235 Naruto: Snatching the Mangekyō

"Ugh…"

Nagato groaned, his face contorting.

He could feel it—something inside him had been found and seized by Uchiha Akira.

Akira leapt lightly back, his hand transforming into pure chakra that linked directly to Nagato's chest.

Within Nagato's body was a vast ocean of chakra, seemingly endless.

At the very bottom of that ocean, Akira's right hand, now a massive claw of chakra, plunged into the depths. With a powerful grip, he began pulling out the tailed beast chakra that had been lying dormant at the seabed, dragging it out bit by bit.

Sensing Akira's actions, Nagato smirked coldly, the worry in his heart vanishing.

At most, he'll only manage to extract some of the chakra from Shukaku and Chōmei, Nagato thought. The other tailed beasts had long been absorbed by the Gedo Statue, their chakra fused into one. It would be impossible to separate them back into individual entities.

Sure enough, with a splash of chakra energy, Akira managed to extract only partial chakra from Shukaku and Chōmei.

The rest of the tailed beasts' chakra remained completely unmoved.

"As expected…" Akira muttered, staring at the miniature forms of Shukaku and Chōmei floating in his palm. His expression betrayed little surprise.

This outcome was within his calculations.

The tailed beasts had been sealed for so long that they had already started merging back with the Ten-Tails. Their chakra had returned to the Ten-Tails, leaving behind no independent will of their own.

Tsunade, watching the miniature tailed beasts in Akira's hand, shook her head.

"Fifth Hokage, it seems you've failed."

It was clear—while the two miniature tailed beasts contained significant chakra, they were not true tailed beasts. They were merely fragments Akira had forcibly taken from Nagato.

"So, when are we cutting Nagato down and sealing him away in pieces?" Tsunade asked, her tone casual, but the glint in her eye revealed her readiness for action.

"Too late!"

Before Akira or Tsunade could respond, Nagato's voice rang out, laced with triumph.

Boom!

A deafening rumble shattered the air as massive roots burst from Nagato's body, erupting from the wound below his torso.

In an instant, the colossal roots lifted Nagato high into the air, forming a towering, majestic tree.

Rumble!

The immense roots spread across the ruined battlefield like an unstoppable tide, blanketing an area spanning dozens of kilometers.

At the center of the battlefield stood the massive God Tree, its trunk vast and its height piercing the heavens.

This was the culmination of Nagato's preparation—a jutsu meant to enact the Infinite Tsukuyomi. It also allowed him to break free from Akira's Truth-Seeking Orb seal.

As the seal broke, Nagato's lower body began regenerating at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Within moments, he was fully restored.

"To think you had this up your sleeve… I underestimated the power of the Ten-Tails' Jinchūriki," Akira murmured, his tone calm but his narrowed eyes betraying his seriousness.

From their earlier clash, Akira had gauged much of Nagato's abilities.

Nagato sneered, now radiating a god-like confidence, "the real fight starts now!"

Nagato exuded an overwhelming aura that made even the skies tremble.

But then, Nagato's expression twisted in anger.

"Akira! What do you mean by this!?"

Nagato had realized that Akira wasn't paying him any attention. Instead, Akira had turned away, gazing intently at the battlefield below.

"Be quiet," Akira replied calmly. "This isn't the time to deal with you yet."

Nagato's face darkened, rage boiling over. As the Ten-Tails' Jinchūriki, he had begun to see himself as a god. For Akira to dismiss him so casually—it was infuriating.

"Come out. I know you're there," Akira said suddenly, his sharp gaze locking onto a massive root below.

"Oh? Interesting," a voice replied, laced with curiosity. "Those blue eyes… are they a mutation of the Byakugan? Impressive power."

A man dressed in a white robe with long braids leapt gracefully onto a root, his expression mildly surprised as he looked at Akira.

He had come to observe the state of the ninja world, only to be drawn to the commotion caused by Akira and Nagato's battle.

Initially, he had assumed he could watch undetected, using the chakra-concealing abilities of the Ōtsutsuki Clan.

Yet, to his surprise, the moment he revealed himself, Akira—the Hokage—had noticed him.

Standing on the massive root, the man's presence radiated an undeniable sense of danger. Akira's expression grew tense. He recognized this person.

Jigen—the vessel of Ōtsutsuki Isshiki. Or perhaps, Isshiki's will, fully awakened within him. Either way, he is Ōtsutsuki Isshiki.

What mattered most was Isshiki's overwhelming strength. Like Akira, he possessed mastery over space-time techniques, making him nearly impossible to pin down.

At this moment, Akira wasn't confident he could defeat him.

"Fascinating," Isshiki said, his gaze sweeping over Akira. "You carry the aura of both my clan and the Ten-Tails. How peculiar…"

"A mere Earth-born being, yet you've achieved such a feat. How did you manage this?" Isshiki's tone was laced with genuine curiosity.

"The Ōtsutsuki Clan?" Akira asked, narrowing his eyes. He decided to probe further.

Nagato, still hovering nearby, observed the exchange with a grim expression but chose to stay silent. His instincts screamed that this man was far from ordinary.

The name "Ōtsutsuki" stirred something in Nagato's limited understanding. He vaguely knew the Sage of Six Paths belonged to this mysterious clan.

"You know of the Ōtsutsuki Clan?" Isshiki's expression shifted, a hint of wariness creeping in.

"Of course I do," Akira replied evenly. His smile sharpened as he added, "I've crossed paths with Ōtsutsuki Kaguya, Hagoromo, and Hamura. I think I've pieced together who you are."

"Oh?" Isshiki chuckled, intrigued. "And who do you think I am?"

"Are you sure you want me to say it?" Akira asked, a faint smirk tugging at his lips.

"Go ahead," Isshiki replied, his tone laced with confidence.

Isshiki believed his identity was an absolute secret. No one in this world should know of him.

"You're Ōtsutsuki Isshiki," Akira said simply.

The confident smirk on Isshiki's face faltered, his expression darkening instantly.

"Yes, that's right," Akira continued, his voice calm but his words piercing. "Though you may not fully be Isshiki yet, in many ways, you already are him."