A guard brought by the Third Mizukage suddenly unleashed the secret Water Style: Waterless Moon technique.
Vast clusters of ice crystals abruptly appeared in the air, exuding a faint chill, as pure as winter snowflakes.
They swiftly danced through the sky, instantly forming countless ice mirrors.
These ice mirrors connected with each other, creating a massive crystalline cage that locked Uzumaki Mito, the Third Mizukage, and the others inside the secret technique.
This sudden development left the other three Kage watching in stunned confusion.
They had just been focusing on Uchiha Hikaru's battle with the Four Tailed Beasts, and now, in the blink of an eye, this had happened.
Everything happened so fast that even the Kage struggled to keep up.
However, Uzumaki Mito, trapped within the secret technique, showed no sign of panic.
Her gaze was steady and calm as she looked at the Mizukage before her and slowly said,
"The Mist Village wants to go to war against Konoha... huh?!"
Before she finished, she suddenly sensed something unusual about the guard beside the Mizukage.
A trace of malevolence gleamed in the guard's eyes, making Uzumaki Mito uneasy.
In the next moment, a familiar feeling surged in her heart, reminding her of someone long gone.
Just as her unease grew, that person removed their mask, revealing a face she could hardly believe.
"Long time no see, Mito. I never expected you to become Hokage."
Uzumaki Mito stared at him in disbelief, as if seeing a ghost.
She slowly spoke the name that once shook the entire shinobi world:
"Uchiha... Madara? How could it be?!"
Her heart filled with confusion and unease, unable to comprehend why Madara Uchiha had appeared before her again.
After all, at the Valley of the End, Hashirama had killed Madara, who then died heartbroken soon after at a young age.
Madara's appearance undoubtedly complicated her emotions to the extreme.
Yet, Madara's presence also unraveled the doubts in Uzumaki Mito's mind.
She finally understood that the appearance of these Four Tailed Beasts was no coincidence but the work of Madara Uchiha.
Sure enough, before she could even ask, Madara confirmed her suspicions:
"I only wanted to see if there was any unexpected change in Konoha's plan, but I didn't expect to witness this scene."
His tone carried a teasing expectation.
"The power of Hashirama and I manifesting in one person makes me want to get some rare exercise myself."
These words put Uzumaki Mito on high alert; she immediately entered a state of heightened vigilance.
However, she suddenly sensed something was off.
According to her understanding of Madara, this man should have attacked right after greetings. How could he be wasting time chatting like this?
This abnormal situation made her uneasy, and she began carefully observing Madara's actions.
Secretly activating her sensory abilities with full force.
But how could her subtle moves escape the notice of the man before her?
"Impressive, you've already noticed something's off?"
Madara said appreciatively:
"Too bad, it's already too late."
As his words fell, golden chakra burst out from Uzumaki Mito's body.
It rapidly spread across her form, activating Nine-Tails Chakra Mode.
In the next second, a thick golden light appeared before Madara's eyes.
Meanwhile, outside, the three other Kage hesitated whether to intervene and assist Uzumaki Mito.
But just as they hesitated, a burst of golden light suddenly illuminated the magical ice mirrors.
Immediately after, they heard the crisp sound of shattering as the ice mirrors broke apart completely.
The three looked up; after the golden light faded, Uzumaki Mito and the others reappeared in their sight.
At this moment, Uzumaki Mito had already activated Nine-Tails Chakra Mode, and her aura had grown extraordinarily powerful.
Ōnoki, the Third Tsuchikage, fixated on one figure, his eyes filled with shock and fear.
Having once fought Madara Uchiha, he knew better than anyone the terrifying strength of this man.
"Uchiha Madara?!"
He trembled as he shouted the name, disbelief clear in his voice.
His words alerted the other Kage, who widened their eyes and wore grave, cautious expressions.
Though none had witnessed Madara's true power firsthand, as Kage-level warriors, they understood fully what this name implied.
Yet Madara clearly had no energy to care about them now.
Every strike from Uzumaki Mito weighed heavily on him, as if each could break through his defenses.
Moreover, her speed was astonishingly fast, like lightning, making her movements hard to predict.
Despite this, Madara skillfully used his Sharingan techniques to barely fend off Uzumaki Mito's attacks.
He had to stay constantly vigilant, for a single mistake could lead to being sealed.
But this was not his greatest trouble.
This body was only a clone created via Elephant Transfer Technique, possessing just thirty percent of his original strength.
Although his Rinnegan had not awakened, the Elephant Transfer Technique had already been triggered early.
This technique was sufficient against ordinary Kage-level foes, but against someone like Uzumaki Mito, it fell short.
However, there was one thing about this technique that Madara liked very much.
The next moment, he took a deep breath, and his Mangekyō Sharingan suddenly activated.
Immediately, a surge of powerful chakra erupted from his body, rapidly forming a colossal Susanoo.
This Susanoo's size rivaled that of Uchiha Hikaru's armored Susanoo, as if another giant stood firmly on the earth.
Its appearance thickened the surrounding air with a heavy tension, as if time itself had frozen.
Uzumaki Mito paused, frowning deeply with a blank expression, lost in thought.
Though she knew Madara was stalling for time, she didn't know why.
Until Madara's purpose was clear, the fundamental problem could not be solved.
She silently analyzed in her mind:
'Madara's chakra is scarce; this must not be his real body. Did he come just to stall me?'
'Could it be from the Land of Whirlpools? But even without stalling me, I couldn't reach there now.'
'Then what must he stall me for, making me unable to split and deal with it?'
The more she pondered, the more unsettled she felt, as if something was slipping away from her.
Yet this very feeling sparked a sudden insight in her mind.
'Could it be Tsunade and the others?!'