An unbelievable scene unfolded before everyone's eyes.
Uchiha Obito — reduced to nothing but a head and a mass of mangled flesh — began regenerating.
As for Might Guy, after unleashing Night Guy, he immediately collapsed into unconsciousness. Unlike in the original timeline where his body was burned beyond recognition, here he was still intact — but gravely injured. His life signs were rapidly diminishing.
At that moment, Madara shot Black Zetsu a meaningful glance.
Black Zetsu froze for a moment, surprise flashing across his face, before silently gliding toward Obito.
Just as Obito fully regenerated and broke into wild laughter, a pitch-black mass surged forward —
Black Zetsu forcibly possessed Obito's body.
Obito's laughter died instantly.
Black Zetsu spread over Obito like a corrupting shadow.
"Black Zetsu… what are you doing?"
Obito's voice chilled the air.
"Obito, you were always just a pawn. This power—belongs to Madara!"
Black Zetsu's sinister cackle echoed across the battlefield.
Everyone was stunned by the sudden treachery.
But before Black Zetsu could take full control—
A Truth-Seeking Orb lanced through the air and smashed into him.
The Obito he had just possessed suddenly melted into a collapsing heap of White Zetsu cells.
"That thing was just my clone. Did you really think I wouldn't guard against you?"
Obito stepped out from behind the debris, eyes cold.
He had been suspicious of Black Zetsu ever since noticing inconsistencies in his behavior.
A portion of Black Zetsu's body evaporated under the Truth-Seeking Orb's power. Screeching in agony, he slipped into a crack in the rock and vanished. Obito didn't bother pursuing him — Black Zetsu's stealth ability was exceptional. Even Obito had difficulty tracking him.
The reason Obito hadn't immediately regenerated earlier
was precisely because he predicted Madara and Black Zetsu would strike.
And they did.
"Madara… are you planning to fight me too?"
Obito spoke with disdain.
Once a pawn — now the one controlling the board.
"How will we know unless we try?"
Madara's expression remained calm, as though everything was unfolding exactly as he had foreseen.
"Fourth Hokage — lend me your chakra!"
Madara blurred toward Minato and absorbed his Sage Chakra.
Then, under the watchful eyes of Hashirama and the others, he stepped toward Obito.
"To deal with you, ordinary Ninjutsu is meaningless. Only Sage Art can be effective. I expected things might go out of control the moment I was revived."
Madara's low voice carried a bone-deep dominance.
"Let me see how far you can dance."
Even now, the confidence of a man born to rule the battlefield radiated from him.
"Madara… when did you master Sage Art?"
Hashirama asked in surprise.
Madara's body radiated three distinct Sage Chakras, all sharing a similar origin yet each uniquely powerful.
"Ryūchi Cave's Immortal Art…?"
Hashirama immediately recognized them.
Madara had somehow gathered Sage Chakra from all three Great Sage Lands — combining Hashirama's Senjutsu, Minato's, and Ryūchi Cave's techniques.
"Though this form is uncomfortable, an Edo Tensei body doesn't fear death. It has its uses. Hmph. Your brother may have been problematic as a person, but his talent in Ninjutsu was not without merit."
Using the broken limits of his Edo Tensei form, Madara had finally mastered Sage Art.
A vast and oppressive aura surged from his body —
"It's really you…"
Obito's mockery vanished.
Like Might Guy earlier, this Madara had the qualifications to threaten him.
But just like Guy…
he still couldn't kill him.
"Sage Art: Susanoo!!!"
A Perfect Susanoo materialized — but this time infused with the overwhelming force of Sage Art.
Its aura rivaled even Might Guy's earlier eruption.
"Sage Art: Yasaka Magatama!!!"
The Susanoo launched the attack. Obito swung his Truth-Seeking Orbs, dispersing the incoming Senjutsu magatama.
Obito counterattacked with a colossal wave of fire — amplified by his Six Paths power.
But—
Slash!!!
Madara's Susanoo blade carved cleanly through Obito's attack, scattering it into nothingness.
Both men were now completely serious.
A tiny black head peeked out from a crevice once again.
"Damn you, Obito! You treacherous brat!!"
"Hmph. It doesn't matter. Once Infinite Tsukuyomi activates, Mother will revive. In the end, the victory will be mine."
Black Zetsu looked battered and desperate — the earlier Truth-Seeking Orb had nearly destroyed him completely.
Then suddenly—
A hand seized Black Zetsu by the neck and lifted him off the ground.
"Who is it?!"
Black Zetsu twisted his head around—and saw golden hair.
Uzumaki Naruto.
Black Zetsu froze in horror. If he wasn't captured here, he could simply hide again. Even if he failed now, he could wait a thousand years. Eventually, he would outlive every shinobi on the battlefield.
He immediately tried to use his escape techniques—
but Naruto's hand tightened, radiating a strange power.
Black Zetsu's jutsu were completely suppressed.
"So things have progressed this far… Looks like I made it just in time."
Naruto chuckled lightly before disappearing in a flash, reappearing midair.
Everyone instantly turned toward him.
And then cheers erupted across the battlefield.
"Naruto! You finally showed up, you idiot brat!"
Tsunade let out a breath she'd been holding this entire time—
then stared, stunned, at Naruto's new form.
Golden chakra cloaked his entire body.
Truth-Seeking Orbs floated behind him like miniature suns, mirroring Obito's power.
A surge of hope flooded her.
"You… you succeeded?"
Naruto nodded with an easy smile.
"That's great, you little brat! You don't know how much pressure we've been carrying!"
Tsunade tapped his chest with a relieved, playful punch.
"It's fine. I'm here now—so I'll take it from here."
Naruto's tone was calm, but the air trembled.
His eyes locked on Uchiha Obito.
"It's time to settle our accounts."
His voice turned cold.
Then Naruto vanished again—
appearing directly between Madara and Obito.
A massive golden hand materialized and slammed straight down on Obito.
For a moment, Obito felt as if an entire world crushed his body.
BOOM!!!
A massive palm print sank deep into the earth.
Silence fell instantly.
Then Naruto threw a single punch—and Madara's Immortal Art Susanoo shattered like glass.
The remaining force blasted Madara away like a meteor, smashing him into the ground. His Edo Tensei body began to regenerate, but slowly—far more slowly than before.
"How… how is this possible?"
Madara stared in disbelief.
Naruto smiled faintly.
Nothing was impossible.
If the Six Paths realm had a proper classification, it would look something like this:
Madara (current): early Advanced Six Paths.
Obito: slightly higher than early Six Paths due to the Ten-Tails, but still incomplete—his mastery of Six Paths abilities was lacking.
Might Guy (Eight Gates Formation): originally early Intermediate, but in this worldline Guy had reached early Advanced for a short burst.
Kaguya: mid-Six Paths on paper, but lacking combat experience, often fighting only at peak early level.
And Naruto—
Naruto now stood at the true Intermediate Six Paths level.
His foundation, his accumulation, and his Heavenly Reward ability had pushed his strength far beyond the norm.
After breaking into the Six Paths realm, Naruto had taken time to analyze this level—though unofficial, the differences were enormous.
In the original story, Naruto and Sasuke being dominated by the Ōtsutsuki made perfect sense. Someone who consumed a single God Tree fruit could never compare to someone who consumed several.
Even Kaguya originally only succeeded by ambush.
Her fear of the Ōtsutsuki invasion was so immense that she created the White Zetsu army just to stall for time.
Here, Naruto understood the truth of the Six Paths far better—and his power reflected that.