"A surge? Is it a person?"
Qingshui turned his head and asked the sensory ninja behind him.
This person had red hair similar to Sasori's and was the best sensory ninja in the squad.
"Yes."
"How strong?"
"Almost as strong as you. To me, they feel much stronger than the One-Tails."
As strong as me?
Just a few seconds later, Qingshui sensed it too.
By now, his Transparent World's sensory range had reached over three thousand meters.
Over three thousand meters away, a tall man, clad in old-fashioned red Sengoku armor with long hair, was approaching. His hands were clasped behind his back, running in a typical ninja stride.
"Wait here. If a fight breaks out, wait for my signal."
Qingshui instructed, his eyes shifting slightly, and his body vanished instantly.
Soon, Senju Hashirama stopped, sizing up the young man who had appeared before him.
He was a few centimeters shorter than himself, around 1.8 meters tall, wearing a snug black combat suit. His aura was not weak, and his Chakra reserves were about 40-50% of Hashirama's peak. His gaze held strong caution.
"Oh~ You must be Qingshui of the Sand Village. I am Senju Hashirama of Konoha. I'm here to talk to you."
Senju Hashirama put his hands on his hips, a broad, somewhat naive smile appearing on his cracked face as he spoke loudly.
"Impure World Reincarnation, huh? I never thought Konoha would unseal such a wicked jutsu for summoning the dead again. Those who have died shouldn't disturb the living world. Even if you have remaining bloodlines and legacies, that's for future generations to deal with."
Qingshui placed one hand on the hilt of the Kusanagi Sword at his waist, also carefully observing this God of Shinobi.
Though an Impure World Reincarnation body, his appearance was dignified, his voice deep, and his demeanor grand, making him seem like someone who could command respect.
Provided you ignore the goofy grin on his face.
"You're absolutely right. I feel the same way. Tobirama's Ninjutsu really isn't that great."
Senju Hashirama nodded earnestly at Qingshui, criticizing his younger brother.
"Yet you were still brought back by Impure World Reincarnation. Tell me, from your expression, it seems you don't really want to fight me. What do you want to discuss?"
Qingshui watched Senju Hashirama's expression and spoke.
He couldn't quite gauge the First Hokage's strength.
But based on the amount of Chakra he sensed and that Wood Release technique just now, a real fight would be very difficult.
As for the specifics, he'd have to find out in combat.
"Hmm… I want to ask, how can we end this war? I also want to ask your thoughts on war and peace. I heard about what you did in the Sand Village, and I feel that you, like me in the past, want to do something, to bring about change. Your Sand Village was developing quite well before this war started, so why didn't you continue?"
"First Hokage, you're mistaken."
Qingshui shook his head at Senju Hashirama.
"Perhaps in the first two great wars, the Sand Village was one of the instigators, but the Sand Village also paid the deserved price for it, with countless deaths. However, this time, the ones who started the war are you, Konoha, and your Daimyo of the Land of Fire.
We also want peace, because we are also developing. But Konoha sent ninjas to interfere with our Land of Wind's internal affairs, disrupting the Sand Village's development, intending to provoke war.
And the reason is simply that our Sand Village developed too quickly and too smoothly under the new system, making Konoha and the Daimyo of the Land of Fire, as the overlords and beneficiaries of the old system, feel threatened, and thus intentionally suppress us."
Qingshui looked at Senju Hashirama, adopting a very serious expression.
In his words, the Sand Village was a pure and innocent victim, and all the fault lay with Konoha and the Daimyo.
As for the complex power struggles that the Sand Village and the Land of Wind Daimyo had engaged in with Konoha before this, there was no need to tell Senju Hashirama.
In any case, what he had just said was indeed true.
Senju Hashirama tilted his head, scratching it.
"It seems that way. So, how do you think this should be resolved? What can we do to make this war end immediately?"
Senju Hashirama asked very sincerely.
"It will be difficult, I'm afraid. This war was started by your Konoha. When it ends, and how it ends, should be decided by us, the Sand Village.
