Even though they had already prepared their defenses in advance, the destructive power of the Ten-Tails' Tailed Beast Ball still far exceeded the expectations of Yakushi Kabuto and the others. In the confined space of the underground cavern, the explosion's force was several times greater than it would have been on the surface.
Under the immense impact, the rock formations Kabuto had created collapsed in an instant. The Susanoo constructs of both Shisui and Sasuke were covered with dense cracks, seemingly on the verge of shattering at any moment.
Fortunately, Susanoo managed to hold against the impact in the end.
Though Kabuto and the others emerged from it covered in dust, their bodies were unscathed. Kabuto once again used his Inorganic Reincarnation Technique to open up breathing space for the group.
At the very center of the explosion, however, Obito fared much worse.
He had originally planned to use Kamui to temporarily avoid the impact, but while controlling the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path, it seemed he could no longer activate Kamui to shift dimensions.
As a result, he took the blast from the Tailed Beast Ball almost head-on.
Had he not promptly commanded the statue to shield him, he likely would have perished in the explosion.
Sensing the chakra fluctuations around him, Obito realized that Sasuke and the others weren't dead. The Tailed Beast Ball was powerful, but so was Susanoo's defense, they would have survived.
His goal from the beginning had been to stall for time, to fully synchronize with the Ten-Tails.
Now, he had succeeded in transforming the Demonic Statue into the Ten-Tails. All that remained was to fuse with it and become the second Sage of Six Paths, then cast Infinite Tsukuyomi.
With that in mind, Obito glanced at the surrounding ruins and began rising to the surface with the Ten-Tails.
The sheer movement of the Ten-Tails instantly drew the attention of Kabuto and the others. They all sensed the transformation, if the Demonic Statue before had simply been a mobile puppet, the current Ten-Tails felt alive.
Exchanging glances, Kabuto looked at Orochimaru and Shisui.
"Orochimaru-sama, Shisui-dono, what should we do next? We failed to stop Obito."
"…For now, we withdraw," Orochimaru said slowly. He, too, was unsure of the next step. Obito's strength had far exceeded his expectations, and even he had begun to worry whether he might actually die this time.
At that moment, Jiraiya and Kakashi returned from the Kamui dimension.
The two of them had hoped to ambush Obito in Kamui space, but after waiting for a long time without finding him, they exited and returned to the real world.
Upon learning that Obito had successfully taken control of the Ten-Tails, both of them sighed heavily.
Their mission had failed. Now, all hope rested on the First Hokage's side. Hopefully, they could seal Madara Uchiha successfully and then join everyone in facing Obito and the Ten-Tails.
---
Allied Shinobi Forces Base
After an earth-shaking tremor, the Ten-Tails erupted from the ground.
The Ten-Tails towered over a hundred meters tall, resembling an upside-down octopus. A massive Rinnegan had emerged on its body.
The moment they saw the Ten-Tails, all the Allied shinobi were shaken to their core.
Their eyes were drawn irresistibly to the Rinnegan. Chakra throughout their bodies began going out of control, and their bodies involuntarily moved toward the Ten-Tails.
Seeing this, the Allied commanders frowned. Eventually, it was Kushina and Karin who stepped in.
They sealed the chakra within the affected shinobi, cutting off the Ten-Tails' influence. Only then did the troops regain clarity and combat readiness.
"Tobirama-sensei, the Ten-Tails is even more powerful than we imagined…!!" said the Third Hokage, visibly shaken. He turned to the Second Hokage and asked, "Should we use the Four Red Yang Formation against it?!"
Tobirama nodded. He too harbored great apprehension toward the Ten-Tails.
To prevent the Ten-Tails from attacking the Allied Forces, they would have to strike first and trap it using the Four Red Yang Formation. As for Madara Uchiha, they would leave that to the First Hokage.
The Second and Third Hokage exchanged a glance and disappeared from sight.
They each moved to positions hundreds of meters apart and, after forming hand seals, erected walls of blazing flame on the ground, encircling the Ten-Tails completely in the Four Red Yang Formation.
Next, every shinobi with Kage-level strength stepped forward and entered the formation.
None of them could match the Ten-Tails alone, so this battle would rely on everyone's strength combined to overcome the beast.
From the depths of the collapsed cavern, Kabuto, Sasuke, and the others rushed to the battlefield and joined the fight.
But time was running out.
Obito had already completed the fusion with the Ten-Tails. The towering body of the Ten-Tails was now being sealed into Obito's own body, becoming a massive black sphere that pulsed as though undergoing a transformation.
