“You’re changing the contents?”
“There was a slight mistake in the information my clone gave me.”
I wondered if it would be fine to leave it as it was, but if I did, it might become a real headache when the truth came out later. First, the purpose behind founding [Akatsuki] was for Rias, who had nearly been forced into marriage in the Demon World. But after that, it drew attention from all over the world, and before anyone knew it, it had gathered all sorts of criminals into one place. By keeping watch over them, the goal became not world peace, but protecting the peace of myself and those around me. Well, in doing that, the surroundings would be influenced too, so the end result was the same, but the meaning was completely different.
And then there was [Akatsuki]’s future. It wasn’t about maintaining the organization, but destroying it. Since it was a group of criminals, I would use evil to destroy evil, or use them to accomplish my goals and then execute the ones left over. Of course, only the truly rotten ones. After hearing the truth, Madara...
“.....”
Madara also fell silent for a while, looking a little taken aback.
“Well, when you’re young, there are all kinds of things.”
He had been interested in a woman’s body when he was young too, so it wasn’t like he couldn’t understand. But he still thought Issei was an idiot for going that far over one girl.
“But your future planning lacks caution. Even Uzumaki Naruto wouldn’t do things as recklessly as you.”
“What... did you just say...?”
Madara suddenly started pointing out flaws. He was an existence that had once held the ninja world in his grasp. Every hole in Issei’s plan, every problem, everything was laid bare before his eyes.
“First, if you want to tame an organization like [Akatsuki], brute strength alone isn’t enough. You know that well enough yourself, so why didn’t you make subordinates?”
“...”
By subordinates, Madara meant trusted underlings—people you didn’t just order around through fame and authority, but people who could voice opinions, understand your circumstances, and be entrusted with tasks based on that. As the one leading an organization, close aides were absolutely necessary. Even Madara, who had come to hate cooperating with others, had no choice but to replace that with Black Zetsu and White Zetsu. But Issei, because it was his first time leading an organization and because he found it troublesome, had used clones instead. And the result was Madara’s revival and the current situation. Honestly, Issei would have preferred it if this Madara hadn’t existed at all, but the clone had already summoned him. The clone’s thoughts were his own thoughts, and since he had already brought Madara here, he figured it would be more perfect to leave things to Madara than to leave them to the clone. And Issei, after being sharply criticized by Madara, couldn’t even make excuses.
“And why didn’t you give [Truth-Seeking Orbs] to everyone in [Akatsuki]? If they inherited my [Rinnegan] and you have the Ten-Tails, there shouldn’t have been any problem producing them.”
Without even being told, Madara had already noticed that he possessed the Ten-Tails too. As expected of Uchiha Madara. And as Madara said, there was no limit to how many [Truth-Seeking Orbs] could be produced. If Issei truly wanted to control [Akatsuki] in order to protect the people he cherished, then he should have given the orbs to the members as a symbol of the organization. The reason was simple: they were criminals. Criminals lived by a different set of common sense than ordinary people. They had no hesitation about killing or injuring others, and because they lacked that much common sense, they were also much easier to let loose.
Even if they belonged to an organization and were under control, those instincts wouldn’t disappear. And since Issei had made a name for himself as Madara’s rival, there was a real chance that the [Akatsuki] members would attack Issei and the people around him on their own. Hearing all of Madara’s words, Issei finally realized the most serious problem of all.
“I-I already knew that much!”
He tried to make an excuse, because he still had some pride.
“I can tell you’re more incompetent than Uzumaki Naruto.”
“...”
The words sounded like an insult, and Issei twitched in irritation, but since they hit the mark, he couldn’t say anything back. As Madara said, Issei’s intelligence was below Naruto’s... Up until now, he had simply overcome everything with power. If Issei had only possessed the level of strength of the Demon Kings, there was no way he wouldn’t have died long ago. That was how heavily he relied on power. But from here on, he couldn’t keep using that method. One wrong move, and he could instantly cause harm to Rias or Raynare. And in fact, something like that had already happened. And as long as he stood in his current position opposing [Akatsuki], the possibility of it happening again was endless. Therefore—
“If you want to protect them, then either annihilate [Akatsuki] here and now, or you’ll have no choice but to revise your plan.”
Madara pressed him with that tone, not as a suggestion but as an order. Issei also felt there was logic in Madara’s words, but because it felt like he was being dragged along, he wasn’t satisfied. He wanted to object, but with his current intelligence, he couldn’t even come up with a reason strong enough to refute Madara’s opinion.
“...”
“Then annihilation it is...”
