A sea of fire danced across the sky as blade-light explosions transformed the battlefield into an apocalyptic scene.
The ninja, no longer able to follow their commander's orders, fled desperately from the area.
Gaara, in his role as Kazekage, fought to buy time for everyone. Layer upon layer of sand rose skyward, forming massive walls to block the incoming shockwaves.
Onoki went further still, employing his Dust Release: Detachment of the Primitive World Technique to counter the catastrophic pressure by reshaping the terrain itself.
Madara ignored their efforts. His eyes fixed solely on Akira — the terrifying figure before him emanating scorching energy. A massive blade, wrapped in a fiery storm, charged forward.
Faced with this horrifying sight, Akira merely raised his right hand and smiled with pleasure.
"Now this is getting interesting."
In that instant, a thunderous boom erupted.
From Naruto's perspective, the strange figure had simply closed his fingers. Though he couldn't sense even a trace of chakra flow, the move unleashed pressure so overwhelming it made breathing difficult.
Air currents churned violently as hurricanes rose from the ground with piercing screams. Akira spread his arms wide, Reiatsu flowing wildly as he threw his strongest punch, laughing maniacally.
⤫ Genshiki-ryū: Ikkotsu ⥤ Origin Style: Single Bone! ⤬
The giant blade arrived, colliding head-on. In that instant, heaven and earth fell silent!
A moment of absolute stillness followed, as if the very concept of sound had been stripped away by some mighty force.
Then…
BOOM!!
The air shattered like struck glass, countless cracks spreading in all directions from the point of impact.
Madara frowned. Even through his Perfect Susanoo, he felt the vast power transmitted through his opponent's fist. Such terrifying strength seemed impossible from such a small vessel.
But what followed was even more shocking.
The Perfect Susanoo, renowned for its impenetrable defense, began to crumble under the savage impact. The destruction spread from the giant blade at the point of contact through the hand and forearm, until finally consuming its mountain-like form.
Madara's proud Rinnegan couldn't even track Akira's explosive movement — it unfolded as naturally as breathing.
A simple sequence: raised hand, clenched fist, released power, breakthrough at a single point. The Susanoo collapsed completely — a feat not even Hashirama had achieved.
The ripple-patterned eyes of Madara blazed with renewed fervor as he found his new target in this war: to defeat the warrior before him!
⤫ Katon: Ryūen Hōka no Jutsu ⥤ Fire Release: Dragon Flame Release Song Technique! ⤬
Dragon-shaped flames roared through the air toward Akira, who held his charging stance. The intense heat distorted the very air around them.
Rather than dodge, he charged straight through. The flames exploded on contact, engulfing him completely.
Yet in the next moment, an unscathed figure burst through, and to Madara's shock, shattered his Tengu armor with a single punch!
His vision filled with nothing but an ordinary-looking fist. An earth-shattering boom followed, and a fist-shaped protrusion erupted from Madara's back before his body exploded into scattered ashes.
Onoki stared in disbelief at the merciless beating taking place among the ruins.
This legendary ninja had once been an inescapable nightmare throughout his life.
Earlier, upon seeing Madara reanimated through Edo Tensei, Onoki had nearly lost all will to fight. If not for his comrades behind him, he might have surrendered entirely.
But now, that nightmare was being brutally beaten by another nightmare — a completely one-sided destruction.
Even for an Edo Tensei body with diminished power compared to Madara's living form, this level of domination seemed impossible.
It wasn't just him — everyone wore shocked expressions.
The terrifying enemy who had nearly annihilated the entire Allied Shinobi Force was being beaten mercilessly by an unknown entity.
One question burned in everyone's minds:
Who exactly was this guy?!
A grave expression crossed Gaara's face as he turned to a nearby ninja and ordered:
"Report everything that happened here. Don't omit a single detail."
Beside him, Onoki's expression was equally serious, his wrinkles knotting together as he muttered:
"The fate of the shinobi world..."
Aizen watched intently as the crumbling Madara continuously regenerated, trying to detect the unknown energy emanating from his body with his Reiatsu.
From the ninjas' conversations, he easily deduced that this shinobi world's power system was primarily based on Chakra. Analyzing the residual energy at the scene, he noted it shared similarities with the Soul Society's Reiatsu, though with distinct differences.
Meanwhile, Madara stared in disbelief at the massive hole in his chest, listening to the sounds of his body breaking apart. Every inch of him screamed under the overwhelming force that had destroyed him.
Even with his immortal Edo Tensei body, he could sense an approaching death.
Not merely the death of ascending to the Pure Land — but total obliteration that would erase all traces of his existence!
This guy...
Rage flashed across Madara's face as boundless chakra exploded within him. His Edo Tensei body swiftly reconstructed itself, restoring his form.
Ripples danced in his eyes as powerful Genjutsu surged forth, flowing into Akira's eyes and probing the depths of his mind.
{Aizen Note: What mind?… Be careful not to fall in this abyss…}
He hoped that even if this move couldn't affect his opponent, it would at least slow him down.
But in the next instant, a fist like a sandbag smashed toward his face. With a thunderous boom, Madara's arm and half his shoulder shattered completely, scattering to ashes in the wind.
Akira stood in the air, fingers spread, and said with a hint of wistfulness, "You did your best, Madara Uchiha."
Rage burned deeper in Madara's eyes. How could this detestable person defeat him over such a minor setback in his plans?
His Edo Tensei body couldn't unleash his full power. He needed true resurrection — needed to harness the power of the Tailed Beasts!
Fueled by fury, chakra surged through him as blue light erupted from his body.
But just as he prepared to strike, a gentle white light began emanating from his form.
