The same plan would not work a second time. Ryosuke had to cherish the opportunity his teammates had created for him.
In just a single second, the defense of the Truth-Seeking Orbs shattered one after another under his assault, revealing Obito hiding behind them.
Obito still wanted to say something, maybe a threat, maybe a negotiation.
Ryosuke grabbed his throat in one swift motion.
He didn't want to hear a single word Obito had to say.
Ryosuke only wanted Obito dead.
Time stopped once more.
Ryosuke swept his gaze over the ruined Kirigakure Village, listening to the countless wails and cries of grief carried over by the resonance of the Ripple.
Back then, it was Obito, together with Uchiha Itachi, who slaughtered the Uchiha clan.
Later, it was Obito who, to cover his tracks, massacred the entire Hidden Rain Village after seizing the Rinnegan.
Now, it was Obito who, for his own purposes, betrayed humanity and joined aliens in slaughtering humans.
After coming to this world, Ryosuke prided himself on having seen many kinds of villains, all wildly different, but this kind of nauseating evil…
There was only one person like this.
Uchiha Obito.
Ryosuke took a deep breath.
Star Platinum made the same motion.
Endless rage brewed in his chest.
The next second...
"ORA ORA ORA ORA!"
"ORA ORA ORA ORA!"
"ORA ORA ORA ORA!"
Within 9.9 seconds, Star Platinum threw out several thousand punches.
Ryosuke's spatial slingshot fell together with them.
Perhaps it was because of the uncontrollable rage in his chest, or perhaps because, through Ripple resonance, he could sense the deceased of Kirigakure Village.
This punch of Ryosuke's was incomparably heavy. When it landed on Obito's body, even space itself showed faint distortions.
The instant time stop ended, Obito's entire body exploded. Even the half-step Sage body of a Ten-Tails jinchūriki could not withstand this level of attack. Large amounts of blood splattered everywhere, Ryosuke frowned deeply.
In Obito's blood, he smelled a familiar scent.
Pearl Jam: Healing Potion.
On today's battlefield, no one understood Ryosuke's terror better than Obito. Before coming, he had personally cut open his abdomen and stuffed it full of healing potions.
All for the sake of saving his life at a critical moment.
That portion of the potion had taken effect. Obito, missing teeth, swollen eye sockets, broken arms, not a single inch of uninjured flesh on his body, was forcibly kept alive by the potion's effects.
At this moment, Kinshiki had already rescued Momoshiki. Sasuke and the others were blown away, smashing heavily into the ruins below and kicking up clouds of dust.
After being saved, Momoshiki finally remembered his teammates. He raised both hands and fired beam after beam at Ryosuke, trying to force him back and save Obito.
Obito let out a breath of relief.
Ryosuke had already used his most terrifying spacetime ninjutsu.
Momoshiki's attack would land in just an instant.
The Ten-Tails also rose into the air and pounced over, about to cover Obito's body and heal him.
"I'm saved..."
Whoosh!
From the direction where Sasuke had fallen, a straight, brilliant long blade tore through the dust and shot toward the sky.
Like a paper cutter slicing through the world, it flew horizontally and severed the energy beams.
On the other side, facing the charging Ten-Tails, Crescent Moon appeared and casually waved at it. A repulsive force strong enough to flip mountains suddenly erupted. The Ten-Tails crashed into it as if hitting a wall, unable to advance even a single step.
Ryosuke still held Obito's neck with one hand and asked softly, "What are you expecting?"
Even with Sasuke's ninjutsu nullification aside, even if there were none, even if he had to tank Momoshiki's attack head-on, Ryosuke would still kill Obito.
'So what exactly were you expecting?!'
"I..."
Before Obito could finish speaking, Killer Queen appeared, its arm overlapping with Ryosuke's once again.
BOOM!!!
A soul-shaking explosion roared.
Obito's body and face tore apart. Soul-fire burst out from within, and in the very next instant, it turned into dust, carrying unwillingness and despair as it scattered with the wind.
[Uchiha Obito: Dead]
It was done.
Sasuke, Tsunade, and the others burst into cheers. Even Kakashi barked excitedly several times.
That "variable" had finally been dealt with.
Ryosuke gave them a thumbs-up.
In the sky, Momoshiki stared blankly at the ashes where Obito had vanished.
Such an excellent charging battery just… died?
Didn't that mean he was back to getting beaten again?
Momoshiki felt a gaze and shuddered.
Ryosuke was standing with one foot on the Ten-Tails, looking over coldly.
The battle wasn't over yet. Sasuke hurried toward the direction where the long blade had been thrown. Although large-scale ninjutsu nullification couldn't be used for the moment, as long as he held the sword, he could suppress Momoshiki's energy attacks to some extent.
Once Momoshiki was killed, Kinshiki alone would be nothing to fear.
'Victory… will ultimately belong to us!' Sasuke thought.
'But…'
'Where's my sword? It should've fallen around here.'
As cool as it was when he threw it, that's how miserable it was to look for it afterward.
"Is this your sword?" A gentle voice sounded behind Sasuke.
