This is it!
White Zetsu chuckled at Hatake Sakumo, then burrowed directly into the ground.
Looking at the stone cave not far away, Hatake Sakumo mustered all his attention and walked towards it.
One step, two steps.
Hatake Sakumo walked at an extremely slow pace and maximized his sensory abilities.
As a result, Hatake Sakumo only sensed a faint Chakra.
Such weak Chakra?
Hatake Sakumo frowned.
The Chakra he sensed was only equivalent to that of an ordinary Chunin, which seemed impossible.
A subordinate with such strong Earth Release abilities cannot possibly be only Chunin strength.
"No... that's not right!"
Hatake Sakumo suddenly sensed another aura, and the Chakra of this other aura was comparable to that of Tailed Beast!
Hatake Sakumo strode forward, eager to see what was inside the cave!
"This..."
Hatake Sakumo arrived at the front of the cave.
As soon as he entered, he saw an enormous monster.
And below the monster... there's a person!
"So you're S-rank missing-nin Hatake Sakumo from Konoha?"
As Hatake Sakumo stared intently at the monster, frantically trying to figure out what it was, the old man below, who looked like he was about to die, spoke.
Who are you?
Hatake Sakumo turned his gaze over.
"I feel like I've seen him somewhere before..."
When Hatake Sakumo actually took a closer look at this person, he realized that the person looked somewhat familiar.
"Want to know who I am?"
Madara Uchiha chuckled.
"Then come and please me."
The Demonic Statue of the Outer Path behind them suddenly increased its Chakra supply!
Madara Uchiha shakily formed a hand seal.
A clone separated from Madara Uchiha.
It still appears to be in its old age form, but its Chakra is abundant.
"Playing tricks!"
Hatake Sakumo's eyes narrowed, and he slashed directly at the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path!
Madara Uchiha didn't care at all; he even closed his eyes.
Susanoo!
The clone beside him activated Susanoo.
" Susanoo! You are Madara Uchiha!"
The moment Hatake Sakumo saw Susanoo, everything in his mind connected!
No wonder he thought the old man looked familiar; it turned out he was none other than the legendary ninja demon, Uchiha Madara!
Hatake Sakumo had seen Madara Uchiha's photos.
After all, he was Konoha's first missing-nin, and every chapter of Konoha's history will highlight Madara Uchiha's deeds.
Madara Uchiha's strength is widely acknowledged; after all, the First Hokage defeated Madara Uchiha, and the stronger Madara Uchiha was, the stronger the First Hokage was.
However, since the Third Hokage took office, Madara Uchiha and Hashirama Senju have been deliberately downplayed, and many people even believe that the Third Hokage was the strongest Hokage.
But Hatake Sakumo knew that Madara Uchiha was definitely not such a simple person.
" Heavenly Abyss!"
Seeing the blue Susanoo, Hatake Sakumo unleashed his full power at it!
"The attack power is decent, but that's about it."
Susanoo: Fourth Stage!
Madara Uchiha's clone scoffed and immediately activated the fourth stage of Susanoo!
Even though he only has a pair of Three-Tomoe Sharingan, Susanoo without any difficulty.
It's estimated that only by activating the Perfect Susanoo would Madara Uchiha, the current clone with the Three-Tomoe Sharingan, have any trouble.
Susanoo: Two Sword Flame Dance!
Two massive sword energies collided with Hatake Sakumo's Heavenly Abyss.
Hatake Sakumo was sent flying backward by the attack, tumbling countless times!
"Such immense power."
Hatake Sakumo adjusted his posture during the roll to minimize the damage he suffered.
Even so, Hatake Sakumo still coughed up a mouthful of blood.
"Am I really that weak?"
Madara Uchiha's clone frowned.
He actually failed to knock Hatake Sakumo unconscious with a single blow?
"That's the only option left."
Sakumo Hatake wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth as he watched the Madara Uchiha Hatake Sakumo, Susanoo, walk towards him, and stood up again.
" Weeping Abyss!"
Hatake Sakumo concentrated his Chakra into his sword, and then unleashed a massive sword aura!
Hatake Sakumo gritted his teeth, swinging his sword faster and faster!
This move consumes an astonishing amount of Chakra and is indiscriminate in its damage, meaning even Hatake Sakumo himself cannot perfectly control the direction of the sword energy.
To be precise, this move is still a work in progress.
But now, with only Madara Uchiha on the other side and such a large target, the weakness of this move has been perfectly eliminated.
"Showy but impractical."
Madara Uchiha commented.
" Yasaka Magatama."
Madara Uchiha raised his arm Susanoo raised its arm, and countless Tomoe appeared.
Hatake Sakumo's swinging speed was far slower than the speed at which the Tomoe was generated.
The two remained locked in this standoff for five minutes.
Madara Uchiha's clone remained calm and composed, but Hatake Sakumo was exhausted.
Thump!
Black Zetsu emerged from the ground and delivered a stun shot to Hatake Sakumo.
"Who gave you permission to act without authorization?"
Madara Uchiha stared at Black Zetsu, his gaze seemingly hostile.
" Lord Madara, if he continues to release his Chakra like this, he'll run out and die. We still need him..."
Black Zetsu explained in a hoarse voice.
"That's enough."
The clone Madara Uchiha dispelled Susanoo and then dissipated back into Madara Uchiha's body.
Madara Uchiha also sensed the battle.
"A boring battle, like playing house with children."
Madara Uchiha assessed the battle after experiencing it firsthand.
" Lord Madara, I have already planted Cursed Seal in his heart."
Just as Madara Uchiha was commenting, Black Zetsu, carrying the unconscious Hatake Sakumo, said...
"Tie him up, I'll talk to him when he wakes up."
Although Madara Uchiha felt that this S-rank missing-nin from Konoha was nothing compared to himself, he seemed to have no other choice now.
If he still hasn't found a suitable person to implement the plan in a few years, then Hatake Sakumo will have to become the first choice.
Let's wait for him to wake up.
After Madara Uchiha finished speaking, he closed his eyes and began to rest. Black Zetsu also burrowed into the ground and disappeared.
Only Hatake Sakumo remained, bound tightly to the bed and unable to move.
One hour later
"Uh... ah..."
Hatake Sakumo felt sore all over.
"I'm not dead?"
This was Hatake Sakumo's first thought.
"You're awake?"
Madara Uchiha was sitting next to Hatake Sakumo.
Hatake Sakumo tried to move, but found that all his Chakra was sealed, and he was tightly bound to the bed.