"My son wants to challenge me? Not a chance! Your old man will always be your old man!"
Asura and Indra deeply understood this truth, so they didn't plan to take any drastic actions against the Six Paths.
But!
There was no way they were going to swallow their anger!
Seriously?
They had been fighting for thousands of years!
Since the birth of the ninja sect, these two brothers had been endlessly battling.
Nonstop!
And now they realized that the Six Paths could have stopped it from the very beginning.
Great!
What more is there to say?
That old man must have had his own schemes!
Indra and Asura were certain of this.
Otherwise, why didn't he stop it?
He gave one of them power, which led to one brother crushing the other, and this fight dragged on for thousands of years?
Is that even possible?
These two brothers weren't stupid. Would they really keep fighting knowing they couldn't win?
How stubborn could they be?
So, in the end, it was the Six Paths who was manipulating his own sons!
Well, they decided to teach him a lesson!
Even if they couldn't hurt him, they wanted to make sure he'd never forget them!
"You care about power, don't you?"
Well, we'll make you lose that power!
The two brothers had discussed this plan during their countless struggles, and after hundreds of years, they finally solidified it.
Honestly, they both felt pretty stifled.
Are you kidding me?
Every time they tried to talk, they could only get half a sentence out.
They were afraid of being noticed by the Six Paths, so they could only communicate briefly during their battles.
So.
They had paid quite the price for this plan.
Luckily!
Now, finally, it was time to reap the rewards.
"Are you really going to do this?"
Sasuke and Naruto looked suspiciously at the two people standing before them.
"Of course!"
Asura and Indra didn't hesitate at all.
"Alright!"
Sasuke thought it over. There was no other choice, so he agreed.
If he could reach out to his brother Itachi, he might have reconsidered.
But right now, he could only rely on the people in front of him, because he could feel it—he was on the verge of losing control.
He was about to lose himself!
As for Naruto...
He trusted his gut that the people in front of him were worth believing in, so he chose to trust them!
...
"Hmm?"
The Six Paths paused for a moment, then abruptly lifted his head, a look of surprise on his face.
He sensed something was changing in the projections he had left within Sasuke and Naruto.
It felt like an illusion.
Had he been deceived?
Who could pull that off?
The Six Paths shook his head.
It wasn't that he underestimated the people of the ninja world—he genuinely looked down on them.
The strongest among them were Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha, and they were still his descendants.
Besides them, who else could there be?
If Itachi heard this, he would definitely find a way to teach the Six Paths a lesson with a well-placed kick.
Madara Uchiha had almost been taken down with one kick. Sure, Six Paths, you're strong, but let's see how you handle that.
As the Six Paths finished his thoughts, he once again felt connected to his clones, letting out a long sigh of relief.
He knew it—nothing would go wrong!
How could anything possibly go wrong!
He continued pouring more power into the effort.
However, that earlier "illusion" had left the Six Paths feeling uneasy.
Instinctively, he wanted to speed things up.
As long as the reincarnations of Asura and Indra fell into his grasp, he would be undefeatable.
What he didn't know was that the two figures were hiding inside Naruto and Sasuke, silently watching him as he channeled power, ready to strike at any moment.
...
Bang!
With Tsunade's powerful punch, the explosion-release ninja was defeated.
"Seal it!"
With a loud shout from the sealing squad, several people moved in unison to seal the explosion-release ninja.
"Finally!"
Several people let out long sighs of relief.
But the reanimated ninja furrowed their brows ever so slightly.
The balance had been broken.
Though only one elite jonin-level ninja had been taken down...
Still!
The fragile balance they had painstakingly maintained was now shattered. If nothing changed, their side would soon have problems.
And indeed, that's exactly what happened!
With the explosion-release ninja sealed, Kakashi and the others accelerated their attack.
In the blink of an eye, Hanzō of the Salamander was sealed.
He had been cut in half by Mifune's sword, followed immediately by a seal to lock him away.
Now, only Danzo and the Third Hokage, Hiruzen, remained among their strongest opponents.
Hiruzen hadn't used summoning jutsu.
He knew that, in his current reanimated state, if he summoned the old monkey Enma, Enma might not even help him.
Just because you summon something doesn't mean it will listen to you.
Orochimaru understood this better than anyone.
