From the start, Gin had a bad feeling this wouldn't go smoothly. Watching Tobirama bask in his short-lived triumph, Gin thoughtfully rubbed his bare chin.
Now that the situation had turned into a 4v4, the outcome became anyone's guess.
"Click. What's even left to compare? Are we comparing the number of tails or something?"
Itama munched on sunflower seeds as his innocent gaze drifted between his older brother and Madara. With no hint of worry, he cheerfully asked Gin, "So what now?"
Gin, out of seeds, shamelessly snatched the last few from Itama's pale hand, not minding the bit of drool on them, and popped them into his mouth.
"Hey! Hmph, whatever. I don't care who becomes Hokage. Your cousin may have a grouchy face, but he's not a bad guy."
Pouting, Itama gave Gin a harsh glare, then shrugged nonchalantly. "Hah~ If only everyone thought as simply as you."
Gin lightly patted his head — a habit — which made the nearly 170cm-tall girl freeze, her face twisted awkwardly. She wanted to protest, but said nothing.
"Sasuke, the Senju patriarch still has a shot. We don't have to bow to that annoying curly-haired guy just yet!"
Having regained hope, Shimura Kenichi leapt back to life and excitedly whispered to Sarutobi Sasuke.
"Let's wait and see," Sasuke replied coolly. From his point of view, whether it was Hashirama or Madara, the Sarutobi clan would be fine either way.
"Gin, what do you think they'll do next?"
The dark-haired girl, Uchiha Hikari, watched the tailed beasts with interest. Chakra constructs like these fascinated her. They looked easy enough to control.
Asked the question, Gin stretched his body and casually replied, "They'll probably fight. It's been a while since they sparred. But who knows, maybe they really will compare tail counts."
Feeling sore from standing so long, Gin pulled out several foldable wooden stools from his backpack and passed them out to the girls. Then he held up the remaining ones to the alliance crowd nearby.
"Need a seat? 1,000 ryō each~"
"1,000 ryō?! You robbing us?!" Kenichi shouted, outraged.
Sasuke gave a polite smile and declined. "No thanks, we're fine."
"Fine, whatever."
Even though his sales pitch failed, Gin wasn't discouraged. True gold will always shine. One day, his handcrafted wooden stools would be a global hit.
Up on the wooden platform, Hashirama grinned when he realized he still had a shot. Madara glanced at him with suspicion.
"Haha! Madara, I'm back!"
"Hmph, whatever. I'll beat you again and make you accept your defeat," Madara scoffed proudly, then turned to Tobirama. "Stop stalling. What are we doing?!"
Tobirama didn't respond immediately. Instead, he stared at the tailed beasts, eyes filled with schemes. His thin lips curled into a sly smile.
"Since you both have the same number of tailed beasts... then we'll compare how many tails they have."
"Boo~~~"
Before he could even finish, the crowd jeered.
Their blatant disapproval made even the cold Tobirama flush with embarrassment.
But he had no choice. To guarantee his brother's victory, he was willing to throw shame aside.
This was a battle he had to win.
"Tobirama, I have early duties tomorrow! Can you not be so shameless?!"
Izuna trembled with fury, his black eyes turning red as he yelled at Tobirama.
"Hey hey hey, don't be so boring! At least make it entertaining!" Gin added, waving his arms dramatically.
"Yeah, yeah!" Itama followed suit, fists clenched with a look that Tobirama recognized as a threat.
Tobirama, who had already been celebrating internally, froze when he saw his little sister's glare.
The alliance was all present. A win by tail count wouldn't convince anyone. He needed something better.
"Tobirama, I agree. It wouldn't be fair," Hashirama said seriously.
"Big bro, I..." Tobirama grimaced. All his effort to secure Hashirama's spot as Hokage — and now this? Unexpected.
"Roar~ Chōmei! I'm gonna smack you first when we get out of here!"
Suddenly, the Nine-Tails roared from within the wooden cage, causing the other beasts to shrink back.
Especially the beetle-like one that had been deceiving everyone. It huddled in the corner, not daring to move.
This overwhelming presence confirmed for Tobirama that the Nine-Tails was indeed the strongest.
His eyes lit up. He straightened his back and raised one hand dramatically.
"I, Tobirama, am here for one thing — fairness! Fairness! And damn it, more fairness!"
"We can't decide the Hokage with something as crude as tail counts!"
"Oooh~"
The crowd collectively wore an expression of disbelief. Tobirama's flip-flop was faster than a politician's.
"Are we really gonna get a 1v1 battle now?" Gin wondered aloud.
"Using force to determine leadership is a bad precedent," one person said.
"I thought this village was different... guess fists still rule," another muttered.
Whispers filled the air, and Hashirama's face darkened. He glared at Tobirama, veins popping, ready to blow up.
