Just then.
White Zetsu's figure slowly emerged from the ground.
"Hehe, a few days ago, those two already left and headed for the Hidden Rain Village."
White Zetsu let out a comical laugh, spreading his palms as he spoke.
Hearing White Zetsu's words, the several people present exchanged glances, their eyes flickering slightly.
On the other side.
Having put some distance between themselves and Iwagakure, Uchiha Madara and Yuto arrived at a flat expanse scattered with rocks.
The powerful auras radiating from the two clashed and intertwined in the air above!
In an instant, the area where the two stood formed an invisible, terrifying field. The numerous rocks on the ground around them trembled continuously, and the sky above rumbled with muffled thunder at intervals.
"Hashirama has already fallen to my hand. Since you've come today, stay here forever."
Uchiha Madara looked at Yuto across from him with an arrogant gaze, his tone calm yet domineering.
After defeating Senju Hashirama, the lifelong rival who had stood as his greatest adversary, Uchiha Madara's momentum and fighting spirit had reached their peak.
Therefore, even knowing that Yuto was more troublesome than Senju Hashirama, deep inside Uchiha Madara was still filled with an incomparable sense of dominance.
Yuto's appearance did catch Uchiha Madara somewhat off guard, and his hidden preparations were not yet complete. But to Uchiha Madara, so what?
There was only one answer — fight!
Looking at Uchiha Madara's soaring momentum, Yuto's expression was not just calm — he actually let out a slow sigh.
"Too bad. Today you are destined to lose."
Yuto gazed at Uchiha Madara with indifferent eyes.
"Lose? Are you joking?"
"I am Uchiha Madara!"
Uchiha Madara was stunned for a moment, and then, especially sensing that there was very little fighting spirit or killing intent coming from Yuto, a towering fury erupted within him.
Facing Uchiha Madara's astonishing aura and rage, Yuto's expression remained completely unchanged, like the still depths of a lake without a ripple.
Only at this moment did Uchiha Madara suddenly realize that Yuto's strength seemed to have increased once again.
"You think just a bit more power is enough to make me lose to you?"
Uchiha Madara thought he had found the problem and couldn't help but sneer.
"I have already stepped beyond, one step ahead of you."
Yuto spoke slowly, and as his words fell,
A shocking, indescribable aura slowly radiated from Yuto's body, causing Uchiha Madara's expression to change drastically.
Six Paths Sage Mode!
Six black Truth-Seeking Orbs floated behind Yuto, and a white robe inscribed with black mysterious patterns draped across his body.
In that instant, the stalemate between the two auras was shattered. Uchiha Madara's pupils trembled violently and contracted, as if he had witnessed something impossible.
"So this is the power you've been pursuing — I just grasped it before you?"
Yuto calmly regarded Uchiha Madara, his voice still carrying its usual detachment.
"That's impossible!"
Uchiha Madara let out a low roar, but quickly it was as if something occurred to him:
"I see. It was that piece of the Gedo Statue's torso you gave me last time."
At this moment, Uchiha Madara finally understood somewhat why Yuto also needed to collect the Tailed Beasts, and the reasoning behind everything that had happened.
In just a few breaths, Uchiha Madara figured out exactly how Yuto had done it, because it was not hard to guess.
"All I want to know now is — how did you know about this power?"
Uchiha Madara drew in a breath, calming himself again as he looked at Yuto, who stood not far away radiating an otherworldly aura.
This was a gap that bordered on a difference in rank itself, like a herbivore facing a predator. The sensation made Uchiha Madara's body tremble involuntarily.
Not from fear, but from excitement deep within his soul!
Of course, Uchiha Madara was also puzzled. How did Yuto, without a Sharingan or even a Rinnegan, know about the existence of this power that transcended ninja? After all, he himself had only learned of it from the stone tablet of the Uchiha Clan.
"I was revived long before you. It's not like I did nothing in all that time."
Yuto gave a light smile, showing no intention of explaining further.
"In that case."
"Then… show me this power!!"
Uchiha Madara suddenly let out a low roar, excitement filling his face as the Rinnegan flashed with a burst of purple light.
Limbo Border Jail!
Four shadows, imperceptible to normal senses, swiftly separated from Uchiha Madara's body and charged at Yuto from different directions.
Their speed was incredible!
In barely a breath's time, they had already appeared at the four positions around Yuto — front, back, left, and right.
These four invisible shadows, which ordinary ninja could not perceive, were easily detected by Yuto now that he had entered Six Paths Sage Mode.
Yuto's expression was calm. One of the Truth-Seeking Orbs behind him flew directly into his hand, transforming into a sickle-shaped Truth-Seeking weapon.
Then, with a reverse swing!
Centered on Yuto, the sickle-shaped Truth-Seeking weapon traced a circular slash through the air.
