Chapter 9: Chapter 9
No matter the outcome, the fact that Gensou had single-handedly taken on the Five Kage, resulting in the death of the First Mizukage and the crippling of the First Raikage, would undoubtedly cause a sensation in the ninja world.
Even in the decades to come, when the Five Kage's glory continued to overshadow the ninja world, people would still enthusiastically discuss this epic battle that would be etched into ninja history.
Among them, even the mighty Hashirama would, like his former enemies, become part of the backdrop that highlighted Gensou's strength, along with the other Kage.
At this moment, Hashirama did not know how future generations would view this battle, but as Gensou spoke with a faint smile about the Five Kage being complete, he understood that Gensou's brilliance would not be extinguished today.
Though Gensou was making his name off Hashirama's shoulders, Hashirama did not hold a grudge and smiled back, saying:
"Other than Madara, you are my most respected opponent, Gensou."
Even at this moment, Hashirama couldn't help but express his feelings.
As expected, Hashirama and Madara were true companions.
Gensou smirked and took the opportunity to jab at Madara, whom he always found irritating: "Madara is far more radical than I am. Today's events won't be a one-time thing. Hashirama, if I were you, I would prepare in advance."
Hashirama frowned at first but then confidently replied, "Madara is no longer the Madara of the past. He is now a member of the Konoha family, and I believe in him."
Fine, if it makes you happy.
Gensou shook his head and stopped talking.
Seeing this, Hashirama's expression became serious, and he said finally:
"Gensou, you are too powerful! For the sake of the ideals we all pursue, I'm sorry, but today I must kill you here."
No words could change anything at this point.
Gensou nodded calmly: "Bring it on."
As soon as he finished speaking.
Clap!
Hashirama clapped his hands together.
The strongest battle in the ninja world began.
"Wood Release: Advent of a World of Trees!"
Knowing Gensou's strength, Hashirama wasted no time, starting with his signature technique.
Instantly, the ground around Hashirama for hundreds of meters cracked like an earthquake, and thick trees sprouted from the ground, growing rapidly.
In just a blink, a dense forest replaced the original terrain, unfolding before everyone's eyes.
Seeing this, all the non-Konoha ninjas outside the battlefield fell silent.
The God of Shinobi's Wood Release.
For the ninjas of the same era, it was an unforgettable memory.
Though Gensou had many Bloodline Limits, even combined, their impact was still less than that of Hashirama's sole Wood Release.
Countless nights, ninjas had woken up in cold sweats from dreams of Hashirama, stepping on the giant Buddha, crushing everything with invincible force.
"Wood Release, huh."
Within the range of the Advent of a World of Trees, Gensou looked up at the massive canopy overhead, fragmented sunlight filtering down to his hands, and sighed.
Among all Bloodline Limits, Wood Release was the most unique.
Except for Hashirama, no one in the Senju clan had naturally awakened Wood Release before or after him.
Gensou had attempted to combine Earth and Water chakra but failed.
He believed that Hashirama's ability to develop such a unique Wood Release might be significantly related to him being the reincarnation of Asura.
Unless he obtained Hashirama's cells, Wood Release would remain out of reach.
Swish, swish, swish! Strong winds blew from all directions.
As soon as the Advent of a World of Trees was completed, it began to show its power.
Gensou looked around and saw that the forest seemed alive, with countless trees growing rapidly like demons, extending their branches towards him.
East, south, west, north.
The sky.
And underfoot.
Thick vines burst from the ground, trying to entangle his feet.
Gensou reacted quickly, jumping up and forming seals in mid-air:
"Fire Release: Great Fire Annihilation!"
A massive fireball, like a meteor, erupted from his mouth, landing on the ground and spreading into a vast sea of flames.
The forest burned.
Countless trees reaching for Gensou turned to ash in the flames.
Gensou did not let his guard down.
Beyond the sea of flames, the trees were spreading, trying to cover the fire.
In the center of the flames, newly sprouted saplings fearlessly grew again, quickly turning into a sea of trees, contending with the raging flames.
Gensou was not surprised.
