After witnessing the earlier battle, Kakashi and the others had already braced themselves as they charged toward "future Akaseki"-they probably... could not hold him off for long.
Yet after seeing how efficiently Akaseki recovered chakra outside combat, they had no choice but to attack first. When they arrived and found "future Akaseki" mourning Hikari rather than quietly replenishing his chakra, they even breathed a sigh of relief.
Now reality had proved it...
They really could not hold him off!
Kakashi did not understand, either. According to certain rumors in the village, Hikari was supposed to be "the culprit behind the Night of the Nine-Tails." Yet she now seemed deeply connected to Clan Leader Akaseki. Their relationship hardly looked like one that would end in "mutual destruction."
Still...
He had to admit that Hikari had done a better job of stalling "future Akaseki" than they had imagined.
Not only had she consumed a vast amount of his chakra, but... she had also sealed "future Akaseki's" most terrifying ocular techniques!
Aside from the eye in the sky, which continuously cast genjutsu and provided vision, "Future Akaseki" had displayed no ocular techniques at all.
Yet even so, "Future Akaseki" still crushed them in no time...
Even without his Sharingan or that Rinnegan of unknown origin, future Akaseki remained terrifyingly powerful.
The Inorganic Reincarnation he wielded so effortlessly still routed them in short order...
At the last moment, Kakashi staked everything on a flash of White Fang, but... no miracle occurred!
Even with "future Akaseki" blind in both eyes, and the Eye of the Moon overhead unable to provide such clear vision, Kakashi still could not catch him off guard.
Shhk, shhk, shhk-
Instead, "Future Akaseki" seized the opening. A volley of stone spikes pierced Kakashi, leaving several holes straight through his body!
"Kakashi-sensei!"