Chapter 252: You Don't Understand the Rinnegan
"Human beings are ugly and sinful."
"Desire prevents people from being content with what they have. Some even take pride in their ever-expanding ambitions, believing that ambition itself is virtue."
"Desire is the root of conflict. This is true in every world—and I'm no exception. My heart isn't noble at all. In fact, it's hideous. To those who oppose me, I'm nothing more than a demon crawling from the abyss..."
...
Ryosuke calmly spoke the truth—truth everyone understood but most pretended to ignore.
He didn't shy away from admitting his own guilt, just as he had done before.
And those brutally honest words left Shanks at a loss for words.
Because… they were true.
Right and wrong often flip, depending on where you stand.
From a pirate's view, the navy is evil—thieves who block their freedom and profits.
But to the navy, pirates are lawless oppressors, sowing chaos across the seas.
The navy claims the moral high ground, raising the banner of justice, recruiting soldiers to fight under the premise of protecting the weak.
Pirates, on the other hand, lure others with treasure, forming their own brotherhoods.
From their own perspectives, both sides are justified.
But from the other's point of view, each is undeniably wrong.
"Interesting perspective," Black Zetsu remarked, breaking the silence with slow applause.
"For a thousand years, I've wandered this world, and never—not once—have I seen absolute peace."
"I've witnessed wars between great nations involving millions, and feuds between a handful of clans. Humans are insatiable by nature. Only a rare few can truly restrain themselves and forgive."
His voice carried a layer of mocking cynicism.
"If the Sage of Six Paths were alive and saw the state of the ninja world he once saved… perhaps he wouldn't have opposed my mother after all."
"I'm not belittling humans," Ryosuke replied, glancing at him. "What I'm pointing out is—"
"Admit it," Shanks suddenly interjected, finishing his thought.
Ryosuke chuckled and nodded. "Yes. Admit it."
"Admit your sins. Even if you dress up your actions with noble-sounding words, you can't deceive yourself into believing you're righteous."
"Only by acknowledging your sins—facing them head-on—and accepting what you've done, can you develop true conviction. That unshakable will... the kind you need to keep moving forward."
He turned to Shanks. "I admit it. Most of what I've done is sinful. But I choose to walk this path anyway."
"Whether you understand it or not, from the Hyuga's perspective—I am right."
"And if you can't accept that, then you're still rejecting the idea of cooperating with Hyuga. You've never truly seen things from our side."
Shanks remained silent for a long time before speaking again.
"…With your strength, you don't need my help."
"Individual strength can only do so much," Ryosuke shook his head. "And our goal is massive. I can't threaten entire worlds alone."
"The Hyuga Clan is growing, yes—but still too weak. We need external support."
"You, guests from another world are the forces I've chosen to ally with. And in return, if fate allows us to reach your world in the future, I'll give you authority over this one."
"Which brings us to the question—what role will the Hyuga play when we enter your world? Will we be tyrants? Or peaceful merchants seeking exchange?"
Although the Hyuga had long separated from Konoha, now possessing control of an entire country's resources and beginning a new era of rapid growth,
They were still a young force—experiencing their second spring.
Even after shedding their old pride and pushing forward in ninjutsu, taijutsu, and genjutsu, it wasn't enough.
Yes, over the years, they'd developed core fighters—some even strengthened by secret treasures from other worlds, like Devil Fruits but it still wasn't enough.
The Hyuga's fatal flaw was numbers. That kind of deficiency couldn't be ignored.
Among Konoha's clans, the Hyuga were among the largest.
But in the context of a country or an entire world—they were still small.
That's why they needed outside help.
In addition to recruitment within the ninja world, these powerful beings from other worlds offered promising reinforcements.
"What's more... you underestimate your own value."
Ryosuke's gaze lingered meaningfully on Shanks.
He had been coveting Shanks' Haki, physical prowess, and swordsmanship for a long time. But the man always refused to spar, leaving Ryosuke unable to witness them firsthand.
Shanks fell quiet, understanding exactly what Ryosuke was after.
The air grew still.
Only Black Zetsu, sitting beside them, was quietly shaken.
He had initially been confused when Ryosuke began openly admitting his sins.
But now, listening to the conversation unfold, he slowly began to understand.
Their goal wasn't this world.
It was other worlds.
While every other faction in the ninja world squabbled over control of a single planet, Ryosuke and his Hyuga Clan were already aiming beyond it.
Everything Ryosuke had done—allowing Black Zetsu to act freely, provoking chaos, delaying action—was merely to witness Kaguya's return.
He didn't care about good or evil.
Right and wrong no longer influenced his decisions.
The inner demons that haunted other great shinobi meant nothing to him.
All Ryosuke cared about... was growth.
Power.
He was terrifying—not just in strength, but in clarity. His heart was immovable. His will was absolute.
How someone so young had reached this state was beyond comprehension.
"If you keep spacing out," Ryosuke said suddenly, "Nagato is going to die."
Black Zetsu snapped out of his thoughts.
Even while conversing with them, Ryosuke was tracking the battlefield with perfect clarity.
"…What?"
Black Zetsu blinked, redirecting his consciousness from the vision of White Zetsu back to his own body. His expression turned grim.
"…What a useless fool. He couldn't even delay them for half a day."
---
On the battlefield—
Nagato soared through the air, but the confidence he'd once carried had vanished.
His cloak was tattered. His breathing ragged.
He dodged wildly, barely avoiding the relentless barrage of attacks.
