Pain Arrives

Wood Release, Deep Forest Emergence!

Compared to the Deep Forest Emergence he had unleashed earlier out of annoyance toward Jiraiya, the power displayed at this moment was truly worthy of Sora's Sage Body.

Massive trees surged madly from the ground in an instant; not even houses or solid rock could hinder the growth of the timber by a single fraction.

"ROAR!!"

The multi-headed dog was bound by the giant trees and let out a miserable shriek. Under normal circumstances, the creature could not be killed as it would simply split apart, but the giant trees continuously drained its Chakra until it dissipated into smoke.

At the same time, under Sora's manipulation, the trees surged into the sky in an instant, moving with such speed that they only narrowly missed the Yatagarasu.

"Where are you looking?"

Sora's voice rang out from above the head of the Yatagarasu.

The next moment.

"BANG!!"

A single punch smashed directly into its head, sending the massive body plummeting toward the ground, straight toward Deva Path Pain.

"Thud."

The Yatagarasu, which had dissipated into smoke, failed to crush Pain, but behind him, the Naraka Path was currently summoning the King of Hell, swallowing the dismantled Asura Path to restore it.

The surging trees did not stop for a second, sweeping toward the Six Paths.

Pain raised his hand: "Shinra Tensei!"

A massive repulsive force shredded and repelled all the trees, forcing even the airborne Uzumaki Sora to flash to the ground to brace himself.

"I suppose there's no helping it when you're dealing with a cheater, but if it's only the Six Paths of Pain, you won't be able to stop me."

As his voice fell, within the five-second interval, the trees surged forth once again. Three Kunai were launched directly toward Deva Path Pain.

Three of them?

The Six Paths of Pain dodged the trees while keeping their eyes locked firmly on those three Kunai.

However, the next moment.

Uzumaki Sora pulled out three more Kunai and threw them; as they collided in pairs, the trajectories of all six Kunai shifted instantly.

"SWISH!"

Uzumaki Sora, who had vanished and reappeared in an instant, held a glowing blue sphere in his hand and pressed it directly toward the Pain below.

However, the next moment, a figure blocked the path in front of Pain, raising a barrier that quickly absorbed the Chakra of the Rasengan.

The Preta Path, is it?

"Shinra Tensei!"

The five seconds had passed, and just as Uzumaki Sora was preparing to throw a punch, he was blasted away.

I really shouldn't use the Rasengan just to show off; why use a ball when I have Super Strength?

Flashing back to the ground, the Wood Release began to act as if it had a mind of its own, surging forth with countless trees to sweep toward the Preta Path.

The Deep Forest Emergence jutsu was better suited for restraining large-scale enemies; when dealing with many small, individual targets, any lapse in focus would result in a situation where one could neither catch nor finish them off.

"BOOM!!!"

The trees, which had already reduced the ground to a mess, surged continuously. By focusing solely on the Preta Path while keeping the others at bay, he quickly managed to bind it.

However, the next moment.

"SWISH!"

The Human Path, having broken free from the trees, charged straight at Uzumaki Sora, but in the next second, the giant tree beneath its feet erupted with branches, binding it instantly.

"SPLAT!"

Under the crushing force of the giant tree, the Human Path was reduced to an unrecognizable pile of matter.

Yet, at this moment, the cooldown for the Deva Path had finished again.

"Shinra... Tensei!"

Seeming to be acting out of shame and anger, the power of Pain's Shinra Tensei was much greater this time, clearing a two-hundred-meter radius in an instant.

Whether it was the giant trees or the Flying Thunder God Kunai, everything was now pushed beyond that two-hundred-meter mark.

"SWISH!"

With a flicker of movement, the previously repaired Asura Path retrieved the bodies of the Preta and Human Paths, and the Naraka Path summoned the King of Hell to swallow and restore them.

Standing to the side, Uzumaki Sora said helplessly: "Six against one is one thing, but this healing and resurrection business is just playing dirty."

Pain, who had been listening, shook his head slightly: "The Six Paths of Pain are one entity. You cannot contend with the power of the Six Paths of Pain, and you certainly cannot contend with the power of a god."

Uzumaki Sora sneered: "God this, god that. I haven't seen a god anywhere, but there is definitely a terminal case of insanity standing right in front of me."

As he spoke, Uzumaki Sora looked around. During the earlier evacuation of the civilians, both he and the Six Paths of Pain had been testing each other. There were no people left now, but under the combined force of the Wood Release and the Shinra Tensei, not a single house remained.

Only dirt was left.

But since it had come to this, it might be worth a try.

Coming all this way wasn't easy, so I really ought to bring back some local specialties.

Otherwise, wouldn't this be a losing business deal?

The Snake Seal was formed: Deep Forest Emergence!

Towering trees instantly erupted across the two-hundred-meter clearing, though they were quickly cleared away by Pain under the sweeping assault.

But in the five-second interval that followed, Sora's Flying Thunder God Kunai coordinated once again with the encroaching timber.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

The Asura Path's missiles bombarded the giant trees incessantly, but even the raging fires were quickly smothered by the relentless growth of the wood.

Under this focused assault, the lead Asura Path was snatched up by the giant trees.

"Swish!"

"Bang!!"

Sora flashed into existence and smashed the Asura Path to pieces with a single punch, then, just before the Shinra Tensei could descend, he snatched up the remains and was sent flying by the impact.

"Pah."

He spat out the grit in his mouth, the minor injuries sustained from the Shinra Tensei already healed.

Sora pulled out a Sealing Scroll and, with quick eyes and nimble hands, sealed the remains of the Asura Path, a sight that made the eyelids of the Pain standing not far away twitch.

"Just taking some local specialties, don't mind me."

Uzumaki Sora smiled as he spoke, but the giant trees rising from the ground showed no signs of stopping.

Next up: the Human Path.

Soon, following the Asura Path, the Human Path was once again bound by the giant trees.

"Don't struggle. Even though you're just a corpse and can't feel pain, you're still far from breaking free of a Deep Forest Emergence of this caliber."

"Bang!"

With one punch, the head of the Human Path—the greatest threat among the Six Paths of Pain—shattered.

After skillfully pulling out a scroll and sealing the body, Sora set his sights on the Animal Path, which had been dodging the entire time.

Ever since the Hell Crab and the Yatagarasu were instantly killed by the Deep Forest Emergence, the Animal Path had made no moves other than evading, as Nagato, who was controlling them, knew very well that large-scale summoning beasts were heavily countered by Wood Release.

Soon, Uzumaki Sora, who had been sent flying by Shinra Tensei once again, returned.

The injuries caused by the repulsive force were of no concern to his Sage Body, healing almost entirely within a few breaths, but the Six Paths of Pain opposite him had now been reduced to the One Path of Pain.

"Mortal!!!"

A voice filled with uncontrollable rage rang out, and for the first time, anger appeared on Pain's wooden face.

"You have successfully enraged a god! A god you could never hope to compare to, no matter what!"

"Now, are you prepared to face the wrath of a god?"

In his perception, a cold, sinister Chakra was slowly rising from within the shattered high platform.

Uzumaki Sora glanced at the platform and shrugged, saying, "Going berserk just because you can't win isn't the way to go, and how many times can you even do that? I'm just borrowing a few things; there's no need to be so serious."

Pain lifted his head slightly: "No matter what, even if it means death, Yahiko's body will not be given to you!!!"