Brotherhood

This much is evident every time someone possesses his body; his strength suddenly surges, and he gains all sorts of strange powers.

Previously, he hadn't been this proficient with Wood Release, but once Hashirama Senju possessed him, his use of Wood Release suddenly became exceptionally effortless.

If one were to reference the logic of the Type-Moon World, the possession of a "Heroic Spirit" increases the user's talent, but once they depart...

"I don't know how much of this bonus will remain after Hashirama Senju and Senju Tobirama leave. Still... I always feel mine is different. The talent boost from Type-Moon Heroic Spirit possession shouldn't just randomly manifest new powers."

Li Ke wasn't particularly worried about this; even without the bonus, as his body grew, he would still be able to crush these people.

"I just need to see if I can summon Madara Uchiha."

And so, while Senju Tobirama continued to rush toward Rin Nohara, Li Ke spoke up.

"Lord Hashirama, I would like to summon Lord Madara Uchiha to have a chat. Could you lend me some chakra?"

Hashirama Senju froze for a moment, then fell into deep thought.

"I suppose I can, but can your body hold up? Qingtan, your body already carries too many Bloodline Limits. It's fine now while you have our chakra, but if our chakra were gone, could your body withstand it?"

Bloodline Limits are both power and a burden; many people cannot bear the power of their own Bloodline Limit and die young from illness, which is why Hashirama Senju was so concerned.

"Indeed, Qingtan. There is no need for you to take such risks for your future. Don't forget, your body sustained quite a few injuries earlier; if it weren't for me, you would already be dead."

Senju Tobirama also began to dissuade him.

"Seeking power is a good thing, but if it exceeds the limits of your own body, it is not a good thing at all."

Li Ke agreed with this point; if he didn't have the Shared Space, he would certainly stop here.

After all, he didn't really need the power of the Sharingan; he could just keep developing his Byakugan. He hadn't even fully adapted to the power of his Byakugan yet, so why covet other powers?

But he did have it.

"But I still want to try, Lord First, Lord Second. My ideals require me to have this kind of courage."

Senju Tobirama and Hashirama Senju both fell silent for a while, and finally, it was Hashirama Senju who spoke.

"Very well, just remember to be careful."

The moment he finished speaking, Senju Tobirama roared out.

"Brother!"

"It's fine, Tobirama. We must trust the people of the future."

"..."

Senju Tobirama said no more, only rushing even faster toward Rin Nohara's location.

Li Ke immediately began to chant, using Hashirama Senju's chakra as a sacrifice to activate his talent once again.

"O creator of Konoha, you who see through the hypocrisy of the Ninja World, please come to my side! I, along with the ninja named Hashirama Senju, have matters to discuss with you!"

Li Ke wanted to talk to Madara Uchiha. If he could stop being so obsessed, and they could work together to fight the Otsutsuki Clan, the Ninja World would have far fewer problems.

After all, when it came to opposing the Otsutsuki Clan, Madara Uchiha was a force worth winning over.

But—

"Rejected?"

Li Ke clearly felt a sense of rejection, but it was very subtle. He felt that he could, perhaps, maybe...

Consume more chakra to drag the other party down?

"Is it an issue with the Type-Moon talent, or is it my own problem?"

Li Ke didn't know, but he intended to try.

And so, Li Ke consumed a massive amount of his own chakra and poured it into his summoning talent!

The next moment, the chakra that had been clashing earlier appeared within Li Ke's body! And at this very moment, Madara Uchiha's angry voice rang in Li Ke's ears.

"You brat! Didn't I already reject you!? You really are Tobirama's disciple!"

In the Mind Space, Madara Uchiha glared at Li Ke with ill intent. Li Ke sensed his own chakra; although it was only half left due to these three great figures, given Madara Uchiha's attitude, Li Ke decided to push himself a little further.

But just then, in the Mind Space he had never entered before, Madara Uchiha's eyes suddenly formed the Rinnegan, marked by countless concentric circles!

The Rinnegan, the Sage's eyes, the most important element in all of Madara Uchiha's plans. While in the world of the living, he had given his eyes away to carry out his schemes, but in his state as a dead soul, he could manifest these eyes directly!

Hashirama Senju wanted to play the peacemaker. Although he had been determined to kill Madara Uchiha just a moment ago, that was because Madara Uchiha wanted to destroy humanity, but now they could have a proper conversation again.

"Well, Madara, Qingtan has something to tell you. Besides, strictly speaking, Qingtan is my disciple, and your attitude toward Tobirama..."

