"Third Kazekage-sama, and Fourth Kazekage-sama..."
Countless Sunagakure shinobi stared in despair at the two figures commanding Iron Sand and Gold Dust.
Two Kage—their most respected, most trusted leaders, the ones they'd sworn to follow into a brighter future—now stood before them as enemies, blades turned against their own people. The sheer emotional whiplash left even shinobi from other villages feeling hollow and suffocated.
Watching the two Kazekage battle fiercely against the Chikamatsu's 10 Puppets and a Susanoo user, Ebizō's face darkened. Taking over field command, he shouted out an order.
But the only response he received…
was a cannon shell fired by the Asura Path.
BOOM!
The explosion snapped the stunned Suna shinobi back into focus.
"Wind Style: Great Breakthrough!"
"Puppet Manipulation!"
"Earth Style: Fissure Palm!"
Finally awakened, the Suna shinobi unleashed their techniques—but standing at the center of the arena, the Deva Path, in his usual stoic posture, gave a divine command:
"Shinra Tensei."
In an instant, an overwhelming force exploded outward in a perfect 360-degree sphere, centered on Pain. The crushing repulsion tore through the recently regrouped Suna formation, blowing it to pieces.
BOOM!!
A chorus of air bursts echoed through the arena as the fortress shook violently. The massive chakra shockwave blasted apart the specially constructed structure made of iron and gold sand.
Some elite Suna shinobi tried to resist, but then—
The sky went dark.
Several summoned beasts as large as mountains came crashing down from above, their bodies blotting out the sun like falling peaks.
...
The current Akatsuki members was a pitiful sight compared to its prime. Other than Pain, it included:
White Tiger Konan,
Maiden Scorpion,
Black Tortoise Zetsu,
Vermilion Bird Hikari,
Azure Dragon Hiruko,
and the newly joined Southern Star Shinnō.
Of these, Hikari—though bearing the Vermilion title—was essentially a secret weapon against Yuki Yoru and barely answered to Akatsuki leadership.
Zetsu was strictly for intel, Shinnō a medic, and even Hiruko only possessed elite jōnin-level power.
So compared to the "all-villain" squad of canon Akatsuki, this was a ragtag group at best.
And yet, even this half-dead Akatsuki was still more than enough to cleanse the Gold Sand Fortress.
Why?
Because I, Kami—Pain of the Six Paths—am here!
"So he's using the Uzumaki clan's Kagura Shingan to control the Six Paths remotely…"
Yoru's peripheral gaze swept across the chaos below and then back to the layered fight between Nagato and his Six Paths. He couldn't help but raise an eyebrow.
Only a few years had passed, and yet Nagato had grown so powerful. It was genuinely surprising.
Sensing Yoru's gaze, Nagato let out a cold laugh. His hands slammed together, and he raised one arm toward Yuki Yoru.
"Wood Style: Wood Dragon Technique!"
From his hands, two titanic wooden dragons burst forth, dozens of meters long, their howls shaking the sky as they barreled toward Yoru, leaving a raging windstorm in their wake.
The moment the technique was unleashed, Yoru's expression darkened.
As expected, with Nagato's body and his current vitality, there was no reason he wouldn't be able to use Wood Style.
But this level of power…
Yoru had never fought Hashirama, so he didn't know firsthand how strong the First Hokage truly was. But a single hand sign unleashing dragons this massive?
It clearly surpassed any special White Zetsu clone from years past.
Nagato's Uzumaki constitution combined with Hashirama cells had given him a body that was practically an immortal Sage body. And with the Rinnegan—known as the Sage's Eye—his might now fully embodied the title of "god."
"Blue Fire, Crash Down!"
With a low call, Yoru unleashed twin bursts of blazing flame behind him. The torrents of fire surged forth, crashing into the incoming wood dragons in a violent clash of elements, halting their charge midair.
But Nagato remained unfazed.
He had never expected such a simple Wood Release to defeat someone like Yuki Yoru. This wasn't an attempt to end the battle—it was a declaration.
A display of divine power.
Nagato took a deep breath, his body trembling with overwhelming chakra:
"Behold the might of a god, Yuki Yoru!"
"Wood Style: Deep Forest Emergence!"
"That chakra level—!"
Down below, Uchiha Fugaku, still clashing with the possessed Rasa, abruptly looked up—his face stunned.
The chakra surging from Nagato was staggering.
He'd seen chakra-rich individuals before—like the Third Hokage, or even himself after implanting Hashirama cells.
But even they couldn't compare to this.
Controlling the Six Paths and still having chakra left to unleash massive-scale Wood Style?
And even worse—this wasn't even Nagato's full power yet!
"This… This is the power of my craftsmanship!"
"This is it!" Hiruko cackled madly, eyes gleaming with fanaticism.
While most of Nagato's Hashirama cells came from White Zetsu, Hiruko's contributions had been crucial.
Whether it was chakra regulation, cell balance, or fusion stabilization—it was thanks to Hiruko's experiments that Nagato's body had become the perfect Sage template.
In many ways, Nagato now stood as Hiruko's greatest masterpiece.
With Nagato's chakra flooding the land, the entire desert began to tremble.
In mere breaths, a barren wasteland bloomed with life. Towering green trees burst from the ground, spiraling upward like wild serpents and colossal pythons.
Their growth outpaced any known plant species. Within moments, what had been a sun-scorched desert transformed into a dense forest.
Yoru's expression twitched. With a sweep of his hand, he unleashed more Thunder Roar Sear and Blue Fire, Crash Down, reducing the trees to cinders.
But Nagato didn't care.
He simply released more chakra.
Under this limitless torrent, no matter how many trees Yoru destroyed, new ones immediately took their place.