If the Advent of a World of Trees were that easy to break, Wood Release wouldn't have made such a name for itself in the ninja world.
The Great Fire Annihilation was only to temporarily block the forest.
Gensou was swiftly leaving the sea of trees.
Even he did not want to fight the master of Wood Release in this natural stronghold.
Everything within the range of the Advent of a World of Trees was Hashirama's eyes and ears.
At this moment, Gensou wanted to leave, and Hashirama was well aware.
Quickly.
As Gensou moved, he felt the resistance from the surrounding trees increase several folds.
He knew the master of the technique was approaching.
Swish, swish, swish!
Thick vines, like they were on steroids, constantly attacked Gensou.
Gensou dodged a vine from the left, then leaped back, escaping the embrace of a large tree.
Seeing the vines behind him closing in like a blooming man-eating flower, Gensou scanned his surroundings.
Crack, crack, crack!
A cold wind blew.
The trees behind him turned into ice sculptures.
"Too slow."
Amidst the falling ice shards, Gensou looked towards the edge of the forest not far ahead, then turned his gaze to Hashirama blocking his path.
What a pity.
No large summoning beast to act as a decoy to distract the forest.
"Ninja Art: Bringer-of-Darkness Technique!"
Looking more dignified and cold in battle, Hashirama clasped his hands again.
Gensou felt a darkness cover his vision, plunging him into complete blackness.
Taking this opportunity, countless vines grew wildly, leaving no gaps as they covered him.
Gensou knew he was under a genjutsu.
Bringer-of-Darkness Technique.
An S-rank genjutsu specifically developed by Tobirama to counter the Uchiha's Sharingan.
Used by his brother now, it was the perfect fit.
Having never experienced blindness, Gensou couldn't immediately adapt to high-level blind fighting.
Fortunately, he had a backup plan.
As the vines were about to envelop him entirely, Gensou's expression changed.
(End of Chapter)
Chapter 10: Chapter 10
"Boil Release: Skilled Mist Technique!"
A large amount of highly corrosive mist spewed from Gensou's mouth, covering his surroundings and spreading in all directions like the Hiding in Mist Technique.
In an instant, the area in front of Hashirama was shrouded in a dense white mist.
Accompanied by the sizzling sound of corrosion, the mist, which was strong enough to dissolve Susanoo, quickly melted the trees and vines surrounding Gensou.
Knowing the high damage of Boil Release, Hashirama didn't charge in but instead summoned more trees to flood towards the mist.
Taking advantage of this gap, Gensou, enveloped in darkness, formed hand seals, and a large amount of chakra surged within him.
"Genjutsu: Release!"
Though not as innately skilled in genjutsu as the Uchiha clan, Gensou, who had extensively studied Yin chakra, could release himself from genjutsu.
Soon, the pitch-black darkness before his eyes dissipated.
With his vision restored, Gensou looked ahead to see an endless sea of trees rushing towards him like a tidal wave.
"Boil Release: Skilled Mist Dragon!"
Gensou wasted no time, spewing more corrosive mist from his mouth, which transformed into a substantial, elongated mist dragon. With a long roar, the enormous dragon charged straight into the sea of trees.
From a high vantage point, one could see the mist dragon cutting through the forest like a sharp spear, splitting the sea of trees in two as it continued its momentum towards Hashirama.
"Summoning: Five-Fold Rashomon!"
Hashirama's eyes narrowed as he slapped the ground with his hands. Five giant demon-faced gates rose from the earth, forming a barrier in front of him.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The ground trembled.
The deafening collision sounds echoed.
The mist dragon broke through three of the Rashomon gates before losing its momentum and dissipating.
But it wasn't over yet.
A figure swiftly passed through the remnants of the mist dragon, carrying a blinding light and appearing in front of Hashirama like lightning.
Screech!
The highly penetrating Chidori bloomed once again, aimed straight at Hashirama's heart, just like it had against Byakuren.
The speed of the charging Chidori was so fast that it normally required the superior visual perception of the Sharingan for perfect coordination.
But this limitation applied only to those with ordinary physiques like Kakashi Hatake.
