"Madara… you were too careless."
Hashirama looked at Madara, who was trapped and unable to move within his Wood Release, and finally let out a slow breath. At least they could take care of one enemy for now.
To be honest, he felt a bit ashamed. When Madara fought alone, Hashirama should have been the one to step in and stop his former friend. But in his reanimated state, he no longer had the strength to do it.
"Madara, give up," Hashirama said, standing atop the wooden giant and looking down at Madara inside the Susanoo crystal. He tried to persuade his old friend. "You're on the wrong path. There was never such a thing as…"
"Hashirama!" Madara interrupted, mocking his naivety. "You're still the same as ever. Trying to talk me into surrendering before you've even won the fight?"
Hashirama frowned, remembering the strange things he'd experienced during the battle. "Are you going to use that technique?" he asked. "The hidden clone you can fight with?"
"Hmph…" A dark smile curled Madara's lips, and his Rinnegan narrowed. "That's right."
Hashirama's guard went up instantly. Just as he was bracing for an attack, the wooden giant's arm was sliced open by a strange, invisible force.
"Susanoo!" Hashirama immediately realized what had attacked the wooden giant, his gaze turning sharp. "Impossible!"
It couldn't be a Susanoo. Madara's own Susanoo was still restrained by the wooden giant. Even for someone as powerful as Madara, a shadow clone shouldn't be able to use a complete Susanoo identical to his own. It made no sense.
Hashirama quickly tried to control the wooden dragon to grab the hidden Susanoo, but it found nothing. What's more, the wooden dragon was also chopped in half.
Madara let out a cold smile. His Susanoo broke free from its restraints and, under his control, shot back into the sky.
"Madara!"
Hashirama quickly formed hand signs, trying to use his Wood Release again to stop Madara, but his own body was cut open in an instant.
"Careful!" Tobirama hastily shouted a warning to the Allied Shinobi Forces. "There's a hidden fighter on the battlefield! Someone can use Susanoo just like Madara!"
He hoped they'd be alert, but it didn't change much. They were facing an overwhelming power, something beyond their comprehension.
A series of terrifying slashes appeared all over the battlefield, and the Allied Shinobi Forces instantly fell into an unprecedented panic.
Naruto and Minato did the same thing, desperately trying to use Kurama's sensing ability to detect the mysterious enemy. But they couldn't sense anything.
Madara, using his Susanoo, flew straight at Naruto. He dispelled his own clone and grabbed for the boy's throat.
"Naruto Uzumaki," Madara said. "I'll just take the Nine-Tails for now."
"Naruto!"
The Allied Forces urgently tried to rush over to help, but a strange slash cut a deep trench into the ground, and the resulting smoke and dust blocked everyone's path.
Minato and Tobirama were the fastest, but just as they rushed in, they were suddenly pinned to the ground by an invisible force. Luckily, both could use the Flying Thunder God technique and instantly vanished.
If they stopped, they would be hit. But they still had to charge forward, because Naruto was clearly no match for Madara.
"Fourth Hokage!" Tobirama called out, hoping Minato understood the urgency. "Take that kid and retreat immediately! Edo Tensei lets you use Flying Thunder God without limits, so at least he can't capture you! You absolutely cannot let the Nine-Tails inside you fall into Madara's hands!"
But it was too late.
Madara's hand landed on Naruto's stomach. Using the Tailed Beast Extraction seal, he forcibly dragged Kurama out. The great fox roared, slashing with his claws, but the Ten-Tails immediately focused on his chakra, its own tail morphing into a claw to pull Kurama back.
"..."
Naruto's head slowly drooped. Madara tossed his body aside without a second thought.
In an instant, Sasuke appeared before Madara, swinging his sword to force him back. He then checked Naruto's condition, and what he saw sent a chill through his heart.
"Naruto..."
Sasuke could barely believe it. He knew that a jinchuriki would die if their tailed beast was extracted, but he never thought this would happen to Naruto.
This teammate… who maybe didn't matter so much… No… this teammate was actually very important.
He was someone you could trust with your life, even from childhood.
"He's dead," Madara laughed lightly, reaching a hand out to Sasuke. "Come back to us. This is the path you should walk. Even though Lord Shirou and I no longer need your Eternal Mangekyo as a backup, I'd still love to see you by my side."
This kid… he had been raised by him, in a way.
Madara really liked this youngster who looked so much like his brother. He could see traces of himself and his brother in Sasuke.
"..."
Sasuke gave no reply.
"Naruto is my friend." The black-haired Uchiha planted his sword in the dirt, picked up Naruto's dying body, and started to walk away.
"A friend, huh…" Madara chuckled but didn't stop Sasuke from leaving with Naruto. In his eyes, neither of them was important anymore. He turned his attention to Minato, searching for his location.
But Minato's figure disappeared in a flash of gold.
Madara's Rinnegan narrowed. He tried to use his Limbo technique to catch Minato, hoping to get the very last bit of Nine-Tails chakra, but he couldn't find an opportunity.
That Fourth Hokage… his Body Flicker technique was just too fast. He had even managed to snatch Naruto away from Sasuke in the process.
"I'll save him!" Minato called out, his face filled with urgency as he grabbed his son and vanished from the battlefield. He had to find a safe place quickly and try to transfer his own half of the Nine-Tails into Naruto, hoping it would save his life.
"..."
Sasuke stared blankly at the spot where the golden flash had been.
After a moment's thought, he rushed after Minato. After all, he had no interest in taking part in this war. Now, he just wanted to know if Naruto could be saved.
Tobirama watched this unfold, and a strange look flashed in his eyes. He silently followed after Sasuke and Minato, leaving the battlefield as well.
Elsewhere, the fighting grew more chaotic.
The morale of the Allied Shinobi Forces was shattered by the mysterious threat, and every ninja was filled with fear. As for the cause of it all—Madara—he continued to search for Minato's traces while his Limbo clones kept the Allied Forces at bay.
"Black Zetsu," Shirou, who had been sensing the battlefield, called out quietly. "Go tell Madara that's enough for now."
"It's almost time," he continued. "Let's use the Infinite Tsukuyomi now, to prevent any mistakes."
"But there's still some Nine-Tails chakra left…" Black Zetsu couldn't help muttering, wishing Madara would claim the rest from Minato, too.
"The Sage of Six Paths might arrive at any moment." Shirou quietly sniffed the air, as if sensing an unknown danger. "I don't know whose side the Sage will be on," he said to Black Zetsu. "Before he comes, let's revive Lady Kaguya first."
"Understood."
Black Zetsu was startled by Shirou's words and immediately went to carry out his orders.