The scene on the Sky Screen shifted, allowing people across various timelines—especially those between the era of Hashirama and Madara and the era before Naruto and Sasuke grew up—to viscerally understand for the first time what it meant for one person to take on an entire village.
The scene changed to Konoha.
On the Hokage Rock, the five Hokage heads were lined up in order: the First, Second, Third, Fourth... and a fifth—Tsunade's head—which had just been completed not long ago.
In the sky above, a figure draped in a black cloak with red clouds hovered in mid-air.
It was none other than the puppet body of the Akatsuki leader Nagato—Tendo Pain.
"Huh? That's Tsunade's head!"
Jiraiya sprang up from his chair, pointing at the newly carved head on the Hokage Rock, his face full of delight.
"Her head is carved on the Hokage Rock! So she really did become the Hokage in the end!"
Hiruzen sat behind his desk, took a deep drag from his pipe, slowly exhaled the smoke, and said nothing.
"Old man, the result is out now!" Jiraiya turned to him, his tone uncharacteristically serious.
"You don't need to try to convince me anymore. I will just focus on teaching Naruto well!"
Hiruzen looked at him, was silent for a few seconds, then nodded.
"Tsunade succeeding me—I had anticipated it long ago. This is just the outcome being made public."
Jiraiya was stunned: "Old man, you..."
"I'm fine."
Hiruzen waved his hand, walked to the window, and looked out at the prosperous village of Konoha.
"A few days ago, Danzō disbanded Root as I requested. I'll also make arrangements for Koharu and Homura."
He turned to look at Jiraiya, a trace of exhaustion appearing on his aged face.
"There are some things that would be harder for those who come after me to handle. It's better for this old man to take care of them now."
Jiraiya watched him silently, clearly sensing that the previous revelation from the Sky Screen had deeply shaken the old man. The Hiruzen of before would never have considered such things.
Just then—
The images on the Sky Screen began to change.
Tendo Pain, hovering in mid-air, began to slowly rise, even ascending above the height of the Hokage Rock. The entire village below grew smaller and smaller.
"Nagato, this boy…"
Jiraiya's smile froze on his face, his eyes filled with concern.
"Why is he controlling Yahiko's body to come to Konoha?"
Hiruzen's brow also furrowed deeply.
On the screen, after rising to a certain height, Tendo Pain suddenly raised both hands. The sheer oppressive force of his stance seemed to spill out of the screen, as if even the sun itself was being blotted out by him.
He began to chant.
"Feel pain."
"Contemplate pain."
"Accept pain."
"Know pain!"
"One who does not know pain cannot possibly understand true peace..."
People across the world looked at each other in confusion. No one understood what Nagato was trying to express. But the sense of foreboding grew stronger and stronger.
Finally, Tendo Pain spread his arms wide, and his voice suddenly rose sharply.
"Shinra Tensei!"
With him as the center, a terrifying shockwave spread outward in all directions. Various buildings in Konoha crumbled like paper—houses, streets, shops, and everything was all blown to pieces by the shockwave. Finally, a blinding white light swallowed everything.
It felt as though a long time had passed before the screen became clear again.
The Hokage Rock was still there, but everything around it was gone.
The entire village had been nearly leveled to the ground.
Hiruzen's body lurched violently, nearly causing him to lose his balance. He gripped the windowsill, his aged face drained of color, his pupils contracting sharply.
"Th-This… this is…"
Jiraiya was also dumbfounded.
His mouth hung open as he stared at the ruins on the Sky Screen, at the once-familiar streets reduced to rubble, at the prosperous Konoha erased from existence—
"Nagato…"
"You… what have you done…"
Hiruzen slowly sat back down in his chair, propping his forehead up with both hands. He recalled what the Sky Screen had said earlier about "one person taking on an entire village" and had thought it was just an exaggeration.
Now he knew—it wasn't an exaggeration.
It was a fact.
"Akatsuki…"
Hiruzen's voice came through his fingers, laced with hatred.
"We must guard against those bastards."
He raised his head, an unprecedented gravity flashing in his eyes.
So this was the power of a Super Kage-level shinobi?
