"Futile!"
Obito's voice was cold, echoing over the deathly silent battlefield.
The hearts of the Allied Shinobi Forces sank to rock bottom. Countless previous attacks—whether Senjutsu-enhanced Wood Release, Dust Release, Tailed Beast Balls, or Susanoo—had all dissolved like snow before the barrier of Truth-Seeking Orbs.
Could it be that this time, they still couldn't shake this wall of despair?
However, at the very instant the giant blade made contact with the barrier, a sudden change occurred!
BOOM!!
It wasn't the dull sound of energy annihilation from before, but an unprecedented, ear-piercing explosion like the shattering of glass!
Upon the edge of that purple giant blade lay a layer of dazzling golden halo—the perfect Sage Power belonging to Naruto, originating from Kurama and Natural Energy.
This force merged with the Susanoo power driven by Sasuke's newly awakened Six-Pointed Star Mangekyo Sharingan, which similarly contained power approaching the threshold of the Six Paths.
Under the sharing of Naruto's chakra and the resonance of their wills, it finally reached an unprecedented level of fusion and sublimation at this moment.
The purple Susanoo blade, entwined with golden Senjutsu chakra, saw its energy level finally cross that once-unreachable Six Paths threshold in this instant!
In the eyes of everyone—including Six Paths Obito himself, whose pupils instantly froze with disbelief—the Truth-Seeking Orb barrier, the symbol of absolute defense, shattered!
Pitch-black fragments shot out in all directions like meteors, turning into nothingness.
That unstoppable purple giant blade didn't even slow down after breaking through the barrier.
With a determined momentum to cut through everything, it struck Six Paths Obito's body squarely!
Squelch!
A heart-wrenching sound of tearing rang out.
Time seemed to come to a complete standstill at this moment.
Six Paths Obito's figure was sent flying back like a cannonball, turning into a blurred afterimage at a terrifying supersonic speed, propelled by unimaginable force!
He streaked across the sky and smashed heavily into a massive rocky mountain in the distance.
RUMBLE!!!
A deafening roar followed as the entire rocky mountain collapsed and crumbled like tofu the moment he made contact!
Dust and debris shot into the sky, forming a massive mushroom cloud that blotted out the sun.
The shockwave swept outward, plowing through the already scarred desert battlefield once more.
In the center of the battlefield, the Armored Nine-Tails maintained its follow-through posture, the purple Susanoo blade pointing diagonally toward the earth, while golden Senjutsu chakra slowly flowed over its massive form.
Inside the crystal atop the Nine-Tails' head, Naruto and Sasuke were panting heavily, their clothes soaked in sweat, but their eyes were brighter and sharper than ever before.
And all around them, whether it was the Allied Shinobi Forces fighting a bloody battle or the powerful figures of the Edo Tensei...
...everyone was completely shocked by this world-shaking scene, falling into a deathly silence.
In the dusty distance lay the ruins of the collapsed rocky mountain.
Six Paths Obito, who just moments ago seemed invincible like a god and had cut the Allied Forces' top combat power in half with a wave of his hand, was now buried under those ruins, his fate unknown.
At this moment, only the sounds of heavy breathing and racing hearts remained on the battlefield.
Countless gazes were locked onto those ruins, every heart jumping into their throats.
The haze of despair had been torn open by this heaven-defying strike, and a faint light called 'hope' descended upon everyone's hearts.
Everyone was praying silently and desperately in their hearts.
This strike... it must succeed! It must end Six Paths Obito, the bringer of endless despair!
As the dust that blotted out the sun slowly settled under the residual force of the shockwave, the massive ruins formed by the collapsed mountain were finally exposed to the anxious gazes of the Allied Forces.
Between the gaps of the broken rocks, Six Paths Obito's figure gradually became clear.
Just like the 'end' everyone had hoped for, his current appearance was incredibly tragic.
The white robe symbolizing the Six Paths Power was nearly shredded by the violent energy, and his exposed body was covered in cracks deep enough to see bone, looking like a piece of porcelain on the verge of shattering.
The massive wound left by the purple-gold Susanoo blade pierced through his chest and shoulder blade, with the destructive aura of Naruto's Natural Energy-infused Senjutsu chakra and Sasuke's Ocular Power lingering on the edges.
Blood gurgled from the corners of Six Paths Obito's mouth.
"Did... did we succeed?!"
An Allied Shinobi whispered in disbelief, his voice exceptionally clear in the deathly silent battlefield.
