I Let My Guard Down and Didn't Dodge!

Black Zetsu looked up in despair at the moon radiating silver light, his torn, sorrowful cries disturbing the innocent creatures of this land.

One day, urged on by the employers behind both sides, the war between the Uchiha and the Senju erupted once again.

Only this time, a flash of crimson hair was missing from the battlefield.

At this moment, in the dense forest on the edge of the battlefield, six figures were sprinting.

They moved like ghosts, appearing and disappearing at intervals.

"Madara, are you certain Hashirama Senju is on this battlefield?"

Under the constant brainwashing of Kosuke over the past few days, Madara's mindset had already undergone a change.

He, who once viewed the other as his closest friend, was now actually leading Kosuke to ambush Hashirama Senju.

At this moment, the corners of Madara's mouth couldn't help but curl into an arc, his smile becoming increasingly eerie in the air that blurred with their speed: Hashirama, are you ready to welcome me!

"It's not far ahead."

Before long, the sound of a flowing stream gradually reached their ears.

Suddenly, an excited roar instantly echoed across the small battlefield.

This sudden sound caused the ninjas on both sides to freeze in brief astonishment.

"Hashirama! Are you ready to take a beating?"

At this time, Hashirama Senju had already awakened his Wood Release for some time.

He had just been locked in a fierce struggle with an enemy, but upon hearing Madara's roar, he pointed a finger casually, and a large tree instantly shot up from the ground, firmly binding the enemy.

"Huh?" Hearing this familiar voice, Hashirama hesitated for a second. "Madara! Take this! Hahahaha!"

Meanwhile, the white-haired youth who was constantly keeping an eye on his older brother—Senju Tobirama.

Upon seeing his older brother's ridiculous maneuvers, he couldn't help but complain powerlessly in his heart: As expected, ever since Father used him as bait, Big Brother has been slacking off on the battlefield.

Just as Tobirama prepared to slash at the Uchiha bound by his older brother, a figure suddenly lunged from the side, kicking straight toward his flank.

"Evil Tobirama, behold my Happiness Dissipation Leg!"

With a boom, an explosion rang out, and the tree binding the Uchiha ninja shattered upon impact.

The restrained ninja seized the opportunity to use the Substitution Technique and escape.

As the dust from the explosion cleared, a figure around ten years old appeared in the eyes of the shaken Tobirama.

"Damn it! I'm evil?! It's clearly you Uchiha who are the most evil in the ninja world!"

"White-haired brat, I suggest you watch your mouth." Kosuke shouted while throwing Exploding Tags around him to pin down the enemy. "The Senju must be the evil clan in the ninja world. Otherwise, why would your Clan Head send his own young heir out to act as bait? And to make matters worse, he used a man to pull off a honey trap!"

"Damn it! It was clearly..." The teenage Tobirama, hearing Kosuke's words, became flustered and eager to retort loudly, but he was ruthlessly interrupted by Kosuke.

"Stop! I know what you want to say." Kosuke threw another Exploding Tag and continued to shout amidst the explosions, "Are you trying to say that my Uchiha clan is the same? Let me tell you the truth: that is the unique boldness of the Uchiha Clan Head. At the time, we only ensured the target was lured in a way that maximized value so that you lot would take the bait."

Throwing yet another Exploding Tag, Kosuke's voice rose sharply with the sound of the blast: "Do you know now who the evil clan in the ninja world is? We Uchiha are the Clan of Love. If you still don't know, I'll let you taste the love of the Uchiha right now."

Before the words had even faded, Kosuke's figure surged forward, and he slashed his blade violently toward Tobirama.

Stunned by the verbal provocation, Tobirama failed to react in the first instant.

In his wide-eyed pupils, the reflection of the blade grew closer and closer...

At this critical moment, the left leg Kosuke had planted on the ground was instantly entangled by a tough vine, and the long sword in his hand grazed past Tobirama's Adam's apple.

The sharp edge flashed by, leaving a thin trail of blood on Tobirama's neck, but it was not fatal.

Looking at Tobirama, who had been within arm's reach just a moment ago, he was now clutching his throat and fleeing in a panic.

Clearly, he had been thrown into disarray by Kosuke's words.

"Damn it! If I don't come over there and beat you up, you're just going to keep acting cocky, aren't you?!"

Chakra vibrated violently within Kosuke's body, and the vine wrapped around his left leg shattered in an instant.

"Hashirama, watch the blade!"

"Hahahaha, well come! Wood Style: Deep Forest Emergence!"

"Bang!"

Kosuke, who had just rushed out, was instantly sent flying into the sky by a massive wooden pillar.

A puff of white smoke dissipated, and his disheveled figure suddenly appeared on the other side.

"I was careless, I didn't dodge!" Kosuke took a deep breath. "I didn't expect Hashirama to be this proficient with Wood Style at this stage."

On the other side, Madara, who had been trading blows back and forth with Hashirama, saw his expression grow increasingly grave.

The wooden pillar Hashirama had released so casually just now had such great power, yet he was currently fighting him using only Taijutsu?

"Damn it! I don't believe it, let's go again!"

Kosuke spat out a mouthful of blood and charged forward with his blade once more.

Seeing this, the Kusanagi Sword in Madara's hand suddenly slashed diagonally.

The moment the Kusanagi Sword sliced across the giant tree, Kosuke's long blade was already pressed against Hashirama Senju's throat.

Just as the two were puzzled by how easy it had been, a smile suddenly appeared on Hashirama's face. "Madara, you and your clansman coordinate quite well. Since that's the case, I'll have to use five percent of my strength. You two had better be careful."

Bang!

Hashirama, who had been held back by Kosuke's long blade, turned into a wooden log in an instant.

"Madara, little one, are you ready?"

Hashirama's figure appeared ten meters away. He leaned his body slightly forward, pressed his palms together, and spread his legs slightly apart.

"Wood Style: Thorn Rain!"

Following his cold shout, countless wooden spikes were forced out from the trees beside Hashirama, hovering in mid-air.

The next second, the wooden spikes shot toward Madara and Kosuke like a torrential downpour, covering the sky and blotting out the sun.

Fire Style: Great Fireball!

Madara abruptly erected a wall of flames in front of him, and the sound of wooden spikes piercing into the barrier exploded on the other side.

At this moment, Kosuke finished forming the final hand seal.

Wind Style: Gust!

Driven by a massive surge of Chakra, a large whirlwind rose within the fire wall, rapidly merging with the flames to form a gigantic fire tornado.

The moment the fire tornado formed, all of Hashirama's Thorn Rain was sucked into it, the scorching flames instantly reducing them to ash.

Yet at this moment, Hashirama was actually charging forward through the air, stepping on the burning wood chips.

His black hair whipped in the heatwave like a flag.

"Southwest!" Madara's roar exploded simultaneously with the Lightning Style in his hand.

Kosuke's body flicker trajectory twisted sharply in mid-air, his glowing long blade grazing past Hashirama's ribs.

Just as the strike should have landed, the blade was firmly ensnared by newly sprouted tree shoots.

Using the blade as leverage, Hashirama leaped backward, and the moment he landed, the ground within a thirty-meter radius cracked completely.

Strength of a Hundred!

Kosuke's pupils contracted sharply.

Madara's Kusanagi Sword, coated in Lightning Style, thrust fiercely toward Hashirama.

Hashirama clapped his hands together and shouted, "Wood Style: Earth Dragon Fang!"