"Is it possible to wipe out all these enemies?" Hane Genma turned to Senju Tobirama and asked.
The enemy held the advantage in speed, which meant they controlled the pace of the battle. The Hagoromo Clan, compared to Genma and Tobirama's duo, was like cavalry facing infantry—whether to fight or retreat was entirely their call.
The individual strength of the enemy was impressive, and their numbers gave them an overwhelming edge. Even if Genma and Tobirama took down a few, it wouldn't change the fact that they were surrounded and outmatched.
In such a situation, talking about annihilating the enemy was nothing short of a pipe dream.
Yet Tobirama instantly grasped Genma's true meaning and replied, "Impossible."
What Genma was really asking was whether Tobirama could summon reinforcements from the Senju Clan in time—preferably someone named Hashirama. But Tobirama's answer was clear: reinforcements? There wouldn't be any.
Then retreat was the only option… Genma thought silently.
This battle didn't concern Genma's core interests, so there was no need to risk his life against these ninja. It simply wasn't worth it.
His goal was merely to save Tobirama, a far more realistic objective.
It wasn't surprising that Genma had blind faith in Senju Hashirama's strength. After all, when the Senju brothers' father named his children, he made it clear who was destined to be the pillar holding up the entire clan. Hashirama, Tobirama, Itama, Kawarama—the four brothers were clearly a set of "building materials." The "pillar" was the cornerstone, and without it, the "door," "board," and "tile" would collapse.
Without him, the house would fall.
Tobirama noticed white vapor rising from half of Genma's body, distinctly different from the earlier steam. This was a change brought about by highly active cells.
Tobirama was no stranger to this sight—he often saw it in his older brother.
In his sensory perception, a dense surge of life energy was concentrated in half of Genma's body, rapidly healing the wounds inflicted by the enemy's Storm Release.
Something's off with you, isn't it?
Tobirama could understand this happening with his brother, and it didn't seem odd then. But why did Genma have such powerful self-healing abilities?
It had only been about ten months since Tobirama last saw Genma. Back then, Genma was—what, a nobody? Aside from being sneaky, he was practically useless. But now?
Had he taken some kind of performance enhancer? Or been fed premium fertilizer?
"Want to give it a shot?" Tobirama asked.
Because Genma's strength was beyond his expectations, Tobirama wanted to test if they could take out all the enemies here. More importantly, he wanted to observe Genma's abilities further.
"Give what a shot? Pull off something big and then bail?" Genma retorted inwardly. I'm here to save your life, not to die for you. But retreating so meekly left a bad taste in his mouth…
Retreating was important, but he wanted to take one last bite out of the enemy before leaving.
"Fine," Tobirama conceded.
He couldn't force Genma to do anything, and he knew his earlier idea was unrealistic.
With their plan aligned, Tobirama lunged at a specific enemy.
Say what you will about his cunning—once he understood Genma's intent, his choice of target was calculated. First, this enemy was high-ranking and strong, one of the key commanders here. Second, they didn't use Swift Release, making them a prime target.
Genma watched Tobirama's movements and knew what to do next. While fending off the surrounding Hagoromo ninja, he secretly gathered chakra.
After carefully adjusting his position relative to the enemy, he suddenly unleashed a massive cloud of acid mist.
But a jutsu like this was most effective when it caught the enemy off guard the first time. Now that they'd seen its sinister nature, the Hagoromo ninja immediately retreated.
That was fine—Genma's goal was achieved by forcing them back.
Boom!
With a deafening explosion, a torrent of steam erupted, and Genma shot forward like he was riding a jet stream, his body soaring at an angle!
His trajectory was obvious: straight toward Tobirama's position.
Momentum, speed, power—when everything reached its peak, Genma didn't need fancy attacks. Simple and direct was the most lethal; anything more would be overkill.
His bulky appearance made his charge unstoppable.
Genma adjusted his stance, raising his right arm to shoulder height, fist clenched, elbow bent in a slight arc.
The target noticed Genma's movement and tried to dodge, but Tobirama's hands pressed against their back, holding them in place.
Bang!
Genma's armored right arm was no sharper than a blunt blade, but with his unstoppable momentum, it severed the enemy's neck in an instant, their head slamming into their spine with a sickening crunch.
After the strike, Genma lowered his stance, sliding past the enemy, his feet digging into the earth to counter his inertia.
Tobirama's coordination was decent, but it wasn't the kind Genma wanted. They clearly lacked synergy… This was the perfect chance for a combo move like Thunder Plow Hot Blade, but Tobirama had squandered it.
Oh well. If Thunder Plow Hot Blade wasn't happening, Genma would just call this one Heavenly Tyrant Soaring Blast.
After stopping, Genma quickly doubled back. Reaching Tobirama's side, he grabbed his shoulder. "Lend me some chakra."
Tobirama froze. Borrowing chakra from a wounded man? Wasn't that a bit shameless?
And "borrow"? This was straight-up robbery.
But Genma had no choice. Using Skillful Mist Technique on such a large scale was chakra-intensive, and maintaining control over the acid mist required mixing in even more of his own chakra to avoid friendly fire… doubling his consumption.
Plus, he needed to preserve his combat strength and avoid burning through his own reserves.
With a convenient "portable battery" like Tobirama nearby, why not use it? Call it a protection fee.
Hiss… hiss…
An unsettling sound filled the air as the acid mist blanketed the battlefield.
Seizing the chance, Genma dragged Tobirama away, who even managed to grab a fallen comrade's body. Genma, quick as ever, snatched two "test subjects" for himself.
