Leave That Big Guy Outside... To Me

"It doesn't really suit me either," Hibari muttered under his breath.

"There's no rule saying you can only sign one summoning contract," Tobirama said with a smile. "You can establish a contract with Katsuyu for now, and if you happen to find one more to your liking later, it won't be too late to sign another."

Hibari, however, was already calculating in his head. If it were just an ordinary summoning beast, signing a few wouldn't be an issue. But Katsuyu was one of the three great legacies; who knew if these top-tier summons had rules about exclusivity?

In any case, he had never seen anyone command two summoning beasts of this caliber at the same time. To be safe, he decided not to rush into it. What if he had the chance to visit Mount Myoboku or Ryuchi Cave later?

"Forget it, let's put this aside for now," he said, waving his hand. "I'd better focus on mastering my Water Style first."

"Hmm, that's the right way to think," Tobirama said, his eyebrows arching as he grew animated. "Water Style is the strongest of the five elemental techniques, it..."

"Stop, stop!" Hibari quickly cut him off. "Back when Madara was still around, he used to go on and on about how Fire Style was the strongest. You two, neither of you could ever convince the other."

"Hmph, what do you know?" At the mention of Uchiha Madara, Tobirama's expression soured. "That Uchiha Madara is full of nonsense! Fire Style? That is the technique most thoroughly countered by Water Style!

You used to love trailing after him, kid. It's fortunate he went missing, otherwise I'd be worried you'd be led astray. I'm warning you, that man's thinking is extremely radical; he's no good. Even if you run into him in the future, stay far away!"

"I know, Second Hokage," Hibari replied with a grin. "I'm just a bit curious. After all, he and Lord Hashirama are known as legendary ninjas."

At that moment, neither of them knew that while they were discussing Uchiha Madara, the very subject of their conversation had already arrived quietly at the edge of the Hidden Leaf Village.

On a cliff outside the village.

A figure stood silently, still wearing that dark red, layered armor from the Warring States period, the fan on his back still in the wind. Uchiha Madara's gaze was like a torch, looking out at the increasingly prosperous Konoha Village in the distance, its silhouette clearly visible in his line of sight.

"Konoha..." he whispered the name, his tone laced with a complex sigh.

Once upon a time, he too had been filled with passion, setting aside clan hatred and obsessions alongside his dear friend Senju Hashirama to build this village with his own hands. Even the name "Konoha" was something he had chosen himself.

This sentiment was, in the end, difficult to completely erase.

Yet now, he had left all of that behind.

Establishing Konoha had not brought the peace he had hoped for; instead, it had left him increasingly isolated. The lack of understanding from his clansmen, the exclusion by his colleagues—in the end, there was only Senju Hashirama in the entire village who could still speak to him.

As his thoughts drifted, another small figure suddenly blurred into the depths of his memory.

It was that Senju brat, who always loved following behind him, calling out "Madara-sama, Madara-sama" over and over.

That was Hashirama's grandson. Before Uchiha Madara had seen through all the schemes behind the world, he had genuinely cared for the kid as if he were his own.

He hadn't just taught him how to make the most of his fire-attribute chakra; he had passed down his own secret Fire Style techniques without reservation.

"Hibari..." Madara's lips curled upward for a rare moment as he whispered the name.

However, Senju Hashirama's face suddenly popped into his mind. The warmth in Madara's eyes vanished in an instant. As he looked back at the flickering lights of Konoha, his gaze became as sharp as a blade.

"Hashirama, and little Hibari, I'm sorry," his words were cold, devoid of any humanity. "For the sake of that dream, please... die for this new world."

Before the words had even faded, his hands moved in a blur of seals. His pitch-black pupils suddenly rotated, transforming into the daunting pattern of the Eternal Mangekyo.

"Summoning Jutsu!"

Madara let out a low shout and slammed his palm onto the ground. A massive summoning formation erupted from his palm, instantly covering the entire cliff. With a dull thud, thick white smoke billowed into the sky from beneath his feet.

As the smoke cleared, a massive orange beast lay prone at his feet. A terrifying amount of chakra permeated the air like a physical force, mixed with an evil aura that made one's spine chill.

It was the Nine-Tails Fox, known as the strongest Tailed Beast.

But at this moment, the Nine-Tails had none of the majesty of a fierce beast. Its beastly pupils were spinning with the tomoe of the Sharingan, clearly controlled by Madara's Mangekyo and reduced to a mere summoning beast.

The Nine-Tails' chakra was so vast that as soon as this evil aura leaked out, it was like pouring cold water into hot oil, instantly alarming all of Konoha.

Tobirama, who had been chatting with Hibari, felt the hair on his arms stand up. His expression darkened: "This disturbance... is it a Tailed Beast?"

Even Hibari felt it. His heart sank; this timing, this scale... if he remembered correctly, this was clearly the incident where Uchiha Madara controlled the Nine-Tails to attack Konoha!

Madara had returned, and he had returned with the intent to destroy the village. The battle at the Valley of the End was likely about to begin early.

Thinking of this, Hibari felt a wave of panic. Why had he been training so desperately? Wasn't it to become strong enough to change the fate of his grandfather, Senju Hashirama, who had died from his wounds? But in this situation, how could he possibly intervene?

