Shinigami in the Ninja World

The explosions were continuous.

In the air, clouds of smoke erupted.

The scene was terrifying.

Yet, despite the intensity, the shadow clone managed to dodge and maneuver, taking little damage.

"Deidara, come back," Sasori raised his head and called out to the two figures battling in the sky.

The blond boy with a high ponytail responded indignantly, "I haven't dealt with this guy yet!"

"Idiot!" Sasori cursed. "The shadow clone has already served its purpose. It has stalled us long enough. Soon, Uzumaki Naruto's real body will arrive. Do you want to face him alone?"

Deidara gritted his teeth, a look of reluctance on his face, but he commanded the clay bird beneath him to descend.

As he turned back, the golden shadow clone stood in the sky, no longer pursuing them, just coldly watching.

"This guy really intends to trap us all in the Land of Rain!" Once he landed, Deidara muttered angrily, "If it weren't for this damn weather, I would have taken care of him by now."

Sasori glanced at him, bluntly exposing the truth: "That was just one shadow clone. At the borders of the Land of Rain, who knows how many more he has left."

Deidara said nothing, only clenching his fist tighter. He, too, was once called a "child prodigy." But now...

He couldn't even easily handle one of that person's shadow clones.

"Report to the leader," Sasori said slowly.

Inside the Rain Village.

"Even you couldn't break through his shadow clones?" Kisame spoke, his tone not overly panicked. "Now this is really troublesome. He's managed to trap us in the Land of Rain by himself."

Uchiha Itachi remained silent.

"We can't just stay here forever," Deidara shouted, his initial bravado diminished. "What's the difference between this and being imprisoned?"

The others said nothing. It was tacitly agreed that the youngest would test the leader's attitude.

The orange-haired man's expression remained calm: "Although the actions of the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki have disrupted our plans."

"But since things have come to this, then we shall keep moving forward, crushing everything that stands in our way."

Konan looked at him.

"No matter how powerful the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki is, he's still just a human." Pain spread his arms wide, his tone as cold as his expression, "He cannot compare to a god! Now, let this world taste the pain."

Deidara whispered, "Is the leader going to act personally?"

Pain did not respond. He merely looked around: "Konan, you should stay behind. The village needs—"

"I'm going with you," she shook her head firmly. "Even if we leave the village, I'll be fine."

Uchiha Itachi spoke up: "Let me stay. The Nine-Tails Jinchuriki has strong resistance to genjutsu, so I won't be much help."

Pain glanced at him: "Is that so? Then Uchiha Itachi will stay and guard the village. The rest will move with me."

Temporary residence.

Jiraiya, standing next to Naruto, looked in the same direction but saw and heard nothing: "What's happening over there?"

"There were two people trying to leave the Land of Rain without my permission," Naruto waved his hand dismissively, his tone calm.

Jiraiya's heart tightened: "Aren't you going over?"

"The shadow clone held them off," Naruto shook his head. "Once they realized they couldn't break through the barrier immediately, they retreated."

Jiraiya nodded, his tone heavy: "It seems they're getting impatient."

Naruto smiled.

After so many years in the Soul Society, his greatest gain was "patience." Time and lifespan were not luxuries for him.

He continued his experiment.

Jiraiya assisted, though he didn't understand much about "human experimentation." But in terms of ninjutsu, he had profound knowledge.

Prophetic words.

Within an hour, several powerful chakras approached.

"Jiraiya-sensei, they're here," Naruto paused his experiment once more, spoke, and walked over to wash his hands.

Jiraiya's expression grew grave. He didn't share Naruto's calm demeanor and quickly burst through the door.

A group approached from within the Land of Rain. Leading them was a man with orange hair and a high ponytail. Behind him followed four others, three men and one woman.

"Konan!" Jiraiya recognized one and instinctively called out.

The blue-purple-haired woman stared at him: "Jiraiya-sensei, it's truly surprising to see you here. Is Konoha also here to help?"

"No," Jiraiya shook his head. "It's just that 'Rain Village' and the 'Rinnegan' reminded me of you, so I came to see. I didn't expect it to really be you."

As he spoke, he turned his head to the man with the ponytail in the center: "Since Konan is here, then you must be Nagato? Your appearance has changed a lot, but those eyes... And where is Yahiko?"

"It seems your growth has indeed encountered some problems. What exactly happened?"

The man with the high ponytail responded, "This has nothing to do with you, Jiraiya-sensei. Our target is the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki. Even if it's you... if you stand in my way, I will kill you without hesitation or mercy. Leave."

