Hokage: Ryo's Path

“Something wrong? What is it?” Ryo answered quickly.

“I can’t recognize it, but he feels very different from a human!”

Ryo frowned, for his Mangekyo could not see any abnormalities of the sort that Korin was describing.

Out of trust in her, Ryo entered Sage Mode to strengthen his perception. Doing so, he finally found Hanzo’s secret!

Hanzo’s Chakra was indeed circulating within this body that stood before him, but it wasn’t alive!

In fact, this was just a special different clone. This clone, while similar to a Shadow Clone, did not did not dissipate even if fatally wounded, for it was linked to Hanzo, regenerating whenever it’s needed.

After understanding how “Hanzo” survived, Ryo smiled, and then condensed a Denjiki-Rasengan.

After leaving the ice scalpel behind him, he flickered before “Hanzo”. However, he wasn’t aiming for the body in front of him, but for the true Hanzo who was actually hiding under his feet!

Ryo landed his Denjiki Rasengan directly on Hanzo back, and then teleported immediately back to his initial position.

The Denjiki Rasengan exploded instantly, sending waves of Lightning Chakra all around!

Being in the Rain Village, water was falling all around them, and the Lightning Chakra spread through the Rain, knocking out all the surrounding ordinary Ninjas.

“Damn! Ryo Yamanaka! You’re seeking death!”

The voice of Hanzo, whose back was severely burned, was heard by Ryo who answered: “Maybe I am, but how is your clone going to make that happen?”

“You! How did you...” Hanzo’s face changed, and his voice trembled a little. He didn’t expect Ryo to see through his trick so easily!

“Hanzo, with your act exposed, go out of your hiding and face me!” As he said that, Ryo disappeared. To fend him off, Hanzo controlled his clone to blow out a poisonous cloud that went all around him.

Unfortunately for him, he was too negligent. Ryo was one of the best medical Ninjas in Konoha. How could he be countered with this poison that the village already have dealt with?

He ignored Hanzo’s poison, using Chidori to pierce through through his Clone! Lightning Chakra raged through the latter’s body.

As it spread, it continuously ravaged through the clone’s torso at a pace faster than that of its regeneration, eventually destroying it completely, along with its surrounding poisonous cloud.

The clone disappeared, and Hanzo was just chocked by how things went. He wanted to leave immediately, but he didn’t get a chance by Ryo who pulled his soul into the Ice World.

In the snowstorm inside, Hanzo’s soul was immediately frozen, and then crushed by Ryo in an instant. The latter then left the Ice World, squinting at some Root Ninjas not far away.

“It seemed like the waves of Lightning Chakra have knocked them down!” Indeed, many of the Root Ninjas left behind by Danzo to monitor the situation were hit hard by the explosion of the Denjiki Rasengan.

They all thought that they were dead meat, but what they did not anticipate was that Ryo would just take Yahiko’s soul and leave without looking at them.

“Cap... Captain, Ryo Yamanaka.... He’s letting us go!” One of the Root Ninjas said to the highest ranked Ninja alongside him.

“Probably! We should leave before he changes his mind; this mission has failed.”

Upon hearing those words, all the Root Ninjas carried each other with difficulty, leaving the Rain Country.

Ryo took Yahiko’s body, and returned to Nagato and Konan.

The latter’s eyes were full of tears, while Nagato was also mourning silently.

“Hey... I’m sorry to interrupt you, but Yahiko isn’t exactly dead. What I mean is, I might be able to save him now!”

Hearing that, Nagato collapsed to his knees in place. After taking a second to breath, he excitedly asked: “Ryo... you really could do that?”

“Well, there is still a chance, take me to a dry place right away.”

Nagato and Konan looked at each other and immediately nodded, taking Ryo to the nearest Akatsuki stronghold. Right there, Ryo immediately began trying to rescue Yahiko.

Yahiko had a Kunai go through one of his lungs. While that was not that lethal by itself, he had lost too much blood in result. Therefore, his vital were extremely weak.

In fact, they were so weak that Ryo only noticed his survival when entering Sage Mode against Hanzo.

With his body being so weak, the Mystical Palm technique was doing nothing to save Yahiko. Seeing that he was about to die, Korin let her Yang Chakra flow through Ryo’s hands to his body.

“Korin, you...”

Korin interrupted Ryo and said: “You listen to me Ryo! This Chakra could only serve to delay this man’s death. I’m doing this just to give you a window to bring his soul back into your Ice World.”

“My Ice World? What would that do?” Ryo asked.

“Aren’t you working on cloning techniques with Orochimaru? When you two reach success, you could use it to make a body for the perfectly preserved soul of Yahiko! If you do so, couldn’t you resurrect him?”

Korin’s suggestion made Ryo’s eyes shine; this was indeed a genius idea, and the only thing that he could do right now!

Thinking of this, Ryo opened his Mangekyo, and then opened Yahiko’s eyes to pull his soul into the Ice World.

With his body seriously injured, Yahiko’s soul was heavily damaged as well, and Ryo sat down and began using his Spiritual Power to help repair it.

Outside, Nagato and Konan were waiting anxiously. The later was just too concerned to not ask: “Nagato, do you think Ryo could actually save Yahiko?”

“Konan, I can no longer feel Yahiko’s breathing and heartbeat.... Did he just....”

Looking at Nagato’s face, Konan drowned in despair, and started weeping once again.

A few minutes later, Ryo left the room, looking a little tired, but having a big smile!

Seeing him, Konan and Nagato were surprised! Nagato asked in disbelief: “Ryo, you saved Yahiko?”

Ryo’s nodded and shook his head awkwardly. Words were not going to cut it, so he just pulled Konan and Nagato’s souls into the Ice World!