After Yuto and Uchiha Madara shattered the meteorite, their gazes simultaneously fell upon Hashirama Senju.
"It's been a while, Hashirama Senju!"
Yuto stood atop the giantified Gold Dust Coffin, looking down at Hashirama with an ambiguous smile.
"Hashirama, I lost to you last time, but this time, you're no match for me."
Uchiha Madara also looked down at Hashirama from above.
Those eyes!
It was only then that Hashirama realized Uchiha Madara's eyes were no longer the Mangekyo Sharingan he remembered from legend.
They were the eyes of the Sage of Six Paths—the Rinnegan!
Hashirama's heart lurched, and his body tensed instantly.
"Our grievances will be settled once and for all today."
Uchiha Madara's voice echoed faintly.
"Madara! Why have you allied with Yuto? Do you know his true purpose!"
"The village of Konoha was built by the two of us!"
Hashirama's voice rang out again, tinged with a sliver of hope.
"The Konoha of today is not the Konoha of the past, and neither are you and I."
Uchiha Madara looked down at Hashirama, speaking in a calm, even tone.
"Don't waste your breath, Hashirama. Today, we intend to wipe Konoha off the map completely."
Yuto's cool voice reached Hashirama's ears.
Hashirama stood ramrod straight, his fists clenched, glaring at Uchiha Madara and Yuto as he roared in fury:
"Yuto! Uchiha Madara! What in the world are you two up to!"
Sage Art—Wood Style—True Thousand-Armed Statue!
Hashirama let out a great shout. Amidst a series of earth-shaking rumbles, a gigantic Buddha statue rose from the ground.
Standing atop the statue's head, Hashirama stared directly at Yuto and the others, his voice somewhat low as he spoke:
"Are you truly prepared to stand against the entire shinobi world and all that is just?"
Justice?
Hearing these words, Uchiha Madara suddenly burst into laughter, his voice filled with disdain and mockery.
"You're as naive as ever, Hashirama."
"This shinobi world has never needed justice. It needs to be reborn through destruction!"
As Uchiha Madara's words fell, Hashirama's eyes widened in disbelief.
Yuto glanced at Uchiha Madara. Although he didn't agree with Madara's "rebirth through destruction," for now, their ultimate goals aligned.
Whether it was destruction or complete unification, both required sufficient military force.
Of course, complete unification would require a large number of followers, which was ultimately the point where Yuto and Uchiha Madara would diverge.
A battle between them was inevitable, though neither had mentioned it yet.
Yuto's gaze left Uchiha Madara, and as he looked at Hashirama, his eyes also held a mocking expression. He spoke in an eerie tone:
"Don't you understand yet, Hashirama Senju! The peace you fought for was a mistake!"
"From the founding of the Five Great Shinobi Villages to now, only sixty years have passed. In such a short time, three Great Shinobi Wars have already erupted."
Yuto paused here, looking at the stunned Hashirama before continuing:
"Since your theory of peace is wrong, let the entire shinobi world welcome my version of peace!"
As Yuto's words fell, the air suddenly grew still.
A bitter smile appeared on Hashirama's face. Was the peace he had desperately protected truly a mistake, as Yuto claimed?
However, the moment of hesitation vanished from Hashirama's heart.
For fighters of Hashirama's caliber, wills were far stronger than ordinary people's.
It was nearly impossible to disturb their minds with words alone.
Hashirama slowly lifted his head, his gaze locking onto Yuto's eyes. He spoke with a resolute tone:
"Perhaps my peace was a mistake, but as shinobi of the old era, this new world has no need for us!"
"As figures long past, we should simply remain in the history of the shinobi world!"
As he spoke, Hashirama erupted with a killing intent.
Hashirama's hands quickly formed a seal, and he shouted:
"Shinra Tensei—"
Before Hashirama's technique could fully activate, he suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood. An unseen force kicked him off the head of the True Thousand-Armed Statue, sending him flying.
Meanwhile, Uchiha Madara's eyes on the other side flashed with a special light.
Rinnegan: Limbo—Bardo!
In Uchiha Madara's vision, his shadow had already appeared on top of the True Thousand-Armed Statue.
Hashirama, however, was completely unaware.
Naturally, without any warning, Hashirama took the blow head-on.
After being kicked away, the True Thousand-Armed Statue, no longer under Hashirama's control, froze in place.
At that moment, Yuto, controlling the giant Gold Dust Coffin, closed the distance in a few steps and appeared before the True Thousand-Armed Statue.
BOOM! BOOM!
In an instant, dozens of powerful attacks all slammed into the immobilized statue.
CRACK! CRACK!
A series of cracking sounds echoed out. In a short time, the entire True Thousand-Armed Statue was blasted to pieces by Yuto.
Hashirama's face was now pale, and traces of blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.
"I told you, you are no match for us anymore. The two of us together give you no chance of winning."
Uchiha Madara's gaze calmly fell upon Hashirama below.
Yuto wore a faint smile as he, too, looked down at Hashirama.
Hearing Uchiha Madara's words, Hashirama suddenly laughed:
"If you have no chance of winning, why have you two allied?"
"It's clear that you are worried or wary of something."
As he spoke, Hashirama held up the massive scroll behind him, placing it horizontally before his chest.
"Aren't you curious why someone with my vitality would die so suddenly?"
"Indeed."
"What you're worried about is in this scroll."
Hashirama Senju wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, speaking with a calm expression.
Yuto and Uchiha Madara's gazes simultaneously fell upon the massive scroll in front of Hashirama.
The two of them frowned slightly. Although they didn't know what was inside the scroll, they felt no sense of danger whatsoever.
At their level, they should have been able to sense anything that could pose a threat.
But now, they felt nothing at all.
"So it was in the scroll all along."
Uchiha Madara raised an eyebrow. He had thought Hashirama's backup plan was hidden elsewhere, not merely in a simple scroll.
"A scroll? If that's the case, attack!"
Yuto scoffed and suddenly moved.
At the same instant Yuto moved, the Uchiha Madara beside him also manipulated his shadow, rushing towards the scroll in front of Hashirama.
Although Hashirama couldn't see the shadow, he knew it was a special jutsu.
He continuously retreated violently while constantly changing his position.
"Are you curious why this scroll gives you no sense of danger?"
"It's because this scroll merely contains a vast amount of my chakra and life force. Of course, there is also a simple Summoning Jutsu."
As he spoke, Hashirama's expression turned grave.
Hashirama reached out, forcefully unrolling the scroll and pressing it to the ground.
"I used all my chakra and life force from when I was alive, all for this Summoning Jutsu!"
Hashirama quickly formed hand seals, pressing them onto the scroll. His expression was solemn and respectful as he spoke:
"Summoning Jutsu—Slug Sage!!"
BOOM!!!!
In the next moment, an earth-shattering white smoke appeared before Yuto and Uchiha Madara.
Utter terror!!
An indescribable feeling of dread suddenly rose in the hearts of Yuto and Uchiha Madara!
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