Boom!
A puff of white smoke swirled above Yoruha's shoulder. The next second, a palm-sized toad appeared, crouched neatly on him.
"Yoruha! Bad news!" the toad croaked in a hurry. "That edgy guy with nails in his face is floating in the sky, mumbling about rice bags and stairs and who-knows-what. It sounds like he's about to cause serious trouble!"
The moment the toad finished speaking, the system's voice rang in Yoruha's mind.
Ding!
Congratulations, host. Sign-in complete. Reward obtained: Byakugan Evolution – Rinnegan!
As the system chimed, a sharp surge of power flowed into Yoruha's eyes. For a brief moment, his irises flashed an icy blue—before quickly fading back to normal.
Nagato's eyes widened from across the distance.
What… was that?
Contact lenses?
But before he could think further, Yoruha's figure vanished.
There was no time to linger. Three of the Six Paths—plus Konan—were guarding Nagato. Yoruha couldn't take them all head-on. If he wanted to stop the Super Shinra Tensei, he needed to return to Konoha immediately.
Konoha Village
Hovering in the sky, Pain's Heavenly Path hovered like a deity, gazing down at Konoha with cold indifference.
"Now… know true pain."
BOOM!
With a single gesture, a massive wave of repulsive force exploded from his body.
Back in the village, Nara Kazuha had already anticipated this. He had analyzed this move repeatedly: the key to Shinra Tensei was its focal point. To destroy a wide area, Pain would have to concentrate his repulsion first, then release it on impact with the ground.
In preparation, Konoha's elites had arranged the Four Red Yang Formation.
Buzz!
Four jonin simultaneously activated the barrier, locking the repulsion's center point.
But… it wasn't enough.
The overwhelming force of Super Shinra Tensei shattered the barrier instantly. The shockwave began ripping through the village.
And just as despair set in—
Yoruha returned.
He held out his hand. From nowhere, six green Truth-Seeking Orbs materialized, transforming into rods that plunged into the ground.
"Forbidden Technique: Six Red Yang Formation!"
Just in time.
The repulsive force had only traveled a hundred meters when it smashed into Yoruha's newly erected barrier.
BOOM!
A series of deafening explosions shook the ground. The red six-sided formation trembled violently, bending under the crushing force of the repulsion. It looked ready to burst.
But Yoruha showed no panic.
"Forbidden Technique: Seven Red Yang Formation."
"Forbidden Technique: Eight Red Yang Formation."
"Ninja Art: Nine Red Yang Formation."
"Forbidden Technique: Ten Red Yang Formation!"
One after another, more formations bloomed around the original, layered like armor.
Thanks to the Rinnegan's ability to generate infinite Truth-Seeking Orbs, Yoruha kept stacking defenses.
The Super Shinra Tensei tore through Six… Seven… Eight… and Nine—before finally dissipating.
For a long moment, silence fell.
Then, cheers erupted. The Konoha ninja couldn't believe it—they'd survived!
Even Yoruha let out a quiet sigh of relief.
He looked up at Pain in the sky and smirked.
"Yo, Nagato. That all you got? You drop by without even eating first?"
Mockery dripped from his voice.
Pain's face twisted.
"Yoruha! Don't get cocky. Let me show you what a god's power truly looks like!"
"Ninja Art: True Planetary Devastation!"
Pain roared, hands pressed together. A colossal black sphere materialized in the air.
This wasn't the normal Planetary Devastation.
It was the True version.
Not a small black core. This one was massive—large enough to consume all of Konoha.
Yoruha recognized it instantly from the Tsukuyomi timeline. If he hadn't awakened the Rinnegan just now, this would've been a disaster.
His sword alone wouldn't be enough.
But now?
He reached into his chakra core. With a flick of his wrist, over a dozen Truth-Seeking Orbs flew out, fused midair into a single glowing mass, and shot upward.
It smashed directly into the black sphere, halting its descent.
The entire village plunged into darkness under the looming mass.
On the ground, everyone looked up in horror. Was this… even still ninjutsu?
Their jaws hung open. Their entire reality was being redefined.
Even Pain looked shaken.
"W-What is this…?" he muttered. "What kind of technique…?"
The True Planetary Devastation was said to be the move that formed the moon itself.
And now, it was being blocked—by a cluster of floating green orbs?
Yoruha didn't even bother answering.
He raised his right hand. Pointed.
"Golden Wheel Reincarnation Explosion."
ZZZMMM!
A blinding golden beam burst from his fingertip, piercing through the sky like a sword of divine light.
It cleaved the black sphere in half.
It split the heavens.
And Pain's Heavenly Path was obliterated—erased in an instant.
Peace returned.
Konoha's skies cleared. Wind flowed gently again.
On the ground, no one said a word. Every single face was frozen in awe and disbelief.
Three full minutes passed before anyone finally closed their mouths.
Truly… the heavens had blessed Konoha.
A god had answered their prayers.
After destroying Pain's Heavenly Path, Yoruha quickly checked on his family and friends.
Everyone was safe.
Once confirmed, he activated Flying Thunder God and teleported to his kunai marker outside the paper tree.
But when he arrived…
It was gone.
Konan's paper structure had vanished. Both her and Nagato's bodies lay sprawled on the ground.
They were dead.
Judging by the looks on their faces—they had experienced something truly terrifying before the end.
Nagato's Rinnegan… was gone.
"What?" Yoruha's brows furrowed.
"Konan and Nagato… were killed?"
He had planned to take Nagato's eyes himself—to ensure the Rinnegan couldn't be used to revive the Ten Tails or awaken the God Tree again.
Without them, Kaguya's resurrection would be impossible.
But someone else had gotten here first.
The eyes were already gone.
Yoruha stood in silence.
Someone else was making their move.
And they were planning something big.