Chapter 245: Deciding the Winner
As they spoke, Jigen had already leapt in front of Uchiha Madara's Susanoo.
He was level with Susanoo's head, and suddenly raised his fist, aiming straight for Madara, who was hiding inside and being shielded by it.
Seeing Jigen's gathering power, Madara's pupils tightened slightly—but before he could react, Jigen had already thrown his punch.
With a loud bang, the so-called absolute defense of the Uchiha clan, the indestructible Complete Body Susanoo, was actually blasted apart by Jigen in a single strike.
Even Uchiha Dali, who was watching from afar in a leisurely manner, couldn't help but exclaim in admiration. "As expected, this guy's strength is absurd—he's already reached the level of Ōtsutsuki Kaguya."
Ōtsutsuki Kaguya also possessed the power to destroy a Complete Body Susanoo in a single move.
But compared to her, Jigen's combat intelligence was far superior.
At this moment, after shattering the Complete Body Susanoo with one punch, Jigen immediately launched another attack on Madara. With a wave of his hand, a mass of black chakra rods pierced through Madara's body.
But this time, Madara chuckled.
"What are you laughing at?"
Jigen's gaze sharpened. He halted his attack, looking at Madara in puzzlement. "Your ability might look invincible, but it's far from perfect.
The flaw is quite obvious! This attack isn't hitting me because it's too fast to dodge, but because you've shrunk it to the point that it's invisible to the naked eye. That way, when it pierces my body, I can't feel it at all—until you restore it to its original size at the moment of attack.
By using this trick, which looks like some cheap parlor magic, you can catch your opponent off guard and land a devastating blow. But now that I understand the principle, it's easy to deal with."
As soon as he finished speaking, a strange gray-brown substance appeared all over Madara's body.
This substance not only reinforced his entire body, as if he were wearing an invincible suit of armor, but also expelled every single black chakra rod from inside him.
Right now, Madara was still using the power of Yin–Yang Release.
And this gray-brown substance was nothing strange at all—its nature was no different from Truth-Seeking Orbs.
The only difference was that, under the pressure of his opponent's overwhelming strength and peculiar ability, Madara had chosen to apply it to his own body, forming a close-fitting defense.
Truth-Seeking Orbs created with Yin–Yang Release could defend against all things in the world, and destroy all things in the world.
Naturally, they were also effective against the black chakra rods, which were likewise created through Yin–Yang Release.
At that moment, the expelled rods crumbled into ash upon touching the Truth-Seeking Orb material, vanishing into the wind.
Seeing this, Jigen couldn't help showing a hint of solemnity.
"It seems that after you absorbed the Ten Tails, you really did gain some remarkable power.
But all of this should have belonged to me! You lowly, despicable creature—how dare you flaunt that power in front of me!"
With that, Jigen launched at Madara once again.
He was getting carried away now.
He didn't seem to notice that the chakra in his body was rapidly being consumed, and his stamina was severely dropping.
This was a dangerous sign—it meant his body was nearing its limit.
If he couldn't finish Madara off soon, the next one in trouble would be himself.
From afar, the relaxed Uchiha Dali watched with a playful smile. "Almost at your limit already? How dull… I was just starting to enjoy myself…"
He rested his hands behind his head, watching as Jigen began a merciless, unrestrained assault—clearly realizing the urgency of his situation.
Faced with Jigen's full-force offensive, Madara was instantly forced into a perilous position.
The earlier use of the chakra-draining Complete Body Susanoo had already cut down his reserves considerably, and being struck repeatedly by black chakra rods had further depleted him.
Even in his Edo Tensei state, Madara's chakra regeneration had begun to slow, leaving him feeling somewhat powerless.
"So, in this state… I see now."
Realizing the change in his body, Madara's heart sank.
Jigen noticed it right away and sneered. "So your recovery in this form has a limit after all—you can't truly use infinite chakra!"
"Die, Uchiha Madara!"
With that, Jigen's attacks grew even fiercer and more ruthless, holding nothing back.
…
After a fierce battle, Madara, in his Edo Tensei state, finally exhausted his ability to recover.
Now, he was like a paper doll riddled with holes, pinned to the ground by more than a dozen black chakra rods, unable to move.
His shattered body could no longer regenerate through Edo Tensei's properties.
Of course, achieving this came at a heavy cost for Jigen as well—his chakra consumption was so extreme that he could barely maintain normal movement.
Panting heavily, Jigen walked step by step toward the subdued Madara.
"I told you—there's always a way to deal with you.
Now, can you still resurrect?"
As he spoke, another black chakra rod appeared in his hand. Standing before Madara, Jigen didn't hesitate—he raised it and drove it down hard.
The rod pierced straight through Madara's head.
Having already lost all his strength and unable to recover, Madara's head was instantly smashed apart.
His body began to crumble bit by bit.
"This should send you back to the underworld.
The Ten Tails stays with me."
Jigen's gaze was cold as he watched Madara's body slowly break apart.
"The Ten Tails is already bound to me—our lives are linked. Killing me means killing the Ten Tails. Looks like your plan will have to wait quite a while longer.
But how will you deal with Uchiha Dali?"
Before his body vanished completely, Madara taunted him calmly.
"Tailed beasts are pure chakra lifeforms—you know that, don't you? As long as the Ten Tails' soul remains, it can revive after some time.
But you—will never return again, Uchiha Madara."
With that, Jigen lost all patience to wait for his body to fully disappear.
He raised his hand, palm aimed at Madara's remaining form, and countless black chakra rods erupted like the wild growth of cactus spines.
In an instant, Madara's last remnants were completely obliterated.
At the same time, a massive surge of chakra energy was released as Madara vanished—and Jigen quickly absorbed it.