It sounded like an answer Madara had guided him toward. Since Issei lacked the intelligence to revise the plan, the conclusion was that he had no choice but to rely on force and wipe them out. Come to think of it, Madara probably suggested this because fighting [Akatsuki] or fighting Issei would be more entertaining than fighting angels. And before he knew it, Issei was being dragged wherever Madara wanted to go.
“Then prove it here. Prove that you have the power to lead me!”
If you wanted to lead him, you had to be stronger than him. The reason he had ever thought of cooperating with Hashirama was not only because Hashirama was his friend, but because he was strong. In the end, Issei had no choice.
“It can’t be helped.”
To obtain Uchiha Madara, he released all his power.
.
.
.
.
.
“P-please spare me!!”
“Damn it all!”
Screams echoed from here and there. They were not the screams of angels, but of [Akatsuki]. With chakra released and the [Rinnegan] awakened, Issei was mercilessly trampling them. This time, unlike with devils or fallen angels, he did not leave them alive. He released chakra only to kill and used ninjutsu.
“Wind Release! Rasenshuriken!”
Using overwhelming chakra, he unleashed wind blades in all directions and suppressed them in one sweep. In less than five minutes after using ninjutsu, most of [Akatsuki] had been sent on their way to Valhalla.
“M-Madara-sama! Please spare us!”
“Ghk! A monster... he’s a monster!”
Even the members who survived the Rasenshuriken were personally finished off by Issei with [Truth-Seeking Orbs] spears. Since he had already killed Kokabiel once, he felt no particular resistance toward criminals, and in the blink of an eye, [Akatsuki]’s members were annihilated by Issei’s hands. Watching from a high place, Madara said,
“What is this? You’re better than I expected.”
He had thought it would take longer, since Issei had only recently started using ninjutsu and his intelligence was below Naruto’s. But seeing him dispose of ten thousand people in under five minutes, his combat ability could be judged as roughly on Naruto’s level.
And then—
“Not bad.”
“Then with this... !! W-what the hell are you doing all of a sudden!?”
Madara leapt down from the top of a tall building and landed in front of Issei, then immediately threw himself into a flying kick. Issei hurriedly dodged and shouted in confusion, but Madara only said,
“My mood changed a little. I’ll test your strength!”
“You bastard, so this was your goal from the start!”
Uchiha Madara, the legendary ninja. He was also known as a battle maniac, someone who loved fighting. Issei had vaguely suspected this might happen, but he hadn’t expected him to actually do it. Then his grin vanished completely as he awakened the [Rinnegan].
“I won’t go easy on someone like you!”
“Good! Entertain me! With the [Rinnegan], you should be able to enjoy yourself as much as Hashirama!”
In the end, both of them faced each other with their [Rinnegan] awakened. The one who had forged power and the one who had inherited it. Between them, massive chakra began to collide.
“Fire Release! Dragon Flame Song Technique!”
“Water Release! Water Dragon Bullet!”
Issei summoned water dragons to surround himself and block the fire dragons spewing from Madara. Then—
[Amaterasu!]
Before the steam created by the clash of fire and water could cover everything, black flames erupted across Madara’s entire body. But Madara absorbed the flames in one sweep, then instantly formed a complete [Susanoo] and broke straight through the mist.
“!!”
The moment he entered the fog, countless tendrils suddenly wrapped around [Susanoo]’s entire body.
“Wood Release! Advent of a World of Trees!”
“! Hashirama’s Wood Release! But!”
It was not as sturdy or flexible as Hashirama’s Wood Release, and he broke free by force alone. Startled, Issei hurriedly shouted,
“Wood Release! Wood Golem! Wood Release! Wood Dragon!”
Since he couldn’t bring out [Susanoo], he tried to oppose it with Wood Release giants like he had done against clone Madara and Hashirama, but—
“Compared to Hashirama, this is sloppy beyond belief!”
The wood dragon and wood golem both thrust out their necks and fists, but [Susanoo] slipped through the gap with exquisite precision and cut them down in an instant with an X-shaped slash, shattering both the wood dragon and the wood golem into pieces. Startled, Issei decided to change his fighting style.
“Here I go!! Draig!”
[Welsh Dragon Balance Breaker]
He armored his entire body in dragon armor. Then—
“Oh? The power of this world, a Sacred Gear, is it?”
Madara, seeing a Sacred Gear for the first time since his revival, looked at it with interest.
[Boost, Boost, Boost, Boost, Boost, Boost, Boost, Boost, Boost, Boost, Boost, Boost, Boost, Boost, Boost,]
His chakra kept increasing. Even without bringing out the Ten-Tails, the amount had already surpassed that of a tailed beast like the One-Tails.
[Explosion]
Once the power stabilized—
“Excellent power!!”
