"Nagato!"
In the depths of the Land of Grass, space distorted rapidly as three figures emerged in disarray.
Of the trio, only Konan remained unscathed.
Obito Uchiha had lost nearly half his body, while Nagato was in an even worse state.
The already frail and emaciated Nagato now had an arm and part of his chest sheared off, with a leg severed as well.
Through the charred, exposed wounds, one could faintly see his muscles and even internal organs.
Nagato had completely lost consciousness.
"Nagato... Nagato!?"
Konan's face went pale at the sight of Nagato's condition. Of the original three, Yahiko was already dead, leaving only her and Nagato.
In many ways, Nagato was her reason for living.
If Nagato were to die as well, she would truly have no purpose left in life.
"What exactly happened? Did all six Paths lose?"
Obito asked coldly, his tone filled with irritation. His mood was particularly foul.
"Is this what you call giving it your all?"
"And what about you? What were you doing?"
Konan's body was once again surrounded by swirling paper as she glared angrily at Obito.
"You have no idea how strong Kitagawa Minamoto is. Do you dare face him directly?"
"Hmph!"
Obito couldn't immediately answer her question. After all, he himself had been a victim of Minamoto's power.
"Ah, so here you are."
At that moment, Black Zetsu emerged from the ground, his gaze sweeping over the tense group.
Upon seeing Obito and Nagato's battered states, he immediately understood the situation.
They had suffered a devastating defeat.
"If you don't mind, let me try something."
Sighing, Black Zetsu slowly approached Konan. Under her wary gaze, he spoke calmly.
"Perhaps I can do something to help."
Konan furrowed her brow but eventually nodded. She had no other choice.
Without hesitation, Black Zetsu allowed White Zetsu's body to split off from him and envelop Nagato.
Obito raised an eyebrow at this, glancing at Black Zetsu out of the corner of his eye. Black Zetsu gave him a slight nod in response.
It was merely White Zetsu's Chakra being used to protect Nagato, not to transplant cells. For now, this was within acceptable limits.
Black Zetsu was far more cautious than Obito.
Cough, cough...
Nagato's resilience was remarkable. Under the protection of White Zetsu's Chakra, he began to regain consciousness.
"Nagato!"
Konan's voice was filled with relief, but Black Zetsu shook his head.
"This is only temporary. He still needs a proper medic, but he should recover gradually. For now, let's discuss what happened."
Black Zetsu's curiosity was genuine. What exactly had transpired to leave them in such a state?
"I was held back by Hatake Kakashi. I couldn't provide any support. His techniques are no joke."
Obito's voice was cold as he spoke, his fists clenching slightly at the memory of their battle.
Kakashi's strategies, their chosen battleground, and the final moments of their clash—all of it left a bitter taste in Obito's mouth.
"I lost."
Nagato, still somewhat dazed from his recent awakening, hesitated before sighing and speaking.
"That kid was far more troublesome than I imagined. Not only does he possess the Flying Thunder God Technique, but he also wields Ice Release.
His ability to analyze information is unparalleled, as if he can see through my abilities at a glance.
And my power was too scattered. He exploited that, defeating me one step at a time. I couldn't stand against him."
Recalling the battle, Nagato felt a deep sense of frustration.
The individual Paths of Pain couldn't even slow Minamoto down. He could only watch helplessly as they were destroyed one by one.
That sense of powerlessness was infuriating.
"Information analysis, huh?"
Obito remained silent, knowing all too well what it felt like to be defeated in such a manner.
Black Zetsu, however, seemed to latch onto a key point.
"Your power was too scattered, and that's why he found an opening?"
"No, he's inherently incredibly powerful. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to counter Chibaku Tensei with a Rasengan."
Though admitting it was difficult, Nagato had to acknowledge the truth.
"Against someone like him, scattered power is utterly ineffective. If my strength had been concentrated, I wouldn't have feared him."
After enduring such a brutal defeat, Nagato had calmed down considerably.
He couldn't help but recall Minamoto's words during their battle: 'Concentrated power can shatter stone.'
Those words now echoed in his mind, leaving a deep impression.
But for now, Nagato chose to focus on the present. The pain of this defeat was too fresh.
"Indeed, he's terrifying. That boy is beyond imagination," Black Zetsu said, nodding in agreement.
Obito remained silent, his mood grim.
This mission had been a complete failure.
The only silver lining was that they had gained a clearer understanding of Minamoto's capabilities.