Jiraiya shook his head as chakra surged within him. "You should know that Naruto is the Fourth Hokage's son. And I was the Fourth Hokage's teacher. How could I possibly stand by and let you harm my student's child?"

The man with the high ponytail raised his hand. "Is that so, Jiraiya-sensei? It's truly unfortunate that you will be my enemy."

As they spoke, the door of the house behind them was pushed open once more.

Naruto walked out: "Jiraiya-sensei, he's not your former student. This is just a puppet."

Jiraiya was startled and turned to look at him.

"The real body won't show itself?" Naruto continued. "Even after leaving the village, it still hides in the shadows?"

The man with the high ponytail replied, "Your sensing abilities are quite impressive. You can even discern the state of life and death? However, even in this form, defeating you won't be a problem."

He formed hand seals.

Thick white smoke billowed, and five figures appeared. They all had orange hair like the man with the high ponytail, and their faces were embedded with several black rods.

"Uzumaki Naruto, you'll regret not fleeing when you sensed my presence," said one of the summoned men. "Now, you have no chance to escape."

Jiraiya was stunned.

He stared intently at the man who had spoken.

The familiar hair color, the familiar face.

"Yahiko?" His voice trembled. "Are you the leader of the Akatsuki? Why do you have the Rinnegan? Where is Nagato?"

Naruto reminded him, "He's also a puppet."

"Yahiko is already dead," the orange-haired man said. "What stands before you now is the 'God' known as Pain!"

Jiraiya gritted his teeth. "What happened to you all?"

"Jiraiya-sensei," Naruto spoke, "do you remember what you were thinking earlier?"

Jiraiya was taken aback and looked at him, unsure of what he meant by saying that at this moment.

Was he referring to his earlier thoughts of infiltrating the Rain Village to gather information?

"These six are all corpses turned into puppets," Naruto said softly. "However, the method of controlling them isn't chakra threads. Did you notice those black substances on their faces?"

"When he performed the summoning jutsu, those black substances vibrated, indicating they were receiving chakra from a distance."

Jiraiya immediately understood. "Nagato is controlling them from afar? I see... Then I'll leave this to you."

He vanished in a flash.

"Don't think so!" Konan moved swiftly, extending her hand. Her arm and sleeve transformed into paper, stretching into a narrow barrier, attempting to block Jiraiya.

But just as it expanded, a flash of crimson fire erupted simultaneously.

"Hadō #31. Shakkahō (赤火砲, Red Fire Cannon)."

The paper barrier was blasted open, creating a large gap, with flames scorching and black smoke billowing.

Konan turned around.

A golden light flashed in her eyes, filling her vision.

"Your opponent is me." Naruto had already blocked her path. "Let Jiraiya-sensei do what he needs to do."

Pain spoke, "It doesn't matter, Konan. There are others in the village as well."

Not only Uchiha Itachi, but also another man who claimed to be "Uchiha Madara."

"The real Rinnegan bearer isn't here, and neither is Uchiha Itachi," Naruto's gaze swept across the group. "Is it just you? Is Madara not coming either?"

Pain's tone wavered slightly. "It seems you know quite a lot. Even about his existence... I'll take you to meet him after I capture you. Attack!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Konan immediately moved, paper-wrapped spikes in her hand gleaming with cold light, thrusting toward him.

Naruto raised his hand.

He caught her attack with two fingers.

No matter how much force she exerted, she couldn't push her attack any closer.

"It's been a while since I've had a serious fight," Naruto raised his other hand, his gaze shifting past Konan to the six men behind her. "Let me see more of the Rinnegan's abilities."

That hand formed a seal.

Konan's pupils dilated, and she quickly withdrew.

But the jutsu Naruto performed was not an offensive ninjutsu.

He simply recalled the shadow clones scattered along the border.

This caused his aura to surge.

Chakra spread out, pressing down with immense force.

Deidara was startled.

What is this feeling? His body suddenly felt so heavy.

Sasori's puppet seemed to creak under the pressure, as if it could no longer bear the weight.

Kisame, cautious, didn't draw the Samehada, which was already excited by Naruto's chakra.

Instead, he formed hand seals.

"Water Release: Exploding Water Colliding Wave."

A massive wave of water gushed from his mouth, flooding the area and swallowing it in an instant.

But Naruto immediately stepped into the air.

Pain also ascended, and Konan's paper wings unfolded behind her, flapping as she flew.

Deidara threw out clay, which transformed into a large bird, carrying both himself and Sasori.

The remaining five corpses had no flying abilities and floated slowly on the water.

Meanwhile, two figures leaped from the forest, soaring high into the air, only to be caught by Naruto, who placed them on his shoulders, one on each side.

~~~

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