Chapter 367: Edo Tensei vs. Edo Tensei
The Impure World Reincarnation (Edo Tensei) array was encased within a high-level barrier, surrounded by members of the Sealing Corps. It was a setup designed to be absolutely foolproof.
After the failed rebellion of the Gold and Silver Brothers, their remains had been kept under lock and key by the Cloud. It didn't take long for an officer to deliver the artifacts.
Two fragments of bone, still entwined with strands of hair.
Tobirama Senju picked them up, examining them with a clinical eye.
As a master of forbidden jutsu with a rather "flexible" moral compass, Tobirama quickly determined that these bones were far from human. They were denser, their mineral composition altered by years of exposure to Tailed Beast chakra.
To Tobirama, Kinkaku and Ginkaku were his most hated enemies. However, death has a way of dulling one's grudges. Standing there as a reanimated corpse himself, Tobirama found he didn't feel much hatred anymore.
"Well then... let's do this one by one."
Tobirama tossed one of the bone fragments into the center of the array.
He was a man who valued efficiency over ceremony; he threw it simply to save the effort of walking. He certainly wasn't trying to be disrespectful. Honestly.
He signaled the surrounding ninja to be ready, then channeled the Edo Tensei—a version he had personally refined in his spare time since being brought back.
Forming a rapid sequence of seals, he slammed his palms onto the floor. Chakra surged along the blackened lines of the array, and the "Filthy Soil" of the jutsu began to crawl up the body of the death-row prisoner serving as the sacrifice.
A moment later, the substance solidified and shifted, manifesting into a hulking, bizarre figure with two horns sprouting from its head.
Tobirama observed closely. There were no ominous black flames this time... everything appeared stable.
So, what was the difference? Tobirama mused. Was it because Dan Kato's reanimation used a experimental, modified version of the array? Is the flaw in the technique itself, or is something actually happening in the Pure Land?
He decided to investigate further later.
Unfortunately, the world was unlikely to provide a second "living soul" sample like Dan Kato for him to play with. Regardless, he didn't lower his guard for a second.
Kinkaku snapped his eyes open. He found himself in a sterile, white laboratory, surrounded by a crowd of vigilant ninja.
Kinkaku looked at his own hands and let out a harsh, rasping laugh. "Well, well... If it isn't that loser Second Hokage. Still using that pathetic little secret technique of yours? How embarrassing." [1]
Tobirama's face darkened instantly.
Kinkaku scanned the room, his gaze finally landing on the familiar figure in the fur collar.
"Wait... how are you here? And you reanimated me? Did you fake your death? Impossible... I personally saw your head get twisted sideways!"
Tobirama's fists clenched until his knuckles turned white.
Kinkaku noticed the Cloud forehead protectors on the surrounding ninja and grew even more confused. Even if his rebellion had failed, why were these Cloud ninja ignoring the Second Hokage and treating him like the primary threat?
Tobirama felt a powerful urge to take control of Kinkaku's body and force him to crawl across the floor and call him "Daddy," but he realized that would be even more undignified with so many witnesses present.
The onlookers, seeing Tobirama endure such blatant insults, were impressed. As expected of a legendary shinobi. Such restraint.
Tobirama turned to the Sealing Corps. "There is nothing to be gained from talking to this bastard. Seal him away immediately."
"The Consul mentioned that if you wished, you could... curse him out first," one of the sealers whispered.
"I see. If it is an official order, I suppose I have no choice," Tobirama said, his voice dropping an octave.
He exerted his will over the contract. Kinkaku's body stiffened, and he began to walk toward the nearest wall with a jerky, synchronized gait.
"Hey! Hey! What's happening?! Tobirama! You coward, you can't even handle a joke?!"
Tobirama forced the reanimated rebel to begin rhythmically smashing his own face into the stone wall.
"Wait! No! THUD! Tobirama, you sore loser! THUD!"