Moreover, there were other S-rank rogue ninjas in the Akatsuki too.
If the leader of Akatsuki alone could annihilate Konoha, then what if they all joined forces…
Hiruzen didn't dare think further. He couldn't sacrifice himself in a mutual death with that guy Orochimaru. He had to keep this old life alive to deal with Akatsuki!
He would spare no expense to uncover the full truth about Akatsuki.
Come to think of it—Itachi was undercover in Akatsuki. He needed to have him send back more intelligence.
---
[Another Timeline]
The Seventh Hokage, Uzumaki Naruto, stood in the backyard of his house, looking at the ruins on the Sky Screen, and sighed softly.
Boruto and Himawari stood beside him. The two children looked up at the terrifying scene on the Sky Screen, their eyes filled with shock.
"Dad, is that Konoha?" Himawari asked quietly.
Naruto nodded: "Yeah. That's Konoha when Dad was young."
"How could it turn out like this…" Boruto muttered.
Naruto was silent for a few seconds, then ruffled both children's hair.
"That's the result of hatred. And… it was done by one of Dad's senior disciples."
Boruto's eyes widened: "Senior disciple? You had a senior disciple?"
"Yeah."
Naruto's gaze became distant.
"His name's Nagato. He was another student of Jiraiya-sensei."
Himawari clung to Naruto's leg.
"Dad, then what happened later?"
Naruto looked down at her and gave a warm smile.
"Later, Dad defeated him."
Boruto's eyes lit up: "You are that strong?!"
"It's not about strength."
Naruto shook his head, complex emotions flickering in his eyes.
"He wasn't a bad person to begin with. He just… went down the wrong path. I just pulled him back."
He looked up at the hovering figure on the Sky Screen.
"Even though things ultimately turned out well, Nagato's move here was probably the most devastating loss Konoha has ever suffered."
"Dad."
Boruto suddenly said.
"What should I do if I encounter an enemy that strong someday?"
Naruto looked at him and smiled.
"Then become stronger. Strong enough to protect the people you want to protect."
Boruto nodded, seemingly understanding.
Himawari looked up and said in a childish voice: "Dad is the best!"
Naruto laughed heartily, scooping up both children, one in each arm.
---
[Konoha Year 60]
Even after witnessing Konoha suffer such a devastating loss, the Kage of the other great nations couldn't bring themselves to laugh.
Land of Lightning, Kumogakure.
The Raikage's office was eerily silent. A, Killer Bee, and the advisors were all deep in thought—each wondering how they could withstand such an attack if it happened to Kumogakure.
"One person destroying an entire village…"
A finally spoke, his voice low and ominous.
"So this is the power of a Super Kage-level shinobi?"
"If Akatsuki really comes after the Eight-Tails… we have to protect Bee at all costs."
---
Land of Earth, Iwagakure.
Ōnoki floated in mid-air, his expression grave.
"Such power…"
He muttered.
"If he did this to Iwagakure…"
The Sky Screen had previously said that Akatsuki aimed to capture all the Tailed Beasts and unify the Shinobi World!
What the Sky Screen had shown was Konoha's destruction—but that didn't mean Iwagakure was safe.
---
Land of Water, Kirigakure.
Mei had lost her usual composure, her expression extremely grim.
"No wonder they dare to say 'This world shall know pain.'"
Chōjūrō asked cautiously: "Mei-sama, should we contact the other four Kage in advance to discuss countermeasures?"
Mei was silent for a moment, then nodded.
"Send word to Konoha, Kumo, Iwa, and Suna. Propose convening a Five Kage Summit. The agenda—"
She paused.
"Akatsuki threat assessment and response strategy."
---
Land of Wind, Sunagakure.
Rasa sat in his office, his expression equally grim.
It seemed that Akatsuki was indeed a major threat. However, Sunagakure was simply too poor. He must tear a piece of meat off Konoha before he could afford to deal with them.
---
[Another Timeline]
Land of Rain, Original Akatsuki Hideout.
Yahiko stood by the window, completely dumbfounded.
"Is this… future Nagato's power?"
*****
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