Just as Su Ye was holding Konan, ready to seize the moment... or rather, to slip away quickly before anyone arrived, he turned around to see a spiky-haired man with orange hair standing behind him, staring at him from afar with a pair of dull, spiral-like eyes.
The person looked decent, but his tastes were peculiar, wearing nose studs—three of them, crossing horizontally through his nose.
It looked painful at a glance.
But this person didn't feel pain because he was essentially dead; he wouldn't feel anything, even if he were split in two.
This man was Pain's Deva Path, and the black rods on his body were devices used by Nagato, the controller behind him, to transmit chakra.
The Six Paths of Pain consisted of the Deva Path, Naraka Path, Human Path, Asura Path, Preta Path, and Animal Path, all made from seven different corpses acting as puppets for the immobile Nagato.
Su Ye had already sensed the Deva Path's presence, but since it hadn't shown any hostility, he paid it no mind and greeted it while still holding Konan.
"Hi, how are you?"
Opposite him, the lifeless Pain remained expressionless, staring at Su Ye with his purple Rinnegan eyes.
"What have you done to her?"
Su Ye shrugged, "As you can see, I just let her take a nap. Don't worry, her body is fine."
Deva Path glanced at Konan and, using his Rinnegan, confirmed that she was indeed unharmed before looking back at Su Ye.
"You know why we're here."
Su Ye nodded. "That's right, Akatsuki followed me from New York to Los Angeles. If I didn't figure out your intentions by now, I'd be a fool."
Deva Path was silent for a moment, then suddenly said, "If you hand over the Nine-Tails, we'll leave immediately and won't harm you or your friends."
"Harm?" Su Ye tilted his head back slightly and smiled. "Are you talking about them?"
In the distance, Su Ye's clones were engaged in a fight with four Akatsuki members. With Uchiha Youchi's betrayal, they wouldn't be at a disadvantage anytime soon.
Meanwhile, several streaks of fire shot from the distance; reinforcements from the Avengers and Guardians had arrived.
With their help, seven or eight people, along with Uchiha Youchi, defeating Hidan, Kakuzu, and Sasori was just a matter of time.
On the ground, amidst the water currents, Abomination and Kisame Hoshigaki were locked in a fierce battle. However, it was evident even to the naked eye that Kisame was gradually losing the upper hand.
This was likely the toughest battle Kisame had ever fought.
His water-style attacks were ineffective, and Samehada couldn't absorb his opponent's chakra. Kisame himself was being relentlessly pummeled by a former soldier with exceptional taijutsu skills.
Left with no choice, Kisame activated his fusion form with Samehada, merging into a fish-man hybrid, barely managing to hold off Abomination's attacks.
But even then, it was just barely holding on.
Deva Path glanced over there and shook his head slightly.
"It seems your friends are quite capable and numerous, but don't underestimate the Akatsuki."
As Deva Path finished speaking, several dark figures appeared behind him. Including him, there were now seven people—the Six Paths of Pain had arrived.
"Since you refuse to cooperate, I'll have to..."
Before he could finish speaking, the Six Paths of Pain turned into dark shadows and charged toward Su Ye.
Each of the Six Paths of Pain had unique abilities, but since they were all controlled by Nagato, they shared a single mind, allowing them to coordinate their attacks with devastating synergy.
Su Ye's expression grew serious. Facing the Six Paths of Pain, no one could be confident of victory.
If this had been two days ago, Su Ye would have been in the same situation, unable to rely solely on Rasengan and shadow clones to counter the Six Paths.
But as he had told Konan, Su Ye was different now.
Facing the onrushing Six Paths of Pain, Su Ye didn't even move his feet. He shifted Konan into an octopus-like hold with one hand and stretched out his free hand.
Then, the seven dark figures suddenly froze in mid-air.
Magneto's power activated—Magnetic Field Control!
The Six Paths of Pain were riddled with black rods that received Nagato's chakra, allowing him to control them.
The material of these black rods was unknown. Some said they were a lesser application of Truth-Seeking Balls, a form of Yin-Yang Release, not merely simple metal rods.