A hand reached out, and in its palm was a tiny knife less than an inch long.
Sasuke was still immersed in the joy of Obito's death and answered subconsciously, "No. But your toy knife really looks like mine..."
His voice gradually trailed off.
The gentle voice spoke again, "Oh? Doesn't it look like it? Then how about this..."
Whoosh!
The blade expanded at a speed imperceptible to the naked eye, piercing straight through Sasuke's heart.
Sasuke lowered his head, glanced at the blood flowing from his chest, then slowly raised his head and met the gaze of the man just a step away.
Gritting his teeth, he spoke the other's name, "Otsutsuki… Isshiki."
Blood dripped from the corner of Sasuke's mouth.
"If it were anyone else, I would say, 'You are not worthy to recite my name.' But Uchiha Sasuke, you are a talented one."
"If not for how bizarre your ability is, if I weren't worried it would nullify my Kama, I truly would have liked to use you as a reincarnation vessel."
"As for now..."
Chi! Chi! Chi!
Dozens of black rods pierced through Sasuke's body.
"You should just die."
Uchiha Sasuke: Dead.
———
At the same time, in a forest less than ten kilometers away from Kirigakure Village.
Four blades crossed and pierced through Jiraiya's chest.
"Sorry, Jiraiya."
An aged, remorse-filled voice belonging to Hiruzen Sarutobi came from behind one of the blades.
The owners of the other three blades were Hashirama Senju, Tobirama Senju, and Minato Namikaze.
The First through Fourth Hokage had been resurrected in Edo Tensei bodies. With the White Snake Sage joining in to improve it, Edo Tensei had truly achieved nearly 100% control. Even Hashirama Senju couldn't break free, only able to watch helplessly as he carried out orders.
Their eyes were filled with guilt as they looked at Jiraiya.
Jiraiya's pupils turned gray. He staggered a step and collapsed heavily to the ground, his thoughts drifting lightly like a wisp of smoke.
"I'm sorry… Ryosuke, I still…"
A gust of wind blew past, scattering his final thoughts.
Only Hiruzen Sarutobi's sigh remained.
Jiraiya: Dead.
"Is this really okay?" Kabuto Yakushi asked. "Obito is dead. How is the 'beautiful ending of Infinite Tsukuyomi' supposed to come about?"
The White Snake Sage also wore a gloomy expression, puffing on its pipe one draw after another. It turned its head to look at Tobi.
"What exactly did the divination of Amanomikoto reveal?"
Tobi shrugged, gently wiping his Sharingan as if cleaning a camera lens.
"Too many things are involved. I'm not Uchiha Itachi, how could I see that much?"
"I can only be sure of one thing, as long as Obito made a move against Ryosuke, it would definitely lead to the 'beautiful ending of Infinite Tsukuyomi.' Besides, our current situation is like a human halfway through taking a dump."
"You can't just stuff it back in, right?"
———
Ryosuke, who was fighting fiercely with Kinshiki, suddenly stopped all his movements.
Kinshiki and Momoshiki had developed psychological trauma from him. Thinking Ryosuke had another bizarre move, they didn't dare press the attack for a moment. Instead, they retreated rapidly, widening the distance and staying out of Ryosuke's attack radius.
Only when they followed Ryosuke's line of sight did they see Sasuke's corpse on the ground, and Isshiki standing beside it.
Momoshiki froze for half a second, then burst into loud laughter.
"That annoying brat is finally dead!"
"Ryosuke! What can you do to me now?!"
Momoshiki spread his arms, unleashing countless bolts of lightning, flames, and shockwaves downward.
Ryosuke's mind buzzed violently, sharp ringing filling his ears.
He still charged forward on instinct.
Isshiki blocked Ryosuke.
The real Isshiki Otsutsuki, fully reincarnated. Even with only a sliver of lifespan remaining, he was still a genuine, complete Otsutsuki.
'He's here… which means Jiraiya is already…'
The ringing in Ryosuke's ears grew even more intense.
"Ryosuke, you are very strong. I have lived for many years, far beyond human history. In my long life, you are the first, and the only, opponent worthy of my respect."
"You did nothing wrong. Every tactical decision you made was correct."
There were only two people who interfered with the battlefield.
Obito and Isshiki.
Because of Obito's move, Ryosuke had to transfer Isshiki's head.
No matter who he asked to help with the transfer, facing a prepared Kabuto Yakushi, the White Snake Sage, and numerous Edo Tensei ninja… survival was impossible.
"Isshiki's reincarnation" and "Obito making a move" were tightly bound together.
If one occurred, the other inevitably followed.
There was no way to avoid it.
So when Isshiki said Ryosuke had done nothing wrong, he meant it.
"…This is your fate."
"The fate of humanity."
Isshiki rambled on for quite a while.
Ryosuke didn't hear a single word.
Because under Ripple resonance, his ears were filled with the humming of life withering and shattering.
Momoshiki grabbed the Ten-Tails, refined it into a pill, swallowed it, and once again fired a pitch-black energy sphere downward, accompanied by a violent roar…
Everything was drowned in explosive flames.
