The battle had been raging for quite some time over the waters surrounding Kirigakure.
Both Konoha and Madara Uchiha were surprised by each other's strength.
After all, Kakashi wielded both Kamui abilities, making him the strongest Mangekyō Sharingan user in Konoha's history. The power of Kamui was undeniable.
In addition, Konoha's side included the Third Hokage, the Fourth Hokage, Shin, Nagato, and Itachi. Theoretically, victory should have been guaranteed.
Madara had indeed regained his youthful body, but he did not have the Rinnega, only a pair of three-tomoe Sharingan. His genjutsu was still formidable, but it couldn't surpass Kakashi's Mangekyō Sharingan.
His chakra reserves were vast, but everyone on Konoha's side was equipped with chakra cloaks, which gave them an overwhelming advantage in sheer chakra volume.
In terms of taijutsu, Shin's undead-like resilience made him a relentless opponent.
In all aspects: ninjutsu, taijutsu, and genjutsu, Konoha's forces held the upper hand.
Yet, despite everything, they had been unable to defeat Madara.
One major reason was that Madara had a deep understanding of Kamui, primarily due to Aoba's interference. With the altered timeline, Madara no longer had the absolute dominance he held in the original story. As a result, he had taken the time to gather intelligence.
With a clear grasp of Kamui's mechanics, Kakashi could only use it as a deterrent rather than a finishing move.
Similarly, Madara's understanding of the Flying Thunder God Technique was on par with Minato's.
After all, years ago, his younger brother, Izuna, had fallen to this very technique.
Thus, even though Madara lacked direct counters to these space-time jutsu, he had already studied them to the point that neither could be used to end the fight.
This left only a head-on battle of ninjutsu, taijutsu, and genjutsu.
Kakashi and Minato's strategy was simple, if Madara made even the slightest mistake, they would end the battle instantly with Kamui or the Flying Thunder God Technique.
But the reality was that, from the beginning of the battle until now, Madara had not made a single mistake.
Even while facing the combined assault of six Kage-level opponents, he had not slipped up once.
This was different from the original story, where the Five Kage fought Madara. At that time, they lacked space-time ninjutsu like Kamui and the Flying Thunder God Technique, and their chakra reserves were at a normal level. Their loss had been inevitable.
Now, with Aoba boosting their capabilities significantly, and with Madara in a weakened state, it seemed unthinkable that they still couldn't defeat him.
"This is unbelievable. So this is the legendary 'God of Shinobi'? Since the start of the battle, he hasn't made a single mistake."
"It's not just that. His knowledge of ninjutsu is beyond comprehension. How can one person master nearly every jutsu and still use them so fluidly in combat?"
At that moment, the usually silent Itachi spoke up.
"Even though those aren't his original eyes, in Madara's hands, the Sharingan still displays its full potential, beyond what most can imagine. He hasn't truly mastered every jutsu, but the Sharingan allows him to see through and counter almost anything we use.
"It's similar to how Kakashi-senpai used to fight. The moment we initiate a technique, his Sharingan reads it, allowing him to predict and counter before we even complete our attacks. That's how he has perfectly neutralized everything we've thrown at him."
The group turned to Itachi.
Other than Kakashi, most of them didn't know his true identity. But Kakashi quickly realized that, as a pure-blooded Uchiha and a prodigy at that, Itachi's insight into Madara's combat style was invaluable.
"Itachi, do you have any tactics we can try?"
"I have an idea we could test."
If you would like to read more...
The novel has be completed (Chp. 362) on the patreon -> SaintXI