Madara was fully committed to the act as well. Even after their brief exchange, the number of Limbo clones that had actively attacked Shanks remained at three. Madara carefully maintained the deception, making sure not to reveal the existence of the fourth clone. After their short but impactful conversation, the battle immediately resumed as the invisible Limbo clones once again launched coordinated attacks from different directions.
Shanks remained focused. Through his future sight and God's View, he could perceive where the attacks would land before they actually happened. Small glimpses of the future continuously appeared within his mind, allowing him to react to attacks that should have been impossible to detect. However, Shanks knew this was not a perfect solution.
I can't keep relying solely on future sight, he thought. His eyes remained fixed on Madara while his mind rapidly analyzed the battlefield. Future sight allows me to avoid the attacks, but if I become too dependent on it, Madara will eventually find an opening. And Madara was exactly the kind of opponent who could capitalize on even the smallest mistake. The Uchiha was not simply attacking; he was observing, studying, waiting, and searching for a single moment of weakness. The instant Shanks made a mistake, Madara would undoubtedly exploit it.
Boom!
One of the Limbo clones suddenly attacked again, its invisible fist shooting toward Shanks's side with tremendous force. Shanks immediately moved Gryphon, the blade coated in Black Lightning Vitalization, and collided directly with the incoming strike. A powerful shockwave erupted, but this time Shanks did something different.
The moment the collision occurred, his left hand shot forward. Madara's eyes narrowed. Before the invisible clone could retreat, Shanks grabbed its wrist directly and firmly, as though he could see exactly where it was standing.
Then, black markings suddenly appeared. They spread rapidly from Shanks's hand like living ink, dark sealing formulas crawling across the invisible Limbo clone's body. The markings expanded at an astonishing speed. It was a sealing technique Shanks had specifically prepared for this exact purpose—or rather, Raphael had. Only moments earlier, while the Limbo clones had been attacking him, Raphael had already analyzed the situation and created an entirely new Yin-Yang sealing technique designed specifically to counter them. After all, destroying the Limbo clones was difficult, but sealing them? That was another matter entirely.
The moment the black markings completely spread across the clone's body, the clone froze. It became completely immobilized—unable to move, attack, or escape. It remained invisible to ordinary perception, but it was effectively neutralized.
A faint smile appeared on Shanks's face. "One down."
At that exact moment, Madara acted, having no intention of allowing Shanks to continue sealing his greatest advantage. Raising one hand, Madara activated another technique: "Planetary Devastation."
The sky trembled. Far above them, enormous chunks of rock and earth were pulled upward by a terrifying gravitational force. Within moments, multiple gigantic meteors formed in the heavens, each one large enough to devastate entire regions. Then they began falling. The colossal meteors descended toward Shanks like divine punishment, darkening the sky beneath their shadows as the air screamed.
As the meteors rapidly closed the distance, Shanks immediately gripped Gryphon tightly. Then he moved. With perfect control, he spun in a flawless 360-degree rotation. The moment his body completed the motion, a gigantic circular flying sword slash erupted outward.
BOOM!
The slash expanded in every direction with enormous range and terrifying power. The circular wave of sword energy rapidly spread across the battlefield and collided with the descending meteors. The result was immediate. The meteors were sliced apart one after another.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Massive chunks of stone exploded into fragments. Some were cut cleanly in half, while others were shattered into thousands of pieces. The once-catastrophic meteors were reduced to nothing more than debris. Soon, the sky resembled a storm of falling rocks as countless fragments rained down toward the earth below, completely harmless compared to their original form.
Yet Madara had never expected the meteors to defeat Shanks; they were merely a distraction, a setup. The moment Shanks focused on destroying the meteors, another Limbo clone attacked. The invisible clone rushed toward him from a blind angle, and Madara's eyes gleamed.