In the three Great Ninja Wars, too many of our people have died. Your Third Hokage died by my hand, and my father, my teacher's son and daughter-in-law, and my friends' parents all died at the hands of Konoha ninjas.
We have accumulated too much hatred. Once it explodes, unless one side is utterly defeated and unable to fight, it cannot be quelled."
Senju Hashirama scratched his ears and head in frustration.
In the Ninja World, there was no right or wrong; the only hard truth was strength.
But this God of Shinobi, who was once almost invincible, with only Uchiha Madara barely able to contend with him, despite holding the ultimate power, genuinely debated right and wrong.
"The Senju and Uchiha also fought for countless years. Many of our relatives died in those wars, but with Madara and my efforts, the two clans eventually reached an understanding and established Konoha. Why can't we…"
"Then what about Uchiha Madara? Didn't he still die by your hand in the end?"
Senju Hashirama lowered his head.
Killing his best friend with his own hands was a thorn in his heart.
"That's because Madara defected and threatened the village…"
"Then why did Uchiha Madara defect? Were you and Tobirama Senju targeting him? Or did he foresee the failure of the ninja village system, that the Uchiha wouldn't fare well in Konoha, and wanted to find a new path?"
Qingshui looked into Senju Hashirama's eyes and retorted:
"If that's the case, looking back decades later, Uchiha Madara was right. The wars of the ninja village system didn't bring peace. Just decades after your death, three wars swept through the Ninja World. Your younger brother and disciple, your successors, died, and even your grandson perished in war, while your granddaughter was crippled by it.
The only advantage of the ninja village system was that young children could live a little longer, only going to the battlefield when they had some ability to protect themselves. It's a shame that now, Konoha has already started sending Ninja Academy students to the battlefield as cannon fodder.
Senju Hashirama, the Konoha you created is destined to fail. It was merely an expedient measure chosen by you, the leaders in an era of drastic change, when facing the future's path. It was just a transition to a new era.
Because compared to the past Warring States period, no fundamental changes occurred."
Senju Hashirama stood with his hands on his hips, exasperated.
"Tobirama… he did speak ill of Madara, and he wasn't very fond of the Uchiha, but he was also broad-minded. Look at the Uchiha now, aren't they doing well? I even heard that the current clan head is an excellent junior named Fugaku…"
"That's because the current Konoha leaders won't tell you how their predecessors suppressed the Uchiha. When your brother was alive, he was constantly planting mines for the Uchiha. If there hadn't been a war, heh, how many more years do you think the Uchiha would have lasted?
Unless a conflict is completely resolved, no matter how much you try to cover it up or shift it, it's just burying your head in the sand. It's still there. If you don't resolve it, it will resolve you."
Qingshui scoffed.
"Sigh… Is there really no way to talk this out?"
"There is. If your Konoha can cede territory and pay reparations, and severely punish those who started this war, then I'll withdraw the Sand Village's forces. We can't have so many of our people die just for nothing."
Senju Hashirama sighed again.
"It seems I'll have to do what I did to convince Madara back then—resort to force."
"What, you're going to kill me, just like you once killed Madara, for a Konoha that not only can't protect children and comrades, but also actively provokes war?"
"The purpose of me establishing the village was indeed to protect comrades and children, and to maintain peace. Even if it's my brothers, friends, or even descendants, if they dare to destroy any of this, I will never let them off.
Perhaps many things have gradually deteriorated since my death, but now that I've returned, I will still protect what I once sought to protect. Only when everything settles will I return to the Pure Land. And precisely because of this, I won't kill you. Instead, just like with Madara, after defeating you, I will invite you to join me.
After all, you are the leader of this generation. Everything that follows will depend on you to maintain.
I apologize, interfering with the present world was not my intention, but there are many things I cannot let go of. This is the best method I could think of."
Senju Hashirama clasped his hands together to form a hand sign, his voice low.
Giant trees, several meters thick, rose from the ground, coiling around Qingshui like tentacles.