Individuals like the Fourth Raikage, whose speed rivaled the Yellow Flash, could attack at high speeds without the Sharingan, and no one ever said he missed his target.
Gensou was the same.
The cacophony of Chidori's chirping filled the air.
Everything happened so quickly that Hashirama had no time to dodge. His body sank, and thick tree stumps grew from within him, colliding with the Chidori at close range.
Gensou felt as if he were hitting layer upon layer of tough leather.
Wood chips flew everywhere as his advance became increasingly difficult.
Moreover, the approaching Wood Release was suppressing his chakra significantly, dimming the lightning of his Chidori.
If not for his Dark Release absorbing some of the Wood Release chakra, mitigating its suppressive effect to some extent, the situation would likely have reversed by now.
However, if this continued, the tables would soon turn.
Gensou didn't stubbornly hold his ground. Transforming his right hand's Chidori into Chidori Sharp Spear, he sliced through the wooden stumps in front of him. While retreating, he discreetly attached a large number of explosive tags to the stumps.
When Hashirama instinctively retracted the wooden stumps growing from his body to pursue Gensou.
Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle~~
The explosive tags ignited.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
A series of violent explosions erupted.
Gensou looked ahead as massive fireballs and billowing black smoke rose from Hashirama's position.
For an ordinary person, such an attack would have been fatal.
But this was Hashirama.
Without hesitation, Gensou formed more hand seals:
"Scorch Release: Extremely Steaming Murder!"
A series of fireballs, formed by combining Wind Release and Fire Release chakra, appeared behind him.
With a gesture, Gensou sent these deadly flames, capable of evaporating all moisture in an enemy's body, hurtling towards Hashirama.
Even a Sage body would turn into a dried corpse upon contact with Scorch Release.
In the future, the hero of the Sand Village, Pakura, would achieve great fame due to this terrifying Bloodline Limit, to the extent that the Fourth Kazekage would fear her so much that he would betray her to the enemy.
Quickly.
The Scorch Release fireballs capable of evaporating everything flew into the thick smoke.
The expected collision and explosion didn't occur.
Gensou's pupils contracted slightly as he focused on the gradually clearing smoke, where a large, ominous shadow emerged.
Finally.
The smoke cleared, revealing the figure.
"Wood Release: Wood Dragon Technique!"
In Hashirama's powerful voice, Gensou saw a fearsome, long-snouted, spiked wood dragon coiled around him.
The enormous dragon's body bore several scorched marks.
These were the results of the Scorch Release.
Even the most powerful jutsu could only cause a ripple before dissipating against the chakra-absorbing Wood Dragon.
Noticing Gensou's gaze, the imposing Wood Dragon's lantern-like eyes lit up. Its long body rose, towering over Gensou and letting out a deafening roar.
Hashirama stood atop the Wood Dragon's head.
One could see that under his now damaged red armor, numerous wounds were healing rapidly without hand seals.
Soon, he looked as if nothing had happened.
"As expected of Gensou! From now on, I'll go all out," Hashirama said earnestly, looking at Gensou below.
When others said such words, they might be seen as posturing.
When Hashirama said it, it was nothing but sincere.
Especially the non-Konoha ninjas outside the battlefield felt a sense of helplessness.
Had they faced Gensou's onslaught, they would have been utterly defeated or killed.
Unlike Hashirama, who was not only unharmed but also seemed to have only warmed up.
"A Wood Dragon, huh? It seems ordinary jutsu won't suffice anymore."
Gensou continued to ponder calmly.
Having a vivid memory of the massive Buddha hand gripping the Nine-Tails, his mindset towards Hashirama remained steady.
Roar~~
The Wood Dragon roared again.
The next second.
The sky seemed to collapse.
Under the massive shadow, the enormous body of the Wood Dragon descended from the sky, crashing towards Gensou on the ground with overwhelming force.
Not only that, but Hashirama, atop the Wood Dragon, summoned the Advent of a World of Trees again.
In an instant, attacks targeted at Gensou came from above and below, everywhere.
(End of Chapter)
Weekly Power Status
200+ Power
Ranking 
355 Power
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