As they watched the streaking meteor vanish into the sky, everyone fell silent.
Even the Sage of Six Paths, who was still locked in battle, staggered and nearly lost his footing.
He ran?
Hamura just… ran?
Forget the others—even the Sage hadn't seen that coming.
"Zehahaha…"
Funan looked at the Sage of Six Paths with a smirk that was half sneer, half grin. "Hagoromo, your brother ran off. That just leaves you. So—what now? Why not lie down and let us do as we please?"
The final outcome was near.
In high spirits, Funan began mocking the Sage again.
[Swish! Swish! Swish!]
Figures began to appear one by one.
Senju Hashirama looked at the Sage with a complex expression and murmured, "So this is the Sage who founded Ninshū…"
Uchiha Madara stood with his arms crossed, looking down coldly. "The legendary Sage of Six Paths? Hmph. So, you schemed against me, too."
Nagato wore a blank expression, but an enormous amount of chakra was gathering around him.
Tobirama and Minato arrived at one side as well, their eyes locked tightly on the Sage.
Surrounded by Nine-Tails chakra, the two of them now had far greater strength—enough, at least, to be potential trouble for the Sage.
Only the Sage remained silent.
A thousand thoughts condensed into just two words: Damn it.
The Sage turned his head and looked over at the soul bodies clashing with the Edo Tensei shinobi. He let out a long, quiet sigh.
The former Five Kage of every generation—
The members of the Akatsuki—
They were actually this strong?
"Is Heaven out to destroy me?"
The Sage muttered to himself.
After so much preparation, this was the result.
"It's not Heaven. It's me!" Funan chuckled darkly. "Don't blame the heavens. I'm the one who's going to end you. Hagoromo, I will found a new Ninshū, and I will become the new progenitor of chakra."
"I will usher in a new era!"
The Sage looked coldly at Funan.
"Why are you staring at me like that?" Funan scoffed. "To gather soul bodies, you deliberately kept the Shinobi World in constant war for millennia. How many people died because of you? Someone like you—should've been dead long ago."
"Hmph." The Sage snorted lightly and replied indifferently, "Survival of the fittest."
"Well said!"
Funan clapped, laughing loudly. "And that's exactly why you're going to die in a moment."
The Sage's expression darkened. "You don't understand anything."
"No, I understand everything," Funan said with scorn. "The ones you fear—the ones you and your mother both feared—I know about them. And I'm ready to face them."
The Sage's eyes widened in shock. "So you really do know everything! Who are you?!"
"I am Uchiha Funan."
"Attack!"
Several figures charged forward instantly.
[BOOM!!]
The great battle erupted once again.
This would be the final battle.
Funan wiped a drop of blood onto his palm.
"Summoning Technique!"
[POOF!]
A massive figure appeared before everyone.
Upon seeing that form, the Sage of Six Paths felt his heart go completely cold.
The Ten Tails!
His mother—
Ōtsutsuki Kaguya!
"This can't be… this can't be happening!"
Perhaps sensing his own impending defeat, the Sage's expression became dazed. Even in the middle of battle, he was distracted.
Because of that, he was struck by the ferocious assault of Uchiha Madara and Senju Hashirama.
How had it come to this?
[Zzzzz!]
The massive Ten Tails rapidly shrank, reverting to the form of Princess Kaguya.
All-Killing Ash Bones!
As soon as she returned to her original form, Kaguya fired off two All-Killing Ash Bones.
Her hatred for Hagoromo ran deep.
Funan burst into loud laughter and made his move without hesitation.
[BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!]
In a short time, the Sage was seriously injured.
"Heh…"
The Sage let out a bitter laugh.
"What the hell are you laughing at?!"
Funan sneered.
[SMACK!]
"Ahahahaha!"
The Sage let out a furious roar. Clapping his hands together, a shadowy manifestation with furious eyes appeared behind him.
"What the hell are you yelling for?"
Funan's Rinnegan unleashed a massive surge of ocular power.
[BOOM!]
The Sage was blasted into the air.
"Hagoromo, just die already!"
Funan shouted, a black rod materializing in his hand.
[Thud!]
Blood sprayed into the air.
The Sage's body was pierced by several black rods.
"Cough, cough!"
