The rain never stopped.
Under the gloomy sky, raindrops pierced the earth like silver needles.
Hoshino's swarm of Kikaichū hovered outside the town, emitting a low buzzing sound.
Sudden!
The rain paused for a moment.
The air seemed to freeze, raindrops hung suspended in mid-air, and then...
Bang--
An invisible shockwave rippled outwards, instantly shattering the rain curtain within a radius of 100 meters and creating a brief vacuum zone.
The swarm of insects seemed to have crashed into an invisible wall, bursting apart and their debris falling like black rain.
The rain poured down again.
As the swarm of insect debris fell, a solitary figure descended slowly through the rain. His short orange hair was soaked by the rain, but he did not look disheveled at all; instead, it added to his divine aura.
"Those insects of Sunagakure... dare to lay their hands on the land of the gods!"
Deva Path Pain's voice was like a cold machine, each syllable carrying an unquestionable majesty.
The distant Falling Rain Town was still burning, the Kakkō twisting and distorting in the rain, casting his shadow long and thin.
Suddenly, three dark figures sprang out from the burning ruins. They were wearing the uniforms of the Sunagakure Inspection Department, and their prosthetic eyes glowed red.
"The leader of Akatsuki?"
The lead ninja's mechanical arm made a 'clicking' sound as it deformed. "This area is now under the jurisdiction of Sunagakure. Please proceed immediately..."
Before he could finish speaking, Deva Path Pain simply raised his right hand.
Shinra Tensei!
A terrifying repulsive force erupted instantly, sending the three Inspection Department ninjas flying like rag dolls.
The prosthetic body began to disintegrate in mid-air, with parts flying everywhere.
One of them was torn in two by an invisible force before he even hit the ground, and his blood splattered in the rain.
"A pathetic modified product."
Deva Path Pain withdrew his hand, his gaze fixed on the depths of Falling Rain Town. "Tell Hoshino..."
His voice suddenly echoed in the rain; though not loud, it strangely reverberated throughout the entire battlefield.
" The Land of Rain is the territory of the gods."
After he finished speaking, he walked slowly forward, and with each step he took, the surrounding rain would eerily freeze for a moment.
In the distance, the surviving Sunagakure ninja watched this scene in horror.
A hissing sound came from the communicator, "Hello? What's wrong? Answer me quickly!"
But no one dared to answer.
Everyone held their breath, watching the godlike figure slowly walk into the burning Falling Rain Town and disappear into the chaos of rain and Kakkō.
In the burning ruins, the gray-black remains of insect swarms covered the scorched earth.
Rainwater washed away the muddy mixture of mechanical debris and flesh, forming dark red puddles in the depressions.
Hoshino stood in the center, his mechanical prosthetic eye flashing an unstable red light, and the metal shell of his left arm was cracked, revealing the pulsating Chakra circuits inside.
Rainwater seeped in through the gaps in the damaged armor, sparking tiny electrical sparks in the internal circuitry.
There were three other people standing around him.
Kakuzu knelt on the ground, his two remaining Earth Grudge Fear Masks swaying weakly.
Konan was pale, and the charred paper wings barely supported her swaying body.
Kitsuchi Tu clutched his bleeding chest with his hand, his face contorted in pain, feeling excruciating agony with every breath.
As for Aburame Ryoma, only his skeleton, devoured by Kikaichū, remained, looking particularly desolate in the rain.
Darui is missing his right arm, Asuma Sarutobi lies in a pool of blood, his fate unknown.
Further away, numerous corpses lay.
There are Konoha Anbu Ninja, Root ninjas, Kumogakure ninjas, Rock Ninja, Rain Ninja, Inspection Department ninjas, and black market merchants.
The corpses lay scattered about, some mutilated, others still in the posture of struggling before death, the whole scene resembling a living hell.
However, the number of Kikaichū remained large, completely surrounding the people in the arena.
You've lost!
Hoshino gasped for breath, raindrops sliding down his cheeks, mingling with his sweat.
The battle was truly brutal; almost all the members of the Inspection Department were wiped out, leaving only a dozen or so people guarding the outskirts of the town.
Fortunately, Falling Rain Town was successfully uprooted, and the traded goods and core members of the various ninja villages will be transformed into part of the Reform Society.
Kakuzu gritted his teeth, his eyes flashing with a fierce light, and squeezed out a few words through clenched teeth.
"Don't be too happy yet. Sunagakure will pay a heavy price for what it has done today."
Hoshino gave him a cold glance and said, " Kakuzu, you're barely able to protect yourself right now, so stop being so stubborn."
Having said that, Hoshino ignored Kakuzu and gave orders to the Sunagakure via communicator.
"Immediately clear the battlefield, collect important items and intelligence, and act quickly! We must evacuate before other forces arrive."
The Sunagakure Sunagakure ninja sprang into action, rummaging through the ruins for anything of potential value, storing it in sealing scrolls to be inventoried upon their return to the village.
Hoshino took a deep breath and waved the black flag in his hand.
In an instant, the dense Kikaichū sprang into action as if they had received a silent command.
They split into several groups, one of which continued to maintain vigilance over the surroundings to prevent a sudden enemy attack.
The other groups carefully lifted Kakuzu, Konan, and Kitsuchi, using their small bodies to form an invisible 'net' beneath the five, slowly raising them up.
