Rain poured down over the central tower of Amegakure, pattering against the metal walls with a sharp, ringing sound.
Countless sheets of paper drifted down from the air, gathering on the floor and forming Konan's body.
She relayed the situation at the front lines to Nagato, who sat quietly in his wheelchair.
After Ao of the Hidden Mist fell, several other Allied shinobi elites had also been slain by Kakuzu. Morale was sinking fast, and it was only a matter of time before the true heavy hitters made their move.
Nagato nodded slightly. "Kakuzu is formidable. The main Allied forces are now almost entirely drawn to him at the front."
Konan listened in silence.
Nagato rose from his chair and walked to the window, his Rinnegan eyes gazing into the curtain of rain. "Let's begin, Konan."
Before his words had even faded, his hands were already weaving signs.
The Deva Path of Pain appeared.
At the critical moment, Konan's voice carried a note of concern. "If we do this, you'll be the only one left here."
Although Nagato appeared to be in good shape, she still felt uneasy.
Could someone who had relied on life-support machines for so many years truly recover so easily?
Seeing her expression, Nagato gave a warm smile. "My body has recovered. It's fine."
As if to prove it, he paced back and forth a few times. "See? Good as new."
Only then did Konan relax. Her paper wings unfurled wide, each sheet expanding like the feathers of an angel.
She embraced the Deva Path. Paper and black cloak intertwined.
With a sweep of her wings, she cut through the rain, rising higher and higher until the whole of Amegakure shrank to a pinpoint below.
Yahiko… the three of us will fight side by side again.
By the time she vanished into the sky, Nagato was already back in his wheelchair, fully focused on controlling the Six Paths.
"Go on get out there and fight."
Mei Terumi tossed the Allied Commander's seal toward Killer B, her tone sharp.
B caught it with calm ease, opening it to confirm its contents before offering a distant bow toward the Allied command tent. "The Hokage's order how could I not obey?"
The act was so deferential it made Ōnoki frown. Had Kumogakure truly fallen completely under Konoha's sway?
Mei studied him from head to toe, thinking, Surely not.
Even within the Hidden Cloud camp, someone muttered under their breath, "Good thing he didn't succeed the Raikage's seat."
Only Samui, standing silently beside B, remained expressionless as she handed him his sword case.
B's gaze locked onto Kakuzu in the center of the battlefield. "Watch closely, everyone. I'll take this bastard's head."
His palm slapped the case.
Seven blades sang free.
The Killer Bee was unleashed.
The crimson chakra of the Eight-Tails erupted around him. The ground split beneath his feet, and in the instant he moved, only a deep crater remained where he had stood.
Through Kakuzu's rapidly narrowing pupils, seven swords wreathed in tailed beast chakra descended like falling stars.
He twisted and rolled in rapid succession, barely evading each strike.
"Hmph. Just another jinchūriki."
Composite Style – Strange Mask Explosion!
The masked creatures on Kakuzu's back burst forth, their forms channeling the powers of Wind, Fire, Lightning, and Water in a violent storm of chakra.
His words were scornful, but his heart was wholly serious an old warrior's battle sense on full display.
Even a jinchūriki couldn't afford to face such overwhelming composite ninjutsu head-on.
B darted to the flank at incredible speed, lunging toward the Water Mask.
Better to cut off a single finger than try to break all ten without that heart, Kakuzu's strength would drop far more than just a fifth.
Kakuzu didn't have time to prepare another composite release. He hastily raised an Earth Style Wall in an attempt to block the Eight-Tails' charge.
But B was no ordinary jinchūriki.
Every wall in his path shattered under his charge.
Fire Style – Head Burner!
Unable to stop him, Kakuzu unleashed a torrent of flames that filled the air.
B didn't even slow down. Cloaked in the Eight-Tails' chakra, he ignored the agony of burning flesh no pain could compare to the grief of seeing the Hidden Cloud destroyed by Akatsuki.
Even wreathed in fire, he closed in on the Water Mask.
Kakuzu's eyes widened. He quickly unleashed another jutsu.
Wind Style – Pressure Damage!
The Wind Mask spat a high-pressure blast of air. B didn't dodge tentacles of tailed beast chakra coiled together to form a shield.
In the next instant, the Water Mask was torn clean in half.
Boom The wind blast struck B full-on, hurling him backward in an explosion of fire and smoke.
One heart shattered. Kakuzu's body jolted from the loss.
"Now your five elements are incomplete, monster."
When the smoke cleared, B was still standing burned black, but grinning, blood-stained teeth bared. "So… what will you do now?"
At that moment, he was a demon from hell, risen for vengeance.
"Tch. Don't get cocky, boy. I fought the First Hokage himself."
Kakuzu tore off his slightly tattered red-cloud cloak and hurled it into the sky.
Sarutobi Hiruzen sat at the head table, puffing on his pipe. The others present were all Konoha elites.
At the center, a crystal sphere displayed the front-line battle in real time.
Anbu operative Taka, newly assigned as the Hokage's guard, burst into laughter as he watched Ao fall. "That Mist-nin died like a joke."
Hiruzen didn't chastise him after all, the Hyūga clan and Ao shared a bitter grudge. As Hokage, it wouldn't do to openly comment on the death of an ally. Instead, he said, "Though he was defeated, he had the courage to draw his blade. That alone earns him the title of a true jōnin."
The bounty on Ao's head likely came mostly from the Hyūga clan.
Taka snorted but didn't argue.
Here, surrounded by allies, Itachi Uchiha sat in the corner without his crow mask, sipping from a sake gourd and carving a block of wood into a human shape.
The sake was a gift from Whitebeard.
The carving had been Hiruzen's suggestion he'd once read about someone who eased his suffering that way. If it worked for that man, perhaps it would help Itachi as well.
So far, it seemed to.
Nearby, Jiraiya scribbled on manuscript paper his next novel in progress. Since paying off Tsunade's debts last time, he'd been in need of his next royalty check.
If Jiraiya had been given his own unit to lead, he would have taken the role seriously. But as it stood, he had no command, so he simply followed orders.
Taka's head snapped up, veins bulging around his eyes. "They're here!"
The air in the tent froze.
Itachi put down the gourd, slipping the carved wooden figure already clearly shaped like Sasuke into his pouch.
Jiraiya laid down his pen with a long sigh.
Hiruzen nodded, tucking away his treasured pipe. "Taka, stand down. You can't take part in the battle to come."
All below A-Rank withdraw from the battlefield.
————————————————————————————————————————————————
Loving the tale?Support the saga and get exclusive early access to new chapters by hopping on with me!
[email protected]/yanxx