Chapter 169: Yagyu Changes His Plans; The Difference Between a Native and a Transmigrator

Boom—

"Wh-What just happened above?"

"What terrifying chakra—this isn't even on the same dimensional level as us!"

"Is that Lord Yagyu's full power…? The very Bloodline Limit that the First Hokage used to bring peace to the Warring States?!"

"The leader of the Akatsuki must be dead! Is this war over?!"

" … … …"

Beneath the "mushroom" canopy, the entire battlefield heard a thunderous boom, as if the heavens had collapsed. The sheer volume, unbelievably loud, even reached other Great Nations' fronts and Amegakure's underground base in faint echoes. It was reminiscent of the Tailed Beast Bomb's shock waves in the original, so powerful the sound wave could travel miles.

Many were briefly deafened, wincing at the painful ringing in their ears. Weaker-willed individuals collapsed in fright. If not for the wooden "ceiling" above absorbing the aftershock, that Buddha-sized palm strike—its fiery and watery shock wave—would have swept across the battlefield like a storm, likely costing many lives.

Yet a number of strong shinobi held out against the sound's impact. Those adept at sensory techniques or wielding the Byakugan gazed up at the wooden ceiling, pupils constricted in utter awe. Indeed, the sights and sensations they perceived were too staggering.

Every tree conjured by Wood Release contained Yagyu's chakra—Sage chakra at that, brimming with inexhaustible energy, like a suspended ocean overhead. When the "Buddha's Palm" clashed against Tendo Pain's "Super Shinra Tensei," they felt as if that ocean had surged with colossal waves. Those with powerful perception felt minuscule, as if witnessing a tsunami close-up.

And for those with actual "vision" abilities, their worldview was shattered and remade anew, far beyond the impression one gets from pure sensing. They realized that no matter how talented or hardworking one might be—no matter how many S-rank secret arts they learned—there existed a realm of power unattainable without special bloodline heritage. This was a gulf of lineage, the apex of bloodline might.

All at once, they grasped how the Warring States era's various clans, the Great and minor ninja villages, plus other forces, must have felt facing the First Hokage. No wonder every clan pledged loyalty to the Senju; so long as Hashirama lived, no minor village dared pick fights, and the world enjoyed lasting peace. Confronted with such near-divine might, even Kage-level groups were overshadowed, making "human-wave tactics" look laughable.

Rather than help, these followers only became burdens for someone like Hashirama, limiting his full prowess and wasting extra chakra. Even Yagyu had spent considerable energy to protect them from the aftershocks, conjuring a mushroom canopy overhead. One could only imagine how hopeless it would be to fight an opponent like him.

On the other hand, realizing Yagyu belonged to their own side—Konoha's future Sixth Hokage—banished the fear for many Konoha nin, replaced by fervor. When this war ended, they might enjoy what their ancestors once did. With such a "God of Shinobi" leading them, Konoha's shinobi felt assured. No more would they suffer the humiliation of bowing to Kumogakure, as they had decades prior. Even if a Nine-Tails rampage recurred, it would presumably be subdued with ease.

Reinvigorated, the Konoha ninja unleashed surging morale, attacking White Zetsu clones and the Edo Tensei army, assuming the Akatsuki was finished.

...

"What power… so that's Yagyu's real strength?"

Among the astonished stood Uchiha Sasuke.

Having merged his own Mangekyō with Itachi's ocular power, achieving an entirely new set of eyes, he now stood at a threshold between "pinnacle Kage" and "super-Kage." Perhaps he lacked the hardened experience of the Fourth Raikage or Onoki, but if Sasuke unleashed a Perfect Susano'o, only Onoki's Particle-Style would give him pause. Yet Onoki's dust jutsu guzzled chakra and required an obvious wind-up. One unlucky slip could doom him, yet Sasuke was not absolutely safe either. In truth, Sasuke's glimpses of Perfect Susano'o remain incomplete; in any case, he's only reached the level of "casual use of EMS," basically a Kage-tier realm.

Seeing a clash that easily devastated tens of kilometers, matching "Super Shinra Tensei" against the "Buddha's Palms," Sasuke felt that same awe as the Five Kage faced a "super-Kage." He was dwarfed. Yet unlike the Kage, who might despair at their upper limit, Sasuke felt excitement. They were stuck at a plateau; he, on the other hand, realized he could reach Yagyu's level—perhaps second only to him, akin to Madara trailing Hashirama. Lacking a suitable rival, he yearned to push his Yin chakra to attempt a fully manifested Susano'o. Also, he hungered to learn Senjutsu. Before, he hadn't cared, not realizing its true heights. Now, having witnessed Naruto and Yagyu in Sage Mode, he was newly motivated. If he harnessed Sage Mode, his Susano'o would become even stronger—returning him to the same start line as Naruto or Yagyu.

