On Medical Ninjutsu, I, Madara, Acknowledge You as One of the Strongest!

I never expected this guy to possess a seal-less self-healing ability similar to Hashirama's. And to recover from wounds like these so quickly... without a doubt, his medical ninjutsu has reached Hashirama's level...

Madara stared at Yayoi's body. Though he had clearly been severely wounded, he recovered in the blink of an eye. Madara's eyes flickered, and surprise appeared on his face.

He had never seen another medical ninja capable of reaching Yayoi's level without hand seals, aside from his dear friend and lifelong rival, Hashirama.

And this little girl's body is giving off the aura of chakra... Is she a Tailed Beast?

Even with Madara's vast experience, he could not immediately determine what kind of creature Irori was.

"What is your name?"

Standing atop the chakra giant's head, Madara could not help but ask.

"Oda Yayoi, Shogun of the Land of Night."

By the time Yayoi spoke, his injuries had completely healed, leaving not a single scar.

"I'll remember that name. I've only seen medical ninjutsu at your level in Hashirama. When it comes to medical ninjutsu, I, Madara, acknowledge you as one of the strongest!"

Madara's words were undoubtedly the highest possible praise for Yayoi's medical ninjutsu.

"What an honor. Then, have you had your fun, Lord Madara?"

Yayoi unconsciously emphasized the word "fun."

"So you noticed."

Madara sounded surprised.

"I have seen Lord Madara at full strength. More than a year ago, when you hunted the Seven-Tails in the Land of Night, I was there."

Yayoi fell silent for a moment before answering.

"Were you the ninja using Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall at the edge of the battlefield? No wonder you looked somewhat familiar. Too bad that beast was too weak. It wasn't worthy of being my mount."

Madara seemed to recall something as he replied.

Had Yayoi not brought it up himself, Madara would have nearly forgotten about it. It had not been anything important, after all.

"So, are we continuing? Even against Lord Madara, I will accompany you to the end."

Yayoi took a deep breath. The Chakra Cloak draped around him kept his body in a constant state of battle readiness.

If he did not remain in that state, Madara could kill him in an instant at any moment in the coming battle.

The other party did not even need to use any jutsu. Every swing of his Susanoo's sword would be an unimaginably terrifying, lethal attack.

"Though that would be fine, I've lost interest now. An unpleasant fellow has appeared here. We'll leave it at this."

Madara formed a hand seal.

Bang.

A cloud of white smoke swept through the area. Madara vanished, and the Susanoo dissolved into the air without a trace.

"This is..."

Irori's purple pupils trembled slightly.

"Just as I suspected, the one here really was a Shadow Clone..."

Yayoi was not surprised by the sight. He simply smiled helplessly.

From the very beginning, he had found Madara's strength strange.

Not because it was too strong, but because his attacks were too weak.

Everything had now been confirmed. The one who had come here was merely a Shadow Clone.

The only question was how much chakra that Shadow Clone possessed compared to Madara's original body.

As for why Madara knew the Shadow Clone technique, it could only be said that the Sharingan's copying ability was far too useful.

It was only a B-rank ninjutsu with no particularly demanding requirements. Madara probably only needed one look to use it with ease.

"You people are truly impressive. Working together, you actually endured Madara's attacks for so long and even forced out the third stage of his Susanoo."

An indifferent voice rang out.

Following the voice, Yayoi and Irori saw a white-haired man wearing black ninja clothing beneath layered blue armor.

It was Tobirama Senju.

"Lord Tobirama, you've been here for quite some time, haven't you?"

Yayoi pressed his aching neck until it cracked, then dispelled the Chakra Cloak around his body.

Madara had clearly sensed Tobirama's presence. If Tobirama joined in as well, Madara must have realized the battle could drag on endlessly, causing him to lose interest in continuing.

After all, no matter how powerful Madara's original body was, a Shadow Clone's strength ultimately had limits.

"I just arrived as well."

Yayoi did not believe a single word Tobirama said.

This guy might have arrived long ago, but he had been searching for an opening in Madara's defenses. That was why he had kept his chakra hidden and leaked none of it.

However, once Madara unleashed the third stage of Susanoo, its attack range became too vast. It had clearly affected Tobirama as well, allowing Madara to detect his presence.

"Master Mu!"

Suddenly, Ōnoki's agonized cry came from afar.

He was covered in blood and could barely stand, yet he forced himself onward, trying to reach Mu, who had been badly injured and had fallen unconscious.

"That kid is really lucky. He actually survived a technique like that."

Yayoi was somewhat surprised by Ōnoki's tenacity. The boy was far tougher than he looked.

Though Ōnoki would become powerful in the future, he was currently nothing more than a minor grunt whose life was in grave danger even watching the battle from its outskirts.

"At the last moment, he used an Earth Release technique to hide deep underground and avoided most of the sword energy's power. Otherwise, there wouldn't have even been scraps left."

Tobirama had observed everything clearly and knew exactly how Ōnoki had escaped Madara's chakra sword's range.

"Ōnoki, don't force yourself. Let me handle it."

Yayoi used the Body Flicker Technique to appear beside the unconscious Mu, stopping Ōnoki from pushing himself further.

Tobirama came along with Yayoi.

His Body Flicker Technique was equally superb, allowing him to keep pace with Yayoi effortlessly.

"What troublesome injuries. They're actually this severe. Madara was far too ruthless..."

