"So fast!"
"Too fast!"
Both Uchiha Shisui and Uchiha Obito, who had yet to make a move, were now watching the two figures battling fiercely in the distant sky.
In contrast to the grand and powerful exchanges between Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara, the fight between Shūichi and Six Paths Nagato was so fast that even their Sharingan struggled to capture the movements precisely.
Staring at the area engulfed in flashes of lightning, Uchiha Obito's heart was filled with shock.
"It seems this won't be an easy victory for either side."
Suddenly, the surging lightning beams came to a halt, and the electrified zone gradually returned to normal, no longer obscured by the blinding light.
Uchiha Shisui murmured to himself, "Did he breach the defense?"
As if sensing Shisui's thoughts, Uchiha Obito remarked, "The Ten-Tails Jinchūriki isn't that easy to deal with."
Shisui narrowed his eyes. "I see…"
"Incredible. To endure such an assault without a scratch—if it were me, I couldn't even dream of withstanding it."
When the light dissipated, they saw that the black Truth-Seeking Ball shield had cracked and fallen away, but it hadn't been completely penetrated.
As the shield withdrew, Six Paths Nagato stood unharmed.
Even though Shūichi's attacks had been fast and relentless, they were entirely blocked.
Pausing his movement and attack, Shūichi couldn't help but acknowledge the vast difference between the current Six Paths Nagato and the Nagato of the past.
If it were just the Nagato wielding the Rinnegan, he wouldn't have been able to defend against such high-frequency, high-intensity assaults.
Shūichi's Techniques had grown far stronger than before, even when using the same amount of chakra.
Not even a fully-powered Shinra Tensei could deflect his Takemikazuchi's Lightning Beam entirely.
"If this is all you've got, Shūichi, there's no way you can defeat me," Nagato declared.
Although Shūichi's speed was impressive, it remained within Nagato's limits.
In the face of Nagato's provocation, Shūichi chuckled lightly.
"This is just a warm-up!"
As the words left his mouth, the Star God manifested.
Shūichi transformed into a towering, hundred-meter-tall, three-headed, six-armed giant.
BOOM!
The air warped from the intense heat radiating from the massive figure's wings, which spewed out scorching air currents. The Star God streaked through the sky, leaving enormous shockwaves in its wake as it moved at supersonic speeds.
In four of its arms, weapons of different natures appeared: the Scorch Release Blade, Flame Release Blade, Lightning Release Blade, and Lava Release Blade. The other two arms remained bare, ready for combat.
As Shūichi escalated his assault, Six Paths Nagato chose not to remain on the defensive. Moving at blinding speed, he evaded the Scorch Release Blade as it roared past him, then swung his black staff.
BOOM!
The staff collided with the Scorch Release Blade, shattering it and unleashing waves of searing heat that rippled outward.
Simultaneously, the Flame and Lightning Release Blades descended in a crisscrossing strike. Nagato swiftly maneuvered to evade them, soaring higher into the sky.
The Star God paused momentarily before one of its arms hurled the Lava Release Blade, which transformed into a spiraling lance midair and shot straight at Nagato's back.
Watching from afar, Uchiha Shisui's face lit up. "He's found an opening!"
However, Nagato's Truth-Seeking Balls rapidly expanded behind him to block the attack.
BOOM!
The Lava Lance exploded into countless streams of molten rock.
This time, the Truth-Seeking Ball shield was shattered entirely, but Nagato remained unharmed.
He turned to face the giant, only for the Star God to vanish abruptly.
A space-time ninjutsu! Nagato realized instantly.
But in that moment, the giant reappeared behind him, striking without hesitation.
Nagato's Truth-Seeking Balls flew up to defend, and amidst the deafening collision, his defenses faltered.
The Star God opened its mouth, releasing a devastating Flame Dragon Breath. The fiery beam pierced through Nagato's back, leaving a gaping wound that stretched from front to back.
Then, with a massive punch, the giant sent Nagato plummeting from the sky.
BOOM!
Nagato crashed into a mountainside, triggering a violent tremor that caused the entire peak to collapse in a cloud of dust and rubble.
"Beautifully done!" Shisui praised sincerely.
Obito, however, stared blankly. "Did the fight really end so quickly?"
But Shūichi, floating in the air, knew better.
Nagato had been holding back.
"He probably did it to eliminate the cursed seal on his heart," Shūichi speculated. "What a futile effort."
Descending toward the ground, the Star God swiped its hand, clearing away the dust and debris.
In the crater at the mountain's base, Nagato's body—half obliterated by the previous assault—began regenerating rapidly with the help of a Truth-Seeking Ball.
In the next instant, Nagato soared back into the sky, charging directly at the Star God.