But Shanks was already prepared. Without even looking behind him, he moved his hand. Instead of blocking with Gryphon this time, he simply reached out and his hand closed around empty air—or at least what appeared to be empty air. The attacking Limbo clone had been caught. The clone attempted to struggle, but it was too late. The black sealing formulas spread once more, dark markings rapidly covering the invisible body. Within seconds, the second Limbo clone was completely sealed, frozen, immobilized, and unable to move.
Madara's expression darkened slightly. Two clones had already been neutralized.
Meanwhile, Shanks remained calm as he looked toward Madara, yet internally, his thoughts were moving rapidly.
This is becoming troublesome. Although I possess an enormous amount of chakra, I cannot compare my reserves to Madara's.
That was simply reality. Madara possessed the chakra of the Sage of Six Paths alongside the Ten-Tails. Trying to engage in a prolonged battle of attrition was not a favorable strategy.
If this continues, I'll eventually be at a disadvantage. I need another solution.
Immediately, Shanks issued an inward command. Raphael.
The response came instantly. Yes, Master.
Use Sage Mode.
The moment the command was given, Raphael executed it. Natural energy surged toward Shanks, and the transformation happened almost instantly. Dark circuit-like lines and tattoo-like patterns rapidly spread across his skin, extending across his body with incredible speed to form intricate designs that seemed both mystical and technological at the same time. Power surged through every part of him as the surrounding natural energy responded as though it had been summoned by a king. The transformation was completed in moments—no lengthy gathering process, no preparation, and no vulnerability. Simply instant activation.
On the opposite side, Madara's eyes widened slightly. For perhaps the second time during this battle, genuine surprise appeared on his face. The sight before him reminded him of Hashirama, the man he had fought countless times throughout his life and the man he had considered his greatest rival. Just like Hashirama, Shanks had entered Sage Mode. And not only had he entered it, he had done so almost instantly.
Madara stared at the circuit-like markings spreading across Shanks's body as memories of Hashirama flashed through his mind. The resemblance was impossible to ignore. Yet at the same time, he could clearly tell that Shanks's Sage Mode was something entirely different, and that realization made him even more wary. Not to mention, with his vast knowledge and experience, Madara immediately realized that this Sage Mode did not belong to any of the known holy lands. It was not Mount Myoboku, it was not Ryuchi Cave, and it was not Shikkotsu Forest. Madara could tell that much at a glance.
His eyes narrowed slightly as he observed the circuit-like markings.
Just like Hashirama, Shanks has created his own Sage Mode.
And Madara was absolutely correct. With Raphael's assistance, Shanks had developed this unique Sage Mode. More importantly, because Raphael possessed perfect control over both his chakra and his physical body, Shanks could enter Sage Mode almost instantly. There was no lengthy preparation process, no vulnerability, and no need to remain stationary. And unlike ordinary Sage users, he could maintain it continuously while fighting at full intensity. That was perhaps the greatest advantage of all.
The moment Madara finished analyzing the situation, he moved.
Boom!
His figure disappeared, and Shanks responded immediately as the distance between them vanished.
Clang!
Gryphon and the Sage of Six Paths staff collided once more, exploding a massive shockwave outward. But this time, something different happened. Madara's eyes narrowed as his body was pushed backward slightly—only a few meters, yet that was enough. The difference was obvious. Before entering Sage Mode, both of them had been nearly equal in physical strength and speed. Now the balance had shifted. Shanks was stronger, faster, and more explosive; the boost from Sage Mode had elevated him even further.
Madara quickly stabilized himself in mid-air and immediately launched another attack. The battle resumed without pause.
Clang! Boom! Clang!
Shockwaves continuously erupted throughout the sky as the surrounding landscape suffered further destruction with every passing second. Massive cliffs shattered apart, deep craters appeared across the earth, and entire sections of terrain were ripped apart by the aftereffects of their attacks.
