Whoosh!!
The Asura Path hurled the Animal Path high into the air!
As it neared the invisible barrier, Asura formed a rapid string of seals, releasing a burst of interference chakra.
Flick!
The unseen edge of Konoha's barrier rippled—Asura Path passed clean through.
Inside the village's Emergency Response Center, the monitoring ninjas stood before a rippling chakra-water screen that linked to the main barrier.
A white-clad, white-capped sensor, eyes perpetually closed, suddenly jolted upright.
"Intruder alert!"
The card-playing guards, including Kotetsu, immediately jumped to their feet, eyes locked on the barrier operator.
"Single target—western perimeter, point B!"
On the main avenue, a little girl with a bun hairstyle sprinted ahead, laughing.
"Come on, Grandma, hurry up!"
"Hehehe… slow down, dear!" the elderly woman said, smiling warmly as she clasped her hands behind her back.
In Autopsy Room #3, Shizune stood before a heap of black chakra rods, studying her report. Her expression tightened as a sudden unease ran through her.
Across town, Ise Udon and Moegi strolled out of a skewer shop, happily patting their stomachs.
"Thanks for the meal!"
Whsssh!
The Animal Path descended onto the shop's roof.
Summoning Jutsu!
Six black seals spread beneath its feet as white mist erupted—five more Paths of Pain and Konan materialized at its side.
"Scatter."
With Tendō's single command, seven figures vanished in seven directions.
Asura Path landed in a wide alley. Even as his feet slid to a halt, his left hand clamped his right wrist and twisted—his entire forearm rotated open, revealing rows of compact missiles hidden within.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!
Flames flared from their tails as five missiles rocketed skyward before raining down across the district.
"What the—?"
"What's happening up there?"
Villagers on nearby streets looked up in shock.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Explosions tore through buildings and streets alike, gouging craters into the earth. More than fifty civilians were dead or wounded within seconds.
Near the food district, Animal Path kicked a Konoha shinobi aside and wove seals at lightning speed. A summoning circle flared—and three enormous centipede beasts erupted forth, shrieking as they slithered through the streets, toppling every structure in their path.
Amid the ruins, the Preta Path seized a Leaf ninja by the throat.
Another shinobi leapt behind him, forming seals in midair.
"Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!"
Among most fire-style users, the Great Fireball was already a peak technique. But within the once-mighty Uchiha clan, nearly every member had mastered the far stronger Grand Fireball Jutsu.
That legendary bloodline—once one of the two most feared in the ninja world—had been wiped out.
Only two Uchiha remained alive.
A shocking scene unfolded before the Fire-style ninja's eyes—Preta Path turned toward the oncoming blaze and calmly raised a hand. The massive fireball twisted violently, then collapsed in on itself, drawn into his palm and snuffed out.
"M-my jutsu… it didn't work?! What kind of technique is that?"
Swish!
Preta Path blurred forward, so fast it was almost teleportation, and appeared right before the stunned shinobi.
"Where is Naruto Uzumaki?"
Nagato deliberately made the Preta Path ask that question—he had to.
Inside the tree hollow, Konan stood beside him.
All across Konoha, paper scraps drifted through the air—Konan's paper clones. They were her eyes and ears everywhere.
Nagato couldn't risk raising her suspicion. Even the smallest doubt could unravel everything.
He was here to capture the Nine-Tails, and for that to seem genuine, every Path of Pain needed to ask about Naruto's location before killing anyone.
If they didn't, it would look unnatural.
Konan was Nagato's last bond—his only companion in this world.
He could wound anyone's heart but hers. He would never allow even the slightest pain to touch her.
Of course, Nagato already knew where Naruto was: Mount Myōboku, one of the three great Sage Lands.
Naruto was there, training to master natural chakra. Soon, he would return—and in Sage Mode, he would face the Six Paths of Pain.
Nagato would wait for him. But before that, Konoha had to be broken.
Not only to fulfill his twisted vision of peace—making the world feel pain to end war—but also to ensure the story unfolded as it should.
Naruto needed to sense his chakra signal, locate the source, and come here to confront him.
Then would come the true moment—the capture of the Nine-Tails… and Naruto Uzumaki's death.
For now, Nagato's focus shifted to the Human Path.
That Path possessed a terrifying ability—one that made words unnecessary: soul reading.
Without alerting Konan, Nagato intended to use it to uncover the location of Danzō's secret Root base… or even Danzō himself. Tendō Pain would have to speak with Danzō—but Konan must never find out.
Danzō was one of the two people she hated most in the world—the other being Hanzō of the Salamander, already slain by Pain.
Those two were the ones who had destroyed Akatsuki's original dream—who had killed Yahiko and crippled Nagato.
Now Nagato was planning to negotiate with one of them. He knew Konan could never know—not yet.
Up on a nearby rooftop, Kotetsu and the Hyūga who'd been playing cards earlier were frantically scanning the village.
The Hyūga's temples bulged as his Byakugan flared. "They're everywhere! What's going on?!"
Kotetsu frowned deeply.
"They told us it was just one intruder! That's what we reported! The Barrier Corps was dispatched to trap him—but now there are dozens!"
"This is bad! The Barrier Corps can't handle this alone! Get me other units—call for backup, now!"
"Yes, sir!"
"I'll contact Lady Hokage!"
Beneath a collapsed rooftop, the Human Path gripped a Leaf chūnin by the head.
The ninja's brain-spine link had been severed; his eyes were empty, saliva trailing from his slack mouth.
The Human Path sent out a pulse of will—a mental probe that read directly from the target's subconscious, searching for traces of knowledge about Danzō's location.
"Where is Danzō…"
After a pause, his expression didn't change. "You don't know."
He lifted his hand, and a grayish-white spirit form tore free of the man's skull. The body fell limp to the ground—lifeless.
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Don't forget to drop some Power Stones!💎💎💎