No one present wanted to admit it, but even with his resurrection being incomplete, the power of Hashirama Senju still surpassed everyone around.
In Sage Mode, Hashirama was truly terrifying.
For him, destroying an entire village was hardly a challenge.
Hashirama gave Onoki a cold glance, and the old man immediately shrank back, falling silent. There was no way they could risk bringing Hashirama to their village for a little stroll.
"Everyone, let me say it one more time. Listen closely."
Hashirama's eyes swept across the crowd, and he spoke coldly, "I—"
**Boom!**
Suddenly, with a dull thud, Hashirama was sent flying several hundred meters away, Itsuki appearing where he had just stood.
Uchiha Itsuki smiled cheerfully and said, "Go on, I'm all ears!"
Raikage: "..."
Tsuchikage: "..."
Hiruzen Sarutobi: "..."
"Uchiha Itsuki!!!"
Sarutobi Hiruzen glared at Itsuki in fury, shouting, "How dare you? How could you?"
Did Itsuki just kick Hashirama Senju?
That was the First Hokage!
Itsuki rolled his eyes and replied, "What? We're enemies now. Do I have to worship him or something? Old man, you've really grown soft, saying such naive things."
"You—"
"Enough!"
"Everyone!"
Itsuki waved his hand, still smiling as he addressed the group. "The First Hokage, the Third Tsuchikage, and the Fourth Raikage. You all want the Tailed Beasts, right? Fine, if you want one, come and take it!"
As if to support Itsuki, the Three-Tails let out a deep roar.
"At least for now, this guy belongs to me!"
Using a teleportation technique, Itsuki returned to the Three-Tails, declaring, "If you want this beast, there's only one way—defeat me!"
"Roar!"
The Three-Tails howled at the sky.
Onoki stared deeply at Uchiha Itsuki and asked, "Should I take this as a challenge, Uchiha Itsuki?"
"Challenge? Not at all!"
Itsuki laughed heartily, replying, "I simply want to beat you all to death—or be beaten to death by you."
Just as he finished speaking, a figure charged at him, covered in lightning.
"Very well, then die!" the Fourth Raikage's icy voice rang in Itsuki's ears.
**Boom!**
But a figure was sent flying—not Itsuki, but the Fourth Raikage, who had been kicked away by Itsuki.
The Raikage tumbled across the ground, rolling over a hundred meters.
"You're fast, but only in speed!"
Itsuki gave him a dismissive glance and said, "Flying Thunder God is a space-time jutsu."
You're fast, but I'm faster.
I am the fastest man.
"Don't try that in front of me—it's pointless."
Itsuki's tone was calm and unconcerned.
"Tsuchikage Onoki!" Onoki's voice was grave as he said, "It seems we need to work together this time."
"Of course!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi glared fiercely at Uchiha Itsuki, saying, "We'll deal with him first, then discuss anything else!"
Hashirama slowly climbed back up from the distance, frowning slightly but saying nothing.
The Fourth Raikage stood up, looking equally furious.
Several people surrounded Uchiha Itsuki, ready to launch an all-out attack.
...
Meanwhile, Sasori and Deidara had already dealt with the other Konoha shinobi.
Upon noticing the ongoing battle, Deidara quickly intervened on the other side.
Ignoring Sasori's irritation, he sent various white spiders and birds to bury Kakashi and Shikaku under debris.
In the end, Kakashi, heavily injured, managed to escape with Shikaku and one remaining Konoha shinobi.
"Calm down. Let's head to Big Brother Itsuki!"
Deidara said to the clearly upset Sasori, "There's trouble over there, and if we don't move, our plan might fail."
"It better be worth it!"
Sasori glared coldly at Itsuki, adding, "If you dare trick me..."
But as they approached, Sasori was left speechless.
For a long time, he said nothing.
Goodness!
Are those all Kages?
Why are there so many?
Is this a new Five Kage Summit or something?
Who would dare cause trouble here?
That would be suicidal!
"What do you think, Sasori?"
Deidara smirked at him. "How about unleashing your power and taking them all down? We'll snatch the Three-Tails, and your name will spread across the entire shinobi world."
Sasori shot Deidara a cold look.
In this situation, you want me to go in?
Do I look like I have a death wish?
Why don't you go first?