He'd made Tobirama promise not to use force on anyone in the village. And now he wanted him to fight Madara?
"Ahem, stop assuming things! I never said there'd be a fight!"
Sweating under his brother's stare, Tobirama quickly tried to dispel the rumors.
"Really?"
No one looked convinced.
"The next match won't require the two candidates to participate directly," Tobirama explained, glancing toward the giant beasts.
"What does that mean?"
Everyone was baffled.
"If we're not fighting, what are we doing? Skipping stones?"
"No way!" Madara straightened up at the word "stones." He had a traumatic history there.
"No, the next battle will be between the tailed beasts you each captured."
"Huh?" *N
Everyone, human and beast alike, blinked in confusion.
"ROAR! You damn humans! We're not your toys!"
The Nine-Tails snapped first, followed by Five, Six, and Seven Tails, who all screamed in outrage.
The pressure from their fury made Sarutobi Sasuke nervous, clutching his chest.
"I almost forgot... these are disaster beasts."
They had been treating them like pets, forgetting their true danger.
"This is just the First Konoha Pokémon Master Tournament, huh?" Gin grinned, utterly unbothered.
Madara: "Gyarados, use Rocket Headbutt!"
Hashirama: "Blastoise, Chōmei, fly up and use Hyper Beam!"
Oh yeah, he was hyped.
"Start already! I wanna see it!" Gin yelled, leaping up with a megaphone.
"This sounds fun~" Itama also got excited.
Thankfully Gin was too caught up in his fantasy crossover to notice her accidental slip.
"This is way more fun than a human duel," said Uchiha Chiri, calmly seated on her stool.
"Big bro! Do your best!" Izuna waved a flag reading "Uchiha Victory," shirtless and dramatic.
"Hmph. I don't mind," Madara nodded. His massive Eight-Tails looked powerful enough to destroy Hashirama's so-called army.
"Fine, I agree too... but..."
Hashirama looked down at the four angry beasts he'd caged. Unlike Madara, he couldn't mind-control them.
"Need my help?" Madara offered. He could control all eight if needed.
"No thanks. Let me 'talk' to them first. You go warm up."
If Madara controlled his side too, the match would be pointless.
"Okay, call me when you're ready."
Madara left with his obedient beasts.
Hashirama leaned into the cage. "Hello, I'm Hashirama. I know this is sudden, but... can you help me out in a match?"
"No way! We'll never obey humans!" the Nine-Tails snapped.
"Yeah! Death before submission!"
"Sigh~ Just finished molting and now I gotta reincarnate again?"
They all rejected him with determined eyes. Death didn't scare them — they'd just come back.
"Uhh..." Hashirama turned to Tobirama for help.
"Is tail count a measure of strength among you beasts?" Tobirama asked calmly.
"Of course! The more tails, the stronger we are!" the Nine-Tails boasted.
"Uh... I guess so," Chōmei mumbled. He wasn't so sure.
"Yes! Fewer tails = more trash!" the Six-Tails cheered.
The Five-Tails coughed, trying to stay out of it.
"Why are you scared to fight those other beasts, then?"
Tobirama pressed on.
"Scared?! Ha! Those losers are nothing compared to me!" the Nine-Tails roared.
"Then why not fight?"
"We'd rather die than be your pawns again. And when we come back, we'll make you pay."
The Nine-Tails' eyes burned with vengeance.
"Try it. I'll kill you every time I see you!" Hashirama growled, eyes glowing. The Nine-Tails' tails instinctively clamped down.
This guy's glare... was just like Asura's.
"I-I mean... how about this — you let us go, and we'll never return to the Land of Fire!"
"No deal. That means Madara gets to win," Tobirama said flatly.
"Then we'll stay caged! We won't starve!"
They could outlive humans, after all.
"You think I'll let you live peacefully in there?" Tobirama grinned darkly.
He'd just been looking for materials for forbidden jutsu. These beasts were perfect test subjects.
"Your eyes... look dangerous," muttered the Nine-Tails, sweating.
"I'll ask one more time. Join the match, or join my lab."
Tobirama stared them down. His gaze — though lacking Sharingan — terrified them more than Indra's.
"Cough, cough... we can talk this out."
The Nine-Tails folded.
"Great! Don't scare them too much, Tobirama~" Hashirama smiled.
"If you win, I'll release you," he promised the beasts.
"Really?!"
"Yes."
Of course, if they lost... that promise meant nothing.
The beasts, confident as ever, didn't doubt their victory.
They raised their heads, locking eyes with Madara's four tailed beasts.
The moment their gazes met— the battle began!
"Tatakae! We're more than ready for an epic battle! Let's go!"
(End of Chapter)
[Check Out My P@treon For +20 Extra Chapters On All My Fanfics!!][[email protected]/euridome]
[Thank You For Your Support!]