Instantly, an indescribable surge of wild joy and the excitement of surviving a disaster began to swell within the Allied camp, nearly breaking through their throats to become a world-shaking cheer.
Minato's hand gripping the Flying Thunder God kunai relaxed slightly; shock and hope intertwined in Kakashi's Sharingan; even the Edo Tensei Hashirama and Madara stared intently at the ruins.
Could it be that this monster who surpassed the Six Paths threshold had truly been struck down by Naruto and Sasuke's all-or-nothing combined attack?
However, just one second before that first suppressed cheer was about to erupt...
...a sudden change occurred!
In the ruins, Six Paths Obito's battered body suddenly twitched.
It wasn't because of pain, but some kind of... throb originating from life's instinct!
At the edges of those hideous wounds on his body, the muscle and bone weren't healing slowly; they were writhing and proliferating at a frantic, logic-defying speed visible to the naked eye!
"What... what is that?!" The gold sand hand controlled by Gaara instinctively rose, pointing at Obito.
Within those bone-deep cracks, it wasn't bright red flesh, but a surging, viscous substance that seemed to possess an independent life force.
It was like boiling pitch, or like countless tiny black worms splitting and aggregating at high speed!
The skin and flesh at the edges of the wounds were crudely torn apart by this force, as new, tougher physical tissue grew out at a jaw-dropping speed, covering and filling the massive gashes.
The broken bones made a 'clacking' sound, being forcibly reconnected and reinforced by new bone matter, even becoming thicker.
"Cellular proliferation... no, this is no longer simple regeneration!" Ōnoki hovered in the air, the light of Dust Release flickering in his palm, his old face written over with horror.
"How is this possible?!" Raikage Ay roared.
That regeneration speed was fast enough to cause despair.
In almost no time, a perfectly intact and possibly even stronger Six Paths Obito would descend upon the battlefield once more!
Just as everyone was shocked into despair by Six Paths Obito's logic-defying, terrifying recovery power, a figure tore through the frozen air like a bolt of lightning!
Tobirama, the 'former fastest in the Shinobi World' known for his calmness and efficiency, had already made a decision the moment he witnessed Obito's transformation.
He didn't fall into a shocked daze like the others; instead, he precisely captured that fleeting 'incomplete state' during Obito's regeneration process.
The Flying Thunder God Jutsu Formula was activated, and his figure instantly vanished from his spot, reappearing precisely next to Six Paths Obito, whose wounds were still writhing frantically while wrapped in the black viscous substance!
"Now!"
A cold light flashed in Tobirama's eyes as his hand condensed a chakra blade capable of tearing through space, stabbing directly at the core of Obito's hideous wound.
He intended to deal a second heavy blow before the opponent's power fully recovered or even strengthened!
However, at the very instant he appeared, an ice-cold chill suddenly seized Tobirama's heart.
He was horrified to find that the head wrapped in black substance had completely turned around!
Six Paths Obito's pair of indifferent Rinnegan and Mangekyo Sharingan were locking onto him without any emotion!
"Not good!" Tobirama's combat instinct instantly sounded the highest alarm. The coordinates for the Flying Thunder God Technique were already outlined in his mind; he was about to escape immediately!
But it was too late.
An invisible force suddenly descended!
Space seemed to turn into solid amber. The speed Tobirama took pride in was completely stripped away, and his body was pinned firmly in mid-air, unable to move even a finger!
This was an absolute control belonging to the Six Paths level, far surpassing an ordinary Bansho Tenin!
Puchi! Puchi! Puchi!
Several pitch-black rods emitting an ominous aura condensed out of thin air, instantly piercing Tobirama's limbs, shoulder blades, and abdomen!
The massive impact carried his body and slammed it into the ground, pinning him to the cracked earth like a butterfly on a specimen board.
The sluggish sensation of his chakra being forcibly sealed caused even this battle-hardened Second Hokage to let out a muffled groan.
Six Paths Obito slowly lowered his head, looking down at the 'former fastest in the Shinobi World' pinned beneath him.
The writhing speed of the black substance on his body slowed down. The terrifying cracks that had pierced his chest and shoulder blades had already vanished, replaced by even tougher skin, while fragments of his white robe drifted in the wind.
His gaze swept over Tobirama's pained yet still stubborn face, and then turned toward the distance...
...there, the 'Susanoo: Armored Nine-Tails' formed by the fusion of Naruto's Sage Fox chakra and Sasuke's Susanoo, which had just dealt him a heavy blow...
...was now flickering violently like a candle in the wind, its light unstable.
