"There are quite a few familiar faces."
Seiryū's gaze swept over the reanimated shinobi one by one.
There were many familiar faces among them.
The group included Kage from various shinobi villages: the First Hokage, the Third Raikage, the Second Mizukage, the Second Tsuchikage, the Third Kazekage.
There were also other shinobi, some familiar and some unknown.
The Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, Kakuzu, Hanzō.
There were quite a few of them, and with so many Kage-level powerhouses gathered together, they could certainly be considered a formidable force!
"In the past, this would have given me a headache, but now, they're only average."
Seiryū focused his attention on the Kage-level powerhouses, but he did not take them too seriously.
At this moment, he was capable of overwhelming every one of them.
Even his great-grandfather, Hashirama Senju, might not be able to last more than a few exchanges against him.
"Only 'average'?"
Orochimaru narrowed his eyes before speaking in a hoarse voice.
"It doesn't matter. After all, we're only here to stall for time. I doubt you can maintain that state for very long."
This kind of forcibly amplified power could not possibly be sustained indefinitely.
Seiryū had already fought an entire battle against Madara.
How much longer could he maintain this state?
As long as they delayed him long enough to force him out of it, that would be enough!
"I can maintain it until my Chakra runs out. But exhausting my Chakra won't be that easy."
Seiryū's current state truly could not be maintained forever.
The greater the power, the greater the Chakra consumption.
Fundamentally, he had not yet reached the Six Paths level, and his existence had not undergone a true qualitative transformation.
Excluding the Dragon Vein's Chakra, his own Chakra reserves were not even as vast as Hashirama's.
His body had not yet fully matured.
However, Seiryū possessed one major advantage.
He could freely draw natural energy from his surroundings and use it for himself.
Although maintaining the balance required for Senjutsu Chakra also consumed some of his own Chakra, the burden was not nearly as severe as one might expect.
If Seiryū had a weakness, it was simply that his total Chakra reserves were still insufficient.
He could not sustain prolonged battles, especially battles at the Six Paths or Kekkei Mōra level.
But if he was not fighting at that level, Seiryū could maintain his current abilities for quite a long time.
"Heh. I'm not the only one here."
Orochimaru smiled and looked toward Isshiki.
"Your goal is Madara's body, while I want his eyes. Our goals shouldn't conflict, should they? How about it? Shall we work together?"
"No, let me put it another way. We'll drive him back first, then compete for what we want afterward. That benefits both of us, doesn't it?"
"Interesting. Very well."
Isshiki glanced at Orochimaru.
It was impossible to tell what he was thinking, but he did not reject the proposal.
'Boom!'
With a thought, Isshiki released even more power.
Kāma, Stage Two!
Black markings resembling the Yin Seal spread across Isshiki's body.
A horn grew from his head, curving forward from the back of his skull, while his Chakra fluctuations suddenly surged.
His power was now only a step below Madara as the Ten-Tails Jinchūriki.
He had nearly reached the Six Paths level!
Jigen's body could not withstand Isshiki's full power.
Its compatibility was insufficient, preventing Isshiki from completing a perfect reincarnation within it.
Even so, he could still draw out greater strength.
He simply could not maintain it for long!
After their earlier exchange, Isshiki had realized that if he did not take Seiryū seriously, he would be defeated with ease.
If he wanted to seize Madara's body, he needed to display more of his power.
'Boom, boom, boom.'
Isshiki attacked first.
Golden light flashed from his right eye as he activated his Dōjutsu again.
Massive black cubes appeared out of nowhere and crashed down from above with tremendous force!
The surrounding ground shook continuously.
"Still not enough. Too slow!"
Seiryū dodged aside and stared at Isshiki with a wide grin.
He raised his hand and threw a punch.
A dragon-shaped blast of force roared forward.
"Dragon Fist Burst!"
'Boom, boom, boom.'
The ground split apart beneath the force of the punch as it surged forward in a straight line, carving a deep trench into the earth.
'Hum!'
A spatial fluctuation appeared.
Isshiki vanished into the dimension connected to Daikokuten, avoiding Seiryū's attack.
He reappeared on Seiryū's left, his body shrunk to the size of a grain of rice, and threw a punch at him.
Although Isshiki was now only the size of a grain of rice, the power behind his attack had not weakened.
Instead, his tiny size made the strike much harder to defend against!
"You seem pretty confident in your Taijutsu."
Seiryū caught the attack and immediately punched back with even greater force.
However, his fist missed.
At that instant, Isshiki entered the Daikokuten dimension again.
Then he reappeared behind Seiryū, his fist crashing toward his back!
"Dankū!"
Seiryū formed a one-handed seal and created a Dankū barrier, blocking Isshiki's punch.
At the same time, Bakudō once again sealed the surrounding space, preventing Isshiki from using his Space-Time Dōjutsu.
"Dragon Fist Burst!"
Using the same method as before, Seiryū unleashed another devastating Taijutsu strike.
This one was even stronger than the previous attack.
The blow forcibly returned the shrunken Isshiki to his normal size and sent him flying backward.
Isshiki coughed up a mouthful of blood.
Faint cracks appeared across his body as blood poured from them.
After barely managing to steady himself, Isshiki's expression became completely grim.
That punch had been heavier than the last.
Even after entering this state, his body still could not withstand it.
If he took a few more attacks like that, this body would "die."
Without a prepared "vessel," he would be forced to undergo "reincarnation" within this body.
At present, he was not certain whether Madara's body could properly support his "reincarnation."
So he had to be careful.
"As expected of you, Seiryū-kun. Even my Mangekyō Sharingan can barely keep up with your battle."
Orochimaru watched the exchange with narrowed eyes.
"But you have quite a few opponents, you know."
The battle between Seiryū and Isshiki had erupted and ended within only a few seconds.
Even Orochimaru, despite possessing a Mangekyō Sharingan, had found it difficult to follow everything clearly.
Watching Seiryū fight from such close range made his current strength even more obvious.
However, Orochimaru had the advantage in numbers.
And he had no intention of fighting Seiryū head-on to the death.
As long as he could stall for time and drain Seiryū's Chakra, that would be enough.
'Boom! Boom, boom, boom!'
Under Orochimaru's control, all of the reanimated shinobi on the battlefield moved at once, unleashing their signature Ninjutsu toward Seiryū.
The most overwhelming presence naturally came from Hashirama.
He brought his hands together.
The earth shook as a vast forest erupted from the ground, spreading outward to crush everything in its path.
The Second Tsuchikage's palms glowed with pale white light as his Kekkei Tōta, Dust Release, unleashed its terrifying power.
The other Kage and Kage-level powerhouses also formed hand seals and activated their techniques.
Countless attacks surged forward together, creating an overwhelming assault that could not be underestimated.
'Swish!'
Seiryū simply used the Flying Raijin Jutsu to avoid the barrage of Ninjutsu.
Then he locked onto Orochimaru with his perception.
He kicked off the ground and charged directly toward him, a cold grin appearing on his face.
"I only need to focus on killing you."
(To be continued.)