However, Su Ye's Magneto ability wasn't about controlling metal; it was about controlling magnetic fields.
These black rods acted as chakra receivers, and the principle behind receiving chakra was similar to how signal towers received electromagnetic waves, making it akin to magnetic fields.
So, while Nagato was controlling the Six Paths, Su Ye could reverse control them through magnetic fields.
In fact, Su Ye could have controlled not just the Six Paths but all the Akatsuki members present if he had wanted to from the start.
However, controlling too many would spread his power thin, making it easy for them to break free with their chakra.
Moreover, using it prematurely would alert Nagato, reducing the element of surprise when facing the Six Paths later.
But now, with a simple gesture, Su Ye immobilized the Six Paths. The six in the front were completely frozen, while the Deva Path at the rear, possibly due to its distance, was less affected.
A slight smirk appeared on Su Ye's lips.
"My master Jiraiya once trained three students—Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan. The one with orange hair must be Master Yahiko, so the one controlling him is Master Nagato, right?"
"This junior, Su Ye, greets you, my senior uncle!"
While Su Ye's words were polite, his actions were anything but.
A series of "pop, pop, pop" sounds echoed as the black rods embedded in the six immobilized Pain bodies were suddenly pulled out by an unseen force.
The six then collapsed like puppets with their strings cut, lying motionless on the ground.
Everything happened so fast that they didn't even have time to activate their abilities.
Nagato, the controller, had just been about to make them unleash their chakra when their receivers were suddenly yanked out.
Only the Deva Path, farther back, managed to seize the opportunity to leap into the air and create distance from Su Ye.
"Impressive ability. It seems I've truly underestimated you. As expected of Master Su's son."
Deva Path spoke loudly from the air. Though his tone remained calm, a slight tremor in his voice was unmistakable.
Clearly, with six of the Six Paths of Pain down and only the Deva Path narrowly escaping, Nagato, the controller behind them, was momentarily taken aback by this turn of events.
In Su Ye's arms, Konan had already woken up. However, due to the mental control, she couldn't move her body or use any ninjutsu, remaining in her current position, held by Su Ye.
"Who would've thought that after planning for so long, it would all come to naught like this?"
Looking at the lifeless bodies of the Six Paths scattered on the ground, Konan couldn't help but sigh inwardly.
Through the Deva Path, Nagato glanced at the distant Akatsuki members locked in fierce battles and finally made a decision.
At the same time, the Deva Path floating in the air slowly spoke.
"How many floors must a sack of rice be carried up!"
Hearing this line, Su Ye couldn't help but feel amused. Nagato didn't disappoint him; the expected moment had finally arrived.
However, Su Ye kept a serious expression on his face. "This doesn't feel right. What's he planning?"
Konan, in his arms, spoke in a low voice, "Run. If we don't go now, it'll be too late."
"A sack of rice must be carried to the second floor!"
The Deva Path in the sky continued his chant.
Right after Konan finished speaking, Su Ye used his magnetic field ability to drag the bodies on the ground, carrying Konan as he turned and ran, shouting into his earpiece.
"Run! Get out of here quickly!"
The same line he used before the New York explosion, without any unnecessary explanation.
In the distance, the Guardians and Avengers were fiercely battling several Akatsuki members. Their opponents were strong and skilled, but with their numbers, victory seemed imminent.
But upon hearing Su Ye's shout, everyone was suddenly reminded of the New York incident. They immediately stopped fighting, ignored everything else, and fled.
Iron Man was the first to bolt, instantly breaking the sound barrier. With a massive sonic boom, he disappeared so fast that even his taillights were no longer visible.
His decisiveness was in stark contrast to the headstrong Iron Man during the New York incident.
"A sack of rice must be carried farther!"
Seeing the people below starting to flee, especially Su Ye quickly running while dragging the bodies of the Six Paths, the Deva Path in the sky remained unhurried, continuing his chant methodically.
"A sack of rice must be washed clean!"
