The news of the headquarters' assault spread like wildfire across every active battlefield. Through Yamanaka Inoichi's mind transmission network, Shikaku's urgent communications reached every corner of the war zone, carrying with them a desperate urgency that electrified the Allied Shinobi Forces.
"Priority One directive to all units: Enemy has initiated direct assault on command headquarters. Accelerate current operations. Eliminate remaining hostiles with extreme prejudice and converge on headquarters immediately. This is not a drill. Repeat: this is not a drill."
The effect was immediate and dramatic. Across the scattered theaters of war, ninja who had been methodically gaining ground against their reanimated opponents suddenly exploded into action with renewed ferocity. The careful, measured advances that had characterized much of the conflict gave way to desperate rushes as every shinobi understood the stakes.
They had to eliminate the enemies before them now. Every second of delay brought them closer to total strategic collapse. If Madara succeeded in his assault on the command structure, the entire war effort could crumble regardless of individual battlefield victories.
But even as the Allied Forces pushed themselves beyond their limits, none of them could have imagined the true scale and intensity of the battle erupting at their headquarters. The conflict raging there transcended anything most of them had ever witnessed—a clash between forces that seemed to challenge the very foundations of what ninja combat could achieve.
"BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!"
The thunderous impacts echoed across the landscape as Minato's relentless assault continued to hammer against Madara's perfect Susanoo. Each strike carried the concentrated force of natural energy compressed and shaped by one of history's most innovative jutsu practitioners. The ethereal armor that had seemed invincible was beginning to show cracks, hairline fractures spreading across its crystalline surface under the sustained barrage.
Yet for every section that shattered, Madara's inexhaustible chakra reserves simply regenerated the damage. The Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan's power seemed limitless, its ocular energy flowing like an endless river to restore and reinforce the titanic construct.
"Do you believe that absorbing more natural energy will somehow grant you safety?" Madara's voice carried across the battlefield with casual indifference, as if he were discussing the weather rather than a battle that would determine the world's fate.
His analysis was coldly accurate. The natural energy available in any given area was finite, and Minato's increasingly desperate absorption was creating a scarcity that worked in Madara's favor. The more power the Fourth Hokage drew from the environment, the less remained available for Hashirama's own Sage Mode techniques.
"That's the only reason Naruto and Sasuke have lasted this long," Madara reflected with satisfaction. Under normal circumstances, the First Hokage's power would have overwhelmed the young shinobi within minutes. But with his access to natural energy limited by Minato's simultaneous usage, Hashirama was operating at reduced capacity.
Below them, the battle between the younger generation and the titanic constructs continued with desperate intensity. The Gedo Statue and the Wood Human moved like living mountains, their every step creating tremors that shook the earth for miles around. Naruto, Sasuke, and Kushina darted between their massive limbs like insects avoiding the feet of giants, their survival dependent on speed, timing, and increasingly desperate teamwork.
The Gedo Statue's attacks had devolved into something almost animalistic—mindless lunges driven by its overwhelming hunger for the Nine-Tails' chakra. This primitive behavior was actually working in the defenders' favor, as predictable assault patterns were far easier to evade than calculated strategy.
If the statue had retained any semblance of tactical intelligence, the three young shinobi would have been overwhelmed and captured within minutes.
"Swish! Swish! Swish!"
The air filled with the whistling sound of massive chains as they erupted from the Wood Human's form, each link forged from Hashirama's chakra and harder than tempered steel. They descended like metallic rain, seeking to entangle and immobilize their targets through sheer overwhelming numbers.
Kushina's response was immediate and instinctive. Golden chains burst from her back, their surfaces inscribed with sealing formulas that seemed to write themselves in flowing script. These were the legendary Adamantine Sealing Chains of the Uzumaki clan, weapons that could bind even Tailed Beasts and had once held the Nine-Tails itself during its rampage through Konoha.
The collision between Mito's chains and Kushina's was spectacular, sending shockwaves rippling through the air as metal rang against metal. But where Mito's constructs shattered under the impact, Kushina's chains held firm, their golden glow intensifying as Nine-Tails chakra flowed through their structure.
"Now that I can access the nine tails power freely," Kushina thought grimly, "my chains far exceed what Mito can produce in her current state."
Yet even as she celebrated this small victory, the Wood Human's follow-up attack was already incoming. Massive fists, each one larger than a building, descended toward their position with crushing force.
