Time flew by, and before long, several more days had passed.
Today, after finishing a whole morning of paperwork, Tsunade Hime was finally off duty.
But just after she stepped out of the Hokage Building...
Tsunade Hime couldn't help glancing back toward the rooftop of the Hokage Building.
The red figure who had been up there for days seemed to have been gone for the past few days.
"Where did that guy disappear to?"
"I hope he doesn't cause any more trouble..."
"I don't know why, but I have a bad feeling."
Looking toward the rooftop, Tsunade Hime murmured to herself.
The legendary ninja, Uchiha Madara, had returned to the Shinobi World.
Every move he made would bring some kind of change to the entire Shinobi World!
There was no helping it. His power was simply too great. He had the ability to do that!
And besides...
The Nine-Tails that had once been sealed inside Naruto had now been taken by Madara.
He had already been incredibly powerful, and now he had the Tailed Beast's power as well. Who could say just how terrifyingly strong he was?
Tsunade Hime shook her head, not daring to imagine it.
"If only Grandpa were still alive."
"It seemed like only Grandpa had ever been able to hold back the legendary Asura of the Ninja World, Uchiha Madara."
After murmuring a couple more words, Tsunade Hime turned and walked away.
At that moment, far beyond the Land of Fire,
at the border where the Land of Wind, the Land of Earth, and the Land of Fire met,
lay Amegakure!
This village really was somewhat unusual.
It was almost always rainy!
And because it rained year-round, the village's buildings had a distinctive look. They could almost be called an iron metropolis.
As far as the eye could see, the buildings were all towering steel structures!
A striking landscape!
Red-umbrella-carrying ninja and villagers walked along the streets of this steel village.
The atmosphere and economy of the entire village seemed quite good.
It looked like the village's leader had done a fine job of managing Amegakure!
Tap—tap—
Amid the ninja and civilians walking along the streets of Amegakure, two figures appeared, one tall and one short.
One was an underage boy, the other a grown man!
The grown man wore a long mane of hair that fell to his waist and a red suit of armor in the style of the ancient Warring States period. The boy wore a black, close-fitting outfit, with a bright clan crest emblazoned on his back!
Both figures wore conical hats, keeping out the rain while concealing their stern, striking faces.
These two were Chen Yiban and Sasuke Uchiha!
They had now arrived at the village that, in the original story, was home to the leader of the Akatsuki Organization: Amegakure!
Chen Yiban's target was also the Uzumaki Nagato of the original story.
Well... First, he'd deal with the leader of the Akatsuki Organization, then take care of the rest!
And there was also...
Nagato's Rinnegan...
"Sensei, why are we coming to this village?"
After curiously admiring the village's distinctive architecture, Sasuke Uchiha turned to Chen Yiban beside him and asked.
In response:
"The leader of this village is the head of the Akatsuki Organization."
"Oh, you should already know..."
Chen Yiban said directly.
At the words "Akatsuki Organization," Sasuke Uchiha's eyes widened at once.
"Sensei, is this the Akatsuki Organization that Uchiha Itachi is part of now?!"
Uchiha Sasuke was a little excited and even interrupted Chen Yiban without meaning to.
At that, a faint smile appeared on Chen Yiban's stern face beneath his hat. "Yeah."
"Sensei, are we going to take down this organization?" Sasuke Uchiha couldn't help asking again.
At the same time, the image of Uchiha Itachi—the man he now hated—rose in his mind.
"Sensei, could you leave Uchiha Itachi alone?"
Suddenly, Uchiha Sasuke, who was also wearing a conical hat and stood a head shorter than Chen Yiban, asked him.
"Oh? You want to kill him with your own hands, is that it?" Chen Yiban glanced at the boy beside him, who was only twelve or thirteen.
"Yes, Sensei!" Uchiha Sasuke admitted with a nod.
"With your current strength, it's nearly impossible," Chen Yiban said with a shake of his head and a smile.
"I know. But I believe that with you guiding my training, I'll soon be strong enough to kill that man!" Uchiha Sasuke replied with firm resolve.
Seeing this, Chen Yiban couldn't help but give Uchiha Sasuke another look.
