Saving the Uchiha clan starts with becoming the clan leader.

That face, devoid of joy or sorrow, truly as indifferent as a god, finally revealed a human expression. The anger, shock, and relief brewing in the Rinnegan actually... turned into the worst possible situation. Uchiha Sogen had actually managed to sneak here.

Did they come with that idiot Obito Uchiha?

Or have they already been lurking in the surrounding area?

However, the question flashed through his mind in an instant. The answer to the question was no longer important. What mattered was that Uchiha Sogen had appeared here. Although he didn't know whether it was his true form or a clone, his true form had been undeniably exposed.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

One by one, explosive tags peeled off the 'wall' and flew into the darkness that Payne was watching, detonating one after another. The bright flashes from the explosions dispelled the pitch-black darkness, revealing a figure draped in a white cloak.

"The warm-up exercises on the ground are over."

Zongxian looked at Payne.

A slight smile curved her lips.

He reached out and removed the snow-white cloak, storing it back in the scroll. Then, a jet-black rod about a meter long sprouted from his palm, extending an invitation to Payne. "Now, let's begin the formality, Payne, or rather, Nagato."

As soon as he finished speaking,

Zongxian made his move again.

"Uchiha Style: Great Fire Sword".

The intense heat released a dazzling light, dispelling the darkness in the abandoned shelter. However, what was most terrifying was not the glow of the flames wrapped around the black rod. Compared to the immense heat contained within, the glow of the flames surrounding it was nothing more than the light of a firefly.

It is utterly inadequate to rival the brilliance of the bright moon.

This terrifyingly powerful attack didn't target Pain, who had already handed over Shinra Tensei; instead, it struck that special 'wall'.

As expected,

Wherever the flames touched, everything turned to ashes. In the blink of an eye, the high wall completely disappeared. And that wasn't all. After burning the high wall, the scorching flames surged into the space behind it.

Even the rock slabs on the dome were scorched red and cracked by the high temperature at this moment.

Let alone people,

but,

Zongxian never imagined that he could kill Nagato so easily.

Rinnegan

He was well aware of his own abilities.

As expected, the surging flames, which had been flowing like a flood, quickly dissipated and disappeared at an unusual speed, completely absorbed by Nagato. Far from causing any significant damage to Nagato, the attack had actually replenished Nagato's depleted chakra.

"Sealing technique to absorb seals?"

Zongxian was not surprised.

Not disappointed.

That attack was just to expose Xiao Nan's disguise so that she could meet and greet the target.

"You've used it well. Although you're not the original owner of the Rinnegan... to be able to use the Rinnegan to this extent, your talent is indeed remarkable. You truly deserve to be called the prophesied child in Jiraiya's eyes. Nice to meet you, Nagato. I am Uchiha Mugen, and this is my real body, not a clone."

Zongxian smiled and greeted the red-haired man sitting in the mobility scooter, who was emaciated and skin and bones.

While speaking,

Raising his hand, he unleashed a Shinra Tensei at Pain. Pain, whose five-second cooldown hadn't expired, couldn't reciprocate with a Shinra Tensei to parry. He could only hastily use the 'Water Wall Technique' to erect a flowing wall of water in an attempt to block the terrifying repulsive force.

However, the battle with Zongxian's Heavenly Dao clone had already demonstrated that the Water Formation Wall Technique could not completely block the repulsive force of Shinra Tensei.

It can only provide a slight buffering effect at most.

Payne was unsurprisingly sent flying.

but,

This is solid evidence.

Nagato only summoned Pain, the Animal Path, and the Naraka Path. Some of the large summoning beasts that fought against Uchiha Chihaya were also released from summoning, but a sufficient number of small summoning beasts remained above, gathering information from the ground.

He could still see the Three-Tails lying motionless in the puddle like a mountain through the eyes of his summoning beast, and Uchiha Sogen, wearing the Heaven Mask, standing motionless on top of the Three-Tails' head.

If the one on the ground is an avatar of the Heavenly Dao.

Then,

Is the Uchiha Mugen who also used Shinra Tensei underground truly his real body?

"You said you weren't the original owner of the Rinnegan? What do you mean by that?"

Payne was sent flying.

However, Nagato refrained from making a move.

After all, Pain was only knocked away, not damaged. He could be easily repaired using the Hell Path's abilities. On the other hand, the Animal Path and Hell Path clones, which were reduced to fragments and dust by the repulsive force of Shinra Tensei, could not be repaired. They would have to find suitable materials to create new clones.

Furthermore,

Uchiha Sogen seemed to want to speak, and Nagato suppressed the urge to attack, wanting to see what Uchiha Sogen was planning to say.

"Literally speaking, in the intelligence I currently possess, only our Uchiha clan has the potential to awaken the Rinnegan. Although your Uzumaki clan shares a common origin with us, it's a pity that you and the Senju inherited the power of the physical body, while the power of the 'eye' belongs to our Ichiha clan."

Looking at Nagato, who seemed to be in a daze and did not give a strong reaction.

Zongxian could only regretfully switch to another extremely concise explanation: "In short, it seems that only the Uchiha clan has the potential to awaken the Rinnegan. In other words, your Rinnegan doesn't belong to you; you are merely a vessel created later in life."

"Is this what you wanted to say?"

Nagato remained unmoved.

