Kinkaku and Ginkaku arrived with eighteen elite Cloud ninja.
Seeing only Tobirama left alone, they couldn't help but taunt him.
Ginkaku sneered: "Second Hokage, how come you're all by yourself? Where are those trash bodyguards of yours? Don't tell me they abandoned their Hokage and ran away?"
Tobirama stared coldly at Ginkaku and the others, refusing to respond.
His eyes were especially fixed on the half-person-tall orange Six Paths Ninja Tool strapped to Ginkaku's back—the Benihisago (Crimson Gourd). It possessed powerful sealing abilities. Anyone who responded to its wielder's words would be sealed inside the gourd.
During the previous peace conference, Kinkaku had used that very tool to ambush the Second Raikage, tricking him into casually replying—and then easily sucking him into the container before brutally killing him.
In terms of pure strength, the Second Raikage was solidly above both Kinkaku and Ginkaku. Otherwise, he never would've inherited the Raikage position.
In a straight fight, even Kinkaku and Ginkaku working together might not have been able to defeat the Raikage.
That's why they resorted to such underhanded tactics—using the Six Paths Ninja Tools for a sneak attack. Tobirama had also been ambushed and critically wounded by Kinkaku during that peace summit.
Even so, the fact that he'd managed to lead Hiruzen and the other five guards out of the Cloud Village's heartland unscathed was already absurd.
Still, he had to admit—those Six Paths Ninja Tools were genuinely bizarre. Without proper intel, they were extremely vulnerable to instant-kill tactics on first encounter.
That's why Tobirama had avoided close combat with Kinkaku and Ginkaku's pursuit squad during the entire retreat.
He'd relied entirely on mass-produced Shadow Clones and Reanimated corpses to intercept and delay them—which had drained massive amounts of his chakra, pushing him to his limit.
Seeing that Tobirama wouldn't answer, Kinkaku realized he was wary of the Kohaku no Jōhei (Amber Purifying Pot) and wouldn't speak easily.
So he turned to Ginkaku: "Stop being stupid. This guy's trying to stall us alone so the other Leaf ninja can escape."
Ginkaku continued mocking: "Hahaha! This is the Hokage? Throwing his life away to protect subordinates—how pathetic! Just as I thought—without Senju Hashirama, Konoha's just a bunch of weaklings!"
"Ginkaku, enough talk. I'll handle Senju Tobirama. He's already gravely wounded. You go hunt down those other Leaf ninja. We absolutely cannot let them bring word of the failed peace talks back to Konoha!"
"No rush. Let's kill Senju Tobirama first, then chase them down. Plenty of time."
Killing both a Raikage and a Hokage? This was a once-in-a-lifetime chance to make a name across the ninja world. Ginkaku wasn't about to miss it.
Besides, once they killed Senju Tobirama, the remaining Leaf ninja would be nothing to worry about.
"Fine. Let's take this guy down together first!"
Kinkaku agreed to Ginkaku's proposal and immediately attacked, swinging the Bashōsen (Banana Palm Fan) at Tobirama in the distance.
The Bashōsen—one of the Six Paths Ninja Tools. It could ignore the user's chakra nature and release all five elemental transformations (Fire, Water, Lightning, Wind, Earth) at once, though it consumed massive amounts of the wielder's chakra.
"Fire Style: Flame Tornado!"
A flame vortex dozens of meters long shot toward Senju Tobirama.
"Water Style: Water Formation Wall Jutsu!"
Tobirama formed hand seals and spewed a waterfall-like torrent from his mouth, creating a rotating circular water barrier.
The near-360-degree defense successfully blocked Kinkaku's flame tornado.
Kinkaku increased his output, releasing an even more violent Fire Style attack.
Tobirama's Water Style prowess was famous throughout the ninja world—but with his current chakra reserves, how long could he really hold out?
Sure enough, after just a few seconds, Tobirama's Water Formation Wall grew smaller and smaller—until it was completely swallowed by the flames.
But the Tobirama caught within suddenly exploded into a cloud of white smoke.
"Damn it! Another Shadow Clone!"
Kinkaku and the others realized it instantly—but it was already too late.
Tobirama's real body appeared behind the group.
"Water Style: Water Severing Wave Jutsu!"
An ultra-high-pressure linear water jet shot from Tobirama's mouth like a razor-sharp blade with devastating destructive power, sweeping horizontally across the Cloud ninja.
This high-level Water Style jutsu was capable of cutting through the roots of the Divine Tree itself—no ordinary shinobi could withstand it.
The Cloud ninja scrambled to dodge.
Kinkaku leaped into the air just in time, narrowly avoiding disaster.
Ginkaku barely managed to block it with the Shichiseiken (Seven Star Sword), though he was still blown back several meters.
However, the other Cloud ninja weren't so lucky. Nine jōnin who couldn't react in time were sliced clean in half by the Water Severing Wave.
The Cloud pursuit squad's casualties instantly approached fifty percent. Devastating losses.
