On the battlefield of the Fourth Shinobi World War, the atmosphere was terrifyingly silent.
Might Guy had just burned through his life to open the Gate of Death, severely wounding Six Paths Madara with a single kick and delivering the most spectacular feat of the entire war.
But the price of giving everything he had was utter exhaustion, with not a trace of life left to spare.
Now, the crimson steam around Guy had dissipated. His flesh was scorched black, and he lay limply on the ground like a lump of charred coal, his breathing so faint it was barely perceptible. He could breathe his last at any moment.
Elsewhere, Naruto and Sasuke, both gravely wounded by Six Paths Madara, lay in pools of blood, their eyes closed and their bodies motionless, showing no signs of life.
As the Allied Shinobi Forces stared at their three fallen powerhouses, everyone's heart sank to rock bottom.
The strongest Taijutsu ninja had burned away his life, and Naruto and Sasuke, who could stand against Madara, had both fallen. The invincible Six Paths Madara still stood on the battlefield, his overwhelming presence pressing down on everything around him.
Despair weighed on every heart. Every ninja's eyes had dimmed, and they could no longer see even the slightest hope of victory.
Just as the entire Shinobi World believed the outcome was settled and its destruction inevitable, the image on the Sky Screen abruptly shifted, skipping past the brutal battlefield and switching to a mysterious, boundless expanse of white.
There was no fighting here, no smoke, no pain. Mist swirled all around this ethereal, tranquil place between life and death, a world entirely removed from the carnage of the battlefield.
Naruto and Sasuke, who had clearly just collapsed on the brink of death without a breath