Senju VS Uchiha: The First Time (5)

The violent waterfall instantly threw the Uchiha clan's plans into disarray. Even Madara could only manage to stand firm beneath the giant waves by relying on his Susanoo; he was forced to focus entirely on self-preservation, unable to assist the others. The strength of Water Style lay in its relentless, continuous nature—seemingly lower in raw power, yet incredibly enduring. Coupled with the massive surge of chakra Butsuma suddenly unleashed, Madara found himself in a slightly tricky situation. At this stage, Madara lacked the Nine-Tails link for control, and in terms of raw chakra, he could not contend with Butsuma, who had opened the Eight Gates.

"Big Brother! We have to go, now!"

As the group struggled in their wretched state, Tobirama suddenly appeared beside Hashirama, urging him to leave. Hashirama looked toward his clansmen and replied, "You take them and go first. I'm going to see if I can help Father!"

Seeing Hashirama turn to leave, Tobirama hurriedly blocked his path and spoke, "Father has used a forbidden technique!"

"What! Tobirama, why would you let Father activate a forbidden technique?" Hearing this, Hashirama was stunned, his hands pressing firmly onto Tobirama's shoulders as he demanded an answer. Tobirama lowered his head, his voice low as he replied, "Mingye's sword is coated in poison—a poison I cannot cure! Big Brother, Mingye's poison seems specifically designed to counter our Senju clan. We cannot face him head-on!"

Mingye again. Recalling the poison he had once suffered from, Hashirama knew just how difficult it would be for his father to detoxify while injured. Moreover, in the current situation, there was absolutely no time for his father to purge the toxin.

"Damn it! What is he thinking? Why is he targeting us at every turn?"

Watching Hashirama's intense frustration, Tobirama retorted coldly, "If it were you, would you not target them?"

"This...!"

"Hurry and leave! If we don't go now, it will be too late! Father cannot hold out for much longer!"

Speechless, Hashirama looked toward the distance, where Mingye stood atop a giant white python, launching attacks at his father. A sudden, unfamiliar thought flickered in his mind—a desire to kill Mingye. It was a feeling that had never surfaced in Hashirama's heart before; for a fleeting moment, he felt a sliver of jealousy. Then, with a self-deprecating laugh, he spoke to Tobirama in utter dejection, "Let's go. All we can do now is evacuate the Land of Fire as quickly as possible."

"That was the very reason Aihara sent me to fetch you."

Without waiting for Hashirama's consent, Tobirama grabbed his brother's hand and pulled him away from the battlefield. It wasn't that Mingye hadn't noticed the brothers fleeing with the others, but he simply had no way to spare the attention. Butsuma's goal was to intercept them completely; if Mingye and his men went to stop Hashirama, Butsuma would turn his sights on slaughtering the Uchiha clansmen—a outcome Mingye was unwilling to allow. Unable to avoid the fight, Izuna and Mingye moved from two angles to block Butsuma's path.

Madara launched the first attack. In a fit of rage, he used his Susanoo to cleave the entire lake in two, charging straight at Butsuma with long, swift strides. A stone statue rose from the ground, its fists striking at Madara, but a giant python appeared behind the statue, its tail shattering the stone like steel. Water surged into five or six dragons, churning within the man-made lake and sending wave after wave crashing outward. Protected by Manda, Mingye remained unscathed. He clasped his hands together, his body beginning to scale over as he gathered natural energy, preparing to strike at Butsuma.

Izuna, meanwhile, kept his Three-Tomoe Sharingan active, watching Butsuma's rapid movements to find an opening for a close-quarters strike. Madara slashed through several water dragons within the waves to no effect. Enraged, his Mangekyo Sharingan began to spin frantically. The earth shook, the ground split, and a massive stone statue—resembling a Susanoo—emerged into view.

"Die!"

Standing atop the materialized Susanoo, Madara swung a massive stone sword high, bringing it down in a crushing strike. The sheer force of the attack sliced a nearby mountain in half along the line of the blow. Butsuma was caught in the wake, sent flying dozens of meters away by the overwhelming power. Mingye and Izuna, both waiting for a single opening, saw Butsuma's guard broken and lunged forward.

"Chaos Wind Spike!"

"Fire Style: Searing Migraine!"

The wind spike and the fireball merged, the wind fueling the flames as they surged toward Butsuma. Butsuma slammed a hand to the ground, raising a water wall, but it could not withstand the combined assault. The wall shattered, and the fire struck his body. His red chakra flared like a second layer of armor, barely blocking part of the attack, but the scent of scorched flesh rose from his body. His chest and hands were left severely burned.

