The attack force consisted of seven people: the four Hokage, along with Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Kabuto.
It wasn't a large group, but it was an incredibly powerful one.
As they arrived at the outskirts of Amegakure, they gazed upon the bustling, peaceful village within. Senju Hashirama sighed, "I never thought there would come a day when I'd have to personally destroy someone else's peace."
He was a man with a broad heart. Even though this peaceful scene did not belong to Konoha, he still felt happy and gratified by it.
Jiraiya stepped forward and said, "First Hokage-sama, this is the prophecy of the three Sages. We—"
Hashirama interrupted him. "I know."
"But our target is only the Akatsuki. There's no need to bring disaster to ordinary people."
"Let's make the Akatsuki come out and face us outside the village."
As he spoke, a Wood Clone appeared beside him and then walked toward the village.
At the same moment, as the Wood Clone stepped into Amegakure, Nagato, who was in the central tower office, suddenly lifted his head, his Rinnegan flashing with shock.
"Nagato, what's wrong?" Konan asked.
"There's an intruder… and they're strong." Nagato replied. He had modified his Rain Tiger at Will Technique into a massive barrier that enveloped the entire village, allowing him to detect any intrusion with extreme precision.
"Could it be Obito?"
"No! It's not!" Nagato rejected Konan's guess outright. He stood up abruptly and walked toward the door. "The enemy's chakra signature is incredibly strong—far beyond Obito's!"
"Even stronger than me and Kisame!"
...
At that moment, aside from Deidara, who was away in Iwagakure, every other member of Akatsuki received Nagato's notification.
"This enemy is powerful… Itachi-san, we seem to be the closest ones. Let's go check it out," Kisame said.
"Understood."
The two quickly made their way toward the intruder and soon came face-to-face with a man clad in crimson armor—Senju Hashirama. Cracks ran across his entire body, revealing his current state.
"Edo Tensei…"
"The First Hokage?!" Kisame and Itachi both exclaimed in shock. Even Itachi, who rarely showed emotions, couldn't help but be shaken.
After all, this was the man whose face was carved onto the Hokage Rock—one he had seen since childhood.
Hashirama, who had been curiously observing the village, turned toward Kisame and Itachi.
"Judging by your outfits, you must be with the Akatsuki."
"Come, let's take this fight outside the village."
With that, he turned and walked away without looking back.
Kisame smirked. "Fine by me. Fighting inside the village would be too restrictive. Let's follow him."
The two tailed Hashirama's Wood Clone to the outskirts of the village—only to find themselves facing a seven-man battle squad waiting for them.
"Tch! So this was an ambush?"
"But this is our home turf. Reinforcements will be here soon," Kisame remarked, assuming the enemy wanted to take advantage of the short time gap to deal with him and Itachi first.
"Oh? You misunderstand."
"How about this—let's wait for your comrades to arrive before we start?" Hashirama suggested.
"Just standing around waiting would be boring. How about we exchange a few moves first?"
"Fine by me. Samehada has been itching to taste the First Hokage's chakra." Kisame grinned.
Itachi warned from the side, "Kisame, don't underestimate him. This is the First Hokage we're talking about."
Only someone like him—who had transplanted Hashirama's cells—could even begin to grasp a fraction of the legendary ninja's power. The mere thought that just a fragment of Hashirama's cells granted such immense strength made him wonder—how terrifying was the real Hashirama?
"Don't worry, Itachi-san. I'm plenty strong myself." Kisame replied confidently.
But he still showed due respect to the legendary 'God of Shinobi.' Without hesitation, he clapped his hands together and unleashed a powerful technique right from the start.
"Water Release: Great Exploding Water Colliding Wave!"
A massive sphere of water materialized on the battlefield, its sheer size surpassing even the village behind them.
"Hey, Tobirama, this guy's Water Release is pretty impressive."
"I'd say it's even better than yours," Hashirama commented, glancing at his younger brother.
Tobirama scowled. "Hmph! My real strength isn't just in Water Release! He's only this strong because of his absurd chakra reserves."
On the other side, Kisame was also feeling displeased. His opponent had only sent out a Wood Clone—wasn't that underestimating him too much?
"Water Release: Thousand Feeding Sharks!"
A massive swarm of ferocious sharks materialized, their gaping maws lunging toward the Wood Clone.
"Wood Release: Wooden Shield Wall!"
A massive, ghostly wooden shield emerged, blocking all of Kisame's sharks. Their attacks were as futile as throwing eggs against a rock.
"Water Release: Water Severing Wave!"
A high-pressure water jet slashed forward, empowered by the water-drenched battlefield, but Hashirama's Wood Release was formidable enough to withstand even Madara's Susanoo combined with the Nine-Tails. A mere water blade was hardly a threat.
"Damn it! First Hokage, are you just going to keep hiding in there?!" Kisame growled in frustration.
As if responding to his challenge, the Wood Clone suddenly stepped out of the shield, its body drifting forward effortlessly.
"Young man, your Water Release is indeed impressive."
"But I can't just sit back and defend forever—because that won't be enough to defeat you."
With a casual clap of his hands—so effortlessly it didn't even look like a technique—countless wooden fists sprouted from his body, rapidly pulverizing Kisame's sharks before surging toward him.
Crack! Crack! Crack!
Samehada let out a pained whimper. It had tried to slice through the wooden fists but ended up taking heavy damage instead.
Realizing the danger, Kisame immediately fused with Samehada, taking on his half-shark form to dodge the relentless wooden attacks.
Boom!
The Wood Clone threw a light punch, but the sheer force of it sent Kisame flying, blood spurting from his mouth.
"How is this possible…?"
"Senju Hashirama! The God of Shinobi… is too strong!" Kisame muttered in shock. For the first time in his life, he felt a deep sense of despair in battle—he couldn't even handle a clone.
How could they possibly win?
On the other side, seeing Kisame's defeat, Itachi stepped forward and activated his full-body Susanoo.
Its attacks were on a different level—one swing of its sword cleaved through the pursuing wooden fists, shielding Kisame while unleashing Amaterasu upon the Wood Clone.
"Nice! It's Itachi-san's Amaterasu! The flames that are said to burn even fire itself! That should do the trick!" Kisame exclaimed.
"…This again?"
The Wood Clone looked down at its arm, where the black flames had latched on, and let out a nostalgic sigh.
"Madara used to love spamming this on me too… but he eventually stopped."
"Maybe because it doesn't really work."
As he spoke, his arm rapidly transformed into pure wood. Like an old tree shedding its bark, the layer of wood peeled off—taking the black flames along with it.
Then, he lifted his head.
"You're stronger than your companion, so I'll have to get serious now."
"Wood Release: Wood Dragon Technique!"
----------------
Pls Drop some Power Stones
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