Kenya couldn't help but feel a strange sense of déjà vu.
Below, even Terumi Mei and more than half of the Mist Shinobi couldn't stop themselves from recalling a scene from four years ago—the Mist Shinobi civil war.
Back then, in the same kind of battle against a Tailed Beast, the sequence was the same: the Beast would first launch a baiting assault, then unleash the ultimate strike—its Tailed Beast Bomb.
And Kenya—no, Aizen—responded in the exact same way: raising his sword high to meet the super S-class destructive force head-on.
The moment the blazing sphere of condensed chakra was less than half a meter from his body, Kenya's blade, lifted skyward, finally swung down with crushing force.
Those who had been there before—Terumi Mei, Ghost Lantern Full Moon, and others—remembered vividly.
Four years ago, Kenya had caught the Tailed Beast Bomb… but at the cost of injuries.
And now, what would happen?
The next instant gave the answer.
At the moment of impact, the sword pressure released from his blade, fused with Reiatsu, burst into a half-spherical shockwave of blinding white light that engulfed his body.
Two forces—one black, one white—clashed head-on.
Everyone expected a catastrophic aftermath, a disaster that could raze the battlefield.
But in less than two seconds, the Tailed Beast Bomb that had surged upward was forced back down by Kenya's sword!
And it was hurtling toward the Two-Tails itself!
The entire exchange took less than five seconds.
The overwhelming back-pressure of Kenya's strike sent the beast's ultimate weapon crashing back against it.
"P–Pressed back!? This isn't even close to what happened four years ago!"
Ghost Lantern Manyue, who had worn a confident grin just moments ago, was left pale with shock.
To have blocked the Tailed Beast Bomb back then, even with injuries, was terrifying enough.
But now, to repel it so effortlessly?
This wasn't within the realm of "ninja" anymore.
In the next moment, Terumi Mei snapped to her senses. She waved frantically and shouted:
"Everyone, retreat! Get out of their fighting range!"
Even without a direct hit, the shockwave from those two monstrous forces could grind ordinary shinobi into dust.
But before her words could even spread, she was already weaving hand seals, muttering under her breath:
"No… it's too late. I can only barely hold it back."
"Water Style: Water Formation Wall!"
A massive torrent of defensive water surged up, the kind that could block even Uchiha Madara's searing flames—proof of Terumi Mei's mastery.
And yet, before such power, it looked pitifully fragile.
"No—nooo!!!"
Several shinobi about to be caught in the shockwave screamed in despair.
As warriors, they had long accepted death.
But to die in such a way—obliterated by forces beyond comprehension—was far too cruel.
"Bakudō No. 79: Ninefold Light Prison."
Amidst the blinding chaos, a calm, clear voice resounded.
In an instant, nine massive obsidian walls manifested out of thin air, sealing off every direction, containing the overwhelming clash of sword pressure and Tailed Beast Bomb.
The earth rumbled violently, splitting with a force that made heaven and earth themselves seem to fracture.
From the outer barrier of Ninefold Light, several gashes kilometers long ripped through the battlefield.
Shinobi who had nearly been swallowed pale with terror—yet compared to the annihilation that almost struck them, this was something they could still escape.
"This is—!"
"Lord Kenya's barrier technique!"
"Incredible! Even while clashing with the Two-Tails, he still had the presence of mind to protect us!"
Relief and awe swept through their ranks.
Slowly, Kenya stepped from the shattered barrier. His blade slid smoothly back into its sheath.
Click.
The sound of Kyōka Suigetsu locking into place echoed faintly through the battlefield.
Behind him, the Ninefold Light Prison crumbled into fragments of darkness and scattered like dust into the sky.
Within, the body of the Two-Tails, wreathed in eerie green flames, was marred with countless deep wounds. Its vitality was ebbing away with the fading barrier.
"Lord Yugito!"
The despair of the Cloud Shinobi stood in stark contrast to the elation of the Allied Shinobi.
But their cries changed nothing.
The colossal body of the Two-Tails toppled like a mountain, shaking the ground in its final fall.
Moments later, it shrank rapidly, reverting to its Jinchūriki—Yugito Nii.
[Current template character: Lord of the Hōgyoku · Aizen Sōsuke. Unlock rate: 51.56%]
From Yugito's fallen body, a familiar turbid-white, semi-gaseous soul slowly rose into the air, drawn straight into the Hōgyoku pulsing within Kenya's chest.
Kenya's eyes narrowed.
"As expected, the soul of the Tailed Beast cannot be absorbed. So… is the true soul bound within the Gedo Statue? Or will it only manifest again once the Ten-Tails is revived?"
He raised his hand high.
At once, the morale of the Allied Shinobi surged to its peak.
The strongest foe of this battle—the Two-Tails Jinchūriki, Yugito Nii—was dead.
And their strongest champion, Uchiha Kenya, stood almost unscathed.
What could be more exhilarating?
"Ahhhh!"
The coalition roared in unison, weapons raised, chakra flaring, surging like a tide as they charged at the retreating Cloud Shinobi forces.
"She's dead!? Lord Yugito is dead!?"
"How… how could this happen!? So easily…! Retreat! Retreat, report this to Lord Raikage!"
The Cloud Shinobi fell into chaos, their formation shattered, panic taking hold.
The battlefield had shifted entirely.
Uchiha Kenya stood overwhelming, untouchable—like a shadow of legends past.
If Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara had survived the First Great Ninja War…
It might have looked something like this.