Legends and Legends

"But! This is not enough! If you want to know what my plan is, your current ability is far from sufficient! Since you claim to be some sort of successor, then show me your full power!"

Madara Uchiha's eyes shimmered with excitement.

It had been a long time since he had fought like this. The aging of his body and the dormancy required for his plan—all of it had left him feeling weary.

He formed hand seals, and a violent, chilling chakra surged rapidly from Madara Uchiha's body.

His exhilarated spirit, combined with the chakra of his arch-rival and dearest friend, caused Madara Uchiha's eyes to grow stronger by the second. Even though these were not his original eyes, the decades he had spent honing his Yin Release were not for nothing.

The patterns within his Mangekyo Sharingan spun faster and faster, while the tangible blue chakra surrounding him grew increasingly massive and formidable. It shifted from the shape of a skeleton into the form of flesh and blood, and then, armor began to sprout!

"--Let me see just how much of Hashirama's essence you truly possess!"

A wild laugh hung on Madara Uchiha's face. Although he loathed the Ninja System, there was one point he deeply agreed with.

A ninja should die on the battlefield. Unless one could completely end the wars of this world, dying while sitting or lying down was nothing but a disgrace!

"Then it seems that only by showing you power equal to, or even exceeding your own, can we truly have a conversation."

In truth, Li Ke did not really want to fight Madara Uchiha. Madara was, at his core, a man who had been manipulated, only to fall into despair due to the perceived betrayal of his dearest friend and the future he had foreseen.

Every action Madara Uchiha took was, in reality, a desperate struggle born of despair.

Therefore, Li Ke, having awakened his Link Power, wanted to communicate with Madara Uchiha.

After all, if he could gain Madara Uchiha's assistance, unifying the entire Ninja World would be much easier.

Whether he, Li Ke, became Hokage or not was actually of little consequence to him.

His goal in becoming Hokage was simply to end the village system, but—

"Now is the time to show my power!"

The Mangekyo in Li Ke's eyes spun rapidly as well. Vast amounts of chakra were quickly converted into ocular power. The Wood Golem beneath him was suddenly clad in layers of armor, its form expanding rapidly.

Not only that, but at this moment, the Wood Golem swung its fist toward Madara Uchiha's Susanoo!

Madara Uchiha did not speak again; instead, he manipulated his Susanoo to swing its own fist in response.

The two massive fists collided, and the violent shockwave instantly blew away the soil, rocks, and trees surrounding them. The raging gale even affected birds a thousand meters away, disrupting the flight paths of countless flocks.

The intense tremors made Li Ke feel a wave of nausea, but under the stimulation of the endless Sage chakra and Hashirama Senju's chakra, his body was rapidly adapting to the sensation, and his chakra reserves were continuously rising.

Thus, in the next moment, Li Ke pressed his palms together. A massive amount of Sage chakra surged into the Wood Golem beneath him. The violent Sage chakra instantly caused a wooden longsword to sprout from the Golem's waist, and the moment the Golem drew the blade, a layer of purple chakra coated it!

"Haaah!!"

Madara Uchiha realized what was happening. He drew the longsword held by his Susanoo, and it clashed fiercely with the blade wielded by Li Ke's Wood Golem!

Violent chakra collided once more, the clouds in the sky affected by the impact of the strike, and a raging storm began to form around the two of them!

Yet, amidst this world-shattering attack, the two blades remained deadlocked. Madara Uchiha stared at him with cold, piercing eyes.

"Is this the power you stole from Izuna? You brat! You are still far from enough! I knew it—as long as that fellow Senju Tobirama was still active, he would cook up a bunch of disgusting things!"

His ocular power grew even stronger due to the Mangekyo power Li Ke had displayed.

But—

"Apologies, but I believe the power of Lord Izuna is also important. It is the power of Konoha Village."

Blood tears streamed from the corners of Li Ke's eyes. The next moment, the chakra blade in the Wood Golem's hand ignited with a layer of black flames, and under the effect of the Dojutsu Kagutsuchi, a scorching blade edge rapidly formed upon the chakra sword!

