Armored Susanoo!
This was the strongest technique Uchiha Itachi could summon in that moment.
"Naruto, we must end this quickly."
Itachi fixed his gaze on the figure of Madara below, calculating exactly how long his Armored Susanoo could be sustained. He had already burned through a large portion of his chakra when countering Meteor Descent. Wrapping Susanoo around the Nine-Tails reduced some of the burden, but with his failing body, he could maintain this form for no more than three minutes.
"Three minutes, huh?" Naruto gave a sharp nod. He still didn't understand why Itachi had chosen to fight on the village's side this time, but the situation was far too desperate for him to waste focus on questions like that.
Not only was Itachi's Susanoo on a time limit—Naruto and Kurama's first true fusion could also only be sustained for a few fleeting minutes.
"Kurama. Itachi. Let's go!"
With Naruto's roar, the Armored Susanoo—now clad over the Nine-Tails like armor—swung the Totsuka Blade down toward Uchiha Madara.
"To dress Susanoo upon a Jinchūriki of the Nine-Tails? As expected of you, Itachi!"
Madara's expression carried no anger—only exhilaration. Whether it was Naruto, the perfected Jinchūriki, or Itachi, the unmatched Uchiha genius—both were opponents worthy of his era. Even back in the Warring States, they would have been feared across the shinobi world. And now, united in their assault—their combined strength might even rival that of Senju Hashirama!
"In that case, I, Uchiha Madara, will answer you with everything I have!"
Madara roared as blue chakra flames surged across the half-formed body of his colossal Susanoo. The sheer density of chakra was enough to crush hope from the hearts of the watching shinobi.
That's right. Breaking one of Madara's techniques had not meant victory. True victory could only be claimed by defeating Madara at his full power.
But such hope—was it not already impossibly thin?
In just a few breaths, Madara's Perfect Susanoo rose, towering across the battlefield. He did not falter before the united assault of Itachi and Naruto. Instead, his Susanoo's hand gripped the hilt of the massive chakra blade at its waist. With a single pull, it unsheathed the weapon.
The sword's aura alone ripped through the air, a force like a storm carving straight into the Hokage Monument.
Boom!
The ground trembled as the carved faces of the Hokage were cleaved in half, their stone fragments collapsing into ruin.
This was Uchiha Madara's strength.
The man who stood at the pinnacle of the shinobi world.
A despair unlike any before blanketed the battlefield once again.
"Re… retreat…"
Even the ever-composed Kakashi could only whisper his thought into everyone's minds through Yamanaka Haiichi's jutsu. They had already pushed themselves to the edge just destroying one of Madara's techniques. To remain here longer could mean only one outcome—death.
Whether it was Madara… or the current Naruto and Itachi—their powers were forces capable of reshaping nations.
Boom!
But before the shinobi could withdraw, Itachi and Naruto's Armored Susanoo had already clashed head-on with Madara's colossal Susanoo.
Red against blue.
Two entirely different chakras collided, the impact spreading in violent ripples across the land. The Deep Forest Emergence Madara had summoned earlier was obliterated in an instant. Countless shinobi were flung away like kites with cut strings.
Even Kakashi, Guy, and Zabuza—famed names across nations—could do nothing in the face of the clash between Madara, Itachi, and Naruto. At this level, all they could do was put their faith in the two fighting for them.
"Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
Seeing that they couldn't overpower Madara directly, Naruto split his chakra evenly and formed two additional clones, each manifesting in full Nine-Tails Mode.
But Itachi only had one Susanoo armor. The clones could only fight in the base Nine-Tails form.
"Wind Release: Rasenshuriken!"
"Tailed Beast Bomb!"
The two shadow clones attacked simultaneously—one forming twin Rasenshuriken in his hands, the other compressing tailed beast chakra into a black orb in his mouth.
Madara, locked in combat with the Armored Susanoo, had no chance to evade.
If they could just shatter his Susanoo's defense, Itachi's Totsuka Blade could seal him instantly. That had been their plan ever since descending together into battle.
But just as their strategy was about to succeed—
Madara's eyes transformed once more. From the Eternal Mangekyō, his gaze shifted into the Rinnegan.
The Rasenshuriken. The Tailed Beast Bomb.
Both were absorbed into nothing.
"Did you truly forget? No ninjutsu is effective against me. Have you grown stupid?" Madara sneered at the shock in Naruto and Itachi's eyes. He no longer wielded only Wood Release or the Sharingan—the power of the Rinnegan now bent to his will as well.
Shinra Tensei!
Madara's Susanoo extended four massive arms outward in different directions. The overwhelming force of Shinra Tensei erupted forth, far surpassing Nagato's.
Naruto's shadow clones were shattered instantly, his true body hurled hundreds of meters before crashing into the ground with a thunderous impact.
When Naruto struggled to rise again, he saw Itachi coughing blood. The Susanoo armor surrounding the Nine-Tails fractured, then crumbled into fragments before vanishing completely.
It wasn't just Itachi—Naruto and Kurama's first fusion had also reached its end. The giant chakra avatar of the Nine-Tails faded, and Naruto fell out of his mode, panting, his body overwhelmed.
"Not even five minutes, huh?" Kurama's brows furrowed in frustration. But then the fox realized—Naruto was still just a twelve-year-old genin. Neither his body nor spirit had reached their peak. His chakra reserves were still far from their true potential.
"This is bad." Kurama cursed under his breath. Senju Haruto was nowhere in the village, and they had no other force capable of opposing Madara.
"…There's still me."
The voice came weakly from Naruto's side.
He turned to see Itachi—his condition even worse than his own. Overuse of the Sharingan had blood streaming from his eyes, blood spilling at the corners of his mouth. The strain of the Perfect Susanoo had pushed him past his body's limits.
In that moment, temporary blindness struck. His eyes clouded into pitch-black darkness.
Madara landed before them, taking one glance at Itachi and understanding everything at once.
"You possess not only great power, but also a brilliant mind. But in the end… what you wield is only the ordinary Mangekyō. Each use eats away at your body." His tone was grave, almost paternal. "The only way to overcome that weakness is to awaken the Eternal Mangekyō."
Madara's gaze sharpened.
"If you had been willing to cast aside that little brother of yours, perhaps… perhaps you would have had the strength to fight me to the very end."