Chapter 257 — Reclaiming the Rinnegan
Uchiha Fugaku used Right Kotoamatsukami for one reason — he wanted to test whether his Mangekyō's supreme genjutsu could affect someone wielding the Rinnegan.
Nagato's Rinnegan weren't originally his, but they were still an ocular power a full tier above even the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan — the evolved form of the Sharingan itself.
Kotoamatsukami was a visual genjutsu capable of silently altering one's will.
However, its effectiveness depended on the difference in ocular power between the caster and target.
Facing a Rinnegan, its effects might simply fail to register.
Fugaku had no idea whether Kotoamatsukami could bend such an eye to his command — so this was his chance to find out.
If the Right Eye failed, then the Left Eye, which permanently rewrote thoughts, likely wouldn't work either.
In that case, he could simply abandon the idea of controlling Nagato altogether.
And if control was impossible, then Fugaku would kill Nagato and reclaim the Rinnegan directly.
Without the Rinnegan, Black Zetsu — the real mastermind behind everything — would lose the core of his long-planned schemes.
Without these eyes, even Black Zetsu would be helpless.
Maybe Fugaku wouldn't even need to hunt him down afterward.
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Staring sharply at Nagato, Fugaku watched.
A moment later, Nagato roared:
"Shinra Tensei!"
A surge of crushing repulsion smashed into Fugaku, hurling him backward.
A crimson flare erupted — Susanoo materialized, its armored frame anchoring itself into the ground, halting Fugaku from being blown away further.
A faint sigh escaped Fugaku.
The test was over.
Kotoamatsukami had no effect.
The Rinnegan truly stood on a higher plane.
"Since I can't control you," Fugaku murmured, "I'll simply take back the Rinnegan."
He wasted no time.
Susanoo expanded instantly into Complete Body Susanoo — but compressed to fit inside the underground chamber.
Even at only three meters tall, it retained every ounce of overwhelming power.
The armor resembled a compact Uten-dog samurai, forming around Fugaku like a living suit of divine steel.
Light-like tendons extended from its feet deep into the ground, making Shinra Tensei's repulsion completely ineffective.
Nagato panicked.
He hadn't expected Uchiha Fugaku of all people to infiltrate the very heart of Amegakure.
Seeing Konan standing blankly nearby, he immediately understood — she had been placed under Sharingan genjutsu.
It meant Fugaku had likely controlled countless Rain ninja along the way.
But now wasn't the time to figure out how Fugaku made it in.
Now was the time to survive.
The three-meter Susanoo radiated a crushing psychological pressure.
Nagato didn't possess any ninjutsu capable of breaking through Susanoo's armor — and fighting Fugaku head-on was suicide.
Only the Asura Path was present, and even it was currently disassembled and unusable.
He only had himself.
But at least one thing gave him relief:
Fugaku's genjutsu didn't work on him.
He knew Fugaku had cast it seconds ago — Nagato had felt the intrusion — but it hadn't taken hold.
Otherwise Fugaku wouldn't have wasted time making Konan tell him to turn around.
Sweat dripped down Nagato's forehead.
Shinra Tensei won't save me… I have to use that.
Seeing Fugaku nearing, Nagato pressed his palms together.
Planetary Devastation.
A powerful sealing technique — but not instant.
A fatal mistake.
Perhaps because Nagato had grown too used to overwhelming others with the Rinnegan and the Six Paths of Pain, his actual combat instincts had dulled.
He made an amateur decision in the worst possible moment.
As soon as Fugaku felt the pressure of repulsion fade, he sensed Nagato's intention.
Susanoo lunged.
Without Shinra Tensei's interference, Complete Body Susanoo reached Nagato instantly.
Fugaku could clearly see the panic on Nagato's face.
Nagato scrambled and screamed out of desperation:
"Shinra Tensei!"
But the repulsion washed uselessly over Susanoo's armored frame.
A massive armored hand clamped around Nagato's neck.
"Ugh—!"
The force of the grip shattered Shinra Tensei's release.
Nagato thrashed helplessly.
Fugaku's expression remained cold, emotionless.
The pressure of Susanoo's grip increased — bones snapped audibly.
Nagato's neck collapsed inward.
Blood sprayed from the corner of his mouth.
His life ended instantly — killed in a single move.
His head hung lifelessly.
---
Fugaku wasted no time.
Susanoo lifted Nagato's corpse and pressed it to its chest.
The armor split open.
Fugaku reached forward and dug both Rinnegan from Nagato's eye sockets with precise, clinical movements.
He placed the eyes into a specially prepared glass container.
Then he sealed both the container and Nagato's corpse inside a storage scroll.
He wasn't sure whether Black Zetsu would use Edo Tensei, nor whether Nagato would retain the Rinnegan if resurrected.
Fugaku wasn't going to leave any chance.
In the end, even Nagato's body didn't matter much — it was just an Uzumaki body.
But the eyes…
Those were everything.
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