Funan once again clashed with the Sage of Six Paths.
"Ha! Hahaha!"
Just then, a wild burst of laughter echoed.
Hearing that sound, Funan's expression darkened.
Tobirama—what did you do?
[Boom!]
A blue figure dropped from the sky and landed heavily.
His expression was bold, his eyes blazing, and blue vapor constantly surged from his body.
"The most beautiful beast of Konoha—Might Guy has arrived!"
It was Guy!
And he had opened the Seventh Gate!
"What are you doing here?"
Funan's voice was filled with anger. "Guy, did you forget the order I gave you? Do you want me to expel you from Konoha?"
"Wahahaha!" Guy just laughed heartily and said passionately, "Hokage-sama, you're right—but in this matter, I believe the Second Hokage is the one who's right. You are mistaken."
"Bastard!"
Funan roared in fury. "Get lost. Leave now. You are not allowed here!"
Guy firmly shook his head. He looked first at Hamura, then at Hagoromo, and burst out laughing.
"This moment—this is the time to show my Youth! This is my ninja way!"
[BOOM!!!]
As his words fell, the blue steam around him turned bright red.
Hamura had never seen the Eight Gates Technique before, but as he fixed his eyes on Guy, terror flooded his face.
The Sage of Six Paths recognized it at once. His expression turned even darker.
"To think… there's still such a dangerous piece on the board."
Funan had a grim expression.
Funan may have always seemed laid-back and easygoing, but when the Konoha Corrupt Quarte slandered him out of jealousy—afraid his rising fame would eclipse Minato's—it became a moment of intense psychological pressure. Yet, the one person who never treated him any differently was Guy. Through it all, Guy remained exactly the same.
The Emperor Guy!
This was the same man who, in the original story, nearly ended it all with a single kick.
Now, that same man was about to die right before his eyes.
"Shit!" Funan cursed harshly.
Was this fate forcing him to use his Rinnegan to bring Guy back to life afterward?
Tobirama, you bastard!
He didn't even need to think to know—this was definitely Tobirama's doing.
It matched his style perfectly.
He only cared about results.
He believed Funan had to survive. He believed the Sage of Six Paths was too dangerous, and that the battle needed to end quickly. So he mobilized every piece he could deploy.
There were very few who could even intervene in a battle between Funan and the Sage.
Guy was definitely qualified to join this fight.
And Guy was also Funan's insurance policy, so Funan himself had enhanced Guy's physical prowess with his fruits. By this point, Guy was even stronger than he was in the original story.
"I'm coming!"
Guy locked eyes on Hamura, his gaze blazing like fire. With a loud shout, he stomped through the air and charged forward.
"So fast…"
That was all Hamura managed to say before he was sent flying by a devastating kick.
"Yaaahooo!"
Guy began moving at blinding speed, striking again and again. Every time he moved, Hamura was hit and hurled in another direction.
He tried to fight back!
But his speed was nothing in front of Guy.
He couldn't keep up at all.
"Big brother…"
Hamura could only let out a desperate, wretched cry for help.
"Hamura!"
The Sage of Six Paths sensed something was wrong. He shouted and tried to rush to help.
But Funan's sword came crashing down like a warhammer.
"Bastard! You think you're just going to waltz in and save him? What do you take me for?" Funan growled. "I'm already in a foul mood—so I'll take it out on you. Go to hell!"
[BOOM!]
With Funan's brutal assault, the Sage didn't even have a chance to support Hamura—he was forced to keep retreating himself.
[BOOM!]
Finally—
After dozens of relentless strikes, Guy finally seized the opening he needed. With a thunderous kick, he sent his opponent flying.
Without sparing Hamura a second glance, Guy turned and charged straight at Hagoromo.
"Daytime Tiger!"
"ROAR!"
The shockwave howled as it surged toward the Sage.
Hagoromo quickly steadied himself, but his Susanoo was already covered in countless cracks—cracks that continued to spread.
Seeing that, Guy's onslaught grew even more ferocious.
"Evening Elephant!"
He unleashed a flurry of devastating blows.
[Boom!]
Finally—
Hagoromo's Susanoo shattered.
Now even the Sage of Six Paths began to panic.
Under Guy's attacks, he was already wounded—he couldn't take much more.
If this continued, how would he stand a chance against Uchiha Funan?
Immediately, several Truth-Seeking Orbs flew toward Guy, while another expanded into a barrier to shield Hagoromo.
"Hmph!"
Funan sneered. With a wave of his hand, an equal number of Truth-Seeking Orbs intercepted and neutralized Hagoromo's.
Then—
"Kamui!"
With a low growl, Funan activated the Mangekyō ability: Kamui.
Instantly, Hagoromo's protective barrier peeled open like a banana—completely undone.
"Damn it!"
The moment the barrier was breached, Hagoromo's heart dropped. Panic flickered across his eyes.
"YAHOO!"
Guy let out a beastlike roar. With a blazing trail of red afterimages behind him, he charged at the Sage.
