Though Ginkaku had been hit by a Rasengan from Tobirama, he hadn't been defeated outright. He was still holding his own against the Second Hokage.
However, the agonizing screams of Kinkaku were too piercing. Ginkaku couldn't believe that in such a short amount of time, his brother had been defeated by Hibari!
Whether he could believe it or not, the facts were right in front of him. Sometimes, ninja battles were this quick. Even for powerful shinobi, a moment of carelessness could lead to instant defeat or even death.
The main reason Ginkaku was able to fight Tobirama for so long was that Tobirama, as the 'fastest ninja in the world,' was so famous that top ninjas from various countries had spent countless hours studying his techniques.
Ginkaku was no exception, as intelligence was crucial. As a result, besides the Substitution Jutsu and Rasengan, Ginkaku hadn't suffered any losses against Tobirama. After that, the fight should have been a test of ninja skills, waiting to see who would make the first mistake.
But the situation took a sudden turn for the worse. He had managed to hold off the seemingly most difficult opponent, Tobirama, but his brother had been defeated in such a short time. He knew he would soon be in a two-on-one situation. And just like with his brother's fate, he knew absolutely nothing about that Hibari Senju!
"Damn it! Damn it! DAMN IT!!!" Ginkaku cursed frantically.
He couldn't understand how the situation had changed so quickly. Moments ago, everything was going so smoothly, as if the two brothers had divine assistance. The Second Raikage was also dead. How did things suddenly end up like this?
Just then, Ginkaku suddenly remembered the Second Raikage's strange loss of resistance during their fight and the ambush Tobirama had set up. Putting the pieces together, Ginkaku's expression turned very ugly.
At this time, Tobirama also stopped his movements. He didn't need to rush now. He just had to keep an eye on Ginkaku. Once Hibari was finished with Kinkaku, Ginkaku wouldn't be able to escape either! So there was no need to press the attack.
Seeing Ginkaku's mortified but also enlightened expression, Tobirama said softly, "It seems you've figured out the cause and effect, haven't you?"
"A conspiracy... This is all your Konoha's conspiracy. But... how is that possible? How did you find out about our plan?" Ginkaku asked unwillingly.
Tobirama smiled and then said, "It's not that we knew your plan. It's just that Konoha always prepares for everything, just in case. If Kumogakure had been united and we could have truly signed a peace treaty, then we wouldn't have interfered. But if you two, Kinkaku and Ginkaku, were really going to cause trouble, Konoha wouldn't mind turning your plan against you to further weaken Kumogakure, would we?"
Listening to Tobirama's words, Ginkaku's face showed an expression of great remorse, and he muttered to himself, "So... it was our fault?"
Leaving Tobirama, who was in a great mood, to 'chat' with Ginkaku, Hibari was busy dealing with the fruits of his victory.
After the 'great fire' had burned the Forest of Spiked Bones and done its work, Hibari extinguished the flames. After some effort, he finally dug out a dying Kinkaku, whose body was covered in burns and bloodied holes.
At this moment, Kinkaku's handsome golden hair was completely gone. The 'Ash Burial' jutsu had burned him completely bald. His body was covered in blisters and scorched wounds. If he didn't have the Six Paths Sage's bloodline, a very strong physique, and a vibrant life force, anyone else would have been reduced to ashes after taking that hit from Hibari.
But it was clear that even if Kinkaku wasn't dead, he was pretty close. In short, he was completely immobile.
"I didn't expect you to still be alive... I was preparing to take you both back to be 'zombie' material. But looking at you, staying alive would be a torment. I'll be merciful and send you on your way..." Hibari said with a smile, looking at Kinkaku's miserable state.
Kinkaku's entire body was unable to move. The only thing he could move was his eyes. His bloodshot eyes, filled with intense hatred, stared at Hibari. His lips also moved slightly, as if he wanted to say some final words...
But Hibari had no intention of listening. According to the plan, his Hokage grandfather was surely waiting for him. So, how could he waste so much time listening to this dead guy Kinkaku ramble on?
Hibari went up and covered Kinkaku's mouth, forcing him to keep his last words inside. Then, a ruthless look flashed in Hibari's eyes. Without another word, he grabbed Kinkaku's head with both hands and gave it a hard twist.
With a crack, Kinkaku's head rotated more than halfway around, then inertia caused it to twist back. His neck went limp, and his head slumped onto his chest, deader than dead.
After snapping Kinkaku's neck and ending the unfortunate man's life, Hibari quickly placed the large scroll he had been carrying on his back on the ground. It didn't take long for him to tightly wrap Kinkaku's corpse in a shroud and then seal it in the scroll.
