The time had come. Uchiha Yue had to die.
Isshiki was about to unleash upon him a power unimaginable to the inhabitants of this world—a force capable of erasing his very existence. He would take his eyes, a gift comparable to the fruit of the Divine Tree itself, and consume them.
Ōtsutsuki Isshiki raised his head. The energy-absorbing properties of this strange dimension concealed the precise location of his target, but that didn't matter. Had the Realm of Dead Silence been half the size of the planet, he might have had to find a way to retreat. But now, when it covered only a tiny patch of land, he saw no threat. It was nothing more than a spark, to be stamped out before it turned into a consuming blaze. He would strike a crushing blow at Uchiha Yue and destroy him before he could even begin.
Space shook. A terrifying aura erupted from Jigen's body as the sealed Karma began to unleash itself. Monstrous power, surpassing any conceivable limit of this world, surged forth, distorting the air.
The next moment, Isshiki, leaving his mortal shell behind, soared into the sky. Releasing sixty percent of his true power, he finally pierced the dimensional shroud and sensed Yue's presence.
Like a punishing meteor, the Ōtsutsuki rushed toward him, confident that everything would be over in a matter of seconds.
In truth, Isshiki would have preferred not to interfere. Any change in the shinobi world, even its complete destruction, was not worth the risk of revealing his presence. After all, the cursed Kaguya was still alive, albeit sealed.
But that only applied to "normal circumstances." The current situation was an anomaly. In his estimation, the lesser beings of the shinobi world were utterly incapable of dealing with a monster who had awakened the primordial power of the Divine Tree. The moment Yue gained his Mangekyo Sharingan, he ceased to be human. He should have been called a god.
The only thing Isshiki was unsure of was the potential of this new ability. This wasn't simply a matter of expanding the Realm to a planetary scale. It was a matter of genuine growth—the ability to absorb energy and strengthen the very fabric of existence. If so, the value of Yue's eyes surpassed even the source of his bloodline. And then, even at the risk of half his life, Isshiki would be obliged to kill him.
However, that didn't matter now. The current Uchiha Yue was doomed. In such a short time, he couldn't develop to a level capable of challenging the Ōtsutsuki. If not for the threat he could pose in the future, Isshiki wouldn't lift a finger.
In the Kingdom of Dead Silence.
Uchiha Yue floated motionless within his very core, immersed in a semblance of sleep. Suddenly, his eyes widened. Scarlet pupils stared impassively at a single point.
BANG!
The peace at the center of the Realm was shattered. The colossal spectral warrior, Susanoo, hovering in the sky, suddenly raised his hand in defense, but it was too late. A deafening crack echoed, and the colossal hand shattered as if made of fragile glass. A white shadow, like lightning, tore through the smoke and slammed into the giant's chest with unstoppable force.
In a split second, a barrage of tens of thousands of blows rained down on Susanoo. The chakra armor cracked and crumbled, revealing Uchiha Yue's body to a final barrage of Isshiki Ōtsutsuki's fists.
Countless shadows rushed toward him. And at the very moment they were supposed to reduce him to dust...
Yue's hands were a blur, desperately trying to fend off the unimaginable onslaught. But to no avail.
In an instant, his palms were reduced to bloody shreds, and his body was pierced in a hundred places. He was dead before his remains touched the ground.
Although Yue instinctively absorbed some of Isshiki's kinetic energy and chakra with each strike, it was a drop in the ocean. The residual power was enough to wipe him from existence. In terms of pure power, they were in different universes. It wasn't that Isshiki was incredibly strong, but that Yue simply didn't have the time. Just over ten days had passed since the night of the clan's destruction.
Furthermore, his seemingly limitless Realm was largely an illusion, maintained by an artifact—the Storage Ring. By sacrificing his freedom of movement, Yue achieved a colossal increase in energy absorption speed, but the foundation of his power was still fragile.
"Incredible..."
Ōtsutsuki Isshiki sank to the ground, holding Yue's severed head in his hand. He tore out his eyes and then crushed his skull with indifference. Victory had come easily, but at a price: to break through here, he had had to unleash seventy percent of his power.
This power would have been enough to incinerate any country in this world. If he, with such power, hadn't been able to instantly destroy a youth who couldn't even form chakra just a few weeks ago, he would have been left doubting his right to bear the name Ōtsutsuki. Any other ninja would have been reduced to dust with the first blow.
But Uchiha Yue was different. He managed to react and even attempted to respond. Moreover, when Isshiki's fists crashed into his body, the sensation was... different. While the flesh of ordinary shinobi felt like tofu, Yue's body felt like tempered steel. If Isshiki hadn't possessed overwhelming strength, killing him wouldn't have been so easy.
"I did everything right. Give him a little more time... let him unleash his true potential... and then, even with all my might, I would have lost. Fortunately..."
A fleeting look of relief crossed Ōtsutsuki's face. Fortunately, his resolve was sufficient to act without delay.