404-405

**Chapter 404: The Fall of Uchiha Madara**

“Reaching a power that momentarily rivals the strength of the Ten-Tails Jinchūriki... The Eight Gates, a technique that burns life itself, truly surpasses all expectations,” Uchiha Madara remarked with rare admiration.

His gaze fell on Might Guy, who lay in Naruto’s arms. Guy’s right leg had disintegrated into dust, and his body was riddled with golden cracks, resembling parched volcanic rock.

In the next moment, Madara’s Rinnegan twitched as he noticed an unexpected phenomenon—Might Guy’s chakra, which had been on the verge of extinguishing, suddenly flared up again.

A serene smile crept across Madara’s face as he subtly shifted closer to Aizen’s back.

“Aizen, it seems you’ve left the Allied Shinobi Forces a chance to exploit,” Madara said casually, casting a glance at the sky. A dangerous smirk played on his lips as he sensed chakra from the One to Eight-Tails, in addition to the Nine-Tails' partial form, emanating from Naruto.

He also noticed Sasuke, now wielding the power of the Rinnegan.

Madara’s thoughts sharpened on his left eye, his greatest vulnerability. Now that a replacement existed, there was no need to remain under Aizen’s influence any longer.

“Ah, indeed,” Aizen replied, seemingly nonchalant.

Just as Madara prepared to strike, a thunderous roar echoed. Aizen’s left hand clamped over Madara’s face, slamming him into the ground with overwhelming force.

The earth cracked beneath them, forming a shallow crater.

The Six Paths staff and nine Truth-Seeking Orbs clattered away, rolling into the dust.

“What monstrous strength…”

Madara’s eyes narrowed as agony shot through his face. He struggled to move but found himself utterly powerless.

With Aizen’s hand sealing his nose and mouth, even breathing became impossible.

In desperation, Madara’s fingers twitched, commanding the nine Truth-Seeking Orbs to attack Aizen. However, when they approached within half a meter, they halted as if hitting an invisible barrier, clattering back to the ground and out of Madara’s control.

Unwilling to concede, Madara activated Limbo: Border Jail, sending an invisible shadow to ambush Aizen.

But as expected, the attempt was effortlessly countered. Aizen’s left hand gripped Madara’s neck, while his right held the shadow, lifting both into the air.

“So eager to turn against me?” Aizen sneered, tightening his grip until a sickening crack rang out. Blood spurted from Madara’s mouth.

“What a pity, Madara. I once thought you were the only man in this world who shared my vision. Yet here you are, nothing more than a self-absorbed fool who gains a bit of power and grows blindly arrogant, unable to bide his time,” Aizen mocked.

“Is being ‘the sole savior’ so important to you that you can’t consider others?”

Aizen’s voice dripped with disdain. “Even if you wanted to betray me, you should’ve chosen a better moment. At least wait until you’ve regained your left eye and obtained the Ten-Tails' complete chakra.

“Trying to stab me in the back? Do you think I’m as naive as you, who had his heart ripped out by someone he trusted?”

Aizen’s grip tightened again, and Madara spat out more blood, gasping, “Wait… Aizen…”

But Aizen ignored him, continuing in an icy tone, “Your chance is gone. Since you’re so eager to be the savior, I’ll grant you that wish.”

With those words, Aizen released Madara and transplanted another Rinnegan into him. The shadow from Limbo returned to Madara’s body as its time limit expired.

Meanwhile, Sasuke had arrived at the scene.

Leaping off his hawk, he landed beside Naruto. “Naruto, what’s going on here?”

Moments earlier, Aizen’s blade, capable of almost tearing the fabric of space, had clashed with Might Guy’s Evening Elephant. The resulting shockwave had sent Sasuke flying miles away.

Now, as he returned to the battlefield, he witnessed the shocking sight of Aizen effortlessly subduing Madara, the Ten-Tails' Jinchūriki.

“It’s… complicated,” Naruto muttered, his expression more serious than ever. His cross-shaped golden eyes locked onto Aizen as countless questions swirled in his mind.

What was the entity Aizen had strangled alongside Madara?

Why had Madara turned hostile toward Aizen?

And what was Aizen planning?

“Black Zetsu, come out,” Aizen ordered, releasing his grip on Madara, who collapsed to the ground, gasping for air.

Clutching his neck, Madara stared at Aizen in confusion. “What are you doing?”

“Nothing, really. It’s just no longer entertaining to keep this game going,” Aizen replied with a faint smirk.

Forming a hand seal, Aizen’s actions forced Madara to his feet against his will, defying gravity.

“What… What’s happening? Aizen, what are you doing to me?” Madara demanded, panic creeping into his voice.

“Did you think I’d revive you without a contingency plan? Since the beginning, I’ve implanted a soul-binding seal in your body—a technique I perfected over a millennium of wandering the Shinobi World, blending Uzumaki sealing arts with my own,” Aizen explained coldly.

“Black Zetsu, show yourself.”

At Aizen’s call, Black Zetsu emerged from the ground, its gaze filled with unease as it addressed Aizen, “I never imagined… you would be the one, Father.”

Naruto, Sasuke, and Minato froze in shock as Black Zetsu knelt before Aizen, calling him “Father.”

“Black Zetsu! What are you doing? I’m your creator! You’re my will!” Madara shouted, struggling against the seal's hold.

“Are you still deluding yourself, Madara?” Aizen sneered. “Black Zetsu, this vessel is nothing but an empty shell now. His soul is under my control. Take over and fulfill your purpose.”

