"Damn it..."
Obito gritted his teeth, activating Kamui again to try and suck in a small cluster of paper that seemed to move slightly slower.
The result was the same: the paper slips nimbly scattered, accompanied by sporadic explosive flashes and the sound of detonations.
The bizarre battle between Konan and Obito atop the Ten-Tails' massive body naturally could not escape the eyes of the Allied Shinobi Forces below.
This sudden internal strife caused a strange atmosphere to permeate the already desperate battlefield.
"Infighting within the Akatsuki?" Onoki hovered in mid-air, his brow furrowed deeply.
His old eyes stared intently at the swirling paper and spatial vortexes above.
This turn of events was too abrupt, exceeding his understanding.
"Hmph! Regardless of why they're fighting, it's just dogs biting dogs! It's not a bad thing for us!"
Ay's voice was like a thunderclap, his rugged face filled with disdain and schadenfreude.
His fists clenched until they cracked, wishing for the two above to perish together.
Minato did not relax in the slightest, his golden brow tightly knit.
His gaze swept quickly between the rampaging Ten-Tails, the clashing Akatsuki members, and The Collector, who sat on a high stone throne like an outsider.
Through Inoichi's Mental Link, he quickly sent his thoughts to Shikaku at the rear command center.
"Shikaku, any word from the Scout Team? Nagato's original body... still no clues?"
Nara Shikaku's weary and solemn voice immediately echoed in his mind, carrying a deep sense of frustration.
"Lord Minato... I'm sorry. Since the battle began, we've utilized all sensory abilities and Scout Teams, searching outward from the center.
But the sensory field of the entire battlefield is chaotic; the energy fluctuations are too violent, especially the interference from the Ten-Tails and Pain.
We... still haven't been able to pin down Nagato's hiding place."
Minato sighed heavily in his heart.
This answer was not unexpected, yet it was incredibly anxiety-inducing.
From the beginning of the war, finding and destroying Nagato—the one controlling the Six Paths of Pain and the Gedo Statue—had been seen by the Allied high command as a key to reversing the tide.
However, Nagato was hidden perfectly; even the Yamanaka Clan's mental sensory network felt like it was groping through a thick fog.
The reality was clear: if they couldn't find Nagato, they couldn't fundamentally eliminate the threat of the Ten-Tails.
Minato suppressed the feeling of helplessness in his heart, his gaze becoming sharp and determined once more.
He spoke in a low voice to the many powerful figures around him.
"Continue the established tactics! Do everything to delay and weaken the Ten-Tails, and buy as much time as possible for the Scout Team! If an opportunity arises..."
He glanced at the nearly unstoppable behemoth.
"Try to seal the Ten-Tails directly!"
Even as he said it, looking at the Ten-Tails—which had absorbed the power of the nine Tailed Beasts and displayed world-destroying power under Nagato's will.
Deep down, Minato knew that with the Allied Forces' remaining strength, the hope of sealing it directly was incredibly slim.
But as the Hokage and one of the core pillars of the Alliance, he had no choice.
He could only fight to the end, seeking that nearly non-existent glimmer of hope amidst despair.
The collapse of Chibaku Tensei brought no respite.
The blood-purple thunderclouds of the cataclysmic change gradually dissipated, and the cracked earth stopped trembling.
The desert battlefield was now shrouded in even deeper despair.
The Ten-Tails' mangled head let out an inhuman roar, Purple Lightning dancing wildly around it, its ten massive tails lashing the ground like tentacles of the apocalypse.
Every strike sent out shockwaves saturated with lethal chakra.
Minato was the first to use Flying Thunder God to return to the front of the Allied lines, with Ay and Onoki following close behind.
Killer Bee's massive, fully Tailed Beast-transformed body stood like a mountain, Gaara rose into the air on a platform of gold sand, and Kakashi and Might Guy guarded the flanks.
When the surviving Allied Shinobi saw these blood-stained figures standing at the front again, their near-collapsed morale was like a withered tree meeting spring.
They had not been defeated yet! The sharpest blades of the Shinobi World were still pointed at the Ten-Tails!
"Attack! Don't give it a chance to breathe!"
Nara Shikaku's voice, raspy and strained, rang through the mind of every Allied ninja via Inoichi's mental network.
He knew that even a moment's hesitation could lead to total destruction.
At this time, Onoki endured his fatigue and formed hand seals.
"Dust Release: Detachment of the Primitive World!"
A massive pillar of white light blasted out again, accurately hitting the Ten-Tails' enormous body.
However, that light, capable of disintegrating all things, only left a deep but non-penetrating scorch mark on the Ten-Tails' keratinized skin.
Amidst the rising steam, the Ten-Tails' wound writhed and repaired itself before their very eyes.
"Damn it... its regenerative power is too incredible!" Onoki gritted his teeth.
The Raikage transformed into blue lightning, attacking the Ten-Tails' lower joints with the extreme speed of the "Lariat," attempting to break its balance.