If you can last three rounds, I'll call you big brother.
"It seems like we won't be getting the Three-Tails this time," Sasori said hoarsely.
"Not necessarily!"
A voice suddenly chimed in. "According to my plan, your chances of getting the Three-Tails are quite high."
As he spoke, a hand gently rested on Sasori's shoulder.
"Enough, Uchiha Itsuki. What exactly are you planning?"
Sasori glared at Itsuki.
The figure who had suddenly appeared was none other than Uchiha Itsuki.
"The last time I failed to capture the Eight-Tails, Pain didn't consider the mission complete."
Itsuki smiled. "But if I help you capture the Three-Tails this time, would that count as completing my mission?"
"It would!"
Sasori firmly replied, "If you can successfully capture the Three-Tails in this situation, Deidara and I will both acknowledge that it was your success. We won't steal your credit."
"Agreed!"
Deidara nodded eagerly.
After all, neither of them had the ability to snatch the Three-Tails from so many powerful opponents.
If Itsuki could pull it off, then sure, he deserved the credit.
"Alright, I'll need a small favor from you both later."
Upon hearing this, Sasori and Deidara exchanged wary glances.
They didn't want to rush into a situation that would get them killed.
They also didn't trust Uchiha Itsuki one bit.
His talent for causing trouble was unmatched.
Just look at Konoha.
What a mess he's turned it into.
Look at Danzo and Hiruzen.
One was the shadow of the village, the other had been Hokage longer than anyone else.
Both of them had been tortured to the point of no return.
If anyone had the biggest grudge against someone, it was Uchiha Itsuki!
That was a lesson written in blood.
Sasori and Deidara didn't want to become Itsuki's next victims.
That came with a price.
"Relax!"
Itsuki flashed a grin that was unsettling. "It's just a simple task."
After hearing his request, Sasori and Deidara exchanged a look and nodded slightly.
"If you can really pull that off, we'll agree to help."
"Indeed!"
Even these two members of the Akatsuki couldn't hide their excitement in the presence of so many Kage-level figures.
If they could steal the Tailed Beast from under their noses, it would be an exhilarating victory.
"Good, it's settled then!"
Itsuki smiled subtly.
A smile with hidden intentions.
The world couldn't only focus on the Hidden Leaf Village.
An organization like Akatsuki, full of dangerous individuals, had to be brought out into the open.
The other villages needed to see what they were dealing with.
...
"Wood Style: Wood Human Technique!"
Hashirama summoned his wooden golem once more.
The good thing about Edo Tensei was its infinite chakra supply.
He could use it as much as he wanted.
Every technique was one that could easily lead to mutual destruction.
**Crackle!**
Lightning flickered all over Raikage's body, encasing him like armor.
Lightning Release Chakra Mode!
Up in the sky, Onoki formed a small rectangular shape with his hands.
Dust Release!
And finally, Sarutobi Hiruzen…
He formed hand signs!
Starting right off with an A-Rank Fire Style jutsu.
"Just what I wanted!"
Itsuki smirked coldly, clapping his hands together.
"Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
Bang!
In an instant, he created four shadow clones, each facing off against Hashirama Senju, Onoki, and the Fourth Raikage.
One clone engaged with the other ninjas.
The final one, his original body, confronted Sarutobi Hiruzen.
Sarutobi Hiruzen was completely stunned.
Is this real?
He's using his real body to fight me?
He must really think highly of me.
Sigh!
Itsuki sighed, looking at Sarutobi Hiruzen, and said, "You've always thought I looked down on you, and while that's mostly true, I've decided to show you the respect you deserve."
"Come on, monkey!"
Sarutobi Hiruzen wore a half-crying, half-laughing expression.
Thanks, but really, you don't need to respect me!
Seriously!
"Fire Style..."
"Lightning Style..."
"Dust Release..."
"Wood Style..."
Ninjas from all sides clashed fiercely.
On one side stood Uchiha Itsuki.
On the other side, a small ninja coalition, including four Kage-level opponents.
Itsuki was incredibly strong. Even though he was up against so many elites, he was starting to feel the strain.
Luckily, the coalition members weren't united.
While dealing with Uchiha Itsuki, many were already thinking about what to do after his defeat.
The ninjas on the coalition side were in shock.
