The mighty repulsive force erupted like a nuclear bomb, instantly blasting away the surrounding Konoha ninjas.
A deep pit appeared in the ground; this time, Nagato almost didn't hold back, the repulsive force directly exploded to a distance of a hundred meters, even though Jiraiya and the others reacted and sent signals, they were bounced away immediately.
Having only used the Gedo Statue once, Nagato's body is not as weak as it would be in ten years, and now his body is also covered by Tobi, providing considerable strength.
"This bastard, did he hold back last time?"
Jiraiya, although prepared, was still shocked to the point of aching all over, yet he endured the pain, stood up forcibly, and quickly communicated: "Follow the previously prepared plan!"
Though he didn't know why Yahiko had Nagato's Rinnegan, he couldn't ignore such clear hostility.
"When a disciple goes astray, the teacher cannot turn a blind eye!"
After Jiraiya finished speaking, he swiftly aligned with others and then two teams simultaneously performed seals.
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Jutsu!"
"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"
"Earth Release: Earth Dragon Bomb!"
The three types of ninjutsu attributes, with the wind amplifying the fire's power, and amidst the flames, continuous projectile attacks emerged.
On the other side, several ninjas simultaneously used shuriken kunai, sealing all the places where the Deva Path Clone could dodge.
"Almighty Push."
The enormous repulsive force struck again, sending all incoming attacks flying.
"Chance!"
Ninjas from the Inuzuka Clan and two other Konoha ninjas saw the repulsive force appearing and immediately applied chakra to their feet to grip the ground, preventing the force from blowing them away.
Then, as the repulsive force disappeared, the three attacked instantly.
"Fang Passing Fang!"
"Konoha Style Swordsmanship: Willow Leaf Slash."
"Dance of the Crescent Moon!"
Two small tornado-like surprise attacks charged swiftly towards the Deva Path Clone.
The pupil technique of Almighty Push had a cooldown period, and when the Deva Path Clone couldn't use it, he raised a hand and used Heavenly Attraction, pulling up a large rock with horrifying suction.
This situation was seen and confirmed by reconnaissance ninjas in the distance; the technique just used to send everything flying had an interval, or otherwise, facing a three-way attack, it wouldn't need to be blocked this way.
Fang Passing Fang fiercely shattered the suddenly appeared rock, though the charge became slower; meanwhile, the Deva Path Clone leapt high, evading Fang Passing Fang's attack.
But two Konoha ninjas seized the opportunity, leaping high too, attacking the Deva Path Clone.
However, they suddenly saw the Deva Path Clone flicking both hands, releasing several black rods from his hands, directly streaking towards them.
Clang clang clang!
The two swung their swords to deflect them, but upon looking up again, they saw the Deva Path Clone raising his hands.
"Almighty Push!"
A gigantic repulsive force struck again, sending the three Konoha ninjas flying; and this time, two were in midair, hit by the repulsive force as if struck by a massive hammer, directly flying backward and crashing hard into the ground.
After severely injuring the three, the Deva Path Clone extended black rods from his hands and hurled them towards the two most severely hurt Konoha ninjas.
"Gekkou..."
"Yanagi Forest!"
The two couldn't react in time, and heavily injured as they were, as soon as they lifted their bodies, they were pierced through by black rods.
In the distance, White Zetsu and Obito only revealed themselves after the Konoha ninjas surrounded them.
One emerged from the Divine Power Space, the other from the convergence of tree trunks.
"Nagato seems to be quickly mastering the Rinnegan, after summoning the Gedo Statue, he has become adept at using the power of the Deva Path."
White Zetsu remarked, "Moreover, with Tobi's help, it seems that these Konoha ninjas will find it difficult to capture Nagato."
"This starting Nagato isn't fully prepared yet, the Six Paths Sage's eyes..."
Obito, taught by Uchiha Madara about the Six Paths Jutsu and Yin-Yang Release, slowly explored the strength of the Rinnegan whilst instructing Nagato on its mastery.
