You Dance Well, All of You!

"Ice Release: Thousand Killing Array!"

Irori opened with Ice Release.

Cold glints flashed across the sky. Countless blades, spears, swords, and halberds formed from ice condensed in an instant, then shot toward Madara in an unending barrage at speeds that shattered the sound barrier, producing terrifying sonic booms as they tore through the air.

This Ice Release was Irori's fastest-forming, fastest-attacking, and widest-range Ninjutsu.

Moreover, as more chakra was poured into it, the technique's power increased explosively.

Now, Irori unleashed the full power of this Ice Release with maximum chakra output.

The ice weapons alone densely blanketed the entire sky.

Every weapon made of ice could easily pierce flesh and blood, or blast apart rock.

The ice weapons exploded against the chakra warrior surrounding Madara's body.

Icy mist scattered in all directions. As the ice weapons burst apart, the cold had nowhere to vent and could only sweep outward in every direction.

Within moments, the terrifying cold current covered an area several hundred meters wide.

And as more ice weapons exploded, the range covered by the cold rapidly expanded.

Yet against that chakra warrior, this level of attack was still utterly insignificant.

Madara did not move a single step, protected within the chakra warrior.

Even the steps beneath his feet remained completely unscathed.

He merely glanced upward. Faced with an Ice Release Ninjutsu that would have driven ordinary ninja to despair, there was not even the slightest intention to block in his eyes.

"Ice Release: Ice Banquet Corridor!"

Irori let out a sharp cry.

The cold air spreading everywhere swiftly gathered and condensed around Madara's chakra warrior.

A teeth-grinding crackling filled the air. Vast amounts of white mist appeared over the blue chakra warrior, then rapidly solidified into tangible ice.

In the blink of an eye, Madara and the Susanoo warrior were frozen inside a colossal block of ice as large as a hill.

Through the thick ice, only the vague blue silhouette of the Susanoo warrior could be seen, its lifeline seemingly as fragile as a candle flame in the wind.

"Impressive, so impressive... to freeze him instantly—"

Ōnoki's eyes widened in astonishment.

He had never expected such a powerful ninja to exist outside the system of the Five Great Nations.

Especially a female ninja. That was exceedingly rare in the Ninja World.

However, before he could finish speaking, the blue chakra warrior sealed within the ice, seemingly as frail as a flickering candle, suddenly blazed like a roaring fire.

Boom!

The ice exploded.

Four blue sword waves sliced out through the ice from four directions.

Massive chunks of thick ice scattered and collided everywhere, knocking down rows of trees while rolling across the ground with thunderous rumbling. The earth groaned as though it were being shaken by an earthquake.

Along with the scattering ice came four blue sword waves that followed like shadows, triggering a second wave of destruction.

Blue sword light flashed before everyone's eyes, robbing them of their vision.

By the time they reacted, the ground within a hundred meters had been utterly shredded.

The rocks and trees that could have obstructed their view had all vanished.

The instant that blue sword light erupted, every obstacle across this land was completely erased.

"Ōnoki, stay farther back. I won't have time to look after you next. The real battle starts now!"

Mu charged toward Madara in an instant while warning Ōnoki to protect himself.

The battle to come was far beyond what Ōnoki could participate in.

Even a Jonin would be in mortal danger merely approaching the next battlefield.

Using the four blue sword waves Madara had slashed out as the signal to attack, Yayoi and Kakuzu, who had been observing the situation from the side, coordinated with Mu and advanced as well.

The three moved so quickly that they could no longer be seen with the naked eye, launching an assault on Madara.

"Fire Release: Great Fire Annihilation!"

At the sight, Madara finally moved his hands and began forming seals.

Under the protection of the Susanoo warrior, he completed the technique with incredible ease.

His head tilted back slightly as a massive amount of chakra gathered in his mouth. Then, in one breath, he spewed forth the searing flames accumulated within his mouth.

It was a vast-area Fire Release attack unlike the blue sword light.

The blazing flames warped the surrounding atmosphere.

Like a mountain collapse, like a tsunami, they swallowed everyone in their path.

The affected area was too vast, and the firestorm advanced too quickly, leaving no time or room to dodge.

"Water Release: Water Formation Wall!"

At nearly the same moment, Irori at the rear clapped her hands together. Purple light flooded her eyes, releasing an intense violet radiance tinged with a cold crimson hue.

The moment she opened her mouth, the roaring sound of surging waves spread through the air.

First came a torrent, then it transformed into a flood no weaker than the sea of flames, pouring from Irori's mouth. It roared across the ground as well, shaking the frigid atmosphere.

Boom!

Tsunami-like water collided with waves of fire.

After an earthshaking roar, there came a hiss as scalding white steam rapidly spread outward, obscuring everyone's vision.

Well done, people of the Land of Night. Now, this is my stage...

As the only sensory ninja present, Mu activated his invisibility technique and concealed himself within the white steam.

With nothing supporting his body, he began floating upward, sensing Madara's chakra to lock onto his location.

He spread his hands, aimed at his opponent, and filled his eyes with killing intent.

"Dust Release: Atomic Disassembly Jutsu!"

A dazzling white radiance gathered between his outstretched palms, then erupted into a transparent cylinder that continuously extended forward, striking directly toward Madara's position.

If this technique landed, even one standing at the pinnacle of ninja would surely die!

"!?"

Mu was startled. He discovered that Madara's chakra had vanished in an instant, only to suddenly reappear somewhere else the very next moment.

