After Senju Hashirama's death, things didn't go so well.
Having the Second Hokage guard the Senju Clan was far from ideal.
Tobirama was strong—with mastery over the Flying Thunder God Technique and countless forbidden jutsus. But even with him alive, the other ninja villages refused to accept Konoha's dominance. They even dared to launch the First Great Ninja War.
Fate is fate.
Yet thanks to Mito's presence, very few truly dared sever ties with Konoha.
Even at the start of the Second Great Ninja War, this remained true. Mito spent her remaining years silently protecting both the Senju Clan and Konoha.
She never once complained.
Out of pure rationality, Senju Yukika felt that the Senju Clan owed Mito a great debt.
Even aside from that, during the times Yukika went to war, if not for Mito, he wouldn't have dared so boldly to defy the higher-ups, to oppose the Third Hokage, and to resist Danzo.
He had always been under the protection and heartfelt love of this woman.
Yukika understood it all.
Thus, he didn't just want to offer an explanation to Uzumaki Mito from a clan leader's standpoint. He genuinely wanted to repay her with his own strength.
The best way to do that was to ease the burden in Mito's heart, to let her feel worthy of the ancestors of the Uzumaki Clan.
Yukika often said: people must not forget their roots.
And he taught Sarutobi Hiruzen the same lesson.
Hold to your true heart and act freely—this was Yukika's basic principle.
Carrying Mito, Yukika soared into the skies above the Land of Water.
He was moved by the endless expanse of ocean beneath them.
It was well known that performing Water Release techniques where water was abundant resulted in terrifying amplification.
Yukika had inherited Tobirama's talent for Water Release—this was confirmed when he launched a surprise assault on the Rain Village's defenses.
He was very skilled in Water Release, yet he rarely used it.
It wasn't that he didn't want to—it was just impractical.
In Yukika's usual fighting style, there were few direct assaults. Mostly, it was monotony or sneak attacks.
You couldn't blame him.
Small-scale ninjutsu couldn't compare to his swordsmanship, and large-scale attacks would easily expose him.
At that time, with his limited strength, he had to maximize his benefits.
But now?
Now, he had power enough to dominate the ninja world.
Before Madara regained his youth or Nagato fully awakened the Rinnegan, there was virtually no one who could face him head-on.
At last, large-scale ninjutsu could shine.
Water Release could even achieve "map-wide" destruction.
In the original story, Kisame fused with Samehada and created a vast sea—why couldn't he do the same?
It was time for the Senju Clan's Water Release to shake the ninja world once again!
Yukika smiled slightly, gazing at the mist-shrouded village in the distance. He wrapped Uzumaki Mito protectively in his wings, then turned to her.
"Grandmother Mito, have you ever seen golden mountains atop the water?"
Flooded Golden Mountains?
Mito shook her head in confusion.
No wonder Yukika shrugged.
After all, the legend of the Golden Mountain Temple being flooded came from ancient myths where Lady White Snake, in a fit of rage, submerged the temple.
"Flooding Kirigakure... should look something like that."
Cradling Mito, Yukika took a deep breath and pressed his palms together.
Hand seals?
Completely unnecessary.
"Water Release: Who's going to fix the dam?!"
The fluent—yet somehow utterly improper—pronunciation made Mito's head ache.
When had Water Release ever been used like this?
What shocked Mito even more was that Yukika didn't even bother to sense chakra properly—he simply unleashed a tremendous surge of Water Release with a slap of his palms!
"Water Release: Who's going to fix the dam!"
"Water Release: Who's going to fix the dam!"
"..."
Was he disgusted with himself for having too much chakra?
Mito fell into deep thought.
Indeed, the Senju Clan had monstrous chakra reserves, and Yukika was their leader, blessed by heaven.
But Mito was puzzled: just a month ago, when Yukika used Wood Release, she had felt an aura from him—one that resembled her late husband, Senju Hashirama.
Not just Hashirama's aura, but also a strange temperature and an alarming increase in chakra volume.
She hadn't asked Yukika about it—everyone had their secrets.
But it wasn't a bad thing.
If anything, it was clear: Yukika's chakra reserves probably surpassed even Senju Hashirama's now.
After all, he was also the Nine-Tails' Jinchuriki.
No matter how she looked at it, it felt like Yukika had even inherited her own Uzumaki constitution.
In other words, he carried the full bloodline of the Senju Clan.
"Water Release: Who's going to fix the dam!"
"..."
As Yukika repeatedly unleashed massive surges of water, Mito finally realized what he intended.
Flood the Golden Mountain—no, flood Kirigakure!
The monstrous waves transformed into terrifying tsunamis, surging toward Kirigakure!
To most, this was unimaginable.
After all, Kirigakure was surrounded by mountains and protected by natural terrain and prevailing winds. Even if a tsunami occurred, the mountains would block it.
But that was an ordinary tsunami.
As countless streams merged, and with Yukika relentlessly pouring chakra, Mito finally saw: the incoming wave towered higher than the mountains themselves!
How much chakra did he have?!
Mito peered harder at the sea below—it was unnerving.
Even if Tobirama himself were reborn, his Water Release couldn't reach this magnitude.
If he could, Tobirama would have used it against Kirigakure back then.
Only Yukika—
He was something else entirely.
"Water Release: Who's going to fix the dam!"
Hundreds of torrents exploded at once. Yukika's chakra was so vast that he finally gasped for breath.
A bead of sweat trickled down his forehead.
But a warm handkerchief gently wiped it away.
"Thank you."
Sometimes, just those two words were enough.
Yukika grinned, finally pausing his mad "dam repair," and gazed below.
Good friends.
He hadn't paid attention earlier, but now, seeing countless torrents merge was breathtaking.
It was his first time witnessing a thousand-meter-high tidal wave.
The raging sea resembled a giant dragon, poised to devour everything.
Nature's power was terrifying.
Even Yukika felt that this scale had surpassed ordinary ninjutsu.
This...
Was a natural disaster.
And it was coming.