Chapter 60: Divine Power

A black sphere, no larger than a thumb, rose high into the sky from Nagato's clasped hands.

Crack...crack...crack…

As the black sphere ascended, a relentless cracking sound echoed across the battlefield. Massive tree roots tore through the earth, wrapped around enormous chunks of stone, and lifted them skyward. All around, debris floated up, as if gravity itself was unraveling, and it was impossible to gauge the true extent of this jutsu's reach.

Many Konoha shinobi were caught in the immense pull, helplessly drawn upwards.

Hiruzen, Jiraiya, and Duy felt the surge of gravitational force pulling them toward the sky as well. Even with their considerable strength, they could not resist it.

The ground beneath them split and crumbled, and inch by inch, they too were pulled toward the heavens.

"Damn it! This is a sealing technique of the Rinnegan!" Nearby, the Nine-Tails also felt the force tugging at him. They were within the range of Nagato's Planetary Devastation.

"This Planetary Devastation may be nothing compared to the Sage's, but it'll still be a hassle if I get pulled in." The Nine-Tails' mind raced as it prepared a powerful counterattack. It knew exactly where the weak point of this jutsu lay.

Nearby, Akira halted his attack on the Nine-Tails, as he too was affected by the gravitational force. Seeing the growing sphere in the sky, his Sharingan flared red. He looked over at Fugaku and shouted:

"Clan Leader, aim for the black sphere in the sky!"

"I understand!" Fugaku narrowed his eyes, channeling chakra into his right eye. With a steely gaze, he uttered,

"Amaterasu!"

Boom!

In an instant, the inextinguishable black flames of Amaterasu ignited on the black sphere, turning it into a massive ball of dark fire.

"It's no good! Amaterasu isn't burning fast enough!" Noticing the gravity's relentless pull still intact, Fugaku's expression hardened as his skeletal Susanoo morphed into a half-bodied form.

Seeing the black sphere ablaze, Hiruzen Sarutobi immediately understood what they were attempting. He shouted,

"Everyone! Use your strongest jutsu to strike that sphere in the sky!"

With a swift hand sign, Hiruzen summoned four shadow clones.

"Five-Element!"

Five elemental jutsu — Wind, Fire, Lightning, Water, and Earth — surged into a single, powerful blast, hurtling toward the black sphere above.

"Sage Art: Goemon!" Jiraiya, along with the two elder toads on his shoulders, unleashed a massive attack toward the gravitational core. The technique painted the sky a blazing red.

Might Duy had already opened the Seventh Gate, the Gate of Wonder. With a roar, he unleashed a flurry of punches: " Daytime Tiger!"

A large white tiger surged forth, colliding with the burning gravitational core, adding another force to the assault.

Meanwhile, Fugaku launched another attack: "Yasaka Beads!"

The massive beads, infused with his chakra and formed from his Mangekyo Sharingan, flew at the gravitational core.

The successive onslaughts struck the core, resulting in a massive explosion.

BOOM!

Under the combined force of their attacks, the gravitational sphere shattered, sending fragments of black flame raining down like celestial fire. In moments, the entire ground below was ablaze with the black flames of Amaterasu.

"Troublesome," Nagato muttered, frowning at the spreading black flames. Breaking the Planetary Devastation didn't surprise him, but the Amaterasu fire did. In this situation, even his Wood Style wouldn't be effective.

"Tch, Amaterasu!" scoffed the Nine-Tails, as a burst of powerful chakra surged from its body, creating a storm that cleared a large area of the black flames from the battlefield.

Seeing the Nine-Tails' actions from a distance, Nagato's eyes gleamed. He clasped his hands and muttered,

"Shinra Tensei!"

A forceful repulsive wave burst out, sending the surrounding Amaterasu flames flying outward. Many Konoha shinobi couldn't withstand it and were thrown back as well.

Jiraiya and the others darted through the battlefield, dodging stray flames as best they could.

Breathing heavily, Duy turned to Hiruzen and Jiraiya. "Lord Hokage, Jiraiya, we can't keep dragging this out. We need to end this quickly, or the battlefield will only grow. Our Konoha shinobi are suffering too many losses."

With that, Duy unfastened his green vest, letting it fall to the ground.

Hiruzen's eyes widened, instantly understanding Duy's intent.

"Duy! You can't use that move—it's not time yet!"

"Hokage-sama, there's no more time. Lady Kushina won't hold out much longer." Duy shook his head, a faint smile on his face. "This is the moment my youth was meant for. I have no regrets—if anything, this is what I wanted all along."

"Duy, you…" Jiraiya opened his mouth to protest but couldn't find the words. It was their lack of power that forced such desperate measures.

Elsewhere, Minato and Obito clashed, each relying on their space-time techniques in a fierce, unending battle. Despite his frustration, Minato struggled to find an opening for a decisive blow against the man calling himself Uchiha Madara.

"Minato, it's over," Obito taunted, grinning. "Kushina's life is hanging by a thread. You've lost your chance to defeat me—your Flying Thunder God is completely exposed."

Minato glanced toward the battlefield, obscured by the towering black flames of Amaterasu. Though he couldn't see the situation, he maintained his resolve.

"Madara, it's too soon to decide victory. I believe in my comrades."

"Oh? Then let's see how that works out!" Obito sneered, hurling his chain at Minato.

"Let's see indeed!" Minato retorted, flinging a special kunai in response.

Meanwhile, Akira moved beside Fugaku, both panting from the exertion. Their Sharingan eyes flashed as they communicated within a shared genjutsu.

"Clan Leader, we've reached the critical point. I'm going to attempt a direct assault on the Nine-Tails with my eye technique."

Fugaku nodded. "How should I support you? I still have some chakra left—I can assist."

"Could you briefly control the Nine-Tails with your Mangekyo Sharingan?" Akira asked.

"Barely, but I'll manage," Fugaku replied.

The Nine-Tails, sensing their intentions, lunged at the two Uchiha, aiming to crush them beneath its massive claws. In an instant, Fugaku's Susanoo flared to life, growing from a skeletal frame into a fully-armored warrior nearly twenty meters tall.

Susanoo raised its sword, striking down on the Nine-Tails' massive claws, sending it reeling back several meters.

"Mangekyo Sharingan!"

In the next moment, Fugaku's Mangekyo Sharingan locked onto the Nine-Tails, momentarily freezing it in place.

Seeing his chance, Akira's left eye transformed into the Mangekyo form, targeting the Nine-Tails' head.

"Kamui!"

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Pls drop some Power Stones

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