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"Not… interested? "Nagato stared at Hayato in shock.
Hayato didn't bother replying. Honestly, he thought there had to be something wrong with Nagato's head. Maybe something had happened that hit him hard, but Hayato couldn't care less. Whatever Nagato's problem was, it wasn't his.
"Nagato, what's wrong with you? Where's Yahiko? Why isn't he here? You two are always together." Konan's voice carried confusion, her eyes narrowing at Nagato's strange behavior.
"Not… interested? Yahiko's dream… you're saying you're not interested?!" Nagato's expression twisted, his gaze turning wild and unhinged.
"Why? Why aren't you interested? Why won't you step up? If you had stood up—if you had united the whole Land of Rain—then why would Yahiko have chosen that path? Why would he have died?! This is all your fault! You deserve to die, you deserve it! Go to hell!"
Nagato's scream tore through the air, raw and hysterical. The ground rumbled violently as something massive began to rise from below.
Hayato's eyes widened. The Gedo Statue? No… that's the husk of the Ten-Tails.
Even split into nine separate beasts, the Ten-Tails' body alone still carried terrifying power.
Nagato roared, "You've got this kind of power, but you refuse to take responsibility for it? Then die!"
He swung his hands, and the Gedo Statue drove a colossal fist down toward Hayato. The shadow swallowed him as the punch came crashing down.
Boom!
The impact shook the earth itself.
Hayato leapt aside just in time, face grim and cold. The ground shattered where he'd stood a heartbeat earlier. Instead of backing away, he shot forward, charging straight at Nagato.
Whatever had happened to Nagato, whatever pain he'd gone through, Hayato didn't care. If he dared to attack him, then he would kill him without hesitation.
Konan, frozen for a moment, snapped out of her shock. She never imagined Nagato would suddenly turn on Hayato. And from his words… Yahiko was already dead. The thought stabbed at her heart, filling her with sorrow. But no matter how much it hurt, she couldn't just stand by.
With a flick of her hands, sheets of paper burst from her body, folding rapidly into sharp paper planes. They screamed through the air, shooting straight at Nagato.
In Konan's heart, Yahiko and Nagato had been good friends. But her real family—the one person she trusted above all—was Hayato. Faced with this choice, she didn't even hesitate.
Shhhhh!
Chains whipped out of the Gedo Statue, smashing through the storm of paper planes and lashing around Konan, binding her tight.
Nagato didn't hurt her. He just restrained her.
Hayato's face darkened. "Let her go!"
He pushed his speed to the limit, dodging the rain of black chakra rods hurled from the statue's massive frame.
"Die! Die! Just die already!" Nagato shrieked, more and more unhinged. Watching Hayato struggle just to evade, unable to get close, drove him into hysterical laughter. The sound dripped with madness.
"Damn you!" Hayato cursed, darting between crushing blows. Rescuing Konan was out of the question—right now, surviving was nearly impossible. Rage burned hotter and hotter in his chest.
He knew there was only one option left. Unless he transformed into the Hulk, he didn't stand a chance against Nagato controlling the Gedo Statue.
The fire in his chest erupted. Green energy crackled over his skin, covering his body in glowing threads. His breath deepened, his roar shook the air—
—and in the blink of an eye, a towering green giant stood before Nagato, glaring down at him.
"Hmph, so that's your trump card? Let me tell you something—no matter what you're hiding, your fate is already sealed. You've only got one ending… death! Death! Hahaha!" Nagato's laughter rang out, crazed and triumphant.
"ROAR!"
With a deafening bellow, Hayata stomped the ground and launched himself forward like a cannonball. His massive body slammed into the Gedo Statue with terrifying force, every bit as fierce as the monster itself.
BOOM!
The shockwave blasted out as the Gedo Statue actually staggered back, knocked off its feet right in front of Nagato. His eyes widened in disbelief.
"ROAR!!" Hayata roared again, climbing onto the Gedo Statue's chest. His colossal fists came down like hammers, pounding again and again. Each strike echoed with thunderous booms, and soon cracks began spreading across the Gedo Statue's hideous body.
Suddenly, dark chains shot out from the statue's body, whipping around Hayata's massive frame and locking him tight. The links constricted viciously, biting into him as they pulled tighter and tighter.
"ROAAAAR!!!"
The pain was unbearable. Hayata struggled against the chains, his furious bellows shaking the air as he fought to break free. But the Gedo Statue raised its massive fist and brought it down hard, swatting Hayata aside like a ragdoll.
CRASH!
He slammed into the ground, shaking the earth beneath him.
"No! Hayata! Hayata, please! Nagato, let me go! Let me go! Shun!" Konan's desperate cries cut through the chaos, her panic rising as she watched him being beaten down.
Even transformed into the Hulk, Hayata still looked small compared to the monstrous Gedo Statue. And now, bound in chains, he seemed to be losing. Konan's heart clenched in terror.
"Hahahaha! Die! Just die already! Hahaha!" Nagato's manic laughter filled the air.
"AAAHHHH!"
Then came Hayata's voice—raw, furious, earth-shaking. The roar echoed across the battlefield, so powerful it made both Nagato and Konan's ears ring. Konan's face lit up with hope, while Nagato's twisted with rage.
"Kill him! Kill him now!" Nagato howled, as the Gedo Statue lifted its massive fist high, ready to crush Hayata once and for all.
BOOM!
The fist came down—only to be stopped dead. A towering figure, over ten meters tall, stood there in front of them. Hayata, transformed into a true giant, had caught the Gedo Statue's punch with one hand. His eyes blazed with fury as he roared to the heavens.
The chains binding him snapped apart one after another with sharp cracks, falling uselessly to the ground.
With another roar, Hayata grabbed the Gedo Statue's arm, heaved with all his might, and in one impossible motion, threw the monster over his shoulder.
CRAAAASH!
The earth split and trembled as the Gedo Statue's gigantic body was slammed into the ground, shaking the battlefield like thunder.
"....."