CHAPTER 236: CHAPTER 236: TSUNADE — THE OLD ERA ARE ALL HERE!

"That is..."

On the Konoha side, Tsunade’s sharp eyes immediately recognized the figure stepping forward to confront Uchiha Haru.

Uchiha Madara!

The legendary Uchiha Madara, the formidable man who had stood as a peer to her grandfather, First Hokage Hashirama Senju!

According to legend, Uchiha Madara had perished in the infamous battle at the Valley of the End, defeated by Hashirama Senju.

Yet here he was—resurrected and looking incredibly youthful!

It was truly shocking.

At the same time, Tsunade felt a subtle wave of unease stirring deep within her chest.

If it had been just any strong warrior, she would have been certain that Uchiha Haru would emerge victorious.

But now, facing the real, legendary Uchiha Madara, doubt cast a shadow over her heart.

Before Tsunade could gather her thoughts further, someone next to her gasped.

"That is...!"

A high-ranking Konoha official standing beside Tsunade pointed toward the masked man approaching the battlefield, disbelief etched across his face.

"That’s the First Hokage!"

"The First Hokage?!"

"How could the First Hokage stand with them?"

Though this official might never have seen Hashirama in person, everyone in Konoha had at least glimpsed the grand statue of Hashirama Senju carved into the "Fire Shadow Rock" — a symbol revered across the village.

Upon his outburst, all heads turned toward the masked man.

Sure enough, the shocked expressions on their faces revealed that they recognized the identity of the figure standing beside Orochimaru.

If it wasn’t the First Hokage, the God of Ninja, then who else could it be?

"But it’s not just the First Hokage," murmured another.

"The Second and Third Hokage are with them too..."

"The Mizukage of the Hidden Mist Village is here as well!"

"And there, the Raikage who died not long ago!"

"Oh my god, that must be the Third Raikage—the strongest Raikage in history!"

Voices around them buzzed with awe as they named the warriors who stood among the Impure World Reincarnation army facing them.

It was truly astonishing.

Jiraiya, Tsunade, Kakashi, and the others exchanged grave glances.

Might Guy’s brow furrowed deeply, his body tense and ready.

At this moment, he was fully prepared.

If the battle demanded it, he would strike without hesitation.

Like the blue beast within Konoha that could ignite into a blazing red, he was willing to sacrifice everything—his comrades, his village, even his own life.

Yet despite the daunting enemy before them, their hearts still clung to one source of hope:

Uchiha Haru, who always stood in the front lines.

Even against such formidable foes, they trusted him.

Though it seemed impossible, hadn’t Uchiha Haru defied all odds time and time again?

This time would be no different.

Uchiha Haru’s keen eyes soon settled on Orochimaru, who had joined the battlefield alongside the masked man.

Initially, he was surprised that Orochimaru dared show himself on the front lines, so close to his position.

After all, Orochimaru knew his strength firsthand—and escaping him was no easy task.

Still, what mattered if Orochimaru merely stood by the masked man’s side?

Given any opportunity, Haru could easily seize him.

But the surprise faded quickly as he sensed a tremendous power emanating from Orochimaru’s vicinity.

This force surpassed even the terrifying presence of Pain (Nagato) he had encountered before.

It rivaled the strength of Uchiha Madara himself.

Turning slightly, Haru’s eyes caught sight of Hashirama Senju standing behind the masked man and Orochimaru.

He recalled the night of the Uchiha Clan massacre—when Orochimaru had first employed the Edo Tensei technique to resurrect the First and Second Hokage.

However, that version of Edo Tensei was defective; Hashirama’s reincarnation could not manifest his peak power.

Now, things were different.

Haru could clearly feel the overwhelming energy radiating from Uchiha Madara.

Against such power, even someone like Haru would struggle to gain the upper hand.

No wonder Orochimaru dared to flaunt himself here.

And he watched Haru with a playful, almost mocking gaze.

Indeed, Orochimaru had once been terrified of Uchiha Haru.

His fear had reached a desperate peak.

That humiliation still burned inside him.

Now, he sought to erase all that shame.

That was why he came.

Under the protection of Senju Hashirama, no one in the world could harm him.

Not even Uchiha Haru.