He had a little grit and courage, and plenty of confidence!
He seemed like the beginning of a powerful ninja!
And besides...
In this world, Uchiha Sasuke was the reincarnation of Ōtsutsuki Indra.
If Uchiha Sasuke could draw out Indra's power, then defeating Uchiha Itachi fair and square wouldn't be impossible.
Still:
"I'm not set on killing anyone. If we can settle this with words later, I might not even have to act!"
Chen Yiban said in an unhurried voice as he continued walking.
At the same time:
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—
Right then, six figures leaped down one after another, as if dropping from the sky, and landed in the street in front of Chen Yiban and Uchiha Sasuke.
They blocked the two of them from going any farther!
And on the street...
The people who had been walking along it had almost all vanished without anyone noticing.
The busy street had become unnaturally quiet in an instant.
Chen Yiban had noticed this earlier. He simply didn't care!
The surroundings had grown so quiet that almost all they could hear was the rain hitting the ground, along with a faint breeze.
Beyond that, there was the strange pressure and hint of mystery emanating from the six people's purple eyes.
Uchiha Sasuke felt a little uneasy, but with Chen Yiban beside him...
He felt there was nothing in the world to fear!
But:
"Sensei, their eyes look like..."
Uchiha Sasuke had noticed the six people's purple eyes.
"So the Six Paths of Pain came after all!" Beneath his hat, Chen Yiban's lips curved into a faint smile.
The six people blocking the road were the Six Paths of Pain from the original story, the ones who invaded Konoha.
Yes... They were also the ones who killed Jiraiya in the original story!
Come to think of it, Chen Yiban felt he might have changed the story without meaning to. Could he have indirectly saved Jiraiya's life?
Though Jiraiya had already lost his entire right arm because of him...
All right, enough about that!
"Sasuke, can you protect yourself?"
Chen Yiban suddenly asked.
"Don't worry, Sensei. I may not be strong enough to kill that man yet, but your training has made me stronger!" Sasuke Uchiha immediately activated his Three Tomoe Sharingan.
Whoosh—
At that moment, a graceful figure with wings, like an angel, landed beside the Six Paths of Pain.
It was Konan!
"Sharingan!"
Just after landing, Konan noticed the pair of blood-red Three Tomoe Sharingan across from her and murmured.
And at that moment:
"Good!"
Hearing Sasuke's answer, Chen Yiban slowly removed the conical hat he had been wearing to keep off the rain.
His handsome, flowing hair came into view, along with...
A pair of equally blood-red, eerie yet beautiful Mangekyō Sharingan!
At the sight of them:
"Those are... Mangekyō Sharingan on the same level as Uchiha Itachi's?"
"And his appearance..."
Konan spoke again in her distinctive voice.
"Uchiha Madara," said Deva Path Pain, as if filling in the rest of Konan's thought.
He spoke a name no one could ignore!
"Who was the man in the brown Spiral Mask we saw before?" Konan recalled Obito Uchiha.
After all, "Obito" had always appeared before Nagato and Konan under the name "Madara."
But now...
It seemed that Chen Yiban was the real Uchiha Madara after all!
"Shall we dance?"
Chen Yiban stared at the Six Paths of Pain and Konan with his blood-red Mangekyō Sharingan.
At that, Deva Path Pain's Rinnegan narrowed slightly.
"Intruder, you have already stepped into the realm of God."
Deva Path Pain looked at Chen Yiban and spoke.
At that, Chen Yiban laughed. "God? You dare speak of God in front of me?"
The rain gradually soaked Chen Yiban's waist-length hair, but the aura of his Mangekyō Sharingan only grew more intense beneath his cold smile.
Konan felt as if the air around them had suddenly turned icy.
"Submit to me, and help me unite the nations of the Shinobi World. In return, I'll agree not to kill you!" Chen Yiban's Mangekyō Sharingan fixed coldly on the seven figures before him.
His Mangekyō Sharingan stared straight into their Rinnegan,
yet Chen Yiban's presence was clearly more imposing!
"You? Even if you are the legendary ninja, Uchiha Madara, so what?" Konan said with an arrogant expression.
