374. Naruto vs Pain Part-2

The gigantic chunks of earth turn into massive earth spears. The Deva Path manipulates the gravity around the spear and adds rotation to them.

Swoosh… swoosh…

He launches them toward Naruto at an incredible speed.

Shiing…

Naruto undergoes the second transformation of the Sage Mode.

Whoosh…

He swiftly dodges the gigantic earth spear and uses them as a pedestal to close the distance toward the Deva Path.

Haah…

The Deva Path claps his palms and encloses the earth's spear at Naruto's position.

"Sage Art: Chō-Ōdama Rasenshuriken,"

Naruto throws a gigantic rasenshuriken toward the incoming projectiles. The rasenshuriken blasts through the rock spears and engulfs the Deva Path.

"Shinra Tensei,"

Deva Path pushes away the rasenshuriken with the repulsive manipulation of gravity.

Haah…

Naruto jumps through the repulsive force field.

"Sage Art: Chō-Ōdama Rasengan,"

Naruto slams a gigantic orange Rasengan on the Deva Path's body.

Guffaw…

The Deva Path spits out a mouthful of saliva and is sent flying across multiple mountains. The Rasengan grinds its body and breaks the protective barrier around it.

'Explode'

Naruto crosses his arms and the Rasengan explodes into a spiral vortex of chakra.

Huff… Huff…

Naruto pants slightly and releases the sage mode transformation.

Crackle… crackle…

The lightning chains around Konoha snap one after another. The giant Tai-Chi Fuinjutsu formation dissipates and the rocks encasing around Konoha crumble into dust.

Rumble… Rumble…

The village slowly descends into a massive crater formed beneath its previous location.

RUMBLE…

An intensive earthquake spreads across the surrounding regions.

"Naruto boy, you did it!" Fukasaku appears beside him.

Mm…

Naruto nods his head.

"Where is the pervy sage?"

"Baa took him to Mount Myoboku to heal his wounds." Fukasaku jumps on top of Naruto's shoulder. Naruto walks towards the giant crater with the Deva Path's body.

He jumps down the crater and approaches the body of the Deva Path.

Slick…

Naruto pricks out a black receiver rod from it.

"So, this thing is used to control this body."

Stab…

He pierces the black receiver in his palm to sense Nagato's location.

"Found you!"

Naruto senses Nagato's location at a distance from Konoha.

"NARUTO!"

Sasuke, Itachi, Kakashi, and Shisui appear beside Naruto. Kakashi is carrying an unconscious Guy on his back.

"You did it, Naruto!" Kakashi nods his head as he adjusts Guy's position on his back.

"It's not over yet. The real pain is still hiding and I am about to go beat some sense into him."

Naruto clenches his fist.

"I will go with you!"

Sasuke interrupts Naruto.

"But…"

"There is no but. I can't leave you alone to fall into a trap." Sasuke refutes Naruto's words.

"Alright!" Naruto nods and flickers toward Nagato's location. Sasuke closely follows after him.

"All of this has been such a mess!"

Kakashi sighs and stares at the hellish landscape around him.

"Looks like Yamato has to work overtime again." Kakashi silently prays for Yamato.

A few minutes later,

Swoosh… swoosh…

Several Konoha anbus gather around the group.

"Tally the number of casualties and the extent of damage to Konoha's surroundings." Itachi issues a command to the Anbus. After the Anbus disperses, Tsunade, Minato, the members of the elder council and the clan leaders arrive at the spot with other guards.

"Recover the body of the culprit!"

Tsunade issues a command to the shinobi guards.

Hmm…

She glances at the corpse of the Deva Path and recognizes him as the previous student of Jiraiya.

'A reanimation using the powers of the Rinnegan!'

"Well done!" The clan leaders and the members of the elder council praise Kakashi and the rest for their hard work.

Srrrr…

Multiple clan leaders suck a breath of cold air as they survey the surroundings. The aftermath of such an intense battle has brutally devastated the surroundings. The surrounding terrains and the routes have been altered beyond recognition.

"Such… such a destructive battle! If not for the protective barrier around Konoha, the village would have been…"

"Akatsuki's claim to start a Fourth Shinobi War wasn't baseless rumors. With such powers, they can easily obliterate any shinobi village on a whim."

The clan leaders banter among themselves.

Minato glances at the surroundings and ponders.