Of the Five Kage, only Ōnoki could fly.
But the others weren't helpless against an airborne enemy.
Even against Nagato—with his summons, chakra absorption, and overwhelming power—they pressed in from every side.
The barrier technique had already quietly spread across the battlefield, unnoticed by Nagato. Its subtle presence limited his movement range, allowing the Five Kage to coordinate their next strike.
Each of them was proficient in at least three chakra natures. While the power of their combined elemental techniques wasn't as devastating as collaboration-based jutsu, the advantage was control—they could be launched by a single user and adjusted in real time.
Within the barrier, they could easily calculate Nagato's movement path and unleash attacks from multiple directions.
Although the Rinnegan could absorb chakra, it wasn't without limits.
Nagato began to show signs of fatigue with each absorption. It became clear he couldn't absorb too many techniques simultaneously. That was their window.
If they attacked him from all sides, he wouldn't be able to neutralize them all.
Especially Ōnoki, who had been observing quietly from the rear.
He needed only one Dust Release to erase Nagato from the world entirely.
This also meant that Nagato had no time to gather chakra for massive-scale techniques like Super Shinra Tensei. He could only rely on instant-cast jutsu for now.
The arrogance bred from wielding the Rinnegan had caused Nagato to underestimate the Five Kage. Early on, he gave them too much room to strategize—and now, he was losing control of the situation.
Black Zetsu's expression turned grim.
There was still time before the scheduled rendezvous with Obito at the Hidden Rock Village.
He had originally believed that since Nagato had held the Rinnegan for years, even if he couldn't use its full potential, utilizing 70–80% should be enough to stall the battle.
Now he realized the man was hopeless—unable to suppress even five ninja, despite wielding godlike eyes.
Compared to the Uchiha, Nagato relied far more on ocular powers and lacked actual combat experience.
It made sense, in hindsight.
Ever since awakening the Rinnegan, Nagato had rarely fought on his own.
He let the Six Paths of Pain do all the work—and they never lost. He relied on domination, not effort.
Even now, with his vitality restored and no longer needing the Pain puppets, his effectiveness had diminished.
Six bodies had compensated for his lack of technique.
But one against five? That exposed every weakness.
"What a waste," Black Zetsu muttered coldly.
In the Mizukage's office, Hidden Mist Village—
Black Zetsu stood as Konan stared him down, eyes narrowed.
She had placed explosive tags across the room in preparation.
But with a smirk, he melted into the floor like liquefied ink, escaping her trap before she could react.
"Don't run!"
Konan shouted, immediately activating her perception ninjutsu and unfolding her paper wings.
But—
She froze.
No... Impossible!
No matter how far her senses extended, she couldn't detect any trace of Black Zetsu's chakra.
From the Mizukage's office… through the Hidden Mist… and even the outskirts leading to the battlefield—nothing.
"He couldn't have..."
Konan stopped triggering the explosive tags.
Her gaze locked on the battlefield in the distance.
A second later, she saw it.
Black Zetsu had already arrived—barely a minute after vanishing beneath her feet.
"Dust Release: Detachment of the Primitive World Technique!"
Ōnoki, who had been saving his chakra, hurled a glowing cube of white energy toward the sky.
At that moment, Black Zetsu had used a White Zetsu that had long been attached to Nagato's back to leap directly onto his body.
Nagato's figure froze midair.
Ōnoki didn't hesitate. He followed the cube, moving to intercept with all his strength.
Dust Release was devastating—but it had a fatal flaw.
Once launched, it couldn't be redirected.
It moved slowly and needed precise prediction to land.
That's why only veterans with immense combat experience like Ōnoki could use it effectively.
According to the war plan, the barrier should've been tightened further before deploying Dust Release.
But something had caused Nagato to pause in midair—some anomaly in his movement.
Sensing the opportunity, Ōnoki released his ultimate technique early.
At the same time, Mei Terumi, Jiraiya, Darui, and Rasa all launched their own attacks, converging from different angles.
"Black… Black Zetsu!?"
Nagato's twisted, hoarse voice cracked out.
His eyes widened, his expression distorted with disbelief and fury.
The White Zetsu that had been feeding him chakra suddenly shifted—becoming sticky, oily black sludge.
Black Zetsu wrapped around him like living tar.
Nagato gagged at the sensation, overwhelmed with nausea—
But worse was the realization that he was losing control of his own body.
"Are you trying to die with me?! Is this your version of trust?!"
He could see the five incoming attacks, all incredibly precise and deadly. He struggled, eyes bloodshot, to regain command of his limbs.
But it was no use.
He was being hijacked from within.
Seeing everything fall apart at the last moment—he couldn't accept it!
"Kid, trust goes both ways. You're the one who left Konan in the Hidden Mist to watch over me," Black Zetsu said mockingly.
Even he hadn't expected Nagato's resistance to be so fierce.
"Move left. Dodge their spells first."
Nagato growled. "If we stay like this, we'll both die!"
"Fool."
Black Zetsu sneered. In that instant, he forcibly seized even more control over Nagato's body.
From the outside, it appeared that Nagato—now shrouded entirely in black slime—spread his arms wide.
Suddenly, a surge of pupil power exploded from within him.
"Nagato, you never understood the Rinnegan!"
The voice was ice-cold, its source unclear.
A thin, semi-transparent barrier manifested around Nagato like a shield.
Every incoming jutsu that struck this shield was absorbed into nothingness.
And this time… Nagato showed no sign of exhaustion.
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