"Boss, I'm sorry. I won't be able to fight by your side ever again."
Gradually, Hyūga Jō stopped breathing.
Pain glanced at Hyūga Jō and Satō Maji, then paid no further attention to the two nobodies.
Soon, the other five Pains arrived beside Deva Path Pain.
By then, Pain had also eliminated the ninja patrolling the outskirts elsewhere around Konoha.
All Six Paths of Pain had mobilized to capture the Nine-Tails. Deva Path Pain said, "We'll split into two groups here: diversion and search. Let me confirm: Asura Path, Animal Path, and Preta Path will create the diversion. Deva Path, Human Path, and Naraka Path will search. Konan, you're with the search group."
Konan said, "Understood."
Just then, Deva Path Pain saw Konoha's barrier through his Rinnegan and spoke.
"Konoha has set up a spherical barrier beneath the village and above it."
Hearing Deva Path Pain's words, Konan guessed the barrier's purpose and asked, "It's designed to immediately detect anyone entering without authorization, isn't it?"
Deva Path Pain said, "Yes. According to the plan, we'll throw Animal Path into Konoha from above, making the enemy misjudge our numbers and creating confusion. Then we'll wait for Animal Path's Summoning Technique."
At this, Konan recalled that Uchiha Itachi and Kisame Hoshigaki had entered Konoha before. She asked, "Itachi and Kisame seemed to get in easily."
Deva Path Pain explained, "Itachi used to belong to the Konoha ANBU. He knows the password for passing through the barrier. I have my own methods. Here, we will make the world feel pain!"
As his words fell, Asura Path hurled Animal Path straight out.
The instant Animal Path touched the barrier, Konoha's barrier specialists detected the intrusion.
"Intruder detected! One target, approaching from the west, coordinates 1B."
Hearing the barrier specialist's words, Konoha's ninja began to