Space itself shuddered for an instant, and a distorting repulsive force erupted.
At that very moment, Xia Le threw a punch.
Bang!
His expression froze, surprise flickering in his eyes.
"The power of the Rinnegan?"
Xia Le murmured.
Then he abruptly poured more strength into his right fist.
The expanding barrier of repulsive force instantly caved in and warped.
After a stalemate of roughly three seconds, Nagato was sent flying once again.
Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang!
He tumbled repeatedly across the ground, flying nearly a kilometer and kicking up clouds of dust.
Xia Le turned, his expression unchanged, and vanished again.
"Konan!"
Yahiko shouted a warning.
The instant his words fell, Xia Le appeared, his right hand clenched into a fist, ready to strike.
"Ah!"
Suddenly, a shout rang out.
Whoosh!
A blade flashed as a figure charged in, gripping a short blade in both hands and swinging it down.
Xia Le paused, then swiftly retreated, putting distance between himself and Konan.
He slowly raised his head and looked at the figure standing in front of her.
"Kakashi!"
Xia Le smiled.
Yahiko breathed a sigh of relief. After a moment of surprise, Konan reached out and ruffled Kakashi's white hair.
"Thanks, Junior Brother!"
Her gentle voice made Kakashi's cheeks redden.
Watching this, Xia Le laughed.
"You dare stand in my way, Kakashi? You should know what the consequences will be, right?"
Kakashi's expression stiffened.
He had watched the entire battle from the beginning and gained a rough understanding of the strength of his three senior fellow disciples and this teacher.
They were a hundred, even a thousand times stronger than he was.
At this point in the battle, there was almost nothing he could do to help.
"I'm not a man who backs down just because he's afraid!"
Kakashi