The Wrath of God

"I have already used these eyes to see the true path to peace!"

The Wood Dragon slowly descended to the ground, standing in a standoff against the Nine-Tails: "Is the peace you speak of nothing more than the destruction of the village?"

Madara Uchiha revealed a look of disdain at these words: "I was too naive back then, which is why I wanted to build a so-called village with you."

The massive body of the Nine-Tails had already risen above the clouds, and Madara could now clearly see the bright moon.

"That is why I must kill the naive version of myself from the past with my own hands!"

Without a moment's hesitation, Madara controlled the Nine-Tails to launch an attack!

Sharp claws swiped toward the Wood Dragon, leaving deep gashes in its body with just a single strike!

"Madara, are you really going to destroy everything we worked so hard to build!"

Madara Uchiha remained silent, offering no reply, while Hashirama seemed to have made up his mind, the confusion on his face vanishing.

The Nine-Tails opened its giant maw, releasing blue and red chakra that fused together to form a black-purple sphere!

This was the signature jutsu of the Tailed Beasts: the Tailed Beast Bomb!

The Nine-Tails spat the Tailed Beast Bomb, which shot toward Hashirama! The moment it collided with the Wood Dragon, the creature shattered into countless wooden splinters!

"Wood Release: Wood Human Technique!"

Just as the Tailed Beast Bomb pierced through the head of the Wood Dragon and prepared to fly further into the distance.

A wooden tumor protruded from the body of the Wood Dragon, instantly transforming into a wooden giant with a mouth full of fangs!

The immensely powerful Tailed Beast Bomb was caught barehanded by the Wood Human, who then slammed it into the face of the Nine-Tails!

But just as the strike was about to land! Blue, bone-like armor suddenly appeared over the head of the Nine-Tails!

The Tailed Beast Bomb struck the armor, creating a violent explosion so vast that it destroyed more than half of the surrounding forest!

The nearby Konoha was also affected by the Tailed Beast Bomb, though not severely; only the village walls were cracked, with no casualties reported.

As rubble and wood chips danced in the air and the smoke cleared, Madara Uchiha stood atop the head of the Nine-Tails.

Having activated his Susanoo, he remained completely unharmed, while Hashirama stood unscathed behind a series of mask-like wooden shields.

"Wood Release: Wood Shield Technique, is it?" Madara Uchiha muttered.

Seeing the scene before him, Hashirama's eyes were filled with resolve, yet a smile touched his lips: "Wrapping the Susanoo around a Tailed Beast? What a truly remarkable idea!"

The entire Nine-Tails was now completely encased in the Susanoo, wielding two giant katanas in its hands!

Without a word, it swung down with a blade!

Hashirama stepped forward and clapped his hands together: "Wood Release: Wood Hand Technique!"

A pair of giant wooden hands firmly caught the blade swung by the Nine-Tails!

Then, more wooden hands erupted from the crater created by the Tailed Beast Bomb, reaching out from all directions to grab the Nine-Tails.

But with a single swing, the Nine-Tails severed all the wooden hands, and in an instant, the sky was filled with flying splinters and wooden debris.

Hashirama leaped about, searching for a suitable place to land: This place is too close to the village; I must lead him away!

He then began to run toward the distance, and thinking that Hashirama was trying to flee, Madara Uchiha controlled the Nine-Tails to give chase.

By the time they reached a large river, Madara Uchiha finally lost his patience, controlling the Nine-Tails to unleash a Tailed Beast Bomb while in pursuit!

He then fused the katana formed by the Susanoo into the Tailed Beast Bomb! A massive sphere brimming with destructive energy slowly began to brew.

"You won't be able to block this one, Hashirama!"

The Tailed Beast Bomb shot forth, turning everything in its path into dust with its overwhelming energy!

Even Senju Hashirama, known as the God of Shinobi, appeared incredibly small in the face of such a jutsu.

Hashirama sensed the danger behind him, and by now, he was far enough away from the village.

