Having lost interest in the exchange, Sora turned on his heels. He was ready to leave, but it was obvious that Jiraiya — who had taken the initiative to investigate him in the first place — wasn't going to let him walk away so easily.
"Boy, you don't know my name, right? I am—"
Before Jiraiya could finish his theatrical introduction, Uzumaki Sora turned around with an indifferent expression. He looked at the white-haired man with mild contempt, as if watching an actor forget his lines on stage.
"You are taught by the Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen." Sora began calmly. "Given the title of Sannin only after being pinned to the ground by Hanzo of the Salamander."
Jiraiya froze.
"When you were young, you were dragged to Mount Myōboku via reverse summoning after refusing to accept your failures. There, the old toad handed you a prophecy about a 'Child of Prophecy'—a savior who would bring balance to the world."
Sora's gaze sharpened slightly, his voice carrying a mocking tone.
"Since then, you've run around chasing that prophecy... and harassing women wherever you go?"
A derisive smile tugged at his lips.
"I know your past very well, and I can guess a little about your future. But as for the chips you think you hold—whether it's Senjutsu from Mount Myōboku, or your personal arsenal of ninjutsu—they're not even worth mentioning in this world."
With that, Sora turned away again, dismissing the Sannin without a second glance.
Jiraiya's casual smile vanished, replaced by a look of quiet gravity. His eyes narrowed as he watched the boy's retreating figure.
Power?
Whether it was the Flying Thunder God kunai he'd seen, or the eerie resemblance to Minato in both speed and presence, Sora's actions stirred an old memory. His motivations were uncertain, but one thing was clear—he was after power.
And here, in the Land of Rain…
A dangerous thought crossed Jiraiya's mind.
'Nagato… the Rinnegan…'
In an instant, he made the connection.
'Isn't that the power that is the most worthy of mentioning in this world?'
…
The Land of Rain—a land plagued by perpetual downpour, wedged uneasily between the Fire, Wind, and Earth countries. It was said that ten months out of twelve, rain never ceased in this sorrowful land.
Logically speaking, given the constant downpour, one would expect floods and landslides. Yet oddly enough, those disasters were curiously absent. Perhaps due to the Rainmaker Jutsu…
Outside the steel gates of Amegakure, Uzumaki Sora stood still, letting the cold rain soak through his cloak. His eyes scanned the towering skyscrapers within, particularly the tallest tower piercing through the darkened skyline.
"Is that where you're hiding, Nagato?"
With a flick of his wrist, Sora pulled out a customized kunai from his ninja pouch—a Flying Thunder God kunai engraved with seals of his own making.
*Whoosh!*
The kunai whistled through the rain-soaked air, arcing high above Amegakure's skyline.
*Swish!*
Sora's figure vanished mid-motion. In the next breath, he reappeared high in the sky, grabbing the kunai mid-flight.
*Swish!*
Again, the kunai was hurled—this time with terrifying force, shattering the glass of the tower's topmost floor.
*Swish!*
Sora appeared mid-air inside the tower and landed without effort before a figure surrounded by life-support tubes—Nagato.
Sora tilted his head and grinned.
"How about lending me some blood? Or maybe a piece of flesh?"
Nagato's response was anything but polite.
"Shinra Tensei!"
*BOOM!*
A crushing repulsive force exploded from Nagato, obliterating the inner wall of the tower. Sora's body was flung backward like a ragdoll, crashing through concrete and steel before skidding to a halt outside.
Still on his feet, Sora grunted.
"Tch... I only wanted a sample. Didn't even want to fight."
His eyes narrowed at the Flying Thunder God kunai, now lying far from Nagato—also expelled by the repulsion.
Guess he couldn't teleport in and assassinate Nagato that easily after all.
*Shua… shua… shua…*
Six figures landed with heavy precision, surrounding him like wolves.
Leading them was a man with facial features eerily identical to his own, save for different hair and the iron chakra rods embedded in his body.
"Who are you? Why do you resemble this form? Cancel your Transformation Jutsu immediately." Tendo Pain demanded.
Sora looked around at the Six Paths of Pain—each host dead, each bearing the Rinnegan, each puppeted by the same man.
"Transformation?" Sora smirked. "You've got the Rinnegan, and you can't tell this isn't a transformation?"
"I'm not disguising anything. Why I look like you? Now that is something I'd also like to know."
"My name is Uzumaki Sora. I came here to borrow something."
Pain narrowed his eyes.
"There is nothing here for you. Nothing that mortals can borrow from gods."
Sora paused, then chuckled. "Then maybe you could grant it to me, oh divine one?"
Silence.
Pain's voice dropped an octave. "Your blasphemy violates the sanctity of God. Only death can purge your sins."
The Six Paths moved in unison. Shuradō raised its mechanical arm.
Six missiles launched from his shoulder ports, streaking toward Sora.
Sora simply raised his hand and tossed a kunai.
*Swish!*
His form blinked out of view just as the missiles detonated.
*BOOM!!*
The ground where he'd stood became a crater. Smoke and rubble scattered in all directions.
*Swish!*
Appearing above Shuradō, Sora delivered a monstrous punch.
*CRACK!*
The construct shattered into pieces as green chakra smoke hissed from the destroyed puppet.
But the attack wasn't over.
*Swish!*
Sora vanished again. He had dodged the incoming Human Path that lunged from behind to extract his soul.
*Swish! Swish! Swish!*
He tossed three kunai, flanking the Human Path with a pincer tactic.
Just as he reappeared to attack—
"Shinra Tensei!"
Another blast of repulsive force hurled him and his kunai across the field.
Sora landed and adjusted his stance, dusting off his cloak.
"Oh. You noticed it already? That was only the second time I used it."
Tendo Pain stared at him coldly.
"Uzumaki Sora. The Red Flash. The second person to rival the speed of Konoha's Yellow Flash. Your kunai are your space-time markers."
Sora wagged a finger. "You got everything right except the rank—I'm not the second. I'm the third."
Pain raised his hand again.
"It matters not. Against a god, even space-time techniques are but futile resistance."
Sora rolled his eyes. "Wow. You really are the king of theatrical speeches. If showmanship was ninjutsu, you'd be unbeatable."
"Summoning Jutsu!"
*BOOM!*
The Animal Path completed a summoning, and two giant beasts emerged from the smoke—a snarling two-headed hellhound and a massive Yatagarasu.
Above the tower, the sky seemed to darken further as the avian beast took flight.
Sora cracked his knuckles as rain slid down his face.
"I came here on a whim, but even on a whim, I don't gamble without the possibility of overturning the table!"
He clapped his hands together in the Seal of Snake.
A low rumble shook the earth beneath them.
The soil quivered.
The air thickened.
From the cracked ground beneath his feet, massive wooden roots began spiraling upward in every direction.
"Wood-style ∙ Deep Forest Emergence!!"
*****
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