Tobirama felt that verbal insults were beneath him. He had plenty of ways to handle a puppet. The Consul said he could curse him out, but the Consul hadn't specified how long the punishment should last.
"Let's move on to the next one."
Ignoring Kinkaku's muffled shouting, Tobirama tossed the second bone into the array.
Same seals. Same palms on the floor.
However, the Filthy Soil swirled for a few seconds and then simply dissipated. It failed to take hold of the sacrifice.
Tobirama's brow furrowed.
"A failure?"
"A failure?"
Madara Uchiha muttered to himself, staring at a silent Edo Tensei array in his own hidden base.
Beside him, Black Zetsu spoke up. "It is possible we obtained the wrong remains. Most of their bodies were buried deep; the bones could have been mixed with others, or even animals. Or... the worst-case scenario: Kinkaku has already been reanimated by someone else."
Since returning to the living world, Madara had spent considerable time mastering the Edo Tensei he obtained from Orochimaru. For a man who had lost control of almost all his major pawns, this jutsu was vital.
The technique was difficult, but for a man with the Rinnegan, his aptitude for ninjutsu was peerless.
He hadn't just learned it; he had improved it. Furthermore, the sacrifices he used were special White Zetsu clones infused with Hashirama Cells. This series of optimizations allowed the reanimated souls to retain almost all of their original power.
Black Zetsu had provided the intel regarding the Gold and Silver Brothers' Nine-Tails chakra, as well as their remains. Madara was quite satisfied with Zetsu's diligence during his absence.
What he didn't know was that Zetsu had collected those bones decades ago, purely because of their unique bloodline.
"At least Ginkaku was a success. That provides us with some insurance."
Not far away, a figure with silver hair and two horns stood motionless.
Unlike a typical Edo Tensei with black sclera, Ginkaku's eyes currently bore the ripple pattern of the Rinnegan.
This was Madara's custom modification: combining Rinnegan Genjutsu with the summoning. The reanimated warrior was placed under an illusion the moment they appeared, ensuring they couldn't rebel while allowing them full autonomy in combat to maximize their effectiveness.
Two White Zetsu pushed a coffin forward and loaded Ginkaku inside. The kanji for "Silver" was inscribed on the lid.
Several other coffins stood in the shadows nearby, their contents unknown.
"It is a pity Konoha reanimated Hashirama Senju first," Madara noted. "However, that man has never been interested in lingering in the world of the living. Once his current vessel breaks down and he returns to the Pure Land, I will pull him back myself."
Madara nodded, though he didn't tell Black Zetsu that he had been attempting to summon "Hashirama" almost every single night since he woke up.
A brief silence followed.
Black Zetsu looked at the motionless Madara. "Madara-sama... there is only one left, isn't there?"
Madara's eyes lost focus for a moment. After a pause, he whispered, "Yes. Only him."
Black Zetsu handed over a small box. Inside was a pristine white finger bone.
Madara gazed at it for a long time before placing the box into the array with a gentleness that bordered on reverence.
He stepped back and formed the seals with an expressionless face.
"Impure World Reincarnation!"
The Filthy Soil surged toward the sacrifice.
This time, Madara did not infuse the jutsu with the Rinnegan's controlling Genjutsu.
He knew, with absolute certainty, that this man would help him of his own free will.
He hadn't wanted to disturb the man's peace, but the words of the monk Bunpuku had stuck in his heart like a thorn.
Madara shook his head, clearing his mind of distractions.
Moments later, a figure wearing a traditional blue ninja robe materialized in the center of the array.
The man's features were a seventy-percent match for Madara's own.
"Izuna..."
The figure opened his eyes, revealing a pair of Mangekyou Sharingan.
[1] Author's Note: When Kinkaku and Ginkaku appeared in the Fourth War, they explicitly said, "To think we would fall to the jutsu of that loser, the Second Hokage." This implies Tobirama used Edo Tensei "suicide squads" against them in the past.