Inoiki held one of the black chakra receiver rods he had just pulled from the Deva Path — Yahiko's lifeless body. Closing his eyes, he began to trace the faint, chakra threads that connected the rod to its distant master, Nagato. For a few tense moments, the world around him went silent, until a sharp glint flashed in his eyes.
"Found you," he murmured, before vanishing in an instant through teleportation.
At the same time, while Inoiki had finished off all the Paths of Pain, Naruto was locked in a fierce and earth-shaking battle with Sasuke.
With a thunderous roar — "Yaaah!" — Naruto, in Sage Mode, slammed his fist into the second stage of Susanoo that Sasuke had summoned. The impact reverberated through the battlefield, shaking the ground and sending a gust of wind outward as visible cracks spread across the Susanoo's surface.
Although the Susanoo didn't shatter completely, the fractures told the story of the immense power behind Naruto's strike. Sasuke's eyes widened in disbelief. Only moments ago, he had mocked Naruto, claiming he could never breach Susanoo's defenses — and yet, with just a single punch, Naruto had done the impossible.
The realization hit Sasuke hard: not only had Naruto forced him to rely on his Mangekyō Sharingan, but he was also wielding Sage Mode — his strikes now infused with nature energy, heavier, sharper, and far more destructive than before.
Sasuke was no longer the same naive boy he once was. Experience and hardship had sharpened both his mind and his instincts. He immediately recognized the energy coursing through Naruto — the same type of nature chakra that Jūgo relied on to maintain his transformations. But unlike Jūgo, who was consumed by its instability, Naruto had mastered complete control over his Sage Mode.
After punching the Susanoo, Naruto realized that brute force alone wouldn't be enough — even with Sage Mode, breaking through Sasuke's defense head-on would be nearly impossible. He quickly leapt back, his sandals grinding against the torn ground, and raised his right hand. A swirling sphere of blue energy began forming in his palm. But this wasn't an ordinary Rasengan. Its rotation grew faster, sharper, as Naruto infused it with wind-nature chakra.
The air around him howled violently, and in moments, the Rasengan expanded into a massive, whirling shuriken of chakra — the Wind Style: Rasenshuriken. Its edges buzzed with a high-pitched screech, splitting the air as if it could slice through reality itself.
Sasuke's eyes narrowed as he watched the technique take shape. "Such a huge amount of chakra… combined with wind release—what kind of jutsu is this?" he muttered, his voice both tense and amazed.
The instant Naruto hurled the Rasenshuriken, the air rippled under its speed. Understanding the destructive potential behind the incoming attack, Sasuke didn't dare underestimate it. His Sharingan spun rapidly as he poured more chakra into his Susanoo, fortifying it and evolving the spectral warrior into its third stage, ready to meet Naruto's devastating strike head-on.
Sasuke's eyes began to bleed, thin streams of blood trickling down his cheeks as the strain of the Mangekyō Sharingan intensified. He had invoked the third stage of Susanoo — a towering, armored manifestation that fully encased the half-humanoid skeleton in layers of ethereal defense. The air around him distorted under the immense pressure of its chakra.
A heartbeat later, Naruto's Rasenshuriken slammed into the Susanoo. The resulting explosion was deafening — a blinding surge of light and chakra that tore through the battlefield. The ground split open, buildings were destroyed, and the shockwave flattened everything in its path. Even the other shinobi fighting at a distance were forced to retreat rapidly to avoid the deadly fallout.
Nearby, two other duels raged: Sai clashed with Suigetsu, his ink beasts darting through sprays of mist, while Sakura fought Karin in a fierce, close-quarters struggle of strength and chakra control. Jūgo, however, remained motionless at the edge of the battlefield. His gaze never left Sasuke. From the moment he saw Naruto enter Sage Mode, Jūgo had known this fight would not be easy. He deliberately refrained from engaging anyone else, waiting for the critical moment when Sasuke might need his support.
Finally, as the swirling dust and smoke began to settle, the battlefield came back into focus. The Susanoo stood tall — its surface cracked but still intact. The sight alone was enough to display the sheer might of Sasuke's defense. Yet it was also clear: if Sasuke had not evolved his Susanoo to the third stage, the Rasenshuriken would have completely destroyed it.
The clash had taken a severe toll on Sasuke. Maintaining Susanoo at full power while constantly reinforcing it during the impact had drained an enormous amount of chakra. The Rasenshuriken's relentless rotation had sliced into the spectral armor like a colossal grinding blade, peeling away its layers piece by piece. The effort to sustain the defense left Sasuke trembling. He clutched one eye, dropped to one knee, and steadied himself with his sword, his breath ragged and uneven.
Slowly, the towering form of Susanoo began to dissolve into flickering embers of chakra. Sasuke rose to his feet, his expression dark and unwilling. Once again, Naruto stood as his equal — or perhaps even his superior. The realization tore at him from within.
"Why?" Sasuke shouted, his voice echoing across the ruined battlefield. "Why were you able to become this powerful? I've trained endlessly, pushing myself beyond every limit — yet you still stand before me as my equal! No… this cannot happen. I will not lose to you, Naruto!"
Lowering his hand from his bleeding eye, Sasuke glared at Naruto with burning hatred. "Die."
The moment the word left his lips, black flames of Amaterasu burst forth. The searing fire devoured Naruto's form instantly — but within seconds, that body dissolved into smoke.
Sasuke's eyes widened slightly. It had been a shadow clone. Naruto had anticipated the attack the instant Sasuke lifted his hand, creating a decoy clone to intercept the flames.
As soon as the shadow clone was consumed by the black flames of Amaterasu, the real Naruto emerged from behind it. His chest rose and fell rapidly, sweat dripping down his face. The orange pigmentation around his eyes had faded, and his pupils had returned to normal — Sage Mode was gone. He had expended nearly all of his natural energy.
Jūgo suddenly appeared in front of Sasuke, shielding him from view. "Sasuke, your condition isn't good," he said firmly. "It's best we retreat now — you can barely stand."
Sasuke's vision blurred; the world had become little more than hazy outlines. The prolonged use of the Mangekyō Sharingan had nearly cost him his sight. He could barely make out Naruto's silhouette in the distance, but even through the blur, he sensed the vast difference in stamina between them. Naruto still had chakra left — and that meant Sasuke had no chance of victory this time.
Grinding his teeth, Sasuke gave a reluctant nod. "Let's go."
Hearing this, Naruto shouted hoarsely, "No—you're not escaping this time!" He quickly formed a hand seal. "Shadow Clone Jutsu!" In a flash, dozens of Narutos rushed forward, their battle cries echoing across the devastated field.
Jūgo roared as he transformed into his monstrous form. His skin hardened, muscles bulged, and in a single motion, he swung his fists and kicked through the charging clones, shattering them one after another in bursts of smoke.
He then hoisted Sasuke onto his back. Seeing them withdraw, both Karin and Suigetsu disengaged from their fights; a brief clash of chakra flared before they vanished in synchronized Body Flicker movements.
It all happened in an instant — by the time the smoke cleared, Team Taka had already vanished from sight, leaving Naruto standing amidst the ruins, exhausted, staring into the empty horizon.
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