Chapter 178: Sage Art... Wood Release: True Several Thousand Hands

Both Yagyu and Nagato were slightly stunned as they looked at the Wood Dragon, now lying motionless like a mere decoration.

Clearly, neither of them had expected the collision between the Wood Dragon and the Chakra Dragon to result in such an outcome.

Both Yagyu and Nagato quickly formed hand seals, attempting to regain control of the Wood Dragon.

Unfortunately, while they could sense the chakra within the Wood Dragon, neither Yagyu nor Nagato could control it.

Nagato had no solution, but Yagyu quickly devised a plan and seized victory.

With a slight movement of his finger, a branch emerged from the ground, connecting to the fallen Wood Dragon.

"Roar..."

As the roar echoed, the Wood Dragon, which had been lying on the ground, rose into the air and charged towards Nagato.

"Hmph!"

Seeing Yagyu use this method to regain control of the Wood Dragon, Nagato let out a cold snort.

As the Wood Dragon approached, the Gedo Statue suddenly extended its massive hand, grabbing the Wood Dragon's body.

It then opened its enormous mouth and spat out another massive Chakra Dragon.

This time, the Chakra Dragon did not leave the Gedo Statue's body.

With the chakra of eight Tailed Beasts amplifying its power, the Chakra Dragon swiftly devoured the chakra within the Wood Dragon.

Boom... Boom... Boom...

At the same time, the sound of the earth shaking reached their ears.

The Wooden Golem charged towards the Gedo Statue, each step causing the ground to tremble.

Seeing this, the Gedo Statue immediately released the Wood Dragon and began running towards the Wooden Golem.

The scene that unfolded was even more shocking and violent than the battle between the Wooden Golem and the Complete Body Susanoo in the original story, or the clash between the Complete Body Susanoo and the Nine-Tails.

Without any hesitation, the Wooden Golem swung its fist directly at the Gedo Statue.

The Gedo Statue, equally unyielding, also threw a punch.

The two fists collided, creating a shockwave that spread out like a hurricane.

If not for the devastation caused by the Planetary Devastation and the fact that the corpses had already been absorbed into the sky, turning into fine powder along with the super-massive meteor, this shockwave would have sent all the bodies flying.

Even so, the shockwave kicked up a cloud of dust beneath the Wooden Golem and the Gedo Statue.

There was no struggle for dominance. After the first punch, the Wooden Golem and the Gedo Statue continued to swing their arms, their fists capable of easily shattering mountains, landing blow after blow on each other with the force of countless explosive tags detonating simultaneously.

Boom—

Boom—

Boom... Boom... Boom————

Each punch sounded like a series of explosions or continuous thunderclaps, echoing across all the battlefields in the Land of Rain.

Just like when Madara Uchiha used the Heavenly Obstacle Quaking Star (Tengai Shinsei) in the original story, the sound of two massive meteors crashing to the ground could be heard even in the command center.

The terrifying force of the shockwaves spread out like ocean waves, one after another.

The Wooden Golem and the Gedo Statue, locked in close combat, did not retreat. Their strong lower bodies allowed them to withstand the devastating attacks without taking a single step back.

As for who was stronger?

Yagyu had to admit that the Wooden Golem was slightly inferior.

While the Gedo Statue only shook slightly with each punch, cracks of varying sizes began to appear on the Wooden Golem's body.

Although Yagyu quickly repaired these cracks, the Wooden Golem's defensive capabilities were indeed far inferior to the Gedo Statue's.

Moreover, even the Sage-enhanced punches were unable to inflict damage on the Gedo Statue, unlike the Sage Art Lightning Release: Kirin from before.

It seemed that trying to injure the Gedo Statue through physical combat was unrealistic.

Thus, after another punch, Yagyu suddenly changed his fighting style.

Boom—

Crack...

The massive Wooden Golem suddenly leaped back, creating distance between itself and the Gedo Statue. Upon landing, it caused the ground to sink and crack.

Then, the Wooden Golem raised its hands.

A dazzling blue light surged from the palms of the Wooden Golem.

The vast ocean of Sage chakra rapidly condensed into two massive energy spheres, each the size of a small mountain.

Buzz...

Transparent air currents appeared out of thin air, forming the shape of shuriken and spinning at high speed, emitting a piercing sound.

In just a few blinks of an eye, the Wooden Golem had condensed two massive Rasenshuriken.

