"No... I can't see anything clearly..."
Namikaze Minato stared at the battle unfolding in the sky between Kaede and Uchiha Madara. He couldn't even distinguish which figure was Kaede, he had to rely on his sensory abilities to tell them apart.
This kind of speed couldn't compare with Flying Thunder God over long distances, after all, traversing half the Shinobi World in a blink was impossible, but at close range, Kaede's speed was even faster than his Flying Thunder God!
Although Flying Thunder God ignored spatial distance, it still required activation time. Only those with exceptional spatial talent, like himself, could reduce that time to the span of a single thought... but even a single thought still took time!
And Kaede's speed had already exceeded his reaction limit.
It was far beyond how fast he had been during their last fight.
Even if Minato covered dozens of miles with Flying Thunder God seals and was at his peak, not limited by Edo Tensei, he still wouldn't be able to keep up. Kaede could strike him down in an instant before he could even react.
Just as Minato was reeling from the sheer speed Kaede displayed, Kaede swung his sword, releasing a ripple-like wave that swept toward Minato.
Silent. Unseen.
The ground beneath Minato's feet suddenly split apart, and a massive ravine spread out for hundreds of meters, as if a canyon had just been carved out of the earth.
Minato's pupils contracted sharply, shock flashing in his eyes.
"How is this possible..."
Just a residual ripple...
Had such devastating power?
Just how strong had Kaede become?
As Minato, the First Raikage, and a handful of surviving Kumogakure shinobi watched in shock or stunned confusion, the battle in the sky raged on.
"Sage Art: Yin Release Lightning Dispatch!"
Uchiha Madara formed hand seals and then suddenly exhaled. Violet lightning burst forth, crackling across the sky, sealing off Kaede's paths of movement.
Kaede remained calm. He didn't dodge. Instead, with a casual motion of his Truth-Seeking Orb sword, several wave-like ripples dispersed outward, instantly tearing the violet lightning apart.
Then,
A flicker of light gleamed in Kaede's eyes. For a moment, the Truth-Seeking Orb sword in his hand froze as an immense amount of chakra surged into its blade.
"Eighty... Divine Sky Slash!"
He spoke softly and swung his blade.
In that instant,
Massive sword shadows filled the sky, each one infused with vast amounts of chakra. They looked powerful enough to tear the heavens apart as they rained down upon Uchiha Madara.
Madara's pupils narrowed. Without hesitation, he shouted and unleashed a massive torrent of chakra. In an instant, a gigantic, complete blue Susanoo emerged.
But this wasn't just any full-body Susanoo.
It was a Sage Art Susanoo, empowered by the Six Paths chakra!
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!!!
The Sage Art Susanoo unsheathed its blades, each of its four arms wielding a sword, and swung continuously at the oncoming sword shadows. Countless sword clashes echoed through the air like the heavens were collapsing, as Madara's strikes collided with Kaede's overwhelming barrage.
The air trembled violently, shockwaves surging down to the ground below. Visible shockwaves rolled across the earth, rushing toward the Fourth Raikage, Minato, and the others.
"Ugh... aahh!"
Some of the surviving Kumo shinobi were nearly knocked off their feet, swaying like leaves in a storm.
Even the Fourth Raikage and Minato weren't doing much better. Both had to exert their full chakra to barely remain standing, resisting the force of the onslaught.
"What... kind of battle is this..."
The wind whipped Minato's Hokage cloak as he clenched his fists, staring up at the sky. He had originally hoped to find an opportunity to assist Kaede, but now he realized,
He had no way to interfere.
Whether in terms of speed or power, everything happening before him was far beyond anything he could affect.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!!!
Kaede's sword shadows finally overpowered the Susanoo's slashes, crashing down upon Madara's Sage Art Susanoo. Then came a series of tremendous explosions.
Just like back when Madara fought Hashirama and endured the Thousand-Armed True Several Hands, the Six Paths–enhanced Susanoo was torn apart by brute force alone.
"That speed... and chakra..."
Madara had avoided the direct hit using Limbo, but his gaze was serious and intense as he stared at Kaede.
"The power in your eyes... does it enhance speed? No, it's more than that. Your frequency, your chakra flow, at least ten times faster..."
A glint flashed in his eyes.
"Is it... time acceleration?!"
A time-accelerating dojutsu!
As the thought formed, Madara was nearly certain. And he wasn't surprised. After all, Kaede's eyes were of the same tier as his own.
His own Rinnegan could create the Limbo World and control its shadows for offense, defense, and even teleportation. It was a space-type ability.
In contrast,
Kaede's ability seemed simpler: it merely increased speed.
But even that alone was enough to pose a massive threat at this level. Kaede's speed completely suppressed his Limbo clones. Even though Madara was using a five-on-one formation, and could freely substitute his real body with Limbo clones, he still couldn't keep up.
"...Something like that."
Kaede, holding the Truth-Seeking Orb sword, looked at Madara with calm, clear eyes and said softly:
"Are those all the tricks you've got?"
Madara snorted.
"With strength like yours, you have every right to be proud. But I've more or less figured out your ability now. The probing phase ends here."
As he finished speaking,
A powerful surge of ocular power erupted in Madara's eyes. Instantly, the four nearby Limbo shadows shattered and vanished.
In their place,
The world before Kaede suddenly fell into silence and darkness. All light disappeared in an instant.
"Now then..."
"The final battle begins!"
Madara's voice echoed from within the darkness.
Kaede looked around. From the perspective of his Tenseigan, he could see clearly. This place resembled Kamui's dimension, but it lacked any material substance. Only dark, void-like shadows existed here.
The space was small, Kaede could see the edges with a glance.
This wasn't a true alternate dimension, nor part of the Shinobi World. This was the Limbo World, a realm between shadow and reality, created by Madara's Rinnegan!
"The ability to drag others into the Limbo World, huh?"
Kaede withdrew his gaze and looked toward a certain direction.
"So this is your final card."
Madara's cold voice echoed from all directions.
"You can see clearly here as well? As expected of eyes on par with the Rinnegan. But now that you're here, everything is over!"
This was the Rinnegan's ultimate ability:
Forcefully dragging the enemy into the Limbo World.
The only limitation was that it consumed an enormous amount of ocular power, far more than maintaining four Limbo clones in the real world. Even with his current strength, Madara could only maintain this state for one minute.
But for him, one minute was more than enough!
As his voice faded,
Sshhh! Sshhh! Sshhh!!!
Countless illusory shadows within the small space suddenly solidified into real forms, transforming into shadow spears that shot toward Kaede from all directions.
Dense and overwhelming, they surged like a torrential storm.
In an instant, they were upon him,
Intending to tear Kaede to pieces!
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Completed version available on Patreon.com/Veltoria