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Space rippled beside Mū.
Tobirama used the Flying Raijin technique from Madara's gunbai and appeared close enough to attack.
"Got you!"
Lightning rippled along the Sword of the Thunder God, chakra crackling around its edge with a harsh metallic hum.
"Flying Raijin Slash!"
Tobirama put all his power into the swing. The lightning-covered blade aimed for Mū's exposed neck before he could react.
"Swoosh—" The sword sliced clean through.
Mū's head flew off his shoulders, and his body fell behind it. From Tobirama's arrival to the fatal strike—the whole attack took less than a moment.
"Hahaha! Perfect timing, Tobirama!" Madara laughed, making no effort to hide his approval. "I knew putting a Flying Raijin formula on my gunbai would catch him off guard."
Tobirama did not share his satisfaction. His brow tightened as he studied the headless body at their feet.
"Something's wrong, Madara. Look."
Both men looked closely at the body. No blood came from the cut neck.
Instead, cracks appeared all over it.
The two parts fell into loose dirt, then broke down into dust. A breeze blew the dust across the rooftop until nothing was left.
"An Earth Clone?" Madara's smile vanished. His three tomoe revolved as the Sharingan examined every last trace. "How did my Sharingan fail to see through it?"
Hidden in a quiet corner of the village, the real Mū held his chest and tried to calm his breathing. Cold sweat formed under his bandages.
He replayed the attack in his mind. Madara made him dodge the gunbai, but Tobirama appeared from the weapon and hit his blind spot.
Their timing had left no opening to exploit.
"So this is what the strongest ninja of this time can do," Mū muttered. "Good thing I made an Earth Clone. Otherwise, they would have defeated me in the first attack."
Black Zetsu's voice cut into his thoughts.
"Mū, stop holding back. Use all your best moves and fight with everything you have. If you hesitate again, they'll kill you before you can use your last move."
Black Zetsu was right. Against those two, saving a technique for later meant dying with it unused.
"Sage Black Zetsu, lend me your power."
"All right," Black Zetsu answered with a grave nod.
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"There!"
Tobirama's sensing skill found Mū before Black Zetsu finished talking. His eyes quickly turned to the hidden corner, locking onto the Tsuchikage's energy.
Madara attacked at once.
"Fire Style: Great Fire Annihilation!"
He breathed out a huge wave of fire. Flames spread over the rooftops like a roaring tide and covered Mū's hiding spot, blocking every way out.
"BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMM!!!!"
Heat distorted the air above Iwagakure as the fire's loud roar echoed through the empty streets.
A pitch-black figure erupted from the flames.
It was Mū.
He rose above the rooftops with black energy flowing from his body. His eyes were dark pools, and even his bandages had a faint black stain.
Several strange crows flew around him, their black wings slicing through the aura surrounding his body.
"What is that?" Madara's eyes narrowed. "That energy feels much darker than Uchiha energy."
"Is he even human now?" Tobirama stared at the figure above, his grip tightening on the Sword of the Thunder God.
It was no longer strange. Mū looked possessed, as if an evil god had entered his body and started changing him from inside.
Then Tobirama felt the natural energy inside that black energy.
"That energy… It's Senjutsu, like my brother's Sage Mode."
"The same kind of power as Hashirama?" Madara's Sharingan moved as he looked at Mū again.
Mū hovered above them and returned their stares without a word.
He had already learned the Yatagarasu Sage Art left by Manji. Black Zetsu, meanwhile, controlled the Senjutsu of Mount Myōboku.
Now Black Zetsu had joined with Mū and connected their energy networks. Through that link, both types of Senjutsu flowed through the same body.
Mū had both the Yatagarasu Sage Art and Mount Myōboku's Senjutsu at once.
"Then let's see what it can do," Madara said.
He jumped off the rooftop. His gunbai swung toward Mū's head, then changed direction halfway and struck toward his ribs when Mū dodged.
Each hit sent a strong wind through the air. Madara aimed for the throat, heart, and joints, giving Mū no chance to get into a rhythm.
Tobirama joined the attack from behind. The Sword of the Thunder God struck every opening Madara made, turning the attack into a pincer move.
The two men fought like experienced veterans who had been through many battles. Their hand-to-hand moves flowed smoothly, and every dodge pushed Mū into the next attack.
Mū moved back through the air, blocking the gunbai with his forearm and twisting away from Tobirama's blade. He managed to defend or dodge, but couldn't strike back.
In just a few seconds, Madara and Tobirama forced him to retreat across the village.
"Switch forms, Mū!" Black Zetsu shouted. "Use the Yatagarasu Sage Art from a distance. If they get close, change to Mount Myōboku's Senjutsu."
Mū shifted the natural energy inside him. The darkness left his eyes, and golden irises with toad-like pupils appeared.
Power from Mount Myōboku's Senjutsu filled his limbs.
"Sage Art: Frog Kata!"
Mū threw a punch at Tobirama. His fist didn't reach, but the natural energy around it pushed the force forward and hit Tobirama in the chest.
A heavy pulse quivered through the air.
Tobirama slid back a few steps, his sandals scraping the roof tiles. He lowered his stance and caught his balance.
Mū twisted with the force of the punch and swept a leg toward Madara's knees. The kick cut through the air in a blur.
Madara leaped over the kick. Still in the air, he gripped the gunbai with both hands and swung it down at Mū's head.
This put the Flying Raijin formula right above Mū again.
Tobirama teleported to the spot.
He appeared under the falling gunbai, already thrusting the Sword of the Thunder God at Mū's face. Both attacks came at Mū from above and in front.
"Sage Art: Crow Clone!"
The golden color faded from Mū's eyes as he switched back to the Yatagarasu Sage Art. His body split into a flurry of black crows.
Tobirama's sword cut through the flock. Madara's gunbai followed, sending feathers and crows flying, but neither attack hit Mū's real body.
The flock swept over the rooftops, climbed into the open air, and folded back in on itself. Mū reformed high above his opponents.
He clapped his hands together.
The Dust Release technique was already finished.
"Sage Art: Pillar-Form Dust Release: Detachment of the Primitive World Technique!"
A column of pure black light shot from his palms and rushed toward Madara and Tobirama. The beam reached them before either could react.
The black light consumed everything it touched. Roof tiles, stone, and wood lost their shape and broke apart completely, leaving nothing behind.
With Senjutsu added, the black pillar moved wherever Mū aimed, striking wherever he pointed.
Senjutsu also removed the usual charge time for Dust Release. There was no need to prepare, and no chance for an enemy to interrupt.
Mū could unleash the attack instantly.
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