"A nobody."
It wasn't that Sasuke deliberately wanted to humiliate someone who was already dead, he was just calmly stating an ending.
The existence called "Kisame," his achievements, sins, past, cause and effect, along with the flash of Sasuke's blade that took Kisame's life, had all returned to dust and dirt, erased from the root.
Whether companion or enemy, no one would remember him.
All information and data in the world related to Kisame would, under this strike, turn into a blank sheet of paper.
Thus, he was, 'A nobody.'
Sasuke rotated his wrist, the long sword spun once in his palm, he lightly placed it onto the sheath on his back, then let go, allowing the sword to slowly slide into the scabbard.
He looked toward the daimyo ninja not far away, his cold voice drifting over, "Do you still want to continue?"
Within just a dozen minutes, the daimyo ninja had experienced too many ups and downs. Their mental state was like the elastic band of an old lady's underwear, already loose and saggy, dazed and confused. When they suddenly heard Sasuke's question, many of them were stunned for three to four seconds before returning to their senses.
They looked at Nagato slumped on the ground, face pale, clearly breathing out more than breathing in, then looked at the sky battleship floating above their heads.
Finally, the daimyo ninjas' gazes fell onto Ryosuke, who had flown back.
Behind him were four tailed beasts, obediently lined up in a row, following carefully behind.
Clang!
The daimyo ninja threw away their weapons and knelt down in a dogeza pose, raising both hands high to show they were harmless.
Armies have overseers, and naturally the daimyo ninja were no exception. The overseers planted among them saw the ninjas surrendering one after another, and anger surged instantly.
Ryosuke hadn't even come over yet, and this group of soft eggs already knelt down, knelt so fast, wouldn't that make…
Wouldn't that make it look like the overseers kneeled slower.
As for fighting?
Fight for what?
The Akatsuki members, undying and immortal, one could create meteors with bare hands, others could summon huge orange-red monsters and six tailed beasts.
In the eyes of the daimyo ninja, that was already strength beyond imagination.
But… then they met Ryosuke.
If the abilities of the Akatsuki could still be explained with legendary powers like the Sharingan and Rinnegan, then the abilities Ryosuke displayed had already escaped the category of a "mortal."
It was mentioned before, for secrecy, daimyo ninja trained in secret all year round, and their actual mission experience was much less than that of shinobi from ninja villages.
But they had a lot of experience in another aspect, in dealing with corporations and bureaucrats, they had sharp eyes for evaluating situations and extremely fast reflexes when sliding to their knees at the first sign of danger.
After all, for daimyo ninja, they didn't have any "Will of Fire" in their hearts.
Ryosuke kept the four tailed beasts outside the city. Before he even landed, he heard the daimyo ninja loudly shouting things like "We were deceived by traitors and deeply regret it!" and "From today on, we are willing to work like horses and dogs for Lord Ryosuke!"
Thousands of people, talking over each other, yet somehow there were hardly any repeated begging-for-mercy lines.
God knows what these daimyo ninja usually trained.
"Brother Ryosuke."
Sasuke and Rei walked up to him.
Sasuke lowered his head and said, "Sorry, I couldn't keep Uchiha Itachi. Just a little more… just a tiny bit more…"
Ryosuke gently patted his shoulder, "As long as you're okay."
On such a huge battlefield, chaotic beyond measure, with Nagato and the tailed beasts entangling things, with Obito and Uchiha Itachi's level, if they were determined to escape in the chaos, stopping them was very difficult.
Fortunately… the ones who escaped were small men.
What are small men?
It means without a true great figure willing to stand at the front and bear everything, just relying on themselves, they could create one or two small disturbances at most, but did not have the qualifications to "achieve great deeds."
When everything settles, Obito or Uchiha Itachi, whichever, there will be plenty of time to slowly settle accounts.
"Ryo… Ryosuke…"
From the ruins, Nagato weakly called out. He waved Ryosuke over, but halfway through the gesture, his arm dropped powerlessly, panting heavily.
Whoosh!
A metal sphere flew out and landed on Nagato's chest.
