"Hehehe, where do you think you're going?"
Before the remaining three members of the Xuanyuan Group, a black spike slammed heavily into the ground.
The three men stared grimly at the person before them.
The newcomer slowly strolled out from the darkness, pulling the black spike from the ground.
His upper body was bare, and a crazed grin spread across his face.
"You're courting death."
The leader of the Xuanyuan Group coldly declared.
Bzzzt!
As chakra surged through the newcomer's body, the Burst Bugs parasitizing him began to swell.
Yet what the three Xuanyuan members did not expect, was that the growth speed of the Burst Bugs was unbelievably slow.
"Ahahaha! Interesting! Too interesting! So that's how it is!"
The man's eyes filled with pure excitement bordering on madness.
Stretching out his arm, he laughed wildly and without hesitation thrust his hand into his own chest.
Rip!
"AAAH!"
As the blood-soaked insect was forcibly ripped out alive, one of the remaining Xuanyuan members screamed miserably.
An agonizing pain erupted from his chest, making his body convulse violently.
"What's going on?!"
Another stared in disbelief.
The Xuanyuan leader looked toward the man and said grimly:
"That weapon… and that ability…"
"You're Ryuzetsu, the leader of the Jashin Cult?"
The expression on his face immediately turned ugly.
Because he realized, the lunatics of the Jashin Cult did not use ninjutsu at all!
Their greatest trump card, the Burst Bugs, was useless against him!
At this moment, strange black markings covered RyUzetsu's entire body.
A horrifying hole gaped open in his chest where he had torn out the bug himself.
Even the pale ribs beneath the flesh were clearly visible.
Though he did not possess the true immortality Hidan would later have, surviving even decapitation.
As the founder of the Jashin Cult, he could still use the "Curse Technique: Death Controlling Possessed Blood" and possessed a certain level of regeneration.
"Oh? You know me?"
Ryuzetsu grinned at the three men.
His crimson tongue licked across his lips, his eyes overflowing with excitement and greed.
"Do you wish to worship Lord Jashin as well?"
As he spoke, he lowered his head and looked at his own mangled chest cavity.
His bloodied hand reached inside and stirred around among the gore.
Then he raised his head again.
Not only was there no pain on his face.
His smile became even more savage, even more fanatical.
"HAHAHAHA! Lord Jashin has told me!"
"You are fit only to become sacrifices!"
Laughing madly, he stomped heavily on the ground and shot forward like a cannonball.
Meanwhile, the slaughter between the Kumogakure ninja and the bounty hunters continued.
No, it was no longer only Kumogakure ninja and bounty hunters.
Even the Konoha ninja who had arrived later and hidden themselves along the rock walls had been discovered.
The bounty hunters and Kumogakure ninja simultaneously ceased fighting one another and turned their attacks toward Konoha.
Clearly, none of them intended to give Konoha the chance to reap the benefits like a fisherman waiting for both sides to tire.
"Bounty hunters, Kumogakure ninja, the Jashin Cult, and unknown elements…"
The expression on Kakashi Hatake's face grew grim as he warned.
"The situation here is even more chaotic than we anticipated!"
"If you don't have sensory ninjutsu, be careful not to injure allies while fighting!"
The moment his words fell.
His figure shot out once more.
Beside him was Arata.
With the Sharingan possessed by Kakashi and the Byakugan possessed by Arata.
Within the nearly pitch-black darkness, the two resembled grim reapers harvesting lives.
Bang! Bang bang!
Accompanied by one miserable scream after another, figure after figure was sent flying through the air.
All of them becoming "nourishment" for the giant gate.
In this matter, everyone present shared a tacit understanding.
Every person killed would be fed to that endlessly greedy gate.
The Xuanyuan Group had been correct earlier.
No matter what, only by opening that gate could they obtain what lay beyond it.
Those lacking sufficient strength would become food for the gate and be eliminated.
Rip!
The bare-chested Kakuzu likewise moved through the darkness.
A hand connected by black tendrils detached from his wrist and shot outward, plunging into someone's chest and forcibly tearing out a heart.
"Hehehe… what a fine heart…"
Most of his face was concealed beneath a mask and hood, revealing only those eerie glowing eyes.
Staring at the freshly beating heart, he let out a low, emotionless chuckle.
But very quickly, he sensed something.
His green eyes shifted toward his side.
Accompanied by calm footsteps, Nagato, wrapped in White Zetsu, emerged from the shadows.
His gaze swept across Kakuzu's appearance.
"So this is the Kakuzu you mentioned."
Nagato turned toward the seemingly empty air beside him and calmly said:
"Didn't expect such an unexpected gain…"
Before he could finish speaking, Kakuzu suddenly raised his hand.
The black tendrils of Earth Grudge Fear shot toward Nagato like venomous snakes hunting prey.
