"Senju Tobirama... Senju Hashirama?!"
The Second Kazekage exclaimed in shock, his entire body freezing stiff. The sudden appearance of the two figures before him left his mind completely blank.
His eyes were filled with disbelief and confusion. The Sunagakure ninja beside him also halted their movements, staring with fear and awe at Senju Hashirama and Senju Tobirama standing side by side on the battlefield.
The battlefield, which had just been filled with the clamor of fierce combat, suddenly fell into a dead silence, as if time itself had stopped flowing. Only the howling wind sweeping across the plains broke this suffocating quiet.
Among the Sunagakure ninja, whispers full of doubt began to rise.
"C-could it be... the God of the Shinobi World?"
"Could someone be impersonating them?"
"Didn't everyone say Senju Hashirama was already dead?"
Though their hearts were filled with confusion over the sudden appearance of the Hashirama brothers on the battlefield, not a single person dared to act rashly.
With the truth difficult to discern, no one dared to provoke the God of the Shinobi World. They all knew that opposing him meant certain death.
These doubts drifted into the ears of the Second Kazekage, and a flicker of hesitation passed through his heart, but he quickly suppressed it. He firmly believed that the harsh environment and scarce resources of the Land of Wind were what caused Sunagakure ninja to suffer. If they had conditions like Konoha's, they would never have considered invading other nations.
The Second Kazekage shouted sternly, "Do not boost the enemy's morale while diminishing our own! The fact that the four great Hidden Villages have joined forces to attack Konoha is proof enough that the news of Senju Hashirama's death is absolutely true! Would the renowned God of the Shinobi World stoop to deceiving the world with such tricks as faking his death?"
The Second Kazekage, Shamon, firmly believed in his own judgment, thinking that the appearance of the Hashirama brothers on the battlefield was merely a scare tactic devised by the Second Hokage, Tobirama, to force them to retreat.
Having reasoned this out, a sharp glint flashed in the Second Kazekage's eyes. He sneered and shouted loudly, "Hmph! Deceitful Senju Tobirama, don't think you can fool me with such tricks! Prepare to die!"
His confident words drew the attention of everyone on the battlefield. Without hesitation, he summoned puppets from a scroll and swiftly formed hand seals.
To be thorough, the Second Kazekage concentrated and formed more seals, manipulating the sand swirling all around him. But just as he was gathering momentum, the long-restrained Senju Hashirama finally moved.
Watching the Second Kazekage's complex and lengthy hand seal technique, Hashirama felt a spark of curiosity. "Hmm? Such intricate seals... it must be a powerful Ninjutsu. Then I'll use my most skilled technique as well."
Before his words faded, Hashirama's expression suddenly turned solemn. Green markings appeared on his face as Sage Mode activated, surrounding him with a dense aura of Natural Energy.
Seeing this, Tobirama frowned slightly, worried that this technique might have unknown side effects on his brother's body. To avoid disturbing Hashirama, he immediately used the Flying Thunder God Technique to transport all of Konoha's forces back to the village, leaving Hashirama alone on the battlefield.
The Second Kazekage, who had intended to engage Tobirama, froze in place when Tobirama suddenly vanished. Doubts surged within him once more, and he couldn't help but suspect whether the Hashirama before him was real. Yet, he kept bolstering his own resolve, firmly believing that Senju Hashirama had long since perished and that the man before him was nothing but an impostor.
Driven by this obsession, the Second Kazekage manipulated several puppets, sending them charging toward Hashirama. But the moment he took control of his puppets, Hashirama, standing at the center of the battlefield, slowly brought his hands together.
Seeing this, the Second Kazekage was filled with confusion, then burst into laughter, convinced that the impostor before him had reached a dead end. Yet before his laughter could fade, an utterly terrifying surge of Chakra erupted from Hashirama's body, causing the entire battlefield to tremble.
In an instant, a colossal statue of Thousand-Armed Kannon, reaching toward the heavens, rose from the ground, soaring into the clouds.
Witnessing this awe-inspiring sight, the Second Kazekage instantly stiffened. The stark contrast between his own puppets and that towering Kannon statue left his mind blank.
"This... this can't possibly be an illusion. It's real... Senju Hashirama never died!"
Only now did he realize he had been utterly defeated.
The Second Kazekage felt as though his very soul had been torn away. Staring blankly at the sky-obscuring Kannon statue before him, he finally understood that with his mere Kage-level strength, he stood no chance against such power.
Even the Sunagakure ninja, who had been filled with doubts moments before, now stood frozen in place, their faces etched with terror. Before they could react, the countless arms of the Thousand-Armed Kannon clenched into iron fists and, with world-shattering force, came crashing down upon the Sunagakure ranks.
Screams and wails instantly filled the battlefield, the thunderous impact of the fists deafening. The overwhelming power of the Thousand-Armed Divine Power crushed everything in its path, annihilating the Sunagakure ninja completely, leaving no trace behind.
This was the very technique that had once defeated Madara Uchiha and the Nine-Tails. Now, reappearing on the battlefield, the outcome was already predetermined.
Amid the chaos, the Second Kazekage, Shamon, lay in a pool of blood, his body twisted and deformed from the colossal impact, clinging to his last breath. He stared vacantly at the figure standing atop the giant Thousand-Armed Kannon statue, his heart churning with endless regret and resentment.
"Senju Hashirama... you liar! Possessing such heaven-defying power, yet you feigned death to deceive everyone!"
His chest full of indignation and unspoken words, he breathed his last, consumed by boundless resentment.
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