Damn it!
The tide of battle had completely reversed in a short amount of time. Rasa and the other invaders had already been strong, but up until now, the warriors of Tengakure had managed to hold their ground through sheer numbers.
But now, the enemy had revealed their immortality—this was an unwinnable fight.
"Magnet Release! Gold Sand Tsunami!" A massive wave of gold sand surged forward, crashing toward the shinobi of Tengakure.
"Ahh!" A bloodcurdling scream rang out as an elite jōnin was swallowed by the sand, disappearing without a trace.
"Ice Release! Demonic Mirroring Ice Crystals!" Haku activated his secret technique, weaving between the floating ice mirrors, launching deadly senbon at Rasa from all directions.
But Rasa didn't even flinch. Now that his immortality had been exposed, he abandoned all pretense of defense and went on the offensive with unrestrained aggression.
All of his gold sand was now focused solely on attacking.
Crash!
The sound of ice mirrors shattering filled the air. Rasa's gold sand formed into a razor-sharp spear, moving with terrifying speed, piercing through the ice mirrors one by one. Even Haku couldn't escape—his abdomen was impaled.
"Haku!" Zabuza's face twisted in panic as he swung his blade at the gold sand, only for sparks to fly on impact.
Mizunan was more level-headed in the moment, his massive, water-like tendrils reaching out and successfully pulling Haku away to safety.
But saving Haku came at a cost—another warrior perished in Mizunan's place.
"Damn it! Hold the line!"
"I've already sent a distress signal!" Zabuza shouted. His call for reinforcements had already been received by the members of Akatsuki.
Right now, the only one who could provide support was Deidara.
...
"Go, Deidara. I'll keep an eye on Orochimaru," Jiraiya said grimly from within Orochimaru's base. He understood the gravity of the situation.
Deidara nodded and prepared to depart immediately. Tengakure was their stronghold—it couldn't be allowed to fall.
But just as he was about to leave, a familiar yet unfamiliar figure appeared before him, blocking his path.
The newcomer had two horns protruding from his head and three eyes—two Rinnegan and a Sharingan embedded in his forehead. His face bore signs of age, and he wore a flowing white robe adorned with six black tomoe on the chest.
It was the legendary figure of the ninja world—the one mistakenly believed to be the progenitor of chakra—Hagoromo Ōtsutsuki, the Sage of Six Paths.
"Young one, leave this matter to me," he said.
"I may not have the same foresight as Gamamaru, but I can sense it—your role here is the true key to changing fate." The Sage spoke without pretense, getting straight to the point.
Deidara frowned. "But aren't you supposed to be suppressing those ancient gods?"
He vividly remembered that the only reason beings like the Shinigami and Jashin hadn't directly intervened in this war was due to the Sage and his brother restraining them.
"My true body is still where it needs to be," Hagoromo replied. "The one here—and the one heading to Tengakure—are merely avatars."
"But this attack on Tengakure feels orchestrated," Deidara countered. "Can a mere avatar really handle it?"
He had a bad feeling about this. From the moment the distress call had come through, he couldn't shake the thought that this was all part of a larger scheme by Mōryō. It felt like a grand chess game, with the surprise assault on Tengakure being just one of many calculated moves.
But what was Mōryō's true goal?
As far as Deidara could tell, there was nothing in Tengakure decisive enough to turn the tide of war. Destroying it might anger Akatsuki, but anger alone wouldn't weaken their strength.
Regardless, an attack on their stronghold was unacceptable. Their families, their loved ones—they were all there.
Everyone was fighting and bleeding for one reason—to carve out a better future for those they cared about.
"If you understand that it's a trap, then all the more reason you must not go." Hagoromo's expression darkened. "Mōryō may be trying to lure you into an ambush. If you fall into his hands or are killed, everything will be lost."
The Sage's avatar wasn't here merely to inform Deidara—it was here to stop him from returning.
"I won't stand by and watch the people I swore to protect fall into danger!" Deidara's voice was firm, his determination unwavering.
Some things in life were worth risking everything for.
"You must consider the bigger picture," Hagoromo urged.
"No! I only care about creating the future I desire!"
Seeing that Deidara was resolute, the Sage sighed. He knew that further persuasion would be useless, so he revealed his final card.
"Rest assured. The avatar I sent to Tengakure carries a significant portion of my true power."
"And your comrade, the new Jinchūriki of the Ten-Tails, has been monitoring Mōryō's true form all along."
"Even if Mōryō has managed to send part of his power to Tengakure, my avatar can handle it."
Deidara's expression eased slightly, but he was still skeptical.
"Are you sure about that? Can your avatar really hold back Mōryō's assault?"
Hagoromo conceded, "You can contact your allies and confirm it yourself."
"If I'm right, my avatar should have arrived by now."
Recently, Nagato had been using a vast amount of resources to create a new set of rings, distributing them to Akatsuki members. These rings allowed for real-time communication across the entire ninja world, an incredible feat of technological ingenuity.
Deidara channeled his chakra into his ring—marked with the kanji for "blue."
"Zabuza, what's the situation in the village? Has an old man with Rinnegan shown up to help?"
"Rinnegan? But isn't that something only the leader and Uchiha Obito have? Are there more Rinnegan in the ninja world?" Hidan's voice came through first.
Then came Kakuzu's irritated response. "Hidan, shut up."
"And don't forget—Hagoromo had Rinnegan too."
"Hagoromo?" Zabuza was momentarily stunned. The ninja world had become more surreal by the day. Now, even the legendary founder of ninjutsu himself had appeared?
"I haven't seen—no, wait! I do see an old man with Rinnegan!"
"Could he really be the Sage of Six Paths?"
Zabuza stared at the elder who had suddenly appeared in the middle of the battlefield, his heart a storm of emotions.
Reverence, fear, respect, disbelief—all of these feelings surged through him, leaving him momentarily speechless.
But Hagoromo ignored the crowd, his gaze locked onto Rasa and his men.
"Mōryō," he said, his voice carrying an undeniable weight. "Are you not going to show yourself?"
----------------
Pls Drop some Power Stones
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