"Demonic Statue of the Outer Path!"
Indra roared, standing upright as if waiting for something.
Seeing his reaction, Ashura felt a sense of foreboding.
Suddenly, Indra raised his head toward the sky.
At the same moment, Hayato and Hamura frowned in unison.
"The God Tree's seal is loosening!"
"You should all return first," Hayato said seriously to the others.
"But Master Hayato, is everything alright?" The villagers still looked worried.
Without answering, Hayato slowly made his way toward where Ashura and Indra stood.
Just then, disaster struck without warning.
In the sky, an enormous object the size of a meteor suddenly appeared, plunging downward at breakneck speed.
As it fell, the air temperature spiked, sparks flew everywhere, carving a long trail of fire across the heavens like a falling star.
This unknown "meteor" was hurtling straight toward where Indra and Ashura stood.
Ashura glanced upward, his expression darkened, and he quickly retreated.
"Brother..."
Indra completely ignored his brother's call, smiling calmly.
"Appear!"
BOOM!
Upon impact, the object unleashed tremendous force and violent tremors, shaking the ground as though the entire earth were quaking.
White smoke billowed outward in all directions.
"ROAR!"
A deafening roar shattered the air and made the ground tremble violently.
Before everyone's stunned eyes emerged a colossal humanoid figure.
It had nine eyes, its body resembling petrified wood. Ten thick pillar-like projections jutted from its back.
"Let's go." Standing atop its head, Indra smirked slightly and commanded.
At his voice, the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path seemed to awaken with sentience. It rose and began advancing toward Ashura.
Ashura remained calm but had no choice but to summon Daibutsu again.
[Thousand Hands Manipulation Force: Thrust!]
Across heaven and earth, only the sound of colliding titans echoed.
The land cracked apart, rivers ran dry, nearby mountains crumbled under the force of their clash...
"That's the body of the God Tree?" Hamura asked, glancing at Kaguya.
She gave only a faint smile. "With the Rinnegan, I can not only seal it—I can also summon it forth."
"Mother... Father... What exactly are you trying to do?"
Hiroki and Kaguya simply shrugged.
Helpless, Hamura flew downward.
He couldn't allow Indra and Ashura to destroy the entire continent.
Hayato felt the same. Sighing deeply, in an instant he had already arrived at the battlefield's center—between Daibutsu and the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path.
He raised both hands—one pressed against Daibutsu, the other on the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path.
With effortless ease, he stopped both titanic forces in their tracks—the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path and Daibutsu froze instantly.
In that moment, the entire world fell into eerie silence.
Utterly still.
Indra and Ashura were both profoundly shocked, turning their gazes toward him simultaneously.
The two of them stood atop the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path and the Daibutsu, gazing down at Hayato, who appeared extremely small in comparison.
Yet this seemingly tiny figure had effortlessly halted their battle.
Just how powerful is Father?
"You two must stop fighting! If you continue, you might destroy the entire land."
Hayato's calm yet firm voice reached both of their ears.
Since the Demonic Statue and the Daibutsu had risen to nearly the same height, the two warriors faced each other eye-to-eye. Indra let out a cold snort. "Ashura, are you going to surrender?"
"As long as my brother stops destroying the land, I can accept defeat," Ashura replied with a deep breath.
Plus, his chakra was no longer sufficient to maintain the Daibutsu for much longer.
Indra felt deeply annoyed by those words. "Ashura, I don't need your compromise, nor do I want your pity."
"Father, please step aside!"
Indra shouted loudly, as dense purple chakra once again gathered around him.
[Imperial Armor: Susano'o!]
With a loud roar, the original purple Susano'o armor clad itself over the Demonic Statue, forming a terrifying layer of violet plating.
The now-awakened violet-hued statue appeared even more imposing.
The wings and twin blades originally belonging to Susano'o also emerged on the Demonic Statue.
Hayato slightly raised his head, his expression turning grim.
"Step aside!" Indra shouted again, commanding the violet statue to unsheathe its blade.
"I said enough!" Hayato snapped coldly. His chakra surged violently outward.
Wild air currents raged around him, forming powerful shockwaves that engulfed his body.
Suddenly, Ashura felt his Daibutsu being pushed away by an invisible force. For a brief moment, a towering, majestic figure appeared before vanishing quickly from sight.
Boom!
An explosive sound rang out — the violet-colored statue crashed heavily onto the ground.
Indra flew backward along with it, disbelief plastered across his face.
"How could this happen? This was the combined power of the Demonic Statue and Susano'o!"
As the direct target of the attack, he had clearly witnessed what occurred just then.
Before he could strike, a figure almost identical to the Susano'o giant had appeared — kicking the Demonic Statue hard with a single kick.
And that Susano'o belonged to Hayato himself.
Lying flat on the ground, Indra felt deep frustration mixed with burning determination.
We both possess the Rinnegan. We both wield Susano'o. Yet why is there such a gap between us and Father?
Hayato remained motionless, his expression calm.
"Brother, Father has returned."
Hamura's voice called out as he gently landed beside Hayato.
Seeing his arrival, Ashura finally felt relieved, dismissing the Daibutsu and collapsing to the ground, panting heavily.
"Father and the others are back?" Hayato asked.
"That way," Hamura replied, turning and pointing in a specific direction.
Hayato lifted his gaze toward where Hamura pointed.
"Moon, let's go."
Hiroki turned to Kaguya beside him and said.
The two approached Hayato and the others. Before Hayato could say a word, Kaguya beat him to it:
"Hayato, why did you interfere in Ashura's and Indra's battle? This is between them. It has nothing to do with you."
Hayato caught on right away. "Mother, was it you who helped Indra's eyes evolve? Who guided him to break the God Tree's seal?"
"You've broken your promise to me. You said you wouldn't interfere for a thousand years."
"Hayato, the one truly breaking the rules is you," Hiroki interjected. "Without your constant help, Ashura would have already lost."
Hearing their argument, Ashura and Indra struggled to their feet and started moving toward them.
The Demonic Statue of the Outer Path also roared, though no one could tell what emotion it expressed.
Kaguya reached out and touched it, and the beast calmed instantly.
Ashura's face revealed guilt.
So... it was Father who's been helping me all along?
"No, it's because Indra would lose," Hayato countered.
Kaguya snorted. "Even without me, Indra could still awaken his Mangekyou. And Ashura—without you giving him chakra, could he have used that level of Sage Art just now?"
"The criteria for inheriting the Ninja Arts isn't determined by combat power alone," Hayato emphasized.
"Then why did you secretly strengthen Ashura? That's completely unfair," Kaguya challenged again.
Hayato opened his mouth, then stayed silent for a while before asking, "So you and Father intend for me to pass on my position to Indra?"
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