A chilly spring breeze lingered in the air, warmth coming and going.
Yuzuru stepped forward, standing face-to-face with Ōnoki.
A faint smile appeared on his face as he raised an eyebrow and asked, "Tsuchikage, I heard from Kitsuchi that you want to fight me?"
"In truth, there's no need. My unification of the ninja world is inevitable. Even if you choose to surrender, no one will blame you, and there's no need to feel ashamed."
"On the contrary, future generations will praise your decision to abandon darkness and turn to the light."
In Ōnoki's eyes, Yuzuru's arrogance began to overlap with the image of Uchiha Madara from years past.
He spoke in a low voice, "I'm not fighting you just for my honor as Tsuchikage."
"Oh?"
A trace of nostalgia appeared on Ōnoki's face.
"When I was still a child, I followed my teacher—the Second Tsuchikage—to Konoha to negotiate peaceful coexistence."
"At first, everything seemed to be going smoothly… but Uchiha Madara came to us in private."
"With nothing but pure power, he crushed my teacher and trampled our dignity with ease."
"From that day on, I lived under the shadow of Uchiha Madara."
"To one day stand against that power, I trained relentlessly, never once slacking off."
"Now I'm old. Before I die, I want to see… whether I can defeat those terrifying eyes."
After hearing Ōnoki's story, Yuzuru didn't say much. He simply replied, "In that case… come."
As his words fell, his pitch-black pupils transformed into scarlet Mangekyō Sharingan.
After so many years, seeing the Mangekyō Sharingan again made Ōnoki's heartbeat quicken uncontrollably.
The cold, eerie Dōjutsu Power unique to the Mangekyō left his mouth dry.
"Earth Release: Rock Fist Technique!"
His arm became encased in stone as he charged straight at Yuzuru.
Yuzuru didn't dodge or evade—he met the attack head-on with his fist.
Seeing this, a flash of anger crossed Ōnoki's face.
Using bare flesh to clash against his Rock Fist Technique—such arrogance.
Just like Uchiha Madara back then, always looking down on everyone.
Just as the two were about to collide, Ōnoki formed hand seals in secret. "Earth Release: Ultra-Added-Weight Rock Technique!"
Boom!
Their fists collided violently.
In the next instant, Ōnoki's body was sent flying backward.
The stone on his arm shattered completely, leaving his right arm hanging limp.
Yet he had no mind to check his injuries. He stared in disbelief at Yuzuru, who hadn't moved an inch.
With the enhancement of the Ultra-Weighted Rock Technique, he had been like a thousand-ton locomotive.
Even a mountain would have been smashed open.
And yet Yuzuru… had taken it without even stepping back!
Even a tailed beast shouldn't possess such a terrifying body!
On the other side, Yuzuru glanced at the exposed white bone on his hand, a faint smile curling at his lips.
With a thought, flesh rapidly regenerated over it at a visible speed.
His body was now a perfect Sage Body, even stronger than Senju Hashirama in his prime.
Ōnoki's attack just now had been decent—but the damage it dealt was limited to that.
At the same time, Yuzuru began to understand why Uchiha Madara had been so exhilarated after being revived with the Rinne Rebirth Technique.
This feeling of real combat… was exhilarating.
With Kamui at his disposal, he didn't even feel like using it.
Thinking of this, Yuzuru beckoned with a finger. "Being able to injure me at all is impressive. Come—use your full strength and continue to entertain me."
"Damn it!"
Ōnoki gritted his teeth, forcing his arm back into place before slamming both hands onto the ground.
"Earth Release: Moving Earth Core!"
The ground beneath Yuzuru instantly sank.
Ōnoki didn't stop. "Mountain Technique!"
Two massive hemispheres slammed together, swallowing Yuzuru whole.
"It's not over yet!" Ōnoki leapt above the structure, chakra surging through his body. "Earth Release: Ultra-Added-Weight Rock Technique!"
Boom!
The earth collapsed and trembled violently.
After unleashing this barrage of attacks, Ōnoki couldn't help but gasp for breath.
"Did I win…?"
In the next moment, a pitch-black blade of energy shot into the sky.
Immediately after, a colossal Susanoo—over a hundred meters tall—appeared before him.
Yuzuru stood within it, arms crossed, looking down at Ōnoki. "You didn't seriously think you could defeat me, did you?"
"Ridiculous."
As his voice fell, the Susanoo raised its blade and slashed downward.
Ōnoki pushed his chakra to its absolute limit. "Earth Release: Golem Jutsu!"
A massive stone creature rose from the ground, shielding him beneath it.
Boom!
With a violent tremor, the stone golem was split in half—but it bought just enough time for Ōnoki to escape the attack's range.
"So this is the technique…"
Looking up at the towering Susanoo, Ōnoki once again felt his own insignificance.
Before such godlike power, how could any human muster the will to resist?
And yet…
Wasn't this exactly what he had devoted his entire life to overcoming?!
Ōnoki's gaze hardened as he clasped his hands together.
"Dust Release: Atomic Dismantling Jutsu!"
A gigantic cube, over a hundred meters in size, appeared out of thin air, silently devouring everything within it.
Yuzuru's Susanoo was swallowed as well.
"Huff… huff…"
Ōnoki dropped to his knees, barely keeping his eyes open.
That attack had drained all his chakra, nearly knocking him unconscious.
But a smile slowly spread across his face.
He had finally done it.
Susanoo… had been destroyed head-on!
"Teacher… I've won."
He murmured softly—
And then, from within the Atomic Dismantling Jutsu, a deafening explosion erupted.
The Susanoo, which should have been reduced to atomic particles, reappeared before his eyes—growing larger, its form evolving.
In the end, a colossal armored figure five hundred meters tall, with wings spread wide, stood like a mountain before him.
Compared to it, Ōnoki's hunched, frail body was like dust—like an ant.
He stared in shock. "H-How is this possible…"
"Is this… really a power a human can possess?!"
"What kind of joke is this?!" Ōnoki roared hysterically. "If you had such overwhelming strength, why didn't you use it from the beginning?"
"Have you been treating me like a clown this whole time?!"
Hearing this, Yuzuru's voice descended calmly from above.
"Who would use their full strength from the start when fighting an ant?"
"Even this… is only the tip of the iceberg of my power."
"But the fact that you've forced me to this extent… is a pride worth remembering for the rest of your life."