"You've gone crazy!" Sarutobi Hiruzen nearly jumped. "This isn't just about fighting a Tailed Beast! At our level, getting involved would only cause trouble for Lord Hokage. And take on the Nine-Tails? In your dreams!"
"What's the rush? Didn't I say we'd wait for the right moment?" Hibari rolled his eyes.
"The right moment? What moment?" Sarutobi Hiruzen held back for a while, but eventually asked.
Hibari stood on the roof, glanced toward the Senju Clan residence, then looked toward the Wood Giant and the Nine-Tails fighting farther and farther from the village. His voice softened. "I haven't figured it out yet... We'll just wait. It's not like either of us has anything better to do right now."
He actually remembered clearly: Uzumaki Mito would step in to help during this battle, and in the end, seal the Nine-Tails inside herself, becoming the first Jinchūriki.
And the moment he was waiting for was that very turning point. He knew there was no way he could get involved in the fight between Hashirama and Madara, but if he just stood by and waited for it to end, he'd regret it for the rest of his life.
Sarutobi Hiruzen stared at Hibari's back for a long moment, then finally sighed. "...Fine. So what exactly are we supposed to do?"
Hibari perked up. "It's not complicated. When the moment comes, how about we try a combination jutsu?"
"Then be careful," Sarutobi Hiruzen said with a grin. "If we get caught up in it, people are going to die."
While the two of them quietly discussed how to get involved, Uchiha Madara and Senju Hashirama were already locked in a fierce battle elsewhere.
Senju Hashirama deliberately drew the fight away from the village. As they battled, the two gradually moved in the direction of what would one day be called the "Valley of the End."
Uchiha Madara didn't try to stop him. He hadn't come here to destroy the village in the first place. His main target was Senju Hashirama—he needed to obtain the "thing" he wanted from his old friend before he could put his plans for the future into motion.
Standing atop the Nine-Tails' head, Uchiha Madara held a huge Gunbai in one hand and the sickle attached to it in the other. The Nine-Tails opened its mouth and spat out a small Tailed Beast Bomb, sending it straight toward Senju Hashirama.
Watching it fly toward him, Senju Hashirama stood atop a giant tree branch and brought his hands together. "Wood Release: Wood Dragon Technique!"
Before his words had even faded, the wood beneath his feet twisted violently. In the blink of an eye, a Wood Dragon burst forth, snapped up the Tailed Beast Bomb, and crushed it with a crunch. The Wood Dragon itself exploded into splinters.
"Madara!!! Had enough of this yet?" Senju Hashirama blocked the attack, then looked up at the man atop the Nine-Tails, his voice turning grave.
Uchiha Madara frowned. "Even now, you still think I'm throwing a tantrum, Hashirama?"
"Why can't we sit down and talk like we used to? I'll help you, whatever it is!" Senju Hashirama said earnestly.
Uchiha Madara looked at his face, a flicker of hesitation crossing his brow. But in the end, he shook his head and murmured, "No, Hashirama..."
As his words fell, the Tomoe in Uchiha Madara's eyes began to spin. The Nine-Tails beneath him threw back its head and let out a deafening roar, as a terrifyingly dense Tailed Beast Bomb quickly took shape at its mouth.
Without giving Senju Hashirama another chance to argue, Uchiha Madara controlled the Nine-Tails and fired the attack straight at his old friend.
Senju Hashirama's heart sank. Now he finally understood: Madara had truly come to take his life and destroy Konoha.
"Wood Release: Wood Human Technique!"
He brought his hands together sharply and shouted. The giant Wooden Golem, which had moved along with the battle to the vicinity of the Valley of the End, rose from the ground once more, holding Senju Hashirama steady.
The Wooden Golem stretched out its enormous arm and caught the Tailed Beast Bomb in its palm just before impact.
Chakra clashed violently, and the Tailed Beast Bomb swelled rapidly between the Wooden Golem's fingers.
Then blinding flames burst through its wooden palm. A thunderous explosion followed, and the raging shock wave instantly engulfed Senju Hashirama, Uchiha Madara, and the Nine-Tails, blasting a bottomless crater into the earth.
Though Konoha was already far away, Hibari and Sarutobi Hiruzen could still clearly see a mushroom cloud rising on the horizon. Hibari's eyelid twitched, and he couldn't help muttering, "It should be about time, right?"
As soon as he said it, the gate of the Senju Clan residence creaked open. A beautiful woman stepped over the threshold, her stride steady and her gaze fixed on the distant battlefield, where smoke and dust filled the air. It was none other than Senju Hashirama's wife, Uzumaki Mito.
As the thick smoke from the explosion gradually cleared, the Nine-Tails, once orange-red, had changed dramatically.
Armor made of chakra now encased it completely. This was the powerful ability granted by the Mangekyō Sharingan: "Majestic Attire: Susanoo"!
With this absolute defense, Uchiha Madara and the Nine-Tails had come through the blast almost completely unscathed.
On the other side, the entire primeval forest that had sprung up during the battle had been reduced to splinters. Even the Wooden Golem that had caught the Tailed Beast Bomb had vanished. All that remained was a massive wooden box.
The next moment, the box opened down the middle, revealing Senju Hashirama, unharmed. He looked up at the Nine-Tails, now covered in Susanoo armor.
Uchiha Madara was watching him too. He murmured, "Wood Shield Technique, huh... Its defensive power is still ridiculous."
Senju Hashirama was also examining his opponent's new form. He exclaimed softly, "You've wrapped Susanoo around a Tailed Beast like armor. That's something, Madara."
Before he had finished speaking, the Nine-Tails swung its Susanoo greatsword down at him.
Senju Hashirama neither dodged nor flinched. He brought his hands together again. In an instant, two enormous wooden hands burst from the earth and caught the descending blade in midair.
