Chapter 457: Kill!

Uchiha Madara's waist and abdomen had taken a heavy blow from Uzumaki Raiden—his pelvis shattered from the impact. He couldn't move, and even Shinra Tensei was unusable after its recent deployment.

In this critical moment, Madara could only summon the chakra within him and re-form Susanoo for defense. Not stopping there, he also drew upon the chakra of the Four-Tails and Five-Tails. A dense Tailed Beast coat shrouded his Susanoo in preparation for Raiden's follow-up strike.

Slash!

But in the face of Raiden's long blade, Madara's layered defenses were as fragile as paper. The terrifyingly sharp sword pierced right through, skewering Madara's chest with ease.

Blood burst from the wound and soaked the ground, mingling with the rain as it seeped into the earth.

"You…" Madara's eyes widened in shock. He opened his mouth, but blood choked his throat, drowning his words. His vision dimmed, pupils beginning to dilate.

"Uchiha Madara, cut the act. This trick doesn't work on me anymore."

"I know exactly what that Mangekyō Sharingan of yours can do."

"I'm not giving you a single chance to escape."

Raiden had stabbed through Madara's heart, but he didn't drop his guard. For any other enemy, that would've been a deathblow—but not for a Uchiha.

Sure enough, just as Madara's eyes began to dim, they suddenly widened. A twisted smile spread across his face as he gripped Raiden's blade tightly.

"Sage Art: Light Fang!"

Madara's Mangekyō Sharingan faded to gray as he activated Izanagi. Though his body had seemed on the brink of death, a purple beam of light suddenly erupted from his slightly parted lips, aimed directly at Raiden's face.

But Raiden had anticipated this. The moment Madara smiled, he reactivated his lightning armor and shifted his head just in time to avoid a fatal hit.

Even so, the beam grazed his cheek, slicing through his lightning armor and leaving a shallow wound that bled down the side of his face.

Reacting swiftly, Raiden yanked Sakegari no Tachi from Madara's body and slashed again. Now that Madara had used Izanagi, he had no second chance. All his injuries were nullified—but he was left with no lifeline.

Now was the perfect moment to kill him.

If Madara escaped, he would eventually regain another Sharingan, allowing him to use Izanagi again. Worse, his plans would continue to advance, making him even harder to kill in the future. Raiden wasn't about to let that happen.

"Cut!" With a sharp cry, Raiden shot forward like a bolt of lightning, blade raised. But the Madara he struck dispersed into white mist—a substitution technique, leaving behind a chunk of wood.

While using Izanagi to deceive Raiden, Madara had prepared multiple contingencies. Not only had he used Light Fang as a killing move, he had also set up a substitution technique to escape.

Facing someone like Uzumaki Raiden, Madara wasn't taking any chances.

Raiden didn't waste time staring at the spot where Madara had vanished. Using his Kagura Mind's Eye, he immediately located Madara's real position—far from the battlefield. Without hesitation, Raiden vanished in a flash of black light, darting into the forest.

Madara had used the gap during Izanagi to flee. He didn't even attempt to take Sasuke, the masked man, or White Zetsu—he left them all behind in the barrier.

He knew Raiden had the power to kill him.

Now that Izanagi was spent, Madara had no intention of continuing the fight. If he did, he'd die. He fled toward the Land of Birds, the direction in which the Sand ninja had previously retreated.

Madara knew full well he couldn't outrun Raiden. His only hope was using the dense terrain of the forest to delay him.

"Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu!" As he fled, Madara created thousands of clones and sent them in every direction. He was banking on the fact that even with perception abilities, Raiden wouldn't be able to immediately identify his real body.

The brilliance of shadow clones was that even Kekkei Genkai like the Byakugan or Sharingan couldn't easily distinguish the original.

Raiden followed closely. Though Madara had a head start, Raiden's lightning speed closed the gap in no time. But just as Madara entered Raiden's attack range, he split into countless clones, scattering in every direction.

Several even ran back toward Raiden head-on—and were promptly obliterated.

As each shadow clone vanished, their information returned to Madara, alerting him that Raiden was catching up fast. He pushed forward in a panic.

"Thousands of clones all at once… It won't be easy to find the real one immediately."

"But if you think this is enough to escape me…"

"You're underestimating me."

"I didn't just arrive here."

"I came to the Land of Birds before the Sand shinobi."

Raiden smirked and looked up.

As Madara entered the forest, the sky above began to churn. Dark clouds rolled across the heavens, thickening and moving with intention. The dense forest fell under their oppressive shadow. Hidden among the clouds were streaks of black lightning, radiating a terrifying aura.