He stood stiffly in place, coughing violently, blood pouring from his lips.
Turning his head, he looked at Funan—deeply, intensely—as if trying to etch this man into his memory.
"What are you staring at?" Funan curled his lip. "If you looked like your mother, I might let it slide. But you? Nah. You're just too damn ugly."
"Heh…"
The Sage didn't get angry. Instead, he chuckled softly and murmured, "Uchiha Funan… can you really… can you really stop them?"
"What do you think?"
Funan sneered. "You spent centuries preparing. Me? Just a few years. And I still took you down. Give me a few more, and I'll kill whoever I damn well please. Doesn't matter how many come—I'll wipe them all out."
"Is that so…"
The Sage smiled in resignation. "After all these years… I'm just so tired."
Scheming against this one, plotting against that one—
Even staying alive in the form of a dead man.
He never had a choice.
His mother had been weaker than him—yet even sealed, she was still alive.
Even Uchiha Madara had managed to come back to life.
Despite being the strongest of them all, he had ended up so utterly defeated.
He had lived in constant fear.
Even surviving in a soul form—that, too, had been a way to protect himself.
Fortunately, now… it was all finally over.
The Sage's expression softened. He murmured, "It's over… it's all finally over. After all these years, I'm truly exhausted. At last, I can rest."
"Yeah," Funan let out a sigh as well, sounding almost sincere. "I really am a good guy, huh? Just look at the state you're in—I've basically saved you, haven't I?"
"You should be thanking me from the bottom of your heart."
The Sage silently stared at Funan.
Even as he was dying, he still wanted to curse him out loud.
With hatred in his eyes, the Sage slowly closed them.
[Buzz—]
And just like that, he vanished.
He had only been a soul—powerful, yes, but ultimately still a spirit.
"It's finally over."
Seeing the Sage disappear, Tobirama exhaled deeply. He looked at Uchiha Funan and asked, "Funan, he's dead, right?"
"Yeah."
Funan nodded. "His soul was destroyed. Even if his body still exists, it's nothing but an empty shell now."
"Good—excellent!"
Tobirama laughed. "Now we can finally breathe easy. Only one left…"
He turned his gaze toward the moon.
"Ōtsutsuki Hamura," Funan said calmly. "The ancestor of the Hyuga Clan. He's fled back to the moon."
He turned to the others. "Go. Kill him."
"Yes!"
Even Uchiha Madara responded without hesitation.
Following Funan's command, Hashirama and the others immediately set out on the path to the moon.
That path was something Funan had prepared long ago.
Knowing such an enemy existed, how could he not be ready?
The powerful group soon arrived on the moon.
And in an instant—
Fierce battle erupted above.
Funan had done the calculations. If Hamura had been uninjured, it might have been different. But in his current state, Hashirama and the others had more than enough power to level the entire moon.
Funan turned his gaze toward the Pure Land. "The soul bodies have dispersed?"
"Yes," Tobirama confirmed. "The moment the Sage died, something changed in them. It was like… they returned to where they were supposed to be. I could sense it—the joy in their souls."
"The Sage really sinned," Funan sighed. "I knew it—I really am the righteous one. Long live me!"
Tobirama glanced at him but couldn't even be bothered to reply.
"At last—it's over!"
Funan stretched lazily.
"Now comes the reconstruction of the Shinobi World."
Funan turned and looked at Kaguya with a grin. "So? How does it feel to be my summoned beast?"
Kaguya's face darkened.
But then—
Under Funan's cold, piercing gaze, she shivered involuntarily.
Suddenly, she understood.
Maybe—
Maybe this was exactly what Funan wanted: for her to resist.
That way, he'd have a reason to seal her again.
Right then—
Kaguya lowered her head and softly said, "To serve as your summoned beast… is my honor."
Funan was genuinely surprised.
He had planned to seal Kaguya again—at least until the Shinobi World was completely stabilized.
Who could've guessed she'd be so cooperative?
Now it felt awkward to go through with it.
"Hmph."
Funan snorted lightly. "At least you know your place. Let's go—this isn't a world for the living. Second, Fourth—you two stay here. Clean everything up in the Pure Land, then return to the Shinobi World."
"Yes!"
Funan departed from the Pure Land.