Killer Bee, fully transformed into his Tailed Beast form, wrapped his eight octopus tails around two of the Ten-Tails' tails, while the tips of his tentacles condensed Tailed Beast Balls for point-blank bombardment.
"You idiot! You jerk! Taste this!"
The fire of explosions shone on the pitch-black battlefield, and the Ten-Tails' massive tails were charred and severed.
"Magnet Release: Gold Sand Great Burial!"
Endless gold sand surged like a golden tide, attempting to bind and crush the Ten-Tails' limbs and tails layer by layer.
The weight of the gold sand was enough to crush mountains, but under the Ten-Tails' violent strength, the layers of sand were constantly forced open and shattered.
With a sudden whip of its tail, a large amount of gold sand was blown away; the backlash of the sand tide caused a trickle of blood to leak from the corner of Gaara's mouth as he maintained the Ninjutsu.
Minato, the Yellow Flash, flickered across the battlefield, using Flying Thunder God kunai to guide the attacks of the Allied ninjas or using Rasengan to strike the Ten-Tails' relatively weak joint connections.
However, the purple-black chakra cloak on the Ten-Tails' surface seemed to possess powerful repulsive and absorptive abilities.
Ordinary Ninjutsu falling upon it was like a stone sinking into the ocean; even with the Rasengan, the explosive energy was quickly dispersed.
"No, its chakra defense level is too high! We need more piercing power!" Minato's brow furrowed tightly, sensing how troublesome this was.
Among all his Ninjutsu, perhaps only the Wind Release: Spiraling Flash Stage Three could break its defense.
But even Minato could not use that extreme-cutting Ninjutsu multiple times; the amount of chakra it consumed was too great.
"Morning Peacock!"
A green figure moved at high speed, bringing with it the brilliant fire of peacock-like shockwaves, continuously striking the Ten-Tails' torso.
The flames scorched patches of the keratin layer, but could not cause substantial damage; instead, they were easily blown away by the gale generated by the Ten-Tails' tail.
"It's still not enough! Youth doesn't allow for retreat!" Guy roared, his sweat evaporating like mist.
However, after using the Seventh Gate once, Might Guy could not open it again in such a short time, preventing him from unleashing even greater power.
Every grand attack launched at the Ten-Tails seemed like scratching an itch through a boot.
Its body, which fused the origin of the God Tree with the power of the nine Tailed Beasts, displayed vitality and defensive power beyond comprehension.
The damage caused by the top-tier Ninjutsu the Alliance took pride in was repaired in an instant by the purple-black chakra covering its body, even stimulating it to evolve a harder keratin layer.
The sense of despair on the battlefield was like a cold venomous snake, coiling around everyone's heart.
Just as the Ten-Tails swung a massive tail, cloaked in space-tearing Purple Lightning, towards the exhausted Onoki and Killer Bee, who was condensing a Tailed Beast Ball.
"Lord Tsuchikage! Bee! Get out of the way!" Kakashi's voice was filled with resolve.
His left eye—the Mangekyo Sharingan from his best friend—focused instantly!
The scarlet pattern spun wildly, and space at the base of the Ten-Tails' descending tail distorted violently!
"Kamui!"
Unlike the usual vortex form used to absorb objects, this time Kakashi compressed all his Ocular Power to the limit!
"RIIIP!!!"
A terrifying sound, like tough leather being forcibly torn apart, accompanied by the shattering tremors of the spatial plane, echoed across the battlefield!
At the base of the Ten-Tails' massive arm, which was capable of leveling mountain peaks, space suddenly collapsed and folded inward.
Then... it was forcibly torn and snapped by the twisting power!
The massive severed arm, leaking viscous dark-purple blood, crashed to the ground like a collapsing mountain, kicking up a storm of dust and lava.
It worked?!
A surge of wild joy had just risen in the hearts of the Allied ninjas...
But in the next second, that joy was frozen by an even deeper chill!
Kakashi groaned, a trail of blood-tears flowing from his left eye, his body shaking violently, nearly collapsing from exhaustion.
The burden of using Kamui to tear off the Ten-Tails' arm was far beyond imagination!
Even more terrifying was the Ten-Tails' reaction.
The pain of the severed arm made it let out an even more frenzied roar, but the stump was not the bloody mess one would expect.
Dark purple chakra, like a boiling swamp, surged out instantly.
Countless twisted, tangled energy tentacles danced wildly, hyper-regenerating and reshaping at a speed visible to the naked eye!
In an instant, a brand-new, terrifying arm covered in thicker keratin and sharp bone spurs grew from the stump!
The aura it emitted was even more violent than the previous one!
"Cough... even spatial tearing... can't truly destroy it..."
Kakashi covered his bleeding eye, his voice raspy, as fatigue and helplessness washed over him like a tide.
He had used all his strength, yet had only caused the opponent a brief "setback."