"I've seen through your attacks, Madara!" Senju Hashirama said gravely.
Almost at the same time, several enormous wooden arms shot out of the ground around the Nine-Tails, about to pin it firmly to the earth.
"It's not over!" Uchiha Madara roared. The Susanoo greatsword swept sideways, and the wooden arms around them snapped in two.
The battle raged on. But Senju Hashirama keenly sensed the ground beneath his feet trembling incessantly. It was clear it couldn't withstand the two of them much longer.
"If we keep fighting, this place might collapse..." His thoughts raced, and out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of the blue expanse nearby. Without realizing it, they had come close to the coast.
"I have to draw him toward the sea."
Once he had made up his mind, Senju Hashirama moved at once. Before Uchiha Madara could launch his next attack, he pushed off with one foot and raced toward the sea, stepping across flying chunks of wood.
Seeing him flee, Uchiha Madara immediately controlled Majestic Attire: Kurama and leaped after him.
"Don't think you can get away!" Uchiha Madara roared. The Nine-Tails opened its mouth and began gathering another black Tailed Beast Bomb. At the same time, he plunged the Susanoo greatsword into it with all his strength.
The Tailed Beast Bomb spun rapidly as it shot forward, carrying the greatsword with it as it hurtled toward Senju Hashirama in the distance.
"This time, your Wood Shield Technique might not hold up, Hashirama!" A cruel glint flashed in Uchiha Madara's eyes, and his voice brimmed with malice.
By now, Senju Hashirama had retreated to the shore. He had barely planted his feet when the Tailed Beast Bomb, fused with the greatsword, came roaring toward him. Without hesitation, he raised his hand to his mouth and bit down hard on a finger.
Blood welled up. He slapped his hand against the ground. "Summoning Technique: Quintuple Rashomon!"
Just before the Tailed Beast Bomb struck, five enormous Rashomon gates burst from the ground, forming layer upon layer of defense. Senju Hashirama had somehow obtained these Rashomon gates long ago. Their defense was incredible, and he had even tamed them into a summon.
But as powerful as the Rashomon gates were, it wasn't realistic to expect them to completely stop a Tailed Beast Bomb launched by the combined power of the Nine-Tails and Susanoo. Senju Hashirama had never intended to take the attack head-on.
Standing atop the Nine-Tails, Uchiha Madara frowned at the sight. "You think this will change its trajectory?"
Before he could finish speaking, the Tailed Beast Bomb struck the first gate. The Rashomon couldn't hold it back for even an instant. It smashed through all five gates, sending them crashing down.
But just as Uchiha Madara had expected, the force of the impact was enough to deflect the Tailed Beast Bomb slightly upward. It skimmed over the ground, plunged into the sea in the distance, crossed the strait, and slammed straight into a deserted island on the other side.
The entire island vanished in the explosion.
Before the smoke had cleared, Uchiha Madara had already ridden the Nine-Tails close again, looking down at Senju Hashirama. His voice was low, but it carried clearly. "It's been a long time since I fought you in earnest... You must have noticed by now, Hashirama. I'm not the same as I used to be."
Senju Hashirama took a deep breath and brought his hands together in front of his chest. But this time he didn't attack. Instead, he looked up and fixed his gaze on Uchiha Madara.
"Everything up until now, all our efforts... are you really going to let it all go to waste?"
His voice was heavy. "Listen to me, Madara. Continuing this fight won't do either of us any good. All you'll do is destroy the village we built together and hurt more people. Worse, you'll dishonor the brothers who died!"
Anger flared in Uchiha Madara's eyes, and his tone grew impatient. "Here you go preaching again..."
"I don't want to kill you!" Senju Hashirama said in a low voice.
But to Uchiha Madara, those words only inflamed his pride. He gave a cold laugh. "Oh? Are you saying you could take my life whenever you wanted?"
"No!" Senju Hashirama immediately protested. "I mean, we used to be friends!"
But Uchiha Madara wasn't listening anymore. He roared, "I've chosen a different path. I'm not walking alongside you anymore!"
At his words, the Nine-Tails charged at Senju Hashirama once more. Seeing it, Senju Hashirama understood that there was no point reasoning with him now. Uchiha Madara had clearly become obsessed and wouldn't listen to anything.
To protect the village and those who had placed their hopes in him, Senju Hashirama's gaze sharpened. At last, he made up his mind.
"Sage Art!!!" he roared.
The markings of Sage Mode appeared on his face in an instant. With his Sage Body, Senju Hashirama could enter perfect Sage Mode without any preparation.
Vast amounts of chakra surged through him, and bolstered by senjutsu, he shouted again: "Wood Release: True Several Thousand Hands!!!"
The last time he had used this technique was when he'd beaten Seven-Tails Chomei senseless at "Insect King Valley." He had nearly left the Seven-Tails unable to care for itself, forcing it to reincarnate on the spot.
Now, True Several Thousand Hands descended once more. The enormous Thousand-Armed Buddha rose from the ground. Though the Nine-Tails, clad in "Majestic Attire: Susanoo," was already huge, the Buddha still towered two or three times above it.
"Here I come, Madara!!!" Senju Hashirama called from atop the Buddha's head.
Even though True Several Thousand Hands was overwhelmingly larger, Uchiha Madara showed no fear. The Tomoe in his Sharingan spun rapidly as he controlled the Nine-Tails and charged recklessly at the Buddha.
"Come on, Hashirama!!!" Uchiha Madara roared at the same time.
In an instant, the two colossal figures crashed into each other. Senju Hashirama immediately roared, "Top Transformed Buddha!!!"
The Thousand-Armed Buddha sprang into action. Countless enormous arms, carrying the force to split mountains and shatter stone, came crashing down on Uchiha Madara and the Nine-Tails.
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