A golden light surged forth, an indescribable scorching heat instantly enveloping Asura's spiritual energy.
Even with Asura's spiritual energy, it quickly began to weaken under this special energy.
Asura could clearly feel his consciousness rapidly fading.
He had truly been defeated!
Feeling the darkness gradually enveloping him, the once furious Asura gradually calmed down.
This darkness was all too familiar to Asura, having slept for a millennium.
A cold smile and composed expression reappeared on Asura's face. He had indeed been defeated, but he would never die. After all, he was one with Hashirama Senju himself.
As long as Hashirama Senju lived, how could he die? Even if Hashirama were killed, he would simply be reincarnated.
Yuto! Hashirama Senju!
"I'll remember these names. We will meet again."
A cold smile lingered on Asura's lips as he once again sank into darkness.
As Asura's will completely vanished, the white ceremonial robe bearing the tomoe pattern that had been draped over Hashirama Senju began to dissipate.
Hashirama Senju regained control of his body, but in the next moment, he collapsed to his knees, gasping for breath.
The mental exhaustion was secondary; what Hashirama felt most was that the chakra that had once filled his body was nearly depleted.
The power Asura had used couldn't have materialized from thin air—it had been borrowed from Hashirama Senju's own chakra.
Meanwhile, seeing the state related to Asura vanish from Hashirama Senju, Yuto also breathed a sigh of relief.
Only then did Yuto realize his vision had become completely blurred. Though Hashirama Senju was right before him, he could only see a vaguely human-shaped figure.
In such a short time, having used Kotoamatsukami twice, along with his complete Susanoo and other techniques, the power of Shisui's Mangekyou Sharingan had been completely drained from Yuto.
The cooldown for using Kotoamatsukami once lasted over a decade—no joke.
If not for the extremely abundant chakra within Yuto's body, his eyes might have been destroyed the second time he used Kotoamatsukami.
Drop! Drop!
A large amount of blood continuously flowed from Yuto's shoulder.
Yuto steadied himself slightly and looked forward at Hashirama Senju. Though his vision was blurry, with the powerful sensory abilities in Sage Mode, Yuto could still clearly perceive Hashirama's movements.
At that moment, Hashirama Senju also looked up at Yuto across from him.
When Hashirama saw that Yuto had not only lost an arm but also bore grievous wounds, he couldn't help but freeze.
Aside from teaming up with Madara Uchiha to seal Yuto, Hashirama had never seen Yuto suffer such severe injuries elsewhere.
The two gazed at each other for a moment before Hashirama suddenly spoke:
"It seems that guy is very strong."
"Indeed." Yuto replied calmly after a brief pause.
As Yuto's words fell, the atmosphere around them instantly grew still.
In that instant!
Both of them moved at once!
Hashirama Senju stomped on the ground, raising his fist and hammering it toward Yuto.
The moment Yuto sensed Hashirama's movement, he also raised his fist.
Both were in poor condition, but precisely because of that, both Hashirama and Yuto knew this was the best opportunity to kill the other.
Yuto had originally intended to control Hashirama Senju with Kotoamatsukami, but that had failed now.
Although it appeared Asura had been defeated by Kotoamatsukami's power, Yuto knew Asura likely wasn't dead.
To be precise, using the word "dead" to describe Asura's state might not be appropriate.
As Asura's reincarnation, if Hashirama Senju hadn't died, how could Asura possibly die?
The only thing Yuto didn't quite understand was that at this point in time, Asura's reincarnated vessel should have been Naruto Uzumaki, not Hashirama Senju.
Something must have happened in between!
However, for now, although he couldn't control Hashirama Senju, killing him at this moment wasn't a bad choice either.
The two fists collided rapidly in mid-air without the expected dull impact.
The force in Hashirama's fist was instantly absorbed by Yuto and then bounced back with equal force.
Hashirama's fist trembled slightly, and then his entire body was sent flying backward.
But before Hashirama could land, his previously weakened aura suddenly began to surge.
With Yuto's current injuries, this was absolutely the best opportunity to seal him!