Shūichi's gaze sharpened as the Scorch and Flame Release Blades descended in tandem, followed by thrusts from the Lightning and Lava Release Blades.
This time, Nagato didn't use the Truth-Seeking Balls to block. Instead, he caught the attacks with his bare hands.
The Scorch and Flame Blades dissolved into pure chakra upon contact, absorbed effortlessly by Nagato.
The Lightning Blade met the same fate before reaching him, leaving only the Lava Blade, which was wrapped and neutralized by a Truth-Seeking Ball.
Whoosh!
Nagato darted forward, avoiding two massive punches from the giant. Twirling his black staff, he wrapped it around the Star God, restraining its movements.
At the same time, two Truth-Seeking Balls flew forward, intercepting the Flame Dragon Breaths spewing from the giant's two heads.
Another Truth-Seeking Ball was launched, targeting the central head of the star god form Shūichi occupied.
BOOM!
The Takemikazuchi Lighting Armor shattered, the first layer of defense destroyed instantly.
Then came the Wood Release Armor and the Hive Shield—both were obliterated in quick succession.
The Truth-Seeking Ball's residual power persisted but fell short of piercing the final layer of the star god form's defense.
Six Paths Nagato's attacks were relentless. Before Shūichi could counterattack, the massive star god was forcibly driven from the sky. Hurtling like a meteor, it plummeted to the earth, demolishing a towering mountain with a deafening crash.
As the star god form disintegrated, Shūichi emerged unharmed, standing calmly in the massive crater left behind.
From above, Six Paths Nagato waved a hand, dispersing the swirling dust and debris.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!
One Truth-Seeking Ball after another shot forth, aiming directly for Shūichi.
Now devoid of his Chakra armor, Shūichi moved swiftly. His body blurred, leaving trails of afterimages. With a resounding impact, he kicked one of the Truth-Seeking Balls away, sending it spiraling back.
Nagato was momentarily taken aback, sensing Shūichi reappear beside him.
"Too late!"
Before Nagato could react with another Truth-Seeking Ball, he raised his hands to block, but Shūichi's blow sent him crashing away.
From the sidelines, Shisui exhaled quietly in relief, analyzing the situation.
"The ability to absorb ninjutsu comes from the Rinnegan. As the Ten-Tails' Jinchūriki, it's even stronger—he can nullify star techniques almost instantly."
"Shūichi must've canceled his Six Paths Mode to rely on pure taijutsu to circumvent that ability."
Uchiha Obito, understanding the Rinnegan's mechanics well, frowned beneath his mask.
"While physical strikes are impressive against an ordinary Nagato, they won't suffice against the Ten-Tails' Jinchūriki."
Though Shūichi's ability to deflect a Truth-Seeking Ball was astounding, breaking through Nagato's defensive array of Truth-Seeking Balls seemed improbable.
In mid-air, Shūichi made a swift motion with his hands. Two blades materialized—one long, one short.
Totsuka Blade, Yagakigami Sword!
The former, strengthened by the Tag System, and the latter, a legendary Kusanagi sword imbued with the power of the Earth itself, gifted by the Daimyō of the Land of Fire.
It had been ages since Shūichi wielded a blade, but as his grip tightened around the Yagakigami Sword, he felt a renewed understanding.
"I see now!"
With a confident smile, Shūichi turned his gaze toward the rising Six Paths Nagato, took a deep breath, and unleashed his next move.
BOOM!
Intense flames erupted from Shūichi's body.
Breath of Flame!
The green fire surrounding him wasn't born of Chakra but of life force itself—a flame of vitality.
The emerald fire coiled and wreathed itself around the Totsuka Blade.
Nagato's eyes narrowed.
"A forbidden technique akin to the Eight Gates? So, this flame can't be absorbed by the Rinnegan..."
"Then all I need to do is seize him—and the fight ends here!"
Shūichi inhaled deeply again, and sparks of crimson lightning crackled throughout his body. In an instant, he was cloaked in a red lightning armor formed by electromagnetic currents—different from the Takemikazuchi armor.
This wasn't Chakra-based lightning. It was raw, elemental electricity, harnessed directly from nature.
Zzzzt!
Accompanied by a sharp crackling sound, Shūichi vanished from his position.
"Too fast!"
"Even faster than before!"
This thought crossed the minds of Nagato, Shisui, and Obito simultaneously.
Clang!
Nagato swung his staff, meeting Shūichi's Totsuka Blade. Sparks flew as the staff was visibly notched by the strike.
But Shūichi's form disappeared before Nagato could recover.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Flashing around Nagato in rapid succession, Shūichi struck repeatedly, each slash testing the limits of Nagato's Truth-Seeking Ball defenses.
