Under Madara's gaze, Uchiha Hikaru's eyes shifted.
The intricate patterns of the Eternal Mangekyō dissolved, replaced by a swirling kaleidoscope—then settled into purple, ripple-patterned pupils.
Madara's mind went blank for an instant.
His scalp tingled, and disbelief slammed into him like a physical blow.
He couldn't understand it.
How could this brat—barely in his early twenties—have awakened the Rinnegan?
Back then, even after obtaining the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan and transplanting Hashirama's cells, Madara himself had only awakened the Rinnegan decades later, on the verge of death.
The last time they fought, Hikaru's eyes were still an incomplete blue—far from fully awakened.
How long had it been since then?
Half a year?
Was this monster cheating the laws of the world?
Staring at Hikaru's pupils, Madara silently increased the output of his chakra.
He knew perfectly well that Tengei Shinsei wouldn't be enough to kill Hikaru—but if it could wipe out the shinobi army behind him, crush their morale, and shatter Hikaru's confidence, that would still be worth it.
Without a word, Madara dragged another meteor down from the sky.
The corner of his mouth lifted slightly.
He was already anticipating the expression of helpless fury on Hikaru's face.
—
Hikaru looked up and caught that faint smile.
He didn't know what Madara was so confident about.
Did he really think two falling rocks were enough?
"They're just… a bit bigger," Hikaru muttered.
When unsure, observe. When observation is possible, analyze.
Centered on Hikaru, an invisible black-and-white formation expanded outward in an instant, enveloping the battlefield.
Ordinary shinobi couldn't see anything.
But those who possessed the Rinnegan felt it immediately.
Obito stiffened.
Nagato's breath caught.
And Madara—especially Madara—felt a chill crawl up his spine.
Yet Madara forced himself to sneer.
"It looks a bit like the Hyūga Clan's Gentle Fist," he said coolly. "What, are you planning to poke the meteorites apart with your fingers?"
"How naive."
Hikaru ignored him completely.
Within the formation, everything—terrain, chakra flow, trajectories, intent—was reduced to raw chakra data, flooding into his mind.
The Rinnegan functioned like an inhuman processor, calculating outcomes, paths, and branching futures at terrifying speed.
A result surfaced.
Not certainty.
Not doom.
A balance.
Victory and defeat—equally possible.
Hikaru frowned slightly.
That meant the battlefield itself wasn't the real threat.
He could defeat Madara.
He could handle Obito.
Even a Ten-Tails Jinchūriki, if it came to that.
The variable… was Black Zetsu.
That thing had always been hiding in the shadows, rewriting plans the moment it sensed doubt or deviation. Ever since Madara's first Impure World Reincarnation, Black Zetsu had likely begun preparing contingencies.
As long as he kept that parasite in check—
This war was still winnable.
The analysis ended.
The black-and-white formation vanished without a trace.
Madara stared.
No explosion.
No distortion.
No illusion.
Nothing.
"…That's it?" he muttered.
So it was a non-combat dōjutsu?
Then fine.
Let's see how you stop this.
Two massive meteorites roared downward, filling the sky.
—
Hikaru raised one hand.
A blade appeared in his grasp.
The Mangekyō ability Sword.
He tilted his head, almost thoughtful.
"Meteorites from outer space," Hikaru said seriously. "You never know what rare materials might be inside them. Wouldn't you agree?"
The blade hummed.
"Outer space, huh?" Sword replied lazily, her voice dripping with disdain. "Nice way to put it. Sounds better than 'space trash.'"
"But," she continued, tone shifting, "they have absorbed a lot of solar chakra. I can extract that."
"…I'll eat them."
Man and blade merged as one.
Hikaru raised Sword and pointed it straight at the meteorites now only dozens of meters overhead.
The blade shot forward—
And in midair, transformed.
A graceful woman in a black gauze dress appeared, her figure swaying as if dancing, lips slightly parted, hands clasped together.
Before her, a vast, unseen maw opened—like the mouth of an abyss.
No one could make out its shape.
Only its presence.
The two meteorites were swallowed whole.
A thunderous crunch echoed across the battlefield.
The sound of stone being crushed—chewed—obliterated.
Silence followed.
Madara stood frozen.
So did Obito.
So did everyone else.
Naruto, Yugito Nii, Killer Bee, and the other Jinchūriki felt their tailed beasts recoil in instinctive terror.
This was different from facing the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path.
If absorbed by the statue, they could still be released.
But that mouth—
If eaten by that…
They would be gone.
Completely.
Sword descended lightly and landed beside Hikaru. She licked her lower lip, looking pleased.
"Huh. After all this time, it actually tasted pretty good," she said thoughtfully. "A bit like chocolate… with a faint burnt aftertaste."
With that, she transformed back into a blade and returned to Hikaru's hand.
Madara was speechless.
Obito remained silent, firmly committing to the strategy of not provoking Uchiha Hikaru under any circumstances.
Then—
The Shinobi Alliance erupted.
"LORD HIKARU IS INSANE!!!"
"Wait—did that ninja tool just turn into a woman!?"
"Damn it, I want one too!!"
"I swear, after the war, I'm writing a novel about falling in love with a ninja tool!"
"Bro, let me read it first—guaranteed bestseller!"
Amid the chaos and cheering, a calm, resigned voice spoke from beneath Hikaru's feet.
"…How long do you plan to stay on my back?"