Obito had no idea what Shinji was thinking at that moment. The Six Paths Level was a domain he had never experienced or understood before, so he genuinely believed he was standing at the same height as Shinji. He assumed that even if he were slightly inferior, he could make up for it through his rich combat experience and powerful dojutsu.
Therefore, after a brief moment of shock, Obito readjusted his mental state.
With a whoosh, he soared into the air, looking down at Shinji on the ground: "I admit it was my mistake failing to kill you on the night of the massacre, but everything ends here! Shinji, you are excellent—more excellent than Shisui or Itachi—but unfortunately, your opponent is me! They couldn't stop me, and neither can you!"
With that, Obito activated his Susanoo.
Flash.
A blue silhouette projected from his body, rapidly transforming into a winged, Complete Body Susanoo! The powerful Susanoo gave Obito a massive sense of security. At this moment, his confidence reached its peak. He smiled at Shinji: "Do you see? This is the manifestation of my will! The Complete Body Susanoo you were once so proud of—I can now achieve it with ease!"
On the ground, Shinji shook his head gently.
Obito said, "What? Are you starting to regret not killing me when you had the chance?"
Shinji continued to shake his head. "No, I'm just a bit envious of you."
The corner of Obito's mouth curled up. "Is it a bit late to say that? Even if you kneel and beg for mercy right now, I won't let you go!"
Shinji replied, "You misunderstand. I'm only envious of your mindset. To be so weak, yet so confident."
Obito's brow furrowed. "Shinji, you are too arrogant—"
Whoosh!
Before Obito could finish, Shinji stomped his foot. While the hard ground beneath him shattered into a web of cracks, he shot into the sky like a beam of light. He passed directly through Obito's Susanoo, and with a simple flying kick, he sent Obito careening out of the giant construct.
"!?"
Obito, sent flying backward, was filled with confusion.
Rumble...
Amidst a massive roar, Obito slammed heavily into the earth, creating a giant crater over a hundred meters in diameter. In a single breath, their positions had swapped. Obito, who was in the sky, was now buried in a pit; Shinji, who was on the ground, now stood in the air, looking down.
Climbing out of the pit, Obito panted heavily as he looked up. "How is this possible!?"
Until this moment, he still couldn't understand how Shinji had bypassed his Susanoo and knocked him down with a single strike.
In the air, Shinji looked down at Obito. When everyone is at the Jonin or Chunin level, ninjutsu, secret techniques, and forbidden jutsu are the keys to victory. But once you reach the Kage level, things change.
For example, the Third Raikage's Lightning Release Chakra Mode allowed him to face ten thousand enemies alone. That was the result of pushing one's chakra to the extreme, creating a gap in "tier" between oneself and others. The higher one goes, the more the quality of chakra determines the outcome. When one side's chakra is powerful enough, all ninjutsu, secret techniques, and forbidden arts become ineffective.
That was the case just now. Shinji, as a Kekkei Mora, possessed power far greater than Obito's. With basic taijutsu alone, he could easily breach Obito's Susanoo. The Complete Body Susanoo gave Obito a sense of infinite safety, but in Shinji's eyes, it was no different from paper.
Shinji had no intention of humiliating Obito, nor would he bother to explain anything. He simply stared at him—stared at the man who was about to become his next sacrifice to the God Tree!
"Dammit!" Shinji's indifference drove Obito into a rage.
He gathered his nine Truth-Seeking Balls in his palm, condensing them into a black longsword shaped like a double-helix!
"I won't lose! I cannot lose!"
He roared, pointing the black sword directly at Shinji in the sky, his aura skyrocketing! Looking at the sword, Shinji's eyes narrowed slightly. "Amenonuhoko!"
The Sword of Amenonuhoko was said to be the Sage of Six Paths' sword of creation—a divine weapon forged through Yin-Yang Release. The wielder could pour their powerful will into the blade, forging the sword into a weapon unique to their own soul.
Undoubtedly, Amenonuhoko was a perfect match for Obito's abilities. His extreme willpower was his greatest defining trait compared to other Uchiha. In his hands, this sword could exert power far beyond the norm.
Obito realized this too. Seeing that things were going poorly, he stopped holding back and unleashed Amenonuhoko, ready for a life-and-death struggle. Reaching the peak of his momentum, Obito lunged upward and swung!
Shinji sidestepped. He felt a violent gust of air brush past his face as the strike extended far into the distance.
Rumble...
An instant later, a roar followed. Shinji looked back to see that Obito's strike had extended for dozens of kilometers, carving a massive canyon into the desert!
"This blade represents my resolve!" Roaring, Obito swung Amenonuhoko again. "Shinji, go to hell with your regrets!"
Shinji's gaze sharpened. Without a word, he condensed nine Truth-Seeking Balls and activated Golden Wheel Rebirth Blast. Holding the golden blade, he met the attack head-on.
Clang!
A metallic ring echoed across the sky. The two swords split the air, and in that ring, a winner was decided.
Looking at the severed Amenonuhoko in his hand, Obito was struck with disbelief. "This... how is this possible!?"
Shinji, having snapped the blade, casually dispelled the Golden Wheel Rebirth Blast. He flickered directly in front of Obito, slammed a fist into his cheek, and once again knocked him from the sky into the ground.
Whoosh.
This time, Shinji gave him no room to breathe. As Obito hit the ground, Shinji landed and launched a relentless assault. Obito's body was like a punching bag, pelted by Shinji's strikes until he was finally sent tumbling away, slumping onto the ground.
Lying there, Obito stared blankly at the sky, his eyes hollow with confusion. He didn't understand why things were so different from what he had imagined.
"Why... why did I lose?"