The four shadows, which had attacked simultaneously from all directions, burst like popped bubbles the moment they touched the sickle-shaped Truth-Seeking weapon, vanishing instantly.
What is that thing?
Seeing this, Uchiha Madara's pupils contracted. He halted his forward charge and quickly formed hand seals, slamming his palms onto the ground.
"Wood Release — Wood Dragon Jutsu!"
The ground surged, and a massive wooden dragon burst from the earth, growing into an enormous creature as it roared and charged at Yuto.
Energy-based ninjutsu was completely useless against Yuto, so Uchiha Madara naturally would not use that kind of technique. To actually hit Yuto, he needed physical-type jutsu, like Wood Release — a physical attack.
Fortunately, he had transplanted Senju Hashirama's cells and gained the power of Wood Release. Otherwise, his options against Yuto would have been even more limited.
The charging wooden dragon opened its massive jaws and roared as it came!
The sickle-shaped Truth-Seeking weapon in Yuto's hand began to change form, reshaping into a black shield that blocked the way ahead.
The enormous wooden dragon collided with the Truth-Seeking shield, producing a deep, heavy boom — yet the shield did not budge in the slightest!
And where the shield made contact, the wooden dragon's massive body began to rapidly dissolve, like snowflakes melting under a blazing sun.
At this moment, Uchiha Madara finally felt the danger posed by the Truth-Seeking Orbs.
"What exactly is this thing?"
A grave expression crossed Uchiha Madara's face. He lowered his body slightly, his gaze locked firmly on Yuto.
"Truth-Seeking Orbs. A power that encompasses all nature transformations of the five elements and Yin-Yang Release, surpassing both Kekkei Genkai and Kekkei Tōta."
Yuto spoke in a calm tone, explaining with unusual patience.
As he spoke!
The Truth-Seeking Orb that had formed the shield reverted to a black sphere, reappearing in the palm of Yuto's hand. The next moment, it streaked like a blur toward Uchiha Madara.
Uchiha Madara's eyelids twitched as he leapt backward.
The instant Yuto had explained, Uchiha Madara understood perfectly — he absolutely could not let that Truth-Seeking Orb touch him.
And behind Yuto, there were still five more!
Almost the moment Uchiha Madara left his position, the Truth-Seeking Orb slammed into the spot where he had just been standing!
Boom!
A massive explosion rang out. The violent force, as if a Tailed Beast Ball amplified several times over, blasted a crater nearly a hundred meters wide into the ground!
Even though Uchiha Madara had dodged in time, he was still sent flying dozens of meters by the shockwave.
Yuto's figure shot skyward, hovering in midair as he calmly looked down at the somewhat disheveled Uchiha Madara.
Without reaching the Six Paths level!
Even with the Rinnegan, there remained an uncrossable gulf between them!
"Hahahahaha!!!"
Uchiha Madara rose from the dust and debris, looking up at Yuto hovering in the sky. Far from panic, his face was filled with excitement and exhilaration — he actually burst into loud laughter.
"So this is the power I've been pursuing!"
"It's truly magnificent!"
"No, this isn't even the full extent of this power. If just this much… just this much is already this strong!"
An astonishing aura and fighting spirit radiated from Uchiha Madara's entire body. He clenched his fists tightly, laughing as he looked at Yuto.
Having witnessed the strength of the power he had pursued with his own eyes, how could Uchiha Madara not be excited?
Moreover, the Gedo Statue was still in his hands. Yuto had clearly used a shortcut to reach this step, so this was absolutely not the strongest state of Six Paths Sage Mode.
"That's right. What I have is at most a half-step Six Paths Sage Mode."
"Even so, Madara, you have no way to beat me."
Yuto did not refute. Instead, he nodded frankly.
"There is no such word as 'retreat' in Uchiha Madara's dictionary!"
Uchiha Madara roared, and terrifying ocular power surged from his eyes.
Perfect Susanoo!
A Susanoo the size of a small mountain appeared instantly before Yuto. Its wings spread wide as it charged at Yuto in the air.
And not only that — during this process, Uchiha Madara manipulated the Susanoo to form hand seals, rapidly consuming vast amounts of chakra and ocular power.
Heavenly Obstructing Meteor!
The entire sky trembled!
A colossal meteor over a hundred meters in diameter appeared in the sky directly above Yuto, creating a terrifying presence as it plummeted straight down.
"Come on, Yuto! Only a fight like this is worth giving everything!"
The Rinnegan in Uchiha Madara's eyes flashed with purple light as he roared.
And by this time, Uchiha Madara had already charged forward, using the massive body of the Perfect Susanoo to cut off Yuto's escape route, preventing him from breaking free of the meteor's lock!
[
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