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[Konoha] Chapter 263: The Arrival of Hashirama Senju!
🕑 Added 2024-12-10 06:30:01 +0000 UTCShūichi spoke with absolute confidence.
Indeed, even if Nagato personally acted, it would be impossible for the Akatsuki to seize the Nine-Tails and Six-Tails from Konoha under the current circumstances—whether or not Shūichi returned.
However, Shūichi’s self-assurance only made the Fourth Raikage more agitated. He turned abruptly, ready to leave.
Ōnoki immediately shouted, “Raikage, it’s already too late to return. Instead, we should focus on capturing the Akatsuki members here!”
The Fourth Raikage halted, then barked orders at the nearby Cloud Shinobi: “Search the area immediately! Find those Akatsuki bastards!”
Cloud Shinobi quickly obeyed, spreading out to investigate.
Following suit, Iwa Shinobi and Suna Shinobi also mobilized under Ōnoki’s and the Fourth Kazekage’s commands.
Meanwhile, the Konoha Shinobi looked up at Konan hovering in the sky.
“Lady Konan, should we take action?”
Konan considered briefly before shaking her head. “Follow Lord Shūichi’s orders.”
With that, Genma and the others held their positions.
The Fourth Raikage turned back, glaring at the Third Kazekage. “If we capture him, it might be of some use.”
Orochimaru chuckled. “As expected.”
“Fortunately, I came prepared.”
As he finished speaking, the reanimated Third Kazekage formed hand seals.
In an instant, coffins began to rise from the ground.
Looking at Shūichi, Orochimaru smiled slyly. “Shūichi-kun, I’ve prepared a special gift for you.”
Shūichi remained calm. “The First and Second Hokage?”
“I’m just worried they’ll deal with you first when they wake up.”
Orochimaru chuckled. “Thanks for the warning. It seems you’ve studied this jutsu as well.”
Hidden in the shadows, Orochimaru’s wariness toward Shūichi only grew.
One by one, the coffin lids slid open.
The Second Mizukage, Third Mizukage, First Raikage, First Kazekage, and the Second Hokage emerged.
Five Kage, each a figure who had once shaped the fate of the ninja world.
“This is bad!”
Ōnoki and the others felt an overwhelming pressure bearing down on them.
The Konoha Shinobi gasped as they recognized one of the figures.
“That’s… the Second Hokage!”
“They’ve summoned even the Second Hokage!”
“Does this mean the First Hokage will appear as well?”
...
Despite the formidable sight of the Five Kage, Shūichi’s expression remained unchanged.
While their power in this state closely mirrored their prime, there was still a noticeable gap. The stronger they were in life, the more pronounced this difference became.
The key variable was whether Orochimaru had replaced his body. If not, and White Zetsu was used as a sacrifice, these Kage would be nearly as strong as they were in life.
Particularly the Second Hokage—this jutsu was his creation, after all.
The coffins sank back into the ground, and the reanimated Kage began regaining their awareness.
“What’s going on?”
“Have we been revived?”
The Kage surveyed their surroundings in confusion.
The Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju, quickly deduced the situation. “The Impure World Reincarnation, huh?”
“What’s happened that someone would resort to this jutsu and summon us?”
Shūichi spoke with a slight smile. “Lord Second Hokage, you were summoned by Orochimaru, a disciple of the Third Hokage.”
Tobirama frowned. “Saru’s disciple?”
“And who are you?”
Shūichi wasn’t wearing a Konoha forehead protector, further raising Tobirama’s suspicions.
Still controlling the Third Kazekage, Orochimaru chuckled. “Lord Second, he is the Fourth Hokage’s student and has earned the title of the new ‘God of Shinobi.’”
Hmm? A title like my brother’s?
Tobirama scrutinized the young Shūichi. “The new ‘God of Shinobi’?”
“So, what’s the situation now?”
The other Kage also turned their attention to Shūichi.
The Second Mizukage snorted. “A young ‘God of Shinobi’? Has the ninja world fallen so low?”
He glanced at Ōnoki. “Speaking of which, that kid Ōnoki is still here, how is it that he outlived Third Mizukage?”
The Third Mizukage interjected, glancing at Shūichi. “Lord Second, the new generation of shinobi is far stronger than us.”
“I, for one, died at the hands of this so-called ‘God of Shinobi.’ Of course, he didn’t have that title back then.”
The Second Mizukage’s expression sharpened. “An impressive young man, then!”
