Boom—!
With a burst of smoke, the hundred-meter-tall Demonic Statue of the Outer Path vanished.
Uchiha Fugaku wanted to stop it, but against that kind of space-time movement, he had no method—he could only watch it disappear before his eyes.
Ssshhk—
Pressing a Truth-Seeking Orb to his chest wound, the gash began closing at a speed visible to the naked eye.
This wasn't medical ninjutsu, but rather the natural property of Yang Release chakra.
The Truth-Seeking Orbs combined yin, yang, and the five elemental natures. By extracting the yang chakra, Fugaku had used its restorative essence to heal his injuries.
Whoosh!
Clone No. 1, Hatake Kakashi, and Jiraiya arrived.
They had failed to stop the enemy—especially one who could warp space. Arriving too late, they could only witness the Demonic Statue dissolving into smoke, with Nagato nowhere to be seen.
"Nagato escaped too?" Jiraiya asked.
"It's true, he got away. But I pierced his heart. He shouldn't be able to survive," said Uchiha Obito.
"His heart? Good. Unless he had a top-tier medical ninja at his side, Nagato's as good as dead," Kakashi said, relief flickering across his face.
"...Nagato."
Hearing this, Jiraiya's expression grew complicated. Nagato was his student, yet also the leader of the infamous Akatsuki. The thought of his death left Jiraiya torn.
"Let's go regroup with Yukihaya," Fugaku said, shifting the subject. "A number of White Zetsu chased after him earlier. I'm not sure if he managed."
He believed Jiraiya would not let personal feelings cloud his judgment—Nagato had chosen his path.
They hurried in the direction of Clone No. 2. Soon, they found Yukihaya—his clothes tattered, clearly having fought a brutal battle.
Around him lay hundreds of White Zetsu corpses, silent proof of his struggle.
Thankfully, the boy named Sora had not been taken.
Fugaku's gaze swept over the corpses, his eyes burning.
With these bodies, infused with Hashirama's cells, he could finally refine a complete Senju physique—enough to evolve into the Rinnegan.
Rinnegan paired with his Tenseigan would make him far stronger.
Even now, at the Six Paths level, Fugaku never thought himself "strong enough." He knew the truth: in the cosmos existed a clan of overwhelming might—the Otsutsuki main family.
Kaguya was merely one among them. Some had consumed multiple chakra fruits. And above them all was the so-called "God of Otsutsuki," who sought true divinity through repeated consumption.
"These corpses hold Hashirama's cells—seal them all!" Fugaku ordered, handing out sealing scrolls.
Half an hour later, every White Zetsu body was secured. With the scrolls carefully stored, they began returning to Konoha.
This raid had been fruitful: they had slain Nagato, Akatsuki's leader, and captured hundreds of Zetsu corpses.
Though the Rinnegan still lay in Akatsuki's hands, not just anyone could wield it. Even Obito, should he transplant them, lacked Nagato's vast chakra reserves. That was why Madara had given them to Nagato of the Uzumaki clan in the first place.
Vmmm—
As they traveled, a black vortex swirled open ahead.
"Huh…?"
Fugaku and the others were startled. This was the trademark space-time ninjutsu of the Wood Release user who had just escaped. To see him return was unexpected.
Step!
From the vortex stepped Obito, then Zetsu, and finally—a tall man clad in crimson armor, with long black hair flowing over his shoulders.
The moment Fugaku saw him, his eyes hardened.
Uchiha Madara.
Kakashi and Jiraiya, meanwhile, were stunned by the man's Rinnegan. Could it be that Nagato's eyes had been transplanted into him?
And the aura he radiated—terrifying, oppressive even to Kage-level shinobi.
"To think one such as you would rise among the clan's descendants…" Madara said coldly, fixing his gaze only on Fugaku. Kakashi and Jiraiya weren't even worth his notice.
"Descendant of the Uchiha clan…?" Kakashi and Jiraiya turned in shock to Fugaku.
Fugaku's voice was low, heavy:"He is Uchiha Madara."
The truth struck him immediately—Nagato must have used Rinne Rebirth before his death to revive Madara.
"Madara…? That's impossible!" Kakashi and Jiraiya protested.
How could someone from Hashirama's era still live? And yet, before them stood a man, not aged and frail, but strong, armored, radiating power.
"Perhaps a Transformation Jutsu?" Jiraiya asked quickly.
"No," Fugaku said firmly. "This is the real Uchiha Madara."
Unlike Nagato, Madara was the Rinnegan's true master. He could draw out their full power—restoring his Six Paths strength.
"Indeed. I am Uchiha Madara."
His gaze shifted to the boy Sora, piercing him with Rinnegan's sight. Frowning, Madara asked:"He carries Nine-Tails chakra, but is not the Jinchūriki. Why?"
"Because of Fugaku's protection, we couldn't risk seizing the Jinchūriki," Zetsu explained awkwardly. "So we took only the chakra instead, to prepare for reviving the Ten-Tails."
"Fools," Madara snapped. "The Ten-Tails revived with mere chakra will never reach its full state."
Then his eyes turned back to Fugaku."Regardless. That chakra cannot remain loose. Descendant of Uchiha—hand over the boy."
"Impossible." Fugaku shook his head.
The pressure of Madara's return was immense, but there was no reality in which he would allow the Ten-Tails' resurrection.
"This isn't yours to decide!"
Madara's Susanoo erupted forth, its massive hand reaching for Sora.
Fugaku answered in kind, his Susanoo clashing against Madara's giant hand.
BOOM!
The collision shook the land, winds tearing mountains and uprooting trees.
"Not good!"
Obito and Zetsu retreated from the shockwaves. Kakashi, Jiraiya, and the boy did the same.
Even the aftershocks of their blows were too dangerous for Kage-level shinobi to withstand.
Crack!
When the clash ended, one Susanoo staggered back, cracks spiderwebbing across its arm.
It was Fugaku's—black in color. Despite both being complete forms, Madara's Susanoo overwhelmed his.
The difference lay in their eyes: Madara's Rinnegan against Fugaku's Eternal Mangekyō.
"So this is all you amount to," Madara said with a cold smile.
Susanoo's sword appeared in his avatar's hand, swinging down toward Fugaku.
"Tenseigan Chakra Mode!"
Fugaku dissolved his Susanoo and invoked the Tenseigan's power. His body glowed with its chakra cloak.
"Absorption Technique!"
Meeting the strike head-on, he extended his hand. The Tenseigan's ability shattered the colossal blade, dispersing it into nothingness.
From afar, it looked as though Fugaku had caught Madara's sword barehanded—and broken it apart.