"All the participating ninja performed very well in this Ninja World Youth Martial Arts Tournament, especially Team 7."
Kitazawa spoke at an unhurried pace. "As Team 7's instructor, I want to give them one more lesson before they graduate."
After a brief moment of surprise, many people quickly understood.
And since Kitazawa had already said there would be one more fight, that "one more lesson" obviously meant a battle between him and Team 7.
"Naruto, Sasuke, and Hinata."
Kitazawa spoke directly. "I rarely get to fight the three of you. Since this is a rare opportunity, come at me together."
Quite a few people looked stunned.
A one-versus-three?
They all knew Kitazawa was powerful, but Sasuke Uchiha, Naruto Uzumaki, and Hinata Hyuga's earlier battle had left them deeply shaken.
In their eyes, if it were one-on-one, Kitazawa would most likely win.
But one against three? That seemed impossible.
[Current Mission: Defeat Team 7.]
[Mission Reward: Ōtsutsuki Mode.]
[Accept?]
Kitazawa let out a soft sound of surprise.
He had expected a new system mission to trigger.
What surprised him was this so-called Ōtsutsuki Mode.
He didn't remember anything like that existing in the original story.
Still, abilities or jutsu with "mode" in their name were usually anything but ordinary.
"You have ten minutes to rest," Kitazawa said, suppressing the doubt in his heart.
"Yes, Kitazawa-sensei!"
Naruto Uzumaki sounded extremely excited.
Even though Sasuke Uchiha was the rival of his life, Kitazawa had always been the strongest ninja in Naruto's mind.
Now that he had the chance to fight him, he was naturally thrilled.
Sasuke Uchiha wasn't as openly expressive as Naruto, but he was just as eager for the coming battle.
He and Naruto were already among the strongest ninja in the world.
But only among them.
So who was the strongest without question?
He would find out soon enough.
Hinata Hyuga, on the other hand, didn't have many thoughts about it.
Whatever Kitazawa asked her to do, she would do.
The ten-minute break passed quickly.
The chakra Sasuke Uchiha and Naruto Uzumaki had consumed was fully restored by the Divine Tree Game.
The three of them stood shoulder to shoulder, looking at Kitazawa across from them.
Fugaku Uchiha, Hiashi Hyuga, the Fourth Raikage, Mei Terumi, Nagato, and the others all wore serious expressions.
Ever since the ninja world was unified, Kitazawa had barely made a move in five or six years.
No one knew how far his strength had reached.
This battle would undoubtedly let them glimpse his true power.
"Begin!"
Kabuto Yakushi shouted at once.
"Shinra Tensei!"
Sasuke Uchiha raised his hand first.
A tremendous repulsive force erupted in front of him, blasting everything away.
But when it reached Kitazawa, it was as if the repulsion didn't exist at all—he didn't move an inch.
"Sage Mode!"
Naruto Uzumaki entered Sage Mode and shouted, "Sage Art: Wind Release: Massive Rasenshuriken!"
Sukunahikona!
Kitazawa still didn't move from where he stood.
That enormous Sage Art: Wind Release: Massive Rasenshuriken instantly shrank to the size of a palm and flew harmlessly past his left side.
The Fourth Raikage and the others watching were visibly shocked.
Naruto had used the Sage Art: Wind Release: Massive Rasenshuriken before.
They all knew how terrifying its power was.
But none of them could even understand how Kitazawa had dealt with it.
"That's amazing!"
Naruto Uzumaki clapped his hands together and shouted, "Nine-Tails Mode!"
Golden chakra enveloped him, making his aura even more fearsome.
Seeing that, Sasuke Uchiha directly activated his Complete Body Susanoo.
Under his control, the giant sword of Susanoo slashed down at Kitazawa.
"Eighty Gods Vacuum Attack!"
Kitazawa threw both fists forward.
Countless fist shadows appeared out of thin air.
Sasuke Uchiha's heart shook.
The Susanoo sword shattered inch by inch, and both he and his Susanoo were forced backward uncontrollably.
"What is that?"
Hiashi Hyuga rose to his feet without thinking.
Eighty Gods Vacuum Attack gave him a strange sense of familiarity, almost like some kind of Gentle Fist technique.
But could the Hyuga clan's Gentle Fist really reach that level?
"Truthseeker Bead Light Cannon!"
Hinata Hyuga activated Tenseigan Chakra Mode.
Truth-Seeking Balls gathered in her palm, then transformed into a rain of countless laser beams that blanketed Kitazawa.
"Sage Art: Inorganic Reincarnation!"
Kitazawa clapped his hands together.
As he entered Sage Mode, the ground around him surged upward.
In the blink of an eye, a thick wall rose before him.
The Truthseeker Bead Light Cannon pounded against it, making it tremble violently, but it still failed to destroy the wall.
Hinata Hyuga unconsciously pressed her lips together.