Simply defending wouldn't be enough. They needed to go on the offensive or be gradually worn down by the sheer relentlessness of their opponents.
"MOM!"
Naruto's warning shout cut through the chaos as the piercing whistle of wind blades announced his counterattack. Behind Kushina, the distinctive sound of chakra being shaped and compressed reached a crescendo that made the air itself seem to vibrate.
Kushina didn't need to look back—her enhanced perception painted a clear picture of her son's technique as it took form. She adjusted her position slightly, ensuring she wouldn't interfere with the incoming assault while maintaining her defensive screen.
"Big Ball Rasenshuriken!"
Naruto's voice carried the strain of channeling enormous amounts of chakra as he lifted the massive technique overhead. The spinning sphere of wind chakra had grown beyond anything he had previously achieved, its surface crackling with energy that seemed barely contained by his will.
His eyes found Sasuke across the battlefield, and understanding passed between them in an instant. They had fought together long enough to coordinate complex techniques without verbal communication, their battle instincts synchronizing perfectly.
Sasuke's Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan spun faster as he channeled power through his Susanoo. In the ethereal fighter's massive hands, a crossbow materialized—not the simple weapon it appeared to be, but a focusing device for one of the most dangerous techniques in his arsenal.
The bowstring drew back with supernatural force as black flames gathered at the arrow's tip, their heat distorting the air around them. This wasn't ordinary fire—it was Amaterasu, the inextinguishable flames that would burn until their target was completely consumed.
"Flame Release: Susanoo: Kagutsuchi!"
"SASUKE!"
Naruto's shout carried across the battlefield as he hurled his massive Rasenshuriken with all his strength. The technique tore through the air, its wind blades creating a sound like a hundred screaming eagles as it raced toward its target.
"SWISH!"
Simultaneously, Sasuke released his arrow of black flame, the projectile moving with meteor-like speed as it intercepted Naruto's technique in mid-flight.
"CLASH!"
The collision between wind and flame created something beyond either technique's individual power. The Rasenshuriken's cutting winds caught the Amaterasu flames and spread them in all directions, while the eternal fire used the wind as fuel to expand exponentially.
"BOOM!"
The resulting explosion painted half the sky in brilliant black and gold as the combined technique struck the Wood Human's descending fist. The inextinguishable flames spread across the construct's surface like hungry demons, their supernatural heat beginning to consume everything they touched.
Amaterasu lived up to its reputation—once ignited, the flames clung to their target with supernatural tenacity, burning with an intensity that seemed to violate natural law.
"SUCCESS!"
Naruto's excited shout echoed across the battlefield, his voice carrying the relief and triumph of someone who had watched an impossible gambit pay off. For a moment, he allowed himself to believe they had gained a decisive advantage.
That moment of celebration nearly cost him everything.
Behind him, the Gedo Statue had continued its relentless advance, its massive form moving with surprising stealth despite its enormous size. The creature's obsession with the Nine-Tails' chakra had reached fever pitch, and it saw Naruto's momentary distraction as the perfect opportunity to strike.
The statue's gigantic hand descended toward the young Jinchūriki like a mountain falling from the sky.
"NARUTO!"
Kushina's warning came too late. By the time Naruto registered the threat and spun around, the massive palm was already within striking distance. There was no time to dodge, no space to maneuver, no technique that could be activated quickly enough to make a difference.
Swish!
Sasuke's Susanoo materialized between Naruto and certain death, the ethereal fighter's blade crackling with black flames as it intercepted the Gedo Statue's grasp. The Amaterasu-enhanced weapon should have been capable of cutting through anything, its supernatural fire able to consume even the strongest defenses.
"TURN TO ASH!"
Sasuke's voice carried absolute conviction as he brought his flaming blade down on the statue's palm. In his mind, there was no question of the outcome—nothing could withstand Amaterasu's eternal hunger.
But instead of the expected destruction, something unprecedented occurred. A thin film of red chakra, translucent as soap bubbles but somehow incredibly resilient, manifested across the statue's palm. The Amaterasu flames struck this barrier and began to burn, but rather than consuming the statue itself, they were contained within the chakra film.
The barrier burned away completely, but the statue's flesh remained untouched.
"BANG!"
Before Sasuke could process this impossible development, a shockwave erupted from the statue's palm with tremendous force. The concussive blast shattered his Amaterasu-enhanced blade like glass, reducing the supernatural weapon to dispersing wisps of chakra.
The statue's massive hand closed around Susanoo's form with crushing grip.
