Have You Ever Felt Pain?

Bai Cangshu moved as swiftly as a gale, pressing one palm toward Orochimaru’s chest.

Buzz~

The air turned viscous like liquid and was instantly compressed by the force in Bai Cangshu’s palm, letting out a dull howl.

Boom!

As Bai Cangshu’s palm fell, fragments of white cloud-like trails rippled through the air.

Orochimaru’s body was bent downward beneath the immense pressure, then exploded with a bang. Dozens of venomous snakes emerged from the smoke and coiled toward Bai Cangshu.

If Orochimaru fought Uchiha Shisui one-on-one, he would inevitably be inferior. But when facing a powerful enemy like Bai Cangshu, the seasoned experience he displayed was something Uchiha Shisui could not compare to at all.

The ground split apart with a roar, damp soil surging in every direction. Bai Cangshu allowed the venomous snakes to wrap around him, then turned indifferently and saw that Orochimaru had once again opened a distance of more than ten meters.

Puff, puff, puff.

One venomous snake after another was ignited by the extraordinary trait of Flame Dragon Scales after biting Bai Cangshu’s body. That Radiant Flame was incredibly hot and possessed adhesive properties. The snakes died instantly and fell from Bai Cangshu’s body.

"Orochimaru, didn’t you want to know how I captured Uchiha Shisui? Watch closely. It was…"

As he spoke, Bai Cangshu stepped forward. With a single step, his feet blurred as they struck the ground dozens of times in an instant, and then his figure vanished.

In the river valley after the rain mist had dispersed, a fierce wind began to blow.

Orochimaru’s pupils trembled continuously. He realized that his enemy likely possessed some kind of high-speed movement ability, perhaps even invisibility.

Clones appeared one after another, while Orochimaru himself began running at high speed. The movements of his lower body did not interfere with the hand seals formed by his upper body, and every clone that appeared moved in a different direction.

A ninja’s battle was a battle of intelligence. He was using this method to try to increase the number of times Mercenary Tao attacked, thereby gathering information.

The next moment, the gale suddenly intensified.

Bang bang bang bang…

The clones running in every direction shattered one after another. Orochimaru’s pupils continued sweeping across his surroundings, yet he failed to catch any trace of the opponent’s movements.

Buzz~

The air before him became viscous in an instant. Orochimaru was still turning his head to examine other angles when, in the next moment, a hand abruptly emerged from the wind in front of him and pressed against his face.

Only when Orochimaru felt the touch against his face did he realize that his opponent had already appeared.

So fast!

He was hiding in the wind!

Those two thoughts flashed through Orochimaru’s mind, followed by an overwhelming force. He had no way to resist. His running body was instantly thrown off course and slammed violently into the ground.

The force in that hand was so great that it drove Orochimaru’s entire upper body into the earth in an instant. The degree to which his body twisted was something no ordinary human body could survive.

Bai Cangshu straightened up and watched impassively as Orochimaru’s body twisted and rose again like a slick snake. This was likely the Soft Body Modification Orochimaru had performed on himself, making his body abnormally soft and slippery.

"Tsk, what a disgusting technique, Orochimaru."

Orochimaru’s face was somewhat distorted. To maintain a human form, certain parts, such as his skull, could not be fully softened, and they had already been injured by that strike.

Yet he seemed unable to feel pain at all. Licking his lips, Orochimaru had fully realized just how powerful this Mercenary Tao was.

A defense difficult to harm with blades or swords, completely ignoring his snake-based ninjutsu;

Terrifying strength capable of shattering Rashomon in a single strike;

Speed that made him impossible to track.

Most importantly, none of these abilities required hand seals…

Orochimaru suddenly developed an intense desire for the body before him.

If this body were in my hands, it would surely possess even greater potential for modification. Then I could…

Puff!

Orochimaru’s pupils contracted. The figure lingering in them slowly faded away. He lowered his head and saw that a hand had already pierced his body. His opponent’s thrusting hand was far sharper than a blade.

Bai Cangshu withdrew his arm and looked at Orochimaru, who was slowly collapsing, with a cruel smile.

"Did you see it clearly this time, Orochimaru? This is the power that defeated Uchiha."

Behind him, Konan shifted slightly, but ultimately made no move. Deva Path Pain merely watched the scene coldly, while the Red-Hair youth at the very back curled his lips into a mocking smile.

Orochimaru slumped to the ground, blood pouring from his chest and abdomen. Yet Bai Cangshu did not see a kill notification. His ears twitched, and in the next moment, his body turned into wind and vanished once more.

Bang!

