Inoiki had been running non-stop for nearly an hour, his pace steady and his senses on alert. But then he came to a sudden halt. He felt it
Inoiki had been running non-stop for nearly an hour, his pace steady and his senses on alert. But then he came to a sudden halt.
He felt it again—that subtle pressure. A gaze. A presence.
His feet planted firmly on the rocky terrain as his eyes scanned the surrounding landscape. Jagged cliffs and weather-worn stone formations stretched around him, silent and still. This was the Land of Earth, after all—harsh, sparse, and full of places for things to hide.
But he saw no one.
Fifteen minutes, he thought, narrowing his eyes. For fifteen minutes now, I've felt someone tracking me... watching me. But who?
He glanced up at the open sky, half-expecting an ambush from above. Nothing. Just drifting clouds and bright sunlight.
He exhaled through his nose and closed his eyes. Then, with deliberate focus, he activated his Observation Haki—not just the usual passive scan, but a concentrated expansion of his mental field, extending outward in all directions. He swept the terrain within a 100-meter radius, slowly and carefully.
Still—nothing.
But just beyond that range, something flickered. A faint pulse of chakra—weak, muted, expertly camouflaged. It was blended so seamlessly with the rock that if he hadn't been using his Observation Haki at full concentration, he would've missed it entirely.
His eyes snapped open.
There—partway up the side of a low cliff, half-buried in the natural texture of the stone—he sensed it again. A chakra signature so subtly interwoven with the environment it was practically invisible.
Inoiki's gaze locked on the cliff. His voice rang out, calm but sharp as steel.
"Come out before I crush you."
He didn't need to guess. In his mind, there was only one entity capable of such stealth—someone who could hide within terrain itself, someone whose existence was half-shadow, half-substance.
Zetsu.
The moment Inoiki's voice echoed across the rocky terrain, the concealed chakra signature began to shift. It moved fast, slipping away from the cliffside like a shadow dissolving into stone.
Inoiki reacted instantly, ready to tear the entire boulder apart with a burst of psychokinesis to flush Zetsu out—but just as he focused his power, he felt a sudden, sharp fluctuation from above.
Incoming!
Without hesitation, he dashed forward, narrowly evading a barrage of projectiles raining down from the sky. The attacks struck the ground behind him with a chain of thunderous explosions, sending shards of rock and fire into the air.
He turned his gaze upward, eyes tracking the trajectory.
Paper.
They were shuriken crafted from paper—but not ordinary paper. These were explosive tags, expertly folded into deadly precision weapons. Only one person used that technique.
Floating high above, her blue hair caught in the wind, stood Konan—the Angel of the Akatsuki.
Inoiki's eyes narrowed. He muttered under his breath, "Konan."
But before he could respond further, the air around him shifted violently.
A powerful force—silent but overwhelming—rushed toward him, distorting the air, warping the terrain, as if gravity itself was being dragged and twisted.
Shinra Tensei...
He recognized it instantly.
Inoiki didn't hesitate. He summoned his own psychokinetic force, unleashing an invisible wall of pressure to meet the incoming attack head-on. The two forces collided midair in a silent clash, the pressure wave shuddering outward.
But Inoiki's push wasn't strong enough.
The opposing force broke through, slamming into him like a wall of wind and weight. He was driven back, his feet tearing deep grooves into the ground as he skidded across the rocky terrain, forced to a halt by sheer willpower.
His expression darkened.
Above him, another figure appeared, descending through the clouds like a god come to pass judgment.
The Deva Path of Pain.
Inoiki's muscles tensed. This was no longer a game of pursuit. This was a coordinated attack.
The Akatsuki had come for him.
Konan's voice carried clearly through the air, calm and strategic. "I'll stay close to you (Nagato's real body). He's a sensory-type—he'll detect you no matter what. You handle him here. I'll move to your side for support."
Without waiting for a reply, she turned and soared away, her paper wings dissolving into countless fluttering tags as she moved to reposition. Pain gave no objection. He didn't need to. Their coordination was flawless—silent, efficient, built on years of unspoken understanding.
