Sea Circle Calendar Year 1503, September 28th.
A man stepped out from within the massive medium-sized Dimensional Gate.
He wore a high-collared black long robe patterned with clusters of bright red clouds, the whole appearance radiating an intense sense of oppression.
A gentle breeze brushed past, scattering his jet-black hair that reached down to his back and lifting the fringe to reveal the metal forehead protector beneath.
His handsome features, tall and slender frame, cold demeanor, and the overwhelming aura of strength emanating from him drew the eyes of every shinobi guard nearby as if by an invisible pull.
Their gazes brimmed with reverence and admiration for this man.
After all, he was the only one in the shinobi world who could stand on equal footing with the "God of Shinobi" Senju Hashirama.
What's more, after joining Umigakure, he had been granted the title of Kage-level outright, and was officially recognized by the World Government as possessing General-class combat strength—one of the very top shinobi.
The Hokage, Uchiha Madara!
Although he had previously been defeated by the Azure Dragon General of the Air Force Headquarters, aside from a handful of fools, most shinobi merely felt regret and grew even more impressed by his strength.
The power Uchiha Madara had displayed in that battle was enough to leave them awestruck, venerating him like a god.
Thus, that fight had not caused him to be looked down upon; instead, it elevated his prestige and popularity among shinobi to unprecedented heights.
Even among the common folk of the shinobi world, Madara had become a frequent topic of discussion in recent days.
Such was the influence of a globally broadcasted battle, courtesy of the World Government.
Madara himself, however, paid no mind to the looks from these shinobi.
His sharp, cold eyes swept first over the base and surrounding facilities built around the Dimensional Gate, then toward the distant, faintly visible dense forest.
[Whoosh!]
With a sharp sound of air being torn apart, Madara blurred into an afterimage. Turning his back to the towering, radiant Dimensional Gate behind him, he shot out of the base at high speed, plunging into the forest and darting swiftly from tree to tree.
It had to be said that, thanks to the efforts of Senju Hashirama and Aramaki, the area surrounding Rōran had undergone a complete transformation.
The endless yellow sands and billowing dust storms had been replaced by vast stretches of forest, rich black soil, and wide meadows filled with flowers and grass.
Still, the desert in this part of the shinobi world was unimaginably vast.
Even with Aramaki and Hashirama working together, transforming most of it according to plan was not something that could be achieved in a short period of time.
Madara, however, cared just as little about this as before.
Although he could also use Wood Release, he had no intention of helping.
Unless the World Government issued a direct order, he had no desire to waste his time on such matters.
Right now, Uchiha Madara's only goal was to grow stronger—
Which was precisely why he had returned to the shinobi world this time, seeking out Senju Hashirama.
Roughly two hours later, Madara emerged from the forest, landing on a patch where yellow sand met black soil.
There, Senju Hashirama sat in front of a three-story wooden house, chatting and laughing with three white-robed alchemists.
On the wooden table beside them sat a basin filled with ice, holding fresh fruits such as watermelon and bananas.
Above their heads, a wooden parasol shielded them from the scorching sunlight. The whole scene looked utterly relaxed, almost like they were on vacation.
Hashirama's Wood Release, however, could not alter the ground itself the way Aramaki's Forest-Forest Fruit ability could.
That was why the World Government had assigned him these three alchemists—
To take turns transforming the yellow sand into arable soil before he used Wood Release to grow trees.
Yet, watching this scene, Uchiha Madara's mouth twitched slightly.
He still remembered how Hashirama had complained over the Den-Den Mushi about how hard his work was.
Though the man had said it half-jokingly, Madara had genuinely believed he was out here every day, braving the wind and sun.
"Yo, Madara!"
Hashirama noticed him at once, raising a hand to call out loudly, his face lit with a cheerful smile.
"Hashirama, I need to speak with you," Madara said curtly, uninterested in acknowledging the others, and walked straight into the wooden house.
