The battle raged fiercely upon the vast ocean.
Two colossal giants clashed endlessly atop the waves, each as massive as mountains. With every strike, tsunamis surged high into the skies.
On the left: a divine-demonic figure, wings spread, face twisted into the wrathful visage of a tengu, clad in fierce armor and wielding a long samurai blade.
On the right: a monstrous beast with eight heads, covered in scales and armor, radiating immense, terrifying aura!
The Eight-Headed Serpent covered in Susanoo Armament collided again and again with Madara's Perfect Susanoo. Yet the Eight-Headed Susanoo was no match. Under the repeated collisions, it steadily fell behind.
The dark red Susanoo Armament began to crack, the Tengu armor on its body was dented and pitted, and the eight snake heads had been severed countless times.
"This won't do."
Orochimaru's voice was low and grim. "My spiritual power is draining fast. I can't sustain this much longer."
Uchiha Hikari furrowed her brows, continually pushing her ocular power to maintain her Susanoo Armament.
Thanks to the Eight Thousand Spears, her ocular power had never once shown signs of exhaustion. At any time, she could call forth an ocean of chakra and ocular power to meet her needs.
But right now, all those she had marked with Eight Thousand Spears were locked in life-and-death struggles within the village. If she pulled their chakra now, it would be no different from stabbing her own comrades in the back.
So she could only push her own strength to the utmost, and siphon from scattered individuals across the shinobi world.
The chakra was strong, yes—but against Madara as he stood now, it was still insufficient.
"Is that truly the extent of your spiritual power?"
Orochimaru's vertical pupils slid toward Hikari. His long tongue slithered across his lips.
If that's the case…
"Bankai!"
"Spirit-Devouring White Serpent!"
The Eight-Headed Serpent suddenly expanded, its size surging skyward. Its aura spiked higher and higher, leaving Hikari momentarily stunned. Even Madara's eyes showed a trace of genuine surprise.
So the Eight Branches Technique wasn't Orochimaru's Bankai?
"Not a bad form," Madara said coolly, arms folded across his chest. "But still not enough!"
The chestplate of his Perfect Susanoo opened. One after another, brilliant azure Yasaka Magatama shot forth, blazing toward the Eight-Headed Serpent.
The continuous Yasaka Magatama struck the Eight-Headed Serpent, generating violent explosions. Hikari Uchiha subconsciously activated her Dōjutsu to condense Susanoo Armament over the Eight-Headed Serpent, but Orochimaru, who should have been controlling the Eight-Headed Armament, suddenly turned around at this moment.
His boneless neck extended unnaturally, his jaws unhinging wide. From his gaping maw, a vivid green serpent emerged—its rancid breath flooding the air. From the serpent's mouth, half of Orochimaru's own body crawled forth.
A man spitting a snake, and a snake spitting a man.
As Orochimaru turned, he arrived in front of Hikari. A spectral snake shadow emerged and immediately swallowed Hikari Uchiha's body.
"Uchiha Hikari—you are mine!"
The sudden betrayal left even Uchiha Madara momentarily stunned. It wasn't until the Susanoo covering the Eight-Headed Serpent's body dissipated that he understood what had truly happened.
Inside his own Susanoo, Madara threw his head back and laughed wildly.
"Amusing—this is far too amusing! In the face of an enemy like me, rather than joining forces to strike me down, you backstab your own ally… Orochimaru, you are truly entertaining!"
"Don't misunderstand, Madara," Orochimaru hissed, his long tongue flicking over his lips as a wicked smile twisted across his face.
"I'm not betraying an ally… I simply wish to take on a better form—to crush the enemy more perfectly."
"Thud!"
It was as if a heart had thundered… as if blood itself were burning!
Orochimaru's pupils suddenly contracted. He could clearly feel an extremely powerful spiritual power suddenly erupting within his body after he had devoured Hikari Uchiha with his Bankai White Snake.
The intensity of that spiritual power was extremely exaggerated, ravaging wildly within Orochimaru's body like a torrential storm.
Vast spiritual pressure poured into Orochimaru's body, causing it to emit a dazzling white light. The surrounding air trembled incessantly under this immense pressure.
Even within the armor of his Perfect Susanoo, Uchiha Madara could sense the crushing might pressing down. He could hear the creaks and groans as Susanoo strained against it.