“By the way, why is there no Mizukage here?”
“Hey, Ōnoki!”
"Explain the current situation!"
Before the conversation could escalate, Orochimaru manipulated the Third Kazekage to speak.
“The Fourth Mizukage, Yagura, was killed by the Akatsuki—my current organization.”
“And the Fifth Mizukage is now betrothed to Shūichi-kun, the new ‘God of Shinobi.’”
The Second Mizukage scowled. “This boy killed the Third Mizukage? And now the village is aligning with him? How pathetic.”
The Third Mizukage sighed. “It seems much has changed in my absence.”
Orochimaru continued with a sly grin. “Indeed. The Fourth Mizukage, as the Three-Tails’ jinchūriki, was controlled by the Akatsuki using genjutsu. Once discovered, he had to be eliminated.”
“To protect the Six-Tails jinchūriki and deal with us, they had no choice but to ally with Konoha. It was a clever move.”
“And now, I’ve summoned you all to deal with Shūichi-kun, so he won’t have time to aid the other ninja villages.”
The Fourth Raikage roared, “Everyone, listen up! The Akatsuki are collecting tailed beasts to create the Ten-Tails and plunge the ninja world into genjutsu!”
“We’re running out of time. We must eliminate Orochimaru now!”
“If anyone can sense where that snake is hiding, tell us!”
Tobirama’s voice turned icy. “Orochimaru, you underestimate us Kage.”
“Especially me, the creator of this jutsu.”
With that, he raised his hand, preparing to form seals.
Shūichi looked on with a hint of expectation.
But the next moment, Tobirama Senju froze. “Hmm?”
Glancing at Tobirama, the First Raikage spoke, “It seems even the creator of the technique can’t undo it, huh?”
Shūichi turned to the Third Kazekage and said, “Looks like you’ve implanted the First Hokage’s cells.”
He wasn't sure if Orochimaru had transplanted cells or if he was using the Impure World Reincarnation technique. The latter seemed more likely.
Orochimaru chuckled. “To deal with you, Shūichi-kun, I had to prepare accordingly.”
Shūichi's gaze swept over the Kage and he smiled. “But with them… it’s still far from enough.”
The Second Mizukage, always combative, immediately took offense and pointed at Shūichi. “Hey, you’re being a bit too cocky, aren’t you?”
“Even the God of Shinobi, the First Hokage, wouldn’t have spoken like that in front of us.”
Tobirama nodded. “While you’re impressive, you shouldn’t underestimate us.”
“When we engage in battle, I’m afraid we’ll be hard to control. You especially need to watch out for my special instant body movement technique—what?”
Tobirama’s words were cut off as Shūichi’s body erupted into multiple wooden clones.
“Wood Release... you... wait, you don’t have your brother’s cells, do you?”
Tobirama was stunned. “Have you mastered the Wood Release bloodline just like my brother?”
Orochimaru, controlling the Third Kazekage, laughed. “Lord Second, Shūichi-kun has mastered more than just Wood Release. He’s also learned your instant body movement technique—Flying Thunder God.”
Tobirama couldn’t help but show a look of appreciation. “In that case, I’m relieved.”
The First Raikage interrupted, “It’s too early to say that.”
As soon as the words left his mouth, his body erupted with Lightning Release chakra, and in an instant, he disappeared from his spot.
Boom!
The two figures collided mid-air, lightning crackling and wind surging.
The Kage looked up in surprise.
“Is that... a stronger Lightning Release chakra mode than the First Raikage’s?”
The Second Mizukage looked astonished as he watched the First Raikage being sent flying.
And the opponent the First Raikage had been battling was just a Wood Clone.
At that moment, the Third Kazekage suddenly attacked, sending a deadly wind blade toward the falling Wood Clone.
But another gust of wind arrived, and the two wind-based attacks collided, exploding in mid-air.
The Fourth Kazekage had been released by Shūichi and was now taking action.
After neutralizing the wind attack, sand surged forward like a tidal wave, heading straight for the Third Kazekage.
The battle between the two generations of Kazekage officially began.
At the same time, Ōnoki appeared behind the First Raikage. Before the Raikage could react, Ōnoki used the Super Added Weight Rock Technique, slamming the First Raikage down with a heavy crash that left him immobile.
Immediately after, Fire Nether Chains emerged from the ground, wrapping around and piercing through the First Raikage’s body.