With Isshiki and Kinshiki blocking the front and the Ten-Tails acting as a battery, a fully unleashed Momoshiki was terrifying in terms of destructive power.
When the smoke cleared, Ryosuke stood amid the ruins, holding the dying Mei Terumi in his arms.
Mei Terumi reached out, gently touching Ryosuke's cheek.
"I'm sorry… I don't think I can walk the rest of the way with you…"
Her hand slipped down.
Mei Terumi: Dead.
Isshiki, Momoshiki, and Kinshiki, the three Otsutsuki members, slowly descended from the sky. Their white robes were like snow, resembling immortals descending to the mortal world. No matter how badly beaten they had been before, no matter how ugly their previous appearances were, at this moment, they were the victors.
Unlike the arrogant Momoshiki, Isshiki and Kinshiki maintained absolute vigilance.
Momoshiki's bombardment looked powerful, but its range was too large and too scattered to seriously injure Ryosuke. With Ryosuke's super-speed regeneration, a bitter fight was inevitable.
Isshiki gave Kinshiki a look and walked toward Ryosuke alone.
"Let's end this here, Ryosuke. I'll say it again, I have enough respect for the strong."
"With your ability, create a clone body for me, and everything will be over."
"After that, we will kill some people, but you won't be affected in any way. I'll leave you enough humans to reproduce and survive. You will still be the king of humanity..."
"Shut up."
Ryosuke cut off Isshiki's nonsense. Holding Mei Terumi tightly, he stared at her lifeless eyes and said softly, "Didn't you ask me if I came from the immortal realm?"
"I really am not from this world."
"I'm just an ordinary person from another ordinary world."
Isshiki's gentle, elegant smile froze in his victorious stance. Despite holding absolute advantage, he felt a faint sense of unease.
"You… what are you talking about?"
"I'm saying…" Ryosuke slowly raised his head.
On the first day he came to this world, Ryosuke had held a girl like this, watching helplessly as she died.
Today… this would not happen again!
Killer Queen appeared beside Ryosuke, its right thumb pressing down hard.
Click!
[Time to reload]
[Killer Queen: Third Bomb: Bites the Dust…]
[Activate!]
BOOOM!!!
Explosive flames and smoke spiraled outward from Ryosuke. Wherever they passed, time and space were torn apart, revealing vast swaths of dazzling, galaxy-like points of light. A terrifying pulling force fell upon Ryosuke, dragging him toward a distant shore.
At times, Ryosuke felt as if he were overlooking the entire universe. At other times, he plunged into the microscopic quantum chaos, expanding and shrinking, while his soul continuously flowed backward along the river of time.
Until…
———
[One Hour Earlier]
Ryosuke snapped back to his senses.
He stared blankly at Mei Terumi in front of him.
They were standing before the statue at the History Memorial Hall.
Mei Terumi was tidying Ryosuke's clothes, preparing him for the signing ceremony that was about to begin.
Unable to restrain himself, Ryosuke opened his arms and hugged her tightly.
"That's great…"
"Hey, hey, hey! What are you doing all of a sudden?"
Mei Terumi blushed, lowering her voice. "If someone sees this, we're done for! You're a public figure now!"
She said that, but her hands made no move to push Ryosuke away.
Ryosuke was immensely grateful that he had previously "wasted" an Ascension Star Core to unlock this ability that could reverse any total defeat..
The Third Bomb: Bites the Dust.
The prerequisite for activating this ability was "extreme despair."
Given Ryosuke's mental fortitude and combat strength, this was almost impossible.
Only a combination like today's, three Otsutsuki plus a Ten-Tails jinchūriki, could place such crushing pressure on him.
Now, Ryosuke had told Isshiki the secret that he was a "transmigrator," fulfilling the conditions to activate Bites the Dust and rewinding time to one hour earlier.
At this moment, aside from Ryosuke himself, no one remembered what had happened during that erased hour.
Of course, Isshiki still remembered the fact that Ryosuke was a transmigrator.
Once someone asked Isshiki about Ryosuke's secret, or if Isshiki proactively revealed it, Bites the Dust would trigger, returning time to one hour earlier.
However, Ryosuke chose to directly activate Bites the Dust.
He wanted to lock the timeline in place.
Isshiki stared blankly at Ryosuke, about to speak, when Ryosuke grabbed him and threw him straight into the Ghost Room.
Ryosuke took a deep breath, gazing at the bronze statue of the girl in his arms.
[All personnel, enter Level-One battle readiness. The signing ceremony is suspended. Prepare for battle.]
"This time."
Ryosuke took out the Ascension Star Core and the iron ball.
Fortunately, the Ascension Star Core obtained at the moment of signing had not disappeared with the reversal of time.
Of course, signing again would definitely not grant another one.
"I won't let despair be born again."
"System, activate…"
Ryosuke gently placed the Ascension Star Core onto the spinning iron ball. A corresponding trial mission name appeared,
"…Saint Trial Mission!"