"I underestimated you." The Deva Path's cold voice sounded. "But this is just the beginning. If you agree now, there's still time. Otherwise, I'll have to take you back."
Seeing the Deva Path extend another invitation, Sakura Haruno cracked her neck and knuckles, a contemptuous expression on her face. "Now, I'm the one who's going to keep you here."
"Is that so..." The Deva Path paused. "Then there's nothing more to say..."
In an instant, Sakura felt a chill creep up her spine. Unease filled her entire being, and alarm bells blared wildly in her mind.
The Deva Path brought his hands together, his purple Rinnegan eyes looking at the kunoichi as if she were already dead. The other five Paths retreated. Sakura watched the Deva Path's movements, and coupled with the intense warning signals in her mind, she seemed to understand what he was about to do...
"Damn it!" Sakura couldn't help but curse. Every cell in her body frantically executed the commands relayed by her brain.
"Chibaku Tensei!"
The Deva Path separated his hands, and a black, glowing core floated from them towards the sky. In an instant, the surrounding gravitational field seemed to lock, and then trees and stones began to float upwards.
The earth trembled continuously, finally succumbing to the immense gravitational pull as chunks of land were torn from the surface.
Sakura Haruno had never dreamed that Pain would use Chibaku Tensei directly. Wasn't this ultimate technique supposed to be used when capturing Tailed Beasts? Even if he were to use it, shouldn't it be after another round of fighting? Who starts a match by throwing down a royal flush with a pair of twos...
Originally, Sakura had planned to exploit the enemy's lack of intel on her, find an opportunity to take out one of Pain's puppets, or snatch a black rod when they weren't paying attention. Then, she would use Naruto's method to sense Nagato's approximate location. Once she confirmed the direction, combined with Seijutsu's biological perception, Nagato would have nowhere to run.
The strength of the Six Paths of Pain lay in the fact that they were all dead and couldn't be killed again. Even if damaged, the Naraka Path could repair them. Nagato's main body, however, was not immune to death. Although Nagato's Rinnegan abilities were formidable, he was no Madara Uchiha.
Typically, ninja were glass cannons—high attack, low defense—and Nagato was no exception. So, even if all the Paths of Pain were defeated, it would be useless without killing the main body. If she were facing Nagato's main body, as long as she found the right opportunity, he would die just the same.
But now, Sakura had no mind to think about these things. The gravitational pull of Chibaku Tensei was like a giant hand, gripping her body and pulling her towards the sky.
Sakura couldn't truly nullify repulsion and attraction. Her previous immunity was entirely due to a genjutsu cast using Seijutsu.
To call it genjutsu wasn't entirely accurate either. She merely categorized it as such based on her current understanding, as there was no concept of genjutsu in Junko's era.
It was actually a simple trick. Sakura used Seijutsu to influence the natural energy lingering in the air with her own will, making the natural energy masquerade as the scene she required.
Simply put, the moment the Deva Path used Shinra Tensei on her, she used Seijutsu to make the ambient natural energy take on her appearance, while she quickly dived underground using Earth Release augmented by natural energy.
And the self that natural energy disguised could not be seen through. "She" both existed and didn't exist, because she was nature, and nature was her.
So, strictly speaking, Sakura felt it was more like casting a genjutsu on natural energy, making the natural energy believe it was her. Therefore, this state of being one with nature could not be seen through by any dōjutsu.
"She" was both tangible and intangible, existing between reality and illusion. But that was all; it had no offensive power and couldn't even be considered Sakura's clone.
Given these properties, Sakura could only classify it as a genjutsu—casting a genjutsu on natural energy, making the free-floating natural energy in the air appear in her image. So, no matter what dōjutsu was used to look or sense, "she" was a real, existing person.
She had used such a trick against Hayate Gekko and Sasuke before. It was a power system entirely different from chakra, so the effect was surprisingly good, perfect for sneak attacks and ambushes.
And the natural energy in the forest was extremely abundant. Aided by the cover of night, Pain's six pairs of eyes could stare until they burst and still not see through this trick.
When the repulsive or attractive forces struck, "she" would become intangible. But during combat, Sakura had to switch places with "her," otherwise Pain would definitely discover the problem.
Thus, she had created the illusion that she could nullify repulsion and attraction. However, the damn thing now was that Chibaku Tensei's indiscriminate gravitational pull directly rendered Sakura's trick ineffective.
Whether it was Shinra Tensei or Bansho Ten'in, their range was not large, and they were both aimed at Sakura. But now, Chibaku Tensei was sucking up the very earth itself, leaving Sakura with nowhere to hide.
