Chapter 203

He would directly withdraw from this competition,

and give this position to Hashirama Senju!!

He had no interest whatsoever in such political matters,

he cared only about how to grow stronger himself!!

His own younger brother, Madara Uchiha, had survived countless brutal struggles,

and he was already deeply content.

None of his other siblings had been taken from him by war again,

Madara Uchiha had no regrets left.

So all his focus was on how to make himself even stronger,

aside from cultivation,

he had no interest in anything else!!

And if he became the ruler of the Land of Fire,

there would surely be countless tedious duties interrupting his cultivation,

Madara Uchiha did not want this at all!!

And behind them, the people of the Senju clan and the Uchiha clan,

their faces brimmed with excitement!!!

Although Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha had previously sparred,

they had never before displayed their full battle prowess before the public.

So the members of both clans had long been curious,

which of them—Hashirama Senju or Madara Uchiha—was stronger?

Who would ultimately prevail?!

……

Inside the Valley of the End,

watching a world where development had diverged entirely from their own,

Hashirama Senju became lost in doubt.

"Madara… did I make a mistake?"

"But our goals were meant to be the same…"

The events unfolding in the other world were precisely the scene Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha had both dreamed of.

Madara Uchiha had not lost Uchiha Izuna,

he had not been utterly corrupted,

and the Senju and Uchiha clans had resolved their mutual hatred,

becoming as close as brothers,

together striving for world peace,

and a brighter future for the Land of Fire!!

Gazing at this beautiful, dreamlike scene,

Madara Uchiha remained silent for a long time before speaking.

"Hashirama… you did nothing wrong."

"You simply are not the same kind of person as him."

"You… you are just too kind."

He had intended to describe Hashirama Senju as naive,

but Madara Uchiha could not bring himself to say such a thing to his friend!!

They were fundamentally different from the core,

this Hashirama in his world believed in love and peace within the human heart,

so he placed his hope in others.

The Hashirama in the other world trusted only what he held in his own hands,

so he placed his hope in himself!!

Their differing thoughts led to different actions,

and thus to entirely divergent paths for the two worlds!!

Thinking of this,

Madara Uchiha cast one more deep look at Hashirama Senju.

But it was not too late,

he still had a chance to save this world,

to undo the mistakes they had made!!!

……

"You say—who among them, Clan Chief Hashirama or Clan Chief Madara, is truly stronger?"

"Hmph! Obviously! Though Madara Uchiha is powerful, how could he possibly match our Clan Chief Hashirama?"

"Clan Chief Hashirama is the one who awakened Wood Release—you've never seen him fight at full power, but I've seen the giant Buddha he summoned!!"

The heated discussions within the Senju clan,

they were all debating whether Madara Uchiha or Hashirama Senju was stronger!!

After all, over the years neither of them had ever suffered a defeat in battle,

No matter the enemy, they could both finish them off in an instant.

Within the Senju clan and the Uchiha clan,

the two of them were synonyms for invincibility!!

And now these two invincible forces had collided,

the mere thought of it was enough to make one's blood boil with excitement!!

"Hah! You Senju clan fellows really have some nerve."

"I admit Clan Leader Hashirama's Wood Release is indeed fearsome, but Lord Madara has awakened the legendary Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan, which can summon a Complete Body Susanoo!!"

"None of you have ever seen Susanoo's power, have you? With a single casual slash, it can split a great mountain clean in half!!!"

When it came to the Susanoo Uchiha Madara had unleashed that day,

fear still lingered in this Uchiha clansman's eyes!!!

It was a power that could only be described as godlike.

The people of the Senju clan and the Uchiha clan immediately began to talk among themselves,

each firmly convinced that their own clan leader was the strongest,

and that he would surely claim the final victory!!!

【Jiraiya: Unbelievable — the people of the Senju clan and the Uchiha clan can actually sit together so peacefully…】

【Orochimaru: Seeing them get along so well, I'm actually rather curious about one thing — if a Senju and an Uchiha were to marry, would their child be born with both Wood Release and the Sharingan?】

【Tsunade: Even though Grandfather said the Senju and the Uchiha should live in harmony, I've never once seen our clan's elders have any close dealings with the Uchiha. A scene like this is absolutely impossible…】

【Tobirama Senju: Hmph! You see these Uchiha people for yourself — their personalities are so extreme, who could possibly get along with them?】

【Shimura Danzo: Heh heh… this must just be the First's stalling tactic. Once the Land of Fire is fully stabilized, he'll probably move against the Uchiha.】

……

Senju Butsuma and Uchiha Tajima were both very curious as well —

which of their two sons was actually stronger?

Within the two great clans,

aside from the two of them themselves,

only Tobirama Senju and Uchiha Izuna knew the outcome of every one of their battles,

but those two kept their lips far too tightly sealed,

never letting slip even the slightest hint!!

"Madara! Let's settle this in a single strike!"

"Each of us will use our strongest move!"

"Otherwise they probably won't be able to withstand the shockwaves of our fight!!"