Before he could finish, Madara Uchiha glared at him in fury, and Senju Tobirama, who was currently controlling Li Ke's body, also glared at Hashirama Senju.

"Hashirama, shut your mouth!"

"Brother, shut your mouth! It was I who taught Qingtan more!"

Berated by both of them, Hashirama Senju immediately crouched down in the Mind Space, turning his back to them, hugging his knees, and wallowing in self-pity.

"I'm sorry, I really am annoying..."

Seeing this depressed display, neither Senju Tobirama nor Madara Uchiha wanted to speak, but after glancing at each other, both found the other utterly disgusting.

"Hmph... It seems this brat's Yin Release level is truly pathetic. Senju Tobirama! Our grudge..."

As he spoke, Li Ke hurriedly recited his shortened summoning incantation to perform his own summon.

"...The one Madara Uchiha loves most, and the one who loves Madara Uchiha most, please come to my side."

Thus, just as Madara Uchiha was limbering up to lay hands on Senju Tobirama, another figure appeared on the scene.

"Senju Tobirama! You bastard, don't think you can sweet-talk me with words like that! Eh? Big Brother! You're here too! That's great!"

The moment Izuna Uchiha appeared, he began cursing Senju Tobirama at the top of his lungs, only to then catch sight of his older brother, Madara Uchiha.

Madara Uchiha froze, his chakra radiating a flurry of emotions, but a smile immediately broke across his face.

"Ah, Izuna, you've come at just the right time. Now we can properly settle the score with Senju Tobirama!"

Senju Tobirama: "..."

Senju Tobirama sensed Li Ke's chakra and felt a bit stifled, convinced that Li Ke was doing this purely to retaliate for the time he had used Li Ke's Bloodline Limit to beat Li Ke to a pulp in a dream.

He had only done that a few times, after all—was there any need to be so petty?

Fortunately, his big brother was always his big brother; as the Uchiha brothers were about to make their move, he hurriedly stood up.

"Now, now, Qingtan said he wanted to have a proper talk, why resort to violence?"

Madara Uchiha let out a cold snort.

"Hmph, I have nothing to talk about with such a naive brat! However, for the sake of him defeating me once, I don't mind hearing what kind of joke he has to tell!"

Yet, even as he spoke, he rested a hand on Izuna Uchiha's shoulder, his eyes filled with nostalgia.

You're clearly just happy because you saw your brother!

Li Ke, Hashirama Senju, and Senju Tobirama all thought in unison.

But Li Ke was feeling rather uncomfortable now; after summoning Izuna Uchiha, he only had one-fifth of his chakra left.

Furthermore, his body was overcome by an uncomfortable, overflowing sensation. His eyes, too, were becoming increasingly painful, as if they were shifting toward some other state.

However—

His body could still hold out, but Li Ke didn't intend to maintain this state indefinitely; in fact, he didn't even plan on keeping Senju Tobirama and Hashirama Senju around.

Because he was someone who had to fight his own battles.

So, after a moment's thought, he spoke up immediately.

"Lord Madara, Lord Izuna, I only wish to discuss your plan with you."

As Li Ke's voice fell, the entire Mind Space went quiet, but Madara Uchiha squinted at the space above, unable to help himself.

"To possess the power of the Mangekyo Sharingan and yet not even know how to enter the Mind Space?! What a foolish and arrogant brat! Do you expect me to look up just to converse with you?!"

As he finished, his ocular power surged, and the next moment, Li Ke felt his consciousness abruptly enter a pure white space, where he saw Senju Tobirama, Madara Uchiha, and the others in the middle of forming hand seals.

Moreover, because Madara Uchiha's movements were slow, he directly grasped the technique.

"Mm... thank you, Lord Madara."

But Madara Uchiha merely snorted coldly and turned his head away.

"Hmph, I just didn't want to see you wasting the power of the Uchiha!"

Seeing him like this, Li Ke, who had already secured Madara Uchiha's power, retorted mercilessly.

"Lord Madara, being a tsundere doesn't suit a man at all, you know."

He had wanted to say that about the Uchiha Clan for a long time!

Senju Tobirama immediately broke into a wild grin, while the Uchiha brothers glared with wide eyes, and Izuna Uchiha lunged straight at Li Ke.

"How dare you insult my big brother!"

However, with a single thought from Li Ke, Izuna Uchiha was instantly frozen in place. Madara Uchiha sensed something was wrong and tried to strike, but he too was frozen in place by Li Ke in an instant.