"Obito! Just what do you want to achieve? I have a strong premonition that things aren't over yet."

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At a hidden place in the Land of Fire,

Swirl… Swoosh…

Obito's figure walks out of a spiral portal.

'So much for being Madara's replacement. You can't even handle the Fourth Hokage. Kuku…"

A mocking laughter echoes in the hidden underground base. A white-spectacled figure in a red cloak walks out of the shadows.

"Enough banter! How did the task I assigned you undergo?" Obito turns his attention to Kabuto's figure.

Kuku…

"Failure wasn't an option to begin with!"

Swoosh…

A black-robed figure suddenly appears out of thin air beside Kabuto. The cloaked figure passes a sealing jar to Kabuto.

"I have secured the one-tails. As for the nine-tails…"

Swoosh…

Zetsu pops out of the ground beside Obito.

"Nagato has failed to capture the Nine-tails." He narrates the battle between Nagato and Naruto.

"So, the nine-tails jinchuruki have grown to such an extent. It's no surprise since he has the assistance of the Fourth Hokage."

Obito narrows his eyes. He turns to Black Zetsu and remarks.

"It's time to initiate the third phase of the 'Eye of the Moon Plan'. Prepare for the war and recover the…"

Swirl…

Obito disappears in a spiraling portal.

"Kuku… the pieces are all set. Now it's time to set up the chessboard." Kabuto setups a Shogi board.

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Outside Konoha,

"Minato, bad news!"

Kushina's distressed voice sounds in Minato's head.

"What's the matter, Kushina?"

"Minato… the one-tail… it's gone!"

"WHAT?"

Minato raises his voice.

"What's the matter Minato?" Tsunade notices his grim expression.

"Tsunade-san, the one-tails… it's gone!" He reports to Tsunade.

"WHAT? How? Let's go and check the Uzumaki shrine."

Minato and Tsunade hurriedly dash inside the village. They arrive inside the Uzumaki compounds and Minato and Tsunade use the authorization seal to enter the compounds.

Uzumaki compounds have been off-limits since the previous incident with Kushina and Minato. The duo walks deeper into the forest and arrives outside a temple-like building. Kushina is waiting outside the building.

"Kushina, can you explain everything in detail?" Tsunade enquires.

"I am not sure… how it happened? But someone infiltrated the village during the chaos and bypassed the security barrier around Konoha. Breached the Uzumaki compound barrier and broke through the defenses of the Uzumaki shrine without alerting a single soul. If not for my inspection, this theft would have been left unnoticed by us." Kushina responds to Tsunade.

"But to be able to do something like this… is there a traitor among us?" Tsunade frowns.

"I can't deny the possibility, but the chances for it are very low. I can count the number of people who have the access to this place on my hand." Minato shakes his head.

"But still… who could possibly sneak through the barrier of Konoha. It has to be a Konoha citizen." Minato enters in a deep thought.

'Though the kitsune statue of Nine-tails is completely fine since it was stored in the headquarters and thus was isolated from the rest of the world. Which means that the enemy wasn't aware of their position prior to the infiltration.'

Minato recalls the strange device in Obito's hands.

'Was Obito a distraction to let someone infiltrate the village? If it wasn't him, then who could it be.' Minato contemplates.

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Outside the border of Konoha,

Step… step…

Naruto and Sasuke walk toward a gigantic tree. Sasuke looks around but finds nothing noteworthy.

"Are you sure this is the place?"

Mm…

Naruto nods his head and touches the trunk of the giant tree.

Hmm… Riip…

He rips apart the trunk with his hands to reveal a stack of origami papers.

"As expected, this is a fake tree!"

Sasuke swings his blade and cuts an opening in the trunk.

"Don't lower your guard, Naruto. Even if you are here to talk, we can't be sure of the enemy's intentions."

"I will keep that in mind."

He enters the trunk with Sasuke. Naruto confronts Nagato and Konan. Nagato's sickly, emaciated body is held on a mechanical walker. Multiple black rods protrude from his back and extend into an eerie statue.

"So, you are the real form of Pain, huh?"

"You are here for revenge, aren't you?" Nagato coldly stares into Naruto's eyes.

"The winner takes it all. That's how it always has been. Now fulfill your goal and grant me death." Nagato yells at Naruto.

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A/N:- My new Naruto fan-fic, 'The Rogue Demon of the Shinobi World' is out.

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