It wasn't that Nagato didn't want to unleash his ultimate move immediately; it required time to gather chakra, condensing all the energy dispersed across the Six Paths into the Deva Path to release its full power.
"Grain by grain, removing dirt!"
"Who's giving you a sack of rice now!"
The preparation was nearly complete, and Nagato sped up the process. Su Ye and the others had already fled several kilometers; if he didn't release it soon, he wouldn't even catch their shadow.
"Shinra Tensei!"
Boom!
A massive burst of energy exploded in the sky, and a colossal shockwave rapidly spread outward. Centered on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, an area spanning several kilometers was leveled in an instant.
It was truly flattened—unlike New York's aftermath, which left ruins behind, here, every structure, including roads, was obliterated, almost evaporated into thin air.
All that remained were the bare earth and some underground structures, such as parking garages.
Within a nearly 30-kilometer diameter circle centered on the Walk of Fame, everything had vanished.
With just one move, half of Los Angeles was gone. Hollywood had become nothing but a historical footnote—or rather, even its dust was nowhere to be found.
Witnessing the enormous empty space, the surviving residents of Los Angeles were dumbfounded. No one knew what had just happened.
Meanwhile, the internet erupted with heated discussions.
"Oh my God, what just happened?"
"First it was New York, now Los Angeles. Why is this happening? Have we offended God? Is this divine punishment?"
"Why are there so many disasters? Is this another alien invasion? But we didn't see any alien ships."
"No, it doesn't seem like aliens. Someone caught a picture just before the explosion of people in black robes with red cloud patterns appearing in the sky."
"Yes, not all of New York's destruction was caused by aliens. The later explosion was caused by people wearing those robes."
"So, is this an organization? Are they creating terror? Who are they to be so audacious? New York wasn't enough for them, and now it's Los Angeles. What's next? San Francisco or Houston?"
"There were some reports online earlier suggesting it's an organization from the East?"
"The East? Is it the Dragon Country?"
"No, it's that small country living a pretty good life…!"
Although the Akatsuki was part of the DLC Su Ye unlocked through Hinata, its background seamlessly integrated into this world after loading.
To the intelligence agencies of various nations, the Akatsuki wasn't an unknown organization that suddenly appeared. They had previously carried out numerous incidents worldwide.
Especially Kakuzu of the Immortal Duo—this guy was a money grubber who had carried out countless assassination missions for cash, many of which involved American targets.
Although the detailed information on the Akatsuki wasn't fully known, it was clear that the organization was established in Japan. Most of its members had Japanese names and appearances.
Uchiha Youchi was from the Dragon Country, but "Itachi" was a Japanese-style codename. To Westerners, most Eastern people looked similar, making it hard for them to distinguish.
In short, public discussion quickly pinned this incident on that small country, even analyzing their potential motives for the attack.
"This is clearly revenge for what happened back then. No matter how many years pass, the stories of Fat Man and Little Boy will never be forgotten!"
"So what's their goal? Are they trying to stir up trouble while aliens are attacking the U.S.? Do they want to start a war? They've only had a few good days, and now they think they're invincible again?"
Many people couldn't understand the small country's motives, including its own people, who were also confused.
The current Prime Minister of the small country slammed his desk in frustration, pointing at a man in a spiral mask standing before him and shouting angrily.
"What are you thinking? Why are you causing trouble in the U.S.? Do you want to bring disaster upon our empire?"
Opposite him, the man in the spiral mask and black robe with red clouds let out a soft snort.
"You'd better watch your tone with me, or I can't guarantee your speech tomorrow will go smoothly—or even happen at all."
Hearing this, the Prime Minister's face turned pale, and he slumped into his office chair, defeated.
"What should we do now?"
"Heh," the masked man chuckled. "Do nothing. The Americans are too busy to bother with you, and they need you to hold back the Dragon Country, so they won't act against you."
"It's us, Mr. Tobi!" The Prime Minister stared seriously at the masked man. "We and the Akatsuki are one. After something like this, you can't simply walk away. There's no place for you in this world anymore."
The masked man shrugged, neither agreeing nor disagreeing.