Senju Tobirama's eyes narrowed in irritation as Uchiha Izuna slipped past another kunai by a hair's breadth. The man's movements were a nightmare. Not just fast — unfair. Tobirama had fought him dozens of times, sat through every version of this dance, yet never managed to land a decisive hit.
Izuna's Mangekyō made sure of that.
As long as those cursed eyes spun, his speed and timing ramped to insane levels. Dodging Tobirama's strikes looked as natural as breathing.
If Tobirama could pin down Izuna's movement — even for a heartbeat — the fight would be over.
That cold realization sharpened Tobirama's expression. Chakra surged under his skin as he lunged forward.
Across the churned battlefield, Izuna's demeanor shifted. Gone was the earlier ease. His gaze hardened, hand slipping into his pouch.
Three kunai snapped through the air, forming a perfect triangle around Tobirama's path. And then Izuna inhaled, chest expanding—
"Fire Style: Fire Dragon Burst!"
Flames blasted from his mouth, racing forward to catch the airborne kunai. When the fire engulfed the metal, it twisted and writhed, forming a serpentine inferno that came roaring straight at Tobirama.
The dragon moved in perfect sync with the kunai's trajectory, as if Izuna dragged it on invisible strings.
Tobirama wasn't impressed.
"Water Style: Great Waterfall!"
His palms slammed into the ground. A towering torrent erupted upward, crashing into the fire dragon. Steam exploded outward, cloaking the field in thick, suffocating white.
That was all Tobirama needed.
"Now."
His hands blurred, weaving signs. Water clung together, forming a long, spear-like whip. It shot forward, carrying a strange three-pronged kunai at its tip.
Izuna heard the faint whistle behind the veil of mist.
He pivoted sharply — and the kunai sliced past his cheek, burying itself quietly into the earth.
Tobirama didn't even look at it again as he charged through the mist.
Sparks erupted as Izuna met him mid-stride.
The two shadows crashed together, blades ringing, footwork blurring into afterimages. Izuna's right eye spun violently, gathering chakra until his strikes hit with the force of a hammer. Tobirama felt his arms tingle from the shock.
Izuna pressed harder.
Another burst of Mangekyō power. Another jump in speed. His left eye twisted like a vortex of red light. One slash tore straight through Tobirama's armor, splitting fabric and flesh alike.
Blood sprayed across the ground.
Tobirama hissed through his teeth. His retreat was immediate and precise, hands flashing into another sequence of seals.
A dragon made of water erupted behind him, lunging forward with a roar.
Izuna countered instantly.
"Fire Style: Great Fireball!"
The fireball collided with the water dragon. Steam exploded outward again, swallowing the world in rolling grey.
And then…
A glow inside the mist.
A red, whirling pattern.
Tobirama's stomach dropped.
Mangekyō.
His limbs froze for a fraction of a second — just long enough.
Izuna was already gone.
"Where—?"
Steel whispered behind him.
"—tch!"
The blade carved across Tobirama's back, opening another line of crimson. Pain lanced down his spine.
He forced himself awake, chakra surging violently as he burst away from Izuna's killing range. The illusion broke like glass.
Izuna clicked his tongue.
Tobirama didn't panic. If anything, he grew colder. Still as a coiled viper. Waiting for one perfect opening.
Two monsters in human skin circled each other, steam rolling past their feet.
And nearby, two even greater monsters clashed.
Hashirama's gaze locked onto his younger brother's worsening position. Worry twisted his expression. If he could just break past Madara—
Too bad Madara Uchiha existed.
"Hahaha! Hashirama! It's been ages since we fought properly. Don't disappoint me!"
Madara blocked his path, war fan raised, grin sharp enough to cut steel.
"Madara," Hashirama said quietly, pain edging his voice, "must we do this? I never wanted to fight you."
Madara stopped smiling.
His eyes bled red. The three tomoe spun like storm winds.
"Today, you and I settle this."
"Madara! Don't force my hand!"
Hashirama's chakra surged, shaking the ground.
Madara's grin returned, wild and bright.
"That's it. That's the Hashirama I want!"
He pointed his fan straight at him.
"You want to save Tobirama? Fine. Beat me first!"
"Madara!"
Hashirama's roar split the air as his hands slammed together.
The earth erupted.
Trees burst from the soil like titans waking from slumber, surging toward Madara in a tidal wave of wood.
Madara only laughed.
He formed his own seals, inhaled sharply—
—and unleashed a torrent of flames.
"Fire Style: Great Fireball!"
In Madara's hands, even a basic jutsu roared like an S-rank technique. The firestorm swept across Hashirama's forest, igniting everything it touched. Heat and embers spiraled upward like burning feathers.
The battlefield trembled.
Their clash — wood and flame, legacy and rage — ignited the sky.
This was the war that shaped legends.
This was the world Raizen had reincarnated into.
And survival was starting to look like a joke.