"Rectify past regrets? Don't be so arrogant. Do you think you're a god, Uchiha Madara?!
Looking back on your life, hasn't it been filled with countless regrets? Someone who can't even save their own regrets has no right to spout such nonsense." Kakashi's voice was icy cold.
These words pierced Madara's heart like daggers. Though he was over 70 years old and should have had an unshakable resolve, an inexplicable fury surged within him.
Madara, laughing bitterly in his rage, glared at Kakashi as if looking at a dead man.
"Brat, is that strange power of yours giving you the courage to speak to me this way?
So be it. Let your corpse, Fifth Hokage, announce my return. Let the world know that I am no longer the Warlord of the Ninja World—I am its god!"
Almost simultaneously, both combatants erupted with terrifying torrents of chakra.
In Konoha's command center, the giant water sphere used to sense enemy chakra suddenly bubbled violently with two massive eruptions.
The leader of the sensory division, Yamanaka Inoichi, was visibly shocked.
"What's going on?
How can there be such overwhelming chakra signatures inside the barrier? Even the Nine-Tails pales in comparison! What's happening in there? Two monsters like this…
Wait, though this chakra signature is strange, one belongs to Hokage-sama. But whose terrifying chakra rivals Hokage-sama's?"
Unfortunately, no one could answer Inoichi's question. With a puff of smoke, the special sensory tools broke down, and the giant water sphere exploded violently, drenching everyone in the command room.
But by now, the command center was useless. Emerging from the tent, the Konoha shinobi could see two towering giants battling each other, even from several kilometers away.
As the commander-in-chief, Nara Shikaku—normally the most intelligent and composed—was utterly awestruck.
"This is... a battle straight out of myth."
Within the Konoha camp, Jiraiya, the strongest fighter present, was incredibly tense. Ordinary shinobi might not grasp the significance of the two colossal chakra figures before them.
But as a Sage trained by the renowned Mount Myōboku, Jiraiya clearly understood that even someone with the title of Sage like himself was far inferior to those two terrifying beings.
This was combat on an entirely different plane.
"Shikaku, snap out of it! Quickly organize an evacuation! If we get caught in their crossfire, even I won't be able to withstand the power of those two monsters."
Snapped back to reality by Jiraiya's shout, Shikaku quickly regained his composure. After weighing the pros and cons, he realized Jiraiya was right. Being caught in a battle of that magnitude would result in catastrophic casualties for ordinary Konoha shinobi—even just the aftershocks could devastate them.
"Retreat! Abandon all supplies and evacuate immediately! Whatever you do, don't get dragged into the fight!"
Though Konoha's forces lacked the discipline of modern military units, following orders was ingrained in every ninja's instincts. Without hesitation, the Konoha army began a swift withdrawal.
Kakashi, sensing that the Konoha shinobi had already moved out of the battle range, felt a slight relief.
But Madara sneered coldly, "To dare split your focus while fighting me! Don't get too cocky, brat!
I am the second Sage of Six Paths in the ninja world!"
Madara's complete Susanoo was a four-armed, dual-faced demon god. From within the crystalline structure atop its head, Madara formed hand seals, and the Susanoo mirrored his movements.
"Tengai Shinsei!!"
In an instant, a massive rock larger than Kakashi's Vast Ocean Avatar plummeted from the sky.
Kakashi's expression remained calm, devoid of any tension. How could the divine power bestowed by Ye Wen be limited to something as simple and flashy as the Vast Ocean Avatar's revival ability?
The armored fist of the Vast Ocean Avatar clenched tightly, and a plain yet ominous ring of light appeared. Though unassuming, Madara instinctively sensed the threat.
"What is that?!"
The Vast Ocean Avatar swung its fist upward with tremendous force.
The atmosphere—split apart!
"Spatial Shockwave!"
The pinnacle of power collided in that moment.
Unsurprisingly, the Tengai Shinsei, not a true meteor but merely an enormous boulder, shattered into pieces under the Vast Ocean Avatar's attack, which was capable of shattering the very air.
From atop his fully manifested Susanoo, Madara showed no surprise. It seemed he expected Kakashi to achieve such a feat. Even winds rivaling a Category 10 typhoon failed to faze him.
However, the aftershocks alone were enough to torment the retreating Konoha forces.
Caught off guard by the sudden gale, Akimichi Chōza, face smeared with mud after being knocked flat on the ground, couldn't help but complain.
"This is ridiculous! We're at least ten kilometers away, and we're still getting hit!"
Nara Shikaku cut off the rotund Chōza's grumbling with an impatient tone.
"Enough talk! Just keep running!"
"Got it."
Meanwhile, the battle at the core was far from over.
"There's a second one?!"
After shattering the first Tengai Shinsei, Kakashi naturally spotted the equally massive second one. But by the time he intended to quickly counterattack Madara, it was too late to prepare another Spatial Shockwave.
At this moment, Madara drew his Susanoo's divine weapon—a nameless yet incredibly sharp chakra blade capable of splitting mountains with a single swing.
Madara's eyes burned with fervor, as if silently saying, "Choose, brat—will you be crushed or cut down by me?!"
For the first time, Madara truly regarded Kakashi as an equal. For the sake of his Moon's Eye Plan, Madara could not allow such an existence to continue interfering.
Just as Kakashi could abandon his principles for the sake of his ideals, so too could Madara.
Seeing that Kakashi wasn't preparing another Spatial Shockwave, Madara's lips curled into a victorious smile. It seemed he wouldn't need to risk finishing him off personally.
But the next second, Madara's smile vanished. A massive, eerie circular hole abruptly appeared beneath Kakashi's feet.
Having experienced the pain of losing his brother, Madara quickly deduced the nature of this technique.
An indescribable rage ignited within him. Clenching his teeth, Madara growled,
"Space-Time Ninjutsu!"
Kakashi didn't give Madara time to unleash Hashirama Senju's infamous evil techniques.
Because Kakashi had set the exit point of the spatial distortion directly above and behind Madara.
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