Arriving near Death Valley.
The giant Yatagarasu, summoned by Pain, landed at the edge of the valley, and the members of the Akatsuki dismounted from its back.
"Hehehe, looks like they've brought quite a crowd," Kakuzu remarked, eyeing the giant ink hawks flying in the sky.
"Hmph, so what? They're nothing but a bunch of nobodies. Kakuzu, don't tell me you're scared," Kisame taunted, looking at Kakuzu.
With his awakened Wood Release and unique physique, Kisame felt confident enough to take on even the Five Kage.
"Talk to me when your arm's healed," Kakuzu retorted, glancing at Kisame's severed arm.
"Itachi, where are you going?" Jūzō Biwa asked, seeing Uchiha Itachi walking away.
"Jūzō, this place will soon become a battlefield. If you don't want to get caught in the crossfire, move away," Itachi replied without turning back.
The other Akatsuki members paused for a moment, then quickly followed Itachi's lead. They knew how formidable Pain was and didn't want to be collateral damage.
Uchiha Obito stayed put, relying on his Kamui ability, he didn't need to worry about such things.
"I finally understand why those people are staying in the sky," Jūzō said, envious as he looked at the figures of Tsunade and the others in the air.
In the sky, Uchiha Mikoto watched Itachi's figure below, biting her lip.
Next to her, Uzuki Yūgao was holding a camera, ready to record the upcoming battle, while Uchiha Izumi was busy taking pictures with another camera. Clearly, they had come prepared.
"Why didn't I think of that?" Tsunade and Mei Terumi thought simultaneously, feeling a pang of regret.
Mei wanted to record the battle to use it as leverage to deter internal strife within Kirigakure.
Tsunade, on the other hand, saw it as an opportunity to make a lot of money from selling the recording. After all, she had quite a bit of gambling debt...
"Why are they all fighting together?" Shizune asked, pointing to Pain's Six Paths below.
"They're actually one person, like the puppet masters from Sunagakure," Tsunade explained. Shishou had already briefed her on the Akatsuki leader's information.
"I see," Shizune nodded in understanding.
Meanwhile.
After the Akatsuki members dismounted from the Yatagarasu, the Six Paths of Pain, along with Konan, drove the bird towards Shishou. Pain looked at Shishou and said coldly, "If either of us leaves the ten-kilometer radius, it will be considered a defeat. Do you have any objections?"
"No problem," Shishou nodded, agreeing to Pain's terms.
Since this was a duel, it was natural to set a battle area. Shishou knew this was Pain's way of preventing him from using the Flying Thunder God to escape.
Otherwise, he could easily teleport away, recover his chakra, and then return to continue the fight.
"Let's begin," Pain said, glancing at Konan.
Konan pursed her lips and flew into the sky, distancing herself from Pain and Shishou.
Once Konan was clear, the Animal Path leaped off the Yatagarasu's back, pressing its hands together.
Summoning Technique!
Several large plumes of smoke appeared, and five giant summons, the size of the Toad Trio from Mount Myōboku, emerged in the valley. These were boar and bear-type creatures Shishou hadn't seen before.
It was unclear where Nagato had found them.
Shishou glanced around but didn't see Nagato's real body, wondering where he was hiding.
"Don't blame me if you die," Shishou said as the giant summons charged at him. He clapped his hands together.
Wood Release: Nativity of a Sea of Trees!
Since they had already fought once before, there was no need for further probing. To show his respect for Nagato, Shishou started with a big move.
Rumbling sounds echoed through the valley as countless giant trees and vines erupted from the ground, ensnaring and crushing the giant summons charging at Shishou.
The remaining five paths of Pain leaped back onto the Yatagarasu, leaving the Animal Path to face Shishou's Nativity of a Sea of Trees alone.
The Animal Path pressed its hands to the ground again, summoning a four-tailed giant ape-like beast at its feet.
"The Four-Tails!"
