The Evil Corpse remained silent. He merely crossed his arms over his chest as the Ten-Tails' Chakra surrounding him roared soundlessly, displaying his newly acquired power with even greater arrogance and oppressive force.
His burning gaze remained fixed on Hamura, his expectation now completely undisguised, as though he were saying:
Look, little brother. This is true power. This is the ruler the new world deserves!
Choose me!
Hamura fell silent once more.
This silence was longer and more oppressive than the last.
Slowly, he raised his eyes. His gaze was as deep and somber as the darkest abyss of the sea, turbulent with a millennium of watching and waiting, disappointment, and a growing sense of... regret.
When he spoke again, his voice remained calm, yet every word seemed to have been tempered by a thousand years of cold moonlight, landing heavily upon the hearts of everyone present.
"I remained upon the moon, watching over Mother and quietly... observing the shinobi world."
His gaze seemed to travel beyond the valley, toward the vast and scarred land below.
"I wanted to see what this world would become under my brother's guidance."
He paused, the disappointment in his eyes nearly overflowing.
"But I never expected... to find nothing but conflict, war, greed, and an endless cycle repeating itself."
"And now, there are even greater disasters—beings like you, born from the same origin yet turning against one another to fight over what was left behind."
His gaze moved slowly between the Good Corpse and the Evil Corpse before finally settling somewhere in the empty air. His voice carried bone-deep coldness and self-mockery.
"Now... I regret it more and more."
The Good Corpse's surprise and urgency instantly froze at those words.
The flame of hope that had just been rekindled seemed to have been doused with a bucket of ice water.
Hamura continued, each word crystal clear, yet sounding like the cruelest possible judgment.
"Back then... I should never have helped my brother seal Mother away."
He raised his eyes, looking at the Good Corpse, whose expression had changed drastically, then swept his gaze over the Evil Corpse, whose eyes flickered slightly, before finally looking toward the heavens.
"Otherwise, no matter how bad this world might have become under Mother's rule, perhaps... it would not have reached this point. Perhaps it would never have produced dangers like you... beings who cannot even bear the title of 'brother.'"
Those words completely tore away the veil of familial affection and blood ties, laying bare the disappointment Hamura had accumulated over a thousand years, his doubts about his brother's path, and even his regret over the choice they had made in the beginning.
He was not merely denying the meaning of the struggle between these two "incarnations." He was even implicitly questioning whether the Sage of Six Paths' decision to seal Kaguya—and the entire path that followed—had truly been the right one.
The smile vanished completely from the Good Corpse's face, replaced by blank bewilderment and a chill that seeped into his very bones.
His greatest hope—his younger brother, who shared the same origin—actually... thought this way?
"Heh... Hahahaha!"
Amid the deathly silence, the Evil Corpse suddenly burst into cold, unrestrained laughter!
The Ten-Tails' Chakra surrounding him surged even more violently, as though fueled by exhilaration. The dark crimson radiance nearly swallowed his entire figure, emanating a terrifying presence that seemed capable of crushing everything beneath it.
He suddenly stepped forward, unleashing the full pressure of his Ten-Tails-infused power upon Hamura. His eyes were filled with undisguised arrogance and provocation.
"Hamura!"
"Even you, at this moment—are no match for me!"
His voice had become deep and violent with the abundance of power, rumbling throughout the valley.
"I, who have fused with the Ten-Tails, have become more powerful than you can possibly imagine!"
"There is no longer anything in this world that can stand in the way of my will!"
The three-way standoff shifted once again!
"You don't understand."
Faced with the Evil Corpse's arrogant declaration as he stood empowered by the Ten-Tails and seemingly above all else, Hamura merely shook his head slightly.
The solemnity in his eyes was like ancient ice that would never melt. His voice was cold and certain, carrying the detachment of someone who saw through to the very essence of things.
"The original is always the strongest."
His gaze swept over the Evil Corpse's figure, slightly distorted by his immense power, then passed over the Good Corpse, whose aura was pure but comparatively thin. At last, his expression settled into profound understanding.
"Even if you possess power equal to the original—or even gain additional power through fortunate circumstances—how could your true combat experience, your mastery over that power, or the essence of your own soul ever truly compare to his?"
"You are, in the end, merely shadows. You inherited a part of him, but lost what was most essential to the whole."
This was not an insult.
It was simply a cold fact, at least in Hamura's eyes.
Before his words had even finished—
Hamura moved!
There was no warning and no preparation. It was the simplest of movements, yet it was unbelievably fast. Like a beam of azure moonlight descending from the heavens, he tore through the boundaries of space and time, charging straight toward the Evil Corpse, whose presence was at its peak.
"Allow me—"
Hamura's cold voice arrived alongside the streak of light.
"—to deal with you, this... danger!"
His target was clear. There was no hesitation or wasted motion.
In that instant, Hamura's choice became unmistakable.
No matter how disappointed or regretful he was about his brother's path, this "shadow of evil," who had fused with the Ten-Tails and was consumed by the desire for destruction, was the most immediate and dangerous threat before them!
"Hamura!" The Good Corpse was stunned, but the nearly extinguished flame of hope within him suddenly blazed back to life!
Without the slightest hesitation—and without even having time to consider Hamura's words about the original and its shadows—the clear violet radiance and Senjutsu surrounding him erupted to their limit!
Following closely behind that azure streak of light, driven by his unwavering resolve to protect the world, he too charged at the Evil Corpse!
The precarious three-way standoff was instantly shattered, transforming into a fierce two-against-one assault!
The Evil Corpse's arrogant grin immediately twisted into furious rage!
"You're courting death!"
With a furious roar, his dark crimson Ten-Tails' Chakra erupted like a volcano, pouring forth without restraint and transforming into countless torrents of destructive energy that crashed simultaneously toward the approaching blue and violet lights!
BOOM—!!!
Heaven and earth lost their color. All things fell silent!
Three powers representing the pinnacle of this world collided head-on, without any embellishment or trickery!
An indescribably terrifying explosion instantly swept across the entire sealing valley before spreading like ripples toward the distant world beyond! The aftershocks of Chakra became tangible hurricanes. Wherever they passed, mountains collapsed, massive boulders were reduced to dust, and the earth was carved with bottomless ravines, while space itself twisted into countless black fissures!
In an instant, the entire battlefield seemed to have been dragged into the end of the world!
No one knew how long the fierce battle continued.
Within the Heavenly Curtain, the images flickered wildly amid the raging storm of energy, flashing in and out of view. Only three figures could vaguely be seen crossing paths, colliding, separating, and colliding again at speeds beyond the limits of sight!
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