Konoha's Mission Master

At the same time, take a step forward.

His figure vanished from the secret base, as if a portal had opened in space, infinitely shortening the distance between the two locations...

Swish.

Space shifts, and light and shadow move in an instant.

The journey was quite long, and Yakumo felt slightly dizzy and nauseous, but this feeling was quickly disappearing. This journey had consumed about 30% of his stamina.

Numerous shadow clones were instantly dispelled!

Yakumo formed hand seals in front of him, and all the shadow clones searching within the Land of Fire dispersed, while a massive amount of chakra converged on Yakumo from all directions.

Under the vision of the Soul Eye, Yakumo could see the immense extent of Madara Uchiha's chakra, which had reached the level of the Six Paths, and there was an even larger amount of chakra within his body.

"A damaged version of the Ten-Tails?"

It has been over a thousand years since the Nine-Tails separated from the Ten-Tails. Naturally, some of the Nine-Tails' chakra has been lost for various reasons. For example, Kinkaku and Ginkaku of Kumogakure still possess some of the Nine-Tails' chakra.

Even if Madara Uchiha couldn't obtain the Nine-Tails, he could still piece together an incomplete version of the Ten-Tails and obtain the Six Paths power carried by the Ten-Tails. However, the incomplete version of the Ten-Tails seemed insufficient to support him in using the Infinite Tsukuyomi.

This means... the Nine-Tails is a target that must be captured.

Yakumo quietly waited for his chakra to recover, and at the same time, he rested to restore his physical strength, hoping to return to his peak condition.

"Even though the enemy is not far away, we must remain calm."

He began to calculate the methods he would use when the battle broke out, and how to restrain Madara Uchiha, who possessed the power of the Six Paths.

This is the first battle after the Demon Subduer has been reforged.

As darkness gradually fell, the fierce winds in the sky subsided, and many green fireflies appeared in the forest below, flitting among the branches.

They are the spirits of nature, carefree and without worries.

Yakumo's chakra has been replenished, and his physical fatigue has been restored over time. It's time to unleash the final battle of the ninja world.

After the defeat of Uchiha Madara, the affairs of the ninja world came to an end.

Yakumo's figure slowly descended from the sky. He did not conceal his aura, and it was estimated that Madara Uchiha would notice Yakumo's arrival soon.

Under the cover of night, Yakumo stood quietly on the treetop, watching the distant mountains begin to channel life energy into the trees beneath his feet, preparing for the use of Wood Release ninjutsu.

Before long, that aura, as vast as mountains and as deep as the sea, began to move.

shuh…

Madara Uchiha has appeared!

His white robe flowed like liquid, covered with magatama patterns. He held a staff made of Truth-Seeking Jewels in his hand, and seven black spheres behind him rotated and flew freely.

He also defied gravity and mastered the ability to fly.

The long robe, formed from chakra, swayed in the wind, giving him an ethereal and otherworldly air, like that of a celestial being.

His forehead was covered by a wooden, horn-shaped structure; it was unknown whether a third eye, capable of activating Infinite Tsukuyomi, had grown there at this time.

Surprisingly, their reunion was not marked by much confrontation.

Where is Orochimaru?

After a moment's thought, Madara Uchiha took the initiative to ask the question. His aura was extremely restrained, not aggressive, but rather calm and confident.

“Dead…” Yakumo replied.

"I reckon he'll pop up again in a few years... He's very hard to kill."

Madara Uchiha answered with a smile, seemingly in no hurry at all.

"To split one's own soul is ultimately not the right path."

Yakumo gave a noncommittal answer, and then asked another question.

"Are you talking so patiently because you hope that Minato Namikaze, who is under your genjutsu control, will bring the Nine-Tails to you?"

When Madara Uchiha appeared, the aura belonging to Minato Namikaze inside the mountain completely disappeared. Madara Uchiha was using this as a diversionary tactic.

"I didn't expect... that you would find out."

Uchiha Madara admitted, his face still perfectly composed…

He is fundamentally different now than he was before. Under the gaze of the Rinnegan, no action of the enemy can be hidden.

Yakumo was also planning to ensure Minato Namikaze's safety first, as killing Madara Uchiha wasn't a very important matter.

Do you think you've got me cornered?

Yakumo chuckled as he answered, and within two meters of his body were four pitch-black figures made of energy, subtly surrounding him.

It is the eye technique of Madara Uchiha's Rinnegan: Limbo: Border Jail.

Although the two had a brief conversation, the tension was already palpable.

"Of course, you should have hunted me down without holding back back then."

Before he acquired the Rinnegan and the Ten-Tails, he admitted that he was no match for Yakumo, but now the situation has changed dramatically.

"Do you know why I didn't pursue them?" Yakumo asked with a smile.

"I do not know."

Madara Uchiha shook his head. Being defeated by Yakumo was the second time he had been so humiliated. At that time, he even considered dying a heroic death, but in the end, his heart for peace triumphed over the devil of impulse.