Inoiki, meanwhile, moved with equal purpose. He unsealed his storage scroll with a practiced flick and formed the necessary hand seals. A moment later, with a burst of smoke, his massive sword materialized before him, hovering effortlessly in the air under the steady control of his psychokinesis.
Then the ground rumbled slightly as a massive bird descended nearby, flapping with an eerie silence. Upon its back stood the other five Paths of Pain. One by one, they leapt down, landing with precision and spreading out into formation.
The Deva Path followed, descending gracefully and taking his place at the front. Together, the six bodies stood unified, their Rinnegan eyes all focused on a single target—Inoiki.
Inoiki's expression hardened. He didn't need confirmation. This wasn't coincidence.
They came for me.
He assessed the formation. A deliberate deployment. No overkill, no hesitation. Nagato wasn't just sending a message—he was making a calculated move. They were both in the Land of Earth, and the timing was too precise. The Akatsuki leader had seized the opportunity.
Inoiki could easily guess why.
He had interfered too many times—disrupted too many of their plans, killed two of their members, exposed their presence. Now they wanted to erase the threat before it grew any larger.
His grip tightened.
Without a word, Inoiki reached behind his back and unsheathed his second blade, holding it firmly in his right hand while his giant sword hovered beside him like a silent guardian.
His eyes locked on the Deva Path.
So this is it, Nagato? You want me gone?
Then come and try.
The Animal Path stepped forward without a word and pressed his hand firmly against the ground. A black summoning circle erupted beneath his palm.
In an instant, the air cracked open with unnatural force, and massive creatures began to materialize around the battlefield. A colossal ox stomped down, snorting steam. Several giant centipedes coiled and writhed, their armored bodies shifting with grotesque fluidity. A giant panda-like summon planted itself firmly in front, ready to shield its summoner. Other monstrous beasts joined the ranks, encircling the area in a ring of summoned chaos.
Then came the real threat.
The Deva Path finally moved.
Universal Pull.
The technique activated in a flash—the gravity around Inoiki twisted violently, tugging him forward. But Inoiki didn't resist. Instead, he mirrored the move, locking onto the Deva Path with his psychokinesis and pulling back with equal force.
The result: a gravitational standoff.
Neither force completely overpowered the other. But Inoiki, by choice, let himself be drawn forward. He angled his body and surged straight toward the Deva Path, sword in hand, intent on striking.
At the same moment, his massive sword—still floating under his control—began to shift. With a mental command, the blade broke apart, the segments separating like pieces of a puzzle. Dozens of short, razor-edged swords hovered midair, each one humming with raw psychic energy.
But before he could reach his target, the Asura Path intercepted.
It leapt between them, arm transforming midair. Flesh twisted into metal as its right limb restructured into a cluster of compact rocket launchers. Without hesitation, it fired—a volley of small but devastating missiles aimed directly at Inoiki.
Reacting instantly, Inoiki redirected half of his floating short swords. They snapped into a defensive formation, aligning in front of him like a glimmering shield. The missiles struck, exploding in a storm of flame and shockwaves.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Smoke and pressure blasted outward. But Inoiki held his position.
As the smoke cleared, he struck.
The remaining short swords shot forward, darting through the air toward the Asura Path in a deadly spread pattern. Blades screamed through the sky.
Realizing the threat, Asura Path disengaged and leapt away, dodging the full brunt of the attack.
But before the swords could chase, another force intervened.
Almighty Push.
The Deva Path released a burst of repulsive force. A wall of pressure slammed outward in every direction. The short swords were flung backward, halted mid-flight. Even the defensive shield of blades in front of Inoiki was driven back, trembling under the sheer force of the push.
A gust of wind surged past Inoiki's ears as the blast carved through the ground.
Inoiki narrowed his eyes, heart steady, mind sharper than ever.
This wasn't going to be a simple battle.
This was a war of precision—and the opening round had just begun.
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