Konoha: Naruto of Sekiro

On the poison-fog-choked battlefield.

Akatsuki members, caught unprepared, inhaled a certain amount of the toxic mist and perished on the spot.

In contrast, the Amegakure ninja, having made prior preparations, suffered no casualties from the sudden eruption of poison fog and swiftly pressed their advantage.

This was a standard tactical approach for Amegakure during the Second Great Shinobi War.

Centering on the potent venom of the salamander, interspersed with surprise attacks from Amegakure ninja striking from the shadows.

A simple strategy, yet it had won the Land of Rain a brief period of peace.

Even after antidotes were developed by Sunagakure's Chiyo and Konoha's Princess Tsunade, the poison still retained a degree of effectiveness.

"Konan, am I a complete failure?" In the distance, Yahiko stared blankly at the scene. There was no heart-wrenching agony, no impotent rage—it was as if his soul had departed, leaving him to question his companion.

"No, you've done incredibly well," Konan said, shaking her head.

Truthfully, she was deeply worried about Yahiko's current state. There is no greater sorrow than a dead heart.

No pain was more devastating than seeing one's ideals, so close to realization, shatter before one's very eyes.

From its conception and formation to the present day, Yahiko had poured more heart and soul into Akatsuki than anyone else.

It could even be said that Akatsuki was Yahiko's second life.

Swish! Swish-swish!

Several kunai, their ends tied with exploding tags, landed precisely beside the two.

The instant the flames erupted, Yahiko grabbed Konan and lunged away.

"Amegakure ninja?"

Yahiko instinctively shielded Konan behind him, his expression grave as he stared at the four Amegakure shinobi before them.

Two Jonin, two Chunin…

They certainly held him in high regard.

Yahiko laughed self-deprecatingly in his heart.

"Konan, if you get a chance later, leave as quickly as possible," he whispered.

"…" Konan remained silent, slowly raising her kunai.

"Earth Style: Earthfall Pit!"

One of the Amegakure ninja rapidly formed hand seals, and a pit large enough to swallow two adults appeared beneath Yahiko and Konan.

The strength of that red-haired Akatsuki member had exceeded their expectations; even Lord Hanzo had to expend considerable effort to take him down in a direct confrontation.

Therefore, to achieve a swift victory, using hostages to threaten the red-haired man was the simplest and most efficient method.

"By now, Takeshita and his team should have found your two companions."

Hanzo of the Salamander's voice slowly drifted over, informing Nagato of the developments on the distant battlefield. "Four Jonin. How many do you think your comrades can handle at once?"

Nagato's expression shifted slightly. Though he knew it was a psychological tactic, he couldn't help but worry for Yahiko and Konan.

I have to end this fight as quickly as possible… he thought grimly.

But gazing at the purplish-black poison fog hovering above the water, he understood that this battle was destined from the start not to conclude quickly.

Hanzo of the Salamander was the most formidable enemy he had encountered since embarking on the path of a shinobi.

At this thought, Nagato's eyes hardened. His hands flew through seals. Even if it meant paying a certain price, he had to end this battle swiftly.

"Ninja Art: Summoning Technique!"

Roar!

A towering cloud of white smoke erupted. A colossal, humanoid golem, as tall as a mountain, threw its head back and roared, announcing its arrival to the world.

"What is that thing?" Every ninja who noticed this scene, whether from Amegakure or Akatsuki, their faces changed.

Humans possess an instinctual fear when confronted with something that vastly surpasses them in size.

On the golem's shoulder, Nagato's Rinnegan spun rapidly, his gaze focusing on the source of the gushing poison fog.

With a mere thought, the golem moved its mountain-like legs. Each step that landed on the ground was like a drumstick striking a massive drum, sending out ripples.

The golem's height far exceeded the range of the poison fog.

It casually scooped up a boulder the size of a man. To the golem, however, this rock was no different than a small pebble in an adult's hand.

Boom!

Even a small pebble, with sufficient acceleration, could become a lethal weapon.

If, at the same speed, the small pebble were replaced with a man-sized boulder, it would become the weapon of choice for storming fortresses. And if the target was changed from a fortress to a single person, the consequences of being hit were self-evident.

Hanzo of the Salamander watched the incoming boulder with a grim expression. He quickly dispelled his summoning technique; the salamander's bulk made it impossible to dodge such an attack.

As for hiding underground?

Sometimes, the damage from a blunt weapon was far more terrifying than that of a sharp one.

Boom!

Water mixed with mud splashed high into the air.

But this couldn't obstruct Nagato's vision. His Rinnegan swiftly locked onto a clearly visible chakra source behind the curtain of earth.

The golem's legs bent slightly, then straightened with a powerful thrust, its terrifying height seeming to reach for the golden sun hanging high in the sky.

Witnessing this, Hanzo of the Salamander, who had barely managed to evade the boulder, turned green.

Such a monstrous physique, still capable of such high-speed movement—if it weren't for the lack of a tail, he would have suspected the man had summoned a Tailed Beast.

He had always been the one to bully others with giant summons; this was the first time he was being bullied by one.

Boom!!

The golem's feet came together. Under Nagato's control, it descended like an inverted mountain, smashing down viciously towards the minuscule chakra source below.

"Earth Style: Earthfall Pit!!"

With nearly half of Hanzo's chakra output, a pit several times larger than one a Jonin could create caved in. In the instant the golem landed, he seized the opportunity, mustering all his strength to flee into the distance.

One breath later!

BOOOOM!!!!

It was like an earthquake; the very earth trembled. A pit large enough to hold the water of a small lake only managed to reach the golem's waist.

Sufficient weight and height meant that the golem's simple jumping motion produced power comparable to an S-rank forbidden jutsu.

Ptoo!

Hanzo crawled out from a pile of rubble, looking disheveled.

Especially upon seeing the golem push itself up with its hands from the pit he had spent nearly half his chakra to create, he felt his head throb.

Who could tell him why such a rare powerhouse would choose to stoop to joining a tiny organization like Akatsuki, and merely as a second-in-command at that?

What in the world was wrong with this shinobi world? If he had known earlier that Akatsuki possessed such a terrifying ninja, why would he have endured humiliation and shouldered such burdens?

He would have signed an alliance treaty directly. With the strength of just the two of them, they could have guaranteed the Land of Rain's freedom from the ravages of war.

Even if he now had a change of heart, looking at the Akatsuki ninja, dead or wounded all around, he knew it was too late.

"Water Clone Technique!"

Leaving behind a clone, his real body swiftly vanished into the earth.

He was old. Both his chakra and physical strength had declined considerably.

Moreover, both the Land of Rain and Amegakure still needed him. He couldn't die.

Therefore, he had to wait for an opportunity.

Casually picking up a massive rock, Nagato hurled it at the nearby water clone. The enemy had no intention of continuing the fight, and neither did Nagato.

"Ugh…"

Just as he was about to direct the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path to support Yahiko and Konan, a wave of exhaustion washed over his body.

"The chakra consumption for summoning the Demonic Statue is still too great…"

With a flicker of thought, Nagato pushed his body to its limits, once again making the Demonic Statue leap.