"The era of great change has arrived. The entire Ninja World—no, this whole world—will be thoroughly remade by this upheaval. Whether it rises anew from the flames or falls into the abyss will be decided this time."
Shin rose to his feet. The bamboo table before him vanished naturally, and the Sage Staff returned to his hand.
"Hashirama, I don't need you to make a choice right now. But with your wisdom, I believe you can discern the right path. When we meet again, it will determine whether we are enemies or allies. I hope it will not be the scene I foresaw."
"I'll be waiting for you in the not-too-distant future, at the prologue of that new world!"
The Sage Staff lightly tapped the ground, and ripples spread through space. The black-and-white radiance slowly faded, and heaven and earth regained their original colors. Everything returned to normal once more.
The clamor returned. Even though no one spoke, it was possible to feel that this was an entirely different world from before.
Senju Hashirama stood up, his expression calm, though something else flickered in his eyes as if he were deep in thought.
He did not ask what Shin meant by the not-too-distant future, because there was no longer any need to.
He realized that after decades of time, Shin had already opened up a dimensional gap between them. Even at the peak of his strength in life, he would have been utterly unable to shake the current Shin in the slightest.
A profound, unfathomable smile hung on Shin's face as he slowly walked up to Orochimaru. Looking at Orochimaru's conflicted expression, he lightly pressed a finger against his forehead.
The restraining Wood Style immediately dissipated. Orochimaru shuddered all over, yet felt nothing unusual. By then, Shin had already