"This is... The Edo Tensei jutsu is being released! Itachi succeeded!"
The Fourth Great Ninja War's greatest threat was about to return to the Pure Land, yet none of the ninja present — not even Naruto — felt relief.
Though Madara might no longer pose a threat, who could say if this brute who shattered the Susanoo with his bare fists meant them harm? If he turned against them, who could stop him?
Watching his body dissolve, Madara's eyes flashed with frustration.
If only his plans hadn't gone awry — how could he face such a powerful enemy in this weakened state?
"Those who misuse forbidden techniques..." Madara's hands flew through seals as the gentle light began to fade, "Edo Tensei: Release!"
As the technique dissolved, the markings of an Edo Tensei body faded from his form.
Sensing power surge through his restored body, Madara's gaze hardened as he looked to the sky.
"Now, we can begin round two."
After witnessing Akira's display of power, Madara's defiance of his summoner's control seemed almost ordinary by comparison.
A single question burned in everyone's minds:
Could Madara, even in this state, defeat such an opponent?
Behind his glasses, Aizen's eyes sparked with growing fascination.
"The dead, and souls. This world has more secrets than I expected." Following the flow of spiritual energy, his gaze drifted to the distant horizon, "Is the jutsu user over there?"
After sensing traces of the individual, Aizen looked back at the ravaged battlefield, where Akira was gleefully trading blows with Madara.
Realizing that even with the Edo Tensei control released, Madara was no match for his opponent, Aizen shook his head, set aside his concerns, and departed from the battlefield.
He mused to himself: with so many secrets in this world, someone like Kisuke would surely be delighted to be here.
With that thought, Aizen's figure vanished into the horizon.
Akira paid no attention to his departure. From what he knew of his adopted son, Aizen would manage fine even if otherworldly visitors were to appear and beat Akira himself to a pulp.
After everything he'd endured, Aizen had become the most reliable presence of all.
"Madara, show me your full power!" Akira cackled wildly, countering with a straight punch that shattered the roaring wooden dragon into splinters.
Seeing his opponent completely unscathed after such prolonged combat — not even a scratch on his haori — Madara felt overwhelming frustration. Even fighting Hashirama at full strength hadn't been this challenging.
'Damn it.' He thought, 'Perhaps Hashirama and I together could defeat this monster?'
⤫⤬⤫⤬⤫⤬⤫⤬⤫⤬
A handsome young man stood in a stalactite-filled cave, gazing skyward with melancholy eyes.
"What should I—"
Before he could finish speaking, an explosion echoed through the mountain. As the cave crumbled, two familiar figures appeared before him.
"Finally found you again!"
Sasuke was surprised but quickly regained his composure, "Why are you still looking for me? Everything is over."
Hearing this, Suigetsu's eyes widened with an exaggerated expression.
"Over? What's over?! Sasuke, you have no idea what's happening on the battlefield! Some guy called Madara was wreaking havoc, even summoning massive meteors thousands of meters wide! The Allied Shinobi Forces thought they were finished — but then this guy appears out of nowhere and shatters the meteors with his bare fists. His fists!"
Jugo added from the side, "On our way here, we witnessed the Edo Tensei being released — souls of the dead ascending to the Pure Land right before our eyes. But Madara broke free from the Edo Tensei control, and he's still fighting that meteor-breaking warrior. The situation looks grim."
Sasuke's eyes widened in shock.
"Hey, hey, don't interrupt my conversation with Sasuke!" Suigetsu pulled out a black scroll from his clothes, "We don't know that stranger's objective, but he doesn't look like an ally from his appearance."
A figure hidden in the darkness nodded silently in agreement.
"We found this in the secret base. With it, we can raise an immortal army. Whether it's fighting those two monsters or making Taka rule the ninja world — we can achieve anything!"
Sasuke took the scroll, carefully examining its contents.
"Right now, there's someone I must see."
Suigetsu looked confused, "Huh?"
"Orochimaru." Sasuke casually spoke the name of the person who had influenced his entire life.
Upon hearing this, Suigetsu immediately frowned. Before he could object, Sasuke moved swiftly, lifting the prone Anko to reveal the tomoe-shaped curse mark on her neck.
"Hey, you..." He protested, "If Orochimaru is revived, he'll still covet your body, and that guy is nothing but trouble. One wrong move and we'll all get dragged into the war. Nobody wants to see Orochimaru again — let alone have him stirring things up!"
While Suigetsu was ranting, Jugo had already followed Sasuke's instructions and removed a palm-sized piece of flesh from Kabuto's body.
He placed the flesh on the curse mark, and as Sasuke channeled his chakra, a massive white snake emerged from the mark.
Under Suigetsu's reluctant and fearful gaze, the white snake opened its bloody maw, and a dripping wet figure slowly emerged from within.
"How unexpected that you would be the ones to revive me."
Orochimaru's cold gaze sent chills down their spines, like prey being targeted by a venomous snake.
"Though I saw everything while inside Anko, the war has developed in unpredictable ways. I wasn't interested at first. But now, I'm quite curious — what kind of person could suppress a legendary shinobi?"
Sasuke handed over the scroll, saying seriously, "Before understanding the war, help me with something first."
Orochimaru took the scroll, a thoughtful look crossing his eyes.
"Are you having doubts about your revenge?"
Sasuke shook his head, "No, it's not revenge that troubles me. I need to understand everything — to determine my path through my own eyes and will."
After an extensive discussion, they came to an agreement. Orochimaru watched with satisfaction as the group departed from the cave.
Aizen stepped out from the shadows, watching their retreating forms with keen interest.
"Resurrection of the dead? These people have truly pushed the boundaries of what's possible with the soul. Fascinating..."