"This kind of amplification…"
"Yes—just as you're thinking. I devoured her." Orochimaru licked his lips with his long tongue and smirked smugly. Beneath him, the Eight-Headed Serpent seemed to roar in unison with its master, eight heads bellowing like thunder.
"My Bankai isn't the Eight-Headed Serpent. That was just a technique I devised before I became a Shinigami."
"How perfect… Truly worthy of being chosen by Yuki Yoru as a royal guard. The ultimate weapon of the Uchiha clan… Uchiha Madara—are you ready to taste my power?!"
Rumble!!!
Empowered by Orochimaru's vast spiritual power, the Eight-Headed Serpent went berserk, lunging at the Perfect Susanoo.
The Susanoo drew its sword to meet the attack, and with one slash, it effortlessly severed a snake head.
But before Madara could react, the remaining heads slammed against Susanoo like lightning. Even the severed head regenerated in an instant, snapping its jaws shut against the crystalline barrier around Madara.
With a single bite, cracks spread across the prism.
Madara's eyes widened slightly. For Susanoo to be broken meant only one thing—Orochimaru's power had already surpassed his own.
He had stepped into the Six Paths realm.
By consuming Uchiha Hikari, Orochimaru now wielded power equal to that of a Six Paths-level being.
"To witness legend, surpass legend, and then become legend yourself… only such a wind can truly set the windmill turning!"
Standing atop the serpent's head, Orochimaru's voice was thick with madness.
"Uchiha Madara, Shura of the Shinobi World—if I devour you, my wind will sweep even farther!"
The monstrous Eight-Headed Serpent lunged with fangs bared.
But within the collapsing Susanoo, Madara's lips twisted into a wild grin.
"Brats of the new era… You really can dance in ways I never expected."
In the very next instant, the prey Orochimaru thought was in his grasp suddenly flared with red light. Madara surged forward instead of retreating, charging directly into the Eight-Headed Serpent.
Orochimaru's pupils contracted again, his brow furrowing.
He braced himself instinctively, pouring out spiritual power, preparing to withstand what looked like Madara's last desperate counterattack.
But at the moment of impact—
Madara's flesh alone tore through the Eight-Headed Serpent. Snakes heads shattered, its very body crumpled under his assault, and the great beast was smashed down into the ocean, waves exploding high into the sky.
Floating in the air, arms folded, Madara looked utterly transformed compared to before. Strange markings now spread across the right side of his body. From his forehead jutted a backward curving horn, his aura vast and overwhelming.
Amidst the crashing waves, Orochimaru slowly resurfaced.
He had been certain this Madara was already a dish on his table, prey trapped in the jar. Yet the man had shattered his Yamata no Orochi—strengthened by his own Bankai spiritual power—with his body alone.
Even Tsunade, at full Bankai strength, couldn't have accomplished such a thing.
And this form… this aura…
"Ōtsutsuki…"
Orochimaru muttered under his breath.
Of course, he knew of the Ōtsutsuki—and had even personally studied them.
Back when Ōtsutsuki outcast was captured by Yuki Yoru, his body specimen had been preserved in a secret laboratory, provided for research into the bloodline power of the Ōtsutsuki clan.
Although outcast's lineage was not that of a pure Ōtsutsuki, after countless fusions with supplementary research materials over time, his strength had long surpassed what he once was, even showing signs of atavism.
It was then that Orochimaru had felt the true power of the Ōtsutsuki.
And the aura now radiating from Uchiha Madara… was exactly the same!
"Bloodline regression? No… it's not that simple." Orochimaru tightened his grip on the White Snake in his hand, spiritual power surging within him. Raising a hand, he unleashed a high-level Hadō directly at Madara.
Madara lifted his hand calmly. The spiritual power —supposedly impossible to absorb—was effortlessly drawn into him.
"I once believed Hashirama alone could satisfy me… that only he could give me a battle worth staking my life on."
Madara strode forward, flexing his wrist, the deep red armor on his body clattering with every movement.
"But Orochimaru… you of the new generation always manage to bring me fresh surprises."
"Since you devoured Hikari, let me see if you have the qualifications to devour the ultimate weapon of the Uchiha clan!"