A determined gleam flashed in Hashirama's eyes. Despite his weakened body, a torrential chakra erupted from within him.
Eight Gates Formation: First Gate Open! Second Gate Open! Third Gate Open! Fourth Gate Open! Fifth Gate Open!
Hashirama pushed directly to the fifth gate in one breath, causing a tremendous chakra to once again rise around him.
A terrifying chakra aura surged from Hashirama's body, enveloping him in a pale green energy that was gradually shifting toward a vibrant green.
When Hashirama opened the fifth gate, Yuto reacted.
The calm expression on Yuto's face turned completely grim as he saw Hashirama actually use the Eight Gates.
Damn it!!
Hashirama had actually mastered the Eight Gates—something Yuto had never considered at the beginning!
With Yuto's current injuries, even if Hashirama only opened the seventh gate, Yuto likely wouldn't be able to cope.
As a descendant of Asura, Hashirama Senju, who had completely mastered Sage Mode, possessed traits similar to a Sage's body.
Under such a physique, the power Hashirama wielded with the Eight Gates would be far stronger than Might Guy's, who relied solely on physical training.
In this situation, if he were knocked unconscious or killed by Hashirama, Yuto would be resealed before he could even resurrect.
He absolutely could not let Hashirama reach the seventh gate!
One-Tail Shukaku's Power · Magnet Release!
The chakra within Yuto instantly transformed, and he quickly raised both hands, pressing them against the ground.
With Yuto at the center, large patches of ground rapidly withered into sand and gravel, and a massive torrent of sand surged toward Hashirama Senju.
In an instant, the ground where Hashirama stood had transformed into a sea of sand, his body uncontrollably sinking into it while a large amount of sand quickly buried him beneath.
This was different from ordinary sand; it contained the chakra of a tailed beast and possessed a special magnetic field.
Once someone became trapped in this sand, the special magnetic field would make it extremely difficult to escape.
Of course, this alone wasn't enough!
This sand was merely meant to slow Hashirama's movements!
BOOM!
A giant chakra claw erupted from Yuto's body. At the same time, the chakra within him was rapidly drawn toward the center of the claw.
A visible Tailed Beast Ball quickly condensed on the chakra claw, stopping only when it reached one-third the size of a normal one.
Without hesitation, Yuto manipulated the massive Tailed Beast Ball on the chakra claw and fired it directly toward Hashirama Senju.
At that moment, a tremendous roar came from deep within the sea of sand:
"Sixth Gate Open!"
BOOM!!
A dense green energy erupted from Hashirama's body, bursting through the special magnetic field that had trapped him. The sea of sand was shattered by this green energy.
As Hashirama burst from the sand sea, he saw the Tailed Beast Ball falling toward him from above.
Hashirama quickly extended both hands toward the Tailed Beast Ball, and violent green energy surged, gathering in his palms.
Whoosh!
Two giant palms, completely composed of wood, rapidly grew from Hashirama's palms.
The moment these giant wooden hands appeared, they firmly grasped the Tailed Beast Ball hurtling toward Hashirama.
Hashirama controlled the two giant wooden hands and clenched them with force, actually crushing the Tailed Beast Ball on the spot.
In the next instant, Hashirama's figure rushed toward Yuto.
As Yuto and Hashirama engaged in their second battle:
Within the Akatsuki's base.
"Lord Madara Uchiha, intelligence has just arrived. The White Zetsus assigned to Kirigakure and Konohagakure have all lost contact. They should have been eliminated."
Obito said respectfully to Madara Uchiha beside him.
"Discovered so soon?"
Madara showed no surprise on his face. Those White Zetsus, though hidden quite well, wouldn't be difficult to find if Yuto and Hashirama were truly looking for them.
An intrigued expression appeared on Madara's face as he tapped his fingers lightly.
Since the White Zetsus in Kirigakure and Konohagakure lost contact almost simultaneously, it revealed another interesting situation.
Were those two, Hashirama and Yuto, about to make a move?
Recalling that Yuto had taken a child from Konohagakure not long ago, Madara had already vaguely guessed what Yuto and Hashirama were planning to do.
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