At the same time, she glanced at the Six Paths of Pain beside her. "The Rinnegan is the true power of God!"
"The Rinnegan and divine power—you're not wrong. But it depends on who's using them!" Chen Yiban gave a wicked smile.
Then:
Roar—
The towering blue Susanoo Stage Three erupted from the ground and let out a beastlike roar.
"Is this the power that's said to be capable of destroying all creation—the Susanoo?" Uzumaki Nagato, who was controlling the Six Paths of Pain from behind the scenes, couldn't help murmuring.
At the scene, Konan stared gravely at the dozens-of-meters-tall Susanoo Stage Three, feeling its sinister, cold Chakra...
She couldn't help feeling shocked. "Such powerful Chakra!"
Uchiha Itachi had always kept his trump cards hidden, so this was probably the first time she had ever seen a Susanoo with her own eyes.
"Shinra Tensei!!"
At that moment, Deva Path Pain narrowed his eyes and unleashed one of the Rinnegan's basic abilities directly at Susanoo Stage Three.
Clang—
A surging force of repulsion crashed into the dozens-of-meters-tall Susanoo Stage Three.
In response, Chen Yiban willed the Susanoo to bring its hands together inside its head:
Clang—boom—
It withstood the repulsive force of Shinra Tensei!
"It actually stopped Shinra Tensei," Animal Path said quietly.
And the next second:
"Roar...!!"
Susanoo had not only blocked Shinra Tensei, but let out an angry roar—
Whoosh—
A Yatsuka no Magatama shot straight toward the Six Paths of Pain from the side.
"Shinra Tensei!!"
At the critical moment, Deva Path Pain released Shinra Tensei again, managing to repel the Yatsuka no Magatama just in time.
That's powerful! Deva Path Pain was a little surprised by the might of Susanoo after it deflected the Yatsuka no Magatama.
Watch out! Konan suddenly cried out.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—
Susanoo slashed out countless astonishing blue blades of light, sending them hurtling toward the seven of them.
The Six Paths of Pain immediately scattered in all directions!
Konan spread her paper wings and flew into the sky!
Boom, boom, boom—
But the steel buildings ahead bore the brunt of it. Wherever Susanoo's blades of light struck, the structures were torn apart.
Seeing this, anger flashed across Konan's face.
The next second, she unleashed a rather unusual Paper Release technique.
Countless tiny paper cranes flew toward the towering Susanoo Stage Three!
Then—
Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom—
They were Explosive Tags!
They kept exploding against Susanoo, which hadn't dodged at all.
But—
Afterward, the towering blue Susanoo Stage Three stood before everyone, completely unharmed.
"Did that really do nothing?" Konan murmured in surprise.
Banshō Ten'in!
Suddenly, Pain Heavenly Dao pulled together countless fragments of the shattered steel buildings, forming a massive iron block, then hurled it at Susanoo.
Boom!!!
But Susanoo Stage Three shattered the enormous iron block with a single punch.
Rinnegan: Summoning Jutsu!
Elsewhere, the Animal Path among the Six Paths of Pain began summoning a beast.
Roar...!
A gigantic bull charged fiercely toward Susanoo Stage Three the moment it appeared.
Clang—!
Susanoo Stage Three, with two faces and four arms, blocked the charging bull with two of its hands.
Then—
Shing—
One slash!
It cut the thing clean in half!
Boom, boom, boom—
Just then, countless more cannon blasts came hurtling in.
It was the Asura Path!
Susanoo Stage Three swung its four massive arms in turn.
It quickly smashed all the cannon blasts!
Clang—
Suddenly, laser cannons joined the attack.
Susanoo Stage Three had to bring two hands together to block!
Under the laser cannons' powerful impact, Susanoo Stage Three was forced to plow backward seven or eight meters along the street before finally halting the fierce attack.
Though the laser cannons were powerful, they still couldn't break through Susanoo Stage Three's formidable defense!
"What a turtle shell," Konan remarked coldly.
"The enemy really is strong. But my teacher is stronger!" Uchiha Sasuke watched, transfixed, from behind Susanoo Stage Three.
At the same time, Uchiha Sasuke was filled with admiration and reverence for Chen Yiban!
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