The Shinobi Alliance, scattered across the battlefield, stared in awe at the two figures suspended in the sky. Ayanami Kaito and Uchiha Madara hovered mid-air, their robes flowing in the fierce wind, their presence alone bending the heavens.
Hyuga clansmen, watching through their Byakugan, were the first to notice the eerie similarity between the two. Their urgent messages reached the Five Kage instantly.
Among them, Ōnoki was the oldest, the one with the deepest memories of the past. Yet even he, who had lived through wars few others could recall, had never witnessed strength at this level. His wrinkled face grew pale.
All eyes turned to Tsunade. The others trusted her knowledge, for she had spoken before of the Ten Tails' origin. Surely, she would understand what they were seeing.
Tsunade's brows knit tightly as she considered the sight. Her voice was steady, but heavy with the weight of truth. "Do you remember what I said about the Ten Tails?"
The other Kage nodded.
"There was one thing I didn't say before. The Sage of Six Paths himself was the first Ten Tails' jinchūriki. If I'm correct, both Kaito and Madara have stepped into the Sage's realm."
Ōnoki's eyes widened. "Hokage! You can't mean—"
"I do."
The battlefield fell silent. Terumi Mei's lips parted slightly as her gaze locked on the distant duel, a flicker of worry softening her expression. Gaara, calm as ever, gave voice to the thought in everyone's minds.
"If they have truly reached that level, then the fate of the ninja world rests on their battle. If Kaito wins, our world remains. If Madara triumphs, then the Infinite Tsukuyomi will enslave us all."
The air grew heavy with their words.
And then it came — a surge of raw power.
The auras of Kaito and Madara erupted at once, black and white forces colliding like two worlds crashing together. The earth groaned beneath their pressure, shockwaves tearing through the skies like tidal waves of invisible fire.
The Kage staggered, their bodies crushed by the sheer weight of power radiating from afar. Ōnoki bent his knees, sweat dripping down his forehead as though he carried a mountain on his back.
"Is this really just their chakra clashing?" His voice trembled.
"We left the frontline, yet the pressure still reaches us," the Fourth Raikage growled, his face dark with disbelief.
Tsunade glanced at the exhausted shinobi lying nearby, many barely conscious under the crushing spiritual weight. Her voice hardened. "We can't stay here. If the battle starts in full, the aftershocks alone will wipe us out."
Gaara gave a short nod. "She's right. Even at this distance, the two of them make us powerless."
"I agree," Mei added softly.
The Raikage's jaw tightened, but he relented. "We fall back. Now."
Far beneath the battlefield, in the cavern where death lingered, Sasuke's withered body twitched. His heart gave a faint beat. A flicker of chakra kindled in his chest, weaving through his ruined cells. Slowly, agonizingly, his body began to recover.
Not far away, Naruto's condition shifted as well. Though the Nine Tails had been ripped from him, a faint pulse of chakra rose within him, halting the decay of his flesh. His healing was slow, but steady.
The spectral presence of the Sage of Six Paths hovered between them, his power dividing into two streams, one for each boy. His gaze lingered briefly on Kaito before his form dissolved into light.
High above, Kaito and Madara collided in force once more. The shock split the ground below, cracks spiderwebbing across the battlefield. The sky dimmed, swallowed by the overwhelming auras of light and shadow.
At the epicenter of their clash, faint ripples distorted space itself.
Kaito's eyes narrowed. His voice was calm, but laced with quiet recognition. "So, he finally acted."
Madara's Rinnegan followed Kaito's gaze, piercing the cavern below. He saw it instantly — Naruto and Sasuke stirring, touched by the Sage's lingering power.
"So, the Sage of Six Paths has chosen them as well?" Madara mused, frowning. Sasuke, he understood — the boy bore the Rinnegan. But Naruto? The descendant carried only a strange, unfamiliar energy, subtle yet persistent.
Kaito, however, felt it clearly. The will of the Sage was with them.
Madara's expression hardened. "Interesting. Even so, it doesn't matter. Once I crush you, the rest will follow."
Kaito's lips curved into a faint smile. "You sound confident, Madara. Let's see if you can back it up."
Madara raised his scepter, his Rinnegan glowing with immense power. His voice thundered with arrogant certainty.
"Behold the true might of the Rinnegan. Limbo: Border Jail!"
A hum reverberated through the air as an invisible world overlapped their own, a shadow realm that only Rinnegan could perceive. Madara's unseen clones surged forth, their presence oppressive and suffocating.