He had nearly been eaten by Manda several times.
Enma was called the strongest summoning beast, though like Hiruzen's title of the strongest Hokage, there was a bit of exaggeration involved. Still, Enma's power was undeniable.
As for Danzo...
Just look at the eyes covering his entire body—this guy was obviously bad news.
At least for now, they had already "killed" him several times, but in the blink of an eye, he kept coming back to life.
One thing you had to admit about Danzo...
When it came to dragging things out, he was absolutely top-tier.
"Everyone, push harder! We're close to sealing them completely!"
Kakashi shouted as he looked at the reanimated Third Hokage and Danzo.
"Got it!"
Everyone responded enthusiastically.
"Hmph!"
Hiruzen and Danzo's expressions darkened, but they remained silent.
Of the two, Hiruzen was more willing to be sealed.
Being manipulated to do things against his will was humiliating for the Third Hokage.
At least Hiruzen felt he couldn't accept it.
On the other hand...
Danzo was actually enjoying himself.
He thought this was pretty great.
An immortal body!
Unlimited chakra!
In battle, these were huge advantages.
He even regretted not learning this jutsu sooner.
If he had known, he wouldn't have needed to fight over the Hokage position with anyone.
Given enough time, he would have become Hokage eventually.
If the Fourth Hokage didn't work out, he could wait for the Fifth!
If the Fifth didn't work, then the Sixth!
If the Sixth didn't work, he'd wait for the Seventh!
By the Tenth Hokage, there's no way he wouldn't become Hokage!
...
As the two sides clashed once again, Obito watched from the shadows, his gaze cold.
"Obito, what's our next move?"
Black Zetsu slowly emerged from the ground.
His tone was calm.
At this moment, he didn't dare to act rashly.
He could sense that Obito was nearing the breaking point, driven to the edge by the unfavorable turn in the battle.
Provoking him now would be a death wish.
And really, who could blame him?
"Thinking about it, that makes sense!
Aside from Uchiha Madara, all other operations have almost completely failed.
Uchiha Madara...
Does Obito want him to win?
Wrong!
The only person Obito wants to see fail is probably him.
But the result was the exact opposite!
Tsk tsk tsk!
Obito, poor Obito!
You truly are pitiful!
'What should I do?'
Obito gritted his teeth, his expression twisted in rage, and said, 'Anything Madara can do, I can do too.'
'Didn't he force the Allied Shinobi Forces to retreat?'
'Alright!'
'I'll show him my power too!'
'Wh-what are you planning to do?'
Black Zetsu felt a chill run down his spine.
He had a bad feeling that Obito was about to do something troubling.
And he was right!
Obito sneered and said, 'Isn't Uchiha Itsuki at the headquarters of the Allied Shinobi Forces? I'm going to level that place to the ground!'
'What the hell!'
Black Zetsu was dumbfounded.
Are you crazy?
No, am I crazy?
Are you really going to do that?
Attack the headquarters of the Allied Shinobi Forces?
What the heck!
I'm not even going to say you can do it, I'll just say you're a fool!
Even though the Allied Shinobi Forces headquarters has had its forces drained again and again, Uchiha Itsuki is still there, and for sure, other defensive forces are there too.
And you're going to attack that place?
Haha, how drunk are you?
I don't know how drunk you are, but Obito boldly headed straight toward the Allied Shinobi Forces' headquarters.
'I mean...'
White Zetsu popped out, looking in the direction Obito had gone, muttering, 'Will he be killed?'
'Probably not!'
Black Zetsu hesitated and said, 'He has Kamui. It's the perfect escape technique.'
'But his opponent is Uchiha Itsuki. Do you think he'll give Obito that chance?'
Black Zetsu fell silent.
Damn!
Could Obito actually die?
If he dies, won't my plan need to be adjusted?
Damn, that won't work!
I can't let that guy die.
Black Zetsu turned, glaring at White Zetsu, gritting his teeth, 'Send more clones. Save him when he's on the verge of death!'
'Understood!'
White Zetsu shuddered under Black Zetsu's gaze.
After all, he wasn't the original body; the original had already been killed by Uchiha Itsuki.
He was just one of many clones that Black Zetsu had specifically chosen.
If Black Zetsu really wanted him dead, he wouldn't last till tomorrow.