Beneath his dark red hair, his thin and haggard face was so striking that it was hard to forget. He was clearly only a 32-year-old middle-aged man, but his haggard face made him look like an old man in his sixties. However, despite his haggard appearance, his expression was exceptionally resolute and indifferent.

"If that's what you wanted to say, then... as you said before, let's continue!"

In an instant,

He reached out and aimed at Zongxian, activating [Universal Heavenly Pull]. The released gravity instantly acted on Zongxian's body. His other hand aimed at the rock slab above his head. The thick rock slab, which had been heated red by the previous high temperature of the Great Fire Sword, was forcibly pulled down and crashed straight into Zongxian.

"boom!"

A skeletal arm wreathed in deep crimson flames appeared.

With just a wave of the hand in mid-air,

They smashed the thick rock slab to pieces.

"Phew! As expected, we Uchiha clan members are no match for talk-no-jutsu!" Zongxian, who was being pulled into the air by the Universal Pull, calmly and casually made a self-deprecating remark. Then, looking at Nagato sitting on the mobility device, he silently activated his eye technique, [Ishigami Hibiki].

but,

Unfortunately,

Once a master of Nagato's caliber was on guard, such an attack could hardly achieve the desired surprise effect. Suddenly, a mechanical arm shot out from behind Nagato, opening up like a blooming lotus flower. The azure chakra light instantly connected to form an oval shield, blocking the projection of Sogen's eye power.

"This is... Puppet Technique: Mechanical Light Shield Seal?"

Zongxian recognized this move.

This technique was originally developed by puppeteers in Sunagakure. Using puppet mechanisms as a medium, they can transform their own chakra into a shield that can defend against everything. Because it is a shield made of chakra, it is similar to Susanoo. Both are the kind of shields that are extremely difficult to break as long as the chakra is inexhaustible.

and--

Compared to Susanoo, which fully materializes chakra,

"A shield that exists between substance and energy? I never imagined that Shi Changbi's selling technique had such a weakness..."

If it's Itachi Uchiha's Amaterasu...

The inextinguishable black flames could probably spread to Nagato's body, but Sogen's stone shield was completely unable to petrify the shield, which had a very vague form, somewhere between a materialized form and an energy body. It was like punching cotton; the force did not achieve the desired effect.

"However, combining the power of the Asura Path with puppetry techniques? Not a bad idea!"

Zongxian admired Nagato's ingenious ideas.

This line of thinking... has great potential!

Unfortunately, now was not the right time for thought and research. The wooden spikes from below pierced through Zongxian's shoes, hitting the soles of his feet with a dull thud and lifting him up. Yes, this attack from below only damaged Zongxian's shoes and failed to break through his hardening technique.

Hardening is an extremely useful skill.

Especially for ninjas with high attack and low defense, each of them possesses destructive methods that can alter the terrain and landforms. However, their own resistance to attacks is only slightly higher than that of ordinary people. If they are hit, even a C-rank ninjutsu can easily take their lives.

At this moment,

To compensate for this deficiency,

Hardening techniques have been developed and popularized. Today, hardening techniques can be broadly divided into two schools. One is the Earth Release: Hardening Technique, which is the specialty of the Iwagakure ninjas. This is the conventional hardening technique. Among the five natures, Earth Release is inherently very good at defense.

Another school of thought is the Lightning Release Chakra Mode of Kumogakure. The Third and Fourth Raikage relied on this Lightning Release Chakra Mode to dominate the world. Compared to the widely known Earth Release: Hardening Technique, the Lightning Release Chakra Mode of Kumogakure is a closely guarded secret of the village, and even within Kumogakure, only a small number of people can master it.

Zongxian used Earth Release: Hardening Technique.

Although he also possessed the training method for the Lightning Release Chakra Mode of Kumogakure, which was data extracted from the mind of Killer Bee, the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki, ensuring its authenticity, it was a pity that compared to the Earth Release Hardening Technique, which had immediate effects once learned, the Lightning Release Chakra Mode required a long and painstaking process to hone the body.

Of course, with long-term training, the latter's body will become so strong that even without activating Lightning Release Chakra Mode, it can withstand the slashes of swords. The Third Raikage is known as the ninja who wields the 'strongest spear' and the 'strongest shield'. It is said that even the Eight-Tails' Tailed Beast Ball could not damage the Third Raikage's body.

Because Sogen didn't start learning Lightning Release Chakra Mode from a young age, and this ninjutsu can't be cheated with Shadow Clone Technique, it's difficult to achieve mastery in a short time.

Therefore,

Instead of wasting time training this Lightning Release Chakra Mode,

Earth Release: Hardening Technique is clearly a more suitable option.

"I've been on guard against you all along, haven't I? Obito Uchiha."

Zongxian immediately launched a counterattack towards the ground. The black rod in his hand, wrapped with dazzling lightning, pierced into the bluestone beneath his feet like a needle pricking dough. As expected, the counterattack missed its mark. If the attack missed, they would flee thousands of miles away. This was the tactic of ninjas who had mastered space-time techniques.

but,

Others fear this spatial technique.

Zongxian, however, was fearless.

The Rinnegan's field of vision is shared; if Nagato could do it, Sōgen could naturally do it too... His observation range has no blind spots, so he is naturally unafraid of sneak attacks from ninjas who possess space-time techniques.

[Chapter 391. Black Zetsu, smashed into a puddle of liquid]

"That won't work either..."