Seven tailed beasts encircled the city, bombarding it in turns. Amegakure was gone.
Nagato stared in shock. Konan's tears fell freely. Uchiha Obito clenched his fists until his nails drew blood. White Zetsu screamed in despair, while Black Zetsu's gaze turned cold and murderous—he wanted nothing more than to lunge at Hyūga Shigeo and die with him on the spot.
"Hyūga Shigeo… we surrender!"
Obito shouted, his voice hoarse.
Above them, Shigeo stood amid the storm of rock and chakra, continuing to form Chibaku Tensei (Planetary Devastation) as if he hadn't heard a word. The sky darkened as countless stones rose upward, fusing into a massive sphere.
"Hyūga Shigeo, we surrender!" Obito yelled again.
Beneath the forming sphere, Shigeo's body was wrapped in darkness. His cloak billowed in the wind, his expression resolute, and his Rinnegan eyes radiated killing intent—cold enough to punish the entire world.
The seven tailed beasts, having razed Amegakure, now turned their feral eyes toward him.
With a single order, they could obliterate what was left of Akatsuki.
"It was a strategy…"
Tendō Pain's voice was low, fists trembling.
No wonder Shigeo hadn't rushed to finish the fight outside Nanmoku City—his real battlefield was here!
He realized too late—Shigeo had predicted their assault on Nanmoku Country from the start.
His goal had been simple: Don't let the homeland become the battlefield.
And if it wasn't there—then the battlefield would be the enemy's own land.
An eye for an eye, the perfect counter.
"Hyūga Shigeo, look who this is!"
Obito shouted suddenly, dragging someone from his Kamui space—Wu Qianling.
He yanked her arm harshly, but the girl clenched her teeth, refusing to make a sound.
"Speak! Say something, or I'll kill you right now!"
Obito's voice cracked, desperation breaking through his fury. They needed him to stop—now.
Shigeo turned his head. His gaze found Qianling immediately.
Her face was pale, fear written all over her, yet stubborn pride kept her from bowing her head.
"You think I care?" Shigeo's voice was ice. "Do you even know what's buried within this Chibaku Tensei? I'll tell you—it's the Gedō Mazō (Demonic Statue of the Outer Path). Your precious plan is finished. Your peace, your dream, your illusion of salvation—I'll turn it all to ash!"
He didn't stop the technique.
His eyes glowed faint red within the Rinnegan's rings.
"Don't mind me! Kill them!" Qianling shouted, her voice trembling with rage.
It was these same people who had humiliated Shigeo again and again—and tried to destroy Nanmoku City.
Black Zetsu snapped.
He lunged forward, seizing Qianling from Obito's grasp. His dark fingers clamped tight around her throat.
From Shigeo's words, he'd sensed something dangerous—something he couldn't allow.
"Hyūga Shigeo, enough nonsense!" Black Zetsu barked. "Let's make a deal. We back off—you stop. Akatsuki will never invade Nanmoku again. In return, you leave what we've built intact. Otherwise, we'll drag you and your whole country down with us. I can wait a thousand years if I must!"
He turned slightly.
"White Zetsu—prepare for total annihilation!"
White Zetsu nodded grimly, spreading his arms.
Hundreds of White Zetsu clones materialized, then melted into the ground, vanishing.
"You know we can do it!" Black Zetsu shouted.
Shigeo said nothing. His eyes followed the black fingers around Qianling's throat.
Yes—he knew they could.
He'd achieved his objective today.
He didn't need to annihilate Akatsuki completely.
If he pushed them too far, they'd retaliate—and thousands of innocent Nanmoku civilians would pay the price.
White Zetsu had disappeared underground. If they decided to strike the city from below, the people would be doomed.
He could ignore it all—but that wasn't his way.
He preferred to live openly, without guilt, not as a weapon that killed without reason.
After all, Nanmoku existed because of him; it was his responsibility to protect it.
Qianling's face flushed red. She couldn't breathe, Black Zetsu's grip tightening by the second.
If their plan failed now—then in years, in decades, someone else would carry it on.
The "Mother's Resurrection Plan" had endured for millennia. Even without Madara or Akatsuki, someone else would always rise to continue it.
Would he really let their sins stain him with guilt?
Never.
He had made Nanmoku his nation—and he would protect it until it could stand on its own.
"…Fine."
Shigeo's voice was cold, final.
He released the Chibaku Tensei.
The seven tailed beasts dissolved into chakra and returned to his body.
Seeing that, Tendō Pain halted his own gravitational pull, canceling his counterattack.
Chunks of stone plummeted from the sky, crashing harmlessly into the flooded ruins below.
He glared up at Shigeo.
Thirteen years old… the same age as Itachi… and already this strong?
He'd underestimated him completely.
Black Zetsu didn't dare test fate further. He released Qianling and personally carried her to Shigeo's side.
Both sides now held their leverage—
the White Zetsu swarm, hidden beneath Nanmoku, was Akatsuki's threat.
Shigeo's power—and his tailed beasts—were theirs.
If either side broke the truce, everything would collapse.
Akatsuki's only hope was that Shigeo would simply leave.
Shigeo cradled Qianling gently, channeling chakra to heal her injuries.
Her color slowly returned. Satisfied, he looked past her toward the smoking ruins of Amegakure.
He gave a quiet snort, turned his back, and prepared to leave.
But from the distance, amid the rubble, Konan's voice echoed.
"Hyūga Shigeo! I'll remember this!"
Shigeo paused, then chuckled softly.
"Good. But don't mourn," he said, smiling faintly.
"Because you're no better than me. You've just walked fifty steps farther down the same path. Compared to what you've done, this is nothing."
The air shimmered.
Space distorted.
Shigeo vanished with Qianling in his arms.
Only his words lingered:
'Only when the world truly feels pain will fear of pain end war—and only then will peace be born…'
Was that really true?
Was it ever?
If you have the power to make the world cry, then use it.
If not—don't blame others for being cruel.
Because your own cruelty has always been worse.
As he disappeared, Pain and the others stared at the empty sky, their eyes dark and heavy.
Their fists clenched, fury burning deep within.
(End of Chapter)
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