Danzo faced the Shinra Tensei that swept across heaven and earth, and his body jolted violently. He nearly lost his footing.
Although he had immediately activated his Sharingan for perception and defense,
the terrifying repulsive force that tore through space still cracked the ground beneath his feet. He staggered back several steps in utter disarray, his robes snapping wildly in the wind...
Although Danzo's strength had undergone a tremendous transformation...
the sense of powerlessness he felt when facing Deva Path Pain...
made intense resentment and humiliation surge within his chest.
The Root ninjas did not hesitate in the slightest. They rushed forward together, shielding Danzo and forming a temporary defensive line.
However, before Nagato's overwhelming fury and killing intent, their defense was as fragile as paper, on the verge of collapse.
Nagato's expression had completely turned cold, murderous intent surging like a tide within his Rinnegan.
The Six Paths of Pain stepped forward together, no longer concealing their rage as it swept across the battlefield like a bursting mountain flood.
At the same time, Konan slowly descended before Jiraiya.
Paper fluttered around her, her eyes filled with coldness and disappointment.
"Jiraiya-sensei..."
Her voice was low. "Do you also want to protect someone like Danzo?"
Jiraiya fell silent at her words before finally sighing. "Konan... he is a Konoha ninja."
There was deep helplessness in his words, and his eyes were full of conflict.
Of course, he knew what kind of person Danzo was. He also knew this trip of his was far from simple.
As a member of Konoha, he could not simply watch Danzo be killed before his eyes.
Nor could he stand by and watch the Root ninjas die innocent deaths.
No matter how detestable Danzo was, he was still part of the village, Konoha's Hokage advisor.
Some things had to be endured.
Seeing his hesitation, Konan's gaze dimmed...
"The Shinobi World has already been destroyed..."
"Yet why do people like Danzo still stand before us and speak of Yahiko in such a lofty tone... They're going too far..."
Paper began gathering around her, spinning as it formed a storm of paper.
"Jiraiya-sensei..."
The paper turned into blades, dense as rain as it poured down from the sky.
Jiraiya's expression grew grave. He swiftly formed hand seals and spat out a high-pressure technique combining water and flames, forcibly burning the paper away.
His movements were swift and precise, but he was clearly holding back...
Every counterattack carried restrained force and did not truly inflict serious injuries upon Konan.
They clashed in the rain, water spraying as their techniques intertwined. Rainfall and explosions overlapped, making the battle intense yet restrained.
It was obvious that Jiraiya was going easy on her.
He did not want to truly hurt his student, but he also could not simply ignore the situation.
At that moment, Jiraiya glanced at Kakashi...
He hoped Kakashi would choose the same roundabout approach as him, protecting Konoha while also maintaining the situation.
After all, the Rinnegan and the entire Akatsuki were indispensable fighting forces...
Danzo's tone and demeanor made it obvious that he bore a deep grudge against Akatsuki...
But to his surprise...
Kakashi did not choose to avoid the matter. Instead, he directly entered the battle.
Just as a Root ninja was dragged into the air by Nagato's Banshō Ten'in and was about to be blasted away and severely wounded by a powerful strike, Kakashi's figure flashed!
He instantly appeared beside the ninja. Forming hand seals, he caused the surrounding mist to churn violently...
It transformed into Water Style: Azure Rain, while a spiraling sphere of water condensed in his palm...
blocking the lethal attack that was about to descend.
He then landed steadily, shielding the badly injured Root ninja behind him as he calmly drew his blade and stood on guard.
"Kakashi, you..."
Jiraiya froze at the sight, obvious surprise filling his eyes.
Kakashi did not turn around. "Jiraiya-sama... they are only Konoha ninjas. They followed their superior's orders and have done nothing wrong."
The words carried a double meaning...
Kakashi's words left Jiraiya speechless.
He stood there blankly...
It was clear that Kakashi understood what he was thinking.
He had seen Jiraiya's inner conflict, his disgust toward Danzo, and the helplessness that forced him to act.
