A moment later, Naruto straightened up and stood beside Sasuke. He turned his head toward him, the corners of his mouth curling into a confident smile. His voice rang out, firm and clear: "I'm the one who's going to become Hokage!"
Sasuke glanced at Naruto from the corner of his eye. There was no particular emotion in his gaze, but he didn't argue, either.
Hashirama Senju, standing in front of them, had long since run out of patience. He'd watched the two of them chat for ages, the vein at his temple twitching. He rolled his eyes in exasperation and grumbled, "I'm glad you're so eager to become Hokage, but you two are way too relaxed! Can't you see the Ten-Tails is about to break through the seal?"
As soon as he finished speaking, the Wood Release chakra around him surged again. "Now's our chance! Hurry and gather your chakra! Everyone, attack at the same time! Let's finish him off for good!"
Everyone immediately focused, chakra rapidly gathering around them. Golden, blue, and green chakra intertwined. Just as they were about to launch their deadly attack, a ripple suddenly distorted the air above them—
A pitch-black rift in space tore open without warning, wild space-time energy churning inside it. Then a slender figure slowly stepped out of the rift, lightly touching the empty air with the tip of his foot. He stood suspended above the Ten-Tails, a chilling aura radiating from him.
Everyone froze in place, their movements abruptly halted.
"It's Obito!" someone roared instinctively, eyes full of vigilance and fury. On this battlefield, who else could manipulate space at will and be so closely connected to the Ten-Tails, if not Obito Uchiha?
Everyone tightened their grip on their ninja tools, chakra instantly taut, and stared fixedly at the figure standing above the Ten-Tails, waiting for him to remove his mask.
But when the dust settled and the figure's outline gradually came into view, the vigilance on everyone's faces turned to deep confusion.
The figure wasn't wearing Obito Uchiha's familiar black robe, but a dark-red one. His long hair fell like black ink, and his slender, upright frame made him look no older than eleven or twelve. He was clearly just a kid.
The boy lowered his eyes slightly and stood calmly atop the Ten-Tails. His crimson gaze swept over the people below. It held not a hint of emotion, yet was as cold and unfathomable as an ancient lake.
Seeing this, most of Naruto's wariness gave way to urgent concern. The Ten-Tails was rampaging wildly, and this kid was standing right on its head—he was practically dancing on the edge of a blade!
Naruto immediately shouted to the boy, "Hey, kid! Get out of there! It's dangerous! Come down!"
His voice was full of genuine concern.
The boy merely glanced at Naruto, as if he were an insignificant insect. He didn't respond, instead turning his gaze back to the surroundings and slowly surveying every part of the battlefield—the Four Red Yang Formation's barrier, the Gate of the Great God pinning down the Ten-Tails, the four Hokage, and the countless allied shinobi below.
A moment later, his thin lips parted. His voice was cold and low, almost a murmur, yet it carried clearly to everyone's ears. "Ah... so this is the battlefield of the Fourth Shinobi World War?"
He paused, his fingertips curling slightly. A hint of obsession and malice flickered in his eyes as he continued in a detached murmur, "But that doesn't matter. I just have to deal with that old bastard, then go to the underworld and extract some of my mother's and sister's soul essence."
The boy's voice was frighteningly calm, yet filled with chilling resolve. "As long as I can find enough soul essence, even if Ōkuninushi has devoured my mother's and sister's souls, I can still use Yin-Yang Release to recreate their bodies and bring them back to life!"
"What?!" Naruto's pupils contracted sharply, astonishment and confusion filling his eyes. "Ōkuninushi? Recreating souls with Yin-Yang Release? What are you talking about? Who are your mother and sister?"
A string of questions flooded his mind. He simply couldn't understand how a kid of eleven or twelve could say something so bizarre and terrifying.
Unlike Naruto, Hashirama's face had already grown grave. His Sage Mode chakra tensed instantly, and his whole presence became wary.
He stared hard at the boy in the air, apprehension written across his face, and called out to everyone, "Hey, Naruto! Be careful! This guy's chakra... it's immense! Even denser and more violent than mine was at my peak!"
"What?!" His words exploded like thunder in everyone's ears. The shinobi were stunned, their faces full of disbelief.
Who was Hashirama Senju?
He was the universally acknowledged "God of Shinobi"!
His chakra reserves were considered the greatest in the Shinobi World. Even Naruto as a Perfect Jinchuriki, with half of the Nine-Tails' chakra, might not be able to match him!
And this inexplicable kid who'd suddenly appeared was even stronger than Lord Hashirama? That was absurd!
"Hm? Hashirama Senju?" Hearing Hashirama's voice, the boy finally turned his attention back to the God of Shinobi.
A flash of icy killing intent immediately passed through those calm eyes, stabbing toward Hashirama like a blade. The chakra around the boy stirred for an instant. The Senju Clan—the Uchiha Clan's mortal enemy. That hatred had long since been carved into his bones.
But he quickly suppressed his killing intent. He had no time to bother with these insignificant insects. There were several other bastards in this world he hated even more than Hashirama, and he still had to hunt them down.
The boy's gaze shifted slowly, finally settling on Sarutobi Hiruzen, the Third revived through Impure World Reincarnation.
When he saw that aged, kindly face, the killing intent suppressed in his eyes could no longer be contained. It erupted like a volcano. His voice turned icy, filled with bone-deep chill, as he spoke one word at a time: "Sashiburi dana (long time no see)! Third! Sarutobi Hiruzen!"
"Huh? What?" Sarutobi Hiruzen was taken aback by the unexpected greeting, confusion and surprise on his aged face. He studied the boy carefully, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't remember ever knowing a child like him. "Who are you?! I've never seen you before. Why would you say something like that to me?"
"Who am I?" The boy gave a low laugh. There was no warmth in it, only deep scorn and hatred. "Heh, that's true.
"So many Uchiha died back then that you, the real culprit, didn't even have time to remember the names of a bunch of dead people!"
"Uchiha?!" At the mention of that sensitive name, Tobirama Senju's brows drew tightly together. The chakra around him turned cold and violent, and his stern face filled with wariness.
Before you continue