With every step the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path took, the earth shuddered.
It stood over thirty meters tall, ten withered tails drooping behind it, with only one eye on its face-a Rinnegan.
It walked straight toward the center of the village, toward the Hokage Building, toward Naruto.
Shuo stood atop the rubble, watching that enormous dark silhouette.
Lightspeed Thinking raced wildly-this thing's chakra was absurdly vast, more terrifying than all six Pains from earlier combined.
"How do we fight it?" Obito landed beside him.
Shuo said nothing. He took out a piece of candy, unwrapped it, and tossed it into his mouth.
Sweet.
"I don't know."
He said softly, "But we have to stop it."
With that, he started forward.
Sai instinctively moved to follow, but Shuo did not even look back.
"Stay put." His voice was steady. "Against this thing, numbers won't help."
Sai forced himself to stop where he was.
Alone, Shuo walked toward the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path.
The Gedo Statue slowly turned its head, fixing its slit-pupiled Rinnegan on him.
"Light..."
A murky voice surged from within it, like countless people speaking over one another. "Your light is very special."
Shuo stood thirty meters away, looking up at it. "What are you?"
"The will of the Ten-Tails."
The Gedo Statue said, "Pain used the Rinnegan to awaken me."
Shuo stared at it, his mind racing.
Inside this shell, chakra spread like a vast ocean, with a faint yet exceedingly stubborn trace of consciousness hidden at its heart.
"What do you want?"
"Tailed Beasts."
The Gedo Statue spoke plainly. "The Nine Tailed Beasts. I'll take the Nine-Tails in your village."
It raised its enormous hand and reached viciously toward the Hokage Building.
Shuo moved.
In a flash of golden light, he placed himself