Although it was only a fleeting glimpse, Hashirama had already recognized the true identity of that giant fox. He had never seen it in person, but it was recorded in the Senju Clan's annals.
The annals recorded that there were nine demonic beasts living on this continent, and their tail numbers ranged from one to nine, hence they were also known as Tailed Beasts. In the chaotic years of the past, there had been rumors of demonic beasts wreaking havoc, and according to the characteristics described by survivors, these incidents were undoubtedly caused by these nine Tailed Beasts.
Tailed Beasts did not appear often, but whenever they did, they left devastation in their wake, which gave them a notorious reputation. In the era Hashirama lived in, Tailed Beasts had not appeared for a long time. Hashirama had treated them merely as an ancient legend, but he had not expected to see the demonic beast recorded in the annals with his own eyes.
The giant fox had nine tails, so it was called the Nine-Tailed. Hashirama had often seen sentences in the annals describing the Nine-Tailed's astonishing power, but since he had never seen it, he had no real impression of it. But now, he could truly feel the Nine-Tailed's immense power, which was in no way inferior to Madara's Susanoo.
Hashirama's throat moved slightly. Madara alone already required his full attention, and now, facing a demonic beast with the same strength as Madara, even he felt a heavy pressure. Moreover, from what he could sense, the Nine-Tailed might be even more difficult to deal with in some respects than Madara.
After discarding his white robe, Hashirama immediately formed hand seals. Roots suddenly emerged from the ground beneath him, as dense as root systems, and struck toward Madara with great agility.
Madara hurriedly raised his flame fan to block these trees. Hashirama, of course, knew that this flame fan possessed the power to repel Ninjutsu. Therefore, the ground beneath Madara's feet also began to shake, and roots emerged from the ground with immense power, while the trees that had been striking at the flame fan dispersed and turned to entangle Madara instead.
Seeing this, Madara immediately retreated, avoiding the encirclement of the Wood Release Secret Technique. As Hashirama's opponent of many years, he clearly knew how powerful Hashirama's Wood Release Secret Technique was.
The trees did not stop; instead, they continued to extend, forcing Madara further away. Hashirama decided to fight Madara to the death, but he would not do it here in Konoha Ninja Village. Given their strength, they would certainly destroy the Village, which was something Hashirama did not want to see.
'Brother, take this!' Tobirama shouted, then threw something out.
Hashirama caught it without looking back and slung it onto his back. It was a giant scroll, which contained a large amount of ninja tools stored using a Sealing Technique. He said, 'Tobirama, I leave the Village to you. I will not let Madara take even half a step into the Village.'
'Of course—' He changed the subject and said in a low voice, 'If I am defeated by Madara, you must also attack immediately. Do not let Madara leave.'
With the Nine-Tailed appearing, Hashirama could not guarantee that he would definitely be able to defeat Madara, so he prepared himself for the possibility of defeat. Even if Madara defeated him, it would not be easy for him. When the time came, Tobirama and the others would attack together, which would be enough to take Madara's life!
'Brother...' Tobirama understood what Hashirama meant. Although he believed that Hashirama could not lose, he also had to prepare himself mentally.
Hashirama smiled at his brother, then began to run, quickly charging forward. At this moment, under Hashirama's Wood Release Secret Technique, the area ahead looked like a primeval forest, with trees tangled together in a complex manner, and the terrain had completely lost its original appearance.
Hashirama could sense Madara's powerful Chakra. His pace did not hesitate at all as he headed straight for Madara's location. Soon, Konoha Ninja Village disappeared behind him. The scenery around him retreated rapidly, like light and shadow. Suddenly, with a thought, the scroll on his back unfurled, and two katanas were released from the sealed technique.
When he gripped them with both hands, the trees in front exploded with a bang. A bright blade light struck toward Hashirama. Hashirama hurriedly raised a katana to block the slash of the scythe, and the other katana was also parried by Madara's flame fan.