"Senju and Uchiha, Hyuga and Sarutobi, Ino-Shika-Cho and the Aburame Clan—Konoha Village, composed of ninja and ninja, is what makes it Konoha. It cannot function if even one is missing. So, at this very moment, what I show you—"

To Madara Uchiha's shock, one of Li Ke's eyes rapidly shifted into the appearance of a Byakugan.

However, this time, because of the Sage chakra within his body, this Byakugan of Li Ke's was flickering with a brilliant white light!

"—is the power of Konoha Village!"

In the next instant, flames, gales, water currents, lightning, and earthen rivers materialized out of thin air.

Five Release: Great Barrage Technique!

Madara Uchiha watched as five clusters of chakra—each possessing both nature and shape transformation—appeared out of nowhere, without a single hand seal or trace of a technique, rushing toward him from all directions. The excitement in his eyes grew ever more intense!

"Not enough!"

He swung his longsword in a flash. Madara Uchiha intended to use his strike and his invincible Susanoo to instantly obliterate every single attack!

But—

A Flying Thunder God Mark appeared abruptly on his chest. Before he could react, the Susanoo surrounding him vanished instantly!

"Wha—"

There was no time to think, for in the next moment, shadows instantly bound his entire body, forcing him to face the overwhelming Five Release barrage and the chakra blade coated in the flames of Amaterasu with his own physical form!

Violent roars and flashes of light exploded across the mountain range. The highlands, where countless Konoha and Stone Village ninja had once fought and slaughtered one another, were completely blasted apart in that instant.

This was a scene beyond the imagination of any conventional ninja; for them, it was a battlefield of pure, mythical power!

They did not immediately conceive that the earth-shaking tremors were the result of a battle between two ninja; they simply assumed it was yet another natural disaster erupting.

Not a single person believed that this was merely a battle between two individuals!

Not one!

However, Li Ke, the culprit behind all this, was not having an easy time. After manipulating the smoke and dust to clear the surrounding haze, he couldn't help but drop to one knee, trying to alleviate the dizziness brought on by his recent use of his eyes and the weakness caused by the massive, instantaneous consumption of chakra.

Yes, even though natural energy was being continuously converted into chakra by his body, the sheer volume of chakra being channeled at once—much like the combat memories Hashirama Senju had passed on—left Li Ke severely unaccustomed.

To put it simply, if Li Ke's previous chakra output was like turning on a standard faucet, then using Hashirama Senju's chakra was like a dam opening its floodgates. Any ordinary ninja would die a thousand times over just trying to learn from him for a single second.

"Hoo... ha, ha, ha..."

He panted heavily, but Li Ke knew that Madara Uchiha was not dead. Although he had been caught off guard by his own dojutsu, his Byakugan saw it clearly: the moment his attack landed, Madara Uchiha's body had vanished.

He had been killed, yet he had disappeared.

This sight told Li Ke exactly what Madara Uchiha had done to display such a youthful form and such violent power at a time like this.

Izanagi.

The ultimate ninjutsu of the Uchiha Clan.

An ultimate genjutsu performed at the cost of sacrificing a Sharingan, it erased all unfavorable factors, even death itself.

It was truly the most shameless technique in existence.

"But I didn't expect it could even briefly suppress aging..."

Watching the youthful face of Madara Uchiha gradually reveal itself amidst the smoke, Li Ke formed seals once more, striking the pose for Wood Release.

"Not bad. In this era where Hashirama is dead, I am willing to call your Wood Release the strongest! But it is clear you still do not know the true power of the Uchiha Clan!"

As the gale dissipated, Madara Uchiha stood unscathed, his eyes narrowing as he looked at Li Ke's two different eyes.

"Wood Release, Byakugan, and Sharingan... Evil Senju Tobirama, is this the product of your plan?!"

His eyes were filled with rage; at this moment, Li Ke had become, in his eyes, the product of Lord Tobirama's secret experiments!

He knew it! Nothing good ever happened while that wretch Senju Tobirama was alive!

"What kind of nonsense are you spouting! Madara Uchiha!"

Lord Tobirama took direct control of Li Ke's mouth to curse, then spoke to Li Ke.

"Kid! Use Shadow Clone! A bastard who has lived in hiding and schemed all this time dares to say such things to me! You and I will join forces! I'll show him the power of our Mutual Instantaneous Revolving Technique!"

