Each strike from Ōtsutsuki Isshiki caused the surrounding laws to tremble, space to twist, and even a gaseous star to tear apart, unleashing endless radiance.
It was a display of power that belonged solely to the divine.
Yet you were able to withstand such attacks. Although your own moves appeared simple and unremarkable, each one perfectly countered Isshiki's assaults. Your strength canceled his out precisely, without a trace of excess or waste.
Even though your raw power was nowhere near that of Isshiki, who had returned to the realm of a true god…
You relied on your own understanding of strength, creating a breathing technique unique to yourself—one that allowed you to release every drop of power with flawless efficiency.
The more he fought you, the more Isshiki's heart trembled.
You were clearly still at the demigod level, yet you kept trading blows with him, who had already activated his divine strength.
Despite the prolonged battle, your stamina didn't show any signs of depletion. On the contrary, you grew more formidable with each clash.
Your originally limited taijutsu experience was rapidly filling in the gaps as you fought this seasoned combat veteran. You even began to surpass him.
"Ah!"
A momentary lapse from Isshiki allowed you to land a direct hit on his torso.
The wound left behind looked as if it had been carved by a divine blade—an intricate cross-shaped slash.
Panic surged in Isshiki's heart. If this continued, he would be defeated without question!
He immediately unleashed the essence of Ōtsutsuki taijutsu launching a ferocious assault on your upper body.
Just as you blocked it, he twisted his body and instantly shifted techniques, aiming at your lower body.
But it missed.
You had already adapted to his rhythm, staying close and keeping pressure on him at melee range.
With every strike, blood spattered in the air. It felt exhilarating.
You didn't defend at all—only attacked, enjoying the sensation of every punch sinking into flesh.
Even when you got hit by one of Isshiki's blows and pain surged through your body, it only fueled your excitement and fighting spirit.
As soon as Isshiki teleported away, you instantly gave chase. For convenience, you even branded a Flying Thunder God mark directly onto his body. No matter where he moved, you could follow instantly.
Eventually, Isshiki couldn't take it anymore and retreated into Daikokuten.
The moment the alternate dimension opened, it sucked you into a pitch-black world—a realm with no rules or laws.
Isshiki sealed you inside his own dimension.
But you didn't rush to activate Kamui.
Instead, you unleashed the surging power swelling inside you after the fusion—swinging your arms and legs with abandon.
With each blow, the previously stable spatial walls of the dimension began to quake. Fist after fist, kick after kick—
Isshiki's Daikokuten had never endured such devastation.
Outside, just as he finally had a moment to breathe, Isshiki was forced to squeeze his own energy dry, condensing a Truth-Seeking Ball and reverse-channeling it into the Daikokuten dimension.
Explosions echoed within the space.
You didn't hesitate for a moment. As the Truth-Seeking Ball reached you, you broke the sound barrier and appeared before it in an instant.
You crushed it with your bare hands and feet.
Even fixed training dummies hadn't given you this much satisfaction in ages. Isshiki was like a treasure trove.
But as a member of the Ōtsutsuki clan, he was an undeniable threat. He had to be eliminated completely.
That's why you cherished the opportunity to fight him—striving to perfect every move and drain every last drop of his power.
Eventually, Isshiki couldn't endure it any longer.
Inside Daikokuten, the space collapsed under your relentless blows. His body and authority both cracked apart.
Left with no choice, he released you.
The moment you reappeared, you teleported and kicked him in the back, then unleashed a flurry of punches to his ribs from both sides.
But Isshiki had no intention of making the most of this intense and glorious battle. Instead, with malicious intent in his heart—
He suddenly struck, condensing spatial energy into a blade and slashing you in half at the waist.
You looked down to see your flesh and organs below your waist had vanished.
Only your bones—nurtured over time as divine swords—remained, scarred deeply by the strike.
You were furious.
Flesh could regenerate instantly, but bones refined over the long term with the Sword-Nurturing Art would take time to restore. And you didn't even know if this would leave long-term damage.
Enraged, you activated the Battle Saint Scripture at full power—ten layers—and threw a punch with your entire strength.
Blinding sword light exploded outward.
At the same time, you muttered with some regret that Isshiki had been the perfect punching bag you'd ever encountered.
Your strike tore through space and the surrounding stars.
Caught in the center of the sword light, Isshiki didn't even have the chance to disintegrate into particles—he was completely obliterated with the space itself.
But at the final moment, Isshiki pulled a trick.
He imprinted his Karma mark onto a fragment of his shattered authority and used his last bit of strength to send it falling to the Shinobi World—randomly parasitizing the body of a jōnin-level ninja.
Even so, you found him the moment he returned.
You unleashed the divine light of Wither and Bloom. Even in his shrunken state, Isshiki couldn't evade it. He was instantly reduced to a bloodied, writhing mass of unidentifiable flesh.
You grasped the God Tree Seed, and from your hand, roots sprouted—about to transform Isshiki into a fruit.
But he didn't treasure this second chance and shrank away again, escaping.
You sighed and turned a Truth-Seeking Ball into a longsword. With a single slash, imbued with the power of void laws, you wiped out both Isshiki and the space he occupied.
Before dying, Isshiki looked on in horror and said you weren't from this planet.
You nodded.
With blood like yours, you couldn't really be considered human.
Then you bowed to the space you'd just erased, thanking Isshiki for his spectacular performance.
You'd learned a lot from your fight with him...
And so, both Isshiki and the White Ape Sage met their final, irreversible end.
...
You returned to Water Curtain Cave of Mount, where the dragon vein had recovered.
There, you began to heal.
〖Year 27〗
Although Wither and Bloom could instantly heal injuries, you discovered that the rapid recovery—combined with forcibly fusing multiple powers into your breathing technique during intense battle—had left behind many hidden wounds.
They didn't affect combat for now, but over time they would definitely hinder your growth.
So, drawing on the power of the dragon vein and using Wither and Bloom, you examined and repaired your body inch by inch.
In the same year, Orochimaru made progress researching alien metals.
He found that ninja-world chakra metals could be transformed into new forms by altering their composition and compressing or restructuring them.
You contacted Boss Black Cat to purchase vast quantities of chakra metal, supplying Orochimaru so he could continue developing and mass-producing stable new metallic materials.
〖Year 28〗
You gathered enough metal and, while continuing your recovery, used the Sword-Nurturing Art to absorb those materials directly into your skeletal structure.
〖Year 29〗
Your injuries were mostly healed, and you entered a phase of rest and recuperation.
At the same time, you began exploring and refining the Breathing Art of the Sage Path—a fusion of your original breathing method, Ryūchi Cave Senjutsu, and various chakra modes. It had become almost indistinguishable from your own being.
〖Year 30〗
With continuous refinement, the Breathing Art of the Sage Path became an instinct. Its operation was terrifying—when absorbing energy from the dragon vein, it was like a bottomless pit.
It almost consumed the entire freshly restored dragon vein.
This breathing technique could even devour the life energy of living beings—draining them to death.
To test its effects, you divided it into three parts: the core breathing art, Senjutsu, and chakra. You handed them over to the Shark Sage and the Eel Sage to attempt cultivation.
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