Kurama, Come With Me, I'll Provide Food and Board

It was a pity that without the Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan, Uchiha Madara could not yet clad his Susanoo in armor to reach its Complete Body form.

At present, Uchiha Madara had only developed his Susanoo to its fourth stage.

"That is exactly my intention, Madara."

Senju Hashirama stared at Madara with a solemn expression.

This terrifying power must have been obtained from those patterned eyes.

"Ha!"

Senju Hashirama pressed his palms together and let out a fierce shout.

"Wood Release: Deep Forest Emergence."

Here it comes, the classic "name it and it appears" routine.

Uchiha Yang felt every cell in his body trembling with excitement.

The collision of these two ultimate powers was far more interesting than watching it in an anime; only by feeling the reality of the scene could one understand how truly hopeless it was to face such strength.

[Brain: As expected of Wood Release, truly powerful. The vines struggling up from the soil may look unremarkable, but they are incredibly difficult to deal with. A fine area-of-effect technique.]

[Sharingan: Hmph, Wood Release is nothing more than this. Only ultimate power is fundamental; these are just rotten pieces of wood.]

[Hand: It's panicking, the Sharingan is panicking. What I'm paying attention to isn't the power, but the technique. This ability to clap hands without weaving signs is what I should be learning.]

[Leg: Speed determines everything. I'll be responsible for running away if we can't win.]

However, Uchiha Yang could still tell that this version of Deep Forest Emergence was not yet complete.

In other words, Senju Hashirama had not yet fully awakened his Sage Body, nor did he possess Sage Mode.

This level of power was still insufficient to defeat Uchiha Madara.

As the battle grew more intense, Uchiha Madara's fighting spirit was fully ignited.

With two blue blades brimming with chakra in its hands, the Susanoo swung down, and the incoming vines were severed one after another.

Senju Hashirama was also surprised by Madara's strength; had he not awakened Wood Release himself, he might have already been defeated.

"Ha!"

With a stern look, Senju Hashirama clapped his hands together once more.

The massive, dense chakra within his body reactivated the Deep Forest Emergence. The previously sluggish forest suddenly surged to life, and a vast number of vines lashed out at Uchiha Madara again.

"Hashirama, do you still not understand the gap between us?"

"This time, I have already reached the opposite shore."

Facing the incoming vines, Uchiha Madara roared with excitement. More arms sprouted from his Susanoo, and blades manifested out of thin air.

Every swing was accompanied by a slash of blade energy, leaving countless marks across the ground.

The vines posed no threat to Uchiha Madara, who continued to advance toward Senju Hashirama.

"I have won, Hashirama."

Inside the Susanoo, Uchiha Madara looked down at Senju Hashirama and brought his blades down in a direct strike.

"Clan Leader!"

The Senju Elder and the other Senju ninja shouted in alarm.

"Excellent!"

Uchiha Sei and the others believed that the Senju clan leader was about to be slain by their own leader right there.

Only Uchiha Yang knew that Senju Hashirama still had a trump card; after all, the cunning Senju Hashirama was the type of person who could even deceive Uchiha Madara.

"Madara! The outcome is far from decided!"

The cunning Senju Hashirama shouted excitedly, clapping his hands together. "Wood Release: Wood Human Technique!"

A solemn and majestic wooden giant appeared. Senju Hashirama kept his hands pressed together, facing Uchiha Madara's attack without a hint of fear.

Several arms emerged from the wooden giant, catching the Susanoo's attack head-on.

"Long live the Clan Leader!"

Seeing their leader block the attack, the Senju ninja let out a sigh of relief and cheered excitedly.

"As expected. Everyone, stay calm."

Seeing the astonishment on the faces of the Great Elder and the others, Uchiha Yang offered a word of reassurance.

"Wood Release: Wood Dragon Technique."

At that moment, Senju Hashirama gripped his wrist with one hand and opened his palm.

A wooden dragon appeared, rapidly coiling around the wooden giant's shoulder and biting directly onto the arm of the Susanoo.

Uchiha Madara snorted in surprise, but he remained confident that his power would utterly crush Senju Hashirama.

Uchiha Madara's Mangekyou Sharingan glowed fiercely. Ignoring the drain on his ocular power, he maneuvered the Susanoo to thrust its knee forward.

The wooden giant was forced back, and Senju Hashirama scrambled to steady himself.

Uchiha Madara's attack descended once more; a single slash of his blade severed one of the Wood Golem's arms.

"Kill!!!"

Uchiha Sei was unwilling to watch his clan leader fight while he stood by as a spectator, so he led his men straight into the fray.

Their target was naturally not Senju Hashirama, but the rest of the Senju clan.

"Uchiha Sei, I've been waiting for you."

This Senju Elder was an old acquaintance of Uchiha Sei, and the two immediately clashed.

Since Uchiha Sake and the others had also joined the battle, Uchiha Kage led the Shadow Guards to Uchiha Yang's side to provide protection.

Seeing that everyone was busy, Uchiha Yang felt it would be inappropriate for him to just watch, so he set his sights on the Nine-Tails, which was still bound and pinned to the ground.

"Little Nine-Tails, I'm coming."

Uchiha Yang couldn't help but chuckle as he walked directly toward the Nine-Tails.

The Nine-Tails, who had been searching for an opening, suddenly shivered, a chill rising from the depths of its heart.

What's going on?

Never having experienced such an ominous premonition, the Nine-Tails looked around in confusion.

"Little Nine-Tails, I'm down here."

Seeing the Nine-Tails looking around aimlessly without glancing down, Uchiha Yang couldn't help but call out to remind it.

Uchiha Kage and the other Shadow Guards were startled by their master's sudden outburst and immediately assumed a defensive combat stance.

They did not fear death; they only feared failing to protect their master.

"Who gave you the nerve, ignorant human?"

Being called "Little Nine-Tails" caused the beast to fly into a rage. It swung a claw down; although the Nine-Tails could not move its body, it could still strike from where it lay.

"Little pet, that's not a very polite way to greet your master."

In an instant, the Nine-Tails' descending claw stopped abruptly right above Uchiha Yang's head.

Uchiha Kage's nerves were stretched to the breaking point, and he let out a long sigh of relief only after seeing the Nine-Tails' attack halt.

[Sharingan: You have to rely on me at critical moments. My Mangekyou Sharingan only needs a single glance to deal with a mere Tailed Beast.]

Uchiha Yang silently gave his Sharingan a thumbs-up.

Entering the Nine-Tails' mental space, Uchiha Yang looked at the beast trapped by spiritual chains and said with satisfaction, "Kurama, come with me. I'll take care of you from now on."

"How do you know my name?"

The Nine-Tails stared at this human in shock. It had initially assumed he was just an ordinary person, but it hadn't expected him to be an Uchiha clan member with the Mangekyou Sharingan.

Furthermore, its name was only known among the other Tailed Beasts; it was impossible for a human to know it.

"I just know. I don't know why, but I've taken a liking to you today. You have to come with me. From now on, I'll cover all your food and lodging."

The more Uchiha Yang looked at the Nine-Tails, the more he liked it; its fur must feel incredibly comfortable to touch.

The Nine-Tails stared at him in silence for a long time, as if it wouldn't be satisfied until it had seen through every inch of him.