Nagato's Fury

Amegakure.

Fine rain, a gray, overcast sky—the atmosphere was suffocatingly oppressive.

Inside a towering iron spire, Deva Path Pain stood as still as a statue.

He had received word that Uchiha Madara had business with him...

Soon, a pitch-black figure emerged silently from the shadows; it was none other than Black Zetsu.

He drifted quietly before Deva Path. "Pain, I have something I need to report to you."

Deva Path lifted his head, his cold gaze sweeping over Black Zetsu, his tone laced with clear dissatisfaction.

"Zetsu? That fellow Uchiha Madara—is he unwilling to even meet me in person now?"

"Does a conversation with the leader of the Akatsuki require a middleman to relay messages?"

Hearing this, Black Zetsu fell silent for a moment before explaining with a hint of subtle helplessness.

"That is not the case... It is simply more appropriate for me to convey this particular piece of critical intelligence."

To be precise, he felt that Obito would not be able to explain this matter clearly...

Organizing one's language is an art form, after all...

He could not simply blurt out to Nagato that he had caused a mess and that the Shinobi World was now on the verge of destruction.

It was precisely because of Obito's interference that Uchiha Yuan's Mangekyo had been triggered, ultimately leading to the current catastrophic situation.

Moreover, Obito was clumsy with his words and not particularly bright.

If he were allowed to explain it himself, it would likely only make matters more complicated.

Black Zetsu also intended to avoid Nagato venting his rage upon him.

Deva Path Pain furrowed his brows slightly, his cold voice speaking once more: "What exactly is going on?"

Black Zetsu remained silent for a moment, then began to speak slowly, recounting everything that had transpired on the night of the Uchiha clan's annihilation.

He detailed the sudden awakening of Uchiha Yuan's Mangekyo Sharingan and the terrifying ability he had unleashed.

Here, Black Zetsu used the term "sudden awakening"...

Although he suspected that Uchiha Yuan had awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan long ago, he could not phrase it that way.

The more Nagato listened, the gloomier his expression became.

Once the description concluded, his voice echoed hollowly, carrying a note of incredulous sarcasm...

"Are you saying that because Uchiha Madara meddled in the Uchiha annihilation, it caused a nobody within the clan to awaken and lose control, eventually erupting with a Mangekyo Sharingan ability capable of destroying the entire Shinobi World?"

Black Zetsu nodded slowly. "That is indeed the case."

Nagato gazed into the distance with profound eyes, his voice filled with cold mockery and confusion.

"A Mangekyo Sharingan with the power to destroy the entire world? Don't you think that claim is a bit too exaggerated?"

Indeed, even with Nagato's own power, despite styling himself as the God of the Shinobi World, he had never considered destroying the entire Shinobi World in an instant by his own hand.

According to Black Zetsu, this insignificant Uchiha clansman could achieve such a feat with merely a pair of newly awakened Mangekyo Sharingan?

This was completely beyond the scope of what Nagato could imagine.

I think it's exaggerated too, but the facts are the facts...

"Nagato, if you are skeptical, you can send the Asura Path and the Animal Path into the sky to verify it."

Nagato was silent for a moment, then let out a cold snort and performed a summoning jutsu.

After the smoke from the summoning jutsu dissipated...

The Asura Path Pain stepped forward. His body, modified with steel machinery, began to vibrate violently. Fiery, intense energy erupted from his back, and in an instant, he soared into the air, shooting straight toward the heavens.

The dense, layered clouds above Amegakure were swiftly pierced through by the Asura Path.

He soon came to a halt at a extreme altitude, overlooking the tiny world beneath his feet, and then performed a summoning jutsu once more.

The figure of the Animal Path Pain appeared silently.

The Animal Path did not hesitate to perform the summoning jutsu for a third time...

Instantly, several massive, robust giant birds were summoned. These summonings flapped their enormous wings, quickly breaking through the higher cloud layers and flying toward the deep, distant reaches of space.

Deva Path Pain stood where he was, Nagato sharing the vision through his Rinnegan, patiently waiting for the information transmitted back by these summonings.

A short while later, as the images transmitted by the giant birds reflected in his eyes, Nagato finally fell into a long silence.

In the deep reaches of outer space, there truly was a gargantuan meteorite, burning with strange and incomprehensible flames, hurtling toward the Shinobi World at an incredible speed.

The sheer size and the terrifying aura it exuded left even Nagato feeling shocked and unsettled.

After a long time, Nagato finally snapped out of his silence.

He stared coldly at Black Zetsu, his tone turning extremely hostile.

"And Uchiha Madara? At a time like this, he is still hiding behind the scenes, afraid to come out and face me?"

Black Zetsu was slightly taken aback, then, sensing Nagato's intense and suppressed rage, he braced himself...

He was well aware that under the current catastrophic circumstances, Nagato's patience regarding Obito hiding behind the scenes and refusing to come forward personally had reached its limit.

"He isn't afraid to see you; it's just that the current situation is complex, and he still needs a little time to handle the aftermath."

Black Zetsu weighed his words, explaining with extreme caution.

Nagato let out a cold sneer, his tone icy and laced with obvious fury: "He participated in the Uchiha clan's annihilation and indirectly caused this disaster, yet he still needs time to handle things? Tell him that if he doesn't come forward to explain himself to me personally, he will bear the consequences of everything himself!"

Faced with Nagato's undisguised threat, Black Zetsu fell into a difficult silence, inwardly wishing he could curse Obito for his talent at stirring up trouble.

But now was not the time to dwell on such things; he could only patiently organize his words, carefully attempting to persuade the furious leader of the Akatsuki.

"Nagato, you cannot be too impatient right now."

Black Zetsu said in a gentle tone, striving to quell the rage that was on the verge of erupting from Nagato.

Nagato, however, gave a cold laugh, his tone dripping with sarcasm: "Of course I'm not impatient. The Shinobi World is about to be destroyed anyway, and all this pain will turn into nothingness."

Just tell me if it's peaceful or not.

Nagato had originally been immersed in his own ideals and obsessions, envisioning how he would spread pain across the entire Shinobi World after becoming a god.

Now, Black Zetsu's words were like a basin of bone-chilling ice water, instantly extinguishing the last shred of interest in his heart and leaving him feeling a sense of frustration and irritation he had never known before.

Sensing the shift in Nagato's mood, Black Zetsu spoke even more cautiously...

"Nagato, the more critical the moment, the more we need to stay calm. The Akatsuki cannot face this disaster alone; we must take action and make the Five Great Shinobi Villages realize the magnitude of this threat."

"...Do you have any specific ideas?"

"Uchiha Itachi. Although he joined the Akatsuki in name, in reality, his ties to Konoha may not have been truly severed. If we need to pass on intelligence, he might be of use..."

In truth, Obito and Black Zetsu were perfectly clear on the matter.

Uchiha Itachi was a Konoha spy, but they simply needed his combat power for the time being.