Madara seized the moment, leaping from the statue. A Susanoo arm manifested behind him, and with Madara's momentum, it pierced through Butsuma's chest like a lethal arrow. As Butsuma attempted to retaliate, Izuna and Mingye swung their blades from both sides, severing his arms.

The Susanoo's sword did not stop; another arm emerged from behind Madara, wielding a blade that severed Butsuma's legs. Mingye pressed his hand onto the top of Butsuma's head, while Izuna moved in perfect sync, slicing through Butsuma's neck to separate his head from his body.

"How did this Butsuma possess such immense chakra? It was quite troublesome. Fortunately, this secret technique isn't something everyone knows, or it would have been hard to wipe out the Senju clan so easily." Izuna remarked, looking at the head in Mingye's hand. Madara watched Mingye and asked, "Mingye! You didn't actually give the order, did you?"

Mingye smiled, shrugged, and placed Butsuma's head into a burlap sack he had prepared. Turning to leave, he answered Madara, "Big Brother, the Senju clan no longer exists. The blades of the Hatake clan are quite sharp, after all."

Deep within the lush forest, a small village was filled with the scent of blood. Hashirama and Tobirama had rushed back to their clan at top speed, but they were met with a stinging tragedy. The verdant, vibrant environment now held no trace of life. The corpses and blood scattered everywhere told the brothers the story of the cruelty that had transpired.

"Mingye is truly ruthless!" Tobirama gritted his teeth, his hands balled into fists. Hashirama, expressionless, knelt on the ground and pressed a hand to the earth, sensing the state of the village. He sighed, shaking his head with a bitter smile. "Not a single survivor. There isn't even a trace of the attackers left. They must have retreated immediately after their all-out assault."

"That bastard!"

Tobirama understood what Hashirama meant. Mingye knew that while his raiding party could crush the Senju clan, they might not be able to defeat Hashirama and Tobirama. By retreating without even waiting to face them, the enemy had left the brothers with no outlet for their rage.

"Don't dwell on it. We must leave quickly. We cannot stay in the Land of Fire any longer; there's no telling what might happen if we linger. The dead are gone. What we must do now is survive—for our own sakes, and for the sake of these fallen clansmen."

Although Hashirama had realized Mingye's ruthless nature during their previous confrontation and understood the price his clan would pay, seeing the reality of it still brought him immense pain and grief. Suppressing the agony in his heart, he forced a smile to reassure his brother and the remaining clansmen who had not been present.

"Big Brother, where do we go now?"

Tobirama nodded heavily and asked. Hashirama sighed, looking up at the sun, which watched over everything like a clear eye. He replied with profound dejection, "Let's head to the Land of Whirlpools first. The remaining clansmen need to recover. With only twelve of us left, we cannot afford to lose any more."

"The Senju of the Forest clan, arrogant and lawless, has repeatedly offended the dignity of the Daimyo. A nationwide warrant is hereby issued for the arrest of the brothers Hashirama Senju and Tobirama Senju. Anyone who encounters them is ordered to kill on sight!"

Listening to a clansman read the notice, Mingye sneered and looked at Shimizu, who sat nearby. "This is still not enough. To truly destroy the Senju clan, the most important thing is to kill Hashirama and Tobirama. How many people do you think will actually serve the country based on these proclamations?"

Shimizu lacked Mingye's experience from his past life and did not grasp the true threat posed by Hashirama and Tobirama. He no longer saw the Senju clan, already thrown into chaos by Mingye, as a concern. Mingye felt differently. If Hashirama and Tobirama were not dead, who knew what they might become? Even if they left the Land of Fire, given their ambition, they could easily become the future Kage of any of the other four nations. This was something Mingye absolutely did not want to see.

But it was impossible to explain. Seeing Mingye's furrowed brow, Shimizu offered a mocking piece of advice. "There is no need to worry about Hashirama and Tobirama. I truly don't understand why you care so much about those two. They are living like stray dogs now. Do you really think they can turn the tables?"

Mingye didn't know how to explain it. Should he tell them that in the manga he read in his past life, the Senju clan eventually defeated the Uchiha clan? That would be complete nonsense now—the Senju clan had already been half-destroyed by his own hand! No one would believe him; he'd likely be branded a lunatic. In this world, the victor must possess the dominance of a victor. Regarding the fallen Senju clan, the Uchiha had no desire to hunt down every last survivor. It was, perhaps, the kinder side of this world—the strong always chose to abandon or ignore the weak, even if the word "weak" was in quotes.

"Third Uncle, you truly don't understand my thoughts, and I don't care to explain. I will only say this: if the Senju clan is completely wiped out, our clan will inevitably become the greatest in the world. Listen closely—I said the world, not just the Land of Fire!"