But knowing didn't make it any less painful.
"Let's leave this place for now and regroup," Black Zetsu suggested, breaking the silence.
Between Ōtsutsuki Momoshiki and Kitagawa Minamoto, they faced two formidable enemies.
Neither would be easy to deal with.
"Perhaps, if we wait, the two of them might end up fighting each other. That could be our chance..."
This thought brought Black Zetsu some comfort.
As they prepared to leave, a sudden realization struck Black Zetsu.
"Wait, where's Raiga Kurosuki?"
"...!"
"Dead again?"
"...!"
"Why is it that every new recruit either runs away or dies?!"
"...!"
"Are you alright, Kakashi-sensei?"
In another part of the Land of Grass, Kitagawa Minamoto appeared beside Kakashi using the Flying Thunder God Technique.
The moment he landed, he noticed an arm lying on the ground.
"Is this... Obito Uchiha's arm?"
"Yes," Kakashi confirmed, nodding. After carefully observing Minamoto, he finally breathed a sigh of relief.
"It seems you're fine. I was worried something might have happened to you."
"Of course I'm fine. But... did you break this off?"
Minamoto's expression was one of disbelief as he stared at the severed arm.
Was Obito addicted to losing limbs?
And...
This arm seemed to be one of Obito's original parts. Despite being a "patched-up Six Paths Frankenstein," Obito still had some "original goods" on him.
Now, Kakashi had managed to rip off one of those.
"He was in a hurry to escape and left an opening, so I seized the opportunity," Kakashi explained, recalling the battle.
Obito had been distracted, especially after the massive sphere in the sky shattered.
Seizing the moment, Kakashi had struck decisively, resulting in the severed arm.
"Speaking of which, that giant sphere was your doing, wasn't it? Are you really okay?"
"Don't worry, I'm fine. In fact, I even tested one of my research results," Minamoto said with a smile.
This time, he was quite satisfied with his performance.
The Six Paths of Pain were strong, but their scattered formation made them much less threatening. Minamoto had been able to handle them in his base form.
The only regret was that his "Talk no Jutsu" hadn't worked as intended. Instead, it had backfired, earning him a Shinra Tensei to the face.
"I should've talked about bonds and friendship instead. Maybe that would've worked."
But Minamoto wasn't one to dwell on such things. If words didn't work, he had no problem resorting to action.
"Look at this, Kakashi-sensei."
Minamoto pulled out a scroll and quickly unsealed it.
"...What's this?"
As smoke dispersed, several items appeared: a small piece of white flesh, a shriveled arm, a severed leg, and a pair of swords.
"This piece of flesh is from Obito Uchiha. It felt off, so I kept it," Minamoto explained.
He had debated whether to bring it out but ultimately decided it was better to share it with Konoha.
As for the other items...
"The swords belong to Raiga Kurosuki. If I'm not mistaken, he was one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist. He died here today, so I took his blades."
"Kirigakure really has a knack for causing trouble," Kakashi muttered, his mouth twitching.
The Akatsuki seemed to have a preference for recruiting rogue ninjas from Kirigakure.
First Jūzō Biwa, then Kisame Hoshigaki, and now Raiga Kurosuki.
"Let's head back for now," Kakashi said, rubbing his temples.
"But this time, we were lucky. Neither of us got hurt."
"True, our luck wasn't bad," Minamoto agreed, nodding as he studied Kakashi.
"However, there's something else. During the battle, I sensed an unusual Chakra."
"Unusual Chakra?"
"Yes. It was originally in Kusagakure but seemed to leave the village later. I think it's worth investigating."
"I see..."
Kakashi fell into thought. Minamoto's words suggested this wasn't something simple.
"Wait, did you say Kusagakure?"
"Yes."
"You fought near Kusagakure?"
"Seems like it."
"...!"
Kakashi froze, his face turning pale as he realized the implications.
The giant sphere had exploded near Kusagakure. He didn't even want to think about the consequences.
"We're doomed..."
Swallowing hard, Kakashi's thoughts were interrupted by Minamoto's sudden excitement.
His system had just flashed.
[Side Quest Completed: My Style Surpasses Yours] [Reward Obtained: The Yin Release Power of the Rinnegan]
Seeing the reward, Minamoto's eyes lit up. Yin Release was exactly what he needed!
"So, my style surpasses Nagato's. It wasn't just that I twisted Pain's paths...
I actually cut Nagato himself down, didn't I?"
~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~
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