"You're the ones whose era has ended."
Within the Mangekyo Barrier, Chiri moved her feet, walking slowly with her sword in hand.
In the ruined battlefield, beneath the burning forest and the towering, dilapidated Buddha statue, Madara and Hashirama lay unconscious back-to-back.
Izuna and Tobirama had already been cut down by Chiri's sword. Madara and Hashirama could not hold on much longer either, barely clinging to consciousness until Tsunade's Infinite Tsukuyomi happened to strike her own allies.
As for why Chiri had not fallen—
In truth, Chiri's true body was not here. She had fused with Mimi and was entrenched in the Underworld.
The Chiri here was a member of the Insect Swarm.
Although the body walking around in the outside world was Chiri's, there was a more suitable name for it.
An humanoid contact device for interacting with organic lifeforms.
The Infinite Tsukuyomi had not been aimed at the true target. It had merely severed their communications for an instant.
The body had simply been used for too long, and she had grown attached to it, so she had not replaced it.
Arriving before Madara and Hashirama, Chiri raised her sword and brought it down.
Two heads hit the ground.
"Rivals who fought all their lives, only to join forces at the end and die together... It's not a bad romantic ending."
She was not referring only to Hashirama and Madara, but also to Tobirama and Izuna.
Chiri knew the stories between them.
As she spoke, she flicked the blood from her blade. When she turned around, she vanished. As the blue butterflies danced in place, the Barrier shattered completely, revealing its true surroundings.
It was a massive pit. Looking upward, the deep sky was visible overhead, golden sunlight pouring through the opening and faintly illuminating the bottom of