But he didn't expect... why Yakumo hadn't tracked him down back then.

Kindness... goodwill, or simply naivety?

"Because...no matter how powerful you become in the future, you can never be more powerful than me, just as right now...I am stronger than you."

"Heh, you've got quite the nerve."

Madara Uchiha showed anger, but he quickly concealed it.

"I said back then... I would beat you, but you didn't believe me."

"As a result, you fled in a sorry state."

"Today I said... I will beat you, and it was a predetermined outcome."

Madara Uchiha maintained an indifferent expression. After mastering his Rinnegan, he had absolute confidence in his strength.

"You just can't see... the difference between you and me."

"Is your confidence based on these few energy beings around me?"

Yakumo pointed to the dark figures not far away. These four energy bodies, which resembled puppets, were invisible to the naked eye, but were very obvious from the perspective of the soul.

"You can see that? You shouldn't be able to see that..."

When Yakumo pointed at the Limbo: Border Jail puppet, Madara Uchiha was somewhat taken aback. Although Limbo: Border Jail was not his strongest technique, it was a secret technique of his, yet Yakumo had directly exposed it.

"Of course... why did you choose today to have Minato Namikaze make his move?"

Yakumo is currently unable to determine exactly when Minato Namikaze was taken away, but it should have been within the last few days. However, Madara Uchiha only officially carried out his plan today.

"This problem... Minato Namikaze's will is stronger than I thought. It took me several days to completely turn him into my tool."

Madara Uchiha didn't hide anything and answered directly.

"Does love...make people stronger?"

Yakumo pondered for a moment. "But that doesn't make sense."

"I also think it's unreasonable, but that's the reality."

Both of them were waiting for the situation at the secret base to come to an end. He had left a shadow clone inside Ryuchi Cave, and with the addition of Mori Masako and Yukotsu Chiyuki, blocking Namikaze Minato was not a problem.

Of course, the ultimate goal is to safely control Minato Namikaze, and then use shadow clones to remove the effects of Madara Uchiha's genjutsu.

Yakumo created another shadow clone and sent it into Ryuchi Cave. Madara Uchiha did not stop him, believing that a mere shadow clone was not enough to change the final outcome.

The two stopped speaking and stood quietly in place.

Under the moonlight, both of them remained calm. Madara Uchiha only wanted to piece together the Nine-Tails into the Ten-Tails, fully awaken his Third Eye, and use Infinite Tsukuyomi.

Madara Uchiha was so confident because he split his own will and possessed it in Minato Namikaze's body. That was the real trump card that brought out the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki.

"You seized the Tailed Beasts and ascended to the Six Paths... all for your own peace?"

"Yes."

Madara Uchiha spoke with great confidence, stating that the Infinite Tsukuyomi plan was the goal he had pursued for half his life... for true peace.

"Unfortunately... the contents of that stone tablet in the Uchiha clan's territory have been altered. Infinite Tsukuyomi is not a true peaceful technique. The principle behind that technique is to use the Divine Tree to collect the chakra of everyone in the ninja world."

"Those whose chakra has been extracted will not live more than three days."

Yakumo edited and revised what he knew, and finally revealed the truth behind the Infinite Tsukuyomi to Madara Uchiha.

"This is impossible..."

Madara Uchiha immediately retorted, saying that the text on that stone tablet was recorded by the Sage of Six Paths, which not only recorded the formula for advancing the Sharingan, but most importantly, the truth about the ninja world.

But... what Yakumo said didn't seem like a lie or nonsense.

"Whether you believe it or not, your plan is doomed to fail."

Yakumo stated bluntly that his shadow clone left in Ryuchi Cave had taken control of Minato Namikaze, and the others were cooperating to capture Black Zetsu.

He hadn't expected that, for the sake of the plan's safety, Madara Uchiha would send out Black Zetsu, a clone of his will, whose unique physical structure made it extremely difficult to capture.

Regardless of how you look at it, he won in this respect.

After all... Minato Namikaze is safe now.

"My plan will definitely succeed."

True peace was Madara Uchiha's sole purpose in life. He had long since abandoned many of his human emotions and was willing to do anything to achieve this goal.

I don't think so...

Yakumo looked up at the full moon in the sky. Because of his intervention, Kaguya Otsutsuki should have no chance of escaping. Today would be his final battle against Madara Uchiha.

He was once a fan of Madara Uchiha, acknowledging the hero who had persevered for peace for a hundred years. But when Madara Uchiha actually existed in the ninja world, his existence became the root of turmoil in the world.

Even if he confirmed the truth about the Infinite Tsukuyomi plan, as long as he lived, he would still try to create the true peace in his heart, which was his only motivation to live.

Madara Uchiha's somewhat extreme personality is extremely dangerous to most people in this world. Who knows... one day he might start using extreme methods to create peace again.