Hiruzen was trapped in a world of darkness.
He tried to disrupt the flow of chakra within his body to break free from the Bringer-of-Darkness Technique, but it had no effect whatsoever.
Hiruzen could do nothing but raise his golden staff defensively in front of him.
Suddenly, he felt an intense pain in his back and involuntarily staggered forward a few steps.
Instinctively swinging his golden staff behind him, Hiruzen struck nothing but empty air.
Then he felt another punch slam into his stomach.
[Flying Thunder God Slash!]
Thump!
Thump!
Thump!
A series of dull impacts echoed as Hiruzen's body became like a sandbag, beaten black and blue by Tobirama Senju in seconds.
Even after Tobirama had stopped his assault, Hiruzen kept swinging his golden staff wildly, his eyes swollen shut.
"Hahahaha... Looks like Sarutobi lost his mind! The Second stopped attacking ages ago, yet he keeps flailing around, duking it out with thin air."
"A complete mockery—nothing but pure humiliation! Sarutobi's practically a performing monkey at the hands of The Second!"
"So this is the real strength of the strongest Hokage? No wonder he avoids battlefields."
"Turns out his impressive title was just self-promotion. This guy is a total fraud through and through!"
"Sage of Shinobi? More like Shinobi Teddy Bear!"
Witnessing how Tobirama toyed with Hiruzen, everyone couldn't help but burst into laughter.
This fight made it seem like these two shinobi were from entirely different leagues.
The gap in power was just too obvious.
"Still, The Second Hokage really is incredibly strong—not only does he casually use formidable Water Release techniques, but his Flying Thunder God Technique speed rivals even that of the Yellow Flash!"
"That's right. Didn't you guys hear what The Second said earlier? This reincarnated body can only unleash about 60% of his original strength."
"As Tobirama's disciple, Sarutobi surely knew exactly how powerful his master was. Yet he still dares to call himself the strongest Hokage—what shameless audacity!"
Many shinobi were thoroughly amazed by Tobirama's performance.
Even with only about 60% of his original strength, Tobirama had already entered the ranks of the strongest shinobi in the ninja world.
If fighting at his absolute peak, how many people could actually stand against him?
Onoki, A, and Master Genjo all wore increasingly grim expressions.
Although they loathed Sarutobi, he was still an S-rank ninja—one of the most powerful in the entire ninja world.
A ninja like this was being toyed with like a mere puppet by Senju Tobirama under the Impure World Reincarnation...
Fortunately, Orochimaru was a rogue ninja from Konoha. Otherwise, just the existence of this single jutsu alone would have been enough to give Konoha endless headaches.
"Monkey, that's enough."
Suddenly, light returned before Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes.
Seeing Senju Tobirama standing far away and feeling the mocking stares from the crowd below, Hiruzen dropped heavily onto the ground.
Panting heavily and clenching his teeth, he fought back tears.
How humiliating!
He'd rather die slowly in a holding cell than ever go through such humiliation again.
The image he had spent his entire life building... shattered completely!
This pain was worse than ten thousand deaths!
He was the Hokage—how had things come to this?
"Sensei, your rest has been long enough, hasn't it?"
"It's time now for you to face off against the First."
Orochimaru smirked sinisterly and clapped his hands together.
Senju Hashirama's body then involuntarily stepped forward.
Seeing Hiruzen looking so pitiful, Hashirama couldn't help but feel his merciful heart swell once more: "Monkey, during our fight I'll hold back and use only simple techniques against you. Try your best to get close."
"If you can seal me with your Sealing Technique, you'll win this battle."
Hearing Hashirama's whisper, Hiruzen—who had previously felt so desperate he wanted to kill himself—hesitated momentarily, then a glimmer of hope arose within him.
If he could defeat the First Hokage, who bore the title "God of Ninja," perhaps his reputation could recover slightly.
As for that previous fight against Senju Tobirama...
Tobirama used to be his teacher; it was perfectly normal for a student to lose to his master, right?
Thinking thus, Hiruzen lifted his spirits again, swirling his golden staff expertly.
"In that last match, I held back out of respect for my teacher, so I didn't show my true strength at all."
"But now, First, I'm going all out!"
Watching the confident Hiruzen Sarutobi, Uchiha Mirai couldn't help showing surprise on her face.
Incredible! Not a single flaw in sight.
If the ninja world held an award for Best Actor among Kages, she would definitely vote for Hiruzen Sarutobi.
What skill, what guts… it's a shame he didn't go into acting.
Senju Hashirama also felt delighted seeing Hiruzen regain his fighting spirit and smiled at him: "Monkey, are you ready? Here I come."
Without changing expression, Hiruzen gave a cold snort, tightened his grip on the golden staff, and charged headlong at Senju Hashirama.
He intended to seal Hashirama in the shortest possible time and win this battle decisively.
Seeing Hiruzen Sarutobi charging forward, Hashirama Senju also started channeling the chakra in his body.
He clapped his hands together and launched a basic attack: [Wood Release: Tree Expansion!]
A surge of intense chakra burst forth, instantly shattering the ground beneath.
Thick, dense vines and massive trees erupted into the sky, filling the entire protective barrier field in an instant.
"Hashirama Senju, you bastard!"
Hiruzen immediately let loose with a curse.
What the hell? Wasn't this supposed to be a fight using only ordinary attacks?
How did this tree domain appear in the blink of an eye?
Hiruzen felt his heart had been wounded—again.
As thick branches and vines wrapped around him from all directions, he could do nothing but keep swinging his golden staff.
However, the Wood Release trees were not only extremely tough but also growing at an alarming speed...
In just moments, Hiruzen was already bound tightly against the trunk of a thick tree, completely unable to move.
The vines kept absorbing chakra from his body to strengthen themselves.
In just moments, Hiruzen had completely lost the strength to resist.
Everyone watching from below was stunned—it ended significantly faster than the last fight.
They'd hardly even seen Hashirama clap his hands before the space inside the barrier was instantly filled with Wood Release techniques.
And just like that, Hiruzen was tied to a tree like a helpless dog...
Even Hashirama himself seemed confused as he scratched the back of his head.
Wait... How did the battle end so quickly? He really only used a basic attack!
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