The Truth-Seeking Ball technique she had formed had been blocked that easily?
She had always known Kitazawa was strong, but never had a concrete grasp of it until now.
"Golden Wheel Reincarnation Explosion!"
Hinata Hyuga raised her hand.
Seven Truth-Seeking Balls condensed into a golden blade of light.
The blade shot forward, distorting the air everywhere it passed.
"Takamimusubinokami!"
Faced with an attack powerful enough to split the moon, Kitazawa merely waved his hand.
The golden blade vanished.
The next instant, it reappeared—but this time, it was aimed at Hinata and the others.
"What kind of ability is that?"
Sasuke Uchiha was stunned.
"Watch out!" Hinata Hyuga warned immediately. "The power of Golden Wheel Reincarnation Explosion has increased!"
"Sage Art: Tailed Beast Bomb!"
Naruto Uzumaki reacted quickly.
He stepped in front of the others and spat out a gigantic Tailed Beast Bomb.
Unlike an ordinary Tailed Beast Bomb, this one was infused with senjutsu chakra, making it even more destructive.
The golden blade pierced straight through it.
Boom!
The Tailed Beast Bomb exploded.
But the golden blade still wasn't destroyed.
Sasuke Uchiha's eyes widened.
His Susanoo re-formed twin swords and slashed at the golden blade in a cross strike.
Only then did the golden blade break apart into fragments and vanish.
But Sasuke and the others could not feel relieved at all.
After only a brief exchange, they had already realized that Kitazawa was far stronger than they had expected.
They were practically going all out already, yet Kitazawa still gave them the feeling that he was merely taking a leisurely stroll.
And it wasn't just them.
Hiashi Hyuga and the others watching felt exactly the same way.
Sasuke Uchiha took a deep breath.
By this point, it was obvious Kitazawa still wasn't serious.
But all their conventional methods had already failed.
"Tailed Beast Chakra Mode!"
Sasuke Uchiha stopped holding back.
The Eight-Tails' chakra spread from his body and quickly covered his Susanoo.
"Asura Kurama Mode!"
Naruto Uzumaki shouted with a grave expression.
"Indra's Arrow!"
Sasuke Uchiha raised his hand.
An immense amount of chakra gathered in Susanoo's hand.
"Truth-Seeking Ball Rasenshuriken!"
Naruto refused to fall behind and shouted as well.
The six Truth-Seeking Balls behind him began to spin.
Hinata Hyuga thought for a moment, then used Silver Wheel Reincarnation Explosion.
A violent gale drove Indra's Arrow and the Truth-Seeking Ball Rasenshuriken toward Kitazawa.
For the first time, Kitazawa felt a trace of danger.
He immediately clapped his hands together.
"Sage Art: Wood Release: True Several Thousand Hands!"
Above him, the wind roared as an enormous Thousand-Armed Buddha statue appeared.
In front of everyone's stunned eyes, it stretched out its hands and seized both Indra's Arrow and the Truth-Seeking Ball Rasenshuriken.
As for the storm created by Silver Wheel Reincarnation Explosion, it blasted against the statue's body without moving it in the slightest.
Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha froze where they stood.
Their strongest attacks had been neutralized like this?
They had thought the gap between themselves and Kitazawa wouldn't be that huge.
Now, it was obvious the difference was like heaven and earth.
They had used every trick they had, yet still had no idea where Kitazawa's limit lay.
As for the audience, they were completely dumbstruck.
"His Majesty is probably the strongest person in the history of the ninja world," Shikaku Nara said in a deep voice.
"I'm afraid not even the legendary Sage of Six Paths would be a match for His Majesty," Hiashi Hyuga said with emotion.
The others all nodded in agreement without even realizing it.
Meanwhile, the Fourth Raikage, Ōnoki, Gaara, and the others felt their hands and feet turn cold.
Against a monster like this, the only thing they could do was wait for him to die naturally.
But would Kitazawa die young like Hashirama Senju?
None of them dared say for sure.
And with his level of power, how long would he live? Like them—at most a hundred years?
They didn't dare be certain of that either.
But one thing was certain: the four great ninja villages would eventually become history.
"Naruto!"
Sasuke Uchiha suddenly thought of something. "Use the one the Sage of Six Paths taught us!"
Naruto Uzumaki froze for a moment, then immediately understood.
Sasuke was talking about Six Paths: Chibaku Tensei.
It was an enhanced version of Chibaku Tensei that required the Yang Power and Yin Power of the Sage of Six Paths.
Naruto and Sasuke each held one of those powers.
In other words, only by joining forces could they use Six Paths: Chibaku Tensei.
There was no need to question the power of that technique.
It was the ultimate sealing method the Sage of Six Paths had taught them to imprison Kaguya Ōtsutsuki.
"Six Paths: Chibaku Tensei!"
Naruto Uzumaki shouted immediately.
