In a split second the sword came down, and Katsuro dodged at the last second, causing him to make the decision to reapply Thunder Clap Impulse and Wind Chakra Mode after he had turned them both off, trying to conserve his chakra.
Madara's lips curled inwards, as he saw Katsuro dodge, but he knew he was gaining the upperhand. Katsuro would be unable to break through his Susanoo as he did before, and he would not give him the time to be able to prepare and 'charge up' any Jutsu that may allow him to do so. With his markers destroyed, Madara had him right where he wanted him and it was for that reason he was allowing his own body to destroy itself as he used the Susanoo to make use of this opportunity.
Katsuro looked up at Madara who was elevated in his upgraded Susanoo. With his bleeding eyes, and visibly strained figure, Katsuro could tell he was putting his health at great risk with each second that passed using the technique. If he could just evade the attacks for a longer period of time, Madara would be eventually left completely vulnerable once his Susanoo failed him. However, this was not the way he wanted to fight Madara. It would be difficult to avoid all of his attacks in the enclosed space with Madara positioning himself to ensure Katsuro wouldn't be able to get past and be more open. Madara knew himself Katsuro would be able to dodge his sword even without the Flying Raijin which is why he was using it mainly to keep him trapped in the corner while using ninjutsu and fire style to try to whittle him down first. Katsuro could be very passive, and during the exchange he was. He dodged any attacks and occasionally sword swings, while using Earth, Wood, Water and Wind style to deal with any Ninjutsu that threatened him. But this was not how he wanted to keep fighting, he wanted to beat Madara on his own terms especially considering he was clearly out of his prime.
He had thought he was at the mountain top, and that thought alone meant he didn't realise he could continue climbing. But now, this was showing his glimpses of another taller mountain to climb. He realised while he was strong, he wasn't the strongest, and he could get stronger. Now that he knew that and had witnessed the peak his dying drive had returned. Now he would see just how far he had left.
I have to break his Susanoo, Katsuro thought confidently, as Madara's Susanoo swiftly struck down once again as Katsuro was mid air. If it weren't for Katsuro's Thunder Clap Impulse and Wind Chakra mode working simultaneously, he would have been greatly injured by this point as Madara's layered attack proved to be incredibly difficult to deal with. Not to mention, he was getting more and more used to Katsuro's speed and style allowing him to adjust accordingly in the little time he had.
But, Madara was clearly starting to lose energy and Katsuro could see that using a Susanoo was a skill that required great concentration and mastery. Even then, the Senju Patriarch saw an opening. As the Susanoo blade swung near him, Katsuro used his Wind chakra mode and a lot of chakra to manipulate the wind in a way that allowed him to dodge mid-air. He had shown the usage before, but not so intricately. It was somewhat surprising Madara thought he had finally managed to do some more damage.
Katsuro was parallel to both the ground and the blade mid air, and swung his Heaven Breaker with his left hand.
"Dimensional Rend."
Madara turned just in time to see the jutsu, which was greatly enhanced by Katsuro's new blade being entirely made from the Kiba twin lightning swords' metal, and raised his Susanoo arms in a cross right before it collided into him. The technique powered by Wind and Lightning Chakra was the very peak of swordsmanship that no one else had come close to. It swept toward Madara in his Susnaoo, and despite the sense of danger clearly radiating off it, it was surprisingly silent. With little fan fare and commotion it reached the Susanoo and the arms in its way, cutting through them as if the infamous defences weren't even there. Much like his Susanoo, when it inevitably reached Madara, he was cut through, a deep red line forming across his chest and arms. It was the first time Madara was so shocked during the fight. Everything Katsuro showed he had seen before or could understand, but this was devastating. The technique had the raw power of stronger S rank Jutsu's concentrated within a single sword strike that pushed its penetrating power to unfathomable levels.
Luckily, he still had a safeguard.
"Izanagi."
Where he should have been left sliced in half by the jutsu, Madara's used the jutsu's miracle and reality overwriting abilities to not only 'heal' from any injuries, but to also position himself directly next to Katsuro in a way that he could at least land a fatal blow and take him down with him.
Unfortunately, the usage of Izanagi for the second time meant that Madara was completely blind, and was forced to rely on his other senses and memories of Katsuro's position.
Luckily, just before Katsuro's technique landed, he had witnessed his arm twisting and tearing under the stress of the technique as he used it. In the last moments before using the Izanagi, he saw as his last good arm hung limply by his side barely able to grip onto his sword and covered in blood of his own doing.
It was this knowledge and use of the Izanagi that meant Madara attacked unexpectedly from his left side. With his sudden appearance and movement that Katsuro had not realised was possible, Katsuro was caught off guard while he focussed himself where Madara was last seen. As a result, he paid for it.
In a split second, despite losing the light in both of his eyes that were bleeding profusely, a rib cage and skeletal arm barely managed to form, and the arm formed a fist that punched straight into Katsuro's left side. With his left arm, alongside his right both out of commission he couldn't even raise his sword to defend, allowing the physical impact to land completely on his body.
Katsuro was immediately swept off his feet as he braced, and landed straight into the cave wall with immense speed much like Madara had done just earlier. But Katsuro did not have the benefit of a Susanoo to absorb the impact, instead his body was forced to shoulder all of the force alone.
AN: Hi everyone, it's 50 POWERSTONES for the next BONUS chapter. As always, if you would like to view up to 20 more bonus chapters on all my fics so far including this one, and would also like to support me, please visit my P@TR30N, at pa tr eon.com / GhidorahWriter (remove the spaces). Enjoy the chapter!