Karin suddenly recalled something and shouted to the shinobi around her, "Everyone, Obito is transforming into the Jinchūriki of the Ten-Tails! If he succeeds, he'll become the second Sage of Six Paths and will be able to cast the Infinite Tsukuyomi!"
Her words darkened the expressions of all present.
They unleashed their strongest jutsu at the transforming Obito, but no matter how powerful the attacks, they were reduced to pure chakra upon contact, completely ineffective.
When ninjutsu failed, they resorted to taijutsu. But that too could not break through Obito's defense.
The Second Hokage's expression shifted slightly. He immediately began bombarding Obito with the Mutual Multiplication Explosive Tags technique. He didn't believe absolute defense existed in the shinobi world. If ninjutsu and taijutsu were useless, then sheer explosive force might work. In short, hit as hard as you can.
The cost of this technique rose exponentially. In no time, Tobirama had used up most of his explosive tags.
The assault left a barely visible crack on the surface of the black sphere, but it quickly regenerated, not enough to stop Obito's transformation.
Seconds turned into minutes.
From an initial barrage to eventual exhaustion, the Allied shinobi had failed to break through Obito's defense. Meanwhile, Obito showed no signs of waking, seemingly submerged in a deep sleep.
The reason was simple: Obito was undergoing the trial of becoming a Jinchūriki of the Ten-Tails.
Becoming a Jinchūriki wasn't simple. One needed an enormous chakra capacity to serve as the vessel, and immense psychological fortitude. Nearly every Jinchūriki shared a common personality and a tragic fate.
For the Ten-Tails Jinchūriki, the trial was even harsher.
Though the Ten-Tails' consciousness was immature, like that of a child, it had absorbed the chakra of countless individuals over a thousand years, chakra steeped in memories.
Obito's task was to preserve his own self amidst the flood of memory-laden chakra, a bitter struggle to maintain his identity.
Soon, Obito began to forget Minato… and then Kakashi… even himself. Little of his original memory remained. If nothing changed, he would completely lose his identity and become the Ten-Tails itself.
At that moment, the memory of Rin was about to be engulfed by the Ten-Tails' consciousness.
---
Meanwhile, on the First Hokage's side
As the battle reached its climax, Madara Uchiha began to fall behind the First Hokage.
Even his Complete Body Susanoo, powerful as it was, was being thoroughly suppressed by the Wood Dragon and Wood Golem.
Even after obtaining the Rinnegan, he still wasn't a match for the First Hokage.
However, the First Hokage was equally entangled with Madara Uchiha and had no chance to break away. Their strengths were nearly identical, as the real difference lay in who was more ruthless.
Sensing the chakra of the Ten-Tails, Madara's lips curled into a smile.
"Hashirama, it seems Obito has successfully taken control of the Ten-Tails. Even though you've held me back, you've lost this game, more thoroughly than ever before. Now, you'll soon witness Obito becoming the jinchūriki of the Ten-Tails and casting the Infinite Tsukuyomi."
The First Hokage's expression shifted slightly before he replied, "I never intended to determine who's stronger between us. Can't you abandon this absurd plan? Your descendant, Shisui Uchiha, has already taken control of the Foundation. He could very well become the Hokage one day."
"Hokage?"
Madara was taken aback and momentarily lost in memory.
Konohagakure was a village he had founded alongside Hashirama; he was even the one who came up with the name. The title "Hokage" symbolized both the fire of the Uchiha and the friendship between the Uchiha and the Senju clans.
When the village was first established, he genuinely desired to become Hokage, and Hashirama had supported him. However, in the vote among the jōnin, Hashirama overwhelmingly defeated him and became the First Hokage. Although Madara acted indifferent, deep down, he still longed for that title.
Still, that was all in the past.
From the moment Hashirama "betrayed" him, the Madara Uchiha who wanted to become Hokage had already died, replaced by one who sought to bring true peace to the entire shinobi world.
Unlike Hashirama, who clung to peace within a single village, what Madara desired was peace for the entire world.
With a cold snort, Madara fixed his gaze on the First Hokage and said, "Spare me the chatter. You should just sit back and watch the coming of the Infinite Tsukuyomi. Don't think about interfering in the battles of the next generation."
The First Hokage glanced at Madara and apologized, "Madara, I'm sorry I can't continue to keep you company. I need to go help Tobirama and the others. Once I stop Obito, I'll come back to find you."