Tobirama frowned tightly. With just one glance at Mu's wounds, he knew the man's life could be extinguished at any moment.

His waist had nearly been severed by the sword energy, exposing the connected flesh and bones.

Fortunately, Mu's vitality was quite strong. Relying on his extraordinarily powerful chakra, he had barely managed to cling to his final breath.

"What do you think, Lord Oda? Can you treat injuries like these?"

Tobirama looked at Yayoi, using an honorific in his tone.

Ōnoki, the attendant, did not matter, but Mu was a representative of the Land of Earth. If he died here, things would become extremely troublesome.

In particular, Mu was a trusted subordinate of Ishikawa, the First Tsuchikage, and was most likely being groomed as his successor.

One misstep in this matter could trigger a war between the Land of Earth and the Land of Fire, which could in turn lead to a Shinobi World War.

He knew that his elder brother Hashirama was devoted to maintaining peace in the Ninja World and would never wish to see war break out.

Madara's actions had thoroughly crossed the line.

After all, no matter what, Madara was merely Konoha's advisor. His elder brother Hashirama was the Hokage who made the decisions!

"If someone's natural lifespan has reached its end, then of course I would be powerless to reverse it. But injuries like these are still within my ability to treat."

Yayoi did not hesitate. He swiftly covered Mu's waist wound with his palm, and a mass of green chakra brimming with life gently enveloped it.

The bloody flesh buds began to squirm and reconnect.

The broken bones also rejoined and healed beneath the chakra's effects.

Tobirama sighed in relief, yet his expression also turned solemn.

The chakra this Lord Shogun is using... rather than chakra, it feels more like some living creature wearing a layer of chakra as its skin...

Madara's assessment had not been wrong at all.

This was medical ability capable of standing alongside his elder brother Hashirama's, enough to be called among the strongest in the Ninja World.

In medical ninjutsu alone, Yayoi had truly reached the pinnacle of the ninja world, one of the strongest in another sense.

"That's wonderful! Thank you so much, Lord Shogun!"

Ōnoki wept with joy. Tears of excitement and happiness streamed from his eyes as he continually wiped them away.

Elsewhere, Irori found Kakuzu buried beneath the rubble and helped him lift the enormous boulder pinning him down.

He lay in the crater without immediately getting up. His expression clearly showed that he was questioning his entire life.

Could Uchiha Madara really still be considered a ninja when he was this powerful?

He had spent the entire battle looking for a chance to strike, even if it was only to distract the other party.

But the truth was that until he had been blasted away by the shockwave caused by the sword energy, he had not found the best chance to attack.

The advanced Lightning Release and Fire Release techniques he had only recently acquired never even got an opportunity to show themselves.

That sense of frustration wounded Kakuzu deeply.

"That guy really had it rough."

Kakuzu climbed out of the earthen pit and shuddered violently when he saw Mu's miserable state.

Fortunately, most of Madara's four sword energies had been aimed at Yayoi, Irori, and Mu. Otherwise, Kakuzu felt that his fate would not have been much better than Mu's.

Because Madara's sword energy could truly blow apart all of his hearts in a single instant!

"That should do it. Unless something unexpected happens, he'll wake up tomorrow."

After some time, Yayoi finished treating Mu.

The bones and flesh that had been severed at his waist were seamlessly reconnected. Even the burns lingering on his skin had been healed by Yayoi.

These burns weren't left by Madara's attack. Were they injuries from an earlier battle?

Following the principle of saving someone completely, Yayoi had treated Mu's burns while healing the wound at his waist.

Compared to the wound that had nearly severed Mu in two, burns like these were simply not worth mentioning in Yayoi's eyes.

"Come with me next. About a dozen kilometers south of here, there's an outpost once built by our Senju Clan."

Tobirama spoke, asking Ōnoki to carry Mu and preparing to lead everyone to the outpost he had mentioned to rest.

After what had happened, going to Konoha would obviously have to wait until Mu woke up.

"Irori, go back first. Leave things here to me."

With the battle over, Yayoi had Irori return.

"Yes."

Soon afterward, Irori vanished in a puff of white smoke, returning to the Tenshu Tower in the Land of Night.

...Can that girl really still be considered a puppet?

Tobirama stared at the spot where Irori had vanished and could not help lowering his head in thought.

In truth, he had arrived silently at the battlefield shortly after Yayoi and Madara began fighting. He had been looking for a chance to exploit Madara's opening and get Yayoi and the others out of danger.

Irori's Ice Release and Water Release had left a deep impression on him.

Her formidable Ice Release had suppressed the first and second stages of Susanoo, while her Water Release could extinguish Madara's Fire Release.

Such strength was absolutely not mediocre in the Ninja World.

He had gathered more or less some intelligence on Irori.

For example, around half a year ago, she had displayed the powerful ability to freeze islands and seas in the northern waters of the Land of Night, earning widespread fame.

Yet no matter how he looked at it, she did not resemble a puppet doll.

Not only could she act independently and possessed intelligence and the ability to think, but after being injured by Susanoo, her body had also displayed an incredibly bizarre capacity for autonomous recovery.

A Tailed Beast in human form...

Tobirama silently reached that conclusion in his heart.

In his mind, he had already subconsciously marked Yayoi as someone requiring special attention.

(The protagonist might not be able to defeat Madara yet, but he still had to maintain his poise and style.

As for Ōnoki, he was thirteen or fourteen at the time, standing there like a mere grunt.)