Having done all this, Hibari placed the large scroll back on his back. He sensed the general location of his grandfather and Ginkaku with his chakra, then stomped his foot and headed towards them at an extremely fast speed.
Although the Four Violet Flames Formation the clones had set up was large, it wasn't beyond reason. In just a few breaths, Hibari's figure appeared on a tree in the area where Tobirama and Ginkaku were.
At this moment, neither Ginkaku nor Tobirama had noticed Hibari's arrival. Tobirama was still using his 'talk-no-jutsu,' stalling for time by talking nonsense to Ginkaku while waiting for Hibari to arrive.
On the other hand, Ginkaku's spirit seemed to have taken a massive hit. He was in a 'dazed' state. After all, life had taken a turn for the worse too quickly. He thought they had divine help, but it turned out to be a complete trap. Anyone would find that hard to accept.
Seeing that Ginkaku's mental state was extremely poor, apart from instinctively guarding against Tobirama, he wasn't paying close attention to his surroundings, Hibari didn't show himself rashly. Instead, he crouched on the treetop, gently forming a few hand signs.
As soon as he finished the hand signs, Hibari whispered, "Earth Release: Mountain Jutsu!"
Mountain Jutsu was a very advanced Earth Release jutsu. Previously, in the Mushiking Valley of the Land of Water, Hiruzen had used this jutsu to suppress the Seven-Tails, almost crushing it.
Hibari also wanted to use this jutsu to suppress Ginkaku. And this was the perfect opportunity, because this jutsu worked best on a large, slow-moving, or stationary target, making it easier to hit.
Ginkaku was standing there, completely unaware of his presence, making him the perfect 'target.'
As soon as Hibari's voice fell, the ground on both sides of Ginkaku suddenly surged up, sandwiching Ginkaku in the middle.
With such a sudden turn of events, Ginkaku's reaction speed was also extremely fast. He couldn't escape. And since this jutsu was rarely used, combined with his poor mental state, he didn't recognize it for a while.
Seeing the rock walls trying to crush him, he actually reached out and held them up, forcefully stopping the two converging rock walls.
Don't let that fool you. Although he looked like he was fighting a high-level jutsu with sheer physical strength, Ginkaku's expression became even uglier as he stalled the rocks.
"Damn it, this is Mountain Jutsu!!!" Ginkaku finally recognized the jutsu, but it was already too late.
If he had been prepared earlier, his speed would have prevented him from being caught by this jutsu. But now that he was caught, he couldn't escape!
Why? Because Mountain Jutsu was the highest-level mobility-blocking jutsu of all Earth Release jutsu. Even a tailed beast couldn't move for a short time when caught in it, let alone a shinobi like him.
And this period of suppression was already fatal to Ginkaku. Why? Because not far in front of him stood the fastest ninja in the world, Tobirama!
For Tobirama, all he needed was one opening to secure victory...
No sooner said than done, as Ginkaku was forcefully holding up the two sides of the Mountain Jutsu, Tobirama had already taken another short blade from his waist.
The moment he held the short blade, he vanished from his spot.
Ginkaku didn't even have time to react before he felt a sharp pain in his abdomen, and blood entered his field of vision.
Only then did he notice that Tobirama had appeared behind him...
"Flying Raijin Slash!" Tobirama murmured softly with his back to Ginkaku, slowly sheathing his short blade.
Ginkaku felt the power within his body rapidly fading. This was a sign that his life force had been severed. His eyes gradually lost their light, and his arms could no longer support the converging rock walls. They fell limply, and he knelt on the ground.
A large amount of blood gushed from his abdomen, turning the ground around him into a pool of blood in just a moment.
In his final moments, Ginkaku muttered haltingly, "Damn it... The war... The war has only just begun... Don't get too ahead of yourselves... Konoha..."
After saying this, Ginkaku's eyes completely lost their light, and blood began to trickle from the corner of his mouth.
No one who was hit by Tobirama's Flying Raijin Slash had ever survived. Years ago, Izuna Uchiha, the younger brother of Madara Uchiha, also died from this move after a moment of carelessness.
In that instant, Tobirama had used his short blade to completely slice through Ginkaku's abdomen. That's right, he cut straight across the left side of his abdomen, piercing through half of Ginkaku's torso. If his short blade had been a bit longer, it would have been a complete bisection!
And so, the Kinkaku and Ginkaku brothers died in a dense, secluded forest, not in some earth-shattering battle.
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