As Uchiha Madara vanished, Sarutobi Hiruzen's expression slowly turned meaningful.
"Uchiha Madara."
"After being provoked like this,"
"the pace at which he gathers the Tailed Beasts will surely speed up considerably."
Sarutobi Hiruzen had never intended to take down Uchiha Madara here. Otherwise, who would toil away gathering the Tailed Beasts for him?
He was waiting to reap the rewards once the God Tree revived, using it to stimulate the purity of the Otsutsuki bloodline within him.
Suddenly, with a bang, Sarutobi Hiruzen looked into the distance.
The towering Demonic Statue of the Outer Path instantly vanished from where it stood, turning into a cloud of smoke.
Uchiha Madara must have summoned it away. With the Rinnegan, Uchiha Madara could naturally summon the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path whenever he wished.
"But I have one too."
Sarutobi Hiruzen smiled as he thought, "I wonder if, when the time comes, I can use the Rinnegan in my hand to summon the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path,"
"and snatch food from Uchiha Madara's jaws."
With his battle against Uchiha Madara temporarily at an end, Sarutobi Hiruzen did not leave. Instead, he looked toward the ground buried beneath countless vines and branches.
He had originally cleared out this entire tree world, but the vitality of Wood Release was absurdly unreasonable. During the time Sarutobi Hiruzen and Uchiha Madara had been fighting, it had recovered once more.
"Come to think of it, I can use Wood Release too. I'm just not as proficient with it as Uchiha Madara."
"After all, Uchiha Madara grew up getting beaten by Wood Release."
Sarutobi Hiruzen joked as he formed hand seals.
"Wood Release: Tree World Withering."
As the immense Chakra and life force within the trees were drained away, this shrouding tree world slowly withered. Then,