Chapter 4: Fierce Battle
Masahiko talked for a good while, only to find that Madara, across from him, maintained that same "arrogant protagonist face" the entire time. Even with his own thick, weathered skin, he found it a bit hard to bear.
"Tobirama, I'll take Uchiha Madara! You all handle the others! I'm going to show this little brat the gap in real combat experience! (I'll imitate Granny Chiyo for a sec, I feel so cool...)"
"Great-Uncle, you..." Tobirama was just about to stop him, but he saw Masahiko, already holding a shuriken in each hand, charging toward Madara. Helpless, he could only say to the Senju elites behind him, "Stop the others! I'm going in to support him!"
"Watch my Shuriken! Watch my Shuriken Clone Jutsu! Watch my Shuriken Transformation Jutsu!" Masahiko shouted three times. The two shuriken in his hands multiplied into dozens of giant Fuma Shuriken, whistling as they flew toward the faces of the seven Uchiha.
"What the hell kind of jutsu is this?! Everyone, dodge! Body Flicker!" Izuna shouted.
The others quickly scattered. Only Madara remained where he was, merely tilting his body slightly to dodge the majority of the shuriken. He casually caught one in his hand, his expression disdainful. "This is the 'gap in combat experience' you were talking about?"
But Masahiko just smiled. "I knew you'd try to act tough! Shuriken Substitution Jutsu!"
In an instant, Masahiko and the shuriken in Madara's hand swapped places. Masahiko flew into the air and landed a kick squarely on Madara's chest. Madara was sent into freefall, flying back dozens of meters. Dust plumed up, making it impossible to see his condition.
"Big brother! Damn you, old man...!" Izuna yelled, charging at Masahiko. He was intercepted by Tobirama, and the two began to fight. The rest of the Senju clan members surrounded the remaining five Uchiha. The three Peak Jonin led the attack while the others assisted, pressing the Uchiha into a desperate situation.
"Damn it!" The smoke cleared, revealing Uchiha Madara. Aside from being covered in dust and having a trace of blood at the corner of his mouth, he wasn't seriously injured. But his 'Lord Madara' pride had just been thoroughly shattered. He had been sent flying by an old man in their very first exchange.
He flew into a rage from the humiliation, immediately using the Uchiha clan's ultimate fire-style jutsu: "Fire Release: Dragon Flame Release Song Technique!"
"Earth Release: Hiding Like a Mole Jutsu!" Facing Madara's fire jutsu, Masahiko chose to escape underground. After the flames passed, he drilled back out.
"See? There is a gap in combat experience. You should have used the Great Dragon Fire Technique just now, not the enhanced Dragon Flame Song. That one is for multiple enemies. Look at how much chakra you just wasted." As Masahiko spoke, he shook his head lightly, as if pitying Madara's lack of experience.
"Less nonsense!" Madara was completely "detonated." The three tomoe in his eyes spun, slowly changing into a pinwheel pattern. "Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"
Madara spat out a ridiculously large fireball. Even from dozens of meters away, Masahiko could feel the heat, as if it would roast the very air dry.
'Just as I thought. One of Madara's Mangekyo abilities is to amplify the power of his jutsu. The Naruto fans online didn't lie to me,' Masahiko thought. His own hands, however, didn't slow down. "Wind Release: Vacuum Wave!" He perfectly sliced a wide-enough passage through the middle of Madara's Great Fireball.
'Good thing I also have Wind Release. That level of fire jutsu would have instantly blasted through my Earth-Style Wall... As expected, facing Madara now is still too much for me,' Masahiko thought grimly.
He didn't form any more seals. Instead, he activated his "Mouth Jutsu."
"Madara, are you sure you want to keep fighting? The men you brought with you are about to be finished."
Madara glanced around. Sure enough, Izuna was hopelessly entangled with Tobirama, and it was hard to tell who had the upper hand. But his other five men were in a terrible situation, all of them injured, and they clearly couldn't last much longer. This old guy in front of him wasn't someone he could finish in one or two moves, either. And inside the palanquin, there was still an Uzumaki princess of unknown depth... he'd heard she was also a genius...
"Izuna, take them and retreat! I'll cover you!" Madara shouted.
Izuna hesitated for a moment, then flew through hand seals. "Fire Release: Great Fire Destruction!" He used the jutsu to create distance from Tobirama and simultaneously provide an opening for his five besieged clansmen to escape. Once the group assembled, they immediately fled into the deep forest.
Tobirama was about to give chase, but Madara appeared in front of him with a Body Flicker.
"You're too arrogant, Madara. Do you think you can stop all of us alone? Even my big brother couldn't do that! Today is a good day to leave you here!" Tobirama declared.
"Leave me here? I originally prepared this next move as a surprise for Hashirama. I'll let you have a look at it first. Susanoo!" As Madara spoke, two lines of blood trickled from his eyes. A skeletal, light-blue aura enveloped him.
Ten minutes later, Masahiko was half-supporting Tobirama, watching helplessly as Madara sped away into the distance. As someone whose only real specialties were the Academy Three and shuriken, he had absolutely no way to deal with an absolute-defense jutsu like that.
Among their group, only Tobirama and the three Peak Jonin had been able to inflict any minor damage on Madara. But now, those three were lying on the ground, and Tobirama looked like his body had been completely drained. Everyone else was injured. Even though they knew Madara was just a spent force, they had no way to pursue him.
Tobirama caught his breath, pushed away from Masahiko, and went to check on the three men on the ground. He let out a sigh of relief. They were only unconscious from the impact and had no serious injuries.
"I can't believe Madara has gotten this much stronger in just two months. Good thing he had Izuna and the others retreat first. Otherwise, a few of us might have been left here for good," Tobirama sighed.
"Yeah, we were definitely lucky. If Uchiha Izuna was still here, our bride Mito might have had to get involved herself. Then I'd really have no face to go back and see my big nephew," Masahiko replied. But, knowing the original story, he was thinking something else: 'Madara probably really did just intend to congratulate Hashirama on his wedding this time. So why did we end up in such a big fight?'
If Masahiko knew that Madara had decided to attack purely because of his "Mouth Jutsu," it's unknown whether his old face would have turned red.
At this moment, Mito stepped out of the palanquin. "My sincere apologies. It was inconvenient for me to act just now. Please, let the three unconscious seniors rest in the palanquin. We must hurry on. If we are attacked again, I fear it will be difficult to handle in our current state."
"This..." Tobirama thought for a moment, but ultimately did not refuse. "Everyone, pull yourselves together! We're moving out as soon as possible!"
And so, the bride, Mito, ran alongside the team, while three grown men lay inside her palanquin. Thinking about this, Masahiko actually chuckled. If Hashirama saw that the bride he was about to marry had turned into three big uncles... that image was just too beautiful...
Tobirama looked at Masahiko, but couldn't hold back his question. "Great-Uncle, the 'Shuriken Substitution Jutsu' you used earlier... its concept is very similar to a jutsu I'm currently developing. Could you... teach it to me, for reference?"
'The Flying Thunder God?' Masahiko thought. "No problem. But you have to promise me one thing."
"No problem! What is it?"
"At your big brother's wedding, I need you to..."
"This..."