Sasuke's physical body shuddered as feedback from his chakra construct sent waves of pain through his nervous system. The sensation of being grasped by something so impossibly large was terrifying on a primal level, triggering every evolutionary instinct that warned of being prey to a predator beyond comprehension.
Without warning, the Gedo Statue lifted Susanoo toward its gaping maw, its instinctive hunger driving it to consume anything that contained significant chakra. While Sasuke lacked a Tailed Beast, his power levels were still substantial enough to trigger the creature's feeding response.
"Damn it!" Sasuke thought desperately, fighting the urge to dismiss Susanoo and flee. "If I drop my defenses now, those fingers will crush me like an insect."
At that critical moment, salvation came from an unexpected source. A chain of pure golden light erupted from Kushina's position, its surface blazing with Nine-Tails chakra as it wrapped around the statue's arm with binding force.
She turned toward Naruto, her eyes carrying a mixture of maternal concern and tactical calculation. "NOW!"
Understanding flooded through Naruto as he leaped into the air, his hands forming the familiar cross-shaped seal that had become his signature technique.
"BANG! BANG! BANG!"
Hundreds of shadow clones materialized simultaneously, each one wreathed in the Nine-Tails' golden chakra as they spread across the battlefield. Their movements were perfectly synchronized as they began forming massive Rasengan, the combined chakra output creating a sound like approaching thunder.
"Super Large Ball Rasengan Barrage!"
"BANG! BANG! BANG!"
The coordinated assault struck the Gedo Statue's arm with devastating force, each individual Rasengan contributing to an accumulated impact that made the massive creature roar in pain and surprise. Its grip loosened involuntarily, allowing Sasuke to break free and drop back to solid ground.
"Sasuke, are you alright?"
Kushina maintained her chain binding on the statue's arms while deploying additional restraints, her goal being to completely immobilize the creature before it could launch another attack.
Sasuke didn't immediately respond to her concern. Instead, he found himself looking at Naruto, who had just landed beside him with a characteristic grin that somehow managed to be both sheepish and proud.
"Thanks for what you did back there," Naruto said quietly, his usual boisterous tone replaced by genuine gratitude.
"You're such a troublesome guy," Sasuke replied, but his words carried affection rather than annoyance.
"CRACK!"
Their moment of camaraderie was interrupted by an ominous sound from the Wood Human. The massive construct, which had been writhing in agony as Amaterasu flames consumed its exterior, suddenly began to tremble violently.
Before their shocked eyes, the burning sections of the creature's body began to fall away like molting skin. Every piece touched by the inextinguishable flames simply detached and dropped to the ground, leaving the core structure untouched.
"WHAT?!"
Sasuke's voice cracked with disbelief. Amaterasu was supposed to be inescapable—flames that burned until their target was completely consumed. Yet somehow, the First Hokage had found a way to simply discard the affected portions like unwanted clothing.
The Wood Human that emerged from this molting process was significantly smaller than before, but its power remained terrifyingly intact. On its head, both Hashirama and Uzumaki Mito stood unharmed, their expressions carrying the calm confidence of shinobi who had survived countless battles through adaptability and tactical brilliance.
Hashirama pressed his palms together in a familiar gesture, and the diminished Wood Human raised its fist with crushing intent.
"LOOK OUT!"
Sasuke moved instinctively to shield Naruto, his Susanoo reforming around both of them as the massive fist descended like a falling meteor.
"BOOM!"
The impact was catastrophic. The ground beneath them didn't just crack—it completely gave way, creating a crater that resembled a meteor strike. At the center of the devastation, Sasuke's Susanoo showed deep fractures across its entire structure, while blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.
The scale difference between their techniques was becoming impossible to ignore. Each direct hit revealed just how outclassed they were by opponents whose power had been refined across decades of conflict.
But as Sasuke stared up at the Wood Human looming over them, something fundamental began to change within his body. The Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan patterns in his eyes started rotating with increasing speed, their crimson light intensifying as they synchronized with cellular changes occurring deep within his tissues.
The First Hokage's cells that had been transplanted into his system suddenly blazed with vital energy, their incredible life force flowing through his chakra network like liquid fire. As his injuries began to heal at superhuman speed, massive amounts of chakra started generating spontaneously.
Two distinct powers—Uchiha and Senju, Yin and Yang, spiritual energy and physical vitality—began to merge within Sasuke's body, creating something entirely new.
The real battle was just beginning.
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