The cold air beneath Naka Shrine seemed completely frozen.
Only Nagato's heavy, pained breathing echoed through the underground chamber.
The weight of the truth was almost enough to crush him.
It wasn't merely deception.
It was the complete denial of his entire life and everything he had ever believed in.
He was nothing more than a carefully chosen vessel, someone implanted with another person's eyes.
A pitiful pawn whose only purpose was to prepare the way for someone else.
Yahiko held him firmly while Konan stood at his side.
Both of them had equally pale faces.
Their eyes were filled with sympathy for Nagato and burning anger toward Uchiha Madara's monstrous scheme.
The entire chamber was shrouded in despair and icy silence.
"A vessel... I'm just a vessel..."
Nagato muttered, the light within his Rinnegan dimming with self-loathing.
"Nagato!"
Yahiko's voice cut through the suffocating atmosphere like a blade, firm and unwavering.
"Now isn't the time to drown yourself in pain or self-pity! Uchiha Madara forced those eyes and his plan onto you. That alone is the cruelest insult to your will."
"But now the choice has returned to your hands!"
His unwavering gaze locked onto Nagato.
"Will you continue being the helpless victim of his scheme, eventually becoming nothing more than a tool to fulfill his ambition?"
"Or will you seize this chance, completely sever his chains, and reclaim your own life?"
"Summon the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path. Cut off his lifeline. That will be the strongest possible strike against him."
"And it will also be the first step in declaring your freedom from this twisted fate!"
His words struck Nagato's heart like a heavy hammer.
Gripping Nagato's shoulder tightly, Yahiko continued in a deep voice.
"Nagato, those eyes may once have belonged to him, but you're the one using them now!"
"Your pain and your will are the true source of your strength!"
"Don't let the past bind you any longer."
"For our sake... and for everyone else who could become a victim of this plan... make your choice!"
Konan remained silent, but the encouragement and support in her eyes never wavered.
Nagato breathed heavily as he struggled with himself.
Pain and rage collided within his Rinnegan.
Finally, that rage spread like wildfire, completely overwhelming his despair.
Slowly, he straightened his back.
A desperate resolve gathered once more in his eyes.
"...I understand."
Nagato's hoarse voice carried a trace of ruthlessness.
"He's relying on that statue to cling to life..."
"Then I'll summon it with my own hands and cut off his path to survival!"
"If these eyes have brought me nothing but suffering..."
"Then it's time he experienced that suffering himself!"
"Good."
Yahiko and Konan exchanged glances before quietly letting out relieved breaths.
"This isn't the place to summon it."
"We need somewhere completely isolated that can withstand the impact of such overwhelming power."
After thinking for a moment, Yahiko turned to Nagato.
"We should discuss the exact location with Lord Chiya."
The other two nodded.
Leaving the chamber, they found Chiya and the others.
After explaining their decision, Chiya immediately said, "Minato, take us to the Valley of the End. It's remote and spacious. It'll help conceal what we're about to do."
"Understood!"
Minato nodded without hesitation.
Chiya then looked toward Obito.
"Obito, protect the three of them."
He was referring to Yahiko, Konan, and Nagato.
"Yes!"
Obito immediately became fully alert.
He was prepared to pull the three of them into Kamui the instant anything went wrong.
Then Chiya seemed to remember something.
His eyes flickered slightly before he added to Minato, "First, stop by my residence and bring Kushina."
Although Minato wondered why Kushina was needed at a time like this, he never questioned Chiya's decisions.
"Yes!"
The Flying Thunder God Technique activated once again.
Chiya, Minato, and Obito disappeared instantly.
A short while later, they arrived at Chiya's residence.
Hearing the commotion, Kushina Uzumaki immediately ran outside, her long crimson hair flowing like dancing flames.
"Brother Chiya? Minato? What's going on..."
Seeing the solemn expressions on everyone's faces, she froze.
"Kushina, there's no time to explain everything."
Chiya got straight to the point.
"I need your strength. Come with me. We're carrying out a dangerous mission."
Seeing the rare seriousness in Chiya's eyes, Kushina didn't hesitate for even a second.
"Okay!"
Chiya looked toward Minato.
Understanding immediately, Minato activated the Flying Thunder God Technique again.
With Chiya's ocean-like chakra supporting him, both its range and precision reached their absolute limits.
Whoosh!
After another sensation of space folding around them, the group had already left Konoha behind.
They appeared in a vast, desolate valley.
Towering above them stood two colossal statues that seemed capable of supporting the heavens themselves.
One depicted the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju.
The other depicted Uchiha Madara.
Even after so many years, the statues still radiated overwhelming majesty.
They silently recounted that earth-shattering battle from long ago.
This was the Valley of the End.
The river roared through the valley below, while mist drifted through the air, adding to the bleak and solemn atmosphere.
"This is the place."
Chiya swept his gaze across the surroundings.
His perception spread outward like a tide, confirming that nothing unusual was nearby.
"Nagato, begin."
"Yahiko. Konan. Protect him."
"Minato, watch the surroundings."
"Obito, provide support."
"Kushina..."