"Sage Art... Wind Release: Rasenshuriken!"

With Yagyu's shout, the Wooden Golem, just like Naruto in his Nine-Tails Chakra Mode during the Valley of the End battle, hurled the two massive Rasenshuriken towards the Gedo Statue.

The two enormous energy spheres, one on the left and one on the right, seemed to have their own tracking systems as they arced through the air, heading straight for the Gedo Statue.

Halfway through their flight, the two energy spheres changed their targets, one aiming for the Gedo Statue's head and Nagato, the other for its lower body.

Nagato, who had been about to use the Preta Path to create a transparent shield, suddenly changed his expression and quickly controlled the Gedo Statue to spit out another Chakra Dragon.

With the help of the Preta Path and the Chakra Dragon, the Gedo Statue successfully blocked and absorbed the two energy spheres that could have destroyed its body.

Yagyu was not surprised by this.

In fact, he had been waiting for this moment.

"Sage Art... Wood Release: Several Hands Technique!"

"Sage Art... Gates of the Great God!"

While Nagato and the Gedo Statue were busy absorbing the Sage Art Wind Release: Massive Rasenshuriken, their bodies momentarily immobilized, Yagyu quickly clapped his hands and shouted.

In an instant, massive wooden hands burst from the ground, grabbing the Gedo Statue's arms and legs.

At the same time, red torii gates, specially designed for the Gedo Statue, fell from the sky like locks, pinning the massive body of the Gedo Statue to the ground.

The Gedo Statue, now kneeling like a prisoner awaiting execution, was completely immobilized.

This sudden turn of events caught Nagato off guard. While using the Preta Path to absorb the massive Rasenshuriken, he had no time to react, nor could he use the Almighty Push to repel the falling red torii gates.

With the Gedo Statue's arms and legs bound by the massive wooden hands and its body pinned from the neck down by the red torii gates, even if Nagato exerted all his strength to control the Gedo Statue, he could not break free from these restraints.

After all, in the original story, even the Ten-Tails, which had evolved tails and could use Tailed Beast Bombs, could not break free from Hashirama's Sage Art: Gates of the Great God, let alone the combination of the Sage Art Wood Release: Several Hands Technique and the Sage Art: Gates of the Great God.

To free the Gedo Statue, Nagato would have to use all his strength to destroy the wooden hands and the red torii gates, which had even greater defensive and sealing capabilities.

But would Yagyu give him that chance?

Obviously not!

Boom—

Yagyu clapped his hands together again, his entire body erupting with a dazzling blue aura. His terrifying presence swept out like a hurricane.

Even Nagato, who had just disconnected from the Gedo Statue and was floating in the air, preparing to destroy the wooden hands and red torii gates, felt something horrifying. His pupils contracted, and he looked at Yagyu with a face full of shock and fear.

Even though Yagyu could use the Wooden Golem, Wood Dragon, Sage Art Wood Release: Several Hands Technique, and Sage Art: Gates of the Great God without any preparation time, he now took several seconds to gather his energy.

Then, Yagyu shouted again, "Sage Art... Wood Release: True Several Thousand Hands!"

Boom... Boom... Boom...

The ground shook violently, cracks spreading everywhere.

A statue of a Thousand-Armed Kannon, hundreds of times larger than the Nine-Tails and the Gedo Statue, suddenly rose from the ground.

The Wooden Golem, which was the same size as the Gedo Statue and could shake the earth with every move, now looked like a mere decoration, standing atop the head of the Thousand-Armed Kannon.

This showed just how massive the Thousand-Armed Kannon was.

Behind the Thousand-Armed Kannon were a thousand wooden hands, arranged like a peacock's tail, standing upright like a fan.

The massive shadow cast by the Kannon enveloped the kneeling Gedo Statue and Nagato, who now looked like ants in comparison.

From a third-person perspective, it looked like a child-sized Gedo Statue was kneeling on the ground, worshiping a Thousand-Armed Kannon, much like an ordinary person praying to a god.

"What... what is that?"

"Is that Wood Release?"

"Are you kidding me? Is that Wood Release? No... is that something that can be created with ninjutsu?"

"Gulp... is that the legendary Kekkei Genkai that brought peace to the Warring States Era?"

"No wonder no major or minor country dared to start a war when the First Hokage was alive. In the face of such power, even if all the ninja in the world united, they wouldn't stand a chance against this technique, would they?"

