At the edge of the battlefield, Wakato and Zhu Jian were closely observing the entire battle.
Watching Tobirama being struck by the peculiar Six Paths Ninja Tool, Hashirama grew increasingly anxious.
"Sir, what are the precise effects of those Six Paths Ninja Tools? Was Tobirama actually defeated by these tools?"
This was Hashirama's first time witnessing the Six Paths Ninja Tools in actual combat.
In the past, when he was alive, the Cloud Village wouldn't dare to provoke him, let alone use these "toys" against him.
Back then, even when Cloud Village's entire force was dispatched, they failed miserably in their attempt to capture the Nine-Tails, incurring heavy losses. Meanwhile, Hashirama could capture all nine tailed beasts alive by himself—anyone could see the difference in strength.
But in this world No. 2, with Hashirama's death, the Golden and Silver Brothers grew audacious, and none dared to challenge them.
Seeing Hashirama's concern, Wakato gave a brief explanation.
The Six Paths Ninja Tools consist of five items:
Amber Purifying Bottle - Traps and seals anyone who dares respond to its call.Banana Fan - Enables its wielder to perform five-elemental nature transformations at will.Golden Rope, Seven Star Sword, and Red Gourd - Function as a set: the rope forces a target to utter a "spiritual word" upon contact, the sword reveals and severs it, and the gourd then captures it.
Once a target's spirit word is sealed in the Red Gourd, they're in grave danger. Speaking certain words, remaining silent too long, or even saying something phonetically similar can result in being sucked into the gourd!
Hashirama was visibly surprised by this revelation. He hadn't anticipated such complex mechanisms within the Six Paths Ninja Tools.
Any ninja ignorant of these effects could face fatal consequences. Before reaching a certain level of strength, intelligence gathering was paramount for a ninja.
Even Hashirama himself might have unwittingly fallen prey to the Amber Purifying Bottle if he hadn't been prepared.
Still, he wasn't worried about his own safety; he doubted any tool could trap him. But for Tobirama, the situation looked grim.
...
"Damn Kumo ninja beasts!"
"Curse the Uchiha!"
"Everyone knows I detest the wretched Uchiha clan—well, except for Izuna and Kagami…"
Tobirama fumed inwardly, angry and anxious.
Unaware of the Six Paths Ninja Tool's exact effects, he knew the enemy had somehow bound his "spiritual word," but he couldn't predict the consequences. Any delay might lead to instant defeat.
The battle had to end now!
Whoosh!
Ginkaku, feeling victorious, suddenly noticed Tobirama had disappeared.
He's used that elusive Flying Thunder God Technique again, but where could he have gone this time?
No matter where Tobirama dodged, with the "spirit word" bound, escape was futile. Whether he spoke or remained silent, he'd soon be drawn into the Red Gourd.
Yet, in the next instant, Tobirama materialized behind Ginkaku, plunging his katana straight through his heart.
Splurt—!
"How… could you…"
Ginkaku turned, staring in shock at Tobirama, disbelief filling his gaze.
Tobirama said nothing, only drew back his sword and retreated.
During his previous retreat, Tobirama had cleverly used a Shadow Clone to slip close to Ginkaku, marking him with the Flying Thunder God Technique. His plan had been to strike both brothers simultaneously.
But with his "spirit word" now compromised, he didn't know how long he could hold out. He decided to eliminate one of them immediately by taking down Ginkaku.
It was this tactical foresight that had emboldened Tobirama to confront the Golden and Silver Brothers alone.
...
"Ginkaku!"
"No way!"
"You actually... took down Ginkaku..."
Seeing Ginkaku gravely wounded, Kinkaku erupted in fury.
The tailed beast chakra within him roared to life as he donned a dark red tailed-beast cloak. Six tails extended from his back.
[Half-Tailed Beast Transformation]
In this state, Kinkaku nearly lost all sanity, becoming wildly aggressive. His power surged, protected by the tailed beast cloak, making him almost immune to injury and pushing his combat abilities to peak shadow-level.
"Is that… Nine-Tails Chakra?"
"How could Kinkaku possess Nine-Tails' power?!"
Tobirama's shock deepened. Nine-Tails was still sealed within Lady Mito, so how could this man wield its chakra?
He recalled that Cloud Village had once attempted to capture Nine-Tails, only to fail. Did they acquire some of its chakra during that attempt?