"*Wood Release: Deep Forest Emergence!*"
"*Separation Breathing: Fifth Form: Wind-Lightning Separation Blast.*"
Beams of high-temperature plasma sword energy instantly erupted, cutting through the giant trees approaching Qingshui and burning them to charcoal.
But after only a few seconds, the charcoal quickly flaked off, covered by newly grown forest.
"That depends on whether you still have that strength, First Hokage. Since you don't want to kill me, after I seal you and defeat Konoha, I will reserve a place for the soon-to-be-extinct Senju clan in the new world."
A Sealing Scroll was opened, releasing seven Puppets of various forms one by one.
Among the two new Puppets, one was Big Ivan II, a replica of Big Ivan, and the other was Blue Jerboa II.
Because Qingshui's Puppets had already formed a system, there was no immediate need for additions; only enhancements to the existing system were required.
Neither of the two new Puppets had been transformed into Magic Tools like Big Ivan, though among the old Puppets, Fatty had already been converted into a Magic Tool, besides Big Ivan.
"The Wood Release can absorb Chakra and its physical strength is also very powerful. Wood Release is truly a highly comprehensive Kekkei Genkai. But what will you do when facing non-Chakra attacks?"
As wood chips flew, Qingshui watched Fatty, who was blocking in front of him, punch through a section of a giant tree. He crooked his finger.
The two Blue Jerboas immediately opened their launch bays under the cover of the other Puppets, firing Ice Bombs one after another.
In an instant, large sections of the forest were covered in solid ice, transforming into exquisite ice sculptures, like works of art.
The strategic value of these things in the Sand Village had risen to be even higher than Explosive Tags.
This was because Ice Bombs, unlike Explosive Tags, didn't require elite ninja skilled in both sealing and Fire Release to produce. They only needed an automated Puppet production line, plus a few specially trained workers, to be continuously churned out. The production cost had already dropped to be lower than Explosive Tags.
Qingshui even had a fully automated production line he had built himself, which filled an entire warehouse. The reserves within the Sand Village were even more considerable.
Qingshui could squander them freely.
"Is this that special ninja tool, similar to Ice Release but without Chakra traces? And those cannonballs, far more powerful than Explosive Tags? It seems the war of this generation has become quite different from our time."
Senju Hashirama watched Qingshui easily block his Wood Release with his techniques. Then, the Puppets Qingshui released also showed a hint of surprise, before he took action, getting serious.
He had already determined that this young man in front of him was indeed very strong and wouldn't be easily killed by him, so he could unleash his true abilities.
"*Wood Release: Advent of a World of Flowering Trees!*"
Even thicker trees than before rose from the ground, and as flower buds bloomed, the forest expanded further.
The original ice sculpture forest was crushed into dust. Qingshui looked up, feeling as if he was surrounded by endless trees, as if he were fighting against nature itself.
If it were Hiruzen Sarutobi, or a Kage-level peak expert of the Third Tsuchikage's caliber, they might only last for a short while in this situation, ultimately unable to escape defeat.
Unfortunately, Qingshui was not them.
"Senju Hashirama, you with your thick eyebrows and honest-looking face, I never expected you to play dirty! This pollen toxin with its intoxicating effects is quite good!"
Without rushing, he used a few Puppets to block the attacks. He then used the Delicate Illness Extraction Technique to remove the pollen from his body, equipped Big Ivan, and activated its internal air circulation system.
"Uh... this jutsu was developed with Tobirama's help," Senju Hashirama said, scratching his head. He then saw an incredibly terrifying lightning burst from Qingshui's position ahead.
"Bolts of Balthakk."
Surging lightning poured out from Qingshui's hands, radiating outwards like the God of Thunder descending.
"Empowered by the Celestial Master's Mansion's Five Thunders Righteous Law, this magic's power is several times greater than before."
Looking at the cleared area around him, Qingshui took a step forward and formed a sword-finger with his left hand.
"Shock Character: Purple Heaven."
The Bolts of Balthakk grew even larger, converging into a beam of blinding light that shot towards Senju Hashirama.
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