"Man, that Yagyu guy is… incredible!"

Naruto, whose sensing was far stronger than any Kagura Mind's Eye, was similarly dumbfounded. While he'd attained Nine-Tails Chakra Mode plus Sage Mode, landing near Sasuke's domain of "Kage pinnacle to super-Kage gatekeeper," he still needed to reach a perfect partnership with Kurama to fuse Nine-Tails Chakra Mode with Sage Mode—and thus truly tread the super-Kage threshold. If he wanted to match "Hashirama or Madara level," he'd require years of accumulation, assuming no "hack." Even then, a two-on-one battle would end with Yagyu thrashing them, because Naruto and Sasuke fought "the more we fight, the weaker we get," while Yagyu grew "the more he fights, the stronger he becomes." That's the might of Wood Release.

Yet the man who left them slack-jawed, Yagyu, actually felt a wave of regret. Gazing with red-tinted eyes at the last scraps of the Six Paths—ashes drifting away—he muttered inwardly:

"Damn, I got carried away."

Ever since revealing his Wood Release, Yagyu hadn't fought seriously. The only ones capable of suppressing him at age twelve were a tiny handful. Years passed, and he'd surpassed them, recognized as an extraordinary prodigy but still deemed "not fully matured." He had no real rivals left. Only the prospect of fighting top-tier foes (like Uchiha Obito's Kamui) or the knowledge of enemies such as the Sage of Six Paths or the Ōtsutsuki clan. With those future threats, he had to keep growing.

Now, for once, he'd found an opponent worth fighting in earnest… and had ironically gone too far, erasing the Six Paths. This was not good news. The Five-Tails was still unsealed. Without Pain's Six Paths stalling him, Naruto, and Sasuke, Konoha could soon overrun Amegakure. Lacking the Six Paths, even a fully restored Nagato—crippled legs notwithstanding—couldn't fend them off, even with the rest of the Akatsuki. Would Yagyu have to intervene personally? He also realized another possibility…

...

"I lost."

Deep underground in Amegakure, Nagato's thought-form spoke.

"Huh?"

Members of Akatsuki blinked.

Deidara, ever blurt-prone, exclaimed:

"It's barely been any time—Leader, you lost again?!"

Konan's eyes flashed in annoyance at Deidara, but Nagato showed no anger:

"Konoha's Wood-Style user is fully grown now. Even if I go all out, I'm no match."

"Prepare to abort the sealing at any time. Once that happens, Tobi will take you all and retreat."

"Right now, only by sealing up to the Seven-Tails can we hope to beat them."

Though Pain's Six Paths were destroyed, Nagato didn't feel defeated. He still believed in his ephemeral might. They had only sealed four and a half Tailed Beasts so far; the Gedo Statue had given him pseudo-limitless chakra, restored his body to prime condition from a withered state. If they sealed up to the seventh, maybe all nine, Nagato couldn't imagine how powerful he might become. He'd even formed a bold notion of fusing the Gedo Statue into himself as a Jinchūriki.

Yet the idea stirred unease. He also realized the suspicious nature of his eyes. Since "Madara" kept feeding him secret knowledge about Yin–Yang Release, the Six Path arts, and ways to harness Gedo's power, Nagato deduced that his Rinnegan contained deeper secrets. The Uzumaki clan had never produced a Rinnegan in known history. He'd always thought himself the "Chosen Child," but that notion was crumbling.

Even so, having gone this far, he couldn't turn back. Currently, his might soared beyond imagination. As long as he stayed vigilant of "Uchiha Madara," plus Black and White Zetsu, and waited until they sealed the Seven-Tails, he feared no one, not even Yagyu. Or, if still outmatched, he would lie low, searching for an opportunity to capture the Eight or Nine-Tails. Then he might attempt to host the Gedo Statue in his body. Succeeding would grant him a "new era's Rikudō Sennin," unstoppable even to Yagyu. With that power, he'd reestablish shinobi order like the Sage of Six Paths, forging true peace.

Nagato kept these dreams private, unshared with even Tobi or Zetsu—certainly not Hundred Faces. Otherwise, they'd be astounded by his daring. Yagyu would sigh at the difference between a "native" and a "transmigrator." Even thinking about becoming the Ten-Tails Jinchūriki was bold, though from Yagyu's perspective, if he had started as "Nagato," he would have stolen Obito's Ten-Tails Incantation from Kakashi and the late Rin, then bided time to become the Ten-Tails Jinchūriki—just so if Madara left any mark on him, he could remove it easily.

...

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