He looked toward the red-haired girl.
"Stand beside me."
"We may need your abilities shortly."
Although Kushina had no idea what was about to happen, she obediently walked over to Chiya's side.
Nagato stepped into the center of the valley and slowly closed his eyes.
When he opened them again, only cold determination remained within his Rinnegan.
His hands began forming seals.
The sequence was ancient, complicated, and filled with an ominous aura.
As the final seal was completed, an enormous amount of chakra erupted from Nagato's body.
The ripples within his purple Rinnegan surged violently.
An invisible force centered on him reached toward a distant, malevolent existence.
"Urgh..."
Nagato immediately let out a pained groan as his body trembled.
The chakra required to summon the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path far exceeded imagination.
It felt as though his very soul and life force were being drained away.
At the same time, he could clearly sense an incredibly stubborn and powerful will resisting the summoning from somewhere far away, desperately trying to preserve its original connection.
"Now!"
Chiya shouted as he stepped forward and pressed his right palm firmly against Nagato's back.
The next instant, an indescribably vast torrent of chakra poured into Nagato's body like a bursting galaxy.
The chakra was so immense, pure, and powerful that it instantly restored Nagato's nearly exhausted body.
His pain eased dramatically.
At the same time, it provided him with what felt like an endless supply of chakra.
Nagato's Rinnegan widened in shock.
He had never experienced such overwhelming chakra before.
With this power supporting him, his confidence in resisting that distant force increased dramatically.
The summoning advanced by force.
However, at that critical moment—
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Countless sounds of bodies cutting through the air suddenly erupted from the forests, cliffs, and even beneath the river surrounding the valley.
Endless figures appeared like ghosts.
Within moments, they had completely surrounded everyone in the valley.
Their appearances varied greatly.
Some wore Konoha's green flak jackets.
Some wore Iwagakure's red scarves.
Others wore Kumogakure's dark armor.
There were Sunagakure shinobi with face coverings...
Even Kirigakure ninja had appeared.
They looked exactly like living shinobi.
Their faces displayed anger, vigilance, and killing intent.
"The Hokage of Konoha! What are you doing?!"
"They're members of the Akatsuki!!"
"That red-haired woman is the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki! They really are plotting something!"
"Stop them! They're performing some kind of evil forbidden technique!"
The furious shouts echoed from every direction.
It truly sounded as though a coalition army from every village had arrived to stop them.
The sudden appearance of such a bizarre force caused Yahiko, Konan, Minato, and Obito's expressions to change dramatically.
"How is this possible?!"
"So many people got this close, and none of us sensed them?!"
Minato gripped his Flying Thunder God kunai tightly.
His blue eyes were filled with shock and vigilance.
The way these people had appeared was simply too strange.
"Did the other villages learn about our plans and come to stop us?"
Yahiko stood protectively before Nagato, his face grim.
Sheets of paper were already circling around Konan, ready to attack at any moment.
Obito looked nervously toward Chiya, his Mangekyō Sharingan spinning as he prepared to drag anyone nearby into Kamui.
Only Chiya remained perfectly calm, as though he had expected all of this from the beginning.
He didn't even bother looking at the approaching "shinobi."
Instead, he slightly turned his head toward Kushina, who had already entered the Nine-Tails Chakra Mode in her tension, golden chakra radiating from her body.
"Kushina."
"Sense their malice."
Kushina nodded firmly before closing her eyes.
The Nine-Tails' extraordinary sensory ability spread outward like a giant radar, focusing entirely on the emotional fluctuations of those "shinobi."
The next second, Kushina's eyes snapped open.
A golden light flashed across them as she pointed toward the endless crowd surrounding them.
"Brother Chiya! Almost every single one of them!"
"They don't have normal emotional fluctuations!"
"There's only emptiness and fake emotions!"
"Their malice is identical!"
"It's cold..."
"It's inhuman..."
"They're pretending!!"
"As expected."
Chiya let out a cold laugh.
There wasn't the slightest surprise in his eyes.
"So this is Uchiha Madara's backup plan?"
"Or rather..."
"The White Zetsu army."
"They're actually trying to interfere with us using such a clumsy disguise?"
His voice wasn't loud, but everyone heard him clearly.
Minato, Yahiko, and the others instantly understood.
These weren't shinobi from the other villages at all.
Their only purpose was to create chaos, delay them, and stop the summoning of the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path.
"Move!"
"Get rid of these annoying fakes!"
Chiya gave the order coldly.
At the same time, the chakra flowing from his hand into Nagato's body increased even further.
"Nagato."
"Ignore everything happening around you."
"Focus entirely on the summoning."
"The more desperately they try to stop us, the more it proves we're on the right path."
"As long as I'm here..."
"No one will stop us."
"Understood!"
Nagato clenched his teeth.
He completely discarded every distracting thought, pouring all of his concentration and the immense chakra Chiya supplied into the summoning.
The Rinnegan shone even more brilliantly.
Its connection to that distant space grew stronger and stronger.
"Damn monsters!"
"You actually dared disguise yourselves as our comrades!"