Yet, the anticipated sound of flesh being pierced never came.
Nagato did not even turn his head.
He merely raised a hand.
The black tendrils, capable of effortlessly piercing solid stone, stopped less than half a foot away from Nagato.
As though blocked perfectly by an invisible wall.
Then, an immense invisible repulsive force exploded outward from him!
"Earth Release: Earth Spear!"
Kakuzu's pupils contracted violently.
With a roar, he no longer dared hold back even the slightest amount!
The heart within him representing Earth Release beat frantically.
Powerful earth chakra instantly covered his entire body.
His skin became dark and hard like stone, even gleaming faintly with metallic luster.
BOOM!!
A tremendous muffled explosion erupted through the underground chamber.
The sturdy black tendrils shattered apart inch by inch, fragile as rotten wood before that overwhelming force.
And Kakuzu's hardened body, strengthened through Earth Release, was struck head-on by an invisible battering ram.
Without even the ability to resist, he was blasted away violently.
Like a kite with snapped strings, his body flew uncontrollably backward before slamming into the rock wall dozens of meters away with a thunderous crash!
The hard stone surface instantly filled with spiderweb-like cracks as debris rained downward.
"Cough…!"
Embedded deeply into the wall, Kakuzu let out a painful groan.
His glowing green eyes stared fixedly at the distant figure, filled with unprecedented shock and solemnity.
'What was that power just now?'
Others nearby had also sensed the disturbance.
But the battle had ended far too quickly.
No one had clearly seen what happened.
Only that a terrifyingly dangerous individual had appeared.
"Kakuzu."
Nagato lowered his arm, his gaze remaining utterly indifferent.
As though he had merely swatted away an annoying insect.
His voice was calm to the point of coldness.
"When this matter ends, do not leave."
"I will come find you."
As his words fell, he raised his hand and activated Universal Pull, dragging someone from the distance into his grasp.
Then he casually hurled the man toward the giant gate.
Rip!
The body slammed heavily against the icy gate.
The deep-blue glow flashed once more like the maw of a gigantic beast opening wide, instantly pinning the victim against the surface.
The horrifying process repeated itself.
Flesh dissolved. Skin and bone turned to ash.
Leaving behind only another dark-red stain upon the gate.
As though the gate had finally reached its limit,.
The blue glow shattered and extinguished.
In its place came an even deeper, heavier rumble.
RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLE!!
Like the heavy breathing of a sleeping beast emerging from the depths of its throat, the entire underground palace shook violently.
Broken stones cascaded downward like waterfalls.
The gate finally, opened completely!
Beyond it still lay endless darkness capable of freezing the soul.
The darkness was so dense it resembled tangible ink, devouring all light and blocking any attempt to peer inside.
Yet this darkness and terrifying chill did not stop anyone.
Instead, they ignited the desires within everyone present like sparks thrown upon dry tinder.
"Move!"
The previously exhausted-looking Yugito suddenly roared.
Without hesitation, she unleashed her full speed and rushed through the darkness into the underground palace.
Kakashi and Arata followed close behind like arrows released from a bow, their figures instantly swallowed by the darkness.
"The gate's open!"
"Charge in!"
"Hurry!"
The surviving bounty hunters resembled sharks smelling blood.
Greed consumed their eyes as they exploded forward with their final reserves of speed.
"HAHAHA! Lord Jashin's blessing lies ahead!"
Ryūzetsu rushed forward in a pilgrim-like frenzy.
The spike he threw pierced straight through the person before him, sending blood spraying alongside shrill screams.
Seeing this, the excited crowd instantly scattered away from the madman.
None dared approach him as they watched him plunge headfirst into the endless darkness.
Kakuzu cast one final glance toward Nagato standing motionless in place.
Seeing no intention of interference, his figure also disappeared into the darkness.
As spiral distortions rippled through the air, Obito Uchiha appeared beside Nagato.
"Not going in?"
He casually asked.
"There should be something inside useful to you."
Nagato did not answer.
He merely stared at the gigantic gate.
Just as the last remaining bounty hunters attempted to enter,
They suddenly saw, in shock, a black figure slowly walking out from the darkness beyond the gate.
'This person…'
'Had walked out from the darkness within the gate itself?'
RIP!!
The leading bounty hunter had no time to react before his head exploded before the horrified eyes of the others.
Red-and-white blood mixed with shattered bone sprayed across the ground.
The headless corpse staggered for several seconds before collapsing.
Thud!
"..."
The remaining bounty hunters stared blankly.
Feeling the wet warmth of blood splashed across their faces, fear halted their forward charge.
At that moment, Arata, in his identity as "Shadow," slowly lifted his foot.
The tip of his shoe traced a line through the pool of blood before him.
"Those who cross this line…"
His voice carried a faint smile as he softly uttered a single word.
"Die."