Uchiha Sakuya vs. Sasuke Uchiha!!!

The three-day deadline arrived in the blink of an eye.

Valley of the End. The roaring waterfall flowed on, and the two colossal statues faced each other in silence. They had witnessed countless battles of fate, and today, they would once again bear witness to a clash that would decide the fate of the Shinobi World.

The Allied Shinobi Forces' side was steeped in tension. The four Kage and their core guards had gathered here. Every one of them was injured, their faces pale, yet their eyes remained fixed on the far side of the waterfall.

Naruto Uzumaki was wrapped in thick bandages. The Nine-Tails Chakra around him was nowhere near as fierce as before, but a determined fire burned in his golden eyes as he struggled to step forward. He was the Child of Prophecy and the Hokage. He felt he had to shoulder this responsibility.

"Naruto, stand down."

A steady hand pressed against his shoulder. It was Sasuke Uchiha.

Sasuke looked just as bad. His Sharingan showed signs of exhaustion, but the chakra around him was even more concentrated than Naruto's. His left sleeve hung empty, a consequence of a choice he had made long ago.

"Your injuries are worse than mine, and you've used up more chakra. Besides..." Sasuke's sharp gaze turned toward the figure who had yet to appear across the river. "My eyes are better suited to fighting him."

"But Sasuke! Your arm..." Naruto said urgently.

"It's been taken care of." Sasuke spoke calmly and raised his severed arm's stump. A new arm had been attached there. It was somewhat pale, but its muscles were clearly defined, and it brimmed with vitality—the prosthetic the Konoha medical team had hastily made for him using cultivated Hashirama Cells, with some technical support from Orochimaru. Though he had yet to fully adjust to it, he could already channel the immense power of Yang Release Chakra.

"This is my choice, and my responsibility." Sasuke pushed Naruto aside and walked step by step toward the platform in the middle of the waterfall, his lone hand resting on the hilt of the Kusanagi Sword. "The Uchiha's grievances will be settled today, by an Uchiha."

Watching his close friend's resolute back, Naruto finally gritted his teeth and stepped back, fists clenched, his nails digging into his flesh once more.

Just then, the space on the far bank warped.

Uchiha Sakuya appeared without a sound.

He was still wearing his Akatsuki cloak and white coat, with a Spiral Mask on his face. Beneath the mask, his newly transplanted Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan slowly rotated, its icy gaze sweeping over the assembled forces before settling on Sasuke Uchiha, standing alone in the middle of the platform.

His gaze lingered for an instant on Sasuke's new left arm. A flicker of emotion passed through his eyes, subtle and brief, then vanished as his expression turned cold again.

"Looks like you've chosen one last desperate struggle." Sakuya's voice came through the mask, devoid of emotion. "Very well. Let the Valley of the End once again witness the Uchiha's end."

There was no need for further words.

The battle erupted the next instant!

Sasuke's Rinnegan opened at once. Amenotejikara activated, and he instantly switched places with a piece of rubble behind Sakuya! His Kusanagi Sword, wreathed in Chidori Sharp Spear, thrust straight for Sakuya's back!

But Sakuya seemed to have anticipated it. The Eighty Gods Mirror had already predicted everything! He didn't even turn around, simply raising the Uchiha Gunbai in his left hand to block!

Clang!!! Sparks flew everywhere! The tremendous force sent both men staggering half a step backward!

"Lightning Release: Kirin!" Sasuke pressed the attack without pause, using the abundant moisture in the Valley of the End to summon the lightning from the heavens! A colossal thunder beast roared as it descended!

Sakuya looked up, the light of his Eternal Mangekyō blazing. "Copy: Lightning Release: Kirin!" He used the exact same technique, drawing lightning from the earth below to form another Kirin that charged to meet Sasuke's!

Boom!!!!!!! The two giant beasts of lightning collided in midair. Dazzling lightning swallowed everything, and the deafening crash sent the entire valley trembling!

Before the dust had settled, the two figures clashed again!

Swordsmanship! Taijutsu! Ninjutsu! Genjutsu!

Sasuke's Rinnegan granted him tremendous insight and space-time abilities, while his new arm of Hashirama Cells provided him with powerful vitality and Yang Release support. His assault was like a raging storm!

Sakuya's Eternal Mangekyō's Eighty Gods Mirror, meanwhile, could copy, predict, and perceive with unmatched precision. Combined with the Uchiha Gunbai and his uncanny Handgun, it made his defense impenetrable and his counterattacks viciously unpredictable!

Neither of them brought out Perfect Susanoo. Both concentrated their power to its utmost, engaging in the most perilous and intricate close-quarters fight imaginable! Every clash carried the threat of death!

They moved so fast that ordinary people could only see two streaks of light, one purple and one blue, colliding, separating, and clashing again! Sword energy crisscrossed the valley, ninjutsu exploded, and the landscape was left in ruins!

"Amaterasu!" "Mirror Reflection!" (Using the Gunbai and ocular power to deflect it.) "Kagutsuchi!" "Yin Release: Annihilation!" (Using Yin Release Chakra to forcibly extinguish it.)

The battle raged from noon until sunset.