A gigantic snake poked its head out of the ground. It was as though this snake had been hiding underground all along. It was over twenty meters long, its head more than two meters in diameter, and its entire body was covered in purple-black scales.

The snake opened its massive jaws, and a figure covered in mucus, wearing a white robe, was vomited from its stomach.

After landing, Orochimaru slowly walked to the body of his recently deceased self, removed the Red Cloud Black Robe from the corpse, and put it on.

Clap clap clap.

Standing several meters away, Bai Cangshu watched the scene and applauded, an appreciative smile on his face.

Orochimaru truly possessed a special talent for battle. No wonder he had managed to make it this far among so many bloodline ninjas despite being born a commoner.

"Orochimaru, you’re quite interesting."

Bai Cangshu raised his foot and continued toward Orochimaru, but Orochimaru frowned. The enormous snake immediately slithered backward, opening the distance.

"So this is what you rely on."

Deva Path Pain stepped into Bai Cangshu’s path. He had already seen that Orochimaru was indeed no match for this Mercenary Tao.

No, it was not just Orochimaru. Sasori and Zetsu were likely no match for this man either. This person who wished to impose pain upon the world undeniably possessed exceptional strength.

Under normal circumstances, he would probably have already agreed to bring him into Akatsuki.

But ever since the man had said, "I want the world to feel pain," Pain—no, Nagato—had changed his mind.

He could not tolerate someone who had never experienced pain casually using pure violence to make the world experience pain.

It was as if this person were trampling upon the ideal that belonged to him.

"Feel pain."

"Consider pain."

"Accept pain."

"Understand pain."

"Those who cannot feel pain cannot understand true peace."

Pain took a step forward with every sentence. By the time he finished, he had arrived before Bai Cangshu. At the same time, from the shadows behind him, several other Paths of Pain appeared, stepping out in staggered formation like phantoms.

"Mercenary Tao, have you ever felt pain?"

Whoosh.

A figure appeared before Bai Cangshu in an instant. From the sleeves of Asura Path Pain’s hands, countless serrated blades shot out at once.

Clang clang!

Bai Cangshu stood where he was as Iron Body activated instantly.

Amid the sound of metal striking metal, Asura Path Pain was immediately engulfed in Radiant Flame. Yet he showed no reaction at all. Instead, he spread his hands, his ten fingers transforming into missiles that fired directly at close range, while missiles from his arms also blasted out.

Boom boom boom!

The explosion erupted in an instant. Deva Path Pain lowered his eyelids and, without looking back, extended one hand behind him.

Bai Cangshu’s figure burst through the smoke, appearing directly behind Deva Path Pain. Deva Path Pain said coldly,

"Shinra Tensei."

A terrifying repulsive force erupted in an instant. Bai Cangshu felt that invisible immense force and was sent flying at once. Below him, the massive Hell Hound Summoning Beast leaped up simultaneously and bit down on Bai Cangshu.

Ignoring the Radiant Flame burning across its body, the Hell Hound bit down madly. More enormous Summoning Beasts pounced upon him as well, as though they intended to tear Bai Cangshu apart and devour him.

Hiranaka Hana covered her mouth. This terrifying scene was far more frightening than every ninja battle she had ever witnessed.

Catherine also took a step back, but she knew very well that Mercenary Tao would not die so easily. Carefully maintaining the barrier to protect herself and Hiranaka Hana, she was completely on edge.

It seemed that Pain had no intention of accepting Mercenary Tao…

Whine~

An intense shriek rang out as air condensed. In the next moment, a streak of golden light abruptly pierced through every Summoning Beast and shot straight into the head of Animal Path Pain, who had been continuously using Summoning Jutsu. The latter fell backward with its head shattered.

Bai Cangshu casually tossed aside those massive Summoning Beasts, each over five or six meters in size. He was completely uninjured.

With a light tap of his toes, he leaped gracefully onto the branch of a fallen dead tree. Defying the laws of physics, he swayed atop it with his hands clasped behind his back.

"Is this the extent of your pain, Pain?"

"Will the world achieve peace merely by making those ninjas feel pain?"

"Ha~ Hahaha… Hahaha!"

Deva Path Pain reassessed Mercenary Tao’s strength. By his estimation, the other man had already surpassed Kage level. Perhaps he possessed weaknesses in certain areas, but in terms of frontal combat power alone, he was exceptionally formidable.

Most importantly, from beginning to end, he had not used a single technique, nor had there been any trace of Chakra flowing through him.

"Your capacity isn’t enough, Nagato…"

Konan’s expression changed drastically.