Soon, someone noticed Uchiha Madara appearing at the Village gate. Although the night was deep, his bright red battle armor was exceptionally conspicuous, as if flames were burning. They recognized Uchiha Madara's identity immediately, and their hearts were filled with suspicion and uncertainty.
Although Hashirama had never regarded Uchiha Madara as a traitor to the Village, in the minds of the other Ninja Clans, Uchiha Madara's actions indicated that he had abandoned the Village. In the traditional concepts of the Warring States Period, this was no different from betrayal!
Therefore, they did not know why Uchiha Madara, who had betrayed the Village, would suddenly appear. Since he had appeared, why did he not enter the Village, but instead waited at the Village gate?
This situation had to be handled by the First Hokage. So, some people kept an eye on Uchiha Madara, while others went to notify Hashirama. Uchiha Madara knew they were monitoring him, but he made no move. The only person he wanted to see was Hashirama alone; it was meaningless to bicker with the others.
At this time, Hashirama was happy about the upcoming Ninja Village celebration. While he was discussing it with Tobirama in the office, the door opened with a bang, and a Ninja hurriedly reported that Uchiha Madara had appeared at the Village gate.
Hashirama was slightly stunned and exchanged a look with Tobirama. Both of them sensed a bad omen from this incident. Hashirama hoped in his heart that Uchiha Madara could return, but the words Uchiha Madara said before he left were truly too concerning. No matter how optimistic Hashirama was, he did not think Uchiha Madara intended to return to the Village this time.
However, since Uchiha Madara had returned, Hashirama still wanted to have a good talk with him. So, he got up and walked out. When he passed Tobirama, Tobirama whispered, "Brother, be careful."
Hashirama knew that Tobirama had always held feelings of disgust toward Uchiha Madara, especially after Uchiha Madara left without permission. But at this moment, Hashirama did not believe Uchiha Madara would do anything excessive. He smiled, patted his brother's shoulder, and said, "It's fine."
"I hope so." Tobirama watched Hashirama walk out of the room and said silently in his heart.
The news of Uchiha Madara's return immediately spread throughout the entire Village. Everyone was surprised. After all, Uchiha Madara had previously almost vanished into thin air, and not a single piece of news could be heard. No one had thought Uchiha Madara would return. Only Fūmori Masaki, in addition to being surprised, also had a sense of tension lingering in his heart.
—It has finally come.
Fūmori Masaki understood that Uchiha Madara's purpose in returning this time was to steal the power of the Senju, thereby uniting Yin and Yang to give birth to the power of all things in nature. For this, Uchiha Madara would personally sever his bond and even his dream with Hashirama.
Fūmori Masaki hurried toward the Village gate and met Uchiha Kagami, who was also rushing over. Uchiha Madara had also raised Uchiha Kagami. Even though Uchiha Madara had brought trouble to the Uchiha Clan, Uchiha Kagami did not truly hate Uchiha Madara in his heart. He felt that Uchiha Madara must have had a reason for leaving, so he wanted to ask Uchiha Madara for the reason personally.
When the two arrived at the Village gate, many people were already there. No one knew the purpose of Uchiha Madara's return, but this former leader of the Uchiha Clan and traitor to the Village would always arouse vigilance. The leaders of the Sarutobi, Shimura, Yamanaka, Nara, and Akimichi clans had all rushed over.
Uchiha Madara was still standing at the Village gate, with no intention of entering at all. His eyes had already revealed the Sharingan state. His bright red eyes slowly swept across everyone. The moment he saw Uchiha Kagami, a ripple of emotion emerged in the depths of his eyes. Seeing his successor growing up healthily, he still felt some gratification in his heart.
However, Uchiha Madara now had a greater goal. Uchiha Kagami was not the object he cared about, so Uchiha Madara's gaze only paused on Uchiha Kagami for an instant before shifting away.
"Lord Uchiha Madara!" Uchiha Kagami saw Uchiha Madara's actions, felt a slight bitterness in his heart, and immediately called out.
Uchiha Madara had no intention of answering and seemed to mutter to himself, "Has Hashirama not come yet?"
At this moment, everyone knew that Uchiha Madara hoped to speak with Hashirama. So, they did not act rashly but waited for Hashirama to arrive. So many people gathered here, yet not a word was spoken, making the atmosphere very heavy, as if it were suffocating people.
