Mōryō. But he also couldn't allow Mōryō to escape.
This left only one option—fight to the death.
Just as the members of Akatsuki steeled themselves for battle, Mōryō's assault abruptly ceased.
He turned toward the seas off the Land of Lightning.
"That Yamata no Orochi is truly useless."
"Never mind. Let's call it a day."
With that, Mōryō retreated to the Land of Demons.
"Mōryō-sama!" Uchiha Obito greeted him respectfully. "I recently encountered someone interesting and would like to introduce him to you."
"Oh? Who might that be?"
A bespectacled young man with snake-like features stepped forward. Adjusting his glasses, he smiled and bowed.
"I am Yakushi Kabuto."
"Ah, the inheritor of the White Snake's legacy."
"Hahaha! What a delightful surprise!" Mōryō laughed heartily. "With your addition, we can proceed to the next phase of our plan."
"To dominate the world!"
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