After Ruri returned to the Land of Demons, it was only natural that Hakushi learned the name and identity of the person behind White Zetsu's manipulation—
Uchiha Madara.
In the Valley of the End, fallen at the hands of the First Hokage, Senju Hashirama, Uchiha's ancestor.
Whether in the past era or the present time, a man with this name is undoubtedly synonymous with 'power,' and has always been revered by people.
"Is it really him?"
Hakushi sat down with a headache, rubbing his temples.
To be honest, being suddenly informed by Ruri about such an absurd matter left him completely blank.
He was shocked by this sudden fact.
If this news were to spread, one can only imagine what terrifying storm it would unleash in the Ninja Realm.
A legendary ninja who battled the First Hokage survived a fake death and has been plotting something dreadful in the shadows. Just thinking about it sends chills down one's spine.
"That kind of power isn't something I think could be faked. Even if all of us went up to fight, facing that kind of power would be futile."
Ruri expressed with such a high evaluation, highlighting the immense strength of the legendary Uchiha ninja.
Indeed, Ruri doesn't believe that such power is something they could contend with at this moment.
The kind of power that could destroy the world shown in an instant would bring infinite despair and collapse.
This also makes one imagine the terrifying and thrilling battles of the ancestors.
If Uchiha Madara was like that, then what magnificence did the First Hokage Hashirama, who defeated Madara, possess?
It's a great regret not being born in the same era as these ninjas.
"Isn't that evaluation a bit exaggerated?"
Hakushi was a bit skeptical.
His own strength aside, Ayane's strength is slightly inferior to Ruri's.
Ruri's raw strength is enough to stand shoulder to shoulder with the contemporary Five Kage, and even if at a disadvantage, she could compensate for some defects with her special bloodline ability.
The three of them working together could even temporarily face the ninja forces of the Five Great Nations head-on without a problem.
Working together, defeating one of the Five Kage isn't a big deal either.
That kind of strength, is it really incomparable to Madara?
"I can only say that Madara's power is unimaginably terrifying and strong. We still have a long way to go to catch up with our forebears."
Seeing Hakushi's disbelief, Ruri sighed.
To be honest, if she hadn't seen it with her own eyes, she wouldn't have believed that such a terrifying power existed in the world.
But after witnessing such legendary power, Ruri finally understood the saying, 'there's always someone stronger.'
In her past thoughts, the Five Kage level was the pinnacle of the Ninja Realm.
Wiping out thousands with ease was not a difficult task for ninjas at the Kage level.
Achieving that level is a peak that many ninjas find hard to reach.
However, after encountering Madara, witnessing the mighty Susanoo, she realized even the Kage level ninjas lack confidence.
Unable to judge the specific level of terror Ruri described, Hakushi had to use his improved secret technique to probe Ruri's memory, replaying the segment where Madara demonstrated his power.
After watching the entire segment, Hakushi sat back in his seat, the shock on his face quickly subsiding, struggling to regain composure.
He finally understood the level of terror Ruri was talking about.
"Is that a realm humans can reach?"
The overwhelming sense of pressure, with just a single glance, felt like freezing all the blood in one's body.
"Of course, it's possible, Madara's power is the best example. If he can reach that level, I naturally can do the same in the future."
Ruri said confidently, her self-belief unshaken by Madara's power.
"In that case, we should be mindful of our interactions with these people in the future."
Hakushi calmed himself and said.
"Should we avoid them?"
"No. If Madara's power could be maintained in that state, he wouldn't bother with these petty tricks, sending those White Zetsu around to gather intel. It's apparent that although his power is formidable, it must have certain limitations. Be it location, duration, or usage frequency restrictions, these are likely the reasons he cannot act freely."
Hakushi analyzed.
If Madara's power could be used at will, no cunning scheming would be necessary, just crush everything head-on.
No matter what he wants to do, no one would dare to stop him.
Even if someone dared, they couldn't change anything, it would just add to the corpses.
The fact that Madara didn't do that indicates that such power cannot be unleashed anytime, anywhere, due to certain unique limitations.
However, just obtaining such information makes this mission significantly meaningful.
Being forced to this extent means Madara's methods are almost exhausted.
Otherwise, he couldn't pretend in such a manner, remaining unmoved even after Ruri took away his weapon.
Delaying time, secretly preparing something, using the so-called 'Izanagi Jutsu,' sacrificing a Sharingan to revive… clearly, only those forced into a corner would resort to such petty means to buy time.
If Madara had shown that power from the start, these petty actions would have been redundant. Given Uchiha Madara's personality, he wouldn't show weakness for no reason.