The Land of Water, nestled within a mountain range.
From the outside, it appears to be a desolate mountain range, but deep within this range lies a vast and secret base.
A mountain range is simply a series of peaks connected together, stretching out in a line or a continuous area.
This base didn't just hollow out the interior of one mountain in this mountain range; it hollowed out the interiors of several connected mountain peaks and connected them to create a massive base.
This is... the Akatsuki's base.
At this very moment, deep within this base, the colossal Demonic Statue of the Outer Path stands tall, and in front of it, four Demonic Statue of the Outer Path stand.
One of them was Nagato, because unlike in the original story, he was not physically disabled and did not need to rely on puppets like Six Paths of Pain to move around.
However, after using the Rinnegan continuously, his Uzumaki Clan physique was still unable to withstand the power of the Rinnegan, and at this time he became emaciated and thin.
Standing before Nagato was White Zetsu wearing the Akatsuki's red cloud-patterned divine robe; he was purely White Zetsu, with Black Zetsu not attached to him.
To the left of Nagato was a strange figure crawling on the ground, looking extremely fierce and eerie, like a hunchbacked person, also wearing a special auspicious cloud-patterned divine robe.
To Nagato's right stood a figure with a sinister expression, carrying Samehada called Samehada wrapped in bandages with various hooks and spikes underneath.
These two are Sasori of the Red Sands and Kisame Hoshigaki.
When Uya wiped out the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist Ninja Blade, Uya destroyed two of their swords. However, due to the special nature of the Kubikiribōchō, it could be restored even if destroyed, so six of the seven Ninja Blade remained. Among them, the Samehada still ended up in Kisame Hoshigaki's hands.
"We just received news that Uya has arrived in the Land of Water and appeared in Kirigakure. He's probably here for us."
Nagato looked at Sasori of the Red Sands and Kisame Hoshigaki in a deep voice, his gaze carrying a hint of solemnity.
"If that's the case, then we'll have to move our base and leave the Land of Water."
Kisame Hoshigaki grinned, a strange light flashing in his eyes, and said, " Uya? Is that the God of the Shinobi World?"
Sasori of the Red Sands, hidden inside the puppet Hiruko, let out a muffled groan and said, "Besides him, which other Uya could make us relocate our base?"
"I heard that he single-handedly killed all seven of the former Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist of the Kirigakure. If that's true, then this guy is indeed very strong." Kisame Hoshigaki, carrying his Samehada on his back, showed an interested expression.
Sasori of the Red Sands's voice came from Hiruko, still very muffled, saying, "From what you're saying, you still want to fight him?"
Kisame Hoshigaki revealed a set of chillingly sharp teeth and said, "No, I'm just curious how humans possess such great power."
"Besides... even if he's very strong, the location of this base shouldn't be easy to find, right?"
Nagato looked at Kisame Hoshigaki and shook his head, saying, "No, you don't know what kind of power he possesses. You absolutely must not underestimate him."
Although Kisame Hoshigaki was very interested in Uya's power, he wouldn't say anything stupid like challenging Uya at this moment.
Hearing Nagato's serious words, he asked, "So, what should we do next? Move out immediately?"
Sasori of the Red Sands snorted, manipulating Hiruko to turn around, and said, "No need to rush, finding this place won't be that easy."
"There's no need to rush..."
Just then, White Zetsu, who had been standing at the very front, suddenly showed a look of astonishment, then looked up and spoke helplessly.
"Because he has already arrived."
laugh!!!
The instant White Zetsu finished speaking, a terrifying wave, visible to the naked eye, suddenly appeared from the rock strata above, like a terrifying blade stretching for an unknown distance!
The ripple appeared and disappeared in Setsuna. Among those present, only Nagato had detected the attack beforehand with his Rinnegan and managed to dodge to the side.
Silently, the ripple swept across the field, narrowly missing Nagato's body. However, it was in a straight line with Nagato. The White Zetsu, who was also attacked by the ripple, was not so lucky and was swept off his head by the ripple!
"What?!"
The sudden change caught both Sasori of the Red Sands and Kisame Hoshigaki, and they both looked up in utter astonishment.
Above was a thick rock wall, and there was no one in sight, as if the ripples had appeared out of thin air.
"Where is the enemy?!"
Sasori of the Red Sands let out a muffled sound, already looking upwards with extreme vigilance, ready to respond to an attack at any moment, as did Sasori of the Red Sands beside him.
White Zetsu's expression froze completely as the ripples fell from above his head and into the earth.
There was a hint of helplessness in his eyes, as if he wanted to move.
But, the instant White Zetsu's body moved even slightly, a line suddenly appeared on his forehead, running straight down from his nose.
Silently.
The White Zetsu's body suddenly split in two along this straight line!
Even the auspicious cloud-patterned imperial robe was neatly split in the middle, as if it had been cleaved in two by an extremely sharp blade!
Before Sasori of the Red Sands and Kisame Hoshigaki could even be surprised, a shocking scene unfolded before them as White Zetsu's body split in two.
Click!!
This time, it wasn't silent; it sounded like a piece of paper being torn, coming from above, below, and all around.
A clear and straight line suddenly appeared between White Zetsu's body, which was split in two, right where White Zetsu had just stood.
The lines extend straight to both sides, reaching the rock walls, and then continue upwards along the rock walls, extending to the dome, where they finally converge completely.
It seems that this line is exactly where that strange ripple swept down from above.
In the very next instant, the entire Akatsuki base, along that clear and straight line... violently split open!!
Boom!!!
Not only the Akatsuki base, but also the thick rock above it, or rather, the mountain hollowed out by the Akatsuki base, were split in two in an instant!
Looking up, one can see the rock face above continuously splitting, eventually extending all the way to the top, until the sky outside is visible.
Sunlight streamed through the crack, creating a scene resembling a narrow strip of sky.
This scene was as if an immeasurably large sword had cleaved the Akatsuki base, along with the entire mountain, in two with a single, deafening roar! (To be continued.)