At this moment, Naruto's face twisted with a sinister, malevolent expression—as if the one controlling his body was no longer himself.

Nine Truth-Seeking Orbs instantly materialized, then shot skyward and rapidly exited the battlefield. With blinding speed, they flew toward the densely populated areas of every nation.

"You care for these weaklings? In front of me, they're less than ants. And you—someone with that kind of power—still waste your thoughts on the weak?"

Inside the towering fox-shaped Susanoo, Naruto locked his gaze on Nagato, letting out a raspy, eerie laugh.

"Die!"

Naruto controlled his Susanoo to swat away the giant palm attack that Nagato had launched.

One by one, more Truth-Seeking Orbs formed and soared into the sky. Suspended above the skies of various nations, they abruptly transformed into countless black rods—raining down like a torrential storm.

A golden light flickered in Nagato's Rinnegan as he watched the horrifying scenes unfold: civilians weeping and fleeing in terror, skewered or crushed by the black rods. It was heartbreaking.

As another Spear came hurtling toward him, Nagato didn't dodge. Instead, he voluntarily dispelled the golden glow of faith surrounding his body.

The Spear pierced through his chest.

Yin and Yang chakra mingled and flowed through the spear, seeping into both Nagato's body and soul—eroding them both from the inside out.

Yet even in this moment, Nagato wore a gentle, contented smile.

Because he saw it: the golden streams of faith he had scattered had solidified into radiant veils of light, delicate as silk, covering each and every civilian.

The black rods formed by the Truth-Seeking Orbs no longer posed a threat.

The people of the Shinobi World survived the calamity.

"Stop, Naruto!"

Nagato couldn't bear to witness such catastrophic carnage. Nor could he stand to see innocents suffer for the sake of his battle. So he made a desperate plea to cease the fighting.

But the Naruto before him was no longer Naruto—not truly. The fusion of Indra and Asura had created a monster completely consumed by madness. For victory, it would stop at nothing.

The Spear sank deeper.

Nagato's body and soul were nearly annihilated under the opposing forces of Yin and Yang spiraling through the spear.

Naruto, now fully consumed, was lost to madness. The twin forces of Indra and Asura within him continued to swell. The memories of countless reincarnations over thousands of years stacked upon each other—compounding into one single vessel.

He was no longer himself. He had become a shell—a container—mindlessly releasing Truth-Seeking Orbs, violently unleashing the swelling power within him. He launched indiscriminate attacks on all people of the Shinobi World.

Even those in Konohagakure were not spared.

Now, the only way he could ease his suffering was by killing more living beings.

"It seems that retreating alone won't solve anything…"

Nagato let out a long sigh. He had hoped that by sacrificing himself, Naruto might awaken from his delusions and take up the unfulfilled will.

But it was clear now—Naruto's obstinacy was beyond redemption.

A surge of crimson-gold flame suddenly burst from within Nagato's body and, in the blink of an eye, pierced through the clouds.

The body and soul that had been nearly destroyed by the power of Yin and Yang were, at this moment, reforged by the power of faith.

From within the crimson-gold flames, a golden figure just three or four meters tall stepped forward slowly.

Beneath the twisted, kilometer-tall Susanoo, this golden figure seemed minuscule.

And yet, with a casual swipe, he shattered the Spear—a supreme divine weapon infused with Yin-Yang power—into nothingness.

Boom!

A colossal hole burst open in the mighty Susanoo. Even the person inside was pulverized by a single punch from Nagato, torn into chunks of bloody flesh.

With its controller gone, the Susanoo crumbled and collapsed.

But Nagato's gaze was already locked onto the sky, as if something lurked there—something even the Rinnegan could only barely sense, but not fully perceive.

The next moment, an almost imperceptible energy began gathering in the void, pulling together the fragments of Naruto's shattered body.

This force wrapped around the broken flesh and stirred up a storm.

From within that storm, a figure emerged—it was Naruto, revived. In his eyes gleamed a new pair of purple Rinnegan.

"Naruto" raised his hand slightly, and Nagato immediately felt a powerful suction from within his own Rinnegan—as if the eyes were about to be wrenched from him and returned to their original owner.

But the immense force of faith now coursing through Nagato's golden body had fully transformed both Rinnegan into radiant gold, binding them completely to him!

"You're just a petty thief trying to steal power. Watch me take it back by force!"

"Naruto" gave a cold smile, then flashed forward to clash with Nagato in close combat.

At first, Naruto's resurrected body was no match for Nagato's golden form. Even a glancing blow would shatter him.

But something was strange—the revived body underwent profound changes.

Every time it was damaged, it would recover in moments. And each recovery made him stronger.

After just a few dozen exchanges, Naruto's strength had risen to the point where he was on par with Nagato's golden body.

Though they were fighting barehanded, the shockwaves from their aerial blows carved craters of various sizes and depths across the land below.

The power unleashed from their punches exceeded even a standard Almighty Push.

But Naruto's growth wasn't just in physical strength—he was evolving rapidly mid-battle. Not through genius, but by drawing upon the battle memories of Indra and Asura's countless reincarnations over the centuries.

Within his body, the primal forces of Indra and Asura—the rules of Yin and Yang—began to entwine and merge.

Under such a relentless onslaught, even with the faith of the people sustaining him, Nagato's golden body began to falter. The gap in battle experience only widened further.

Boom!

Naruto gathered all his strength and launched a powerful kick.

Nagato flew like a meteor, crashing into the ground—shattering mountains and carving a massive rift across the continent that could split the Shinobi World in two.

Nagato's golden body nearly shattered from the blow.

And yet, as Naruto charged at him at high speed, Nagato didn't raise his guard.

Instead, he lifted both hands toward the heavens.

In that moment, a voice echoed in the hearts of all the people of the Shinobi World.

For peace.

People who had long suffered under war and oppression raised their hands high.

From each of their chests, seven-colored streams of light poured forth, all converging into a growing orb of energy between Nagato's hands.

As the rainbow-colored sphere swelled larger and larger...

Naruto sensed a deadly threat from it. This power wasn't something Truth-Seeking Orbs could compare to—it far surpassed anything within his thousand years of memories.

Die!

Bloodlust surged in Naruto's heart. He didn't know why, but he knew that if he could unleash the storm of power within him and obliterate the one before him, his mission—whatever it was—would be fulfilled.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

Punch after punch, palm after palm, kicks that split the air roared forth—sharp winds carving deep scars into the earth.

Nagato's seemingly indestructible golden body began to fracture under the merciless onslaught.

Still, he never let go of the orb raised high in his hands—his ultimate technique: 〖Wish of All Beings〗.

At last, the rainbow orb had fully charged—and fell like a meteor.

When Naruto saw it, a look of pure terror twisted his fierce expression. Without a second thought, he activated Flying Thunder God and vanished thousands of miles away—fleeing for his life...

----------------

Fanfic is finished on Patreon (324 chapters in total.)

Patreon(.)com/Jixo (for only $4.50, read this entire fanfic)