Isshiki is currently on the verge of madness.
With no other choice, he's resting in Jigen's vessel at the Kara organization's headquarters, recovering his chakra while preparing to summon Kashin Koji.
He wants to understand why Koji and Amado betrayed him and let Kawaki escape. But before Koji arrives, he suddenly senses something strange in his personal dimension!
Jigen hurries back to that dimension to investigate. To his shock, he realizes that his beloved Juubi sapling and the sealed Naruto are gone!
Jigen never expected that, after just a brief rest, his headquarters would be infiltrated. Naruto's rescue is one thing, but the key issue is that his precious Juubi sapling was stolen too! It's enough to make him want to die!
Kawaki's vessel is Isshiki's lifeline in the short term, and the Juubi is his last hope to return to the Otsutsuki Clan in his lifetime. Even if Isshiki retrieves Kawaki and reincarnates perfectly through Kama, without the Juubi, he cannot plant the Divine Tree or obtain the Chakra Fruit. The main Otsutsuki Clan would never let him off!
Thus, Kawaki and the Juubi are now Isshiki's lifelines—neither can be lost. With both gone, how could he not be furious?
Enraged, Jigen begins examining the battle traces around him for clues. Soon, he notices something.
At the sealing vessel's location, Boro's rotting corpse lies, with clear marks of a giant palm strike on the ground—definitely from a Perfect Susano'o! Nearby, the palace also shows remnants of native ninja ninjutsu battles.
Jigen is instantly convinced that the vile Sasuke Uchiha and other Konoha ninjas secretly infiltrated his dimension, rescuing Naruto and stealing his beloved Juubi!
In a blaze of fury, Jigen disregards his need for rest and immediately opens a space-time portal. In one step, he enters Konoha Village, ready to reclaim the Juubi and Kawaki!
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Jigen arrives in Konoha and instantly spots the Juubi sapling and Kawaki beside Sasuke. Caught red-handed with the evidence, Jigen's rage intensifies.
"Uchiha Sasuke!"
"You filthy thieves, hand over the Juubi and Kawaki!"
Furious, Jigen charges toward Sasuke and the Juubi on the ground, intent on seizing them back.
As Jigen appears, Sasuke senses the dark chakra pressure and recognizes his opponent.
Kawaki trembles, as if suffering from trauma, recalling the fear of being dominated by Jigen. His body shakes, barely able to muster the strength to fight.
"Trouble!" Sasuke thinks, not expecting Jigen to attack so quickly!
Many Konoha villagers haven't been evacuated yet. Sasuke knows he's no match for Jigen, and a large-scale battle in the village would cause a catastrophe on the level of its destruction!
If that happens, forget about the Juubi and Kawaki—Konoha itself might not be saved!
A major battle in the village must be avoided!
Thus, the only option is to lure Jigen away from Konoha first.
With this in mind, Sasuke acts swiftly, activating his Rinnegan and opening a massive space-time portal. He takes himself, Kawaki, and the Juubi through, instantly leaving Konoha.
"Sasuke!"
Shikamaru and the others shout, unable to stop him, but they know this is the best choice.
Meanwhile, Jigen, lunging toward the Juubi and Sasuke, is one step too late to stop their escape.
"Hmph!"
"You really think you can escape?"
"No matter where you go, Kawaki, you'll never slip from my grasp!" Jigen snorts angrily.
Ignoring the Konoha ninjas around him—mere insignificant ants in his eyes—his targets are only Kawaki and the Juubi.
Soon, using the Kama in his body, Jigen locks onto Kawaki's location on the other side. He opens a space-time portal and pursues them, determined to reclaim the Juubi and Kawaki!
Seeing Sasuke and Jigen leave one after another, Shikamaru and the others breathe a sigh of relief, grateful no major battle occurred in the village, but their hearts remain uneasy.
After all, even Naruto and Sasuke together couldn't defeat Jigen before. Now, with only Sasuke, plus the burden of protecting the unreliable Kawaki, how can he stand against Jigen?
The best outcome is Kawaki being captured while Sasuke escapes safely with the Juubi. The worst is both Kawaki and the Juubi being taken by Jigen, with Sasuke falling in battle.
Either way, for Konoha, it's a massive loss and threat!
Unfortunately, Shikamaru is helpless. A battle of this level is beyond their ability to intervene. All they can do now is evacuate the villagers and protect the village.
"Quick, speed up the evacuation of all villagers!"
"Also, send someone to inform the Sixth Hokage and Orochimaru—they're the only ones who might help Sasuke!"
"Sasuke, you and Naruto must not fall!" Shikamaru frowns with worry, feeling this crisis is more dangerous than ever.