Six Paths Clone, shared vision, control of large summoned beasts by the Animal Path, Asura Path's firepower modification, Preta Path's energy-absorbing sealing...
If Nagato's legs were unharmed, once he mastered the Rinnegan, even the Kage from the Five Great Ninja Villages would struggle against him, each ability of the Rinnegan is extremely hard to handle.
"But the Konoha ninjas seem to be probing Nagato's abilities, soon they will fully understand this clone's capabilities... Is this okay?"
"Let it continue, as long as he doesn't die, he can be of use to us, and the formidable one is his original body, not the clone."
Obito observed calmly, "The more Nagato is injured by the Konoha ninjas, the more he will rely on us..."
"Indeed, letting him become more adept with the Rinnegan is beneficial as well..."
White Zetsu spoke, echoing Black Zetsu's thoughts; currently, Nagato is only proficient with the Six Paths' abilities, likely unable to use the Reincarnation Jutsu of the Outer Path.
Becoming more adept with the Rinnegan, even if Nagato fails, Black Zetsu can possess him and resonate with the talisman inside his body, controlling him to use Reincarnation Jutsu to revive Uchiha Madara.
Although plans may encounter shifts, there seems no other choice; once Uchiha Madara revives, no one in the Ninja World would be his match, collecting the Tailed Beasts would naturally be his endeavor.
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"It's been a long time since the Jonin Danzo has been in the village, you've finally decided to come back."
At Konoha Village gate, Uchiha Yoichi looked at Danzo in front of him with slight disappointment and said; he somewhat hoped Danzo would become a traitor, so the Security Team could openly eliminate Root.
Then Uchiha Yoichi waved his hand, and the Security Team members behind him stepped forward, surrounding the twenty-plus ninjas behind Danzo, preparing to use sealing techniques on them.
Among them, several ninjas from the Sarutobi Race saw the Security Team's actions and protested, saying, "What are you doing? We are Konoha ninjas..."
"Konoha ninjas recklessly leaving the village? Leaving without the Hokage's approval, bringing great enemies upon the village, and now having the audacity to resist?"
Uchiha Yoichi didn't hold back with them, and directly ordered, "Kill anyone who resists!"
Upon hearing Uchiha Yoichi's cold tone, the Sarutobi Clan ninja immediately felt the oppressive killing intent, causing them to break out in a cold sweat.
"Seal everyone, then lock them in prison."
Seeing that Danzo did not say a word, Uchiha Yoichi felt a bit bored, so he ordered his men to detain them all.
When Uchiha Yoichi returned to the Hokage Building, he happened to see Sarutobi Hiruzen walking out, looking like his goal wasn't achieved.
"Third Hokage."
"It's Yoichi, I have some matters to attend to... you go ahead."
Sarutobi Hiruzen forced a smile, then headed towards his home; after stepping down from the Hokage position, he has little power left.
Hatake Sakumo handed the Hokage Assistant role to Uchiha Yoichi but did not appoint him as an Elder, so Sarutobi Hiruzen, the former Hokage, besides having two unresolved Anbu squads, is left with no authority.
Back at the Hokage Office, Hatake Sakumo asked, "They've returned?"
"Yes, I assume they've been sealed and sent to prison now."
"Prison, huh..."
Hatake Sakumo paused with the document in hand, hesitantly asking, "Isn't that a bit harsh?"
"He's just a regular ninja, causing such trouble for the village; it's already generous not to keep him in the Interrogation Team for a long time."
Uchiha Yoichi shook his head and said, "Besides, Danzo planned to rebuild Root in the Land of Bear and the Land of Demons, interrupted by the loss of many men due to the Rinnegan. Do you think he's acting in Konoha's best interest outside?"
"Is there really such a thing?"
Hatake Sakumo frowned, something he was hearing for the first time, if true, then the charge of treachery isn't so light.
"Let the Interrogation Team question his subordinates, but we'll need to undo the tongue binding seal from their mouths. This base establishment in the Land of Bear suggests thorough preparations were made."