'Let's warm up first,' Madara said to Hashirama. 'I will make the Nine-Tailed come over on its own. When it arrives, that will be the moment our true battle begins.'
As his voice fell, Hashirama and Madara immediately began to fight. In the blink of an eye, trees with hardness comparable to steel were easily cut down, and the sound of metal clashing was incessant. At the same time, the Nine-Tailed in the distance began to move, heading toward the place where Hashirama and Madara were fighting.
The closer the Nine-Tailed got, the more Hashirama could feel the astonishing Chakra emanating from it. Feeling that this distance was still not enough, he took the initiative to lead Madara further away from Konoha Ninja Village.
Madara knew that Hashirama was luring him to change the battlefield, but he did not care. Anyway, destroying Konoha Ninja Village was just a casual act of destruction; it was not his main goal. Instead, he pressed forward, using increasingly ruthless attacks to force Hashirama further and further away. Of course, this was exactly what Hashirama wanted; only when they were far away from Konoha Ninja Village could he fight without holding back.
After the battle between Hashirama and Madara began, Tobirama immediately announced an emergency assembly for the Village. He had already prepared for the worst: if the situation turned unfavorable and even they could not stop Madara, then the remaining people would have to leave here to ensure the continuation of Konoha Ninja Village.
Fūmori Masaki also helped maintain order, gathering the crowd and assisting with the evacuation. Satomi, who had been staying at home, also rushed over at this time. She did not yet know what had happened. Everything had been fine at home when suddenly there was a loud noise, followed by a gale that swept through the Village, destroying many buildings.
Satomi had often trained with Fūmori Masaki in many Ninja practices, so she did not lose her composure at this moment. Instead, she calmly helped Fūmori Masaki while asking about the cause of the incident.
Fūmori Masaki explained it briefly. Satomi could not help but cover her mouth. She had never expected that it was actually Madara who wanted to destroy the Village, and looking at the current situation, it was a crisis sufficient to wipe out the entire Village.
'Masaki, can Lord Hashirama win?' Satomi asked worriedly.
'He definitely can!' Fūmori Masaki said without hesitation.
Satomi was immediately relieved, but she noticed that Fūmori Masaki's expression was not as optimistic as his words. She did not know that this battle between Hashirama and Madara would become a major event affecting the entire Ninja World.
Not to mention that this was the beginning of the First Great Ninja War, on the other hand, Madara had stolen the power of the Senju, and on the verge of death, the Indra Chakra and Ashura Chakra within his body fused, thereby giving birth to the second pair of Rinnegan since the Six Paths Sage, which provided the conditions for Black Zetsu's plan to be implemented.
And centering on the Eye of the Moon Plan in Madara's mind, Madara directly or indirectly influenced major subsequent events in the Ninja World, causing a large number of casualties, not to mention leading to a world crisis like the resurrection of Kaguya.
Fūmori Masaki secretly made up his mind that he absolutely could not let such things happen, and the best way was to prevent the Rinnegan from appearing in this world.
There was only one chance; once missed, it would be like letting a tiger return to the mountains. Fūmori Masaki carefully planned in his mind that when the battle between Hashirama and Madara was decided, that would be his opportunity.
At this moment, Fūmori Masaki saw a huge burst of light in the distance. Even though it was very far from Konoha Ninja Village, he could see it clearly, and his heart trembled. This was the battle between Hashirama and Madara; it no longer belonged to the realm of mortals. This was a battle between demigods.
Even Tobirama, Sarutobi Sasuke, and others dared not approach the center of the battle; the aftermath of the battle was unbearable for anyone. Tobirama broke out in a cold sweat, nervously sensing the Chakra over there. What he worried about most was that Hashirama's Chakra would disappear while Madara's Chakra still existed.
Fūmori Masaki was also using his own sensory ability. He could not sense Chakra like Tobirama, but he could sense Natural Energy. Once Natural Energy surged toward that side, it would mean that Hashirama had used Sage Mode, and the battle would also be entering its final stages.