He and Sasuke exchanged a look, then both mobilized their chakra at the same time.
In an instant, heaven and earth trembled.
A boundless gravitational force spread outward from them.
Everything in its path was uprooted and drawn in.
In the blink of an eye, a gigantic celestial body appeared above everyone's heads.
"Is that... the moon?"
Nagato stared blankly, suddenly realizing something.
Shikaku Nara and the others, though shocked, also thought of the legend that the Sage of Six Paths had created the moon.
Most importantly, Naruto had just shouted: Six Paths: Chibaku Tensei.
But in the next second, their attention was stolen by the sudden change in the Thousand-Armed Buddha statue.
Armor began to appear over its body.
"Susanoo?"
Fugaku Uchiha stood up instinctively.
What was going on?
How could Kitazawa use Susanoo?
And judging by the aura, it was no weaker than Sasuke Uchiha's Susanoo.
But no one could answer his question.
The Thousand-Armed Buddha statue moved.
It clenched its fists, and all one thousand hands slammed into the celestial body formed by Six Paths: Chibaku Tensei.
Crack.
Cracks spread across the surface.
Then it exploded apart.
Sasuke Uchiha and Naruto Uzumaki both felt their breathing stop.
Even Six Paths: Chibaku Tensei, which had sealed Kaguya Ōtsutsuki, was useless against Kitazawa?
The chaotic chakra currents turned into a tidal wave that spread in every direction.
Fortunately, this was inside the Divine Tree Game.
With its regulation, the arena quickly returned to calm.
Kitazawa casually dispelled Sage Art: Wood Release: True Several Thousand Hands.
Six Paths: Chibaku Tensei really was powerful.
But at most, it could seal Kaguya Ōtsutsuki. It couldn't seal him.
More accurately, at most it could seal an Ōtsutsuki who had eaten one Divine Tree fruit.
In theory, Kitazawa himself had only eaten one Divine Tree fruit—when he obtained the Rinne Sharingan.
But he had completed too many system missions.
With all the various bonuses stacked together, his strength had long since surpassed that of an Ōtsutsuki who had only consumed one Divine Tree fruit.
To put it bluntly, he was now equivalent to an Ōtsutsuki who had eaten one and a half to two Divine Tree fruits.
"What a battle full of youth!"
Naruto Uzumaki gave a thumbs-up and said, "There really is no end to the path of youth. I still need to work even harder!"
Sasuke Uchiha twitched the corner of his mouth.
Could effort alone really close that gap?
Hinata Hyuga clenched the hem of her clothes.
Kitazawa's overwhelming strength left her heart in turmoil.
If there hadn't been outsiders present, she definitely would have had to join his special training.
"With that, the Ninja World Youth Martial Arts Tournament has officially come to a close. Thank you all for participating."
Kitazawa's voice rang out clearly.
The spectators left the Divine Tree Game in a daze, their hearts still unsteady.
The battle between Kitazawa and Team 7 would become an unforgettable memory etched into their minds.
No matter when or where they remembered it, it would still leave them shaken.
At the same time, Kitazawa's image in their hearts became that of the invincible strongest being in the ninja world.
[Current Mission: Win first place in the Ninja World Youth Martial Arts Tournament.]
[Mission Reward: Jōgan.]
[Mission Completed. Reward Granted.]
Kitazawa thought to himself, just as expected.
Even fighting three against one still counted as clearing the system mission.
[Current Mission: Defeat Team 7.]
[Mission Reward: Ōtsutsuki Mode.]
[Mission Completed. Reward Granted.]
Kitazawa's spirits immediately lifted.
Compared to the already familiar Jōgan, he was more curious about what Ōtsutsuki Mode actually did.
A massive stream of information flooded into his mind.
After digesting it, Kitazawa realized that this Ōtsutsuki Mode actually did exist in the original work—it just went by a different name.
One example came from Urashiki Ōtsutsuki.
After devouring his own crimson fishing-rod gourd and Rinnegan, he could take on a form called Crane Mode.
His overall power would surge dramatically.
The other example came from Momoshiki Ōtsutsuki.
After consuming the chakra that Kinshiki Ōtsutsuki had transformed into, he underwent a transformation and entered an entirely new form.
That form was very similar to Urashiki Ōtsutsuki's Crane Mode.
In reality, they were the same thing.
In the original story, it was simply called a transformation.
Kitazawa's Ōtsutsuki Mode could also be understood as a transformation.
Its effect was simple: it unified and coordinated all of his abilities, making him even stronger.
Kitazawa's powers were a mixed bag.
Some came from the Tenseigan, some from the Byakugan, some from the Rinnegan, and some from the Rinne Sharingan.
Ōtsutsuki Mode could fuse all of them together.
In other words, from now on, Kitazawa would no longer need to switch between the Tenseigan, Rinnegan, and the like.