After all, he's just a clone. Even though he's special, there are tens of thousands of White Zetsu clones, and if one dies, just make more, right?
Who would care?
Immediately!
White Zetsu arranged for enough manpower to assist when Obito was about to be in trouble.
...
'Hmm?'
In the Pure Land.
The ghostly figure of the Sage of Six Paths furrowed his brow once again.
Just now, he seemed to have sensed something again.
Strange!
The power transmission was clearly normal, so why are there still such accidents?
And!
Multiple issues have arisen, giving him an unsettling feeling.
He even instinctively chose to stop transmitting power.
...
'This is bad!'
Sasuke's pupils shrank as he said, 'No, the enemy has withdrawn their power; they're not transmitting anymore.'
'Stay calm!'
Indra, however, was not surprised at all. He said, 'The pause in power transmission is only temporary. It won't be long before they start sending it again.'
'Hmm?'
Sasuke looked at Indra and asked, 'How can you be so sure?'
'Of course!'
Indra sneered, 'Trust me, I know my father very well.'
After thousands of years!
He couldn't not know!
For the Sage of Six Paths, the only unexpected thing was probably that Ashura and Indra's souls had regained consciousness.
Not only were they conscious, but they were also planning to scheme against the Sage.
Actually.
That's not surprising.
Dealing with issues related to souls has always been tricky.
Even the Sage of Six Paths couldn't fully understand the mysteries of the soul.
Sure enough!
As soon as Indra finished speaking, the Sage resumed transmitting power again.
'He trusts in his power!'
Indra said quietly, 'He has absolute confidence in his strength; he never believes anyone could outwit him.'
'Well, he's going to be disappointed this time.'
Sasuke's voice was calm.
'Sigh!'
Indra sighed deeply.
The Sage's confidence was understandable.
The journey to awakening the Rinnegan was already nerve-wracking.
Even knowing his brother could be resurrected, the Sage still managed to evolve his Sharingan into the Rinnegan.
I mean, where's your pain?
If you're holding a resurrection token, how can you be so stressed that you awaken the Rinnegan? Your tolerance is incredible!
Afterward, he joined forces with his brother to seal their mother.
And here comes the question.
Ōtsutsuki Hamura!
Did he willingly go to the moon to accompany his mother, or did he sense something that forced him to leave the ninja world and head to the moon?
To be honest.
Indra thought the latter was more likely.
Accompany his mother?
He could do that anytime!
It's not like you can only visit the moon once.
Why would he go there and stay forever?
The more you think about it, the more it feels off!
Forget it!
None of that matters to me.
What I need to do now is use my soul's power to trap the Sage and make him lose a large portion of his strength.
'It's about time!'
Sasuke suddenly shouted.
'Can't hold on anymore?'
'What do you think!'
Sasuke gritted his teeth at Indra's nonchalant attitude, 'If you don't make your move, I'm going to be taken over.'
'Haha!'
Indra chuckled and stepped forward, standing in front of Sasuke.
'The power is yours now. How you use it is up to you!'
'You, you...'
The Sage's projection stared at his son in shock.
How is this kid here?
'Haha, Dad, how are you?'
Indra waved at the Sage and said, 'Surprised to see me? Come on, I'm still your son. It's not like I could be that useless, right?'
'You, you...'
The Sage was furious.
Indra's appearance had completely blindsided him.
This meant that his son had likely been watching everything he had done all these years.
Because, in Naruto's body, Ashura's figure also appeared, and he waved kindly at the Sage.
Both sons appeared at the same time?
How is this a coincidence?
He didn't believe it!
'Father, we're your sons!'
Ashura looked at the Sage and sighed, 'If you really wanted something, you could have just told us. Why did you have to scheme against us?'
The Sage forced a strained smile and was about to speak, but Indra interrupted him.
'Alright, no more nonsense. Let's get started!'
'Dad, you've been scheming against Ashura and me for a long time.'
'Because of your scheming, we fought for so many years, and that makes us very angry. So we're here to collect some interest.'
'What... What are you going to do?'
The Sage was both shocked and angry.
'Obviously, this!'
Indra laughed loudly, and his chakra surged, spreading throughout the space. At the same time, his power began devouring the Sage's power.
'No!'
The Sage realized what his two sons were doing and screamed in panic."