Senju VS Uchiha: The First Time (4)

Tobirama frowned after hearing Hashirama's words, yet he instinctively chose to believe that this rescue mission was not a conspiracy by the Uchiha clan.

"No! No! I must go and follow Father to see for myself!"

Hashirama was deeply worried and had no heart to head toward the Uzumaki clan. He spoke to Tobirama and Aihara.

"At this hour!"

Butsuma had departed over an hour ago. Given his speed, it was impossible for them to catch up in such a short time. Moreover, they were not alone; they had their guest, Uzumaki Aihara, with them. Bringing a guest onto the battlefield was hardly polite.

"It is fine. It is only natural for you two brothers to be concerned for your father and wish to confirm his safety. Besides, I do not believe Lord Zongzuo is in such a rush that he cannot wait a day or two."

Uzumaki Aihara seemed to notice the awkwardness between Hashirama and Tobirama and quickly offered an explanation.

"Thank you, Brother Aihara!"

Hashirama showed an apologetic smile and thanked him.

"Hehehe!"

Uzumaki Aihara shook his head and said nothing more. The three of them turned and began to chase rapidly in the direction where Senju Butsuma had led his troops.

Tianling Valley was a remote, desolate, and rarely visited valley located among the steep mountains between the Land of Fire and the Land of Rivers. The valley was flanked by steep cliffs on three sides, and the rock faces were incredibly slick; even with chakra covering one's feet, one had to walk with extreme caution. Coupled with the strong natural winds within the valley, traversing the mountainside was a difficult task. On those precipitous cliffs, Madara, Mingye, and Izuna had fully prepared everything. Beside the three of them stood an old man, trembling so violently that it seemed a slightly stronger gust of wind would blow him into the sky.

"You can only hope that the person you chose can truly trade his life for the injury of Senju Hashirama. Otherwise, not only will I kill all those we promised to give you, but I will also wipe out your entire clan!"

Mingye turned his head, his eyes indifferent and cold. His ruthless response caused the old man to sigh. The old man looked up at Mingye and said, "I have never doubted that he would fail. However, are you lords truly willing to let us go?"

Mingye looked at the old man with disdain and mocked him after he finished speaking.

"The families of the Haguro clan, along with the Togakushi clan—over seventy women and children in total. If you truly drive the dagger we gave you into the leader of the Senju clan who has come today, then you will be under the protection of our Uchiha clan. Rest assured, I have never gone back on my word."

Madara, who had been standing to the side in silence, finally could not hold back. Although he loathed Mingye's underhanded tactics, he knew that because Mingye was his younger brother, scolding him would not necessarily make him stop. He wanted to seek a fair duel with Hashirama instead.

"Third Brother, isn't this going a bit too far? Do you still not believe that I can defeat Senju Hashirama?"

Mingye raised an eyebrow and looked at Madara, feeling somewhat speechless. Everything had been settled yesterday, yet Madara, with his immense pride, could not get over that hurdle and was bringing it up again. Mingye replied with growing impatience.

"Big Brother, I have said it before: your fighting will only make this world more chaotic. You possess unparalleled power, but your talent and strength are not meant for brawling; they are meant for you to save the world. Stop throwing a tantrum. The poison on my dagger will not kill Hashirama. Won't it be fine if you just capture him alive? Our goal has never been to kill Hashirama—though, of course, if we could kill him, that wouldn't be a wrong choice either!"

Izuna also did not want Madara and Mingye to have a falling out. A battle that could be won easily was being made three or four times more difficult by Madara, which clearly did not serve their interests. The duel between Hashirama and Madara was truly meaningless.

"Third Brother is right. Big Brother, I know you want to settle the score with Hashirama, but in the three or four battles you two had three years ago, didn't you end in a draw? And didn't you already beat him in Okayama this time? Why are you still hung up on this?"

Madara was cornered by his two brothers and did not know what to say. Helpless, he could only hold firm to his heart and make a final plea to them.

"That time, Hashirama was poisoned by Third Brother, which is why I was able to win so easily. I want a real, genuine battle!"

Mingye looked at Madara and sighed inwardly. Perhaps the current Madara was not yet the true "demon," but merely a powerhouse yearning for the pinnacle of the ninja path—or perhaps a martial arts fanatic. However, Madara's abilities were far inferior to Senju Hashirama's. After all, there was still a terrifying existence lurking in the shadows of this world: the Sage of Six Paths.

That old man appeared at the very end of the manga. Could one dare say he was dead? Could one dare say he was a true, immortal deity? No, one dared not say anything. What was the purpose of the Sage of Six Paths' existence? Even after reading the entire manga, Mingye had no clue. The idea that chakra after death could silently protect the world—such nonsense was only believed when the manga was just a manga. When the world of the manga became reality, anyone who still believed the words of the Sage of Six Paths from the pages was a fool. Clearly, Mingye had no intention of being that kind of fool. This was the real reason why Mingye desperately wanted to prevent a war between Hashirama and Madara; his arrival had already changed the plot of this world.

