Hidden Leaf Village.
"So this… is Uchiha Madara."
The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, stared at the screen with a complicated expression.
The overwhelming power Madara displayed gave even him—a former peak Kage—a faint sense of dread.
Was it an illusion…?
Hiruzen felt that even at his prime, he still wouldn't stand a chance against this monster.
"Hmph!! Uchiha Madara!!!"
Gathered inside the Hokage's office were the elders of the Leaf—
Hiruzen, Danzo Shimura, Homura Mitokado, and Koharu Utatane—
the full Konoha F4.
The moment Madara appeared on the video, all four rushed here immediately.
After all, Madara had once been a shining name in Konoha's history…
a hero, a founder…
and a terrifying demon.
Danzo stared at the screen, jealousy simmering in his eyes.
Even with dozens of Sharingan implanted into his own arm…
he still envied Madara's overwhelming mastery—
especially his Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan.
"So… the ultimate form of the Sharingan is the Rinnegan."
Hiruzen inhaled from his pipe, voice low and heavy.
Of course the Leaf had records of the Rinnegan.
Jiraiya had once met a child born with it,
and the legends of the Sage of Six Paths were deeply rooted in every great village.
But because no one had seen a true Rinnegan user since the Sage himself,
it became a mythical relic of history.
Yet now—
Madara's Rinnegan revealed the secret.
And all of Konoha was shaken.
Unfortunately…
"The Uchiha… are already gone."
Hiruzen sighed deeply.
Had he known the truth—
that the Rinnegan and Uchiha lineage were so deeply connected—
he would never…
ever
have agreed to the clan's massacre.
They were the peak of Konoha's power…
On screen, Madara's expression darkened as he faced the Edo Tensei body controlled by Kabuto.
"I awakened these eyes only shortly before my death…
Kabuto, what did you do to my body?"
No one enjoyed knowing their corpse had been tampered with.
Madara's killing intent simmered.
Kabuto, speaking through the Second Tsuchikage's body, remained calm.
"I told you, didn't I? I've enhanced your physical abilities to surpass even your prime."
Madara's brow twitched in irritation.
"That you—
a rat incapable of reading the Uchiha Stone Tablet—
discovered secrets of my body is… unacceptable."
What truly angered him was the possibility Kabuto might disrupt his long-laid plans.
Kabuto smiled faintly.
"I only formed a hypothesis using Orochimaru-sama's and my own research data.
And you, Madara… have just proven my theory."
"The Sage of Six Paths…
With the body I've created, I've finally glimpsed the power of a god."
Madara snorted.
"Do not misunderstand.
This is not power you created."
He formed hand seals—
and blue flames erupted around him.
A colossal armored figure rose again—
Susano'o.
And this time—
even Susano'o formed hand seals.
The camera cut back to the Allied Shinobi Forces.
Medical ninja rushed from one wounded shinobi to the next.
The battlefield was chaotic, but something…
Something felt wrong.
The earth seemed darker.
Shadows grew long.
Faces turned pale.
One by one, shinobi looked up.
And their expressions froze in absolute despair.
CLANG—
A Cloud Village shinobi dropped his sword, his face twisted into a confused, hopeless smile.
"Damn it…"
More and more shinobi trembled, staring upward.
"How… how is that possible…"
"What IS that!?"
Even Temari—strong-willed, fearless Temari—
stood frozen, despair flooding her eyes.
"Our levels… aren't even close…" she whispered.
Gaara stared skyward, breath trembling.
"A god's… power?"
Suddenly—
the BGM surged.
The camera zoomed out rapidly.
The shinobi grew smaller—
the landscape shrank—
And then, the viewers finally saw it.
The source of despair.
A massive meteor—
hurling downward from the heavens.
Madara…
had summoned a meteor.
For the first time in countless worlds, everyone watching felt the same emotion—
Pure disbelief.
"He summoned… a METEOR?!"
"This can't be ninjutsu!!"
"Run!? How!? There's nowhere to run!!"
The scene cut to a small elderly man.
A subtitle appeared:
[Third Tsuchikage — Ōnoki of the Two Scales]
Around him, shinobi collapsed in despair—
but the old man rose to his feet, shouting:
"It's NOT over yet!!
Enough with the defeatist nonsense!!"
He looked up at the falling meteor and roared:
"Do you intend to throw your lives away!?
Do whatever you can, however little—
but DO NOT GIVE UP!!!"
And then—
The old man lifted off the ground.
He flew upward—
straight toward the massive meteor.
In that moment…
This stubborn old man displayed the courage worthy of the title Tsuchikage.
He was a leader.
He could not retreat.
Not now.
Not ever.
And millions across countless worlds felt it—
The spirit of a warrior facing certain death head-on.
A lone old man, flying toward a falling star.
His name was—
Ōnoki of the Two Scales.