"Hanzo, you really do love causing trouble."
Aoki's voice echoed across the battlefield. A shimmering halo rippled around him as he flashed forward, positioning himself directly in front of the poisonous mist spewed by the Salamander. Standing there, facing the surging toxic cloud, his expression showed not the slightest hint of being affected.
Seeing Aoki dare to stand so brazenly before the Salamander's poison mist, a sneer formed on Hanzo's face behind his mask. He truly couldn't understand where the other party got the nerve to face such a deadly threat head-on.
"Hmph, Fourth Hokage, I can't tell if you're ignorant or just arrogant."
Hanzo scoffed.
"You dare to stand before the Salamander's poison mist! Then I'll gladly take your foolish life!"
Hanzo looked at Aoki with utter arrogance, as if he had already witnessed him being consumed by the poison and meeting his end.
Yet Aoki seemed completely oblivious to the danger right before him, as if he didn't even see the toxic mist surging toward him. In truth, with his Sage Body and Rinnegan, he could clearly perceive every subtle flow of the poison mist. His mastery over his own abilities had long grown increasingly refined.
Aoki activated the power of his Rinnegan, slowly spreading his hands. An invisible energy formed a barrier, like an unseen black hole, beginning to voraciously devour the vast cloud of poison before him.
He had just used the Rinnegan's ability to make a further attempt, unleashing the power of the Preta Path, instantly bringing all the poison mist under his control.
The onlookers who had been waiting to see Aoki collapse from the poison were now utterly dumbfounded. The expected gruesome death did not occur. Instead, the vast poison mist was effortlessly absorbed by Aoki.
"Not bad."
Aoki murmured in evaluation. Having personally experienced the power of the Rinnegan, his understanding of his own strength deepened another level. And he knew in his heart that the Rinnegan held even more formidable abilities.
In the instant Hanzo was stunned and distracted, Aoki suddenly erupted with his full power, unleashing the Rinnegan's latent potential completely. Universal Pull and Shinra Tensei were woven together in his assault, leaving Hanzo utterly unable to fight back, only able to barely and clumsily defend himself.
While suppressing Hanzo, Aoki felt his use of the Rinnegan growing more and more proficient. It was as if something within him was about to break free from its cocoon, the premonition of a breakthrough growing stronger.
Seeing Hanzo cornered, Aoki intensified his assault, using his abilities to pin him firmly to the ground, pressing forward step by step without the slightest relaxation.
"This is the so-called Demigod of the Ninja World?"
The Konoha ninja exclaimed in disbelief.
"Why does Hanzo seem so weak?"
"Weak? Hanzo is weak? It's not that he's weak, it's that the Fourth Hokage is too strong!"
Someone immediately retorted loudly.
This former Demigod of the Ninja World was now completely suppressed by Aoki. Aoki's offensive was unstoppable; the battle had become a one-sided crushing. The Konoha ninja were all cheering with joy.
Among them, Jiraiya watched with eyes wide open, greatly shocked by the astonishing power displayed by the Rinnegan. Even Orochimaru, who was always obsessed with powerful Eye Techniques, now had only curiosity in his eyes, not a trace of envy.
In stark contrast, the ninjas of Amegakure stood in deathly silence. Frozen in place, their faith shattered by the scene before them, they stared vacantly at the battlefield, their spirits utterly broken.
"Damn it!"
Hanzo roared in fury.
"This is just cheating!"
Aoki unleashed Shinra Tensei once more, a flash of icy resolve in his eyes. His Rinnegan held even more abilities, and it was time to unleash them one by one.
"Hmm?"
Aoki murmured, sensing a newly unlocked power.
"So this is the extent of this strength."
With this new ability in hand, Hanzo made for the perfect test subject. Just as Hanzo had begun to relax slightly, he noticed Aoki's unusual movements and immediately tensed up again. Yet, no matter how intently he observed, he could detect no abnormalities, nor sense the slightest fluctuation of Chakra.
A suffocating pressure engulfed him. Gripping his chain-sickle tightly, Hanzo charged toward Aoki once more. But before he could get close, a tremendous explosion erupted, and a colossal force sent him flying backward.
Blood gushed from Hanzo's mouth as he scanned his surroundings in terror.
"What? An invisible person? Impossible!"
He screamed hoarsely.
"There wasn't the slightest Chakra fluctuation!"
He had clearly felt a powerful kick from behind, yet there was no one in sight. Aoki stood in the distance, seemingly unrelated to the attack.
At that moment, Hanzo's will to survive wavered completely. Even if it were some special Kekkei Genkai that allowed invisibility, there should still be Chakra fluctuations. Endless confusion flooded his mind.
Hanzo would never know that Aoki had now activated a new ability of the Rinnegan—Limbo Border Jail. This was a special technique, and even Aoki himself hadn't expected the Rinnegan granted by the system to possess such power. It seemed more Rinnegan abilities would awaken in the future.
The user could create shadowy, intangible Limbo Clones, imperceptible to ordinary people, capable of launching synchronized attacks from different dimensions. In the past, Madara Uchiha had used this very technique to restrain Naruto and Sasuke.
However, there was no need for Aoki to waste any more time in the Land of Rain. This battle was about to end.
Seeing Hanzo still maintaining high alert, Aoki hesitated no longer. He controlled the Limbo Clone, silently closing in. Hanzo remained completely unaware, oblivious that death was already at hand as the Limbo Clone stood right beside him.
Without a shred of hesitation, Aoki channeled the power of the Rinnegan, activating the ability of the Human Path—the Soul Extraction Technique.
A tremendous force suddenly pulled, wrenching Hanzo's soul from his body. The vigilance in his eyes vanished instantly, and his body collapsed stiffly to the ground, without even a chance to utter a scream.
"Hmm?"
Aoki murmured, personally experiencing the soul-extracting power of the Rinnegan. He knew full well that Hanzo's body, possessing Kage-level Peak strength, was perfect for crafting into a Six Paths Puppet.
But before proceeding with that, Aoki first turned to the Amegakure ninjas and declared in a deep voice:
"Hanzo is dead! Surrender, or die. Choose one!"