"Hanekawa, have you really thought this through?"
Samui's voice was steady, but her eyes betrayed concern.
"Samui, there's no point discussing this further," one of the Two-Tails jinchuriki snapped, her tone dripping with contempt. "He's no longer worthy of being a Cloud ninja."
Hanekawa untied the Yin Seal without hesitation.
The diamond-shaped mark on his forehead shimmered, and a surge of dark red chakra erupted outward, forming intricate petal patterns across his skin. But he didn't activate the Strength of a Hundred—not yet. He only needed the seal's reservoir to fuel what came next.
Time to show them why I didn't want to go back, he thought.
"You've had your chances," the Fourth Raikage said, shaking his head. His disappointment was genuine. Hanekawa's talent had been remarkable—the kind that could reshape a village's future. But talent meant nothing if the vessel refused to be filled.
The sky suddenly split with the sound of breaking wind.
Four figures descended like meteors: Sakumo Hatake, Shisui Uchiha, Asuma Sarutobi, and Shizune.
The Two-Tails jinchuriki's expression darkened immediately. "So this is what you're relying on?"
Her tone was venomous. Sakumo and Shisui had nearly killed her once before. She'd never forgotten that humiliation.
"Four more bodies," the Fourth Raikage said coolly. His confidence remained unshaken. Numbers were on his side—three thousand Cloud ninja surrounded them. Quantity could overcome quality, given time.
He'd deal with Hanekawa first. The others weren't worth his attention.
Lightning Style Chakra Mode!
Brilliant blue lightning erupted across the Raikage's body, wrapping around him like armor. His muscles swelled, his speed increased, his power multiplied. The air itself seemed to scream.
"I promised to show you Konoha's unique jutsu," Hanekawa said, his smile widening as he surveyed the three thousand Cloud ninja now encircling them.
The positioning was perfect. Exactly what he needed.
Time for a lesson in large-scale ninjutsu.
"Insanity," the Two-Tails jinchuriki spat, her arrogance undiminished. "I've seen every jutsu Konoha has to offer. Nothing special."
Even Tsunade's allies exchanged confused glances. What technique could possibly turn this tide?
Shisui's eyes narrowed. He remembered their sparring session—when Hanekawa had mentioned a bloodline limit he hadn't yet revealed.
Hanekawa's hands moved through the seals with practiced precision. His fingers interlocked, and he clapped them together with finality.
"Wood Style: Tree World Creation!"
The earth convulsed.
Cracks spider-webbed across the ground as massive tree trunks erupted from beneath, growing at impossible speed. Branches twisted and coiled like serpents, vines lashed upward like whips, and within seconds, an entire forest had materialized—ancient, dense, and alive with terrible purpose.
"Careful!" the Fourth Raikage roared, already moving.
But he was too slow. Branches came alive around him, striking from every direction, forcing him to retreat in a flurry of lightning-fast blocks.
"Wood Style?!"
The shock in his voice was unmistakable.
"How is this possible?" Killer Bee's shout echoed across the battlefield.
Everyone knew what Wood Style meant. It was the bloodline limit of Hashirama Senju—the God of Shinobi himself. The technique that had shaped the ninja world.
Samui took an involuntary step back. He can use Wood Style? Could he be Senju clan?
That would explain everything.
Mabui's jaw clenched. Her carefully calculated strategy—three thousand ninja, two jinchuriki, perfect positioning—had just become obsolete. She'd anticipated many scenarios, but not this.
"Wood Style!"
"We're saved!"
"Lord Hanekawa can use Wood Style! There's no way he's a Cloud spy!"
Konoha's ninja erupted in cheers, their despair transforming into hope in an instant.
Shisui stood motionless, processing. He'd expected something powerful, but not this. Not the legendary technique of the Senju clan. He thought of Madara Uchiha, defeated by Hashirama's Wood Style. He thought of fate, of cycles, of the Uchiha clan's ancient rivalry with the Senju.
If Fugaku saw this...
The hardliners in the clan might finally abandon their rebellious dreams.
Asuma was simply stunned. Wood Style? That's... that's impossible.
Hizashi Hyuga's eyes widened with calculation. Every child Hiashi has will be trained by a Wood Style master. The Hyuga clan just won the lottery.
The other Konoha ninja watched in awe as Cloud ninja fell by the dozens, crushed beneath branches or impaled by wooden spikes. The forest was a meat grinder, and they were caught inside it.
Tsunade wanted to laugh out loud. This is my student. The Senju clan's Wood Style lives again.
"This ends now!" the Fourth Raikage roared, his eyes blazing red. "Yugito, clear a path!"
The problem was simple: the Cloud ninja had expected a direct confrontation. Instead, they'd been herded into a forest that moved against them. Chuunin and genin fell like wheat before a scythe. Even the jonin struggled.
One mistake. One moment of underestimation. And the entire battle had shifted.
