"I don’t know..." Nagato answered honestly.
He wasn’t sure which Madara would win in the end. After all, each of these three abnormal individuals was far stronger than him.
"Then just guess one. If you’re right, I’ll give you a reward."
In a good mood, Lux casually encouraged him, simply enjoying the show.
"Excuse me, Lord, is that the Madara I met last time?"
Nagato hesitated, pointing at Parallel World 1’s Founding Madara in the distance, and asked.
"It feels like he’ll win in the end."
"Oh? How did you judge that?" Lux grew slightly curious, intrigued by Nagato’s reasoning.
Nagato didn’t know how to explain, but if he had to guess, he truly felt Parallel World 1’s Madara had the highest chance of winning.
Or rather, among the three Madaras, only that one retained a distinctive chakra aura: pure, clean, strong, without a trace of impurity.
As pure as Naruto’s conviction...
It sounded mystical, but it was merely the influence of spirit and conviction on chakra.
After all, chakra was a fusion of physical and spiritual energy.
Sasuke, driven mad by revenge before, had his chakra aura shift multiple times in Karin’s senses, growing increasingly sinister and cold...
For Madara, since betraying Konoha and parting with Hashirama, his spirit and conviction had gradually changed subtly...
This was a long process, and one hard to reverse.
Just as the Founding Madara couldn’t imagine his future self stooping so low as to harm children...
Or as the Founding Hashirama couldn’t fathom his future self killing his best friend for the village...
Most people struggle to stay true to their original intentions.
At least for now, Parallel World 1’s Madara hadn’t changed, hadn’t betrayed Konoha; he’d even obtained the Rinnegan, had Hashirama, and was soon to become the Second Hokage...
He was far more successful than the other two ’losers.’ Thus, his conviction was steadfast, his confidence immense!
Such confidence and arrogance naturally influenced his chakra aura, making it purer and stronger than the other two Uchiha Madaras.
Simply put, it was the difference between a blazing spirit and a wilting one...
Though the gap wasn’t vast, Nagato, an Uzumaki with the Rinnegan, could still sense it.
Lux wasn’t as meticulous as Nagato, nor bothered to observe the subtle differences among the three Madaras.
But he knew Parallel World 1’s Madara was indeed the strongest of the trio.
In terms of experience, the three Madaras weren’t far apart. After the Warring States Period ended, Madara rarely acted. But in other aspects, Parallel World 1’s Madara was undoubtedly weaker.
He lacked Wood Element, senjutsu, decades of accumulated and enhanced eye power, not to mention self-mastered Yin-Yang Release, and this time he didn’t bring his Kyuubi mount...
At least the other two Madaras had years more accumulation than him.
Growing stronger was natural.
But there was one exception: Parallel World 1’s Madara had the Rinnegan!
Though he only implanted one, leaving the other in the village for experiments, don’t forget that as a living human, he could fully unleash the Rinnegan’s maximum power!
It wasn’t comparable to Parallel World 5’s Edo Madara’s Edo Rinnegan!
Just one exclusive Rinnegan ability, Limbo, was enough to crush any enemy below quasi-Six Paths level.
By this comprehensive comparison:
In raw power: Parallel World 1’s Madara > Parallel World 5’s Madara > Parallel World 2’s Madara.
Thus, Nagato’s guess that Parallel World 1’s Madara was most likely to win was reasonable.
At this moment, Lux and Nagato chatted casually while watching the battle.
"Lord, I have a question..."
Nagato hesitated, looking slightly confused.
Lux immediately guessed Nagato’s doubt and preemptively asked:
"You want to ask why I chose you, chose Amegakure, right?"
Edo Nagato nodded dejectedly. Facing an abnormal-level Madara, he felt powerless again.
He didn’t understand what about him or Amegakure was worth the Tenshou Sennin’s attention.
If it was just about choosing someone to unify the ninja world, Edo Madara was clearly a more advantageous choice, and Konoha’s overall potential far surpassed Amegakure’s.
No matter how he looked at it, he wasn’t comparable.
Could there be some hidden spark in him yet to be discovered?
"Don’t overthink it. He’s different from you."
"That Madara over there has nothing left to protect; he doesn’t even hesitate to harm children. He’s truly changed."
Lux had considered directly binding Edo Madara and letting him unify Parallel World 5.
But after thinking twice, he gave up.
On one hand, Nagato and Akatsuki’s prior performance was indeed solid. Without Edo Madara’s interference, they’d likely have crushed Konoha by now, significantly advancing unification.
On the other, Parallel World 5’s Madara was unsuitable for investment. He was alone, having abandoned everything.
Even if he had the power to sweep the ninja world, he couldn’t govern it alone.
He’d need ample people and forces to manage.
Rebuilding a force alone would take considerable time.
Given Madara’s conflict with Konoha, future Naruto and Sasuke wouldn’t yield, leading to prolonged resistance, like Parallel World 3’s original future.
This would create a series of issues, affecting future peace.
Moreover, Madara differed from Hashirama. He didn’t love the entire ninja world, at least not as much as Hashirama.
He didn’t crave peace or mutual understanding. Madara’s ideology of realizing Infinite Tsukuyomi, bringing eternal peace to the ninja world, was more about fulfilling Hashirama’s dream and surpassing him by achieving a different true path...
Much like Danzo’s desperate need to prove he could outshine Hiruzen.
A tyrant without attachments could rule temporarily but struggled to rule long-term.
This violated the mission’s requirement of ’maintaining peace for twenty years post-unification.’
Unless... giving Parallel World 5’s Madara new emotional anchors?
Like reviving Izuna and others.
In other words, after reviving Madara, also revive Izuna, then more Uchihas...
Only then might Parallel World 5’s Madara form emotional bonds and become a qualified ruler.
Better to keep investing in Nagato. Deep down, Nagato loved Amegakure and yearned for world peace...
Of course, Nagato didn’t need to analyze the differences between himself and Edo Madara clearly. He just needed to pursue his ideals and achieve the goal of unifying the ninja world.
The massive battle among the three Uchiha Madaras didn’t last long.
In just a few minutes, the winner was decided.
As Lux predicted and Nagato guessed, Parallel World 1’s Madara won!
First, Parallel World 1’s Madara and Parallel World 2’s Madara teamed up, crushing Parallel World 5’s Madara.
Then, Parallel World 1’s Madara activated Limbo, relying on its imperceptible, invisible effect below Six Paths level, defeating Parallel World 2’s Madara to claim final victory.
However, though Parallel World 1’s Madara won, the battle didn’t end. Instead, it grew fiercer.