"What?"
A burst of force sent the Fourth Raikage flying backward. It wasn't just his attack—Gaara's, Mei Terumī's, and Ōnoki's strikes were all blown away as well. Madara rushed straight toward Kiyosuke.
A black rod sprouted from Madara's palm. Kiyosuke's sharp eyes immediately recognized what it was. He braced himself, every muscle tense, not daring to lower his guard.
In the blink of an eye, Madara thrust the rod through Kiyosuke's body—only to see flames erupting from the wound. He looked startled.
"You turned your body into pure energy in advance?"
"That's basic stuff!" Kiyosuke sneered. His solid, powerful fist slammed into Madara's face, exploding his head in an instant.
"Gaara!"
Sand surged up, wrapping around Madara's body. Paper scraps swirled and reshaped into a new head. With a roar, Madara's Susanoo erupted outward, shattering the sand's grip.
Kiyosuke gave a cold snort. He struck the black rod in his chest, snapping it apart, then leapt back to widen the distance between them.
"Kiyosuke, your body..." Mei Terumī rushed over in panic, her face pale with worry for her husband. When she saw him calmly wrap the broken black rod in cloth and remove it unharmed, she finally breathed out in relief.
"Don't let that thing hit you," she warned. "Even a light wound will mess with your chakra flow—you'll lose control of your body."
"Got it."
The Five Kage nodded together. A serpent slithered up from the ground, swallowing the broken rod.
Kiyosuke drew the Kusanagi Sword and pointed it straight at Madara.
"All right then—let's start round two!"
Madara smiled faintly.
"Interesting. In that case, I'll return the favor and show you my true power, Asakawa Kiyosuke!"
A terrifying surge of chakra erupted from him. Susanoo instantly materialized around his body.
The complete form—over a hundred meters tall—stood towering above the earth, clad in jet-black armor. Madara gazed down at the Five Kage with cold contempt, as though looking at mere insects.
"The Complete-Body Susanoo," Mei muttered.
"Now, let me show you…the ultimate power of the Uchiha!"
"N-No way! How can you possess such power?!" Ōnoki stammered in disbelief. "That battle back then—that wasn't your full strength?!"
He recalled the fight of his youth, when Madara had faced both him and Mu. That terrifying power—hadn't it been his limit?
"Have you ever seen an adult fight seriously against children?" Madara scoffed, then locked his blazing eyes onto Kiyosuke.
"Asakawa Kiyosuke… your strength is worthy of this power. Come!!"
"Then come!!"
A sage's face pattern appeared on Kiyosuke's cheeks as flames surged skyward. Under everyone's gaze, he transformed into a massive giant of living fire, a blazing greatsword in his hand.
The fiery titan swung his sword. Madara grinned, exhilarated, and the Complete-Body Susanoo drew its own massive blade.
Steel met flame.
BOOM—
A roaring shockwave erupted, tearing through the landscape. The sheer force nearly sent the Five Kage flying into the sky.
Shielded behind Gaara's sand, they fought to keep their footing.
"So this is… the power of Uchiha Madara and Kiyosuke?" Gaara muttered in awe. "This is far beyond human."
"Kiyosuke's already on par with my grandfather," Tsunade said helplessly. "There's no way we can intervene in this fight." She peeked out from behind the sand shield, watching the colossal battle unfold—the blazing giant and Susanoo clashing with world-breaking might.
Just what kind of disciple had Orochimaru taken in?
"Kiyosuke…" Mei whispered, her eyes full of worry as she watched her husband's distant figure. He was always like this—carrying the weight of everything alone.
BOOM!!!
Their swords collided again, sending out another deafening blast. The battle between Kiyosuke and Madara was like a force of nature, annihilating everything around them. Their clash spread further and further until they unknowingly crossed into the Land of Fire.
With each swing, Kiyosuke's fiery blade heated the air until it burned. Forests ignited, flames devouring everything in their path, turning the land into a sea of fire.
BOOM!
Mountains crumbled under the force of their strikes. Madara laughed wildly, exhilarated.
"Yes! That's it! That's it! Hahahaha! Asakawa Kiyosuke! For your Fire Release to reach this level… when it comes to fire-style, I, Uchiha Madara, gladly call you the strongest!!"
"Enough talk—come on!!"
The fire giant's sword crashed down with unstoppable force, cleaving into Susanoo's shoulder armor.
BOOM!
The impact forced the colossal Susanoo down to one knee. Madara roared, pouring even more chakra into his creation.
"AAAAHHHH!!"
The Susanoo's back-arms lifted, pressing against the Blade of the End. Its main arms drew a katana and slashed toward the flame giant's waist.
But before Madara could land the hit, two blazing arms burst from the giant's abdomen, catching the attack mid-swing.
Kiyosuke sneered. "This body's made of fire. I can rebuild it however I like."
The moment his words fell, both the fire giant and his sword morphed into a colossal dragon of pure flame. Its serpentine body coiled instantly around the Susanoo, locking it in place.
"What—?" Madara froze for a moment, then chuckled, his excitement growing even stronger. The Susanoo shuddered violently as the dragon bit into its head.
"Asakawa Kiyosuke! You never fail to surprise me! Hahaha! Even Hashirama couldn't do tricks like this!"
He admitted it—Kiyosuke was the only man besides Hashirama who could truly thrill him. Their battle was pure exhilaration.
If only he weren't trapped in this Edo Tensei body, he could have savored it to the fullest.
"Explode!"
Kiyosuke roared. The fire dragon coiled around the Complete-Body Susanoo flared blindingly bright.
An instant later, a deafening explosion ripped through the heavens. Light and heat consumed everything, releasing waves of raw energy. Winds howled, thunder cracked across the sky—and as the heat rose, dark clouds burst into a torrential downpour.
Rain poured over the scarred battlefield, quenching the raging flames. The water gathered in the blast crater, forming a small, glimmering lake.
Kiyosuke lay floating atop the surface, gasping for breath. That last move had drained almost all his chakra—he couldn't even maintain Sage Mode anymore.
"Hahaha!"
Half of Madara's body had been blown away, still reforming from the Edo Tensei dust.
"You've beaten me, it seems. If I still had a living body, I'd be dead right now. Asakawa Kiyosuke… if you'd existed in our era, you might've changed history itself."
As his upper body reformed, the face of Hashirama appeared on his chest. Madara smirked.
"This time, I've lost. But you're not walking away alive either. I'll send you off myself."
A black rod formed in his hand as he slowly stood and walked toward Kiyosuke.
"Don't even think about it! Water Release!"
"Lightning Release!"
"Dust Release!"
"Sand!"
The Five Kage charged in, their attacks striking one after another, driving Madara back. They stood between him and Kiyosuke.
Tsunade knelt beside her husband, channeling medical chakra to heal him.
"Looks like we'll have to take care of you all together, then," Madara said coldly.