The Fourth Raikage watched corpses pile up among the trees and felt something he rarely experienced: the cold touch of defeat.
"Roar!"
The Two-Tails jinchuriki's scream split the sky.
She'd seen enough. The transformation began—bones cracking, flesh rippling, chakra exploding outward. A massive cat materialized, easily the size of a mountain, its body wreathed in blue flames that burned like hellfire.
"Get out of my way!" she snarled, her voice now a bestial growl.
She opened her maw and unleashed a fireball that dwarfed buildings.
Hanekawa's mind moved, and the forest responded. Branches wove together, forming a wooden shield that caught the inferno head-on.
The impact sent shockwaves across the entire battlefield. Both Konoha and Cloud ninja were forced to retreat.
The wooden shield charred and cracked, but it held.
"As expected of Wood Style," Sakumo murmured, impressed despite himself.
"Fire should counter wood," Asuma noted, "but clearly not at this scale."
Shisui nodded silently. If Fire Style could truly suppress Wood Style, Madara would never have lost to Hashirama.
The Two-Tails opened her mouth again.
Hanekawa was already moving. He leaped onto the scorched shield and formed new seals.
"Water Style: Water Dragon Bullet!"
A vortex of water spiraled into existence before transforming into a dragon that rose to meet the fireball. Water and fire collided in a catastrophic explosion of steam.
The Two-Tails snarled in frustration. Blocked. Again.
"Damn it!" she roared.
"Help her!" the Fourth Raikage commanded, launching himself forward.
Tsunade materialized in his path, her fist already swinging. The Raikage barely managed to block, skidding backward from the force.
Killer Bee made his decision. No more hesitation.
The transformation was violent and complete. An eight-tailed beast materialized—a creature of impossible size and power, its body a fusion of ox and octopus, its tails capable of leveling mountains.
The Eight-Tails didn't attack Konoha's ninja. Instead, its eight tails lashed out at the forest itself, smashing through trunks and vines with devastating force.
"Stop him!" Hizashi shouted.
But Shisui was already moving, faster than anyone expected.
His eyes blazed crimson, then transformed into something far more terrible—the Mangekyō Sharingan, its pattern spinning with lethal intent.
No more hiding, he decided. Not when the stakes are this high.
Susanoo erupted into existence.
A skeletal warrior of impossible size materialized around Shisui, its form wreathed in ethereal energy. It clenched its fists and drove them toward the Eight-Tails with the force of a meteor strike.
The slug joined the assault, adding its considerable strength.
The Eight-Tails was hit directly—a combination it had never anticipated.
Its massive body crashed backward, hitting the ground with an impact that shook the earth itself.
Silence fell across the battlefield.
"What... what is that?" the Fourth Raikage whispered, staring at the skeletal warrior that radiated pure malice.
Everything had spiraled beyond his control. First the Wood Style. Now this—a power that rivaled the tailed beasts themselves.
The numerical advantage meant nothing anymore.
Tsunade's eyes widened slightly. Mangekyō Sharingan. Susanoo.
She recognized it immediately. As Hashirama's granddaughter, she'd grown up hearing stories of the Uchiha clan from her grandfather and great-grandfather. Shisui's power was remarkable for his age—but more importantly, it confirmed what she'd suspected.
Hanekawa had planned this carefully. He'd brought Sakumo and Shisui for a reason.
"Destroy the forest!" the Fourth Raikage commanded, desperation creeping into his voice.
But his two strongest assets were pinned down. The Eight-Tails was recovering from Susanoo's strike. The Two-Tails was about to make another attempt.
She leaped skyward, her claws extended like blades, aiming directly at Hanekawa.
He didn't hesitate.
"Water Style: Water Dragon Bullet Technique!"
The water dragon that materialized was enormous—ten times larger than before, fed by the Yin Seal's reserves and amplified by his Water Style mastery. Even without rain, his power was overwhelming.
The Two-Tails' claw met the dragon's body and was shredded instantly.
She fell, crashing to the ground hard enough to crack stone.
"Roar!" she screamed, pain and fury intertwined.
But she didn't charge again. Not immediately.
The problem was obvious: the Tailed Beast Bomb would solve everything, but its range was too wide. It would kill her own ninja trapped in the forest.
She needed to drive Hanekawa back first. Create distance. Create an opening.
Then she felt it—a damp, sickly smell in the air.
Hanekawa drew the Thunder and Fire Sword, and dark clouds gathered overhead. Rain began to fall.
His "Rain God" entry activated automatically.
The Two-Tails' mind raced. If I can push him back far enough, I can use the Tailed Beast Bomb.
She charged without hesitation, her massive form moving with surprising speed for something so large. The ground cracked and splintered beneath her weight, forming deep gouges in the earth.
The sound of breaking wind announced her approach.
Hanekawa stood motionless on the wooden shield, watching her come, his expression calm.
Let's see how you handle this.