Madara's steps quickened with his words until he blurred into a crimson afterimage, instantly appearing before Orochimaru.
In his empty hand, a massive Gunbai fan materialized. With a violent sweep, he smashed it down toward Orochimaru's face.
"Clang!"
Orochimaru's expression didn't change. The White Snake in his hand rose up, blocking the blow.
The two locked in a contest of strength. Madara's lips curled slightly upward, and from his palm shot several black rods.
"Flat Fan Defense!" Orochimaru barked, a shield-like barrier of a fan's surface blocking the incoming rods. His serpentine waist twisted, and with a sharp spin, he lashed a whip-kick at Madara's side.
The dull thud of impact echoed—but Madara's arm intercepted the strike. In that instant, countless tiny venomous snakes slithered down his arm, crawling toward his body.
Madara flicked his wrist—the scythe of the Shinigami attached to his Gunbai reversed, shredding the swarm of snakes. At the same time, he swung the fan down, colliding with the Hadō Orochimaru had just completed.
"Hadō #88: Flying Dragon-Striking Heaven-Shaking Thunder Cannon!"
"I drink only milkshakes!"
Madara's Gunbai swept through the air, absorbing all of the raging spiritual power into itself, then bursting it forth as a storm of flame that engulfed Orochimaru completely.
Tearing through the inferno, Orochimaru's spiritual power erupted outward. But Madara was already upon him, relentless, battle spirit surging. Gunbai and White Snake clashed again and again, sparks scattering with each collision.
Though the spectacle was nowhere near as grand as their earlier titanic battle, the fight between the two only grew more ferocious…
…
Inside the Ōtsutsuki dimension.
Always vigilant, Jigen, who had taken over his vessel, was already prepared to leave this planet—even if for now, Uchiha Obito was being temporarily held back by Kimimaro's power.
The "Miracle" Schrift was indeed formidable, but no matter how strong a Schrift was, when faced with Uchiha Obito—whose very essence had already surpassed them all—its strength would eventually be exhausted.
Even if that power's source was Yuki Yoru.
The reason was simple. In Jigen's eyes, Obito now possessed the power to contend with Yuki Yoru himself!
But before Jigen could depart, a spatial gateway suddenly opened in the dimension he occupied.
"I truly didn't expect… that a clansman who once descended alongside my mother… would still be alive."
As the gateway unfolded, a deep, steady voice drifted out. Under Jigen's sharp gaze, three figures slowly emerged.
An elder dressed in white robes, gripping a Six Paths staff, stepped forward. Behind him came a man with snow-white eyes… and an aged great toad.
It was none other than the Six Paths brothers—and Gamamaru.
Seated upon his throne, Jigen regarded the three with utter indifference.
"It seems I've grown a bit careless… to allow even you to sense my presence."
He could clearly perceive their states. Their auras were deep and unfathomable, yes—but whether it was the Six Paths brothers or Gamamaru, their true power was at best only a fraction higher than an ordinary Sage of Six Paths.
Troublesome, perhaps. But far from unmanageable.
The Sage of Six Paths studied Jigen, sensing the faint aura radiating from him, as though lost in memory. After a moment, he spoke evenly:
"I finally understand why Mother resorted to Infinite Tsukuyomi, endlessly creating White Zetsu. If her enemies were beings like you… then yes, such caution would be justified."
Jigen sneered softly.
"Regretting it now? When you and your brother sealed that wretched woman Kaguya, you didn't hesitate in the slightest."
"I never regret," Hagoromo Ōtsutsuki shook his head.
"Because at different stages, different choices must be made. That is life. I may still be curious about my mother's clan… but only to that extent. Until everything on this planet is settled, I have no interest in engaging with our mother's kin."
Jigen chuckled coldly.
"That isn't for you to decide. Nor do you have the strength to handle what stands before you."
A toad crippled by Yuki Yoru's wounds…
Two brothers trapped in the Pure Land, forced to scheme because Yuki Yoru had already destroyed their plans…
What could they possibly use to confront Yuki Yoru?
What could they possibly use to stand against Obito, now a Six Paths Ten-Tails Jinchūriki?
To Jigen, the Six Paths brothers were beneath notice—just as that wretched woman Kaguya had been.