“Yes, Father,” Black Zetsu responded obediently, detaching itself from Obito and merging with Madara’s body.

As it headed toward the God Tree to resurrect Kaguya, the battle’s conclusion loomed near.


*(Chapter End)*

Chapter 405: Aizen, the Ultimate Boss

"Sasuke, what on earth is Madara doing?" Naruto asked in shock, his gaze fixed on the direction where Black Zetsu had disappeared.

"Madara has been completely controlled. The Sage of Six Paths was right—he's nothing more than a pawn, a pawn in Aizen’s game. In fact, we’re all pawns. I suspect even the power we received from the Sage of Six Paths was part of his plan," Sasuke said grimly.

He glanced at Aizen across the battlefield, clenching his fists, his expression dark and tense.

The Divine Tree wasn’t far away, just a few hundred meters. Black Zetsu, controlling Madara's body, leapt forward and reached it in the blink of an eye.

Under the astonished gazes of Naruto, Sasuke, and the Fourth Hokage, Black Zetsu began absorbing the massive Divine Tree.

Watching the tree begin to vanish, Sasuke realized something was wrong. He urgently shouted, "Naruto, this is bad! Stop Madara now!"

Without waiting, Sasuke unleashed his full-body Susano'o and flew into the air, heading straight for the Divine Tree.

But before he could get close, an enormous transparent wall, even larger than his Susano'o, suddenly materialized in front of him.

Sasuke recognized it immediately. He gritted his teeth, drew the twin blades of his Susano'o, and slashed at the wall.

*Boom!* A deafening crash echoed.

To everyone’s shock, the massive transparent wall emitted white smoke, and Sasuke’s full-body Susano'o was violently thrown back by an immense force. He landed behind Naruto and the Fourth Hokage.

At that moment, Aizen’s voice finally echoed across the battlefield, calm and chilling:
"Bakudō #81: Dankū."

"My foolish stepson," Aizen said with a faint smile. "Did you forget? I’m still here."

Sasuke clicked his tongue, dismissing his Susano'o. He refrained from attacking again, knowing that he couldn’t defeat Aizen alone. Madara, armed with both the Rinnegan and the Ten-Tails’ power, had already proven that.

"Aizen, what exactly are you planning? Do you really want to plunge this world into a false peace?" the Fourth Hokage, his Edo Tensei body missing an arm, stepped forward and questioned harshly.

"Who told you my goal was Infinite Tsukuyomi?" Aizen chuckled. "To be precise, it’s Infinite Kotoamatsukami."

"Infinite Kotoamatsukami?" Naruto and the Fourth Hokage looked puzzled, while Sasuke’s expression darkened.

“So, it was you who took Shisui’s right eye from Danzo back then?” Sasuke asked coldly.

“Not just the right eye—both eyes,” Aizen said, glancing at Naruto. “Naruto, remember the crow you coughed up during the battle when Sasuke arrived? The one Itachi placed inside you?”

Naruto nodded slowly, unsure of Itachi’s exact intentions.

Aizen continued, “That crow contained Shisui’s Kotoamatsukami. It was programmed with a genjutsu called ‘Protect the Leaf,’ triggered when it saw Itachi’s Mangekyo Sharingan.”

At this, Sasuke’s brows furrowed. He muttered, “So that’s what Itachi had planned…”

“Exactly,” Aizen said with a smirk. “But I intercepted the crow and replaced it before you even realized it.”

Aizen’s eyes closed momentarily, and when he reopened them, they revealed the eternal Mangekyo Sharingan, a combination of Shisui’s and Obito’s patterns.

“Now, I’ve already mastered Shisui’s ocular powers. Soon, I’ll project the powers of both eyes onto the moon, creating a world where everyone’s hearts yearn for peace. When that happens, war will cease, and the world will be unified.”

Naruto and the Fourth Hokage stood stunned, contemplating the feasibility of such a method. After all, it seemed like a quick and permanent solution to the endless cycles of war.

Sasuke, however, lowered his head, his eyes shadowed. After a moment, he looked up, his gaze sharp and cold. “I refuse.”

“Naruto,” Sasuke and the Fourth Hokage looked at him in surprise, only to see a small smile on his face.

Sasuke clenched his fists and said, “If my will is altered, am I still myself? And you, Aizen… are you truly selfless? Wouldn’t this so-called peace only serve to make the world your puppets, bowing to your will?”

Aizen clapped mockingly. “You’ve grown, Sasuke. Impressive.”

Then he turned to Naruto. “What about you, Naruto? Will you side with Sasuke—or should I say, with my rebellious stepson?”

Naruto paused briefly, then his eyes filled with determination. “Sorry, Big Brother Aizen. Your plan might work, but I’ve inherited too many dreams. I believe people can understand each other one day.”

As he spoke, memories of Kakashi, Kushina, Minato, Jiraiya, and others flashed through his mind.

Aizen sighed. “What a pity.”

In an instant, he appeared before Naruto and Sasuke, pressing his hands to their foreheads.

The speed caught everyone off guard, leaving Naruto and Sasuke briefly paralyzed, their heads pounding from the impact.

Sasuke activated his Rinnegan, swapping places with a nearby stone using Amenotejikara, while Naruto used the Flying Thunder God technique to retreat with the Fourth Hokage.

Naruto rubbed his head, shaken. “He’s even faster than Guy-sensei in Eight Gates mode…”

Sasuke, despite his own pain, smirked faintly as he focused his Rinnegan. His eyes locked on Aizen as he warned, “Naruto, don’t underestimate him. One mistake, and we’re dead.”

*(To be continued)*