Leading the group was a woman draped in a white cloak.
Without a doubt—it was Riveria.
She lifted her staff and gave it a casual wave.
"A magic spell that explodes, huh?"
"Rather rare."
As she spoke, Riveria cast a sidelong glance at Deidara, as if she were inspecting some clumsy little magic craftsman.
That so-called "Ice Style" Deidara had mentioned just now had in fact been nothing more than one of Riveria's defensive spells at work.
Behind Riveria, several figures exuding a completely different aura stepped out from the trees one after another, forming up beside her.
The first to appear was a small-statured, composed blond—Finn. With just a glance, he had already mapped out the Akatsuki's formation, distribution, and the optimal sequence for breaking them apart.
Next came the Hiryute sisters. As women of Amazonian blood, their fighting spirit was engraved in their very bones, and right now their eyes were brimming with predatory intent. To them, the unfamiliar faces before them had already become prey.
Following behind was the werewolf, Bete. As always crossed his arms across his chest—but when his gaze landed on the massive blade strapped to Kisame's back, a flicker of excitement lit up in his eyes.
Ais and Lefiya walked in quiet tandem. Ais especially—her golden eyes had never once left the Deva Path, nor the Six Paths of Pain arrayed behind him.
The two groups now stood facing one another at a distance.
On one side: the cold, oppressive presence of the Akatsuki, their chakra roiling.
On the other: the Loki Familia, who had neither the look of shinobi nor the faintest trace of chakra—and yet somehow radiated a pressure that made the Akatsuki seem… lesser.
"The hell are these people…?"
Kisame frowned. His specialty was chakra sensing, and yet he couldn't detect the slightest energy fluctuation from them.
"No chakra… and they don't feel like shinobi at all."
Unlike the others, the Deva Path's Rinnegan eyes didn't linger long on these strange intruders. His gaze pierced through Finn and Riveria's formation, toward the shadows behind them.
"So that's where you are…"
His voice was low, but it was enough to make every Akatsuki member snap their heads up, following his line of sight.
And when the figure finally stepped into the light—standing at the very front of the Loki Familia—the Akatsuki were collectively stunned.
Ordinary. Far, far too ordinary.
No chakra signature. No Sharingan, no Byakugan. Not even the faintest killing intent to set off warning bells.
He looked like… like some random villager who'd just gone out to buy soy sauce.
Even the Deva Path himself faltered. He was a cautious man, and though the boy's black hair and plain aura suggested harmlessness, he refused to drop his guard. Because sometimes—what you couldn't sense at all was the deadliest kind of threat.
Then he noticed something peculiar.
It wasn't the boy himself—but the way the Loki Familia regarded him.
Finn and the other leaders in front never once looked away from him, waiting, as though for his word. The golden-haired swordswoman, the werewolf, the Hiryute sisters—they all without exception centered themselves around this ordinary-looking youth.
Not a comrade.
Their cornerstone.
The Deva Path's brow furrowed.
Something wasn't right.
At last, the black-haired boy spoke:
"You Akatsuki… how many Tailed Beasts have you collected so far?"
The words dropped like a thunderclap.
For an instant, even the air froze.
The Rinnegan contracted sharply.
"…Who are you?"
The Tailed Beast plan was one of Akatsuki's highest-level secrets. Most of the shinobi world hadn't even begun to notice their movements—and yet this boy had named it outright?
But Ryota only smiled faintly and shook his head.
"...That's not really a question you'd ever answer, is it?"
His tone was light, almost teasing. But to the Akatsuki, it cut like a blade straight into their cores.
Konan's expression shifted, her body instinctively stepping forward—
Only for the Deva Path to raise a hand, halting her.
Ryota went on:
"Still… judging from the timeline, you're probably only just getting started."
"From here on out—leave the work to me."
The moment those words fell, the atmosphere detonated.
Kisame's pupils shrank. Deidara's carefree grin froze stiff.
What… did he just say?
Did he mean to replace Akatsuki? To claim the Tailed Beast collection plan as his own?
What kind of joke was this?!
We're the ones invading Konoha, we're the ones after the Nine-Tails—
So why did it suddenly sound like we're the ones being sidelined?!
"Universal Pull."
The Deva Path's cold hum broke the silence. His Rinnegan rippled, the concentric circles alive with rotation.
Patience gone.
This boy's words might be strange, his presence unnerving, but in the end—he had barely any chakra. Just a human. A mortal.
Not worth any more words. He'd simply erase him.
The air howled, earth splintered, rubble and debris tore free as invisible gravity seized everything, dragging all toward the Deva Path!
And at the center of it all—the black-haired boy.
Yet he didn't move.
Not an inch.
No tugging, no staggering. Not even the leaf at his feet stirred.
"—!?"
For the first time, shock cracked the Deva Path's calm.
Impossible. His Universal Pull could drag even Kage-level shinobi into his grasp—yet this boy, with no chakra at all, remained utterly untouched?!
The Akatsuki had no time to process their astonishment when—
Boom!
The ground split open in a blast of force!
And then—another Deva Path appeared, behind Ryota.
Identical form. Identical Rinnegan.
He raised one arm, pointing at the original.
"Universal Pull."
The next instant—
The Deva Path felt his own eyes convulse violently. His body lurched, seized by an overwhelming force—and he was wrenched forward, hurtling straight toward his double!
"Wha—!"
"Pain?! He's being dragged?!"
"What the hell is going on?! Who is that guy?!"
Kisame, Deidara—even the ever-calm Konan—were wide-eyed, disbelief written across their faces.
That was the Deva Path!
So why was there another one?!
Why was he being sucked in by his own jutsu?!
And the original Deva Path—his composure finally shattered.
His body shot through the air, helpless against the pull, unable to resist, unable to break free.
"No! Impossible!!"
"How could you… possibly have my ability?!"
"The Rinnegan isn't something that can be copied!!"