"Hashirama, do you know how the Rinnegan is awakened?"
Faced with this question, Senju Hashirama was at a loss for an answer. After all, he had only been revived briefly through Edo Tensei twice and wasn't aware of many things that had transpired.
Seeing the confusion on his old friend's face, Madara couldn't help but feel a certain satisfaction in explaining—much like the smug joy of showing off in front of a friend and watching their expression shift from bewilderment to shock. That rush of excitement, that sense of superiority—it was almost intoxicating.
After leaving a brief pause for dramatic effect, Madara finally spoke.
"On the surface, there are two key requirements for awakening the Rinnegan."
"The Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan of the Uchiha and the cells of a Senju Wood Release inheritor."
"Our battle at the Valley of the End… It was after that fight that I obtained your flesh and blood, which eventually allowed me to awaken the Rinnegan."
"Right! Wait—hold on! What do you mean you didn't die at the Valley of the End?!" Hashirama was completely thrown off. The amount of information he had to process was overwhelming.
At Hashirama's reaction, Madara's expression darkened with evident displeasure—the kind of look one would give only after being betrayed by their most trusted friend.
"Hashirama, you've got some nerve bringing that up! Back then, you actually tried to kill me for real!"
Hashirama scratched the back of his head awkwardly. "Haha… well, I got a little carried away."
"Hmph."
Madara let out a displeased snort before continuing. "But in truth, there is a third condition for awakening the Rinnegan."
"And that is an immense amount of chakra."
Even after acquiring Hashirama's cells, it had taken him decades to successfully awaken the Rinnegan. The sheer energy required was staggering.
If it weren't for that, he could have simply collected the Tailed Beasts himself once he had the Rinnegan—no one, not even Hashirama, would have been able to stop him. And Hashirama hadn't even lived for another two years after that.
At that time, he would have been truly invincible, capable of taking on the entire shinobi world alone.
So why hadn't he done it?
Why had he needed to leave behind so many contingency plans?
Because by the time he finally awakened the Rinnegan, his body was already old and frail.
Now, though his original plan had failed, he had gained something new—power from Mōryō.
As a being formed from pure malice, Mōryō's chakra was disturbingly compatible with the Uchiha. The immense negative energy made Madara's Eternal Mangekyō tremble with anticipation.
And the power Mōryō had injected into his body was immense.
Though he couldn't reclaim his old Rinnegan, he could use this energy to awaken a new pair—ones even stronger than before.
The only reason he had accepted Mōryō's command was to buy himself time, staying at a safe distance to absorb its power.
"Do you understand now, Hashirama?"
Madara remained standing with his arms crossed, but his crimson Sharingan slowly morphed into the concentric rings of the Rinnegan.
He cast a glance at the battlefield, where the Shinigami was wreaking havoc. In the next moment, a terrifying aura erupted from him—so powerful that even Hashirama felt a chill run down his spine.
"That so-called Shinigami… to me, it's nothing more than a ridiculous clown."
"But I won't waste my time dealing with it. I have more important things to do."
"Don't worry, Hashirama."
"When my plan is complete, we will meet again."
Madara turned the other way. A vast source of Mōryō's energy remained there, waiting to be absorbed.
Once he took it, he would reach a level beyond comprehension.
Watching Madara leave, Hashirama didn't give chase. Instead, he turned toward the Shinigami, still rampaging across the battlefield.
That was the more pressing concern for now.
"Wood Release: True Several Thousand Hands!"
The massive Senju Buddha statue reappeared, towering over the battlefield. Each of its countless arms radiated power beyond imagination, as though capable of suppressing all evil in existence.
"It's the First Hokage-sama! We're saved!"
The remaining shinobi of Tengakure cheered. Just moments ago, they had been drowning in despair.
The Shinigami had been cutting through their ranks effortlessly, reaping souls with every swing. Anyone struck was doomed—there was no defense, no escape. And when the Shinigami entered its incorporeal state, it became nearly impossible to land a hit.
Itachi's Amaterasu had proven effective but had ultimately failed due to a lack of information and a moment of carelessness—leading to his soul being taken.
"Asura's power? Interesting."
The Shinigami turned, a cold grin creeping onto its ghastly face.
It was unfazed, even amused, as it launched its next attack.
With a sharp slicing sound, several massive wooden hands shot forward from behind the Senju Buddha statue, aiming to capture the Shinigami mid-air.
A loud impact followed—
Even though the Shinigami had turned incorporeal, Hashirama's attack was infused with Senjutsu chakra.
Even spirits could not ignore its effects.
Yes!
The sight of the Shinigami being struck reignited the morale of the battlefield.
But Hashirama knew better.
He could feel it—the damage he inflicted was minimal at best.
This was the nature of the ancient gods.
Unlike mortals, they were born into existence as superior beings. While humans could gain power through training, they could never overcome the fundamental fragility of their existence.
The Shinigami spread its arms wide. Having gauged the strength of Hashirama's attacks, it grew even bolder. Its long white sleeves cut through the air as it increased its speed, soaring faster than before.
"Top Transcendent Buddha!"
Hashirama unleashed his full strength.
The once-tranquil face of the Senju Buddha contorted into a wrathful expression. A thousand arms, each capable of overwhelming a Tailed Beast, surged forward, relentlessly hammering the Shinigami in a storm of devastating strikes.
Yet amidst the raging tempest, the white-robed figure seemed like a lone, unshaken boat.
It ignored the crashing waves of fists and pressed forward, blade in hand.
Whoosh!
Senju Tobirama suddenly appeared using Flying Thunder God Technique, grabbing Hashirama and preparing to teleport away.
But the Shinigami, despite its seemingly desperate situation, only smirked coldly.
"Your strength is impressive. That's why, even at the cost of injury, I must kill you."
"I still have one last move—saved for the perfect moment."
A yellow-green aura erupted from the Shinigami, enveloping the battlefield.
Within this domain, the real world temporarily shifted into the Underworld, where the Shinigami reigned supreme.
And one of the domain's effects—
Was restricting space-time movement.
"What?!"
Tobirama's eyes widened in shock as he realized that his Flying Thunder God Technique had been completely nullified.
Below, Kakashi acted swiftly, attempting to assist.
Kamui!
A spiraling void appeared—
And vanished instantly.
The next moment, the Shinigami's seemingly insignificant blade slashed forward—
Claiming two more souls.
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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