Both men were covered in wounds, their chakra running low and their breathing ragged. Sasuke's Hashirama Cells arm had begun to spasm as if rejecting its host, and his new eye was under immense strain. Half of Sakuya's mask had long since shattered, revealing a bloodstained chin and pale lips. His Eternal Mangekyō was powerful, but the toll it took on his mind and chakra was just as terrifying.

"This is the last move, Sakuya!" Sasuke roared, pouring the last of his chakra into the Kusanagi Sword. His Rinnegan and Sharingan blazed at their brightest! "Indra's Arrow!" (A simplified version.)

A purple lightning arrow, condensed to its utmost, shot toward Sakuya!

A ruthless glint flashed in Sakuya's eyes as he poured all his ocular power into the straight sword in his right hand! The Eighty Gods Mirror frantically analyzed the arrow's composition and weaknesses!

"Eighty Gods Vacuum Strike: Break Point!"

He threw everything he had into a thrust, striking with pinpoint precision at the weakest point of Indra's Arrow!

Boom--------!!!!

An explosion more violent than any before it erupted! A terrifying storm of energy swept through the area! The waterfall reversed its flow, and the rocks were ground to dust!

When the light faded, both men lay on the ground.

Sasuke's Hashirama Cells arm had been charred black and severed completely. The Kusanagi Sword had flown from his hand, and his chakra was utterly depleted. His Rinnegan and Sharingan had both dimmed. He struggled, but couldn't get up.

Sakuya was in just as terrible a state. His straight sword had broken, his Uchiha Gunbai was cracked, and several of his meridians had ruptured. Blood stained his robes, and the light of his Eternal Mangekyō had dimmed considerably. Yet... trembling, he used his broken blade to support himself and slowly, with immense difficulty, rose to his feet!

He staggered over to Sasuke, who lay unable to rise, and held the cold broken blade against his neck.

The sharp edge rested against Sasuke's skin, drawing a thin bead of blood.

"You lost." Sakuya's voice was hoarse and weary, but his verdict was beyond question.

Sasuke looked into the Eternal Mangekyō before him, its eyes streaming with bloody tears. His gaze was full of unwillingness, but in the end, it gave way to deep helplessness. He could sense that Sakuya, though at the end of his strength, still had something left. Deep within those eyes lay even greater ocular power he had yet to use, as well as some cold, deadly trump card.

He had truly lost. He had given everything, and still lost.

Sasuke closed his eyes and stopped struggling.

The entire Valley of the End fell silent.

The hearts of everyone on the Allied Shinobi Forces' side sank to the depths. Their last hope... had been crushed.

Sakuya slowly lowered his broken blade without striking the killing blow. He needed Sasuke alive as a witness to the agreement.

He turned around and faced the despairing Allied Shinobi Forces, dragging his battered body. Though his voice was weak, it sounded like a final judgment:

"According to our agreement..."

"One month from now." "The Phantom's inauguration ceremony." "The agreement will be signed."

One month later.

Phantom Branch Village was decked out in celebration, yet an unusual atmosphere hung over it—one of humiliation and reluctant acceptance.

On the newly built platform, Uchiha Sakuya wore a white robe embroidered with the Uchiha Gunbai and a shattered mirror. A hat bearing the character for "Phantom" sat on his head as he was formally inaugurated as the First Phantom Kage.

Below him stood the representatives of the four Kage, their faces livid and their injuries still visible. (The Raikage had sent a proxy.) They had been forced to attend the ceremony and witness the beginning of this new order in the Shinobi World.

After the ceremony, with countless eyes watching, a weighty Ninja World Peace Alliance and Armistice Agreement was placed on the table.

The terms included:

1. The position of "Phantom Kage" would be formally recognized, with equal standing alongside the Five Kage. The Five Kage Summit would be renamed the Six Kage Summit.

2. "Phantom Branch Village" would be formally recognized as the sixth legitimate shinobi village, with the same rights and status as the other Five Great Shinobi Villages. Its territory, the former Land of Birds, would be inviolable.

3. Third Tsuchikage Kurotsuchi would be released immediately and unconditionally.

4. Disputes over the ownership of the Tailed Beasts would be set aside for the time being (effectively leaving them in the hands of the "Sasuga" organization).

5. All sides would cease fire immediately, sign a non-aggression pact, and establish preliminary diplomatic relations.

Though every word felt like a knife cutting into them, faced with overwhelming force and the fact of their defeat, the representatives of the four Kage eventually signed the agreement and stamped it with their villages' seals.

When Sakuya (the Phantom Kage) finally stamped the agreement with his own seal, it marked the end of years of turmoil and war—at least for the time being, and in a way no one could have predicted.

A village founded by avengers, and a Kage who had seized his position by force, had officially taken the stage in the Shinobi World.

No one knew whether the future held peace or an even greater storm. But at least for now, the Shinobi World had gained a brief respite amid bloodshed and humiliation.

And there, atop the platform, stood that proud figure, cold as ice preserved for millennia, looking down at the crowd below, their expressions varied. Beneath his mask, his Eternal Mangekyō was unfathomable.

Now, Uchiha Sakuya, the First Phantom Kage, had truly become the strongest person in this world!