If it weren't for the fact that these people drained his chakra, Li Ke would have really liked to keep Madara Uchiha locked inside his body forever; that way, even if he couldn't find the Rinnegan, Black Zetsu wouldn't be able to cause much trouble.

But unfortunately, it wasn't necessary.

He could defeat Madara Uchiha once, and he could defeat him again!

"Everything about those I summon is under my control. Lord Madara, while I cannot order you to help me, I can certainly control your chakra."

Following Li Ke's voice, Madara Uchiha's eyes turned icy.

"Release Izuna, you brat... what exactly are you trying to do?"

To him, if he were to be controlled by Li Ke indefinitely, he might as well be dead.

"What I want to say is, Lord Madara, your plan has a massive flaw. Do you truly intend to destroy humanity? To let humanity perish? After all, humans controlled by genjutsu cannot continue to reproduce or eat."

Madara Uchiha snorted coldly.

"You underestimate me, and you underestimate the power of the Uchiha. Of course I have thought of such things. I only need to use the Tailed Beast chakra to sustain the human body, and humans can live forever without eating or drinking. As for the next generation, I will manipulate those who still love each other within the Tsukuyomi Space to bear children, and these children's Tsukuyomi Spaces will be linked together until they grow up."

He certainly wouldn't do something as foolish as destroying humanity in order to save it; he was Madara Uchiha, not an idiot!

"That sounds seamless indeed. So, did you come up with this plan yourself, or did you rely on someone else's idea?"

Li Ke asked again, and Madara Uchiha paused, choosing not to hide it. After all, he had mentioned this to Hashirama Senju before, and he disdained to lie.

"It is a carving of the Uchiha Clan, bearing the maxims left behind by the Six Paths Sage..."

"Then how can you be certain that it was truly left by the Six Paths Sage? And how can you be sure that the vessel you use to house the Tailed Beast chakra won't turn into some terrifying monster?"

Madara Uchiha did not care in the slightest, even letting out a disdainful snort.

"Of course I have looked into it. The Demonic Statue of the Outer Path is merely a tool devoid of self-awareness; it could never develop a sense of self. Besides, why should I answer such questions from a brat like you here?"

Madara Uchiha was quite dissatisfied with this. He felt it was bizarre to be answering questions from someone who had defeated him at a time and place like this, yet Li Ke had indeed asked the most critical question.

"Then, Lord Madara, why was this technique not used during the era of the Six Paths Sage? If everything you say is correct, these techniques should have already appeared in his time. Why did the Six Paths Sage not use them, and why are there no legends passed down to this day? Or perhaps the Six Paths Sage did not approve of such jutsu? But if he did not approve, why would he leave such techniques behind? Lord Madara, there is a great deal of logic here that simply does not hold up."

This question from Li Ke left Madara Uchiha completely stunned, but at that moment, Senju Tobirama, glaring with a pair of Mangekyo Sharingan, landed beside Rin Nohara.

Facing the ninjas who served as the Kirigakure Village Anbu and Sealing Squad, a look of slight excitement appeared on his face, and he pressed his palms together.

Wood Release: Deep Forest Emergence!

In an instant, the Mist Shinobi who had been controlling the Three-Tails were engulfed by countless massive trees. In that same moment, the Three-Tails, having broken free from its control, was just about to roar and send this group of ninjas away with a Tailed Beast Bomb when it saw Li Ke, who was wearing a wicked grin and had activated his Mangekyo Sharingan!

Or to be more precise, it was Senju Tobirama wearing that wicked grin as he activated the Mangekyo Sharingan!

The Three-Tails froze in place instantly, and Senju Tobirama proceeded to directly manipulate the Wood Release, covering the body of the Three-Tails. He even took advantage of the unique properties of Li Ke's body to enter Sage Mode, draining the Three-Tails' chakra while roaring in an excited tone.

"Wood Release: Wood Golem Technique!"

The Mist Shinobi were thrown into complete disarray, unable to offer any resistance as they were bound by the Wood Release and drained of their chakra. The Three-Tails was also pinned firmly beneath the Wood Golem, and countless sealing runes and sage arts descended upon its body.

With Rin Nohara looking on in utter bewilderment, the majority of the plot of Naruto was easily brought to an end by Li Ke, who was possessed by a Spirit Tool!

"As expected, this feeling..."

Within the Mind Space, where no one was paying attention to the outside world while he interrogated Madara Uchiha, the Second Hokage Senju Tobirama, who was controlling Li Ke's body and wantonly unleashing various Bloodline Limits, felt the corners of his mouth curl upward.

"...is simply magnificent!"