After Uchiha Yoichi finished speaking, he thought for a moment and continued asking, "Fourth Hokage, what did the Third Hokage want from you just now?"
"He wanted me to lift the restrictions on Danzo and his men, but I refused... Let's not talk about it. There are more people applying to move into Konoha now, which is already full, so let's discuss expanding new districts."
Hatake Sakumo shook his head, then took out the plan Uchiha Yoichi proposed last time.
It involves reclaiming and rebuilding civilian houses into five or six-story residences, while also constructing a few residential and commercial areas above the Hokage Rock, accommodating tens of thousands more people.
Uchiha Yoichi essentially brought forth a development plan akin to the one in Boruto, proposing to relocate the training grounds originally on Hokage Rock to a farther location.
After that, the two began to discuss. Once these applicants are investigated thoroughly, they'll undoubtedly be welcomed. Part of the village's finances comes from business taxes, the more people, the more prosperous the village, and the more revenue it generates.
Once the discussion concludes, the construction team can commence, though the Barrier Team will need to rearrange the barriers. Fortunately, the Security Team has been deployed as surveillance, making patrols much easier.
————————————
In the Land of Rain, the battle lasted a long time, a lot of Konoha corpses littering around, and even Nagato's Deva Path Clone was worn out.
However, when Jiraiya and others slightly relaxed, Nagato's true body appeared on the battlefield again, plunging them back into a fierce struggle.
But the main information about the Rinnegan had been mostly grasped by Jiraiya and his group, except for those not displayed, like the five-second interval between repulsive and attractive forces.
"Almighty Push!"
The repulsive force flung three people away, but one who could still speak shouted immediately,
"Master Jiraiya!"
"Sage Art: Ultra-Big Ball Rasengan!"
"Tongue Battle Binding!"
"Ninpo: Thousand Needles Rain."
Three attacks simultaneously targeted Nagato; the Ultra-Big Ball Rasengan was used by Jiraiya after Nagato's true form appeared, reluctantly summoning two sages and entering Sage Mode.
The Tongue Battle Binding involved Shima Sage's tongue from Jiraiya's shoulder wrapping around it; if Nagato used the ninjutsu absorption attack, the tongue would tightly bind him, leaving Nagato to be struck by a rain of needles.
These three attacks caught Nagato during Almighty Push's interval.
"Damn..."
Boom!
The Rasengan hit the ground, raising a huge cloud of dust and smoke.
Sensing no contact, Jiraiya quickly retreated, shouting loudly, "Who's there?"
For a brief moment, an unfamiliar chakra appeared beside Nagato.
"As expected of Konoha's Sannin, I can't believe you noticed..."
The space warped, and the next second, Tobi and Nagato appeared before the Konoha ninja.
"Today's not the day to take Nagato away; we've fought long enough, now it's time to leave..."
"Yahiko's corpse is still there!"
Nagato interrupted Tobi, but the latter stayed silent for a moment, then spoke to Nagato, "Though you have chakra left, continuing to fight will be dangerous, and the possession time is at its limit."
The time limit was merely a lie by Tobi, feeling it hard to defeat Jiraiya quickly, and since Konoha ninja had signaled for reinforcements, many Konoha ninja were rushing over.
"The corpse isn't as important as you; Konoha's reinforcements are arriving quickly, if you stay..."
Nagato fell silent after hearing, and Tobi directly absorbed him into the Kamui space.
"Bastard, you're not getting away!"
Seeing the newly emerged enemy attempting to escape, Jiraiya directly performed a double-handed seal, "Boss, Sister, use wind and fire!"
"Sage Art: Goemon!"
The threefold mix of wind, fire, and oil instantly targeted Uchiha Tobi, but the massive ranged immortal technique missed him, sending Uchiha Tobi back into the Kamui space in just a moment.
The sweeping fire oil set the ruined plain ablaze, but the enemy had already fled.