Chapter 425 – The End (Part II)
A single slash.
The blade, carrying overwhelming force, tore straight through the Eight-Tails' body.
If before, the Eight-Tails still had a chance to defend—
Now, it had none.
Because Uchiha Kei had already decided—
He would not give it any opportunity at all.
---
"Chrono Blade."
A technique forged by Kei himself—
A fusion of all three of his ocular abilities.
For him, it was his most powerful dojutsu.
With a single strike—
Time itself was completely frozen.
Fast and slow intertwined into something incomprehensible—
A blade that defied perception.
And with that impossible edge—
It carved cleanly through the Eight-Tails.
Screech—!
A harsh metallic shriek echoed.
Susanoo gripped its blade with both hands and brought it down diagonally—
From the upper right to the lower left.
In an instant—
One of the Eight-Tails' arms was severed completely.
But it didn't stop there.
The pitch-black Susanoo showed no pause.
With a fluid motion, it reversed the blade—
And slashed upward from the lower left to the upper right.
Another metallic cry rang out.
The Eight-Tails' other arm—
Was cut off at the root.
---
At that moment—
The effect of Chrono Blade came to an end.
Kei couldn't sustain it for long—
Especially not in his current condition.
This was his ultimate trump card—
A technique born from the fusion of three Mangekyō abilities.
Its cost—
Was far beyond what he could comfortably endure.
Even at full strength, facing a being like the Eight-Tails—
Would be exhausting.
Reaching this point was already enough.
A wave of fatigue washed over him.
But—
His eyes did not bleed.
His control was precise.
Still—
Severing both arms wasn't enough.
---
Taking a deep breath—
The Mangekyō in his left eye began to rotate again, layered with afterimages.
He wanted to use his right eye—
But it had already been pushed too far.
It had restored his left eye once—
And had also been used in conjunction with it for Chrono Blade.
Now, it was nearing its limit.
He couldn't afford to drain it further.
---
The black Susanoo changed once more.
The strange, unreadable sensation of distorted time—
Disappeared.
In its place—
Was a speed so overwhelming it bordered on the unreal.
---
The Eight-Tails howled in agony.
Though its body was made of chakra—
The pain still reached both the beast and Killer B.
They couldn't defend.
In that instant earlier—
They had felt as if the entire world had frozen.
And yet—
That towering black giant had moved freely within it.
Now everything had returned to normal—
As if it had all been an illusion.
But the speed that giant now displayed—
Was beyond comprehension.
---
"There's no way to fight this…!"
"What the hell is this thing—human or monster?!"
Killer B roared inwardly.
His will was strong.
His resolve unshakable.
And yes—
Resolve could change many things.
In a life-and-death battle, it could make all the difference.
But—
Not everything could be overcome with sheer will.
Not this.
---
Facing that colossal figure—
Moving with ghost-like speed that defied its size—
Killer B felt only one thing:
Helplessness.
---
The blade flashed.
One of the Eight-Tails' tentacles was cleanly severed.
Then—
The blade turned again.
And came crashing down toward its massive chest.
That strike—
Seemed to cut through the very last of Killer B's resolve.
No resistance.
None at all.
---
BOOM!
The slash landed.
And in that instant—
The Eight-Tails collapsed into smoke.
---
Kei gazed at the falling figure—
Watching as Killer B dropped from the sky and slammed heavily into the ground.
His expression didn't change.
He already knew.
The Eight-Tails—
Was defeated.
---
"…It's over?"
Hyūga Ayaka, who had been observing everything with her Byakugan, spoke in disbelief.
"The Eight-Tails jinchūriki… lost just like that?"
This was the Eight-Tails—
Second only to the Nine-Tails.
A perfect jinchūriki who had fully mastered its power.
She had believed Kei would win—
But this?
This overwhelming, crushing victory—
Was beyond anything she had imagined.
---
And she wasn't the only one.
Imai Kenta was just as stunned.
His gaze never left Kei.
Among the three of them—
He was the one most sensitive to spatial phenomena.
Perhaps because of his mastery of the Flying Thunder God Technique—
At that critical moment earlier—
He had sensed something.
Something eerily similar to space-time movement—
Yet fundamentally different.
And far more terrifying.
He couldn't explain it.
He had only felt it—
And that alone sent a chill down his spine.
---
At that moment—
He silently overturned his earlier assumption:
That Kei's speed merely surpassed the Flying Thunder God.
No.
That wasn't it.
Even someone like the Fourth Raikage—
Whose speed rivaled space-time movement—
Had been completely suppressed.
And then there was that earlier scene—
The reversal of blood.
Time itself…
---
Kenta didn't dare think further.
Because no matter what conclusion he reached—
He knew one thing for certain:
Kei would never confirm it.
Better not to dwell on it.
Better—
To simply acknowledge one truth:
---
This man…
Had already stepped beyond the realm of ordinary shinobi.
To think—
He actually had someone this terrifying as his ally.
Yes, it always carried a sense of danger.
But overall…
It wasn't a bad thing at all.
Uchiha Kei might be ruthless and calculating—
But he treated his partners well.
Both he and Hyūga Ayaka had experienced that firsthand.
More importantly—
The three of them had grown closer.
Especially those two…
---
"…It should be over," Imai Kenta said, pulling himself out of his wandering thoughts as he rubbed his chest.
It still felt tight, but much better than before.
"The Eight-Tails' chakra is fading."
"Looks like you've taken it down."
"Whether it's dead or not, I don't know…"
"But the jinchūriki is right there below—and today, you even crushed the Fourth Raikage…"
"It's probably not dead," Kei suddenly said, frowning slightly.
"Did you notice?"