The transparent cylindrical barrier created by Dust Release had undoubtedly missed, reducing only the steps beneath Madara's former position to a state nearly as fine as atoms.

"To make me move my feet... not bad."

Madara appeared elsewhere as though he had teleported with the Susanoo warrior, giving an indifferent assessment.

His scarlet Sharingan had long since ceased to bear the basic tomoe pattern. Instead, it formed an even more mysterious and ornate design.

He's incredibly fast. His Taijutsu is probably formidable too. If I don't restrict his movement, my Dust Release can never hit him.

Mu rapidly assessed the situation in his mind.

The Kekkei Tōta Dust Release he had created was indeed immensely powerful, but if it could not hit its target, it was meaningless.

Mu revealed himself and discreetly signaled Yayoi with his eyes.

Yayoi did not hesitate either, sending a thought to Irori:

Irori, use that technique to seal Madara's movements and coordinate with Mu's Dust Release attack.

Mu's Dust Release was the only technique among them capable of delivering a fatal blow to Madara.

In contrast, neither he nor Kakuzu possessed such a lethal means.

As for Irori, her release techniques were indeed massive in scale, but breaking through Madara's Susanoo head-on would still be extremely difficult.

Moreover, Madara moved with great agility. His range of movement and speed had to be forcefully restricted, and among those present, only Irori could accomplish that.

Understood, Lord Yayoi!

Without the slightest hesitation, Irori brought her palms together with a crisp clap.

"Ice Release: Freezing Vapor Barrage!"

Irori took a deep breath, then puffed out her cheeks and fired a white torrent of freezing air at Madara.

The torrent was as swift as lightning. Before Madara could react, it had already struck his Susanoo warrior, exploding into a massive amount of white frigid air that enveloped dozens of meters around it.

What a fast attack!

Even Madara was briefly surprised by the astonishing speed of Irori's Ice Release Ninjutsu.

"Hm? Susanoo's movements..."

Madara had intended to swing the chakra sword in the Susanoo warrior's hand and disperse the cold mist around it. Yet he discovered that the white chill had completely adhered to the Susanoo warrior and could not be shaken off.

Not only that, he found that the Susanoo warrior's movements had begun to noticeably slow.

Even he, protected within the Susanoo, felt a bone-piercing chill affecting his body and making it slightly sluggish.

The sudden plunge in temperature made him feel as if he had been cast into an ice cave, letting him truly experience the frostbite inflicted by ice and snow.

"Dust Release: Atomic Disassembly—"

Mu, who had already used his invisibility technique to conceal himself again and fly into the air, aimed at Madara once more.

White radiance gathered between his palms, ready to use Dust Release to finish this great figure standing at the pinnacle of ninja.

Yet in the face of this combined attack, Madara did not even raise an eyelid. A faint, contemptuous smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.

There was almost no time to react. A grander blue sword wave, one capable of splitting apart the earth and forest, swept forth.

Just as the atmosphere began to wail, the sword wave surpassed even that sound. The surrounding ground and forest had already been cleaved in two by the blue sword wave.

Boom!

A storm caused by the explosive impact swept out and raged, practically scraping the earth bare. It peeled up thick layers of soil, exposing reddish-brown dirt beneath.

Rows of trees hundreds of meters away were likewise uprooted, becoming rolling waves that were swept even farther away along with the overturned earth.

Under the pure white moonlight, the land and forest trembled and cried beneath their unbearable burden. The droning roar continued without end.

"Argh!"

Mu screamed and fell from the sky into the distance.

As the dust gradually dispersed, Madara's Susanoo warrior had somehow grown a lower body and legs, forming a complete humanoid figure.

The magnificent chakra giant stood towering like a mountain against the backdrop of earth and moonlight.

Across the desolate, shattered land lay the shadow of a savage and terrifying colossus.

The four chakra swords gripped by its four arms had become more solid and heavy, their length more than doubling.

Merely standing there gave off an overwhelming sense of despair.

Madara stood calmly atop the chakra giant's head. The white chill that had slowed both him and the Susanoo had long been completely wiped away beneath the sword light.

"I never expected to push Susanoo to this extent... You dance well, all of you."

Madara's tone, once cold and indifferent, finally carried the slightest fluctuation.

"Then we thank Lord Madara for the praise."

In the smoke that had not yet fully dispersed, Yayoi's armor and ninja attire had long since been sent flying somewhere by the sword light that had rampaged in every direction.

A tangible chakra cloak enveloped his exposed sturdy, burly muscles. Blue flames flowed slowly across its surface like running water.

He had officially entered Chakra Armament Mode.

Yet even so, he still could not contend with that incomparably tyrannical sword wave.

The thick, solid Chakra Cloak over his chest had been torn open by a long, narrow gash. A deep sword wound had appeared across his chest muscles, exposing even the stark white bone beneath.

Yet he was still smiling. Without forming any seals, fresh flesh buds wriggled across the torn flesh and bone on his chest, beginning to knit them back together.

Irori stood solemnly before Yayoi, white cold air swirling around her body as she displayed an unyielding will to fight.

Although she looked disheveled and dust stained her beautiful silver hair, she was overall in far better condition than Yayoi.

The wound sliced open across her abdomen revealed neither blood nor human flesh. Instead, it revealed tangible chakra compressed to the extreme, gathered at the wound and sealing the cut until it was completely restored.