BOOM!
In the faintly reddish alternate dimension, two massively built men collided. The sheer force of their impact shattered the stone peak beneath them into countless fragments.
Vwom!
The aura of the dark-haired, muscular man suddenly diminished.
"Your Eight Inner Gates technique still needs improvement!"
The Fourth Raikage seized the opportunity. The lightning aura around his body intensified, his arm arcing like a scythe. His exaggerated physique moved at a speed that defied common sense, streaking through the air like a bolt of lightning.
Pfft!
A head flew into the air.
"If only the Zero-Tails project could have been completed..."
Gazing at the dark purple behemoth battling in the distance, a trace of hatred flashed in the dying eyes of the dark-haired man, Shinno. If it weren't for him...
"Lord Raikage!" The Kumo sensor ninja, seeing the battle conclude, quickly leaped to his side to report. "Ko, Ju, and Kin, as well as Kosho and Kazuki, have all lost their vital signs."
"I know." The Fourth Raikage's heart sank. The Akatsuki's strength was greater than he had predicted. The Jonin he had brought were all elites from Kumogakure, yet they had still suffered such heavy losses.
"Aren't you going to make a move?" White Zetsu's form slowly emerged from the ground. "Hidan's practically been torn in half, Kakuzu has lost three hearts, and Shinno is straight-up dead. The others are also injured to varying degrees."
"How is Hiruko doing?" the masked man asked, his gaze fixed on the clash of the two giants, ignoring White Zetsu's question.
"That fellow's strength is unexpectedly formidable," White Zetsu said, his tone laced with astonishment.
"Possessing four Kekkei Genkai simultaneously without any internal conflict—it's not surprising he has such power," Black Zetsu commented, then looked at the masked man beside him. "It seems he's still missing the Uchiha's Kekkei Genkai."
"Impossible," the masked man stated coldly. "How are that one's preparations coming along?"
"Almost complete."
The masked man nodded slightly. "Tell them to prepare to evacuate this alternate dimension."
BOOM!
Sasuke's Susanoo unleashed a sword wave, clashing with a bolt of lightning shot from the Gedo Mazo.
What's going on?
Uchiha Sasuke looked at Nagato, who stood with his arms crossed atop the Gedo Mazo's head. A flicker of doubt crossed Sasuke's mind. He had a distinct feeling that his opponent wasn't using his full strength, that this battle was more like a delaying tactic.
"Lord Sasuke, Akatsuki members are rapidly converging!" The voice of the Kumo sensor ninja reached his ears.
Just then, a blue-haired woman with paper wings descended slowly onto the Gedo Mazo's head, standing shoulder to shoulder with the Akatsuki leader.
"Hmm?" Sasuke paused, surprised by this development.
"Is everything ready?" Nagato asked, turning his head slightly towards Konan.
Konan nodded.
Nagato let out a breath and brought his hands together. As his palms moved, a pitch-black sphere slowly began to coalesce.
"What is that?!"
Sensing the terrifying power contained within the black sphere, Uchiha Sasuke felt his scalp tingle. The wings on his Susanoo's back beat powerfully, and he rapidly moved towards the main body of his allied forces. Save as many as I can. Those too far away would have to rely on their own luck to survive.
"Have them gather together quickly!" he shouted, knowing the Kumo sensor ninja could hear him.
"Yes, Lord Sasuke!"
"Gather together? Un?" Deidara was puzzled, but seeing Sasori below him constantly moving towards a certain direction, he seemed to understand something and quickly maneuvered his giant clay bird towards the Fourth Raikage's position.
" Chibaku Tensei!"
The moment the remaining Akatsuki members reached the area beneath the Gedo Mazo, Nagato gently tossed the black sphere in his hands into the air.
VWOOM!
Instantly, a terrifying gravitational force emanated from the black sphere. The earth began to shake violently. With a deafening RUMBLE, countless boulders flew into the sky, adhering to the black sphere. Several Kumo nin who couldn't reach the main group in time were also pulled into the air, their screams cut short as they were crushed into pulp by the flying debris.
Poof!
The Gedo Mazo vanished in a puff of white smoke. Nagato and Konan landed beside the other Akatsuki members. With a ripple of spatial distortion, the masked man arrived.
"I will take you away from here," he said.
Another spatial ripple, and the Akatsuki members vanished from the spot.
"What kind of ninjutsu is that?!"
Feeling the continuous gravitational pull from above, Yenako's face paled drastically. They were so far from that black sphere, yet the force was immense. A fierce wind swept across the ground, and everyone instinctively closed their eyes.
Uchiha Sasuke swiftly brought his Susanoo down, its massive form rapidly disassembling to envelop everyone present within its protective chakra.
To manipulate such a large-scale, materialized chakra... just how powerful is he? The Kumo Jonin observed the dark purple chakra shielding them, their hearts shaken. For the first time, they had a direct, personal experience of the Shinobi Squad captain's true strength. Indeed, his reputation was well-deserved.
Several minutes later!
The trembling of the earth gradually subsided.
Gulp...
They looked up at the colossal sphere of rock suspended in the sky, so vast it seemed to obscure the sun. Cold sweat trickled uncontrollably down their foreheads. Even the Fourth Raikage began to doubt his own order to declare war on the Akatsuki.
"It's going to fall!"
A cry of alarm suddenly rang out from the group.
WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOSH!
The giant rock sphere in the sky tore through layers of air resistance, plummeting heavily towards the earth.
"Boss, can you hold it? Un?" Deidara managed a strained smile.
"Just for you calling me 'Boss,' I'll hold it," Sasuke replied, glancing back at him with a hint of surprise, then made his solemn promise.
BOOM!
The colossal rock sphere collided with the ravaged ground. A deafening roar echoed, and for an instant, the world seemed to fall silent. A terrifying shockwave, carrying countless fragments of rock, swept out in all directions. Brownish-yellow dust connected the sky and the earth, dyeing the world a single color—the earthen hue of soil.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Before the dust could settle, countless explosions erupted one after another.
Crack... Crack... Crack...
Faint cracking sounds could be heard from the void.
"This alternate dimension is collapsing!" the sensor ninja's face changed drastically.
"Has our operation been detected again?" Sasuke's eyes narrowed. From the Akatsuki members' ambush to the Akatsuki leader's bizarre fight with him, and now these explosions—everything pointed to one fact: the Akatsuki had long prepared an ambush in this dimension, intending to bury them all here.
Sssshhhrrrrip!
A rift suddenly tore open in mid-air.
"Get out, quickly!" an anxious voice called from the rift. It was the Kumo nin stationed in the main world; they had detected the anomaly in this dimension and urgently opened a passage for them. The faint sounds of clashing, shouting, and battle could be heard.
The Fourth Raikage's expression darkened, and he charged out first. "Go!"
"Let's go. They've gotten out. The plan wasn't as effective as hoped." The masked man tossed aside a lifeless Kumo shinobi's corpse he had been holding, looked at the rift in the void, and then slowly vanished.