"This is the power of a god!"

"..."

Even the Kumogakure ninja who had fled far from the battlefield, as well as ninja from other villages on different battlefields, could see the Thousand-Armed Kannon, which was many times larger than a mountain.

Like Mount Fuji in Yagyu's previous world, the Thousand-Armed Kannon's massive size made it visible from anywhere in the small Land of Rain.

Those who saw this Thousand-Armed Kannon, whether they were Kage or genin, all had their pupils contract, their faces filled with shock and awe, their worldviews shattered and rebuilt.

Even from a distance, their feelings were no less intense than when the Allied Shinobi Forces faced Madara Uchiha's Heavenly Obstacle Quaking Star, or when the Five Kage faced Madara's Complete Body Susanoo.

After all, this was just too exaggerated!

The Complete Body Susanoo was already considered a divine power, a destructive god that would kill anyone who saw it!

The Wooden Golem was on the same level as the Complete Body Susanoo.

Both of these could easily defeat the complete Nine-Tails.

Yet the massive Wooden Golem could only stand or sit on the head of the Thousand-Armed Kannon.

This was even more exaggerated than a child sitting on an adult's shoulders!

This showed that the Thousand-Armed Kannon was on a completely different level!

This was the second largest technique in the Naruto world!

As for the largest technique?

That would have to be the Expansive Truth-Seeking Orb, which could restart the world but had yet to fully manifest.

Since achieving mastery over the Sage Body, Yagyu had already mastered this Wood Release ultimate technique, which was on the same level as the Truth-Seeking Orb.

But just like the Wooden Golem Technique, Yagyu had never used this ultimate Wood Release technique after mastering it.

Because in this era, no one was worthy of him using this technique, not even the Six Paths of Pain.

However, now, Nagato, who had returned to the peak of his strength for his age, and the Gedo Statue, which had reclaimed the chakra of eight Tailed Beasts and was on the verge of evolving back into the Ten-Tails, were worthy of Yagyu using this ultimate technique.

"Top Transformation!"

After consuming a vast ocean of chakra to create the Thousand-Armed Kannon, Yagyu, standing on the Wooden Golem's head and now as small as an ant compared to the Kannon, suddenly grabbed his right wrist with his left hand, pointed his right palm downward, and shouted like he was giving a command.

In an instant, the thousand wooden hands behind the Kannon, arranged like a peacock's tail, rained down like a storm.

The size of these wooden hands was so exaggerated that one hand could easily grab the Nine-Tails, the strongest Tailed Beast.

Even the Gedo Statue, which was larger than the Eight-Tails and Nine-Tails, could be picked up with just two hands.

The sight of a thousand wooden hands raining down like a meteor shower was both spectacular and terrifying.

The Valley of the End, which was originally a flat plain, was the best explanation of this!

"Super Almighty Push!"

Seeing the wooden hands falling like a meteor shower, Nagato did not hesitate. He immediately used the most powerful Almighty Push, releasing a terrifying force of repulsion.

Boom... Boom... Boom... Boom... Boom...

The landscape changed, and the future map of the ninja world would no longer show a flat plain but a land full of devastation. The terrifying earthquake and the deafening sounds of explosions spread throughout the Land of Rain.

Even the civilians in cities near the border of neighboring countries could hear the loud booms.

Watching the Thousand-Armed Kannon swing its thousand wooden hands, the Kumogakure ninja stopped retreating. Even as they were knocked to the ground by the intense tremors, their eyes remained fixed on the Kannon, filled with shock and fear.

The surrounding battlefields and the residents of the Land of Rain mostly stopped fighting and put down their work, staring in awe at this spectacle.

The thousand wooden hands fell like a storm, each one landing on the Gedo Statue and Nagato.

The force of repulsion lasted only a few seconds before being overwhelmed by the combined power of the thousand wooden hands, instantly engulfing the Gedo Statue.

Nagato, without hesitation, abandoned the Gedo Statue and even used its massive body to dodge and escape.

In the face of this SSS-level Sage Art, even the Ten-Tails Jinchūriki would not dare to take it head-on.

After all, the Ten-Tails Jinchūriki could only nullify ninjutsu, not physical attacks or Sage techniques.

Coincidentally, the Truth-Seeking Orb was a magic-based SSS-level ninjutsu, while the Sage Art Wood Release: True Several Thousand Hands was a physical-based SSS-level ninjutsu.