Madara's face grew grim. He formed hand seals and summoned a wooden avatar, then said, "Hashirama, do you really think your Wood Release can restrain me? While you were asleep, I also mastered Wood Release, and mine is stronger than yours."
Before he finished speaking, Madara appeared on the First Hokage's only path forward, blocking his way.
---
High in the clouds, Byakuya, who had narrowly escaped death, was observing the world below.
At the same time, he was sensing various "gazes" from the void, some from the sky, some from underground, and others from the boundaries of life and death or from other dimensions.
The ones from the sky likely belonged to Toneri Ōtsutsuki on the moon.
Toneri, a descendant of Hamura, carried the bloodline of the Ōtsutsuki. However, unlike the Hyūga on Earth, he didn't possess the Byakugan and could only observe the ninja world using the Tenseigan.
In terms of bloodline purity, Toneri had unquestionably reached the level of an Ōtsutsuki.
He was one of the Ōtsutsuki of this world. The Tenseigan's abilities were extremely powerful, allowing him to control remote puppets, manipulate gravity, and even unleash massive techniques like the Golden Wheel Reincarnation Explosion.
Byakuya didn't know the exact source of the underground gaze, but he suspected it belonged to the hidden Isshiki Ōtsutsuki.
Isshiki had once been Kaguya's superior and was a heavily injured Ōtsutsuki who had been lying dormant deep within the ninja world throughout the thousand years when the Sage of Six Paths and Kaguya held sway.
He was one of the Ōtsutsuki that Byakuya feared most.
As for the other gazes from other dimensions or the Pure Land, they likely belonged to the Three Great Holy Lands and the Sage of Six Paths.
The elders of the Three Great Holy Lands had always kept a watchful eye on the shinobi world. Though they had entered into some kind of accord with the Sage of Six Paths, in a way, they represented the will of nature itself.
Byakuya had once communicated with the will of nature, but it didn't seem to possess a complete or coherent consciousness.
In Byakuya's mind, the Sage of Six Paths was still the most powerful being in the shinobi world.
Though he had long since died, the powers he left behind were still capable of sealing Kaguya and empowering Naruto and Sasuke to reach the Six Paths level, giving them the strength to fight on equal footing with the Ōtsutsuki.
Thinking about this, Byakuya sighed softly.
Back when he was still "alive," he couldn't sense these gazes at all. Their owners had always remained hidden in the shadows, deliberately avoiding his detection.
This was another reason why he had chosen to fake his death.
If he remained in the spotlight, his every move would be monitored, which was far from fitting for someone who operated from behind the scenes.
After this quiet reflection, Byakuya turned his attention back to the ground, focusing on Obito, who was becoming the Ten-Tails' jinchūriki.
As the one handling intelligence, Byakuya naturally understood how grueling this process was. One moment of weakness and the jinchūriki could be swallowed by the Ten-Tails' will and reduced to nothing more than a puppet.
And even if Obito succeeded in becoming the Ten-Tails' jinchūriki, he would become a target of all factions, besieged from all directions.
In the original timeline, Obito and Madara seemed invincible after becoming the Ten-Tails' jinchūriki, but they were constantly hunted. Naruto, Sasuke, and the Sage of Six Paths all wanted to defeat them. Black Zetsu was waiting to betray them.
Even the hidden Isshiki might be lying in wait, watching for an opportunity to strike.
And the greatest threat of all was the Ten-Tails itself.
Byakuya couldn't be sure he could withstand the Ten-Tails' will. He didn't even know if the Ten-Tails truly lacked self-awareness, whether it really couldn't retaliate against its own jinchūriki.
A beast capable of harvesting entire planets. Is absorbing it truly without risk?
That was why, even though he had the opportunity to become the Ten-Tails' jinchūriki, he had deliberately passed it up.
After all, once Obito became the jinchūriki, Byakuya could still benefit from it without bearing the massive risk himself.
As time ticked by, Obito finally passed the Ten-Tails' trial and slowly opened his eyes.
Now floating above the ground, Obito's body had begun to exhibit the physical traits of an Ōtsutsuki. In his palm, several pitch-black orbs hovered.
These orbs were Truth-Seeking Balls, not yet fully formed, manifestations of power that surpassed black receivers, power that belonged only to the Six Paths level.
And in the exact moment Obito became the Ten-Tails' jinchūriki, Byakuya received a notification from his system. A subtle curve appeared at the corner of his lips.
[Obito Uchiha has become the Ten-Tails' jinchūriki. You have gained…]