Bang! Bang! Bang!
The mountains quaked, the earth trembled. The towering Wood Human thundered across the landscape, its wild fists pounding the ground—each strike leaving a deep crater in its wake!
Tobirama flickered from spot to spot with Flying Thunder God, narrowly dodging the wooden giant's blows.
"It's been ages since Big Brother lost his temper like this. And of course, it's all because of Madara again… What rotten luck."
The truth about him tossing Madara'sFlying Thunder God kunai into the ocean had finally come to light.
It all started with a drink.
Tobirama had finally brewed a batch of soul-infused sake from Naruto's special rice—so potent, even those reanimated by Impure World Reincarnation could get drunk!
The brothers celebrated with a rare night of drinking.
After more than a few rounds, Hashirama grew teary-eyed, lamenting Madara's continued disappearance.
Half-drunk, Tobirama let slip that Madara might just be resting at the bottom of the sea.
Hashirama exploded. Pressed for details, Tobirama could only confess.
And that's how things ended up like this.
Tobirama sighed. "Ah, it's my own fault. Once I start drinking, my mouth just won't stay shut…"
Atop the Wood Human's head, Hashirama's hair bristled with rage. "Tobirama! Get back here!!"
Whoosh!
Tobirama blinked away again with Flying Thunder God, only to find his back to a sheer cliff—no room to run.
Even a clay statue has its limits—let alone Tobirama.
He shot back, "Big Brother, Madara tried to pull a dirty trick on you first! What's wrong with me giving him a taste of his own medicine?"
Hashirama's gaze darkened. "He did that knowing I was reanimated—he could go all out! But you? You knew he was flesh and blood, and you still went for the kill!"
Tobirama's temper flared. "You're still so naïve! Mercy for your enemies is cruelty to yourself. Haven't you learned that by now?"
Hashirama snapped, "Don't talk back!"
Tobirama scoffed, "And if I do? At the end of the day, it's Madara's own fault! Why didn't he set more Flying Thunder God marks? He knew someone could tamper with them and still dove into the sea—if that's not stupid, what is?"
Hashirama retorted, "You think everyone's like you or Minato—able to set unlimited Flying Thunder God marks?"
Tobirama shot back, "He knew it was a forbidden jutsu but still used it recklessly. Now he's paying the price—who else is there to blame? And you, Big Brother, always defending outsiders… Why are you so hung up on a guy as ungrateful as Madara?"
Hashirama thundered, "Looks like I really need to teach you a lesson!"
Tobirama squared up. "Who's afraid of who? We're both immortal now—let's go all out!"
Hashirama: "Bring it on!!!!"
Clap!
Hashirama pressed his palms together. The Wood Human's arms surged with chakra, shaping a golden dragon that coiled and lunged forward with a crushing force!
—Wood Human: Dragon Swimming Palm!
Clap!
Tobirama's silver hair whipped wildly as his hands flew through signs.
A roaring torrent cascaded from the cliff, swirling into twin water dragons around him. At the same time, a condensed water sphere hovered above his palm. The two dragons, carrying the sphere, howled forward to meet the golden chakra dragon head-on!
—Water Release: Twin Dragons Play with the Pearl!
If these two jutsu collided, the consequences would be catastrophic. One thing was certain—the mountain, and all the responsibility fields on it, wouldn't survive!
Outside the blast zone, Hiruzen and Minato could only watch in horror, powerless to intervene.
Crackle!
At the very last second, a golden light flashed between the clashing jutsu!
It was Naruto, both palms outstretched, Rinnegan open in each hand.
—Preta Path!
Whoosh! Whoosh!
As the two attacks struck the Preta Path's sealing barrier, they shrank rapidly—within seconds, both were completely absorbed!
Naruto landed lightly, rising to his feet. "Both of you, calm down. Talk it out—no fighting."
"Whew…" Hiruzen patted his chest, letting out a long sigh.
Minato beamed, "When it really counts, my son always comes through!"
With the tension broken, Hashirama poured out the whole story to Naruto.
Still fuming, Hashirama said, "Just look at what Tobirama has done!"
"Hmph." Tobirama folded his arms and looked away.
Only now did Naruto learn the truth behind Madara's mysterious disappearance.
Naruto said, "What's done is done. There's no point in blaming anyone now. The urgent thing is to confirm if Madara is alive or dead, and then make our plans."
Hiruzen asked, "But how do we confirm it?"
Naruto replied, "Impure World Reincarnation is the most direct way, but… we're missing Madara's genetic material."
Tobirama spoke up, a subtle look in his eyes. "If you're talking about genetic material, that Rinnegan in your palm should count."
"You're right…"
Naruto gazed at his palm, resolve in his eyes. "These are Madara's eyes. I always meant to return them. If Madara really is dead, it'd be a huge loss for the shinobi world. Losing one of Madara'sRinnegan versus losing Madara himself—the choice is obvious…"
He was about to gouge out the Rinnegan in his right palm for the Impure World Reincarnation ritual—
"Wait…" Tobirama stopped him.
"What is it?"
"I just wanted to see how serious you are about your plans for the future. Looks like you truly want to keep Madara around…"
"Uncle Tobirama, you…"
"I already have Madara's genetic material—collected from the Battlefield of the Undying River."
As he spoke, Tobirama pulled out a vial of blood. "And I've already tried Impure World Reincarnation—Madara isn't dead."
"!?" Shock rippled through the group.
Ignoring their reactions, Tobirama poured the blood onto the ground, then formed a new set of seals. "With this blood and my new technique, I can pinpoint Madara's location…"
"Little Tobi, when did you invent that?"
"Probably when you were off losing yourself in gambling, Big Brother…"
Finishing the signs, Tobirama pressed his hand over the blood.
—Secret Art: Blood Tracing!
Whoosh! The blood was drawn into his palm.
Tobirama closed his eyes, focusing intently. After a moment, he opened them. "Bring me a map!"
Whoosh!
Seconds later, Minato used Flying Thunder God to bring over a ninja world map and spread it out.
Tobirama lit a small flame on his thumb and burned a mark onto a spot in the Land of Water.
"Right here. The map won't be perfectly precise, but the margin of error shouldn't be too big…"
He stood, glancing meaningfully at the still-worried Hashirama. "Alright, Big Brother, you can go chase after the Madara you're so obsessed with."
Hashirama hesitated, lost for words. "Little Tobi, I…"
Tobirama cut him off. "Enough with the sentimentality. Hurry up and go. Madara's chakra feels… off. If we leave him out there like this, something could go wrong."
Hashirama clapped Tobirama on the shoulder. "Alright. When I get back, I'll apologize to you."
At last, the brothers' quarrel came to an end.
"Yosh~!" Naruto piped up, "No time to waste! I'll use my Flying Thunder God to send First Uncle straight to the Land of Water!"
Tobirama grumbled, "That's my—ah, forget it. It's yours. Everything's yours."
~~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~~
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