Seeing that he was the only one left, Sarutobi Hiruzen felt dread claw at his heart.
So this is it… Is this where it ends for me?
No... I can't fall here. I'm the Hokage. Konoha still needs me… I must return.
With steely resolve, Hiruzen turned and fled, his movements swift despite his age. But a cold voice rang out behind him.
"Trying to run, Sarutobi? You should know better."
"Wood Release: Great Forest Emergence!"
The earth rumbled. Trees erupted violently from the ground, twisting and lashing like serpents, chasing after the retreating Hokage.
"Lord Hiruzen! Run—we'll hold them off!"
Several Sarutobi clan members leapt into the fray, their weapons flashing as they intercepted the rushing wooden branches. But against Wood Release of this scale—especially from a wielder with Sharingan and Hashirama's power—they were hopelessly outmatched.
"Ghhk—!"
"Aaaahh—!"
Crushed under the relentless pressure of the growing forest, their screams echoed briefly before being drowned by the creaking of splintering wood.
The trees surged forward and snaked around Hiruzen's ankle.
"Tch—!"
In one smooth motion, Hiruzen spun and severed the wooden tendril with a kunai. But the forest had already closed in—he was completely surrounded.
From above the trees, Byakuya emerged, standing atop a branch like a silent god of death, his crimson eyes glowing through the haze.
"Nowhere left to run, old man."
Gritting his teeth, Hiruzen called out:
"Summoning Jutsu!"
With a puff of smoke, Enma, the Monkey King, appeared in front of him, fur bristling and eyes sharp.
"Hiruzen! You called—again!? Wait… that chakra…"
When Enma laid eyes on Byakuya, he recoiled slightly.
"You're having me face him again!? He nearly tore me in half last time!"
Hiruzen's voice was grim. "I don't have a choice. He's obtained both the Sharingan and Wood Release. I can't escape. I need time… I'll use the Reaper Death Seal."
Enma's face hardened. "The Dead Demon Consuming Seal? Are you serious!?"
"I have no other option… Please, just buy me a few seconds."
There was a long pause. Then, Enma nodded.
"Then do it. I'll hold him off with everything I've got."
With a roar, Enma transformed into the Adamantine Staff, expanding rapidly and slamming toward Byakuya with force that cracked the surrounding wood.
Byakuya's eyes narrowed.
"Tch… Again with this monkey."
With a simple motion, he summoned the skeletal form of his Susanoo, its massive hand shooting forward.
"Susanoo: Heavenly Smash."
The two forces collided—
BOOM!
—followed by the sound of cracking bones and a howl of pain.
Enma was flung backward, his transformed body splintered and groaning.
"Enma!" Hiruzen, still in the midst of forming seals, faltered for a heartbeat as his trusted companion slammed into the ground.
Originally, Sarutobi Hiruzen had summoned Enma, the Monkey King, hoping to stall Byakuya long enough to complete the hand seals for a forbidden technique.
But to his dismay, Enma was blown away almost instantly.
"Pathetic," Byakuya sneered, his Mangekyō Sharingan glowing ominously as his Susanoo's arm receded.
"Is this what the so-called 'God of Shinobi' has been reduced to?"
He slowly stepped forward, then paused.
"I heard you have a trump card meant to deal with me... Go ahead. I'll let you try."
He folded his arms, amused. "Consider this mercy before your end."
Sarutobi Hiruzen's eyes narrowed.
"Arrogant brat… You'll regret this, Uchiha Byakuya!"
Without hesitation, he began forming hand seals at blinding speed.
Tiger → Boar → Rat → Horse → Snake…
"Shiki Fūjin!!"
The wind suddenly howled, and a spectral presence loomed behind him — a terrifying figure cloaked in white with a grotesque mask — the Shinigami, the Death God of the Uzumaki clan's ultimate sealing technique.
The surrounding chakra was instantly suppressed by its sheer spiritual weight.
"Haha... Uchiha Byakuya, you won't escape death this time. You'll die with me!" Hiruzen bellowed, his voice nearly drowned by the howling wind and the eerie wail of the Death God.
Tsunade's expression changed instantly, panic in her voice.
"Byakuya, get back! That's the Dead Demon Consuming Seal — an Uzumaki clan forbidden jutsu!" she shouted.
"It sacrifices the user's soul to summon the Shinigami… and it can rip out your soul and seal it for eternity!"
Byakuya's smile faded slightly.
"So, this is the desperation of a dying man..."
Visit patreon.com/ShiroTL for more chapters.