At this moment, within the Core dimension, only three figures remained—Uchiha Kirin, the Sage of Six Paths, and the Great Toad Sage.
The more the two sages pondered, the more they saw Uchiha Kirin as a juicy piece of meat ripe for the taking.
And right now was the perfect opportunity to deal with him.
If they could eliminate Uchiha Kirin here, they might not only gain a power on par with Kaguya's, but also eliminate his potential interference with their future plans for the Shinobi World—and even realms beyond.
Why not do it?
Moreover, while the Core dimension was technically a world of its own, its rules differed from those of the Shinobi World.
The Sage of Six Paths could manifest here in spirit form without any negative repercussions.
On the contrary, since the battle wouldn't affect the outside world, it wouldn't draw interference from the Slug Sage. That meant he could go all out.
The Sage of Six Paths quietly nodded to himself, slowing down his speech and thought process, temporarily leaving the task of dealing with Uchiha Kirin to the Great Toad Sage.
Meanwhile, his consciousness returned to his true body in the Pure Land. He opened a space portal and began channeling all his power through it.
Still, he held some caution toward Uchiha Kirin's strength.
After all, in his eyes, Uchiha Kirin was a reincarnated deity. Although Kirin had lost his memories, his battle instincts remained sharp. He was nothing like the easily handled Kaguya.
To avoid raising suspicion, the Sage of Six Paths decided to first enter a subspace adjacent to the Core dimension to prepare.
...
Inside the Core dimension, the Great Toad Sage suddenly shifted his demeanor.
He began flattering Uchiha Kirin, putting on a front of friendliness and compromise, trying to keep Kirin calm and distracted.
But what he didn't know was that Uchiha Kirin had already seen through their scheme from the very start.
After simulating this scenario so many times, if he still couldn't figure out what they were planning, he'd be a hopeless fool…
He was also waiting—for the moment the Sage of Six Paths would strike.
Whatever power the old man dared to throw at him, Kirin intended to keep it all here permanently.
Even if he couldn't kill him outright, he would make sure the Sage paid a heavy price.
Just as the two appeared deep in discussion, the Sage of Six Paths' spirit form within the Core dimension launched a surprise attack.
With a sudden strike, he punched Kirin in the back.
Kirin stumbled forward.
A space gate opened right in front of him, and he tumbled through it.
The moment he entered, he was instantly frozen solid, completely immobilized!
It turned out the Sage of Six Paths had already arrived beforehand and prepared everything. He had gained full control of this frozen realm and made himself its master. That was how he managed to seal Kirin without any resistance.
Suddenly—
The old man's smug expression twisted into shock, followed by a furious threat.
In that very instant when Kirin entered the Frozen dimension, he had secretly thrown one of his Limbo clones back into the Core dimension.
Just like that, the Great Toad Sage and the spirit clone of the Sage of Six Paths were both slain in one move!
"Enough talk, then."
Uchiha Kirin laughed heartily. A blazing red aura burst from his body, melting the ice around him with ease.
The Sage of Six Paths flew into the sky and tore a purple bracelet from his wrist, hurling it downward.
But Kirin had already layered multiple techniques—various chakra modes, Sage Arts, even the Battle Saint Scripture and the Eight Gates—all stacked through his Breathing Art.
With a single punch, the purple bracelet was shattered into a pile of fragments.
The Sage was visibly shocked by what he saw.
A red pattern flashed across his forehead.
Suddenly, the entire frozen realm seemed to come alive. The natural forces of the environment surged against Kirin.
Limbo: Border Jail!
Five Limbo clones appeared around the Sage of Six Paths simultaneously.
Each one, like the original, had activated Breathing Art. Though they hadn't stacked the Eight Gates or the Battle Saint Scripture, they could still use every one of Kirin's abilities.
Amenotejikara!
While a single Limbo clone wasn't enough to match the Sage of Six Paths at full power, they could still injure him.
The clones swarmed him, using Amenotejikara to constantly swap places mid-attack, forming a chaotic whirlwind of assaults.
Wielding weapons formed from Truth-Seeking Orbs, they launched a relentless barrage of strikes.
The overwhelming assault left the Sage reeling.
Then he undid a golden belt from his waist—and in an instant, he sealed all of the Limbo clones at once.
"Hah!"
Uchiha Kirin's main body broke free of his frozen prison.
Using his immense strength, he shattered the entire realm under the Sage's control.
With a single punch, he caved in the Sage's face.
He then tore the artifact that had sealed his clones clean in half.
The Limbo clones returned, and immediately rejoined the battle.
Now that Kirin's true body had entered the fray, the momentum shifted drastically in his favor.
The two of them tore through the fabric of the Core dimension, crashing into the starry void beyond.
As a soul form, the Sage of Six Paths was at a disadvantage in the real world and had to materialize a body of energy merged with Susanoo to keep fighting.
But by then, Uchiha Kirin had already activated his strongest state.
A transparent Susanoo emerged around him—then was dyed in a spectrum of colors by the various Breathing Art energies.
Susanoo vs. Susanoo.
True body vs. true body.
In the final exchange, Kirin interrupted the Sage's attempt to summon the Pure Land, and forcibly drove his soul form straight into the heart of the sun.
Even so, the Sage of Six Paths proved incredibly tenacious.
Despite the pressure and the elemental suppression, he still managed to endure and survive within the solar core.
This battle had taken a heavy toll on Uchiha Kirin as well.
But he still couldn't completely destroy the Sage of Six Paths.
Only with the arrival of the Slug Sage did the conflict end in a truce, with both sides retreating.
Even so, the outcome of the battle reshaped the power rankings of the Shinobi World.
Uchiha Kirin became the undisputed strongest being in existence.
Naturally, he claimed the greatest share of the loot:
First and foremost was the Rinne Sharingan with nine tomoe.
Then came the full genetic bloodline of Otsutsuki Kaguya—still infused with residual Divine Tree power—the shattered remains of the Core dimension, and more…
He also acquired a root from the Divine Tree and fragments of chakra from the Nine Tailed Beasts. These would be used to cultivate a new Divine Tree.
As for the Sage of Six Paths?
After all that effort, he only managed to reclaim what was originally his.
But Kirin knew this much:
Once the Sage regained his physical body, his strength would rise again.
So Kirin took his spoils and entered the sun itself for a period of secluded training.
He left behind several Limbo clones to handle matters in the Shinobi World.
First and foremost—spreading the Breathing Art.
Now that the old power structure had shifted following the battle between Sages, chakra could no longer be allowed to dominate the world unchecked.
One of his Limbo clones walked the land, spreading different versions of the Breathing Art—designed so that anyone could train in them.
Every person could adapt it to their own style, imbuing it with personal traits and forging entirely new paths forward.
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