Kakuzu struggled angrily, but his resistance was futile under the tight restraints of the Kikaichū.
The Kikaichū not only tightly controlled him, but several of them kept crawling onto his body, gnawing at his leaking Chakra, making it difficult for his already greatly depleted Chakra to recover.
Konan's eyes were vacant, and she didn't struggle much, letting the Kikaichū lift her up.
Hoshino looked at the three people being lifted up by the Kikaichū and said, "You are now prisoners of Sunagakure. You had better behave, or the Kikaichū won't show any mercy."
Having said that, he waved the flag again, Kikaichū, carrying several people and some of the salvaged items, flew towards the direction of Sunagakure.
Hoshino waited in place for a while, until the Inspection Department had collected almost everything.
Just as I was about to leave, I saw a person slowly walking towards me from not far away.
He wore a long black robe with red clouds, raindrops dripping from the hem, outlining his tall, slender figure that exuded a cold aura.
Deva Path Pain Earth Flow steadily, each step landing on the muddy and bloody ground, yet the splashes of water did not soil his clothes.
Hoshino waved, signaling the Inspection Department ninjas to retreat with the sealing scroll.
Given their current state, they are simply no match for Deva Path Pain. Ensuring the safe evacuation of their comrades is the top priority.
Although the ninja from the Inspection Department were unwilling, they obeyed orders and quickly left with the collected items.
Deva Path Pain continued his steady walk, his calm face appearing even more stern in the rain, seemingly unconcerned about Konan and the others who had just left.
That shouldn't be the case; Nagato would never abandon Konan.
unless...
Hoshino felt a chill run down his spine and gripped the black flag tightly in his hand.
The Kikaichū stirred restlessly around him, seemingly sensing the power and eeriness of the enemy before them.
" Hoshino of the Reform Society, hand over the black market items and return Konan and Kakuzu, and I can let you go back today."
Hoshino snorted coldly and retorted, " Pain, those black market items are stolen goods from illegal transactions, and they involve the core technology of the Reform Society. You have no right to interfere!"
"As for your companions, they are now prisoners of Sunagakure. If you want to take them away, you'll have to bring something to Sunagakure to ransom them!"
Deva Path Pain frowned slightly and said coldly, "Negotiations failed. He's just a puppet. He'll stay here for today."
Before Hoshino could make a move, Hoshino led the Kikaichū, Pain an attack.
The dense Kikaichū surged toward Deva Path Pain like a black tide, each one carrying a strong aggressive intent, attempting to overwhelm its opponent with sheer numbers.
Deva Path Pain's eyes turned cold. "Nonsense!"
Shinra Tensei!
A terrifying repulsive force spread out from him, instantly shattering the Kikaichū into countless black fragments.
The powerful repulsive force also affected Hoshino, whose body was sent flying like a kite with a broken string, crashing heavily into a distant wall. The wall collapsed instantly, sending bricks and stones flying everywhere.
Beneath the ruins, Hoshino quickly assessed his own damage while his mind raced, devising a strategy to defeat the enemy.
As expected of the strongest Deva Path among the Six Paths, known as the Super Kage Guardian, his strength is indeed exaggerated.
The oppressive feeling emanating from Deva Path alone was far stronger than when Kitsuchi, Aburame Ryoma, and others attacked together.
Putting aside the fact that the machine is currently damaged, even if it were at its peak and facing the Deva Path, its chances of winning would not exceed 30%.
It seems we still have to retreat first; after all, the objective has already been achieved.
Thinking of this, Kikaichū Kikaichū from all around surged forward, including those that had besieged Falling Rain Town, and together they flew towards the Deva Path.
" Swift Release - Overclocking Mode!"
The mechanical prosthetic body instantly erupted with a dazzling blue light, Chakra circuits operated at an almost insane speed, propelling Hoshino's body to shoot away from Deva Path Pain.
"Want to leave?"
Deva Path Pain, stood in the center of the swarm, a hint of displeasure flashing in his eyes.
Shinra Tensei!
A powerful repulsive force surged and spread outwards from him once again.
In an instant, the Kikaichū that were near him were shattered, their corpses scattering like black dust in all directions.
The number of Kikaichū was simply too great. As one wave was shattered, another wave quickly filled the gap, one after another, making it difficult for Deva Path Pain to escape for a time.
With the powerful boost from the Overclocking Mode, Hoshino has already put some distance between himself and Deva Path Pain.
While fleeing at top speed, he observed the situation behind him through his mechanical prosthetic eye.
Seeing Deva Path Pain being entangled by Kikaichū brought him some relief, but this was merely a temporary delaying tactic.
Deva Path Pain's power was too great, and the time the Kikaichū could buy was extremely limited.
Although this is just Hoshino's Swift Release Puppet, it is the one to which Hoshino has devoted the most effort and resources among all Hoshino puppets.
He would be heartbroken if he were to perish in this battle.
After all, with such an expensive puppet, creating another one wouldn't be easy, if not extremely difficult.
As we gradually moved away from Falling Rain Town.
Just as Hoshino's tense nerves were about to relax a little, he saw five figures dressed in Akatsuki in his field of vision ahead.
The Asura Path, Animal Path, Preta Path, Human Path, and Naraka Path.
The other five Pain's were standing neatly a short distance ahead, as if they had expected him to escape from here and were waiting for him.