The terrifying energy spread outward, and the surrounding trees and rivers instantly vanished. Everything within a two-kilometer radius was completely obliterated.
The Rock Ninjas who failed to escape beyond that range were all killed in the explosion, save for a few who survived through special means. Even the five strongest Quasi-Kage-level members of the Shadow Guard Squad perished in the blast.
As a massive mushroom cloud rose into the sky, the destruction caused by Isamu's consciousness body finally came to an end.
Far away, Senba Uchiha, who was retreating, suddenly felt a violent jolt in his heart. An indescribable feeling washed over him, compelling him to turn around.
The moment he did, the enormous mushroom cloud entered his sight.
"Father!!!"
Even from such a great distance, he could feel the faint tremor in the air. He instantly realized what had happened.
His father had perished alongside the enemy.
"Ahhh! No! No! No!"
Stopping in his tracks, Senba repeatedly slammed his fists into the ground.
At that moment, driven by overwhelming grief and rage, he unconsciously awakened the Three-Tomoe Sharingan.
Because the person he cherished most had been taken from him, the three tomoe spun rapidly, transforming into a complex new pattern.
The eye that reflected the heart was born.
The Mangekyo Sharingan.
Senba's strength instantly rose from the Kage level to the Super Kage level. It was a qualitative transformation.
"Damn Rock Ninjas! I swear I'll slaughter every last one of you!"
With his breakthrough, most of his injuries recovered. Combined with the vitality of his Sage Body, his Chakra rapidly returned.
Consumed by fury, he immediately charged back toward the battlefield.
"Senba!Senba! Don't go!" Shinoda shouted desperately.
But it was useless.
In the blink of an eye, Senba had disappeared from everyone's sight.
"Lord Shinoda, Lord Senba has gone back alone. What should we do?" a Chunin asked anxiously.
"Uh…"
Shinoda hesitated briefly before making his decision.
"Forget it. We'll follow Lord Uchiha Tensei's orders and continue retreating. The enemy has tens of thousands of Ninjas. We can't afford meaningless sacrifices. We'll regroup with our reinforcements first and then counterattack."
He couldn't stop Senba from seeking revenge, but he also couldn't drag the remaining hundred Ninjas to their deaths.
That would accomplish nothing.
Thus, the surviving Konoha Ninjas continued their retreat.
Meanwhile, at the site of the self-destruction, the consciousness body separated from its destroyed vessel.
Without a physical body to contain it, Isamu's consciousness transformed into a beam of white light and shot toward Konoha at a speed of fifty kilometers per second.
After traveling roughly three hundred kilometers, he spotted Senba rushing back alone.
"No! Senba, don't!"
Isamu shouted.
Unfortunately, as a bodiless consciousness, no one could hear him.
Having lost control over his movement, he could only watch helplessly as Senba disappeared from view in the span of a second.
"Damn it! Senba, hold on! I'll wake up the Main Body and save you!"
The consciousness could do nothing but rage.
His only hope was to awaken the Main Body.
Even if it meant his own disappearance, he was willing to sacrifice everything for his child.
Within minutes, the consciousness body arrived at the hidden basement beneath Konoha.
The moment it entered, control returned.
Looking at the Main Body floating silently in the air, Isamu's consciousness felt conflicted.
"After developing an independent consciousness, I truly don't want to disappear."
"But to save Senba, I have no choice."
Although he had become a separate existence, his love for Senba had never changed.
"Uchiha Tensei… although I owe you everything, remember this."
"My love for Senba has never faded!"
After speaking those final words, the consciousness body merged completely into the Main Body.
At that moment, the incomplete Uchiha Tensei finally became whole once more.
The body that had floated motionlessly for decades slowly stood upright.
His eyes opened.
The Nine-Tomoe Rinnegan spun endlessly.
Six Paths Sage Mode activated instantly.
White robes decorated with tomoe patterns covered his body, while twelve black Truth-Seeking Orbs floated behind him.
The same overwhelming presence.
The same terrifying power.
"Hahaha!"
"After decades, I, Uchiha Tensei, have finally returned to life!"
After laughing heartily, he glanced at the dim surroundings and the two White Zetsu hiding nearby.
Then he shot upward.
Boom!
The stone walls, ceiling, and even the roof above were shattered as he burst into the sky over Konoha.
"Uchiha Tensei has awakened. Our mission is complete. Let's go."
The two White Zetsu immediately vanished and headed toward Madara.
Uchiha Tensei noticed them but couldn't be bothered with such insignificant underlings.
"Haah!"
Clenching his fists, he released a terrifying wave of power.
The entire village shook violently.
Having just awakened, he vented decades of accumulated energy without restraint.
The resulting tremors threw Konoha into chaos.
Some thought it was an earthquake.
Others believed the village was under attack.
Panic spread everywhere.
Inside the Hokage Building, Hiruzen Sarutobi was startled by the sudden quake.
"What's going on? Where is that tremor coming from?"
"Someone investigate immediately!"
After finishing his brief release of power, Uchiha Tensei began sorting through the memories of the consciousness body.
"So many years have passed…"
"Yet despite my arrival, much of the world remains unchanged."
"My child, Senba, has already grown so much."
"Time truly flies."
The memories continued to flow into his mind.
"It was unexpected that the consciousness body developed an independent will."
"But fortunately, he never did anything harmful."
Uchiha Tensei felt relieved.
As he absorbed the final memories and heard the consciousness body's last words, a faint smile appeared on his face.
"It seems that whether it was my consciousness body or myself…"
"Our love for family never disappeared."
After fully understanding everything that had happened, Uchiha Tensei acted immediately.
Kamui activated.
His figure vanished from Konoha in an instant.
Using continuous spatial jumps, he raced toward his child.
The Ninjas dispatched by Hiruzen would find absolutely nothing.
Only two seconds later, Uchiha Tensei arrived at the site where the consciousness body had exploded.
However, by then, the massive Rock Ninja army numbering in the tens of thousands had already gathered there.
Looking at the countless Rock Ninjas surrounding him, Uchiha Tensei was momentarily stunned.
Likewise, the Rock Ninjas stared at the man who had suddenly appeared out of nowhere.
For a brief moment, both sides simply looked at one another.
An awkward silence filled the battlefield.