*PU-CHI!* *PU-CHI!* *PU-CHI!*
Seven black rods pierced Sasuke’s body, pinning him in place. One even struck his heart, dealing a fatal blow.
It must be admitted—Sasuke had underestimated the terror of the resurrected Isshiki. Unconstrained by Jigen’s body, Isshiki could fully unleash his Byakugan’s power, making him far more formidable than before...
This time, it was truly over!
"Tch! A lowly creature remains a lowly creature."
"Uchiha Sasuke, you’ve finally fallen into my trap!"
Isshiki grinned savagely, dismissing several giant Daikokuten cubes, then arrogantly flew toward Sasuke.
Seeing Sasuke tightly bound by the black rods, Isshiki felt an unprecedented satisfaction.
For a lowly ninja to push him this far was unheard of. As a reward, Isshiki couldn’t bear to kill Sasuke immediately.
"Relax! I won’t let you die too easily. I’ll torture you thoroughly, making you watch your loved ones die one by one before you!"
Sasuke struggled to lift his head, his eyes blazing with rage, as if he wanted to swallow Isshiki alive.
"That expression, full of hatred!"
"If you weren’t angry, I wouldn’t be interested."
"By the way, that troublesome Rinnegan should be destroyed first. Can’t give you another chance to escape."
As he spoke, Isshiki conjured another black rod, piercing Sasuke’s left eye, blinding his six-tomoe Rinnegan on the spot!
The intense pain caused Sasuke to faint instantly. Fortunately, Isshiki didn’t pierce his head to kill him outright.
First, he genuinely wanted to torment this disgusting lowly ninja. Second, he wanted to experiment—could Sasuke, as the strongest ninja, withstand having his Kama inscribed?
Seeing Sasuke unconscious, Isshiki lost some interest. He turned his gaze to Juubi and Kawaki nearby.
"My two precious children!"
"This time, no one can stop me from taking you back..."
Isshiki flashed a ferocious grin, long unseen, extending his demonic claws toward Juubi and Kawaki.
At this moment, on the other side, in a dark mental space, Sasuke’s unconscious mind suddenly awoke.
Sasuke was slightly confused but quickly grasped the situation. This mental space was identical to the one where the Sage of the Six Paths had granted him power during the Fourth Great Ninja War.
Sasuke knew he’d been dragged into a mental space again.
However, this time, floating across the mental space wasn’t the old Sage of the Six Paths from before. Instead, it was the younger, more unpredictable Tenshou Sennin.
"We meet again, Uchiha Sasuke."
Sasuke was stunned, unsure how to start the conversation. After all, it hadn’t even been half an hour since he and Tenshou Sennin parted, and now they met again—in his own mental space. Clearly, he’d been pushed to the brink once more.
"Alright, no need for nonsense."
"You’ve felt Otsutsuki Isshiki’s power, haven’t you?"
"What do you think of my previous offer now?"
Lux got straight to the point, too lazy for pleasantries. Their last negotiation had clarified the situation.
Unfortunately, Sasuke hadn’t wanted to tarnish Naruto’s ideals and convictions, so he didn’t agree immediately. This time, after being thoroughly beaten by Isshiki’s brutality and experiencing "a sack of rice" (severe suffering), Lux believed Sasuke knew how to choose.
Sasuke frowned sadly, asking helplessly:
"Without you, what would happen to the village and Naruto?"
"You already know the answer in your heart."
Sasuke’s expression dimmed; he knew the truth. Just as in the Fourth Great Ninja War, without the Sage of the Six Paths’ power, he and Naruto would’ve died long ago, and the entire world might’ve been drained by the Infinite Tsukuyomi.
It was the same now. If he rejected Tenshou Sennin, he, Naruto, Kawaki, Juubi, Boruto, Sarada, Sakura, and all of Konoha wouldn’t stand a chance against Isshiki!
Moreover, Sasuke knew he had no choice now.
Refuse: he’d become Isshiki’s captive, tortured to death.
Accept: whatever the outcome, there’d be a glimmer of hope, a chance to turn the tables!
"I agree!" Sasuke declared firmly, gritting his teeth.