"The moment the Eight-Tails disappeared, I sensed something flying away."
"Only after that did I see him fall."
"You mean—?" Ayaka immediately activated her Byakugan, scanning the battlefield.
It didn't take long.
Her gaze locked onto a spot within the Cloud camp.
Amid the tangled piles of corpses—
A figure lay sprawled across them, nearly indistinguishable at a glance.
Kenta also closed his eyes, sensing chakra.
He had fought Killer B before—he knew that signature well.
Soon, he found the same location.
---
"…Looks like he's still alive," Kenta said, opening his eyes and shaking his head.
"But not in good shape."
"And there's another problem."
"Hm?" Kei raised an eyebrow.
"What is it?"
"The Konoha forces are here," Ayaka answered directly.
"The exact situation is unclear, but…"
"They're probably planning to take advantage of this and strike the Cloud Village—or…"
"…come after us," Kenta finished with a bitter smile.
"After all, we're the 'mysterious figures' who attacked both Konoha and Kirigakure."
"The battle's over. The Cloud forces are finished."
"So…"
---
Kei fell silent.
Then he nodded.
Too many unexpected developments had occurred.
Originally, he had no intention of wiping out the Cloud forces entirely.
Leaving them alive would allow them to continue fighting Konoha—
Drawing more people into the war.
He could even—
Send all those opposing his reforms onto the battlefield.
Let them fend for themselves.
That kind of cold-blooded strategy?
He was fully capable of it.
He had never claimed to be a good person.
Using war to eliminate opposition was already merciful—
At least they wouldn't die in internal purges or be branded traitors.
But now—
Everything had collapsed.
The plan he and Minato Namikaze had devised—
Could no longer continue.
---
"…No," Kei suddenly muttered, narrowing his eyes.
"Minato is still here."
"He must know everything that just happened."
"If Fugaku is mobilizing troops…"
"Then it's likely under Minato's orders."
"Even if it's Fugaku's decision, there's definitely a deeper intent behind it."
---
Kei dispelled Susanoo.
The three of them landed lightly on the ground.
The battle was over.
Whether the Fourth Raikage and Killer B lived or died—
It no longer mattered.
Especially now that Konoha forces had arrived.
If they continued fighting—
They'd be attacking their own side.
---
With a subtle gesture, Kei indicated:
The still-intact remains of the Eight-Tails—
And the barely alive Killer B.
Ayaka and Kenta immediately understood.
They began sealing operations.
Meanwhile—
Kei fell into deep thought.
---
"…I see."
It didn't take long for him to figure it out.
This deployment—
Was likely part of Minato's plan all along.
If the war continued—
Yes, it would keep draining Cloud forces.
And draw Konoha's attention here.
But—
Konoha would suffer too.
Minato had fought in wars himself.
He understood the cost.
Now, as Hokage—
He had to consider more than casualties.
Economics.
Reputation.
Stability.
Even casualties alone—
Were not something he was willing to accept indefinitely.
---
So instead—
By using this "mysterious attack on the Eight-Tails"—
The war could be forced to halt.
Shift from open conflict—
To negotiation.
Handled properly—
It would still achieve the goal of redirecting internal attention within Konoha.
---
The only downside—
Kei could no longer throw his political enemies onto the battlefield to "die naturally."
But now wasn't the time to dwell on that.
The Cloud army—
Was essentially annihilated.
Any survivors were few.
One could only say—
Their luck had been utterly terrible.
Or—
That the scale of Kei and Killer B's battle—
Had far exceeded what they could endure.
---
And in truth—
They had underestimated the situation.
With both Killer B and the Fourth Raikage present—
They believed no enemy could threaten them.
They even tried to preserve supplies within the camp.
But they never imagined—
Kei wouldn't waste time talking.
And that the Tailed Beast Bomb—
Would detonate almost immediately due to proximity.
From there—
Everything spiraled out of control.
---
Killer B, too, had been unlucky.
If he hadn't been determined to protect his comrades—
He wouldn't have taken those attacks head-on.
But he did.
Because he had something to protect.
And that—
Was what led to his defeat.
---
Ninja battles were always unpredictable.
But regardless—
The Cloud forces had been nearly wiped out.
Killer B and the Fourth Raikage—
Their fates uncertain.
---
Kei could only hope—
They survived.
Alive, they had value.
Captured—
They could bring Konoha greater benefits.
Even if they died—
It wouldn't change much.
Negotiations would still happen.
The Land of Lightning would still respond.
And the so-called "mysterious organization"—
Would still become the common enemy.
---
Which meant—
Uchiha Obito had just inherited an enormous burden.
---
"It's done."
Ayaka and Kenta returned to Kei's side.
At the same time—
Konoha shinobi appeared around them.
Encircling them.
---
Kei's sharp eyes caught something interesting—
The Fourth Raikage had been dragged from the ruins…
And quietly moved to the rear.
---
"…Good," Kei nodded.
Then his gaze settled on Uchiha Fugaku.
"You're here to wipe out the Cloud forces?"
"No need to thank me."
"Just a small favor."
---
Fugaku's voice rang out clearly, his Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan already activated.
"Sir, that battle must have taken quite a toll."
"Though it may seem opportunistic…"
"Shouldn't we settle the matter of the Nine-Tails attack?"
---
"…What a great actor," Kei thought dryly.
Aloud, he replied with disdain:
"Call Uchiha Kei here."
"You're not my opponent."
"Or do you want Konoha's forces to end up like the Cloud shinobi?"
---
At that moment—
A figure suddenly appeared beside Kei.
He paused briefly—
Then smiled.
"Well then…"
"Goodbye, Uchiha Fugaku."
"Next time—"
"Try to give me a fight worth remembering."