In the distance, the Akatsuki members, including Konan and Obito, were shocked.
The next second, a massive amount of chakra gathered in the Four-Tails' mouth, aimed at the incoming forest.
"Tailed Beast Ball!"
In the air, Tsunade, Mei Terumi, and the others were stunned, their mouths agape. They hadn't expected the Akatsuki leader to have captured the Four-Tails and could control it to use a Tailed Beast Ball.
Boom!!
The Tailed Beast Ball collided with Shishou's forest, creating an explosion the size of a small mountain, blowing away the incoming forest and shaking the ground.
"Whoa, that's over the top," Kisame muttered, tongue-tied, watching the valley's dramatic scene.
They're starting with big moves right away!
Do they think chakra grows on trees?
"Keep retreating," Itachi said, running further away to a distant mountain.
The Akatsuki members sighed and continued to follow Itachi's retreat.
In the sky, Tsunade and Mei Terumi frowned, not expecting such powerful techniques right from the start.
"They're being controlled, huh," Shishou observed, looking at the Four-Tails under the Animal Path's feet.
The Four-Tails gathered another Tailed Beast Ball in its mouth, aiming at Shishou.
Wood Release: Wood Dragon Technique: Twin Dragons Struggle!
Shishou clapped his hands, and the giant trees at his feet morphed into two massive wood dragons, biting the incoming Tailed Beast Ball.
The two dragons, clutching the Tailed Beast Ball, rushed toward the Four-Tails.
Suddenly, a laser beam shot from the sky, hitting the Tailed Beast Ball in the dragons' mouths and causing it to explode, creating another huge fireball and shaking the ground again.
Shishou looked up to see the Asura Path on the Yatagarasu's back retracting its laser cannon arm.
"What's with the new look of the Asura Path..." Shishou frowned, noticing the significant change in the Asura Path.
It was no longer the same person; it seemed to have been replaced.
The next moment, the Four-Tails gathered another Tailed Beast Ball, while the Asura Path in the sky aimed its cannon arm at Shishou, chakra gathering in the barrel.
Boom!
Facing the simultaneous attacks of the Tailed Beast Ball and the laser cannon, Shishou clapped his hands again.
Wood Release: Wood Human Technique!
The giant trees at Shishou's feet rapidly grew, forming a towering wooden giant with a wood dragon coiled around its shoulder.
The wood giant caught the incoming Tailed Beast Ball with its right hand and threw it aside. The wood dragon on its left shoulder coiled into a circular shield, blocking the laser cannon fire from above.
"What is that..." Jūzō Biwa, several kilometers away, stared at the towering wood giant in awe.
"The Wood Human Technique, a signature jutsu of the God of Shinobi, Hashirama Senju, used to combat Tailed Beasts," Itachi explained.
The Wood Human Technique, along with the Uchiha clan's Mangekyō Sharingan Susanoo, was on the same level. In Hashirama's hands, it could even contend with Madara Uchiha's Complete Body Susanoo.
Obito thought to himself.
On the battlefield, Shishou clapped his hands again.
Wood Release: Multiple Wood Hands!
Several giant wooden hands sprouted around the Four-Tails, grabbing its tails and limbs, binding it in place.
Boom! Boom! Boom...
Shishou controlled the wood giant to charge toward the trapped Four-Tails, each step shaking the ground.
Zzzzz!!
A red-hot laser beam descended from the sky, cutting through the wooden hands around the Four-Tails, leaving smoldering cuts with sparks and thick smoke.
"So, that's the Jinchuriki of the Five-Tails..." Shishou realized, looking at the Asura Path on the Yatagarasu's back.
The Asura Path was now surrounded by a red Tailed Beast cloak, with five chakra tails behind it. It moved on all fours, a cannon protruding from its mouth, emitting a red-hot laser beam.
Nagato had captured the Four-Tails and Five-Tails, turning the Five-Tails Jinchuriki into the Asura Path to ensure victory over Shishou.