This… was the power of Hashirama—the God of Shinobi.
An endless, relentless, world-devouring tide of nature chakra.
Crush all. Overwhelm all.
This was Hashirama's go-to strategy—steamroll opponents with the sheer volume of Wood Release.
And with infinite chakra and the trees' ability to drain enemy chakra, even elite shinobi would eventually collapse from attrition.
To overcome it, one needed either greater chakra than Hashirama himself, or the ability to one-shot him.
And yet… this was only the first layer of Hashirama's power.
If that were all, he'd have never stood against Perfect Susanoo Madara.
No—his true strength came from his immortal Sage body, his mastery of Senjutsu, and his ability to elevate every technique to its apex.
"It really makes me wish I could've faced him directly," Yoru murmured, watching the forest surge endlessly around him.
"But you're not Hashirama, Nagato. And I'm no ordinary shinobi."
"If you think these tricks can defeat me…"
"You've clearly forgotten what happened in the Land of Iron."
As his words fell, a massive Reiatsu burst from Yoru's body.
Freezing winds exploded into the heavens, forming a white blizzard that coiled around Yoru and radiated outward like a vortex.
The Land of Wind was known for its scorching desert climate, with temperatures soaring to 70–80°C during the day.
But now—
Snow was falling.
"So cold…"
"Is that… snow?!"
Everyone stared in shock.
Especially the natives of the Wind Country.
The region was infamously arid, with annual rainfall under 100 millimeters.
Some areas went entire years without a single drop.
And yet—now, snowflakes danced through the air.
People trembled.
But Nagato smiled coldly.
Obito hadn't lied.
Yuki Yoru's Ice Release was powerful. So powerful that it could change weather patterns, even freeze the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path.
But its true power required environmental support.
The reason Nagato had lost so badly in the Land of Iron wasn't just Yoru's strength—it was the climate.
Located near the sea, far to the north, constantly buried in snow, the Land of Iron's natural conditions amplified Yoru's abilities to a godlike degree.
But this time…
They had chosen the driest, hottest part of the entire Wind Country.
This Gold Sand Fortress wasn't just an exam site—it was a trap designed specifically for Yuki Yoru.
A graveyard.
"If that's all your Ice Release can do here…"
"Then today, you die!"
Frost spread from Yoru's body, freezing the endless trees to shards.
But Nagato remained calm, crimson hair fluttering in the wind, Rinnegan locked on Yoru with absolute confidence.
He could already see the outcome.
This time—he wouldn't stall for time like against Hanzō.
This time—he would take Yoru's head.
"Do you understand, Yuki Yoru?"
"With the Sage's eyes, I was born the destined savior. Yahiko's hopes, my fate—this is my divine mission!"
"In this chaotic world, I will carve a final note—a full stop of peace!"
"No, I cannot use love and empathy like Yahiko did, slowly changing hearts over a lifetime. But if I let the world feel fear and pain—then peace will still come."
"Let ten thousand, a hundred thousand, die in an instant—then all of humanity will fear pain. Nations, the entire world, will cower at the thought of war. They'll choose peace—forced or not!"
"And thus, the world will know eternal peace!"
"And you, Yuki Yoru…"
"You will be the first sacrifice for that glorious future!"
With the surrounding temperature plummeting, Nagato's eyes flared bright purple. His chakra and ocular power surged to their limit.
Yoru raised an eyebrow but didn't engage in a philosophical debate.
He wasn't a grand speech-maker. He preferred letting his blade and fist express his beliefs.
And sure, Nagato had exploited his Ice Release's environmental weakness.
Three years ago, this might've been fatal.
But now?
"You know nothing of my power, Nagato."
"Is that so?" Nagato sneered.
Still arrogant, just like the so-called "Half-God" he had shattered before.
"Then I'll shatter your illusions—just like I did his!"
Nagato's hands slammed together. His chakra exploded outward as he roared:
"Wood Release: Wood Dragon Technique!"
"Wood Release: Wood Golem Technique!"
These were Hashirama's top-level jutsu, transforming chakra into towering wooden titans.
With a quaking of the earth, a 100-meter-tall wooden giant rose from the ground, cloaked in a massive wood dragon like a holy guardian descended from the heavens.
And then—
Nagato didn't attack Yoru directly.
Instead, he turned toward the battlefield and shouted:
"Why are you hesitating, Vermilion Bird?"
"It's time!"
Yoru raised an eyebrow and looked toward the battlefield ruins of the Gold Sand Fortress.
There, a petite figure slowly stepped forward.
Uchiha Hikari emerged from the crumbling ruins. Her Mangekyō Sharingan burned crimson. With every step, a dark red chakra skeleton formed around her, growing and evolving.
In the blink of an eye, her small body lifted into the air. Chakra flared like wildfire as her half-formed Susanoo began to evolve.
A complete skeletal frame rose from the crimson blaze, rapidly filling with muscle, tissue, armor—until finally, a massive crow-shaped armor covered the form.
A tidal wave of Yin chakra burst out like a storm, forming a scarlet pentagonal crystal that sealed Hikari within.
The Susanoo kept growing… until it became a colossal, divine titan, over 100 meters tall.
Its crow-like wings spread wide, blocking the sky. The chakra stabilized. A human-like face emerged beneath the armor—a war god cloaked in armor.
The Complete-Body Susanoo.
Two towering behemoths now stood upon the battlefield—so massive, so overwhelming, that even the shinobi locked in combat below froze in awe.
"What… is this…?"
Chiyo, Ebizō, and other veterans stared in shock.
It was like returning to that ancient era—when the Shinobi World was ruled by Madara and Hashirama.
Fugaku's eyes widened even further, disbelief written all over his face.
That colossal Susanoo—
It came from… a little girl?!