In the past, no matter the danger, Naruto's fate was never left uncertain by an enemy. Now, he's vanished, which is terrifying.
Has the era truly changed?
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On the other side, Sasuke, using his space-time portal, arrives at the Tomb Mountain base in the Land of Iron.
This remote, sparsely populated area is ideal for a battlefield. Sasuke knows that as long as Kawaki's Kama remains, Jigen will track him wherever he goes. Thus, his only options are to abandon Kawaki or fight Jigen to the death.
Given Sasuke's character, abandoning Kawaki—Naruto's adopted son, good or bad—is unthinkable. Thus, only one path remains: a fight to the death.
However, Sasuke's condition is poor. Just recovering from a coma, he's already absorbed half of Shikamaru's chakra. Opening the space-time portal to leave Konoha consumed a significant amount. Long-distance portal travel, though less costly than interdimensional jumps, is still a heavy burden for Sasuke, whose chakra is barely a tenth recovered and whose body is weakened. In this state, defeating Jigen is impossible, even delaying him is unfeasible.
Unless…
With no other choice, Sasuke turns his gaze to the Juubi sapling. He once saw Jigen extract chakra from it to replenish his Kama's consumption. This Bijuu-like sapling must hold considerable chakra. With his Rinnegan, Sasuke can absorb it!
Without hesitation, Sasuke activates his Rinnegan's chakra absorption ability, drawing massive amounts of the Juubi' chakra into his body like a whale swallowing water, restoring his condition and chakra.
He could also use the Six Paths — Juubi Coffin Seal to seal the sapling within himself, but he abandons the idea.
For one, as he noted before, the Juubi sapling is far inferior to a full Juubi; even if sealed within him, the power boost would be limited. Additionally, becoming a Jinchuriki is a one-way path. Without the Juubi, he'd die instantly, and after sealing it, he'd lose that option. Jigen, desperate to reclaim the Juubi, would pursue him relentlessly.
Thus, it's better to absorb some of the Juubi' chakra for now.
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Meanwhile, Jigen arrives at Tomb Mountain, tracking Kawaki's Kama. Emerging from the portal, he sees Sasuke draining his Juubi sapling!
"You bastard!"
"That's my precious child!" Jigen rages, feeling utterly betrayed.
The Juubi sapling, his untouchable treasure, is now being exploited by Sasuke, its chakra forcibly absorbed. The humiliation and fury drive Jigen to the brink of insanity!
"Uchiha Sasuke, I'll kill you!" Jigen explodes, transforming into a black light and charging at Sasuke.
In just a dozen seconds, Sasuke absorbs enough chakra from the Juubi to nearly fully restore his condition.
The poor Juubi sapling wilts instantly, as if drained dry. Previously sapped by Jigen and now by Sasuke, filling two near-Six Paths-level chakra vessels has nearly exhausted it!
Seeing Jigen attack, Sasuke halts his absorption.
"Kawaki, keep an eye on the Juubi!"
Sasuke warns Kawaki, not telling him to flee—Kama makes escape futile. Drawing his sword, Sasuke charges at Jigen.
*CLANG!*
Sasuke's Kusanagi sword clashes with Jigen's black rod, creating a shocking impact.
"You cursed vermin! How dare you target my Juubi!"
Jigen instantly activates Kama Stage Two, roaring as if he wants to tear Sasuke apart, and unleashes Sukonahikona, enlarging dozens of black rods to pierce Sasuke.
Prepared, Sasuke activates Amenotejikara, instantly swapping places with the air behind Jigen.
Amenotejikara's air-swap consumes immense chakra, so Sasuke rarely uses it, but with the Juubi' chakra, he can afford to be reckless.
Teleporting behind Jigen, Sasuke swings his Kusanagi, now imbued with the dazzling lightning of Chidori, slashing at Jigen.
Caught off guard, Jigen didn't expect Amenotejikara to swap with air! He hurriedly enlarges nearby black rods to form a defense.
*ZING!*
Sasuke's blade cuts through two black rod segments, then strikes Jigen, severing half his left arm and leaving a long gash on his back!
"Hmm?"
"Why is he so weak?" Sasuke wonders, stunned that his attack injured Jigen so easily!
Jigen's speed and durability are far below his previous performance. With his former speed and kicking power capable of shattering Susano'o, he shouldn't have been hit.
Why is he so slow and weak now?
Unbeknownst to Sasuke, Jigen exhausted too much chakra and stamina in a prior battle. Even with Kama Stage Two, he's at less than half his usual combat strength. In this weakened state, even facing Kashin Koji would be challenging.
How could he match a fully restored Sasuke? This is why Jigen sealed Naruto earlier, avoiding a direct fight.
In short, a severely weakened Jigen is no match for a fully powered Sasuke!