Everyone present seemed to share an unspoken agreement. Each kill was fed to that endlessly hungry door.
What Hollowanyuan Group said earlier was correct.
No matter what, only by opening the gate could they obtain what lay beyond it. Those without enough strength could only become food and be eliminated.
Splat!
In the darkness, the bare upper body of Kakuzu was also visible. A palm connected by black threads flew off his wrist, shot out, and plunged into someone's chest to rip out a heart.
"Hehehe, not a bad heart…"
His face was hidden by a mask, revealing only eyes glowing faintly in the dark. He looked at the fresh, still beating heart and let out a low, emotionless chuckle.
Soon, however, he sensed something and turned his green eyes to his side.
With soft footsteps, Nagato emerged from the shadows, wrapped in White Zetsu. His gaze swept over Kakuzu's appearance.
"So this is the Kakuzu you mentioned," Nagato said calmly, turning toward empty space at his side. "I did not expect an extra gain…"
Before he could finish, Kakuzu raised his hand sharply. Black threads of Earth Grudge Fear shot out like venomous snakes.
But the sound of flesh being pierced did not come.
Nagato did not even turn his head. He simply lifted a hand.
The tips of the black threads, which could pierce rock, stopped precisely half a foot from Nagato. It was as if an invisible barrier blocked them.
Then, a massive, unseen repulsive force erupted outward from him.
"Earth Release·Earth Spear!"
Kakuzu's pupils shrank as he growled and held nothing back.
The heart representing Earth Release inside him pounded wildly. Dense Earth Release Chakra covered his entire body, his skin turning gray and hard like stone and even shining like metal.
Boom!
A heavy explosion echoed through the underground space. The tough black threads shattered and flew apart, fragile as rotten wood before that force.
His hardened body, reinforced by Earth Release, was struck head on like by an invisible siege hammer. He was blasted away without the slightest resistance.
His body flew backward like a kite with a cut string and slammed into the rock wall dozens of meters away with a thunderous crash.
The solid stone surface instantly filled with spiderweb cracks, andGravel fell in a steady stream.
"Cough, cough!"
Embedded deep in the rock wall, Kakuzu let out a painful grunt. His green eyes locked onto the distant figure, filled with shock and gravity he had never felt before.
What kind of power was that?
Others also noticed the disturbance, but the fight ended far too quickly. No one in Root saw exactly what happened, only that someone extremely dangerous had entered the field.
"Kakuzu," Nagato said.
He lowered his arm, his expression still indifferent, as if he had merely brushed away an annoying insect. His voice was calm to the point of coldness. "When this is over, do not leave."
"I will come find you."
With that, he raised his hand and activated Universal Pull. He pulled a distant person into his grasp and then hurled them toward the giant gate.
Splat!
The body struck the cold door solidly. Deep blue light flashed again, and like a beast opening its jaws, the gate instantly pinned the body to its surface.
The process of flesh melting and bone turning to ash played out once more. Only a dark red stain was left on the door.
The gate seemed to reach its limit. The blue light shattered and went out, replaced by a deeper, heavier rumble.
Rumble rumble rumble!
It sounded like the breath of a massive beast rising from deep in its throat. The entire Underground Palace shook violently, and rubble poured down like rain.
The door finally opened completely.
Beyond it was still bottomless darkness that made the heart tighten. It was like thick ink made solid, swallowing light and blocking any attempt to see through.
Yet this darkness and cold did not stop anyone. Instead, it drove everyone forward and pushed their nerves to the breaking point.
"Move!"
Yugito Nii, who had looked drained and hollow moments before, shouted loudly. Without hesitation, she pushed her speed to the limit and rushed through the darkness into Underground Palace.
Kakashi Hatake and Ryuji Hyuga followed close behind like arrows loosed from a bow. Their figures were instantly swallowed by the dense blackness.
"The gate is open!"
"Charge in!"
"Quick!"
The surviving Bounty Ninja members rushed forward like sharks drawn to blood. Greed was the only thing left in their eyes.
"Hahaha! The gift of Lord Jashin is right in front of us!"
