"Lord First, it really is him! He's back!"
"Not just Lord First—Lord Second is here too!"
The two Senju heroes had returned to Konoha in its hour of peril, bringing tears to people's eyes.
These two might no longer have been the strongest, having been surpassed by Kazan, but no one could replace what the brothers meant to Konoha.
Some of the elderly were shouting, overcome with excitement, desperate to rush forward and pay their respects, to express their joy and reverence.
Yet Hashirama Senju was already furious beyond measure.
Before him lay a ruined village. Even the leaves were burning, and that abyss-like fissure was a horrifying sight that made his chest ache.
"I won't forgive you!"
"Whether it's my brother, my friend, or even my own child, I will never spare anyone who turns against the village!"
Those words were more a declaration of resolve.
The easygoing Hashirama Senju was nowhere to be seen. His eyes were cold as he stared at Madara.
He believed this was his fault. His failure to finish off Madara Uchiha at the Valley of the End had brought this disaster upon the village.
Madara Uchiha knew him all too well and understood what Hashirama Senju was thinking.
Yet the worst destruction had not been his doing. It had come from a single slash by the Ghost of Konoha, the very man who had summoned Hashirama Senju.
But Madara could not bring himself to say that. He had been proud and unyielding his entire life, never bowing his head to anyone.
And so he said, "This is a necessary sacrifice to sever this world's chain of hatred."
"Hashirama, you failed. So I have no choice but to act myself and liberate this world completely with the Infinite Tsukuyomi left behind by the Sage