Super Shinra Tensei

High above the ground, the desolate, silent Moon Temple hung in the sky like an ancient tomb, isolated from the world.

Otsutsuki Yuku's mouth gaped open. He seemed frozen by the scene before him.

The Giant Tenseigan, treasure of the Otsutsuki Clan, was pulsing wildly.

Vast amounts of chakra transformed into tangible beams of light, piercing through space as they streamed down toward the distant blue planet below.

"What in the world is happening?!"

The Giant Tenseigan going out of control was something that might happen over time.

But energy streaming toward Earth like this was absolutely impossible.

Even more chilling, control of the Giant Tenseigan was being forcibly wrested away by an unknown power.

"Could it be... that guy who stole the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path?!" Otsutsuki Yuku immediately thought of that audacious Earthling.

"He still wants to get his hands on the Tenseigan?!"

Just as he struggled with all his might to take back control, hurried, chaotic footsteps sounded outside the temple corridor.

Several Otsutsuki elders, all white-haired and bearded, who normally needed help even to walk, were now moving with surprising speed.

The Great Elder's voice trembled slightly, but he immediately issued an order.

"Cut off the energy transmission first! Whatever it takes, hurry!"

But as he, too, gathered chakra and tried to wrest back control, five extremely familiar chakra signatures flashed through his mind.

The Great Elder's heart lurched.

Aoshiki?!

And his Rainbow Squad?!

What a shame...

Hyuga Qinglan sighed softly.

He'd thought that with the Giant Tenseigan's energy, he could condense at least four Truth-Seeking Orbs, perhaps even more.

No—in truth, they should be called "Chakra Prayer Beads."

The moment he finished forming Tenseigan Chakra Mode, Hyuga Qinglan had finally learned the true name of these black spheres.

"Chakra Prayer Beads."

They weren't Truth-Seeking Orbs from the Rinnegan system, but the armaments unique to Tenseigan Chakra Mode.

In a sense, they were just like the Truth-Seeking Orbs of Six Paths Sage Mode, creations that surpassed ordinary ninjutsu.

"The Tenseigan... really is a lot like the Rinnegan..."

Hyuga Qinglan felt the chakra surging ceaselessly within him. His deep blue eyes reflected the stone monstrosity hurtling toward him.

By now, he had undergone a complete transformation.

His original black robe had long since been annihilated. In its place was a dazzling mantle woven from blue-green flames.

Though only three Chakra Prayer Beads circled him, the pressure that had cut through the wind and snow was already suffocating everyone below.

"But three will be enough!"

The three black Chakra Prayer Beads moved at his will, gathering suddenly in front of his palm.

They began spinning wildly, faster than the naked eye could follow, stirring up a silver vortex that pierced heaven and earth.

"Silver Wheel Reincarnation Explosion!"

As the beads spun, a silver tornado powerful enough to pierce the sky erupted from within them, instantly grinding the seemingly indestructible Gōryūshi monster to dust.

The tornado's momentum did not slacken. Carrying the force of utter destruction, it rushed straight at the horrified Ōnoki!

"Whoooosh!!!"

The violent winds swept across the land. Ōnoki, suspended in midair, was like a fallen leaf in a storm, tossed from side to side. Even keeping his balance in flight became extraordinarily difficult.

The ninja on the ground were in even worse shape.

The Iwagakure and Konoha forces used their best defensive techniques to withstand the destructive shock waves spilling out around them.

Some of the ninja who were a little too close were hurled away and slammed into the ruins, blood spilling from their mouths and noses. They could barely stand.

And just then—

Whoosh!

The blue-green figure suddenly became a streak of light in midair and shot straight toward the Third Tsuchikage!

"Protect Lord Tsuchikage!"

"Earth Release: Rock Spear Technique!"

"Earth Release: Earth Flow Spears!"

"Earth Release: Rock Wall Formation!"

"Stop him!"

All kinds of Earth Release techniques were hurled desperately from the Iwagakure formation: stone spears, spikes, mudslides...