Seeing this, even Tobirama was momentarily stunned. Did I overestimate these Cloud elites? With results like this, if I'd stayed and fought to the death with Hiruzen and the others, we might've actually won!
But Tobirama knew better than to gamble.
If he won the bet, even if they managed to wipe out the Cloud pursuit squad, Konoha's side would still suffer heavy casualties.
If he lost the bet? Then the Second Hokage—along with Konoha's next generation of young elites—would all die here in the Land of Lightning.
Not a single survivor to report back.
In that case, Konoha wouldn't even know the peace talks had failed. They'd just assume the group had gone missing or was still visiting the Cloud Village as guests.
Hell, Cloud might even launch a surprise attack and wipe out Konoha while they were completely unprepared.
No matter what, Tobirama couldn't risk it. He couldn't let the Hidden Leaf Village—entrusted to him by his big brother—fall on his watch!
Whatever. He'd keep fighting!
Maybe he could crush these Cloud ninja all by himself? He just needed to stay cautious of Kinkaku and Ginkaku's Six Paths Ninja Tools!
Unfortunately, he didn't have much chakra left. Otherwise, he could've unleashed a large-scale Water Style: Great Exploding Water Colliding Wave Jutsu to drown all the enemies and eliminate most of the Cloud ninja except for Kinkaku and Ginkaku.
Still, not a big problem. He'd set other traps.
As the Cloud ninja scattered, dozens of explosive tags Tobirama had planted around the area detonated simultaneously. Massive clouds of smoke shrouded the entire battlefield, disrupting enemy perception.
Flying Thunder God Jutsu—Activate!
Tobirama drew his katana and rapidly moved using the Flying Thunder God kunai he'd placed throughout the area.
Like a battlefield phantom.
Within several breaths, he'd already teleported over ten times, easily cutting down seven more Cloud jōnin.
His Flying Thunder God Jutsu was only the original version—nowhere near as refined as the Fourth Hokage Minato's improved technique. Same with his Reanimation Jutsu—also just the first version.
Short-range teleportation worked fine, but long-distance transport with passengers consumed enormous amounts of chakra. He simply couldn't afford it right now.
Otherwise, he would've teleported back to Konoha with all six of Hiruzen's group ages ago.
Even if he could only take one or two, Tobirama would never do it. The palm and the back of the hand are both flesh.(TL/N: Idiom meaning "both are equally precious") As someone who inherited the Will of Fire, there was no way he'd play favorites and only evacuate a select few students.
Seeing a gravely wounded Senju Tobirama still going on a killing spree, Kinkaku and Ginkaku panicked.
The Cloud ninja they'd brought were their only elite supporters. If they all died here, how the hell were they supposed to rule the Cloud Village when they got back?!
Kinkaku erupted, pouring all his power into the Bashōsen.
"Wind Style: Wind Wings!"
"Lightning Style: Thunder Arc!"
Massive wind currents dispersed the surrounding smoke, exposing Tobirama's position.
Immediately after, an ultra-wide-range Lightning Style electric net spread from the Bashōsen, covering dozens of meters—even ensnaring the remaining Cloud ninja in its range.
Tobirama, who had just landed, never expected Kinkaku to be so ruthless—launching a massive AOE attack without caring about his own allies.
He was instantly hit by the Lightning Style jutsu. His entire body went numb, unable to dodge.
Seeing his chance, Kinkaku grinned widely and hurled the Kōkinjō (Rope of Spiritual Confusion) wrapped around his left arm, grazing Tobirama's shoulder in the distance.
Kōkinjō: One of the Six Paths Ninja Tools. Anyone touched by the rope would involuntarily speak their most frequently used phrase aloud.
Tobirama cursed internally. A moment later, a semi-transparent string of his verbal tic—his "spirit word"—spilled from his mouth.
Meanwhile, Ginkaku—who possessed Six Paths bloodline and a powerful physique—broke free from the Lightning Style paralysis first. He threw the Shichiseiken (Seven Star Sword) in his hand with all his might.
The Seven Star Sword didn't hit Tobirama directly. Instead, it severed the "spirit word" spilling from his mouth.
"Hahahaha!"
"Senju Tobirama, you're finished!"
"Record it!"
Ginkaku laughed maniacally and activated another Six Paths Ninja Tool he was holding—the Benihisago (Crimson Gourd)—rapidly absorbing the severed spirit word.
At the same time, Tobirama's verbal tic appeared on the Seven Star Sword embedded in the ground:
"Uchiha."
"???"
Ginkaku stared at the Seven Star Sword, genuinely confused.
"That's weird."
"You're the Second Hokage. Senju Hashirama's little brother. And your most frequently used phrase isn't 'Big Brother'—it's Uchiha?!"
"Just how much do you love the Uchiha?!"
Tobirama's face turned dark. He felt a humiliation unlike anything he'd ever experienced before!
To Be Continued.