The massive purple Susanoo armor disintegrated inch by inch, and the golden Nine-Tails chakra cloak also dissipated rapidly like a receding tide.
Revealing Naruto and Sasuke inside, kneeling on the ground exhausted, finding it difficult even to remain standing.
"Hmph..."
Six Paths Obito let out a low, mocking snort. The sound wasn't loud, but it echoed clearly over the deathly silent battlefield, drowning out the sound of the Allied Shinobi' sharp intakes of breath.
He returned his gaze to Tobirama, who was pinned to the ground, his eyes looking as if he were looking at an ant that had overestimated its strength.
"Do you see?" Obito's voice was cold and arrogant, carrying an indifference that looked down upon all living beings.
"Is this the result you bought by putting in all your effort and betting everything? You have underestimated the Ten-Tails Jinchuriki too much!"
His words were like a heavy hammer, smashing into the heart of every Allied Shinobi.
Even the Edo Tensei Hashirama and Madara now had expressions that were solemn to the extreme.
They clearly felt the terrifying power possessed by this 'junior' before them, power enough to overturn all known logic.
Six Paths Obito hovered in the dust-filled air, completely disregarding the Edo Tensei Tobirama pinned beneath him by the Black Rods.
His heterochromatic eyes, containing the Rinnegan's power and the Sharingan's Ocular Power, turned coldly toward the other side of the battlefield.
There, Naruto and Sasuke were half-kneeling on the ground, panting heavily.
The golden Sage Fox chakra and the purple Susanoo afterimages had long since vanished, revealing their weakened state after overexertion.
Obito's figure floated silently above the two of them, like a god looking down at dust.
He looked down at the two enemies below, his lips curling into a satirical arc, his voice clearly piercing through the suppressed silence of the battlefield:
"That strike just now... hmph, it was indeed a bit beyond my expectations."
Six Paths Obito's voice carried a hint of displeasure at being disturbed, but more than that, it was the arrogance of one who controls everything.
"To be able to make a crack appear in my Truth-Seeking Orb barrier, and even briefly touch my actual body... this 'surprise' of yours is worth a word of praise."
He tilted his head slightly, his gaze sweeping over Naruto's dimmed golden pupils and Sasuke's Mangekyo Sharingan, which could no longer be maintained due to excessive consumption. The mockery in his tone grew stronger.
"But what about now? Tell me, Naruto Namikaze, can that noisy fox inside you still make a sound?
Sasuke, can those eyes you take so much pride in still manifest even the most basic Susanoo skeleton?"
Six Paths Obito's words accurately pierced their current predicament.
"You've... squeezed out even the strength to stand up, haven't you? Is this your so-called 'bond' and 'miracle'? Truly... pathetic."
Naruto gritted his teeth, an unyielding fire burning in his deep blue eyes as he struggled to straighten his body and retort.
But his overdrawn chakra made even this simple movement incredibly difficult.
Sasuke's face was even paler. The Six-Pointed Star Mangekyo in his left eye and the Rinnegan in his right had lost their luster, and his trembling arms tried to support his body.
He pursed his lips tightly and remained silent, because every word Obito said was a cruel reality.
Their chakra and Ocular Power had indeed been completely exhausted in that all-out fused strike just now.
At this moment, they were like candles in the wind, unable to perform even the most basic Ninjutsu.
Six Paths Obito's gaze finally locked firmly onto Naruto.
Or rather, it was locked onto the half of the Nine-Tails chakra inside him.
This was the final missing piece of the Ten-Tails' power puzzle, and the key to his path to the peak of absolute power.
"Finally, the complete power is right before my eyes."
Obito whispered in his heart as the Truth-Seeking Orbs rotated slowly around him, emitting a suffocating pressure.
He only needed to reach out his hand to take this final power into his control. At that time, his power would leap once again.
At this critical moment, a dazzling golden flash tore through the heavy air!
Minato's figure teleported in front of Naruto at a speed beyond what the naked eye could capture, intending to use the Flying Thunder God Technique once more to save his son.
However, facing Obito, who had already reached his perfect Six Paths form, this 'divine speed' that once reigned supreme in the Shinobi World now seemed so pale and powerless.
"Too slow, Sensei."
Six Paths Obito's voice was without ripples, even carrying a hint of indifference toward the past that was almost like pity.
He didn't even move an inch, just a slight shift in his thoughts.
A pitch-black Truth-Seeking Orb instantly liquefied and extended, turning into a flowing, indestructible pitch-black curtain.
It precisely blocked the path between Minato and Naruto, completely sealing off Minato's rescue route.