At last, a deafening BOOM resonated as one Truth-Seeking Ball shattered.
This time, Shūichi had used the Yagakigami Sword.
"Shinra Tensei!"
Nagato unleashed the Rinnegan's almighty repulsive force, the overwhelming power of Shinra Tensei exploding outward.
Yet, before its shockwave could hit, Shūichi disappeared again, reappearing above Nagato.
With another deep breath, he initiated a new technique.
Natural Breathing!
In an instant, Shūichi's body swelled dramatically, reminiscent of the Akimichi Clan's Expansion Jutsu.
Simultaneously, the Yagakigami Sword in his hand expanded proportionally.
In mere moments, Shūichi transformed into a colossal figure over 100 meters tall, rivaling the Star God he had previously summoned. The now-massive Yagakigami Sword slashed downward ferociously.
From the distance, both Uchiha Shisui and Uchiha Obito watched, dumbfounded.
"It resembles the Expansion Jutsu... but the feeling is entirely different," Shisui murmured. "The sheer power in that form... even from here, it's suffocating."
Elsewhere, Senju Hashirama and Namikaze Minato, who had just subdued Uchiha Madara with the Gate of the Great God, turned their attention to the spectacle.
"To think he's refined Sage Mode to this degree—it's remarkable!" Hashirama exclaimed.
Minato, however, focused on the Yagakigami Sword.
"That legend... it's true after all."
In the skies above...
Looking up at the colossal sword descending like a mountain, Six Paths Nagato felt an overwhelming sense of danger.
Sword of Nunoboko!
Nagato raised his hand. The staff and Truth-Seeking Balls in his possession rapidly transformed, forming an enormous, peculiar longsword.
Spear and Sword of Nunoboko!
A legendary blade said to be the Sword of the Heart used by the Sage of Six Paths to create the ninja world, endowed with unmatched power.
In the next moment, the two titanic swords clashed, resulting in a deafening crack as both began to fracture.
Snap! Snap!
Both swords shattered simultaneously into countless pieces.
"What?!"
Nagato's mind reeled in shock.
At that instant, Shūichi's body reverted to its normal size. Wielding the Totsuka Blade, he appeared in front of Nagato with blinding speed.
Their eyes met briefly. As Nagato prepared to unleash Shinra Tensei, the blood-red lightning armor enveloping Shūichi shattered violently. Countless crimson sparks erupted outward, forming an electromagnetic field that immobilized Nagato instantly.
In the blink of an eye, the two figures passed each other.
The Totsuka Blade, entwined with green flames and crimson lightning, swept across Nagato's waist.
There was no spray of blood, but Nagato's body was cleanly severed in two, sliced at the waist.
Shūichi came to a halt, sheathing his blade as a single strand of his hair fell to the ground and transformed into a clone. The clone moved swiftly, catching Nagato's lower half as it fell, and began absorbing it bit by bit.
Meanwhile, the original Shūichi floated in the air, now clad in a golden Sage of Six Paths Chakra Cloak. The power of the nine-tailed beasts within him surged forth, resonating with the tailed beasts trapped inside Nagato.
Nagato, whose body had just been severed and had yet to regenerate, suddenly found the power of the eight tailed beasts within him spilling out uncontrollably.
"What?!"
Nagato's expression shifted drastically.
The Chakras of the eight-tailed beasts erupted from Shūichi, linking with the energies leaking from Nagato's body.
"Come out!"
Shūichi roared, forcefully pulling the eight tailed beasts out of Nagato's body.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
One after another, the enormous tailed beasts landed on the ground.
From afar, Namikaze Minato broke into a smile as he watched.
"Well done, Shūichi!"
Uchiha Shisui clenched his fists in excitement.
"As expected of Shūichi!"
Even Uchiha Obito was stunned.
"This guy actually..."
Meanwhile, Uchiha Madara, still pinned by the Gate of the Great God, raised an eyebrow in surprise.
"To think he achieved such a feat. Well, this spares me the trouble of weakening that man."
In the sky, Nagato, stripped of the tailed beasts' power, lost his Sage of Six Paths Chakra Cloak. His body weakened, and he plummeted to the ground with a loud thud.
"Am I... defeated?"
Nagato's disbelief was palpable.
The immense power of the Ten-Tails' Jinchūriki had been overcome by pure taijutsu. It was a reality he struggled to accept.
Descending from the air, Shūichi landed beside the fallen Nagato.
At that moment, the clone returned to him, reverting into a single strand of hair that reattached itself to Shūichi's head.
Suddenly, a surge of energy roared within Shūichi's body. This newfound power caused his eyes to pulse violently, like a heartbeat about to burst forth.
The Rinnegan was on the verge of awakening!
(End of Chapter)
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