In that instant, Guy transformed into a crimson dragon, his momentum so terrifying it seemed to rupture even space itself.
"NIGHT GUY!!!"
[BOOM!]
At last—Guy unleashed his strongest technique.
And it landed squarely on Hagoromo.
"PUH!"
The Sage of Six Paths coughed up a mouthful of blood, his body shooting through the air like a meteor.
[RUMBLE!!!]
The sheer force of Guy's kick was overwhelming.
A massive rift tore through the land, stretching from horizon to horizon.
[Boom!]
Guy crashed to the ground, motionless.
There wasn't a trace of chakra left in him.
He had burned it all away.
[Whoosh!]
Funan appeared beside him and channeled his Six Paths power into Guy's body, sustaining his life.
But—
The wild force of the Eight Gates had utterly ravaged his body.
After a quick scan, Funan let out a breath of relief.
The damage was severe, but still treatable.
Having read the original story, Funan wasn't about to make the same mistake it did.
He had reforged Guy's entire body beforehand, ensuring that using the Eight Gates wouldn't tear him apart.
Of course—
Even though the research data had looked promising, he still hadn't been certain. That was why he'd initially forbidden Guy from using the technique.
After all, data was just data. What happened in real combat… who could say?
"Take care of him."
Tobirama rushed over to Guy's side. After giving this order, Funan charged toward Hagoromo.
The Sage of Six Paths emerged.
He was down on one knee.
Tiny wounds covered his entire body—even his face.
Blood dripped from the corner of his mouth.
One arm hung limp at his side.
He gasped for breath, chest heaving, eyes full of disbelief.
Might Guy…
He had never paid attention to this man.
Who would've thought... that he'd end up suffering this much damage because of him?
The only times he had truly noticed Guy were when Funan brought him into the lab—or used some special method to help strengthen him.
Even then, he hadn't cared.
Guy was clearly loyal to Funan, and from Hagoromo's perspective, it was only natural for Funan to empower someone loyal to him.
He never imagined—damn it—that he was actually a beast!
Damn!
And now, seeing Funan charging at him at full speed, Hagoromo finally started to panic.
He began rapidly regenerating his body, while sending several Truth-Seeking Orbs flying toward Funan like cannonballs.
[BOOM!]
With a slight wave of the Flame Fan in his hand, Funan effortlessly deflected them all.
Hagoromo's face turned pale. As he looked at Funan drawing closer and closer, his expression twisted into a snarl.
"AAAAAAAH!!!"
Hagoromo suddenly threw his head back and roared at the sky.
[STAB!]
A sharp dagger pierced directly into his chest.
Hagoromo froze.
What the hell?! You're not playing by the rules!
I was about to unleash a major technique—and you stabbed me from behind?!
Hagoromo stiffly turned his head… and saw Funan standing right behind him.
Funan was breathing heavily but wore a cheerful grin as he spoke: "How's that, Hagoromo? Pretty fast, right? That Body Flicker Technique of mine…"
"You really should've been more cautious. My Body Flicker… don't you know it's one of my specialties?"
"Cough! Cough!"
The Sage of Six Paths coughed up several mouthfuls of blood. Watching Funan's clone still charging toward him, he said bitterly, "Impressive… When did you create that clone?"
"Not telling you."
Funan grinned. "Die in frustration and ignorance!"
The Sage of Six Paths: "..."
"I don't know what kind of ultimate technique you were planning to unleash," Funan said with a chuckle, "but if I stopped you, then that's all that matters."
"Hagoromo, we've been fighting for this long…" he added, "and finally, it looks like we have a winner."
"A winner?"
The Sage sneered. "Uchiha Funan, you're getting ahead of yourself. It's far from over!"
"ROAR!!!"
A massive repulsive force erupted.
Caught off guard, Funan was blasted back several steps.
Immediately after, strange patterns began surfacing on the Sage's forehead.
In the blink of an eye, the markings spread across his entire body.
Then, just as quickly, they began to fade.
But with their disappearance, the injuries on the Sage's body also started to vanish.
By the time the last pattern faded, every trace of his wounds had completely disappeared.
Funan could clearly sense that a massive chunk of the Sage's chakra had just vanished.
"Heh."
Funan let out a cold laugh. "That cost you a lot of chakra. Do you still think you have a shot at winning in your current state?"
The Sage's face darkened. "There's only one way to find out."
"Try and you'll die! I already prepared your coffin, and I keep my promises!"
Funan lunged at him again.
[Boom! Boom! Boom!]
The two clashed once more in fierce combat.
Meanwhile, on the final battlefield—
The Slug Sage and the White Snake Sage had joined forces.
While their coordination wasn't exactly smooth—and there was a faint sense of friction between them—even so, dealing with a single Toad Sage posed no problem.
The two of them had now driven Gamamaru into a wild scramble, forcing him to leap and dodge just to survive.
The tide of battle had been decided.
Seeing this, Funan understood clearly: as long as he maintained control of the situation, victory would naturally fall into his hands.
However—
I want to speed things up.
His eyes gleamed with a sharp light.