"Huff…" Kaze let out a tense breath upon hearing those words.
He hadn't expected the final showdown to arrive so suddenly.
"Ding! Don't panic, Master. Here's a multiple-choice question to settle your nerves!"
The System's voice rang in his ears. Kaze gathered himself and focused on the glowing interface before him.
[Option 1: Convince Madara Uchiha using Fiery Persuasion Jutsu to willingly hand over the Rinnegan. Reward: Hiruzen Sarutobi Experience Card x1.]
[Option 2: Real men fight first—charge straight in and defeat Madara Uchiha to seize the Rinnegan! Reward: Senju Tobirama Experience Card x1.]
[Option 3: Fate decides life and death; fortune lies in Heaven's hands. Simply lie flat and await your fate. Reward: Shikamaru Nara Experience Card x1.]
[Note: Your selected reward will be issued immediately after you make a choice.]
"Convince Madara with talk?" Kaze smirked inwardly.
That kind of thing was for protagonists. As an anti-hero, naturally he had no interest in such nonsense.
If you could kill an enemy, why leave them alive? Were they expecting him to wait until next year?
And that reward—pathetic! Wasn't it just weakening him?
As for Option 3, Kaze didn't even hesitate. He immediately thought to the System, *"System, I choose Option 2."*
[Ding! Congratulations, Master! You have obtained: Senju Tobirama Experience Card x1!]
Meanwhile, Monkey and Guy were discussing battle strategies.
After all, aside from hotheads like Naruto and Guy, no ninja rushed blindly into a fight.
Especially when the opponent was Madara Uchiha—extra caution was essential.
After listening for a bit, Kaze suddenly spoke up.
"Father, if I'm not mistaken, beneath the bandages wrapped around your right face... there should be a Rinnegan."
Rinnegan?
Kaze's words brought their conversation to an abrupt halt.
"Tanzō, is what Little Kaze saying true?"
Under the suspicious gazes of the previous three Hokage, Tanzō secretly cursed the rebellious brat under his breath and wanted to crush him on the spot.
"...Yes."
With no choice, Tanzō reluctantly answered. He slowly peeled the bandages away from his face.
In his right eye socket rested a purple eyeball, radiating a quiet, mysterious glow.
"Well damn, so it really is!"
Kaze's face hardened with anger as he pointed straight at Tanzō's face.
"Father, once everything settles down, you'll need to explain this to me."
Based on the options the System had provided earlier, Kaze had already figured out what was going on.
Even so, Tanzō's actions still annoyed him deeply.
"Hmph, naturally," Tanzō scoffed coldly, instantly shooting back at Kaze.
"If my guess is correct, you must secretly possess a pair of Mangekyō Sharingan, right?"
You wanna expose your father's secrets?
How 'bout I rip your pants clean off?
"You guessed wrong, Father," Kaze shook his head calmly without batting an eyelid.
"As everyone knows, only the Uchiha clan can truly control the Rinnegan—not to mention the legendary Mangekyō Sharingan."
"You're out of your mind!" Kaze paused, then replied respectfully.
Tanzō: "..."
"All right, Tanzō, stop acting like a child having a tantrum. Let's get back to discussing our strategy."
Tobirama gave Danzō a sidelong glance and issued a calm command.
"Yes, Master," Danzō replied with a reluctant nod.
"..."
Just as things seemed to slow down, the four of them—seasoned tacticians—quickly formulated a rough battle plan within just a few minutes after spotting Madara Uchiha.
At the same time, Madara's terrifying aura slowly drew closer, continuously radiating overwhelming pressure. It seemed he intentionally used this method to plunge Konoha into panic—or maybe he was simply enjoying the thrill of showing off.
"Prepare for battle! We must not allow war to break out inside the village!" Tobirama naturally took up the role of leader and began giving orders.
Hashirama: "..."
Kaze closed his eyes briefly to sense the surroundings before opening them again and saying, "I can teleport all of us directly to where Madara is right now."
Being the ultimate Stealth Master, he had placed multiple teleportation markers outside the village.
...
Outside Konoha Village, roughly several miles away.
Madara released waves of powerful chakra as he slowly advanced toward Konoha.
His reason for slowing down and announcing his arrival was surprisingly simple.
It wasn't to show off, nor was it some psychological warfare.
Konoha was the home he had built together with Hashirama—a place filled with many beautiful memories.
He didn't want to be the one to destroy it.
Hmph!
A faint sound came from behind him.
Madara stopped calmly, turned around, and muttered in displeasure.
"Konoha sends just an unknown nobody to face me? How arrogant!"
Unknown nobody?
Kaze felt deeply insulted. "Who are you calling an unknown nobody?"
He raised the kunai in his hand and sneered, "If I throw this kunai at you, you might die!"
As he spoke, Kaze glanced sideways at Madara's face.
Sure enough, just as he suspected, Madara's eyes were one red and one purple.
"Oh?"
Madara sized Kaze up and smirked mockingly.
"You don't seem like a madman... So you must be confident in your strength?"
"Good. Let me crush that confidence of yours and show you that a mere speck of dust like you..."
"Enough talk!" Kaze not only interrupted the king of arrogance mid-speech but even stole his lines.
"Evil by nature, Madara Uchiha—do you really think you can strut around here?!"
Madara Uchiha: ????
Madara's face darkened.
He'd lived sixty-nine years and never encountered such a dishonorable young punk who dared to ruin his dramatic entrance.
"Very well, brat. You've truly angered me, Madara Uchiha..."
"Tsk!" Fed up, Kaze pressed the attack without hesitation, cutting short Madara's villainous monologue.
"Show yourself, big shot!"
With great force, Kaze hurled the [Flying Thunder God Kunai]. In an instant, the Four Hokage made a dazzling entrance.
("Huh?!") What the hell?!
As Madara looked on in shock, the four of them landed at four different corners, forming hand seals simultaneously and shouting together,
[Four Bottles of Wanglaoji!]
A barrier composed of crimson flames abruptly expanded, taking the form of an inverted transparent rectangular prism that instantly enclosed the six individuals within.
[Four Red Yang Formation]—an advanced Barrier Ninjutsu technique requiring four Kage-level powerhouses to activate simultaneously! It was strong enough to withstand even the Ten-Tails' Tailed Beast Ball!
Inside the barrier, Madara didn't react at first. He simply stood still, staring blankly at that familiar figure.
"Hashirama..." *he murmured, voice laced with disbelief.*
"Madara..." *Hashirama replied, equally stunned.*
"Evil by nature..." *Madara whispered bitterly.*
"Hashirama!" *he called out, his voice rising in frustration.*
"Madara!" *Hashirama shot back, tension crackling between them.*
Damn it all!
Tobirama immediately cursed out loud, clearly displeased that his Aniki had ignored him and seemed to side with the enemy.
He wasn't the only one annoyed—Kaze felt the same.
What the heck are you two stalling for? Start fighting already! I've got a mission to finish, damn it!
[System, activate the Senju Tobirama Experience Card!]
Kaze silently commanded, unsheathed his long sword, and lunged directly at Madara Uchiha.
"No more talk—here's my move!"
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