But Tobirama was already in rough shape, and with his remaining chakra ruthlessly drained by Genma, he was barely holding on by the time they reached the battlefield's edge.
Luckily, Genma had someone waiting to assist. He paused for five seconds, swiftly stashing the test subjects in a storage scroll.
Akimichi Jinsei hoisted Tobirama onto his back, who was still carrying his clanmate's body. The scene was tragic but oddly comical.
Tobirama remained conscious, so Genma couldn't touch the Senju ninja's body. The trio quickly fled south.
"We're good. Let's rest for a bit," Tobirama said after they'd been running for a while.
It was unclear whether his sensory abilities, nearly drained of chakra, were still reliable.
But as the only one with long-range sensory skills, his judgment was their guide.
Genma helped lower the Senju ninja's body. Tobirama struggled down from Jinsei's back, slumping against a rock to tend to his wounds.
"Thank you for your help… They say three days apart warrants a fresh look, but in less than a year, your strength has grown remarkably," Tobirama said, fumbling with his injuries but still earnestly thanking Genma.
Jinsei glanced at Genma, aware he could use medical ninjutsu but puzzled why he wasn't helping the wounded.
Wasn't this guy supposed to be important?
With no other option, Jinsei stepped forward to treat Tobirama's wounds.
"Thanks," Tobirama said to Jinsei.
Jinsei just shook his head. Not understanding Genma's intentions, he kept quiet to avoid disrupting whatever plan Genma had.
"Along the way, I've had… well, a lot of help from people," Genma said vaguely.
Tobirama, sharp as ever, didn't press for details. Genma's growth could be left to his imagination.
True to form, Tobirama shifted to probing indirectly. "If we're not mistaken, the ability you used earlier was the kekkei genkai Boil Release, right?"
Genma nodded. "Yes. I used two techniques: Miuha String: Arrow Flame and Miuha String: Erosion. Both are applications of Boil Release."
In truth, they were just Unrivaled Strength and Skillful Mist Technique, but since Genma used them first, he claimed naming rights and declared them legitimate ninjutsu.
After acquiring his kekkei genkai, Genma's reliance on standard ninjutsu had dropped sharply. His fighting style was shifting toward the "utterly unremarkable" ideal he envisioned.
Even his once-favored Water Severing Wave didn't seem as appealing anymore.
Tobirama nodded silently, appreciating Genma's candor and pleased to gather new intel.
Truth be told, Tobirama was deeply calculating and suspicious, trusting few people fully. Even with Genma as a temporary ally, he wanted to understand his strength as much as possible.
Genma roughly understood Tobirama's mindset but didn't care. At this moment, he found Tobirama's personality oddly representative, almost like certain fictional characters.
For instance, Tobirama probably wished he had a notebook to jot down something like "Genma's weakness is kryptonite."
People like Tobirama were likely doomed to a lifetime without true friends.
Genma felt a pang of sadness for him, even pity.
But when one judges another, they're often holding up a mirror.
Genma thought Tobirama was destined to die alone, but what about himself? Did he have—or would he ever have—a true friend?
They were two sides of the same coin. Neither had room to judge.
As Tobirama chatted, his hands couldn't keep up with his blood loss, and he eventually passed out.
"Lord Genma, he's fainted," Jinsei confirmed, turning to Genma.
Genma nodded. "Good."
Only then did he start treating Tobirama's wounds.
"Lord Genma, why didn't you help earlier?" Jinsei asked, stepping aside but unable to hold back his curiosity.
"Because people shut up when they're unconscious," Genma replied.
In truth, Genma wanted Tobirama to suffer as much as possible without dying. The worse Tobirama's condition, the greater Genma's help appeared, and the more Tobirama owed him.
Him fainting was better than staying awake. If Genma left him now, wouldn't he just die?
Saving him on the battlefield, then again afterward—didn't that mean Tobirama owed him two lives?
See, Genma knew how to make a favor appreciate in value, and by a lot.
So yes, he was looking in a mirror. He called Tobirama cunning and dark, but he was no better—maybe even worse.
After quickly treating Tobirama and confirming he wouldn't wake soon, Genma casually "packed" the other Senju ninja's body and signaled Jinsei to carry it again.
"Let's go. We've got a mission to complete."
"Huh? With this guy, heading to the Nara Clan?"
"Of course. It's not like he can sabotage our mission… Thanks to him, we've already wasted enough time. Let's move."
What could Tobirama do? Even if he woke up, Genma could knock him out again with a single slap.
"Under… understood."
As Genma's group set off again, two Senju ninja arrived at the battlefield.
The leader was tall, unremarkable in appearance, clad in red armor with distinctive, smooth black hair tied long.
It was none other than Senju Hashirama, the man Genma had been thinking of.
"It's over? Where's Tobirama and Himaru?" Hashirama asked.
The acid mist had left a wide but shallow mark on the open terrain. With no sign of Tobirama, Hashirama grew anxious.
"Could the Hagoromo Clan have taken them?" the other Senju ninja suggested.
"Haha… No way… Chase them!" Hashirama's mood swung, and he sped off in the direction the main group had fled.
Who knew if the Hagoromo Clan's luck would hold against the protagonist of this era? If they were fortunate, Hashirama might not catch up.
What, strength?
Well, comparing strength might be inconvenient.
The God of Shinobi wasn't quite the God of Shinobi yet, but let's not forget—Senju Hashirama was the human incarnation of Asura.
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