And this setback had instead triggered an even more vicious evolution in the Ten-Tails!
From his high stone throne, The Collector, Takuno, witnessed Kakashi's stunning yet futile strike.
A faint, barely perceptible curve appeared at the corner of his mouth, as if he were enjoying a magnificent play.
His face, hidden behind the Fox Mask, turned slightly, and the purple glow of his Six-Tomoe Rinnegan appeared exceptionally deep and inscrutable in the dimming sky.
He still leaned back lazily, watching the Ten-Tails' fury and the Alliance's despair.
In his eyes, it all seemed like an inevitable movement driving this final battle toward its predetermined climax.
The Ten-Tails roared to the sky, a sound that shattered souls, as its ten newly-grown tails rose high, pointing toward the heavens and the earth.
The true horror had only just begun.
The Allied ninjas surged like a tide toward the roaring Ten-Tails; the brilliance of Dust Release, the massive waves of gold sand, and the roar of Tailed Beast Balls wove together into a tapestry of despair.
Yet they turned into futile clamor before the Ten-Tails' rapidly regenerating shell.
His fingertips lazily tapped the armrest of the stone throne.
"Don't you understand yet?"
His gaze finally settled on the Rinnegan within the fissure on the Ten-Tails' forehead.
"The torrent of chakra, the advantage of numbers... before the barrier of 'Life Levels,' they are nothing more than tossing sand into the sea."
The space around the stone throne distorted slightly due to his radiating pressure, and the aftershocks of the Allied Ninjutsu quietly vanished upon touching the invisible barrier.
"Below the Super Kage level, ants might be able to use quantity to force a qualitative change..."
"But against those who have truly stepped into the 'Super Kage' level, or even further?"
A light scoff drifted through the wind and sand, carrying a chill that crushed all conviction.
"Unless these tens of thousands of ants... were all Kage-level."
Takuno's Fox Mask seemed to curl into a smile.
"If this monster is allowed to continue evolving..."
The purple light of the Six-Tomoe Rinnegan swirled, reflecting the apocalyptic battlefield.
"Even with a hundred thousand shinobi... they would be nothing more than a few more withered bones added beneath the God Tree."
As he spoke, Takuno looked into the distance, the corners of his mouth turning up.
"So, is the other side still choosing to stand by and watch?"
"Even if Black Zetsu hasn't found Nagato's original body?"
"Even if Obito can't capture Konan in a short time to use as leverage against Nagato?"
"Is it because they disdain to do so, or do they have other ideas?"
Takuno was also looking forward to the arrival of the final act!
...
Despite the joint attack by top powerhouses of the Alliance, including Minato, Raikage Ay, Killer Bee, Onoki, Gaara, Kakashi, Might Guy, and Shisui.
The once-again transformed Ten-Tails' level of terror far exceeded what it was before!
The Ten-Tails' mangled head was covered in a hideous keratin layer, and its ten massive tails stood straight like pillars supporting the heavens.
Every swing stirred up storms cloaked in lightning, causing the earth to wail and crack.
It was no longer a mere beast; it was more like a natural disaster itself.
However, the effectiveness of this offensive, which had gathered the highest combat power of the Alliance, was suffocatingly weak against the transformed Ten-Tails.
Onoki's Dust Release: Detachment of the Primitive World, performed with exhausted chakra.
It only left a few fleeting shallow marks on the thick keratin layer before being forcibly smoothed over by the violent chakra surging within the Ten-Tails.
Ay's "Lightning Release: Lariat," which he took pride in for being able to split mountains and stones.
When it struck the Ten-Tails' body, it only left charred marks, and the counter-force made even his robust arms go slightly numb.
The Tailed Beast Balls condensed by Killer Bee accurately blew off two massive tails, but the flesh at the break writhed frantically.
Almost before the smoke from the explosion had cleared, new, thicker tails regenerated fiercely, wreathed in Purple Lightning.
They even whipped off several of Killer Bee's hastily blocking octopus tentacles.
Although Minato's Flying Thunder God kunai could hit accurately, his most powerful Rasengan striking it was like throwing a pebble into the deep sea, failing to stir even a significant ripple.
The Ten-Tails' terrifying vitality and chakra level made attacks of this degree feel like a mere itch.
"Damn it! Is it completely ineffective?!" Ay looked at his numb, bleeding fists and let out an unwilling low growl.
Onoki hovered in the air, panting heavily, his face showing unconcealable fatigue and frustration.
Minato's golden brow was tightly knit, the light of Flying Thunder God flickering unsteadily; his tactics seemed to have reached their limit.
Killer Bee stopped his rapping, and Eight-Tails Gyuki's voice in his consciousness was filled with gravity.
Across the battlefield, the Allied ninjas who witnessed this scene of "top-tier combatants joining forces yet failing to make any progress."
That sliver of resolve and momentum, which had barely been bolstered by the gathering of top powerhouses, began to waver once again.