Fourth Battle

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Late at night, silence blanketed the Hidden Leaf Village. Half the lights were already out, and most villagers were fast asleep.

A deafening explosion suddenly shattered the stillness, the shockwave waking everyone from their dreams.

The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, sprang out of bed the moment he heard the noise and quickly stepped outside.

"This is…"

Hiruzen's expression turned to shock as he looked toward the northwest part of the village.

"Hiruzen!"

Two voices called out simultaneously. Danzo and Kagami arrived in a hurry.

"Kagami, could it be…?"

Uchiha Kagami's face was grim as he nodded. "According to clan records, this should be Lord Madara's Complete Body Susano'o."

"But didn't he die at Lord Hashirama's hands?" Danzo asked urgently.

Kagami shook his head, indicating that he didn't know either.

Looking around, Hiruzen saw many villagers coming out of their homes, startled and confused. His expression grew solemn.

"Danzo, Kagami, evacuate the villagers immediately. If Madara Uchiha is really fighting, then the one opposing him must be Elder Akio. Their battle could very well engulf the entire village!"

Danzo and Kagami nodded and rushed off to begin the evacuation while Hiruzen also moved into action.

Battlefield

Akio hovered in the sky, surveying the terrain below with a light smile.

Madara had emerged from underground, instantly activating his Complete Body Susano'o. The transformed terrain was now collapsing inward—this once-flattened plain had once again become a valley.

After destroying an underground palace, Madara's Susano'o slowly retracted.

"Old man, this technique of mine... let's test it out on you."

Akio's expression shifted slightly as Madara formed a hand seal that was all too familiar.

"Wood Style: Deep Forest Emergence!"

Massive, intertwined trees erupted from the earth. Within seconds, the valley was swallowed by a dense forest. Even Akio, airborne, was affected by the rapid growth.

"Such a nostalgic jutsu… This must be the forest near the Valley of the End," Akio mused as wind chakra surged around his feet, slicing through the encroaching branches. Against Madara, he was clearly far more cautious now—choosing to conserve chakra wherever possible.

"Wood Style: Wood Dragon Jutsu!"

Another familiar jutsu—but this one irritated Akio.

"You always use Hashirama's techniques against me, Madara. Every time we fight, you underestimate me."

Activating Sage Mode, Akio unleashed a technique he hadn't used in ages.

"Sage Art: Wind Style – Rasenshuriken!"

The spinning projectile shattered the Wood Dragon. The piercing hum faded as Madara calmly raised his hand—Akio had almost forgotten that the Rinnegan could absorb ninjutsu.

"Old man, I'm not underestimating you. It's just that all your weird jutsu are useless before these Rinnegan."

Akio chuckled bitterly. "Madara, after all these years, did you forget? I'm a taijutsu specialist."

Madara blinked. He had never heard that before—but Akio was already speeding toward him.

"Hmph, reckless fool!"

Two minutes later, Madara was sent tumbling across the ground. He barely managed to stabilize himself, looking up to see Akio posing like Bruce Lee, a cocky grin on his face.

"Come on, old man—let's go another round!"

With a loud shout, Akio charged again.

"Reckless fool!" Madara shouted, throwing the insult back.

But two minutes later, it was Akio's turn to be fleeing in disarray.

"Madara, weren't we doing a taijutsu-only match?!"

What was supposed to be a one-on-one duel had turned into a five-on-one, with Akio facing four invisible attackers. He remembered from the original timeline that this must be Madara's Rinnegan-exclusive technique: Limbo: Border Jail, which created four unseen shadow clones to attack the enemy.

Akio hadn't obtained the Six Paths power and couldn't see them, but with his Kagura's Mind Eye fully activated, he could faintly sense their presence. After all, even shadows made with ninjutsu still emitted chakra.

"Fifth Gate – Gate of Limit… Open!"

Akio decisively activated the Eight Gates, regaining the upper hand.

It was almost comical—the two strongest shinobi in the modern world weren't throwing world-shaking ninjutsu at each other, but were instead engaging in raw, brutal fistfights.

Eventually, they both backed off, panting, and locked eyes. Despite their exhaustion, both men shared a knowing smile.

After catching his breath, Madara straightened his back and said seriously,

"Don't die on me, old man."

Akio simply nodded without speaking.

An overwhelming chakra wave surged from Madara as he once again activated his Complete Body Susano'o. In the end, he still chose to fight Akio in the form he was most proud of.

"Seventh Gate – Gate of Wonder… Open!"

A blue shockwave radiated from Akio's body. He looked across at Madara's towering Susano'o, which loomed like a mountain.

Then he glanced at himself—and suddenly felt his own battle stance looked a bit… unimpressive.

"Should've asked for the Lightning Release Chakra Mode when I was in the Land of Lightning…"

"Oh well, let's try this instead."

"Water Style: Great Waterfall Technique!"

Akio rarely used Water Style, but he had obtained quite a few techniques after battling Kirigakure. This jutsu, though classified as a basic A-rank technique, became monstrously powerful when amplified by Akio's chakra.

"Now this is a real waterfall," he nodded as a torrent several hundred meters high and dozens of meters wide crashed toward Madara's Susano'o. But moments later, he had to dodge away—Madara's Susano'o sword sliced cleanly through the waterfall and nearly struck him.

"Knew it wouldn't work…"

"Then how about this?"

"Water Style: Super Exploding Water Shockwave!"

Akio released a massive surge of chakra, turning a ten-mile radius into a vast sea. Madara's Susano'o was completely submerged. Akio figured his affinity with Water Style would give him the edge in this terrain.

But the sea created by chakra was soon split apart with a single sword strike from Madara.

"Old man, where are all your freakish jutsu? You've gotten weaker!"

Dodging rapidly, Akio sighed inwardly. Clearly, Water Style wasn't the answer. Still, he kept up the banter.

"I was holding back so you wouldn't collapse in three moves. But now—I'm going all in!"

"Sage Art: Dust Release – Atomic Dismantling Jutsu!"

Madara didn't even form a hand seal—he simply swung his sword.

The Dust Release, a powerful Kekkei Tota, clashed head-on with the Complete Susano'o. But to Akio's surprise, it wasn't able to overpower it. The collision point exploded with a massive shockwave, obliterating the entire surrounding forest.

Akio was blasted hundreds of meters away, frowning as he watched Madara.

The Susano'o's sword had shattered, but Madara casually formed another—it had only cost him a bit of chakra.

"Now that he has Hashirama's cells, Madara probably has even more chakra than I do. If this keeps up, things will go south fast… I'll need to switch to strategy."

Meanwhile, back in Konoha, the evacuation was complete under Hiruzen's command. He had gathered the elite ninja forces and was preparing to assist at the right moment.

In their hearts, they all knew—if Uchiha Madara won this battle, it would spell disaster for the entire village.

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