Lux showed a faint satisfied smile—Sasuke was indeed sensible. If it were Naruto, he’d only change his mind after witnessing Konoha’s destruction and the tragic deaths of his loved ones.
"Excellent, you made the right choice!"
"But I’m sorry, Sennin, I still can’t inherit the title of Hokage."
"I’ll destroy all ninja nations and villages in my own name, bearing the sins and bloodshed myself!"
"As for Naruto, when this is over, he’ll remain Konoha’s Hokage, continuing to lead everyone!"
"I ask for your approval, Sennin!"
Sasuke hadn’t lost his reason, daring to set conditions even now. But he’d analyzed all possibilities.
First: He genuinely respected Naruto’s ideals and convictions, unwilling to replace him as Hokage.
Second: Unifying the world would spill much blood and breed deep hatred! Unless everyone outside Konoha was killed, the hatred would never vanish; even time’s healing would take one or two generations to fade.
So, rather than let Naruto bear this sin, Sasuke would shoulder it himself! He was already a former Konoha traitor—betraying again was no issue!
Moreover, with him and Naruto playing bad and good roles, it would better facilitate unification, reducing resistance and hatred from other nations and villages.
To Sasuke, this was far more advantageous than becoming Hokage and unifying everything himself.
Lux hesitated briefly, then happily agreed. At most, he’d bind Sasuke personally first, and after Sasuke destroyed other nations and villages, achieving full unification, he’d rebind to Naruto and Konoha. The mission of complete unification could still be fulfilled. Since Sasuke was willing, there was no need for further delays.
After all, once Sasuke stepped onto the Path of Domination, there was no turning back.
Once he destroyed the first ninja village or nation, other powers wouldn’t tolerate him. Either they’d unite to attack Sasuke and be destroyed, or Sasuke would strike first, annihilating them all...
In the end, with other nations gone, could Naruto kill Sasuke? Lux could only accept this reality...
"Fine, I approve your condition."
"But since you won’t be Hokage, you’ll handle Isshiki’s threat yourself."
"I’ll only ensure Naruto’s safety and provide you some assistance."
Since Sasuke refused to be Hokage, Lux reduced his aid, not personally helping defeat Isshiki.
If Lux defeated Isshiki himself, without this major threat, Sasuke might dawdle in unifying, which would be problematic. There must always be a threat, some pressure, to make the "horses" work hard!
Even tender bidders know to compare prices and wait for offers. Choosing a force to unify the world warranted leaving some leeway.
Sasuke sighed in relief, grateful that Tenshou Sennin was reasonable, even agreeing to his proposal.
Normally, refusing meant death. As the weaker party in this transaction, he had no right to set terms. But this also proved Tenshou Sennin wasn’t arbitrary, seemingly a good Sennin truly on humanity’s side.
"But I’m no match for Isshiki now..."
"Even my Rinnegan was destroyed by that guy."
"I can’t defeat Isshiki on my own..."
Sasuke voiced his current dilemma. Without external help, in his current state, he couldn’t fight Isshiki, let alone escape safely or unify the ninja world.
Lux smiled lightly. To make a horse run, you must feed it grass. Without giving Sasuke some benefits, how could he willingly unify the ninja world?
"Remember your peak at age 17? Want to experience it again?"
Sasuke’s heart trembled, unable to suppress his hope. Who wouldn’t want to return to their youthful peak of strength?
Sasuke was no exception.
"Then let’s do it once more. Go show Isshiki your peak moment!"
Lux’s spiritual body teleported beside Sasuke, patting his shoulder.
A massive surge of abundant Six Paths chakra was injected into Sasuke’s body!
Without an energy storage vessel like Juubi or consuming a Chakra Fruit to ascend to a Sage Body, this Six Paths-level chakra injection was single-use. Once depleted, it wouldn’t recover, just like the power Naruto and Sasuke received from the Sage of the Six Paths during the Fourth Great Ninja War.
But for Sasuke, this was enough. As long as he could return to his peak once more, entering the Six Paths realm, the previously near-invincible Isshiki would no longer be unbeatable!