Zhe Long charged in with a pilgrim's fervor. His thrown spike pierced the person ahead of him, sending up a spray of blood and screams.
Seeing this, the others quickly dodged away. They avoided the madman at all costs and watched as he plunged headfirst into the endless darkness.
Kakuzu took one last look at Nagato standing in place. Seeing no sign of obstruction, he also disappeared into the darkness.
As spiraling ripples appeared in the air, Obito Uchiha emerged beside Nagato.
"Not going in?" he asked casually. "There should be something inside that you can use."
Nagato did not answer. He only looked at the giant gate.
Just as the last few Bounty Ninja tried to enter, they froze in shock. A black figure walked out from the darkness beyond the door.
This person walked out of the darkness inside the gate.
Splat!
The leading Bounty Ninja member had no time to react. His head exploded, reflected in the shrinking pupils of the others.
Red and white sprayed out with shattered bone and splattered across the ground. The headless body swayed for a moment before collapsing.
Bang.
The remaining Bounty Ninja stood stunned. Warm blood spattered their faces, and fear stopped their charge.
At this moment, Ryuji Hyuga, acting as "Shadow," raised his foot. The tip of his shoe, soaked in blood, drew a line on the ground.
"Anyone who crosses the line," he said with a light smile.
"Dies."
In front of several Bounty Ninja, there was only one person from start to finish.
The fight ended quickly. There was almost no flash of Ninjutsu, only naked and bloody killing. Or rather, Root did not even have time to form hand seals.
Puchi. Puchi.
Countless black shadow spikes flew and lashed around Ryuji Hyuga, chaotic air currents surging up around him. The Bounty Ninja who rushed forward were like people throwing themselves into a grinder.
Each black shadow drew a crimson arc of blood, one arc not yet faded before the next one splashed out. When the blood fell to the ground, it looked bright and eerie, like lotus flowers made of blood.
Severed limbs rose and fell like clouds and rain, while the black shadows were soaked through in sheets of red rain. The sound of slashes cutting air, skulls cracking, bones breaking, skin tearing, flesh being pierced, and bodies bursting apart all mixed together.
They wove into a cradle song from hell, and even the screams became warped harmony within it.
In the distance, watching this scene that could only be called a massacre, even Nagato could not keep his eyes completely calm. His gaze shifted as the killing continued without pause.
Bang.
A figure flew past him and Obito, like a mosquito slapped against a wall, blood blooming briefly across the rock face. In front of the gate, the black shadow behind Ryuji Hyuga clamped onto the last person's neck and lifted him up.
Before the line at his feet, severed limbs had piled into a mountain of corpses and blood. Red droplets fell from above and below, streams of blood washing down and dyeing his entire body a glaring red.
"Hh, hh. Mo, monster."
The last Bounty Ninja was held in midair by a black shadow, struggling weakly. His eyes held nothing but fear and ZetsuWang, with tears and saliva smeared across his twisted face.
"Thank you for the compliment," Ryuji Hyuga said with the same gentle smile in his voice. "Only those prepared to be killed have the right to swing a blade, isn't that so?"
kacha! Bang.
The corpse dropped into the pool of blood at Ryuji Hyuga's feet, its frozen face stained with red mud. Everything returned to silence.
In less than two minutes, aside from Ryuji Hyuga, there were no living people left before the gate. It looked like a hell on earth.
No, there were still living people. They were Nagato and Obito Uchiha, who had remained standing silently in the distance.
"And you?" Ryuji Hyuga asked with a polite, inviting smile, as if meeting them for the first time. "Are you coming in?"
Was he mad, or something else? Obito Uchiha narrowed his eyes, feeling that something was not quite right.
He turned to look at Nagato, who raised his arm at the same time. "Shinra Tensei."
A low and steady voice echoed as overwhelming repulsive force erupted. The air compressed and twisted in an instant, screaming under the pressure.
The black shadow slammed into something invisible and was blasted backward into the darkness again. Seeing this, Obito Uchiha finally let out a breath, some of his doubt easing.
"Let's go."
Nagato stepped forward, but Obito hesitated. "Nagato," he said in a deep voice, "why not wait here for them to come out? If there really is something important, we can take it from them later."