In the Land of Rain, rain fell incessantly.
Upon a high tower, the Deva Path Pain and Konan were discussing something. Suddenly, both their expressions changed drastically. They snapped their heads up to look at the sky.
Above the Land of Rain, without any warning, a massive hole dozens of meters in diameter had torn open, its edges brimming with chaotic energy. Beyond the hole were violent space-time currents. A young man with a stern countenance stood steadily amidst the currents, like a casual stroll, looking down upon them.
"That's... Konoha's Missing-nin, Uchiha Sasuke?" Konan cried out in shock, her voice trembling with disbelief. "How... how can he be standing in Space-Time Currents? What kind of power is this?"
Nagato's Rinnegan was filled with extreme shock and gravity. He could sense that the aura emanating from that 'Uchiha Sasuke' completely surpassed his understanding of Ninjas, resembling the mythical Sage of Six Paths.
'Sasuke merely glanced at them indifferently, the same look one might give stones by the roadside. Seeming to sense something, he threw another punch at the void to his side.
Crack!
Another spatial rift was forcibly torn open. He stepped through and vanished.
The hole in the sky slowly closed, leaving only the pouring rain and two core members of the Akatsuki, their minds shaken to the core.
Uchiha Obito, hidden in a shadow space somewhere in the Land of Rain, witnessed 'Sasuke' shatter the void and stroll through the currents. He was utterly unsettled. "What kind of monstrous strength is this?"
Obito's face behind the mask twisted, his voice laced with uncontrollable fear. "A punch breaking space? Standing unscathed in Space-Time Currents?"
He suspected that if he used his intangibility in front of Sasuke, the next moment, Sasuke might break through the Kamui Dimension and pull him out of the other dimension. For the first time, he deeply doubted the safety of his [Eye of the Moon Plan].
Within a hidden spatial node of the Kara Organization.
The environment here was peculiar, seemingly independent of the Ninja world.
Otsutsuki Isshiki, currently attached to Jigen's body and in a semi-dormant recovery state, suddenly jolted awake. He sensed that his carefully hidden alternate dimension, one even Kaguya would struggle to find, had been forcibly torn open from the outside by someone?
He stared blankly at the young man who stepped calmly out of the spatial rift.
"Who are you? How did you find this place?" Isshiki asked, shocked and enraged, his voice stern.
He had never seen this person before, nor had he ever sensed such a bizarre and powerful aura.
'Sasuke' had no interest in answering. The look he gave Isshiki was like that of a 'material' about to be processed.
No probing, no wasted words.
Setsuna, controlling Sasuke's body, stacked and fused powers from multiple systems in an inconceivable manner upon the perfect vessel constructed by the Tattoo and Baryon Mode.
Armament Haki + Conqueror's Haki + Eight Gates Released Formation + Baryon Mode + Shunko + Sekishiki Meikai Ha!
All power collapsed and condensed onto that unremarkable right fist.
The scene around the fist was beyond description. Light distorted completely, forming a miniature absolute dark sphere, as if even existence itself was being drawn in.
'Sasuke's' fist swung instantly.
Isshiki didn't even have time to mount any effective response.
He felt only a darkness before his eyes… not visual darkness, but within his soul's perception, everything was filled by the 'absolute end' that the fist had become.
Jigen's body, along with Isshiki's soul within it, was instantly annihilated, leaving only Isshiki's main body remnant.
Sasuke's consciousness watched this scene in shock. He could sense the opponent's strength. This enemy was definitely the most powerful Ninja he had ever seen, countless times stronger than Itachi.
Yet, even a being this strong couldn't withstand a single punch from 'himself'. It was hard for him to imagine that his own body, in his master's hands, could unleash such terrifying power.
After dealing with Isshiki, 'Sasuke's' gaze turned towards the depths of the alternate dimension.
There, a juvenile Ten-Tails was sealed. It was relatively smaller in size but emanated an immensely violent aura, with a Rinnegan embedded in its head. He made a grasping motion through the air, and an invisible force bound the struggling, roaring juvenile Ten-Tails, bringing it before him.
Then, Setsuna threw Isshiki's remains towards the juvenile Ten-Tails.
The juvenile Ten-Tails instantly stopped struggling, showing no attachment to its former master, and swallowed him in one gulp. After consuming Isshiki's body, the juvenile Ten-Tails' form trembled violently, expanded, and contracted.
Ultimately, amidst a flash of white light, this juvenile Ten-Tails transformed into a small sapling emanating a dense, vibrant life force.
This was the initial stage of the Ten-Tails' evolution towards the [God Tree] form after obtaining enough Otsutsuki nutrients.
Next, Setsuna directly forced a summoning contract with the Ten-Tails using his own powerful soul. Even without blood as a sacrifice, he could forcibly summon the Ten-Tails with his soul.
Having done all this, Setsuna let out a long, relieved breath.
"It's time to return your body to you," Setsuna's voice echoed in Sasuke's consciousness.
A stream of dark gold light flew out from Sasuke's brow, reforming into Setsuna's spiritual body.
Sasuke's consciousness retook control of his body, instantly feeling the terrifying aftermath… as if he had been disassembled and reassembled countless times, every cell wailing, his soul aching. He let out a muffled grunt, falling to one knee, blood trickling from his mouth.
"Use the Sharingan you got from Danzo to activate 'Izanagi'," Setsuna's voice came. "Rewrite your body's condition back to its intact state from one minute ago, when we first arrived."
Sasuke didn't dare hesitate. He immediately took a small bottle containing a Sharingan from his Ninja tool pouch.
"Izanagi!"
The retrieved Sharingan instantly turned a murky gray. Simultaneously, Sasuke felt a strange, rule-based force sweep across his entire body.
His body, on the verge of collapse, rapidly rewound to its state one minute prior, like a video playing in reverse.
He stood up again, moving his completely restored body, and looked at his master preparing to leave, his heart filled with gratitude and reluctance.
"Master..." He opened his mouth but didn't know what to say.
Setsuna nodded slightly: "I've taught you most of what I needed to. You must walk the remaining path yourself. Remember, strength originates from conviction, but do not let power consume your true heart."
With that, Setsuna's figure vanished, as if he had never existed.
"Master!" Sasuke couldn't help but shout, his eyes instantly reddening. He lunged forward but grasped only emptiness.
Sasuke stood rooted to the spot, staring at the place where his master had disappeared. The tears he had held back for so long finally fell uncontrollably.
"Master, I will definitely carry out the conviction you passed on to me! Using my fists, using my own way, I will change this twisted Ninja World!"