Anger flashed across Minato's face.
The Flying Thunder God Technique activated instantly as he charged into the enemy ranks like a streak of golden lightning.
Everywhere he passed, White Zetsu disguised as shinobi fell like harvested wheat.
Many didn't even return to their white forms until the moment they died, their faces still frozen in fake expressions of shock.
"Paper Rain!"
Konan cried out.
Countless sheets of paper filled with explosive tags shot across the battlefield like a violent storm.
Continuous explosions erupted, blowing countless White Zetsu apart.
Yahiko wielded his kunai with fierce taijutsu, guarding the side where Chiya and Nagato stood.
Meanwhile, Obito moved around the battlefield's perimeter.
Kamui activated repeatedly.
Sometimes it twisted space to absorb incoming attacks.
Other times it swallowed isolated White Zetsu whole, tearing them apart inside the dimension.
Kushina was even fiercer.
Wrapped in the Nine-Tails Chakra Mode, her speed and strength reached astonishing levels.
Golden chakra arms continuously lashed out, smashing every White Zetsu that rushed toward her.
Thanks to her sensory abilities, she could accurately identify every White Zetsu attempting to hide or transform.
The battle exploded into chaos. It was incredibly fierce.
There seemed to be no end to the White Zetsu.
Fearless of death, they charged forward again and again, using every method available to disrupt the ritual at the center.
But Chiya's group was simply too powerful.
Minato's Flying Thunder God Technique swept across the battlefield like a machine built solely for slaughter.
Kushina's Nine-Tails Chakra Mode crushed everything before it.
Konan's Dance of the Shikigami covered vast areas.
Yahiko and Obito each displayed their own extraordinary abilities.
Most importantly...
Chiya remained at the center.
Combined with Kushina's precise detection, every White Zetsu disguise became completely meaningless.
They could no longer create genuine chaos.
Chiya never removed the hand pressed against Nagato's back. He continued pouring chakra into him without pause.
"Urgh...!"
Nagato groaned again.
Veins bulged across his forehead as sweat poured from his body.
The summoning had reached its most critical stage.
The resistance from that distant location had also reached its peak.
It felt as though invisible hands were desperately dragging the Demonic Statue back, refusing to let it leave.
"Pointless resistance!"
Sensing Nagato's struggle, Chiya's eyes flashed sharply. His palm suddenly exerted even greater force.
Boom!!
An even more terrifying torrent of chakra surged into Nagato's body.
The Rinnegan erupted with a brilliance unlike anything before.
Under that overwhelming power, the distant resistance shattered like fragile glass struck by a giant hammer.
Crack!
Everyone felt something snap deep within their souls.
The next moment...
The space before Nagato was violently torn open.
A massive, irregular rift appeared as though reality itself had been ripped apart.
An indescribable aura burst from within.
It was ancient...
Vast...
Cold...
Filled with both destruction and life in perfect contradiction.
The terrifying pressure swept across the entire Valley of the End like a tangible tsunami.
Even the rushing river froze for a brief instant.
Under countless horrified gazes...
An enormous creature slowly crawled out of the dimensional rift.
Its appearance resembled a fusion of a dead tree and a monstrous demon.
Nine enormous eyes remained tightly shut. Its body looked like withered wood, while ten pillar-like protrusions extended from its back.
An overwhelming pressure and endless resentment radiated from its existence.
The Demonic Statue of the Outer Path... Had finally been forcibly summoned into this world.
Joy flashed across Chiya's eyes.
The moment the Demonic Statue completely descended and both of its massive feet touched the earth of the Valley of the End...
Every White Zetsu that had been attacking suddenly froze.
All of the fake expressions disappeared from their faces.
Only blank emptiness remained.
As though every command guiding them had vanished, they became lifeless puppets with their strings cut.
One after another, they collapsed.
Their bodies rapidly shriveled and dried out before finally reverting into primitive white spore-like matter that scattered across the ground without a trace of life.
The battlefield, which had been filled with deafening battle cries only moments earlier, instantly fell into an eerie silence.
Only the overwhelming pressure emitted by the Demonic Statue remained.
Along with the deep, mournful groans that echoed through the valley like voices rising from the abyss.
At the same time, the familiar icy system notification sounded inside Chiya's mind.
[System Message]
[Detected: Uchiha Madara's life signs have completely disappeared... Death confirmed.]
[Mission: Kill Uchiha Madara - Completed.]
[Reward: Asura's Chakra has been granted.]
A faint smile appeared on Chiya's lips.
Warm Asura chakra surged through his body.
More than its power, what surprised him most was its warmth. It felt as though he had spent an eternity in darkness before finally stepping into the embrace of warm sunlight.
He had succeeded.
Uchiha Madara...
The shadow that had loomed over the ninja world for decades...
Had finally been uprooted and completely erased.
Relics of the old era belonged in the old era.
After all...
The new era had no place for the remnants of the past.
[System Message]
[The Host now possesses sufficient Asura Chakra and sufficient Indra Chakra.]
[Conditions to awaken the Rinnegan have been fulfilled.]
[Would the Host like to unlock it?]