Zetsu's Surprise Attack

It's obvious that Hanzō has no chemistry with his two new teammates, and their relationship is extremely bad, almost to the point of turning against each other.

The reason why they were able to execute such a smooth teamwork and injure the Deva Path Clone was entirely due to Hanzō's experienced coordination with the two geniuses.

On this point, whether Uchiha Genso and Zen are willing to admit it or not, it is a fact. Therefore, Uchiha Genso interrupted the unfriendly stare between Zen and Hanzō.

"It's coming."

After saying this, Uchiha Genso used his Body Flicker Technique to teleport away from where he stood.

Hanzō was even faster than him; the Deva Path Clone raised its hand, it vanished in a flash.

Zen was left standing there, frozen in place, as if he had been scared out of his wits.

Shinra Tensei.

"Wood Release: Wood Release: Deep Forest Emergence."

The repulsive force crushed the large trees into piles of wood fragments, but the ever-growing branches intertwined, transforming into resilient walls of trees that withstood the invisible and unpredictable impact of the repulsive force. More than half of the forest was crushed by the repulsive force, but in the end, that was all.

They did their homework thoroughly before the battle. Uchiha Genso and Zen were very well prepared. They obtained a lot of information from Zetsu and had a deep understanding of the power of the Rinnegan. They even conducted several tactical simulations in private, practicing how to deal with the battle when it actually broke out.

They calculated each of the Rinnegan's abilities and developed corresponding strategies. Although these strategies might not always work, they were much better than being helpless.

"Did it block it? Whew—"

Zen breathed a sigh of relief. Although the calculations during the simulation showed that this move should be able to withstand the impact of Shinra Tensei, the theoretical results could not be said to be very reliable without verification.

Fortunately, judging from the current results, their calculations were quite reliable.

"Lightning Release: Raging Thunder Tiger"

Bypassing the crushed forest, the moment the terrifying repulsive force subsided, Uchiha Genso targeted the Deva Path Clone and launched an attack. His palm drew upon dazzling lightning, condensing it into a fierce tiger that broke through the wind and rain, swiftly pouncing towards the Deva Path Clone.

"Bang!"

The sound of a heavy object falling to the ground was drowned out by the thunder. Suddenly, a tall and imposing figure appeared beside the Deva Path Clone. His black robes fluttered in the wind and rain, and his two large, fan-like hands stretched out forward, using his bare hands to withstand the destructive power of the Thunder Tiger.

To be precise, it devoured the tiger formed by lightning.

The once imposing Thunder Tiger dimmed the moment it touched the palm of that hand, and its destructive power was not released. Its clear form disintegrated into a chaotic arc of lightning, which was quickly absorbed by the newly appeared tall figure. The whole process was like a mud ox entering the sea, without causing a ripple.

"Earth Release: Earth Dragon Bullet Technique"

Despite the Raging Thunder Tiger's initial attack missing its mark, Uchiha Genso showed no disappointment. Instead, a slight smile played on his lips as his Mitsudomoe Sharingan spun, finally forcing out a second clone— the Preta Path Clone.

The hand Hand Seals were already complete, and the second wave of attacks erupted instantly.

The soil writhed and formed the shape of a dragon's head, which opened its mouth wide and spat out a series of mud bullets the size of melons, sweeping towards the Deva Path Clone and the Preta Path Clone.

Shinra Tensei.

The Deva Path Clone finished casting, and the violent repulsive force erupted once more, easily shattering all the mud projectiles. Deep down, he didn't want to waste the power of Shinra Tensei like this, but the enemy...

This time, the enemy is no ordinary one.

In an empty house at the edge of the village, Nagato and Yahiko stayed, using the Rinnegan's ability to share information synchronously to observe everything happening on the battlefield.

"Earth Release... Is it a coincidence?"

Nagato felt somewhat heavy-hearted. These two guys who had suddenly appeared were troublesome, and most importantly, they seemed to know him quite well.

The moment the Preta Path appeared, the opponent switched to using Earth Release to attack. Was it because the Preta Path had the lowest absorption capacity for Earth Release? Or was it purely a coincidence, just good luck? This question lingered in his mind, causing him great distress!

"Nagato, how is it? Is this enemy difficult to deal with?" Yahiko naturally noticed the change in Nagato's expression.

"Hmm... it's a bit strange, I can't quite put my finger on it... it doesn't feel good." Nagato shook his head, his expression quite grave.

"······"

Yahiko narrowed his eyes. As a companion, he didn't know the upper limit of Nagato's strength, but he knew very well that Nagato had never said anything like "I don't feel very good." This enemy seemed to be truly extraordinary.

Is it Hanzō?

"It's not Hanzō, although Hanzō is also quite troublesome... but he can't do anything to me. What makes me uncomfortable are two guys I've never seen before, one who can use Wood Release and the other who has Sharingan... To be honest, this combination is unbelievably bizarre. Wasn't Wood Style Jutsu supposed to have been discontinued long ago?"

Nagato's expression turned strange as he spoke.

There was a teacher of one of the Konoha Sannin, who had a deep understanding of some things in Konoha and knew about the mess between the Uchiha and Senju.

Sharingan? Wood Release?

Yahiko was also taken aback. What on earth was going on? This way of forming a group was illogical, wasn't it? And more importantly, where did these Wood Release ninjas come from? This question deeply puzzled Yahiko.

"... Yahiko, speaking of the Sharingan, do you still remember what Katsuki once said?"

They had the ability to gather a group of brothers to carry out a rebellion, a risky business, and even manage to persuade government soldiers (Rain Ninja) to join their band of rebels. Yahiko was naturally no match for Nagato in terms of strength, but he was quick-witted enough to find this memory hidden deep in his mind after many twists and turns.

"You mean Madara Uchiha?" Nagato asked hesitantly.

"Just in case, I think we can contact that guy, Katsuki. Even if it's not Madara Uchiha, we can still ask him what exactly this Wood Release and Sharingan are all about."

Yahiko suggested.

"We can't let you guys ruin things! Nagato, Yahiko, if you bring in any troublemakers, I'll have a real headache."

A sinister sound echoed in the room, and a black and white Pitcher Plant Monster emerged from the wall.

"Wood Release: Thorn Killing Technique"

Vines grew from the walls and beams, and were whipped down by the strong wind.

"Summoning Technique."

Nagato reacted extremely quickly, slamming his palm onto the tatami mat beneath him. Intricate magical runes unfolded, and a gigantic rhinoceros appeared out of thin air, bursting the entire house apart and trampling the surrounding thirty meters into a flat plain. The delicate vines were naturally crushed into dust along with it.

"Hmph, don't even think about escaping. Wood Release: Wood Human Technique."

A giant wooden figure, nearly 100 meters tall, stands in the valley, resembling a massive humanoid mountain. The rhinoceros, already enormous, appears as a rather large toy in front of the wooden figure.

"Nagato, surrender now, or not only will you die, but none of your comrades will survive either."