If he let history return to its original manga trajectory, then what was the purpose of his coming to this world? Was it just to be a spectator? To watch his younger brother die, to lose his eyes upon waking, and to never hear his mother's laughter again? To return home after three years of bitter cultivation only to see his father's death? If he didn't change the trajectory, in the coming years, he would have to witness the death of his second brother, Izuna, watch Konoha be established, see the Uchiha clan kept like dogs by Senju Tobirama, and then witness the death of his eldest brother, Madara. How could that be? If that were the outcome, Mingye would rather draw his blade and end it all now, turning into dust rather than look back at the cold, heartless nature of this world.

"Let everything end with today's battle!" After two hours of forced marching without a moment of rest, Senju Butsuma led the elite ninjas of the Senju clan to the entrance of Tianling Valley. Looking at the silent woods all around, Butsuma felt a chill run down his spine for no apparent reason. A strong wind blew, causing him to shake his head and mock himself for being cowardly. He then looked at the Kurohabaki ninja leading the way behind him and asked, "Is this where your clan's territory is?"

A ninja with an ordinary appearance stepped out from the crowd behind Butsuma, took off the pack he was carrying, and squatted down in front of Butsuma. While fiddling with the frame inside the pack, he said to Butsuma, "Yes, my Lord. Please wait a moment, I will use a secret technique to summon our clan leader! Because we fear being discovered by the Uchiha clan, we dare not even step out of this valley! I hope you will not take offense, my Lord."

"It is fine! I understand your predicament. This time, it shall be considered my... Pfft!"

Butsuma sympathized with the man's words and stood to the side, observing the environment of Tianling Valley. Just as he was about to say something more, the ninja squatting on the ground suddenly turned and launched a surprise attack on Butsuma. Butsuma reacted extremely quickly, slapping the ninja's head with his palm. Unfortunately, even after being struck in the head, the ninja had no intention of giving up the attack. A dark green kunai pierced into Butsuma's abdomen. Butsuma quickly lifted his knee to kick the ninja's arm away, then used his palm to strike the man, sending him flying three meters away into a rock.

"My... Lord... I... know... I cannot... escape death... but... this is... my only... helpless... choice!"

"You...!"

The ninja looked at Butsuma, his eyes filled with apology, and bit down on the poison hidden under his teeth. He explained intermittently to Butsuma. Butsuma felt as if his abdomen were burning; looking at the suicidal ninja, he could not bring himself to say anything.

"Earth Style: Iron Prison!"

The name of the ninjutsu echoed through the sky. Within a radius of one mile, white iron walls emerged. The iron walls rose rapidly, cutting the entire forest into a circular arena. When the dust settled, Madara, Mingye, and Izuna appeared atop the walls, looking down at Butsuma with arrogance.

"I didn't expect to catch such a small fry."

Madara looked at Butsuma with disdain and curled his lip, as if he had lost all interest in the battle since Hashirama was not the one who had come.

"Big Brother, kill him. Since Hashirama didn't come, we don't need to waste any more time!"

Mingye frowned. Hashirama had not shown up for such a battle. Sensing the ninjas in the arena, they all seemed to be the elite of the Senju clan. Where could Hashirama have gone? He hadn't even come when his own family members were fighting; what could his goal be?

"Indeed! Wipe out this batch of Senju ninjas, and I suspect the Senju clan will be close to extinction!"

Izuna did not think as much as Madara and Mingye. There were nearly a hundred Senju ninjas present, which meant the Senju clan had almost emptied their ranks for this battle. If they could annihilate them all here, it would surely cause the Senju clan to completely lose the power to contend with their Uchiha clan. Therefore, while speaking, Izuna leaped into the interior of the Iron Prison and charged toward the Senju ninjas.

Madara was not far behind. He activated his Mangekyo Sharingan, and his Susanoo immediately enveloped his body. With a powerful leap, he soared into the sky like a meteorite, crashing down into the crowd of Senju ninjas.

Mingye sat atop the Iron Prison, constantly scrutinizing the battle. Because of the charge by Izuna and Madara, the entire Senju clan began to fall into chaos, and the Uchiha ninjas also began to surge in from all four sides of the Iron Prison, launching an attack on the Senju clan.

"Earth Style: Stone Statue Heaven Shaker!"

With Senju Butsuma's roar, a massive stone statue erupted from the ground and punched Madara's Susanoo, knocking him back several steps. Madara controlled his Susanoo to slash with its twin blades, severing the statue's arm. Butsuma seemed to have anticipated this; behind the stone statue, mud rapidly emerged, forming two more arms. The statue's body rotated, its back becoming its front, and those two arms swept toward Madara like meteor hammers.