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Naruto's sage energy surged back into his body. He charged at the Deva Path with wild fury, leaving Pain with no choice but to defend.
Punch after punch rained down. Pain struggled to block, his body straining with every impact. Naruto twisted at the waist, his leg whipping out in a powerful kick. Pain braced with all his strength—
Boom!!
The sheer force exploded outward. Pain was blasted off his feet and sent crashing across the ground.
Coughing in the dirt, he looked up just in time to see not one, but three Narutos looming above him, each wielding a terrifying Wind Style: Rasen Shuriken.
With a roar, Naruto hurled one straight at him. The spinning sphere shrieked as it tore through the air, sparks flying from the friction.
It was about to swallow the Deva Path whole—
"Got him!!!"
But at the last instant, the bulky Pain who'd been standing behind suddenly leapt forward, arms outstretched. Strange chakra pulsed from his palms, sucking at the Rasen Shuriken until the massive jutsu began to unravel, drawn into nothingness.
Naruto's eyes widened. "What the—?! That guy can absorb ninjutsu?!"
Fukasaku frowned. "Yeah… it seems that one's ability is to swallow chakra techniques. But didn't you knock him out before?"
Naruto remembered flattening that same body earlier with a frog kata strike. Yet here he was, back on his feet.
Then Naruto noticed something—beside the hulking Pain in the rear, a grotesque demonic face shimmered into view.
The slug on Katsuyu's shoulder murmured, "It seems that big one in the back is the key. He's the one reviving the others."
"So he's the one keeping them alive…?"
"Exactly. That Pain hides in the rear for a reason. But don't forget—your biggest problem is still the Deva Path. He can repel any ninjutsu or physical attack, even pull objects toward him. Strangely, he hasn't used it for a while. That can only mean something…"
Naruto clenched his fists. "Doesn't matter. First I've gotta take out the one in the back!"
Two glowing spheres of wind chakra spun into life in his hands.
"Alright… let's add this too!"
Boom!!
Scarlet smoke billowed across the battlefield, cloaking everything.
From inside the haze, a Rasen Shuriken suddenly shot out, slicing toward Pain.
The absorber body threw out his hands again, sneering. "Useless!!"
But this time, the jutsu didn't dissolve. His eyes went wide—
Bang!!
The shuriken burst into smoke. Naruto leapt from the cloud with a grin. "What you absorbed was just a clone transformation!"
He tackled the absorber to the ground. The man snarled, "Damn you—this time it's your real body, isn't it?!"
Even as he went down, another Rasen Shuriken came spinning through the air toward the Deva Path.
Pain's Rinnegan gleamed ominously. "Shinra Tensei!!!"
The shuriken shattered into shards of white energy, scattering like snowflakes in the air.
"My power… has finally returned!"
Gamabunta's jaw dropped. "He deflected a Rasen Shuriken?!"
Naruto gritted his teeth, fending off the absorber's grip. "Not done yet!"
Another Naruto clone dove from above. "Sage Art—Rasengan Barrage!!"
The massive Pain in the rear took the hit full-on, Rasengan slamming into his back. The explosion carved a crater into the earth, leaving him broken and bleeding. He collapsed lifelessly.
"Nice work, kid!!" Fukasaku cheered.
The giant Pain was finished for good.
In the Hidden Leaf
Watching from the real world, Sasuke stared at the screen, dumbfounded.
"That dead-last…? How the hell is he fighting like this? He looks… confident."
Sakura gaped in silence. "Is that really Naruto?"
Neji's fists tightened. "So the dropout was my true rival all along. I almost let his façade fool me."
Rock Lee's eyes blazed with determination. "Naruto… I won't lose to you. One day, I'll be just as strong!"
Guy flashed a thumbs-up. "That's the spirit of youth! Burn bright, Naruto!"
In the World of One Piece
On the Thousand Sunny, Luffy stood at the bow, cracking his fists together. "That sage thing looks crazy strong… but man, I'd love to fight him! I'm gonna be King of the Pirates!"
Zoro drew a blade with a smirk. "Leave those big guys in the back to me."
Nami groaned, shaking her head. "You idiots… that Sage Naruto and Pain could wipe out an entire country with one move."
Usopp nodded furiously. "She's right, Luffy!! Listen to Nami!!"
Back on the Battlefield
Naruto straightened, breathing hard. "Two down!"
The Deva Path surveyed the fallen bodies, realization dawning. "So from the start… he used the smoke to sneak above me."
Two Narutos suddenly lunged from either side, sage chakra flaring.
Pain raised his arms. "Shinra Tensei!!"
A violent repulsive force exploded outward. The clones were blown apart instantly, vanishing in puffs of smoke.
Naruto's real body slammed into the dirt, groaning in pain.
"Kid, you alright?!" Fukasaku landed beside him.
"I'll handle this!!"
Gamabunta roared, leaping forward with his massive blade. Gamaken and Gamahiro followed, weapons raised.
But Pain and the absorber both vaulted into the air, dodging cleanly.
Naruto shuddered, remembering the overwhelming repulsion just moments ago. "Damn it… what is that technique?"
Katsuyu's voice echoed calmly. "The Deva Path is the core. His power has fully returned."
Naruto glared at Pain. "So he's the one who leveled the village. That jutsu… it was his."
"The stronger the technique," Katsuyu continued, "the longer the cooldown before it can be used again. That's why he didn't repel anything earlier. But now…"
Naruto frowned. "So what do we do? I can't land ninjutsu or taijutsu."
"Choji reported the interval is about five seconds between uses. That's your only window."
"Only five seconds, huh…"
Fukasaku nodded. "Then we'll use genjutsu to catch him off guard."
Naruto grimaced. "Genjutsu? I can't use that!"
"Leave it to us."
Shima's eyes narrowed. "Just like before… like when Jiraiya faced him."
Naruto clenched his fists as the three great toads closed in on Pain, surrounding him. Gamabunta's blade swung down from above.
"You've got nowhere to run!!"
But Pain leapt high. "Shinra Tensei!!!"
The repulsive blast erupted again, hurling all three giant toads like rag dolls into the cliffside. Blood dripped from their jaws—they were down for the count.
"Bunta!!" Naruto shouted in horror.
"Damn it!!"
He turned, fury blazing in his eyes, now facing only two remaining Pains.
"..."
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