Orochimaru, who was hiding in a cave surrounded by a barrier, narrowed his eyes. “As expected of Shūichi-kun, these Kage probably can’t stop him.”
The First Raikage was taken out in a single exchange. So then…
The Second Mizukage, Third Mizukage, and Tobirama all began forming hand seals uncontrollably.
“Be careful, it’s Water Release!”
Tobirama shouted a warning.
But before the three could complete their Water Release techniques, the three Wood Clones of Shūichi had already finished their Water Releases. Torrential waves surged, forming water dragons that attacked relentlessly.
The three Kage quickly dodged.
Boom!
The water flowed violently, and the entire battlefield was soon transformed into a marshy terrain.
The Third Mizukage landed on the water’s surface and sped across it, quickly forming hand seals to control the water and head straight for Shūichi’s real body.
However, the Wood Clones performed their techniques faster, unleashing a barrage of jutsu.
Water Release, Wind Release, Lightning Release, Earth Release, Fire Release—each technique followed instantly, as if from a multi-barrel cannon, relentlessly bombarding the Third Mizukage.
With the hand-seal-less ninjutsu and mastery of all five elemental releases, Shūichi overwhelmed the Third Mizukage completely.
This was the first time Shūichi had freely unleashed jutsu without seals in front of such a large audience.
Not only the watching Konan and the Konoha shinobi like Shiranui Genma, but even the Kage and Orochimaru, who thought they knew Shūichi well, were left stunned.
Meanwhile, the Second Mizukage summoned a summoning beast, which was quickly found by Shūichi’s Wood Clone and struck down with a single punch.
There was no time for the summoned beast to do anything.
To others, the Second Mizukage’s speed was remarkable, but to Shūichi’s Wood Clones, it was slow.
There was no time to heat up either, leaving the Mizukage only able to take the hits.
As for the Third Kazekage, he was being overwhelmed by the combined forces of Ōnoki, the Fourth Raikage, and the Fourth Kazekage.
However, the Third Kazekage was indeed the strongest of the Kazekage, and despite being surrounded, he didn’t seem as desperate as the Second and Third Mizukages.
As for Tobirama, who faced Shūichi’s Wood Clones, despite being bombarded with continuous jutsu, he wasn’t in as bad shape as the others, though he did seem somewhat out of control.
But watching Shūichi, who stood with his hands behind his back while his clones hunted down the Kage, made Konan and the others feel helpless.
Were the Kage too weak, or was the new God of Shinobi too terrifying?
...
Inside the cave, Orochimaru flicked out his tongue and muttered to himself, “Although the strength of the Kage here doesn’t reach the level of the one in front of me, the gap isn’t too wide. I didn’t expect that just a Wood Clone would… And it still has plenty of energy left!”
So far, Shūichi had yet to use any of his Bloodline abilities, aside from the Wood Clones.
Not to mention the powers, which were said to be no weaker, and possibly even stronger than the Mangekyō Sharingan’s techniques.
“Shūichi-kun never fails to impress!”
Orochimaru’s eyes sparkled with heat.
The White Zetsu enhanced by the cells of Hashirama was indeed a great body, but… Shūichi’s body seemed even more appealing!
However, relying on just these Kage was obviously not enough—they couldn’t even hold him back.
“Senju Hashirama...”
Orochimaru chuckled.
On the battlefield.
Tobirama suddenly stepped away from the fight, shouting, “Be careful, a new summoning is coming!”
Summoning Technique—Impure World Reincarnation!
Tobirama finished the hand seals, his face turning serious. “Not good, it’s my brother!”
He quickly shouted to Shūichi, “Get ready, my brother is coming out!”
The coffin lid slammed open, and Senju Hashirama walked out, his gaze confused as he looked around. When his eyes landed on Tobirama, he froze. “Tobirama, did you summon me?”
“What time is it now?”
Tobirama hurriedly explained, “It wasn’t me, brother. Look carefully, I’m in the same state as you—Impure World Reincarnation.”
Hashirama awkwardly scratched his head. “That’s true.”
He then noticed the First Raikage, who had been subdued, and the Second and Third Mizukage, whom he recognized. He frowned. “Wasn’t it Konoha who summoned us?”
Tobirama answered, “It’s the disciple of the Third Hokage. It seems they’ve defected from the village and joined an organization called Akatsuki, trying to collect the Tailed Beasts to create the Ten-Tails.”
Hashirama’s gaze shifted to Ōnoki. “You’re that kid who was following Madara.”