And Kakashi had not merely seen through all of it. He had made a choice more direct and decisive than Jiraiya's.
He chose to protect them.
Not just Konoha, but also these ninjas who continued to carry out orders even in the deepest darkness.
They might have obeyed the wrong person, but they had not betrayed Konoha.
A complicated emotion welled up in Jiraiya's heart.
He could not help but quietly wonder, When had Kakashi grown to this point?
When had he ceased to be merely that cold genius and become an inheritor of the Will of Fire, capable of lighting hope for others in the darkness?
"Hokage... perhaps Kakashi is the most suitable one."
The rain continued to fall, and the battle remained deadlocked. Yet Kakashi's back stood especially straight and clear beneath the torrential rain.
As for Danzo, he glanced at Kakashi...
Amid the tense and eerie atmosphere, Asura Path Pain suddenly charged forward at high speed!
His puppet-like body was like a sharp shadow, swift and lethal.
Danzo quickly crouched to evade the fatal blow, his movements no less agile than those of a young ninja.
At the same time, Kakashi noticed Asura Path's attack trajectory.
The short blade in his hand shot out in an instant. Chidori gathered around the blade with lightning speed, bursting with dazzling electrical light.
The blade tore through the curtain of rain and slashed at Asura Path in an instant!
Caught off guard, Asura Path was forced back several steps.
Their movements were swift and precise, their coordination unbelievably seamless.
In the span of a single breath, the other members of the Six Paths of Pain had yet to react before this sudden tactical strike forced back their relentless advance.
After a brief pause, Danzo slowly straightened, rainwater continuously sliding down his cloak.
He paid little attention to Asura Path and instead turned to look at Kakashi.
"I heard... you've already come into contact with the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki?"
Kakashi fell silent at his words.
He did not want to answer that question, especially at such a sensitive moment.
But silence itself might have been an answer.
Danzo did not press for one. His gaze slowly shifted away and settled on Jiraiya in the distance.
"If you wish to become the light in the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki's heart, then you must become his only light..."
His only light?
The words flashed through Kakashi's mind like lightning, causing his heart to tremble.
He slowly raised his head and looked once more at Jiraiya, who was fighting amid the storm.
The implication behind Danzo's words was already obvious enough.
In a sense, Jiraiya's existence was the greatest obstacle preventing Kakashi from becoming Naruto's only support and light.
If the Naruto of the future had Jiraiya at his side to guide him, then how could Kakashi become the sole guiding light in Naruto's heart?
He understood Danzo's meaning, as well as the ambition and cruel calculation behind those words.
However...
"Light... do I need it..."
Kakashi murmured, his tone calm.
He slowly lifted his gaze. The pattern in his Sharingan rotated faintly, blooming with light.
In an instant, his ocular power began to rise continuously, as though some slumbering force were awakening.
"Lord Danzo, using genjutsu to joke with me is not funny at all."
Kakashi's expression remained calm, but his tone carried a trace of mockery and chill.
Danzo was slightly stunned, confusion flashing across his face.
The genjutsu he had just cast was clearly flawless, yet Kakashi had dispelled it with casual ease.
That Sharingan...
Had it not always been devouring Kakashi's chakra and burdening him?
Yet the current Kakashi had a full, steady aura and clear eyes. Even his ocular power was sharper than usual.
Something was wrong... he had changed.
Danzo felt an inexplicable pressure, unaware that Kakashi's left eye had already quietly undergone a mutation.
And at this moment, Kakashi had not noticed that the controller of Root before him was likewise no longer the original Danzo.
The two looked at each other, outwardly calm while undercurrents surged beneath the surface.
Their exchange of words and emotions had taken no more than the blink of an eye...
At that moment, the Six Paths of Pain slowly stepped forward.
At their head, Deva Path Pain, controlled by Nagato, fixed his powerful Rinnegan pressure upon the two of them...
Before you continue