They were determined to interrupt the blue-green figure's attack.

Yet the blue-green light flashed and leaped through the crowd like lightning.

One moment to the left, the next to the right, then ahead, then behind—it moved too quickly for anyone to track.

"Argh!!"

Every flash was accompanied by a scream and a cloud of blood.

Limbs spun through the air, and the wind stretched blood into glaring red streaks. The Iwagakure ninja couldn't even see how their opponent struck before they began falling one after another.

The black spheres transformed in Ao's hand into a long, dark sword.

Wherever its edge passed, Iwagakure ninja were swept away like leaves in an autumn wind, utterly powerless to resist.

Ōnoki, fleeing desperately ahead, caught sight of the Iwagakure corpses flying past from the corner of his eye. His heart bled, and he nearly ground his teeth to dust.

But he couldn't stop.

If he stopped, he'd be the one to die!

"I'm running out of chakra..."

Ōnoki's face was ashen, and he panted hard, cold sweat pouring down his forehead.

As he dodged again and again using the terrain and ninjutsu, he glanced toward the Konoha forces in the distance, who had escaped almost entirely unharmed. A hint of regret flickered in his eyes.

"Orochimaru... what should we do?" Uchiha Setsuna kept his eyes fixed on the darting light, his voice grave.

"Retreat for now... That guy seems to be targeting Iwagakure. Konoha will withdraw for the time being. We'll wait until he and Ōnoki run out of chakra."

Orochimaru held back all the Konoha ninja, signaling for them to retreat.

His golden, serpentine eyes never left the blue-green figure among the Iwagakure forces. He was determined to learn every last detail of the figure's abilities.

Dancing through the crowd, Hyuga Qinglan naturally noticed Orochimaru's greedy stare.

But he couldn't have cared less.

"If Orochimaru wants to sit back and reap the benefits... then let him."

"Consider it..."

"An extra reward for killing Hyuga Tianyun."

Ao stopped and raised a hand again.

The three Chakra Prayer Beads spun above his head, gradually extending into a golden greatsword that stretched across the sky.

Its tip pointed straight toward the heavens.

"Golden Wheel Reincarnation..."

But before the technique could fully take shape, Zi's urgent voice rang through the chakra link in his mind. "Ao! The energy from the Moon has been forcibly cut off!"

"If you force this technique out, you'll use up all your chakra in an instant and be forced out of Chakra Mode!"

In the middle of the ruins, inside a cave.

The four members of the Rainbow Squad formed Hand Seals, continuously channeling chakra through the blue-green sphere between them and into Hyuga Qinglan.

"And our bodies... have already begun to disintegrate!"

Zi looked at the other three. Like him, they were giving off white light all over.

Hyuga Qinglan's movements faltered. The golden light that had reached from heaven to earth faded along with it, reverting to three black Chakra Prayer Beads.

He raised his eyes to the Moon high in the cosmos. It was as though he could see across tens of thousands of kilometers of vacuum, facing the members of the clan in Hamura Temple from afar.

"What's going on?"

On the ground, Orochimaru saw Ao suddenly stop and couldn't help feeling confused.

That golden sword just now had been purer and more powerful than the one at Konoha.

If he'd released it successfully, the Third Tsuchikage would have been doomed!

But why... had he stopped?

"Could it be... that he's run out of chakra?!"

The greed in Orochimaru's eyes transformed in an instant into a sharp killing intent.

Every jutsu had a weakness, and Ao's techniques almost always involved charging up...

Or consuming enormous amounts of chakra.

If that was the case, it meant...

This seemingly invincible man wasn't as unscathed as he appeared!

Now that a weakness had been exposed and the Third Tsuchikage was already like a candle in the wind, Orochimaru, Konoha's "savior," would never let this ripening fruit slip through his grasp!

But before Orochimaru could make a move...

The world seemed to fall into an eerie silence.

Then, centered on the blue-green figure—

A terrifying repulsive force, powerful enough to crush all will, erupted like a tsunami!

"Super Shinra Tensei!"