"He absorbed all of the natural energy?!"
Uchiha Madara's eyes narrowed in disbelief. Having transplanted Hashirama's cells and awakened the Rinnegan, his perception of natural energy was far beyond that of ordinary shinobi. The instant he sensed all of nature's power flooding into Senju Haruto's body and fusing into Sage Chakra, his heart trembled.
Every time he believed Haruto had already reached his limit, the boy's next display would shatter that belief.
Even now… Haruto's current strength had far surpassed anything Madara could comprehend.
More than that—Haruto's chakra had even surpassed that of Uchiha Obito, the Ten-Tails' jinchūriki.
"This is impossible!"
Obito gripped the Six Paths staff tightly. As the Ten-Tails' jinchūriki, he should have been the existence closest to Haruto's level of power. Yet, what he now witnessed was a force even more overwhelming than the Ten-Tails itself.
A true Sage of Six Paths.
In that moment, Obito's heart was shaken to its core.
The belief that sustaining him—the conviction that wielding the Ten-Tails' power made him invincible—wavered.
No… it shattered.
I… will lose!
The very instant that thought entered his mind, Obito's ideals and convictions collapsed.
"Madara…"
Black Zetsu's voice quivered. Seeing Obito losing the upper hand in midair, he had no choice but to place his final hope on Madara.
Obito's defeat was inevitable now.
The power Senju Haruto possessed was so fearsome that even he, the mastermind who had shaped shinobi history from the shadows, felt dread.
And the other shinobi? They were beyond words.
Even those with no sensory abilities could feel the crushing weight of Haruto's chakra. Many collapsed to their knees, unable to withstand the pressure.
And this—this was only because they were not Haruto's enemies. Had they been, his chakra alone would have ground them to dust.
But the battle was far from over.
Unlike Naruto's Nine-Tails mode, the Kyūbi chakra Haruto possessed was not of this world. It was a reward he had earned—a perfect Nine-Tails, far superior to the halves residing within Naruto and Obito.
He wielded both yin and yang in perfect balance.
Before everyone's eyes, three manifestations of the Nine-Tails merged together, forming a colossal form with three heads and six arms.
Obito could not comprehend what he was seeing, but he knew one thing: this battle had already become a fight to the death.
For Rin.
For the new world.
He could not—would not—allow himself to lose here.
Despite the doubt gnawing at his heart, Obito's mind screamed in defiance. Raising his Six Paths staff, he summoned all of his Truth-Seeking Orbs to form a black barrier around himself. At the same time, he drew on the Ten-Tails' power, shaping a titanic Tailed Beast Bomb.
"Susano'o!"
Even so, Haruto did not move to strike.
In his eyes, Obito was no threat. A simple Yin-Yang Release: Rasenshuriken would be enough to erase him.
After all, even Sasuke's complete Susano'o, merged with the Ten-Tails, could only rival such power. And Obito… he was neither complete, nor unwavering.
The only reason Haruto did not immediately unleash his attack was not caution—it was curiosity. He wanted to test his limits.
With the Seventh Gate—Shocking Gate—open, Haruto's true body exuded a blue steam that wrapped around his golden Nine-Tails chakra.
And then, even Susano'o erupted from his body, encasing the three-headed, six-armed Nine-Tails.
Armored Susano'o!
The sight left everyone on the ground utterly dumbfounded.
Even Madara and Black Zetsu.
"This guy's limit… where does it end?"
Madara's eyes widened. When he had first seen the Yin-Yang Rasenshuriken, he already knew Obito could never withstand it. No one in the shinobi world could.
Yet unbelievably—that Rasenshuriken was not even Haruto's ultimate move.
This boy… his strength was utterly terrifying.
"Even the Sage of Six Paths himself… might not be able to defeat Senju Haruto as he is now…"
Black Zetsu's fear deepened from surprise, to shock, to sheer despair. His worldview was collapsing.
Could Haruto be even more terrifying than the enemy Kaguya Ōtsutsuki herself once feared?
"Obito," Haruto's deep voice boomed as he looked down upon him, "before this ends… do you have any last words?"
To anyone listening, it sounded like he was telling Obito to speak his dying wishes.
But Obito remained silent, his expression grave. Gathering his final strength, he condensed a Tailed Beast Bomb as large as Haruto's Rasenshuriken, while reinforcing his barrier with Truth-Seeking Orbs.
Attack and defense, both at their peak—Obito launched his final assault.
"Ten-Tails' Tailed Beast Bomb!"
"Yin-Yang Release: Rasenshuriken!"
Their voices rang out together, their ultimate powers colliding.
Yet Obito's Tailed Beast Bomb was nothing before Haruto's jutsu. The instant they touched, it was torn apart and obliterated.
Haruto's Rasenshuriken pressed forward, utterly undiminished.
"Damn it—!"
All Obito could do was curse in despair as he threw every Truth-Seeking Orb forward to shield himself.
But even that was meaningless.
For within Haruto's Rasenshuriken was Sage Chakra—and Sage Chakra was the one force that nullified the Truth-Seeking Orbs.
Boom!
The deafening explosion consumed Obito's body.
"AAAHHH!"
His scream echoed as the nine Tailed Beasts within him grew restless, their chakra violently surging. One by one, they tore free from his body, erupting into the skies.
Even Black Zetsu gasped, his mind racing. This could be the one and only chance to revive his "mother."
He turned instinctively toward Madara.
"The Tailed Beasts…"
Madara's gaze hardened as he locked onto the escaping creatures above.
This was his final chance to realize the Eye of the Moon Plan. He could not—would not—let it slip away.
And most crucially—Haruto had exhausted all his chakra to defeat Obito.
For hundreds of miles, not a trace of natural energy remained. That last attack had been his strongest technique.
Now was the time.
"Summoning!"
Madara slammed his hand down, forcibly summoning the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path to seize all the freed Tailed Beasts.
"No matter what happens, I will not fail!"
"Because I am—Uchiha Madara!"