At first, Orochimaru thought that even if Uchiha Haru didn’t show much emotion upon seeing him, he would at least be a little angry. But he was wrong.

There was no anger on Uchiha Haru’s face—only a faint, inexplicable smile that Orochimaru couldn’t decipher.

This made Orochimaru feel unsettled, as if he had fallen into one of Uchiha Haru’s traps again.

Could it be that I’ve fallen into his trap once more?

Orochimaru thought to himself, but quickly pushed the worry aside.

Impossible—absolutely impossible.

He now possessed the complete version of the Edo Tensei technique.

Even the invincible ninja god, Senju Hashirama, was under his control.

Who else could hurt him?

This was his greatest assurance.

As long as he had that, he need not fear anyone in the world.

No one could harm him.

Uchiha Haru was only pretending; he could do nothing to Orochimaru.

But what Orochimaru didn’t know was this:

The reason Uchiha Haru wore that strange smile wasn’t because he was luring Orochimaru into a trap.

Rather, Orochimaru was the one who had dug the pit and jumped into it himself.

Edo Tensei, of course, was an extremely powerful ninjutsu.

It could revive dead shinobi and bind them to the caster’s will, granting them abilities they did not possess in life, sometimes even amplifying their strength.

However, Edo Tensei was not flawless or invincible.

When the reincarnated shinobi were too powerful, uncontrollable dangers arose.

For example, Orochimaru could independently remove the Edo Tensei binding since he knew the technique’s secret.

Take Senju Hashirama, for instance...

Because Hashirama’s power was so immense, how could a mere Edo Tensei technique fully control such a ninja?

Orochimaru had believed he had found the perfect bodyguard.

But he did not realize that this bodyguard might become his death sentence at any moment.

Isn’t that ironic?

At the same time, Senju Hashirama was also intently observing Uchiha Haru, who stood at the forefront, confronting Uchiha Madara and the entire Edo Tensei army led by the masked man, relying on his own strength.

His expression remained calm as ever, but inside, Hashirama was amazed.

Such a shinobi, such composure—especially at his age—was something even Hashirama himself, once called the God of Shinobi, had never possessed.

What surprised Hashirama even more was that Uchiha Haru didn’t radiate the ominous aura of Uchiha Madara.

This was extremely rare.

Especially considering the Uchiha clan’s Sharingan evolution.

Every step forward in the Sharingan’s growth demanded great hatred, a sacrifice that filled the user’s heart with darkness.

Originally, Uchiha Madara was a kind, peace-loving ninja like Hashirama.

But as his Sharingan evolved, his power increased, as did the hatred consuming his heart—until he changed drastically into the feared Madara.

Yet Hashirama felt none of that overwhelming hatred from Uchiha Haru.

Though Uchiha Haru possessed the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan like Madara, he lacked the abyssal hatred that usually accompanied it.

This was profoundly strange.

Hashirama found himself increasingly curious about Uchiha Haru.

At the same time, Hashirama quickly noticed his granddaughter, Tsunade, standing on the side with the ninja coalition.

When Hashirama had died, Tsunade was just a little girl.

But now she had grown—no, she looked so young and beautiful.

This growth startled Hashirama.

By "grown," he didn’t mean in stature or feature, but in age.

He had been dead for three or four decades.

Logically, Tsunade should be at least forty or fifty years old by now.

Yet she still appeared so youthful and radiant.

Had she used some sort of ninjutsu?

He stared at Tsunade’s face carefully and soon detected something unusual.

A massive concentration of chakra pulsed at the center of her chest.

Perhaps this was why his granddaughter remained so young and beautiful.

Within the Edo Tensei army, the reincarnated shinobi gazed upon the shinobi from Konoha and the Hidden Mist Village.

Although their bodies were bound by the Reanimation Technique and compelled to act under the caster’s orders, their minds remained free.

They recognized that they were being sent to attack their original villages and comrades, and this caused deep reluctance in their hearts.

But they had no ability to break free from Edo Tensei’s control.

All they could hope was that the younger generations and their comrades would quickly seal them again, to prevent irreversible damage to everything they had once fought to protect—even at the cost of their own lives.

The two sides stood facing each other, suddenly entering a brief stalemate.

Neither side made a move or shouted.

They only stared.

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