He bit his finger and slammed his palm onto the ground: "Summoning: Fivefold Rashomon!"

The ground in front of Hashirama shook violently, and a gate resembling a hellish demon rose from the earth.

The other four gates emerged from the ground one after another!

The battlefield was thick with smoke, and Hashirama's long hair whipped in the wind as the Tailed Beast Bomb pierced through the Fivefold Rashomon in an instant!

However, its trajectory was altered, passing by Hashirama's side and slamming directly into the land on the opposite bank!

A violent explosion followed, covering an area the size of Konoha, instantly erasing all the trees and land in its wake!

"To use the Rashomon to change the trajectory of a Tailed Beast Bomb—you truly are worthy of your reputation, Hashirama!"

Though his words were of praise, his expression remained devoid of joy or sorrow, making it impossible to tell what he was truly thinking.

"Everything we have worked for up until now! Do you really want it all to go to waste! Madara!"

Even at this stage, Hashirama was still trying to awaken the gentleness that once resided in Madara; he knew Madara's character, and he knew how much Madara had once loved Konoha.

"At this point! What is the point of saying all this!"

Beneath his feet, the Nine-Tails let out a ferocious roar, and Madara, who had been expressionless, suddenly seemed to fly into a rage: "Hashirama! I have already reached the other side!"

"There is no other way!"

Hashirama clapped his hands together, and the markings symbolizing Sage Mode instantly appeared on his face: "Wood Release: True Several Thousand..."

Just as both men prepared to fight with all their might, a majestic voice seemed to drift down from the horizon: "Those who cause such clamor shall be punished."

The voice was cold and detached, yet it stirred an involuntary sense of awe in their hearts; for a moment, Hashirama and Madara could not discern where it originated.

Both men ceased their movements, yet the feeling of awe in their hearts grew increasingly intense, until it finally began to curdle into fear.

Madara Uchiha muttered in disbelief: "Ridiculous, how could I, Madara Uchiha, feel fear?"

Before he could speak again, a massive white sword carved with strange patterns tore through the clouds, carrying the power of world-ending destruction like a punishment sent by the gods, and descended upon Madara Uchiha!

The high-speed descent caused the tip of the giant sword to ignite with raging flames, as if it could incinerate all the filth in the world!

"What is this!" Madara Uchiha roared as he stared at the giant sword plummeting from the sky!

Hashirama was also dumbfounded, for he could clearly sense the power of this jutsu! It was absolutely beyond anything he could compare to!

As the giant sword continued its descent, the fear in Madara's heart grew heavier, as if it were dragging him into a bottomless abyss.

Hashirama, however, felt as though he had seen this sword somewhere before, but at such a critical juncture, he simply could not recall where!

"Get out of the way! Madara!"

As if awakened by Hashirama's shout, Madara's body, stiffened by fear, finally began to move.

But the sheer size of the sword exceeded Madara's imagination; even if he controlled the Nine-Tails to run at full speed, he could not escape the range of the attack!

"How could I! Just die here like this!"

Madara Uchiha leaped up in a fit of rage! The Susanoo detached completely from the Nine-Tails.

Madara himself activated the Complete Body Susanoo, and as a giant, he looked up at the falling sword, finally understanding the meaning of helplessness.

His hands, tightly gripping the Gunbai and the scythe, trembled slightly.

"The sword is constantly absorbing the clouds, growing larger..."

At this moment, Madara, even in his Complete Body Susanoo, looked like nothing more than an ant before the giant sword.

He could not even conceive of a thought to resist it.

Just then, several white chains suddenly appeared from the horizon, shooting toward the Nine-Tails!

In an instant, they wrapped around the Nine-Tails, and as the chains tightened, the beast was dragged up into the sky, vanishing into the clouds.

And the 'god's' punishment descended upon the earth at that very moment, allowing the weak lives below to feel the 'god's' wrath for the first time.