"Ah, that's just how Madara is—don't take it personally," Hashirama said to the alchemists with a warm smile. "I'll head inside."
He followed after Madara, and soon the front door of the first floor closed again.
"Hashirama, I want to learn your Sage Arts."
Madara turned to face him as soon as he entered, speaking his purpose directly.
"Huh?"
Hashirama froze for a moment, then said in surprise, "Didn't you already try before? You can't learn it."
Madara's gaze was unwavering.
"That was before. Now… I might."
This left Hashirama surprised and puzzled.
"Why do you say it might be possible for you now?"
"Because now I have your cells and chakra in my body!"
Meeting Hashirama's gaze head-on, Madara said coldly, "That should give me the physical constitution needed to learn Sage Arts!"
"You're right, there is indeed that possibility."
Hashirama's expression grew serious as he nodded in agreement with Madara's reasoning.
"I'm not planning to learn your Sage Arts for nothing. Before coming here, I prepared this."
Madara let out a prideful, cold snort.
Madara immediately took out a scroll and placed it on the ground.
In the next instant, with a muffled bang, a silver-white injector filled with a crimson liquid appeared amid a thick cloud of white smoke.
"What's this?"
Hashirama crouched down curiously, examining it from top to bottom.
"My blood. Strictly speaking, it's a specially engineered compound that contains both my lineage and my chakra."
"Just like I awakened the Rinnegan by absorbing your flesh and blood, you should be able to awaken the Rinnegan by absorbing mine."
Madara's gaze remained calm as he looked at him. "This way, we'll be even."
"Ah… this…"
Hashirama's first instinct was to refuse, but when he opened his mouth, no words came out.
Ever since joining the World Government, although he felt genuine joy at watching the Shinobi World grow more prosperous every day, he had also clearly felt the pressure that came from "being too weak."
Yes—Hashirama felt that he had grown weaker.
It was simply that the number of powerful figures in the World Government and on Starfish was far, far too many.
So deep down, Hashirama also longed to become stronger.
"Don't hesitate. You go first. If we want to gain a foothold here on Starfish, we need to use every resource available to us!"
Madara paused for a moment before speaking again. "Unless you intend to live in mediocrity."
"Of course not!"
Hashirama answered without hesitation, his tone resolute.
Without a shred of doubt left, he grabbed the injector and drove the needle into his right arm.
"When I implanted your flesh into the wound in my chest, it took me decades before I awakened the Rinnegan, so it shouldn't take eff—"
Madara was speaking casually from his own experience when, all of a sudden, a violent surge of chakra erupted from Hashirama's body.
[Boom!]
In the next moment, the three-story wooden house was blown apart on the spot, countless fragments scattering in every direction.
Fortunately, one of the alchemists reacted quickly—slamming both palms to the ground. With a crackle of electricity, a thick wall of earth rose up, shielding the three of them.
As for the one who had caused it all—Hashirama now stood with his eyes tightly shut, his expression showing a hint of pain.
But the chakra flooding from him had already formed a towering column that shot straight into the sky.
Madara, meanwhile, was wrapped in two rows of azure Susanoo ribs.
Although this spared him any physical injury, the mental shock was far from negligible.
His face was filled with disbelief, as though he couldn't accept what he was seeing.
No—he was asking himself why? Why was it that when he transplanted the other man's flesh, it took decades for results…
Yet when the other man absorbed his blood, the effect was instantaneous?
At the same time, visible changes began to appear on Hashirama.
His once tanned skin was turning pale, his long black hair fading to white, and a pair of small horns slowly emerged on his forehead.
Then, Hashirama's eyes snapped open—
Madara saw a pair of all-too-familiar Three Tomoe Sharingan.
It was probably the same principle as him being able to use Wood Release.
So the key was likely in the transformation of Hashirama's body itself.
After all, it didn't seem like he had awakened the Rinnegan as Madara had.
Now the question was—what kind of abilities would this evolved Sage Body of Hashirama's possess?
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