Watching the ground recede further and further away, Sakura abruptly turned around, looking at the core in the sky, now enveloped by rocks and earth.
"Let's try this!" Sakura quickly formed hand seals, the Strength of a Hundred Seal's markings instantly spreading across her entire body. She didn't want to reveal Seijutsu yet; it was both her trump card and a double-edged sword. If used improperly, it could harm both herself and others.
"Storm Release: Laser Circus!"
The kunoichi raised her arms, palms facing the core in the sky. A dazzling blue light cut through the dark night. Two thick, silent beams of light shot from Sakura's palms, striking the core in the blink of an eye.
With a deafening BOOM, Sakura's eardrums throbbed, a constant ringing echoing in her ears. Then, her body sank; the upward pull had vanished.
The chakra stored for a month and a half was depleted again. Sakura felt a pang of regret, but it was worth it. If a ninjutsu unleashed with a month and a half's worth of chakra couldn't break that core, she would probably have had to resort to Seijutsu.
However, just as she landed, before the ringing in her ears had subsided, two swift attacks came at her from behind. Sakura instinctively did a side flip, dodging the incoming blows.
"They just don't let up for a second..." Before Sakura could catch her breath, she was entangled with the remaining five Paths of Pain again. Perhaps the Deva Path had realized that the jutsu she had just used had consumed a massive amount of chakra and she was currently weakened, so he had launched his attack quite decisively.
Actually, the chakra from the Yin Seal was no longer a combat necessity for Sakura. Her own chakra reserves were already very high now. Though perhaps not comparable to Naruto's, they far exceeded those of an average ninja.
Moreover, there was Seijutsu. Seijutsu was the general term for the power system of Junko's era, not a specific technique. As long as one could utilize natural energy, it was Seijutsu. However, there were some usage techniques, like the genjutsu she had used to trick Pain earlier.
But chakra was still fundamental. Such a massive expenditure of chakra left the kunoichi feeling somewhat strained. Facing the attacks of the Paths of Pain, Sakura could only defend passively now.
The Asura Path's versatile attack methods repeatedly put Sakura at a disadvantage. Sakura felt it wasn't a puppet at all, but a robot.
After once again dodging a fist suddenly launched by the Asura Path, Sakura took a soldier pill from her ninja pouch and was about to pop it into her mouth when, in an instant, her small frame was tightly embraced from behind. The soldier pill in her hand fell to the ground.
Immediately after, Sakura felt the chakra within her body rapidly draining away. Tilting her head slightly, Sakura saw that the one holding her was the Preta Path.
"It's over..." At this moment, the Deva Path walked over from a distance, looking at Sakura. "Although you refused us, I will not kill you. One day, you will understand us and join us..."
Up to this point, Nagato finally breathed a sigh of relief. Although he still didn't understand why this kunoichi could nullify Shinra Tensei and Bansho Ten'in but not Chibaku Tensei, and was somewhat puzzled, her strength was undeniably formidable.
She was currently the only person who had forced him to use Chibaku Tensei and still managed to escape. Although the Chibaku Tensei he had unleashed was a scaled-down version, it wasn't something an ordinary jonin could withstand. Only someone at the Kage level would have that possibility.
"Hmph, over?" Sakura looked at the Deva Path, who was looking down on her, and said with displeasure, "I think it's just beginning!"
Feeling the Preta Path continuously absorbing her chakra, Sakura silently thanked Naruto. "Naruto, thank you for the textbook demonstration."
Come, natural energy!!!
Hearing the kunoichi's words, the Deva Path merely thought she was being stubborn. The situation was already clear; her chakra was almost depleted. Even a Tailed Beast would have no chance...
"Futile resis—" The Deva Path's last word never came out. His expression remained impassive, but in the shadows, the surprise on Nagato's face was beyond measure.
"What happened, Nagato?" Konan asked, puzzled by Nagato's astonished expression.
But Nagato didn't answer. Through the Deva Path's vision, Nagato saw an unbelievable sight.
The Preta Path embracing the kunoichi had disintegrated in an instant, vanishing without a trace, as if it had never existed. Simultaneously, the Preta Path's signal was lost.
Sakura's face was now icy, her emerald eyes radiating a murderous aura, as fierce as an ancient beast. Then, a flush spread across her face, her heart pounded a few times, and her tensed muscles relaxed. The savage expression receded, replaced by her previous demeanor.
"What... did you do to him?" The Deva Path's voice was still level. "Where is he?"
"Him?" Sakura nonchalantly picked her ear. "Still want to fight?"
The Preta Path, deeply moved by nature's call, had voluntarily chosen co-prosperity with nature. But Sakura saw no need to tell Pain about such things.