"What is that?!"
Madara Uchiha stared in disbelief at the Energy Torrent surging into the sky, its blazing light seeming to scorch his vision.
This was the first time his Mangekyō Sharingan had ever detected such terrifying chakra fluctuations!
"Even Hashirama probably couldn't manage anything on this scale!"
Confusion, shock, horror, and other emotions swirled through his mind. Madara Uchiha even wondered whether he was dreaming.
He had never imagined that a ninja from a later generation could truly stand alongside him and Hashirama Senju.
It was simply preposterous!
But as a ninja proud to his very bones, he had never conceded superiority even to Hashirama Senju back then, let alone Shihōin Naraku.
He believed he would never lose to him!
And even if he did, as long as his plan proceeded smoothly, Madara believed he would surely turn everything around.
It was just like his Battle of the Valley of the End with Hashirama Senju: though he had lost, he had also won.
So even with a temporary setback, he could still become the ultimate victor.
Madara's gaze gradually hardened, and a disdainful smile curled his lips. He stared at the towering torrent of chakra ahead, his fighting spirit blazing anew.
As long as the Eye of the Moon Plan continued to advance, this world would eventually fall under his control, and the peace he envisioned would surely arrive!
Even if Naraku possessed power comparable to a god's, he could not stop the gears of fate from turning without pause.
Even a defeat now would merely be one step toward ultimate victory, and he had long since considered himself a pawn on the chessboard, all for the sake of realizing his ideals!
Endless, brilliant flames of light reflected in the pupils of his Mangekyō Sharingan, dazzling as the sun.