Tobirama caught sight of Hibari's pale face and assumed the boy was frightened. He patted Hibari on the shoulder and comforted him: "What are you panicking about? With me here, do you think I'd let a beast run wild in our village? You stay here, don't..."

Before the word "run" could leave his lips, Tobirama's expression changed instantly. A power even more heart-stopping was rapidly gathering on the distant mountain peak.

"It's a Tailed Beast Bomb!" his voice was so grim it could drip water.

Hibari looked up to see a blinding crimson beam of light tear through the clouds, dragging a trail of destruction as it blasted straight toward Konoha! If that power actually landed, half the village would be wiped off the map.

Tobirama didn't bother with further instructions; his figure flickered and vanished from the spot.

Almost at the same moment, he appeared like a ghost directly in the path of the Tailed Beast Bomb. His chakra fluctuated violently, and countless profound seals instantly spread out in the air.

Facing the world-destroying energy sphere, Tobirama's face was as calm as water. He pressed his hands together and shouted: "Flying Thunder God Guiding Thunder!"

Space suddenly distorted in front of the Tailed Beast Bomb. The terrifying sphere of light was dragged into another opening by an invisible hand, vanishing from the vicinity of Konoha in the blink of an eye.

In a desolate wilderness not far from Konoha, the high sky suddenly shook, and a crimson light exploded out of thin air!

BOOM—!!!

A deafening roar accompanied by a violent shockwave spread clearly to every corner of Konoha, even from such a distance. A massive mushroom cloud rose slowly over the wilderness.

Only then did Tobirama descend from the air, raising a hand to wipe the cold sweat from his forehead.

The air beside him rippled slightly, and a figure appeared quietly. The newcomer had shed his Hokage robe, replaced by the dark red armor of the Warring States period, with a massive scroll strapped to his back.

It was the First Hokage, Senju Hashirama.

"Tobirama, that aura just now was..." Hashirama's brows were locked in a frown as he got straight to the point.

"The Nine-Tails Fox," Tobirama replied crisply.

At the same time, Uchiha Madara, far away on top of the Nine-Tails, took in the sight of the Tailed Beast Bomb being transferred away. He snorted, his tone full of mockery:

"Senju Tobirama!"

If there was anyone he couldn't stand, Uchiha Madara's first thought was Senju Tobirama. This grudge ran deep; after all, his own younger brother Izuna had fallen at the hands of this man. Madara had never forgotten this blood feud for a single moment.

Thinking of this, the tomoe in his eyes spun, and the Nine-Tails beneath him immediately raised its head and let out a heaven-shaking roar, its fierce aura surging once more.

"Go, crush that ridiculous village," Madara commanded in a low voice, his figure leaping lightly from the top of the Nine-Tails.

Following that, the massive beast took a step, and with the earth shaking, it charged toward Konoha. By the looks of it, it truly intended to raze the village to the ground.

Senju Hashirama stared into the distance, his brows knotted. "Something's wrong... there's a scent of Madara."

But this was no time to ponder. He knew full well that even if he could handle the Nine-Tails, if he let this beast take a single step into the village, the losses would be incalculable.

"Tobirama!" Hashirama made a prompt decision, his speech as fast as a machine gun. "You stay in the village, organize the evacuation, maintain order, and keep the people calm! That big guy out there... leave it to me."

"Brother, let me also..." Tobirama began, but Hashirama's hand pressed heavily onto his shoulder.

"This is an order from the Hokage," Hashirama's voice dropped, but his gaze was exceptionally firm.

Seeing his brother's expression, Tobirama fell silent for a moment, then finally lowered his head and replied: "...Yes, Lord Hokage."

Hearing this response, the corners of Hashirama's mouth lifted slightly. The next second, his figure flickered and vanished from the spot.

When Tobirama looked up again, he saw the Nine-Tails, which had been charging in the distance, suddenly stumble as countless thick tree branches grew wildly from the ground, binding its limbs in the blink of an eye.

Without a doubt, his older brother had already made his move.

However, at that moment, a scorching fire erupted from behind the Nine-Tails, instantly burning those tightly wrapped wooden vines to nothing.

Feeling that familiar chakra fluctuation and seeing the astonishing power of that Fire Style, Tobirama's expression darkened so much it could drip water. He squeezed two words through his teeth: "Uchiha. Madara!"

Sure enough, not a single person in the Uchiha Clan was ever easy to deal with! And Madara, of all of them, was the most radical and troublesome. When he had left Konoha without a word, Tobirama had known this bastard would eventually come back to cause trouble.

Expecting him to find a place to live in peace until he was old? Keep dreaming!

On the other side, Senju Hashirama watched the Nine-Tails break free and pause, his gaze fixed on the figure behind it. A look of pain gradually appeared on his face, and he finally couldn't help but roar: "Madara!! What kind of joke is this?!"

"Hashirama, you're still so naive..." Uchiha Madara's figure walked calmly out of the unextinguished flames, looking at his old friend with a light tone. "Do I look like... I'm joking?"

"Why are you doing this?!" Hashirama's voice trembled with anger. "Do you have any idea how dangerous that was? This is the village... we built together!"