"Uchiha Madara… this is your grave."

Raiden raised his arms. Dazzling white light flared from the forest floor as black lightning surged down from the heavens, targeting the fleeing shadow clones.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The thunder crashed across the forest. One by one, Madara's clones were obliterated in puffs of smoke, unable to withstand the destructive lightning.

Outside the woods, Rasa and Gaara watched in stunned silence as the forest became a hellscape of thunder and fire. More than half of Madara's clones had already been destroyed, with the remainder soon to follow.

Madara himself wasn't so lucky. He was struck by two bolts but managed to absorb part of the chakra using the Rinnegan and shielded himself with Susanoo and the Tailed Beast's chakra.

But this action gave away his position.

Raiden immediately locked onto him and abandoned the other targets, heading straight for Madara.

"He's coming!" Madara couldn't see Raiden, but he could sense his presence. Halting mid-stride, he pointed to the ground and launched himself backward.

A moment later, Sakegari no Tachi plunged into the spot where he had just stood.

"Nice dodge," Raiden muttered, yanking the blade from the ground with a satisfied smirk—then vanished again.

"This kid…" Madara crouched, fully alert. The moment Raiden disappeared, he swung his war fan to the side on instinct—and successfully blocked the slash.

But before he could react further, a powerful gust slammed into him.

"So fast!" Madara's eyes widened. He barely managed to shield his face before Raiden's spinning kick smashed into his arm.

Even with Susanoo and the Tailed Beast cloak, Raiden's blow was overwhelming. The impact shattered Madara's defense and struck his arm with crushing force.

Crack! A muffled snap echoed as Madara flew backward, crashing through trees and landing in a crater.

Whoosh! Before he could rise, Raiden appeared overhead, blade poised.

"Shinra Tensei!" Madara roared, unleashing a powerful repulsion just before Raiden struck.

Something strange happened—Sakegari no Tachi flew from Raiden's grip, repelled by the force… but Raiden himself didn't move.

Instead, he drove his palm—shaped like a blade—directly toward Madara's chest.

Madara couldn't understand why Raiden was unaffected, but he instinctively raised his war fan to block.

Raiden's palm struck the fan with immense force, driving it into Madara's chest. The shockwave pierced through Susanoo, and the blow landed squarely.

Pfft! Madara coughed blood—his sternum collapsing under the blow. Blood splattered onto Raiden's face.

Boom! Raiden didn't hesitate. Withdrawing his hand, he wound up again and landed a second punch on the war fan. Madara couldn't resist. His grip loosened.

"Wood Release—" Madara tried to form seals, but Raiden's third punch came crashing down, blasting into his chest.

This time, the blood that spurted out was tinged black, mixed with fragments of internal organs. Madara's hands dropped limply, and his breathing slowed to a whisper.

He was dying.

Raiden finally exhaled. His eyes confirmed what his Kagura Mind's Eye had already told him—Madara's clones were gone. The man before him was the real one.

The greatest threat was finally eliminated.

"Uchiha Madara… in the end, I was the one who won."

Blood dripped from Raiden's face. His red hair hung in strands, clinging to his skin. A rare, quiet smile crossed his lips.

Without wasting another word, he kicked away Madara's fan, formed a sword with his palm, and pierced Madara's heart.

The last breath left Madara's body.

Only then did Raiden slowly open his eyes and kneel beside the corpse.

"After all these years… I've finally killed you."

"Madara, you and the First Hokage built Konoha together. You were once my senior."

"Others may not understand your truest intentions—but I do."

"There's nothing wrong with wanting peace. The mistake was trying to kill me—and Naruto. The Eye of the Moon Plan… it was a lie fabricated by Black Zetsu. It held no real value."

"The peace of the shinobi world… let me be the one to achieve it."

Madara was dead. Though he couldn't hear, Raiden still spoke. If souls lingered, perhaps Madara would listen.

He hadn't said any of this while Madara was alive—he knew better than to monologue in the middle of battle.

Now, he could finally speak freely.

Raiden formed hand seals. A scroll appeared in a puff of smoke. Unrolling it, he summoned a glass container filled with an unknown solution.

Pressing his palm over Madara's Rinnegan, Raiden extracted the eye using chakra and carefully placed it into the container. After sealing the lid, he stored Madara's body in the scroll.

The forest still burned, but the rain had stopped. The thunderclouds drifted away, and stars slowly peeked through the clearing sky.

The dense forest was quiet once more.

Raiden had vanished.

(End of this chapter)

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