Seeing the chakra overflowing around Issei, Madara immediately sent [Susanoo] charging in. Then—
“Dragon Shot!!”
He condensed red magical power in front of the [Boosted Gear] and fired it toward the incoming [Susanoo]. It collided with [Susanoo]’s blade, but—
Boom!
It was power beyond the Tailed Beast Ball. He had poured almost all of his enhanced power into a single strike, so [Susanoo] collapsing along with the blade was inevitable. As [Susanoo] crumbled in an instant—
“Interesting!”
Madara hurled himself straight toward Issei. Then—
“Haaah!”
Using the remaining enhanced power to accelerate, Issei flew straight at Madara and threw a punch. But—
[Limbo: Border Jail]
A Madara from another dimension burst out from within Madara’s body and blocked Issei’s fist. Then—
“Ghk!”
With the [Rinnegan] in both eyes, four invisible clones simultaneously attacked his abdomen and back. But—
“If that’s how you want to play it, then so will I!”
[Limbo: Border Jail]
Since they had the same [Rinnegan], it was only natural that they could use the same technique. In the end, it became a battle between clones in another dimension, but there was a decisive difference between Madara and Issei. That difference was experience. Madara had survived countless wars, while Issei was nothing more than a fledgling. The gap in their skill was obvious, and Issei’s clones were suppressed in an instant.
“Kgh!”
After the clones came the main body. He barely managed to dodge by throwing his body around, but he was gradually being cornered, and in the end—
“Ghk!”
The clones’ attacks came at his face, abdomen, legs, and entire body. As his armor was torn away and he was rapidly reduced to a battered wreck, Issei shouted,
“Damn it!”
[Boost, Boost, Boost, Boost, Boost, Boost, Boost, Boost, Boost, Boost, Boost, Boost, Boost, Boost, Boost, Welsh Dragon Overboost!]
“!!”
At last, Issei pushed the [Boosted Gear]’s power to its limit in his current state, and the shockwave created by his battle cry repelled all the invisible clones. Then—
“Almighty Push.”
In that opening, he pulled Madara in.
‘If I take that punch head-on, it’ll be dangerous. But!’
Even while being dragged in, Madara calmly judged the situation and instead—
“Too slow!”
“!! Ghk!”
Using the repulsive force of [Almighty Push] to accelerate, he let Issei’s punch slide past his side by a hair’s breadth and kicked him in the abdomen. Issei was sent flying, but perhaps because of his enhanced state, he suffered almost no damage. Then—
“So you’ve strengthened not only your chakra, but your body too.”
Feeling a toughness that hurt the one who struck him, Madara put some distance between them and began assessing Issei’s condition. The dragon armor had been half torn away by the invisible clones, but his body was still perfectly fine. Ordinary attacks could not damage that reinforced body, and if he used ninjutsu, it would be absorbed. Issei was like someone who had gained another world’s power on top of his own. If someone with abilities similar to Madara had possessed Issei’s power, they would have been crushed without even leaving bones behind. But—
“This is fun!”
“Yeah, come at me!!”
Madara charged Issei head-on. It was a simple exchange of fists and feet, a pure physical brawl. In terms of destructive power and durability, Issei was overwhelmingly superior in every way, yet he was the one being pushed back. Every time their fists crossed, Madara slipped and evaded by a hair’s breadth, then attacked his side. No matter how strong his durability was, if he kept taking hits in the same place, Issei had no choice but to create distance.
“So this is the difference in experience...”
He seemed to feel it painfully himself, closing one eye as he endured the pain. Then—
“You seem pretty relaxed!”
Madara did not give him a moment to recover, pressing the attack while Issei backed away and waited for the pain to subside. Issei took a kick straight to the face and was sent flying. Madara chased after him even faster, slammed him down from midair into the ground, and continued attacking in relentless succession.
“Ghk!”
‘At this rate...’
He had said he wanted to test his power, but Madara looked like he would not stop until Issei died. He finally understood clearly that if he did not fight with the resolve to kill, he could not win. Therefore—
“Haaahhhhhhh!!”
Thrown back from Madara and given a brief opening, Issei formed a single hand sign with both hands and concentrated his power. Then massive chakra erupted around him, his hair lost its color and turned white, and even the color of his skin began to change. It was as if he had become the Sage of Six Paths himself. Issei had reproduced the exact appearance Madara had when he became the Ten-Tails jinchūriki.
“You’ve drawn out the power of the Ten-Tails?”
Since he had once been the Ten-Tails jinchūriki himself, he recognized it at a glance. And he knew better than anyone how dangerous that state was, but—
“That chakra! Excellent!! Dance more! Entertain me more!”
Madara wore a wild grin, like a rabid hound mad with battle.
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