The six tails showed an impressive level of power.
If Tobirama were in his prime, he'd finish this beast off effortlessly with the Flying Thunder God.
But now, he could barely muster enough chakra for one or two techniques, hardly enough to overcome this monster.
Fortunately...
Tobirama hadn't come unprepared. Seeing Kinkaku's transformation, he activated his final trap.
"Whoosh, whoosh—!"
Three coffins burst from the ground at the battlefield's center, and three ninjas reanimated by The Reincarnation of the Earth leapt out, launching themselves at Kinkaku and detonating the explosive tags on their bodies.
Forbidden Technique [Tandem Paper Bombs]!
This technique summons an endless chain of explosive tags, creating a sustained and devastating explosion. The blast area is immense, and the damage is overwhelming.
Boom—!
Massive explosions erupted, one after another, illuminating the night sky.
The blast continued for over two minutes, its shockwave flattening the surrounding terrain.
"Is this all the power? It's still limited by chakra…"
Tobirama sighed. Tandem Paper Bombs couldn't produce explosives out of thin air; they still required chakra.
During the Fourth War, Tandem Paper Bombs could unleash overwhelming power because reanimated bodies provided infinite chakra.
Currently, Tobirama's chakra was nearly depleted, so he couldn't wield the Tandem Paper Bombs at their full potential.
...
The smoke from the explosions lingered, making it impossible to gauge the enemy's condition.
Even with such a formidable blast, Tobirama couldn't be certain he'd killed the half-tailed beast Kinkaku.
But he had done his best.
With his battered body and dwindling chakra, he had almost decimated the entire Golden-Silver Brother's forces.
His mission was complete.
With luck, the others would safely escape back to Konoha.
"Roar—!"
A furious roar pierced the silence.
A gust of chakra blasted the smoke away, revealing Kinkaku, still in his half-tailed beast form, roaring and unscathed.
Tandem Paper Bombs had wiped out the remaining Cloud Shinobi but had failed to kill Kinkaku.
The enraged Kinkaku turned his wild gaze towards Tobirama.
"Damn that tailed beast Hagoromo's defense!"
"Curse it! If I'd known, I'd have defied my brother and developed more forbidden techniques!"
He lamented his brother's restrictions, wishing Hashirama were here.
Across the battlefield, Kinkaku spat out the gravely injured Ginkaku, his faint breath lingering.
In a final moment of clarity, Kinkaku had swallowed Ginkaku to preserve his life.
Now, the unrestrained Kinkaku set his sights on Tobirama.
"Shh!"
In a blink, a tail extended hundreds of meters, aiming straight for Tobirama.
Tobirama used the Flying Thunder God again, barely evading.
But the moment he landed, three more tails lunged at him.
With his chakra depleted, Tobirama could no longer evade.
He managed to deflect one tail with his katana, but the other two pierced his left arm and lower abdomen.
Seeing Tobirama's defeat, Kinkaku grew even more frenzied, retracting his tails to prepare the Tailed Beast Bomb, intending to obliterate Tobirama completely.
Cough—!
Tobirama coughed up blood, feeling utterly defeated.
It seemed he couldn't escape this.
So, he'd fall to these vile Cloud shinobi in the end.
In the afterlife, he'd surely face Izuna's taunts.
What a disgrace!
Bzzzt—!
A compact Tailed Beast Bomb formed, firing at high speed toward Tobirama.
This Tailed Beast Bomb hadn't charged long nor amassed significant Yin and Yang Chakra, so its power was limited.
But even in a limited state, this S-Class technique could devastate an area of hundreds of meters upon impact.
In his prime, Tobirama might have endured it, but in his current state, escape was impossible.
Death seemed certain!
...
"Tobirama!"
In his final moments, Tobirama thought he heard his brother's familiar voice and saw that well-known figure appear before him.
Is this the end? An illusion before death?
Brother, forgive me for my failure!
The future of the village now rests on the young ones…
But Tobirama suddenly realized the image wasn't a dream.
It was Hashirama, who reached out and slapped the incoming Tailed Beast Bomb aside.
Boom—!
The bomb exploded a kilometer away, leveling trees and shaking the ground.
Tobirama stared, stunned.
This wasn't a hallucination.
It wasn't a dream.
It was truly his brother, Hashirama!