After a while, Hashirama, wearing a white robe, arrived in a hurry. He seemed not to notice the atmosphere at the scene and said with a smile, "Uchiha Madara, it is such a coincidence that you returned at this time. The Village is currently preparing to hold a celebration. You must be tired from your travels, so you can enjoy the celebration."
"Oh—" Uchiha Madara narrowed his eyes slightly. "Are you preparing for a celebration recently? It seems the Village has been governed quite well lately, Hashirama."
"Yes, you can take a good look; the Village is getting better and better." Hashirama said with a smile upon hearing this.
"No need. Anyway, soon this place will become the same as it was in the beginning," Uchiha Madara said indifferently.
The others' hearts suddenly tightened. What did Uchiha Madara mean by this sentence? Did "the same as it was in the beginning" refer to when the Village was just built, or did it mean...
"Hashirama, do you still remember our conversation that day?" Uchiha Madara did not care about the expressions of the others and said to himself.
Hashirama frowned slightly. Of course, he remembered the incident that day. The truth Uchiha Madara spoke of had always weighed on his mind. Why did Uchiha Madara bring this up at this time?
"I did not return this time to reminisce with you, but to realize my dream," Uchiha Madara said. "Hashirama, you are an obstacle. If you are alive, you will only hinder me. To defeat you, I did not hesitate to travel alone for two years before finally finding a helper."
Hashirama's heart jolted. Immediately, he saw a flash of red light suddenly appear in the sky not far away. It was something illuminating the sky, and the Chakra aura transmitted over was exceptionally intense. Even if they were not sensory-type Ninjas, they could all feel the powerful force permeating there.
"That is—" Hashirama muttered in a low voice.
Then, Hashirama heard Tobirama's voice from behind. He heard him shout loudly, "Brother, the Chakra there is too powerful, and it is still expanding rapidly; it is about to erupt!"
Hashirama turned his head in surprise, and at this moment, Uchiha Madara in front of him said indifferently, "Can you protect this Village, Hashirama?" Immediately, he raised his hand and formed a seal.
Hashirama's battle-hardened experience immediately made him feel that something was wrong. Without hesitation, he formed seals with both hands. The ground beneath him began to shake violently and then cracked. A huge figure lifted Hashirama up, and a shadow instantly covered everyone's faces—
That was a huge Wood Golem. Standing on top of this Wood Golem, Hashirama finally saw the true appearance of the opponent—a huge fox was lying there, nine tails spread out behind it, with the tips pointing toward its front, its mouth wide open, and a dense ball of Chakra was condensing.
Hashirama hurriedly controlled the Wood Golem beneath him to raise its hands. At the same time, the huge Chakra ball was fired from the mouth of the beast. With a loud noise like thunder, the Chakra ball instantly crossed a very long distance, arrived in front of the Wood Golem, and collided with the Wood Golem's palms.
Hashirama secretly shouted "not good" in his heart. He had made his move in a hurry, and this Wood Golem had not yet reached its optimal state, while the opponent's Chakra ball far exceeded his expectations. Under this blow, half of the Wood Golem's body was immediately blown off, and the strong wind carried Hashirama down. Fortunately, he was highly skilled and landed on the ground safely.
"Use your real skills." At this moment, Uchiha Madara's voice sounded beside Hashirama. Hashirama turned his head and saw Uchiha Madara looking at him expressionlessly, then said, "I could have summoned it here, but I want to have a serious fight with you. Destroying Konoha will be the trophy of victory; there's no rush."
"Uchiha Madara, what are you doing?" Hashirama calmed his breath and asked through gritted teeth.
"Can't you tell by looking?" Uchiha Madara smiled coldly.
The smile on Hashirama's face disappeared. He stared at Uchiha Madara, feeling as if he didn't recognize him. Then, he grabbed the white robe on his body and threw it off with a jerk.
Under the white robe, Hashirama was also wearing bright red battle armor. As a Ninja of the Warring States Period, one had to be prepared for battle when on official business. Since the establishment of Konohagakure, he had not appeared before everyone in this manner for a long time, and now he had finally put on his battle armor again.
"Uchiha Madara, I don't know what your dream really is, but this Village is the dream shared by me and you. Now you want to destroy it." Hashirama looked at Uchiha Madara coldly. "I absolutely will not allow it. Even if you have abandoned it, I will defend it to the end."