Deadlocked

Over on Shamu and Madara's side, Madara went all out. After breaking through Ginshiki's defenses, he blew him directly into a skyful of shredded flesh.

Though Ginshiki was also a powerful warrior, his life level had not evolved, nor had he elementalized.

He died on the spot.

Fortunately, Ginshiki had lived for many years and had long since found a suitable vessel.

Even if he died here, he could revive through the Karma on Divine Garden Origin Star.

But Yōshiki had lost a powerful fighter in an instant.

His heart sank.

No wonder Shamu had suddenly erupted—it was to block his path.

After repeatedly shifting through space just now, Shamu had punched several holes through Yōshiki's body.

After Shamu's relentless assault forced Yōshiki to transform into a gigantic man of fire, his energy consumption had also begun to rise.

Yunshiki had just been held back by Madara's clones. Now, the Divine Garden Clan had one less member.

Madara's true body could join the battle.

It depended on whether Madara chose to support Shamu or kill Yunshiki and Ranshiki.

But no matter what Madara chose, the offense and defense had already switched sides.

"Yōshiki, it looks like your good days are over."

With a flick of his long blade, Shamu stood suspended in the air.

At this point, the four holes Shamu had opened in Yōshiki's body were gradually filled back in as flames burned over them.

"Heh... You've got some skill, but it's still not enough."

He stared coldly at Shamu, then gave Ranshiki, who was in the water below, a meaningful look.

Ranshiki flew out from the water and headed straight for Yunshiki.

After liquefying herself, she coiled around Yunshiki's arm.

It was as though Yunshiki had gained two enormous ribbons on her arm. One glance was enough to tell that they had coordinated countless times before.

The two had originally been in a master-servant relationship, but that ended after Ranshiki became a high-ranking Otsutsuki.

Still, they had indeed fought together for many years. This near-possession-like method—

greatly increased Yunshiki's strength.

Madara's hands crackled with electricity as he sneered. "Water Style is just what I needed."

"Sage Art: Yin Release: Lightning Stream!"

A huge amount of lightning burst from Madara's hands and struck straight at Yunshiki and Ranshiki.

Yunshiki swung the ribbons formed from Ranshiki and raised a wall before herself.

The lightning struck it, but unlike ordinary liquefied water, it was not countered by lightning.

The electricity did not even spread across that layer of watery ribbon.

Shamu glanced over.

Water that doesn't conduct electricity?

Pure water?

Madara frowned slightly at the sight, but then snorted coldly.

When facing one enemy, his Limbo Clones were far more flexible than when dealing with two separate opponents.

The six Limbo Clones moved first.

The main reason so many people failed to defend against a Limbo Clone's first attack was that they could not see it.

Secondly, the clones flickered during their surprise attacks.

Only those with fast enough reactions could intercept the strike.

Otherwise, they could basically only take the first hit head-on.

This time, Madara controlled all six Limbo Clones in a simultaneous ambush, yet it unexpectedly achieved little effect.

Every attack that struck Yunshiki was deflected aside, as though her body could not receive force.

As for those that struck the ribbons Ranshiki had transformed into, they simply passed through the water.

Seeing that both his Lightning Release and physical attacks were ineffective, Madara changed his method again.

Madara formed hand seals, his cheeks swelling.

"Sage Art! Fire Release! Great Fire Hell!"

Massive flames spewed toward Yunshiki and Ranshiki.

The flames covered the sky and earth. It was as though a volcano had risen from the sea, continuously erupting heat outward.

The entire sea surface was dyed crimson, while massive amounts of water vapor drifted endlessly into the sky.

Yunshiki let out a sweet laugh, wrapped herself in Ranshiki, and flew toward Yōshiki.

Yōshiki was massive to begin with. With a slight reach, his arm stretched even farther.

After extending his arm into the sea of fire, he used fire to burn fire.

The enormous amount of Sage Art Chakra within the flames was rapidly consumed.

Then, all the flames were absorbed by Yōshiki.

The flames burning over Yōshiki's body became even fiercer.

Madara's expression soured. Yunshiki and Ranshiki's abilities really were rather strange.

Though Madara had joined the battle himself—

Yunshiki's ability always caused his attacks to slide away.

After Ranshiki merged with Yunshiki, Yunshiki's attacks had clearly become much stronger.

The ribbons she transformed into could become water blades at any time, or turn into droplets for piercing attacks.

When hardened, they could pierce through Madara's body. When softened, striking them was like hitting a man made of water.

Both sides were trying to find the other's weaknesses, constantly changing their methods of attack.

On Shamu's side, he too began continuously draining Yōshiki's energy.

Yōshiki feared that Shamu had other space-time techniques, so he did not dare shrink down. He was also quite conservative in his attacks.

Flames turned into whips, formed vortices, and spat out fireballs, continually crushing down on Shamu.

Shamu was smaller and more agile, constantly weaving back and forth through all kinds of flame-based attacks.

His War God Armor had always been known for its defensive power, so even when he was hit, Shamu was not harmed in the slightest.

He also kept changing his attack methods, even trying Water Release.

But he discovered that Yōshiki was not restrained by water at all, unless he was completely submerged in it.

Otherwise, it could not inflict any effective damage on him.

Yōshiki's flames were fluid, allowing him to alter the shape of his body at will.

All the flames could flow into the position of a single hand and foot, then rise to his feet again.

The two groups remained locked in this stalemate.

The four of them fought from day into night, until the sky had gone dark.

For high-ranking Otsutsuki, whose journeys were measured in years and whose lifespans were measured in tens of thousands of years—

this kind of battle duration was perfectly normal.

A fight lasting ten days or half a month was considered an ordinary duration.

But for Madara and Shamu, it took some getting used to.

Madara went from excited, to anxious and irritated, to utterly bored in just one day.

Though he had figured out Yunshiki's ability, it was not easy to break.

And he had already used Banshō Ten'in, Shinra Tensei, and Chibaku Tensei.

Yunshiki and Ranshiki were both guarding against any surprise attacks he might launch.

Yōshiki was not too concerned about that. Even if Chibaku Tensei caught him—

he could quickly break free from it.

Shamu's attacks were sharp, but at most, they could only open a few holes in Yōshiki's body.

Yōshiki had encountered this kind of stalemate many times throughout his long fighting career.

Relying entirely on the immortality of his fire elemental body, he had worn many powerful enemies to death.

Though it might take several years, for Yōshiki, whose lifespan exceeded a million years—

this was a highly cost-effective way to win a battle.

Besides, Yōshiki had another trump card, though it seemed there was no need to use it now.

But while he did not use his trump card, Shamu came up with a new tactic.