Though called a “kid,” Ōnoki wasn’t embarrassed. He spoke in a low voice, “Lord Hashirama, I’m now the Third Tsuchikage.”
“As you can see, the dead Kage were summoned by the Akatsuki organization to prevent us from coming to the rescue. They want all the Tailed Beasts, and the situation is dire. So, we hope you can tell us where your weaknesses lie.”
Hashirama nodded. “That’s only natural. As for my weaknesses…”
He thought seriously for a moment before awkwardly scratching his head. “Ah, my apologies.”
He quickly turned to Tobirama. “Tobirama, do you know what my weaknesses are?”
Tobirama sighed helplessly, facepalming, while Ōnoki started to sweat nervously.
Konan and the others stared in a daze.
Is this really the God of Shinobi?
Why does he seem a bit… goofy?
Shūichi almost laughed out loud. No wonder he was the First Hokage.
The impatient Fourth Raikage couldn’t wait any longer. “Let’s just attack!”
“If the Akatsuki captures all the Tailed Beasts and creates the Ten-Tails, with the Rinnegan added to that, the entire Shinobi world will be trapped in the Infinite Tsukuyomi!”
Hashirama’s expression turned serious. “The Rinnegan… the eyes of the Sage of Six Paths, huh? This situation is indeed quite grave.”
Shūichi, having been quietly watching the unfolding drama, finally spoke. “Lord First Hokage, with your strength, you might be able to break free from the caster’s control.”
Hashirama turned his gaze to Shūichi. “Who are you?”
“Shūichi Hoshita!”
Shūichi introduced himself. “Jonin of Konoha, disciple of the Fourth Hokage, and your granddaughter Tsunade’s friend.”
Hashirama smiled. “A disciple of the Fourth Hokage? Already the Fourth Hokage? Has the monkey become the Third Hokage now? By the way, how’s little Tsunade?”
Shūichi smiled. “Tsunade is doing very well. She’s strong and the greatest medical ninja.”
Hashirama laughed heartily. “Haha, really? That sounds great.”
The nostalgic mood caused the Fourth Raikage and Ōnoki to grow increasingly impatient.
Unable to hold back, the Fourth Raikage dashed at Hashirama.
Hashirama instinctively countered, kicking the Fourth Raikage flying across the battlefield.
Ōnoki broke out in a cold sweat. “As expected of the former God of Shinobi. If he was completely controlled, then…”
In his panic, Ōnoki looked at Shūichi. “Shūichi, are you really going to let things continue to worsen?”
The Fourth Raikage got up from the ground, glaring at Hashirama with deep wariness. “This guy’s power is no weaker than that Shūichi’s.”
He turned to Shūichi and yelled, “Shūichi, even if they can’t capture the Nine-Tails and the Six-Tails, if they gather the other Tailed Beasts, and add the Rinnegan and other Impure World Reincarnated powerful individuals, even Uchiha Madara, can Konoha handle that?”
“Right now, the best option is for the Five Great Shinobi Nations to unite and fight against the Akatsuki!”
“Your arrogance will destroy Konoha!”
He was desperate!
Finally, he was desperate!
Shūichi smiled secretly, but remained completely calm. “The reason I’m still here is because of Uchiha Madara!”
“Tsuchikage, Kazekage, Raikage, don’t think you’re so selfless, and don’t underestimate my capacity.”
“As long as I’m here, the Akatsuki’s greatest strength will be drawn here.”
“You think Pain with the Rinnegan is the strongest? You’re gravely mistaken.”
“Raikage, the intelligence has already been shared with you, yet you chose not to believe Konoha. If you lose the Eight-Tails and the Two-Tails, you can only blame yourselves.”
“However, compared to losing the Tailed Beasts and having your villages destroyed, I’m sure you’d choose the former, right?”
Ōnoki, scolded into silence, clenched his teeth.
The Fourth Raikage, ready to explode, fell silent.
Hashirama’s gaze sharpened. “Madara, huh?”
“It seems Madara is very much connected to the Akatsuki!”
Shūichi nodded. “During the battle at the Valley of the End, Uchiha Madara used his Sharingan’s technique, Izanagi, to fake his death.”
“What?”
Tobirama’s face changed.
Shūichi continued, “The Eye of the Moon Plan is actually being manipulated by Uchiha Madara!”
(End of Chapter)
Comments
Sil3nt
Thanks for the chapter!