They were going insane.
Is this really Uchiha Itsuki?
Are we sure it's not Madara Uchiha?
How can one person hold his own against all of us?
And not just that—
It almost feels like he's dominating us.
Is this guy even human?
The longer the battle went on, the more stunned—and terrified—they became.
They had fought together for so long but still couldn't take Itsuki down. What would happen once this was over? If they split up, who could stand against him alone?
They realized they had to seize this chance to kill Itsuki.
Both sides clashed.
But!
As the battle went on, something strange happened.
Itsuki subtly redirected everyone's attacks toward one person—
The Third Tsuchikage!
Onoki!
Onoki's face remained stoic, but internally, he cursed Itsuki from top to bottom.
"Why me?"
Even if you're going to pick us off one by one, why does it have to be me?
Oh, right!
Konoha has the First Hokage, resurrected by Edo Tensei, too tricky to deal with.
The Raikage from the Hidden Cloud Village has tough skin, also hard to handle.
So, I'm the target?
I can use Dust Release!
I can fly!
Onoki cursed silently, but he understood the logic.
Targeting him made sense.
Even though he had the strongest attack power with his Dust Release and could fly, he was also the most fragile.
If Itsuki hit him even once, he was done for.
So, it made sense for Itsuki to go after him.
And the others?
Naturally, they didn't care if the Tsuchikage died.
To them, an outside village's Kage dying was even better.
"Since that's the case, don't blame me!"
Onoki's face darkened, and when the chance came, he unleashed Dust Release without hesitation.
"You bastard!"
The Fourth Raikage nearly exploded with anger. "Old man Onoki, what are you doing? You almost killed me!"
The Dust Release attack had such a wide range that it enveloped him as well.
"What are you yelling about?"
Onoki replied irritably. "You're not dead, are you? And besides, it worked."
The Fourth Raikage's face twisted in fury, glaring at Onoki.
True, the attack had taken out one of Itsuki's clones.
But!
The Raikage had nearly been killed.
No matter how tough his body was, he knew he couldn't withstand Dust Release head-on.
You did that on purpose, didn't you?
Fine!
Let's see who wins this fight between us.
The backstabbing and scheming became more blatant.
After nearly being hit by Dust Release, the Raikage found a chance to counterattack, involving Onoki in the blast. Itsuki dodged successfully, but Onoki barely avoided it and got hurt.
Onoki shouted angrily.
The Raikage's excuse was impossible to argue with.
Hashirama Senju could only sigh repeatedly as he watched.
In his time, everything centered around him.
When he gave orders, no one dared to disobey.
But now, these were Kage from other villages, and he couldn't do anything about them.
He couldn't win!
A thought suddenly crossed Hashirama's mind.
Even though they had more people, against an enemy like this, did numbers really matter?
"Ha!"
Suddenly!
A Itsuki clone facing the Raikage and Tsuchikage roared and detonated.
The explosion, enhanced by explosive tags, injured even the calculating Onoki, who coughed up blood.
As for the Raikage, despite his speed, he wasn't as experienced as Onoki and took the full brunt of the blast. His body was covered in countless wounds, large and small.
"Onoki!"
The Raikage roared in anger.
You ran away, and you didn't even warn me?
Onoki, however, just gave him a cold glance before turning to deal with the final Itsuki clone.
"Raikage, hurry up and check on the Third Hokage; he won't last much longer."
Hearing this, the Raikage grew even angrier.
That's all you have to say?
"Impressive!"
Hashirama Senju sighed, looking at the clone in front of him. "You understand human nature perfectly, dividing us from the inside."
"Heh, First Hokage, that's not really fair."
Itsuki smiled. "Do you really think they don't understand? They know it better than anyone."
"Unfortunately!"
"Understanding is one thing. Doing something about it is another."
Sigh!
Hashirama sighed again.
"But this battle has gone on long enough. It's time to end it."
As soon as he finished speaking, the Three-Tails went berserk.
The Tailed Beast, which had been calm until now, opened its mouth and fired a Tailed Beast Bomb straight at Sarutobi Hiruzen.
To make things worse, Sarutobi had already exhausted himself fighting Itsuki.
At this moment...
He could only watch helplessly as the Tailed Beast Bomb flew toward him.
(End of Chapter)