When that blinding white light devoured everything in sight,
everyone realized something terrible was happening.
Konan immediately activated [Dance of the Shikigami], transforming her body into countless paper fragments to avoid the shockwave.
Orochimaru also used Summoning Jutsu, calling forth a massive serpent to swallow him whole and burrow underground.
As for Shimoku, he instantly unleashed [Susanoo], standing firm in place, unmoved by the chaos.
He was ready to test the true power of the [Ultimate Shinra Tensei].
However,
just before the terrifying impact released by Pain from above reached the ground,
the earth trembled violently ahead of time.
Countless massive shadows rose suddenly from beneath the ground, twisting, intertwining, merging...
Layer upon layer, endless and boundless.
Within moments, they formed a vast forest expanse, creating an enormous network of wooden vines.
Enveloping the entire Konoha Village beneath it.
Next instant,
the two mighty forces—one from above and one from below—collided head-on.
"Boom——"
Mountains and rivers seemed to collapse, as if the world itself was trembling.
...
Dozens of seconds later,
the impact ended.
Thick clouds of dust spread everywhere, shrouding the entire village.
Shimoku controlled Susanoo once more, waving his giant hand to sweep away the dust in front of him.
"What the hell is this...?"
The moment he looked out,
what met his eyes were rows upon rows of colossal wooden vines. The entire Konoha had become like a primeval jungle.
Massive vines twisted like dragons, blocking out the sky.
Even the broken pieces were dozens of meters long.
And the intact, thick ones stretched hundreds of meters long!
Several of those enormous vines even bore gigantic pink flowers...
Yet precisely because of this immense net of wooden vines, the impact of the [Ultimate Shinra Tensei] had been withstood.
Preventing Konoha's total destruction in an instant...
"What is this?!"
"[Wood Release: Advent of a World of Flowering Trees]!"
"How could it be?!"
"On such a scale... over such a wide area..."
"And even resisting a full-powered [Ultimate Shinra Tensei]!"
"There's no way Yamato the pushover could pull this off!"
"It must be... the real First Hokage: Hashirama Senju!"
Looking at the scene of devastation before him, Shimoku murmured in admiration.
Shimoku quickly deduced the truth.
Of course, he didn't truly believe that the long-dead "Ninja God," Hashirama Senju, could have actually returned from the grave.
But such an extremely wide-scale use of [Wood Release: Advent of a World of Flowering Trees], covering the entire Konoha Village,
proved there should only be one person in the world capable of doing this—Hashirama Senju himself!
Now that's interesting!
Soon after, Orochimaru—who had quickly burrowed underground to escape the shockwave—
rushed back to Shimoku's side.
Seeing Konoha's incredible transformation, even he couldn't hide his shock and confusion.
Such a wide-scale, massive technique
had practically exceeded his understanding of ninjutsu.
Compared to such a jutsu, even Hanzo—the so-called "Half-Demon" of the Legendary Three—was nothing but trash!
Orochimaru asked, "What exactly is going on here?"
"Wood Release."
"Tsunade?"
"No way. Only the First Hokage's Wood Release could have such power."
"The First Hokage? Hashirama Senju? Has he returned from the dead?!!"
"Not exactly. Look over there..."
Orochimaru followed Shimoku's gaze.
At the center of where the fierce battle had just occurred,
Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi somehow produced a Ninjutsu Scroll and opened it in advance.
Although the forbidden techniques sealed within the scroll had already been activated,
the scroll still exuded intense chakra fluctuations.
Obviously, this large-scale Wood Release forbidden technique must be closely tied to that scroll...
"That scroll?"
"It has to be Hashirama Senju's hidden trump card!"
"Fascinating. I never heard anything about this from Sarutobi-sensei..."
"This kind of last-resort measure would naturally only get passed down to successive Hokages; typically kept sealed somewhere and only used when the village faces an existential threat."
"You betrayed Konoha long ago. Do you really think that old man would've told you everything?"
Shimoku guessed logically.
This didn't seem surprising at all.
In fact, Shimoku had expected Konoha to have hidden trump cards.
If the Second Hokage left behind so many forbidden techniques for the village,
how could the First Hokage possibly leave nothing behind?
Honestly speaking, if he himself were approaching the end of his life someday,
he would certainly leave plenty of hidden strengths for his own Homuragakure...
Moreover.
That was none other than Hashirama Senju, the Ninja God who ruled the Ninja World with unmatched power decades ago...
This clearly revealed Konoha's true strength!
...
"Cough... cough—"
At the ruins' center, after activating this secret weapon scroll, Sarutobi was nearly drained of energy.
Caught in the dust storm, he couldn't stop coughing violently.
"What is this?!!!"
Jiraiya looked around in confusion, shock written across his face.
"Wood Release! It's Grandfather's ninja technique!"
Tsunade instantly sensed that familiar chakra and the vibrant vitality of Wood Release,
despite still being blindfolded.
"Old man! How did Grandfather's Wood Release end up inside this scroll?"
Tsunade asked excitedly.
"Huff—"
Sarutobi took a deep breath before explaining:
"This was a final safeguard left by the First Hokage before his death. He sealed his techniques and vast reserves of chakra inside this scroll."
"He warned future Hokages that it should only be used when the village faces an existential threat."
"In fact, even when four nations united against us and attacked our gates, the Second Hokage still refused to use it."
"This scroll has always remained sealed within the Hokage's Office."
"Each Hokage passed down its location and unlocking method exclusively to their sole heir."
"During the Nine-Tails' Attack, I actually prepared to use it."
"But Minato whisked the Nine-Tails away instantly, so I abandoned the idea..."
"And now today, when setting a trap at Hokage Tower, I deliberately retrieved this scroll just in case."
"I didn't expect it to come in handy just now!"
Sarutobi let out a sigh.
It was fortunate, too.
If it hadn't been for this wide-area Wood Release jutsu blocking Pain's attack,
Konoha might have already been destroyed...
Pain's ultimate move was downright horrifying!
"So the old man actually left behind something this powerful!"
"Is there more? Anything else?"
Tsunade cried out, already tasting victory.
"No more. The First Hokage only left behind a single Scroll..."
Sarutobi replied regretfully.
If there had been just a few extra Scrolls, Konoha wouldn't have needed to act so cautiously.
Back when Kumogakure dared threaten them,
they could've just marched in with one Scroll and wiped out the entire Hidden Cloud Village…
Of course, Sarutobi understood better than most.
To create such a rare and powerful technique, the First Hokage must have spent years experimenting, failing countless times
before barely managing success on this one occasion.
After all, no ordinary Scroll could possibly hold back Hashirama's overwhelming chakra reserves...
"This is the power of the Ninja God?!!"
"Not even his actual presence—just a technique he left behind, yet it covers the entire Konoha!"
"That's just ridiculous!"
Jiraiya let out a low whistle, clearly amazed.
Compared to such mighty power, he really still had a long way to go!
Even at his peak, in Sage Mode, he couldn't possibly unleash a jutsu of this scale...
"It's not over yet!"
"The techniques left behind by the First Hokage—nowhere near the power or precision he could wield in person!"
"And judging from appearances, our enemy hasn't given up either..."
Sarutobi lifted his head, warning gravely through labored breaths.
Through broken branches and thick dust clouds, one could still vaguely see.
High above, the figure of Pain's Deva Path still hovered.
Like a blade hanging over Konoha's throat.
The battle wasn't nearly over!
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