Meanwhile, Madara began utilizing his Truth-Seeking Orbs more aggressively. The black spheres floated around him like loyal servants, rapidly changing shape at his command. One moment they became gigantic shields, the next they transformed into massive spears, and then into hammers, blades, spikes, and countless other weapons. Madara manipulated them with incredible precision, launching attack after attack at Shanks.
A spear shot forward, and Shanks dodged. A hammer descended from above, and Shanks moved aside. Several black spikes attacked from blind angles, but Shanks twisted his body and narrowly avoided them.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The attacks continuously tore apart the sky. Occasionally, one would manage to graze him—a cut would appear, a wound would form, and blood would emerge. Yet before Madara could capitalize on it, the wound healed instantly. The flesh regenerated, and the injury vanished as if it had never existed.
Madara frowned. The longer he fought, the more troublesome Shanks became. His physical strength had increased, his speed had increased, and his regeneration remained absurd. And now there was another issue: Shanks was not exiting Sage Mode. He should have, at least according to everything Madara knew. Sage Mode required balance; natural energy needed to be gathered, maintained, and controlled. Eventually, users would run out and need to replenish it. Yet Shanks showed no signs of slowing down, no signs of instability, and no signs of exhausting his Sage chakra. The Sage Mode remained perfectly active.
Madara found this increasingly shocking, but of course, Shanks had no such concerns. Raphael was handling everything, continuously absorbing natural energy from the environment and balancing it with his chakra with perfect precision. As a result, Shanks never had to actively manage the process himself. Unlike Naruto in the original timeline, Shanks did not need to create shadow clones and store Sage chakra for later use—a method that required preparation, calmness, focus, and a stable mental state, all things that were difficult to maintain during a high-level battle. Even Hashirama generally remained relatively stationary while using Sage Mode, often standing atop his Wooden Buddha or Wooden Dragon with his hands pressed together to maintain control.
Shanks had none of those restrictions. Raphael managed everything automatically, flawlessly maintaining the balance between chakra and natural energy. As long as natural energy existed around him, Raphael could continue supplying Sage chakra, allowing Shanks to focus entirely on fighting.
The result was terrifying. His chakra consumption dropped dramatically, while the physical enhancements from Sage Mode alone allowed him to contend with Madara directly. Most attacks were dodged with ease, those that landed healed almost instantly, and his combat performance remained at its peak.
On the other side, Madara was gradually becoming annoyed, his expression darkening. He had obtained the power of the Sage of Six Paths—the very power he had sought for decades—yet even after obtaining it, he still could not put down Shanks. That fact irritated him greatly.
Madara's eyes flashed. Fine. If physical combat is not enough, then I will increase the pressure.
Immediately, chakra gathered within his palm as dark lightning crackled violently. "Yin Release: Lightning Dispatch."
A bolt of purple lightning erupted from his hand and shot toward Shanks at incredible speed, tearing through the sky and distorting the surrounding air with its power. Shanks immediately responded by raising Gryphon. Dark lightning began crackling around the blade as well, integrating Yang Release perfectly alongside the Yin Release.
Then Shanks swung. A powerful slash of black lightning erupted from Gryphon.
BOOM!
The two attacks collided head-on, and for a brief moment, the sky itself seemed to freeze. Then the energies exploded. An enormous shockwave spread outward, scattering black and purple lightning across the heavens and ripping the surrounding clouds apart. The attacks canceled each other completely, leaving neither with an advantage.
(A/N: I fell in love with this image of Shanks and instantly changed my WN profile picture, which I hadn't changed in a long time.)
Madara stared at Shanks, and Shanks calmly stared back. The air between them continued to distort from the overwhelming energies they were releasing. Far below, the earth had already become unrecognizable; mountains had been shattered, forests had disappeared, and the landscape looked as though it had suffered a massive natural catastrophe. And yet, neither combatant showed any intention of stopping. Thus, the battle between two of the strongest beings currently alive in the world continued without end, each clash shaking the heavens and the earth alike.