No matter how this battle ended, the story of Yui Xuanyue taking on five Kage alone—leaving the First Mizukage dead and the First Raikage maimed—would sweep across the shinobi world like wildfire.
Even decades from now, when the legacy of the Five Kage still loomed over history, this clash would remain a tale retold, etched into the annals of legend. And in those retellings, even Hashirama Senju—the so-called God of Shinobi—would stand shoulder to shoulder with the other Kage as little more than the backdrop for Yui Xuanyue's brilliance.
Hashirama himself could not know how future generations would judge this day. But when Xuanyue smiled faintly and remarked that "the Five Kage are finally complete," Hashirama understood at least this much: the radiance of Yui Xuanyue would not be extinguished here.
Instead of bitterness, Hashirama answered with an easy smile.
"Other than Madara, Xuanyue, you're the opponent I respect the most."
Even now, at the edge of battle, he couldn't resist adding a touch of sentiment. In truth, what bound Hashirama and Madara went far beyond mere rivalry.
Xuanyue clicked his tongue, rolling his eyes as if sprinkling salt into Madara's wounds.
"That man is far more radical than me. Today won't be the last time, Hashirama. If I were you, I'd start preparing."
Hashirama frowned, then shook his head, his voice steady with conviction.
"Madara isn't the same man anymore. He's part of the Leaf, part of this family. I trust him."
Xuanyue only shrugged. Fine. Believe what you want.
He wasted no more words. Neither did Hashirama. His face grew solemn as he gave his final warning:
"Xuanyue, you're too strong. For the sake of the dream we all share… forgive me. I have to end you here."
There was no speech, no persuasion that could soften what came next.
Xuanyue inclined his head calmly.
"Then come."
Hashirama clapped his hands together.
The ground shuddered. The battle between the strongest shinobi of their era had begun.
"Wood Release—Birth of the Tree World!"
Hashirama unleashed his signature jutsu at once.
The earth cracked open, the landscape buckling under his chakra. From the fractures, towering trees erupted, surging skyward with unstoppable force. Within seconds, a sprawling, primeval forest blanketed the battlefield.
Beyond the treeline, shinobi watching from afar fell into hushed silence.
The Wood Release. The power of the God of Shinobi.
For shinobi of this era, it was unforgettable—an image carved into their nightmares. No matter how many rare bloodline limits Xuanyue commanded, none carried the same weight as Hashirama's Wood Release.
More than one ninja had woken in the middle of the night, drenched in sweat, haunted by the vision of Hashirama standing atop the Thousand-Armed Buddha, crushing all opposition beneath his divine might.
"Wood Release, huh…"
Bathed in fragmented sunlight filtering through the massive canopy, Xuanyue raised his hand, studying the dappled glow as if weighing the technique's majesty.
Among all kekkei genkai, Wood Release was the most unique.
Before Hashirama, no Senju had ever awakened it. After him, none ever would. Xuanyue had tried combining water and earth chakra countless times, but it had never succeeded. In his view, Hashirama's power was inseparable from being Asura's reincarnation.
Unless one obtained Hashirama's very cells, Wood Release remained forever out of reach.
Swish. Swish. Swish.
The forest stirred.
The newly-born trees came alive, their trunks stretching like monstrous limbs, branches writhing toward Xuanyue.
From every direction—north, south, east, west. From the sky above. From the soil beneath his feet.
Thick roots burst upward, lunging to bind his legs.
Xuanyue's reaction was instantaneous. With a leap into the air, he wove hand signs.
"Fire Release—Majestic Flame Annihilation!"
A torrent of fire roared from his mouth, a blazing meteor that crashed into the forest below. The inferno spread like a tidal wave, engulfing the land in a sea of fire.
Flames devoured trees by the hundreds, black smoke coiling into the sky.
But Xuanyue did not relax. Beyond the blaze, unburnt trees pressed forward, overwhelming the flames, while new saplings burst from scorched soil, growing into towering trunks within seconds. The forest rebuilt itself as quickly as it burned, matching fire with life.
Xuanyue expected no less.
The Tree World's Birth was not a technique so easily destroyed. His flames had only bought him breathing room.
He sprinted through the canopy, seeking to escape. Staying inside this living battlefield was tantamount to suicide. Every tree, every root, every leaf was an extension of Hashirama's will.
And sure enough, the forest responded.
The resistance of the trees thickened, roots lashing with multiplied strength. The air trembled—Hashirama was near.
Vines as thick as towers surged toward him. Xuanyue twisted aside, slipping between trunks, leaping backward to evade branches snapping shut like jaws.
Behind him, roots writhed upward like a colossal carnivorous bloom, threatening to swallow him whole.
He slashed a glance over his shoulder.
Crack.
Frost exploded outward. In an instant, the trees behind him froze solid, reduced to glittering ice sculptures.
"Still… one step too slow."
Snowflakes drifted around him as Xuanyue finally halted, his eyes fixing on the figure standing just ahead at the forest's edge.
Hashirama Senju.
Xuanyue clicked his tongue. Had a giant summon to draw the forest's wrath away. But he had no such luxury.
"Genjutsu—Bringer of Darkness!"
Hashirama's voice cut through the forest, calm yet commanding. Hands pressed together, his aura shifted.
Xuanyue's vision went black. Sight itself was swallowed.
The Bringer of Darkness—an illusion devised by Tobirama to counter the Uchiha and their Sharingan. In Hashirama's hands, it was perfectly suited for this battlefield.
Xuanyue staggered in the void. He had never fought blind. His instincts were sharp, but true blind combat was beyond him.
Fortunately, he had one more card to play.
As the forest's tendrils closed in from every direction, about to cocoon him whole, Yui Xuanyue's expression flickered.
He was ready to unveil his counter.
(To be continued…)