The usually calm Lord Tobirama seemed to undergo a total personality shift whenever he encountered Madara Uchiha, and upon hearing Lord Tobirama's voice, the Mangekyo Sharingan spinning in Madara Uchiha's eyes became even more formidable!

Feeling that surge of power, Li Ke felt speechless, even though he knew this strength wouldn't last.

The Senju Clan spent so much effort to suppress the Uchiha Clan back then—that definitely had something to do with your mouth, didn't it, Second Hokage?

Of course, he didn't dare say this aloud, lest Lord Tobirama make his life a living hell in his dreams later.

Fortunately, the next moment, Hashirama Senju spoke up.

"Alright, alright, Tobirama, don't be like that. This is Qingtan's battle; we cannot interfere."

However, the moment Hashirama Senju spoke, Madara Uchiha's chakra surged once again!

No! Are you two brothers buffing the enemy?!

As Li Ke stood there, completely bewildered, Madara Uchiha spoke up in annoyance as well.

"Hashirama! You intend to let this brat fight me? His abilities are decent, but his experience is far too lacking! Even if he managed to kill me once, in the face of Uchiha power, this is nowhere near enough!"

Madara Uchiha revealed a savage grin. At this moment, he could fully summon the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path and the Three-Tails, using the Tailed Beast chakra to extend his life and bolster his own reserves.

Furthermore, these Tailed Beasts could contend for the natural energy Li Ke was constantly absorbing, leaving Li Ke with insufficient chakra to maintain Sage Mode.

As for the plan?

What plan?

If he couldn't eliminate Li Ke, then no plan would be of any use!

As long as Li Ke lived—wielding the power of the Byakugan, Sharingan, Wood Release, and Flying Raijin—the Eye of the Moon Plan would never be completed if he were to die!

In just three years, this child's chakra would grow to match what he and Hashirama had in their youth. If one added that bizarre Sage Mode—which reminded him of the Tailed Beasts—this kid alone could end the era of ninja villages! He could end this chaotic world!

Madara Uchiha thought this through seriously, then paused in a daze.

Did he just use honorifics for me the whole time? This kid...

The sharp-witted Madara Uchiha noticed something and couldn't help but size Li Ke up, holding back from launching an attack.

Li Ke also circulated his chakra again, ready to counterattack at any moment.

"My apologies, Lord Tobirama, Lord Madara, but this is indeed my battle!"

Looking at Madara Uchiha with a serious expression, Li Ke knew clearly that while he was strong now, it might not last. He could feel a peculiar type of chakra present in both Madara Uchiha and Hashirama Senju.

The moment Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha met, the strange chakra on Hashirama Senju constantly acted upon his body, causing it to change rapidly and enhancing his power.

Once these two separated, or once Hashirama Senju's chakra left him, the influence of this special chakra would vanish.

Therefore, he wanted to push his limits now and exert the power of this chakra as much as possible!

However, Madara Uchiha did not attack immediately. Instead, wasting the precious time of his Izanagi, he scrutinized Li Ke carefully before speaking.

"You are called Murata Qingtan, right... I remember one of my sisters married into your family... In that case, it is no surprise that you possess these powers..."

Madara Uchiha recalled the Murata surname. In fact, because the charcoal produced by the Murata Clan was highly effective in helping the Uchiha Clan increase the power of their Fire Release, they had maintained a very good relationship for hundreds of years.

It's just that this clan maintains good relations with every other clan; when the various clans are locked in conflict, they all tacitly agree not to touch this minor clan that refuses to participate in the struggle for hegemony, even occasionally offering them protection.

There are actually quite a few such minor clans, but he never expected that a descendant of one could truly awaken so many Bloodline Limits at once!

And so, Madara Uchiha asked the question he most wanted to know the answer to.

What exactly is the reason this brat, who has awakened such immense power, fights?

"So, brat, if you were to become Hokage, what would you do?"

Li Ke spoke decisively.

"End the era of ninjas, abolish the system of hidden villages, kill all who oppose me, wipe out all the Daimyo and every privileged class and armed force other than ninjas, and completely unify this world!"

Hashirama Senju: "Eh?"

Madara Uchiha: "Eh?"