The spinning force seeped into his body, and Nagato's state of mind improved slightly.
But this was only the last glimmer before death.
Once the spinning energy dissipated, Nagato's time of death would arrive.
Ryosuke didn't mind the dirt on the ground and sat cross-legged.
"You have last words?"
"Can you give me something to drink?" Nagato asked.
For someone who had used one move, Super Shinra Tensei, to kill tens of thousands, Ryosuke not walking over and kicking him to death directly already counted as having good manners.
Ryosuke didn't have time to listen to Nagato's last words. If he had time for this, he'd rather rush to the front lines.
Every second of delay, a soldier of the Extinction Army or a Kirigakure ninja might die under the enemy's blade.
As for a drink?
Seeing Ryosuke's throat and mouth move as if he was about to spit a mouthful of phlegm at him, Nagato silently skipped his previous request.
"It's not last words, it's a gift."
He bit his finger and performed the Summoning Technique.
Poof!
A half-human-tall chameleon was summoned.
Nagato stretched out his hand to it. The chameleon opened its mouth, its long tongue reached deep down its throat and groped around. Moments later, it pulled out a scroll.
"What's this?" Ryosuke asked.
Nagato sighed lightly, "My path ends here.
Ryosuke, you won, but you only won against me, you haven't yet won against this rotten world."
He wiped the chameleon saliva off the scroll on his clothes and handed it to Ryosuke.
"This is a list. Every corporation and bureaucrat that has had contact with the Akatsuki is recorded in detail, including my secret investigations into their hidden industries during our dealings."
"
On the battlefield, you took the world by force. This intel might help you crush the enemies on your road in terms of politics and economy as well."
Ryosuke accepted the scroll.
This indeed was extremely valuable information. Think back to the Water Country conglomerate's counterattack, and the chaos caused in April, that was when Oda Ieyasu was very familiar with the internal forces of the Water Country.
Now that Ryosuke defeated the armies of the Fire, Lightning, and Earth Countries, what follows is a slow process of devouring them bit by bit, and secret sabotage will be inevitable.
With this list, handling those matters would become traceable and much easier.
"Can I have something to drink now?" Nagato asked.
Ryosuke thought for a moment, took out two cans of coffee from the ghost room, and tossed one to Nagato.
Nagato took the coffee and sipped.
He hadn't expected Ryosuke would give him, a man who would die in minutes, a drink meant for staying alert. He expected even less that it would be espresso. One sip, and the bitterness pierced straight into his heart.
Nagato originally wanted to complain, but with death approaching, his life flashed before his eyes, and he realized his entire life had also been bitter. He lowered his eyes to the coffee can in his hand.
He smiled, a smile containing too many complicated emotions.
"At least it began and ends the same."
Ryosuke stood up and shook the scroll in his hand.
"Thank you for your final gift."
He was about to turn and leave when he saw Nagato slowly shake his head. He raised his hand, pointing toward the wreckage of the flying craft he used earlier, dozens of meters away.
"Banshō Ten'in."
From the wreckage, an injector flew toward them. Before it even reached him, Ryosuke smelled the thick medicinal scent.
Nagato caught the injector, stabbed it into his neck, and pressed his thumb. The dark-purple medicine entered his body and began circulating inside him.
Snap!
Nagato snapped his fingers.
The earth trembled. A giant 100-meter-tall "King of Hell" rose from the ground. Its mouth opened. After a brief silence, countless souls spewed out from its mouth!
Outer Path, Samsara of Heavenly Life Technique.
Using the life of the caster as the price to resurrect the dead.
One by one, innocent civilians who died in the Super Shinra Tensei were revived. They stood among the ruins and embraced their family and friends, sobbing.
Nagato finished the last sip of coffee, placed the empty can on the ground, leaned against the ruins in a comfortable posture, and said, "This is my final gift."
"Ryosuke, may your journey go smoothly."
Ryosuke watched Nagato's eyes gradually lose their light. Just before the last spark of life completely faded, "Nagato, rest in peace."
A faint smile curled at Nagato's lips.
[Killed Nagato: Pain Six Paths, obtained 2000 soul fragments.]