With a thought, the wooden wall in front of Kaito twisted and shifted, turning into massive vines that lashed forward like the limbs of a monstrous creature. They surged wildly toward Tendo Pain, sweeping across the battlefield like a storm.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The thick vines crashed down with devastating force, shaking the ruined landscape. Each impact echoed like thunder, as though great pillars of the heavens themselves were falling onto the battlefield.
The already shattered ground, devastated earlier by Pain's Shinra Tensei, broke further under the assault. Countless new craters spread across the battlefield, pockmarking the land like a beehive.
After unleashing his ultimate Shinra Tensei, Tendo Pain was weakened. For a short period, he couldn't use any of the Rinnegan's other powers. During that interval, he could only rely on his body to dodge and endure.
"Troublesome," Pain muttered as he weaved through the relentless vines.
Hum!
A shadow loomed above him, blotting out the faint light of the sun. One of Kaito's vines had grown as wide as a tower, descending like a whip from the sky.
At the same time, a wave of vines surged up from the ground, attacking from below. Pain was being assaulted from every direction, yet his expression didn't waver.
Hum!
The falling shadow grew larger and larger, threatening to crush him entirely.
Boom!
From the distance, a beam of pure white light tore through the air, colliding with the massive vine above. The explosion split it open, carving a deep crack along its length.
For a moment, it seemed destroyed—yet the vine pulsed and healed instantly, reknitting itself as if nothing had happened. Still, the strike made it hesitate for a heartbeat, slowing its descent.
That brief pause was all Pain needed. His body flickered and slipped free of its path, narrowly avoiding the crushing impact.
Kaito's eyes flicked toward the source of the interference, where the Asura Path was positioned. His face darkened, and he growled, "You're really asking for death."
The instant the words fell, his figure vanished.
Below, Pain dashed toward the Asura Path. For now, without his techniques, the Asura Path was his only shield. All he could do was hold out until his powers recharged.
But the vines gave him no breathing room. They slithered across the ground like serpents, hounding his every step. Each one struck with the weight of mountains, leaving deep bruises and tearing the cloak of the Akatsuki from his body. His exposed arm was welted and bruised, marked by the relentless whipping of wood and lightning.
Fortunately, the Six Paths of Pain were only corpses controlled by chakra. If they had been living bodies, the punishment would already have been unbearable.
Hum!
The Asura Path lowered its head. Its skull split open, transforming into a cannon. A bright white sphere of energy began to condense at its core, humming with a lethal frequency that made the air itself tremble.
But before it could fire—
Whoosh!
Kaito's figure appeared above it, descending with the sound of tearing wind. His fist, wreathed in black lightning, smashed down with brutal force.
Boom! Crack!
The Asura Path's head shattered instantly. Lightning spread across its body like a violent storm, burning through every circuit until it collapsed into lifeless rubble. Only the black chakra rods remained, twitching weakly as the controlling signal faded.
Not far away, Tendo Pain's eyes narrowed. He muttered under his breath, "So… the Asura Path has also fallen. Then… I have already lost."
Whoosh! Whoosh!
From the ruined earth, seeds sprouted and exploded upward, twisting into towering vines. They wove together rapidly, forming a colossal cage that surrounded Tendo Pain, trapping him in an iron forest of living wood.
"…So I am trapped," Pain said calmly. "If I had just a little more time, I could have regained my abilities."
But the ground betrayed him again. Thin vines burst up, coiling like ropes around his limbs. They bound him tightly, pinning him in place. He strained, but the more he struggled, the tighter the grip became.
"Don't waste your strength," Kaito said as he stepped through a gap in the vine cage. His voice was cold and steady. "The bindings of Wood Style are as unyielding as steel chains."
Pain stopped resisting. His pale eyes studied Kaito without fear. "This time, you win. But next time, you won't be so fortunate."
"Oh?" Kaito's tone was icy. "Do you think there will be a next time? Once I destroy this last puppet, I'll hunt down your true body. Then you'll spend eternity in the Shinigami's grasp."
"There will be… a next time." Pain's calm reply carried an unsettling certainty.
Kaito frowned. His senses flared. Through electromagnetic perception, he felt the faint signatures of three figures inside a distant tower. He recognized them instantly—Nagato, Konan, and… Uchiha Obito.
At that exact moment, the space around Obito warped, rippling like water. Before Kaito could move, the three figures vanished from his perception, drawn into the void of Kamui space.
"Damn it!" he cursed, his eyes flashing with killing intent.
The moment Obito took Nagato and Konan away, the body of Tendo Pain before him froze. The chakra strings cut off, and the puppet collapsed into stillness, like a lifeless statue.
"Hmph." Kaito sneered coldly. He flicked his fingers, pulling out every black rod embedded in the body. "Next time, you won't escape so easily, Uchiha Obito."
He dismissed the Wood Style cage with a thought, shouldered Nagato's lifeless body, and turned back toward Jiraiya and the others. Yahiko's corpse wasn't worth worrying about now—he had been a pawn long ago. Still, Yahiko had been Jiraiya's student. At the very least, Jiraiya would want to bury him with respect.
Though, Kaito thought grimly, in this world even graves were never safe.
Not far away, Jiraiya's two summoned sages watched the vine cage with anticipation.
"Is it finally decided?" Jiraiya muttered, heart racing.
Fukasaku shook his head calmly. "Relax, Jiraiya-boy. Kaito will win. Can't you see? Since unleashing that great repulsion, Tendo Pain hasn't used another ability. The backlash has left him vulnerable. A mere puppet with no jutsu is no match for Kaito."
Shima nodded in agreement, her sharp eyes narrowing as she studied the battlefield. "The boy's already won. This battle is over."
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