Chapter 316

He had long ago asked Orochimaru to help him restore his left arm.

His strength surely wouldn't have declined this fast!!

But even if he regained both hands, it wouldn't make any difference,

during his battle with Hashirama Senju,

he could only endure blows without retaliation,

he hadn't expected,

that after Hashirama Senju unleashed his full power, he would be so ferocious and terrifying!!

he simply couldn't keep up with his movements,

not even getting a chance to strike back,

the only thing he could do was clutch his head,

to prevent Hashirama Senju from landing a single punch that would utterly destroy his combat ability!!

Future Sasuke had never imagined,

that his training with Hashirama Senju

would turn into nothing but him taking punishment alone!!

143. Naruto Uzumaki wants to become a disciple? You lack the talent!

Future Sasuke, panting, stared at Hashirama Senju.

His self-confidence had been severely shaken!!

He never could have imagined,

that the gap between himself and Hashirama Senju was this enormous!!

Although he had long known he was no match for Hashirama Senju,

and had even estimated roughly how the battle with Hashirama Senju would go!!

but when he realized he truly had no means to fight back,

his heart filled with intense resentment!!

Since he obtained the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan from Itachi Uchiha,

along the way,

he had barely encountered any major setbacks!!!

Even during the Fourth Shinobi World War, when sealing Kaguya Otsutsuki,

the process had been far smoother than he imagined!!

so Future Sasuke found it utterly unacceptable that he was losing to Hashirama Senju,

he could accept that there was a gap between himself and Hashirama Senju,

but he could not accept that the gap was so vast he had no ability to fight back at all!!

Madara Uchiha stood to the side, watching the battle,

showing not the slightest surprise.

Only those who had truly fought Hashirama Senju understood the depth of despair,

no matter how hard you tried,

you could never catch up to Hashirama Senju's pace,

not even manage to see his back!!

In some ways,

Future Sasuke had awakened the Rinnegan,

and had briefly entered the Six Paths realm relying on the Sage of Six Paths' power,

so he had personally experienced what Six Paths power felt like.

His potential and talent were even greater than mine!!

If fully developed,

Madara Uchiha believed he could surpass his current self!!

But Madara Uchiha felt not the slightest jealousy!!

Because that premise rested on his own strength remaining stagnant,

with not the slightest progress.

That was impossible.

【Naruto Uzumaki: Heh!! That arrogant bastard Sasuke, never thought he'd still be so cocky as an adult—now he's finally gotten his comeuppance, someone finally put him in his place!!】

【Kakashi Hatake: Who would've thought, this kid Sasuke would grow so powerful in the future—fighting the First Hokage and lasting this long…】

【Orochimaru: Future Sasuke's strength is formidable, but it seems he hasn't lost yet only because the First Hokage hasn't gone all out yet…】

【Raikage: Yes, when the First Hokage first unleashed his full power, he defeated Sasuke Uchiha with a single blow—leaving him no time to react…】

【Jiraiya: This is the true meaning of cultivation—pushing Future Sasuke to his absolute limit, yet never exceeding it, forcing him to constantly squeeze out his potential and advance further!!】

【Tobirama Senju: Hmph!! The Uchiha clan has always been this way—once they gain even a little power, they become arrogant and conceited, easily sinking into darkness without realizing it…】

【Tobirama Senju: Future Sasuke's eyes evolved into the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan, yet he never pursued other evolution methods like my brother in this world—he must have lost many crucial things!!!】

【Omoi: Still, this kid is tough—enduring so many blows from the First Hokage without a sound, still clinging on; most people would've given up long ago…】

…

"What's wrong? Is this your determination?"

"With strength like this, protecting your world is far from enough…"

"You've disappointed me greatly, Sasuke Uchiha…"

"Even with the Sage of Six Paths' help, you could still be this pathetic — I truly didn't expect that."

"I had originally assumed it was because you hadn't fought a battle of this caliber in so long that your strength had slipped to this point…"

"But now it seems that's not the case at all…"

"You haven't gotten weaker — you were this weak from the very start…!!"

"Slow!!! Far too slow!!!"

In a single breath,

Hashirama Senju hurled who-knows-how-many fists at the future Sasuke!!

Watching the afterimages of fists fill the sky,

the future Sasuke could only grit his teeth and struggle to hold on, racking his brain for a way to break free!!!

But no matter how hard he racked his brain, he could not think of any way out,

Hashirama Senju's strength and speed far surpassed his own!!!

The fact that he could hold on at all now,

without being struck squarely, was already a rare feat!!

If he wanted to counterattack,

it would probably be far too hard to pull off!!!

Now the future Sasuke only felt his eyelids growing heavier and heavier,

and every cell across his entire body stung as if pricked by needles,

a pain too agonizing to bear!!!

"This kid… has some skill…"

"To stay silent under an assault like Hashirama's — it seems he's not quite as useless as I imagined."

Madara Uchiha watched the future Sasuke grit his teeth in stubborn silence,

and glanced over in surprise.

By his own estimate,

the future Sasuke should have collapsed long ago!!

He should have already hit his own limit!!

Yet the future Sasuke had held on for more than twice as long as he had predicted.

"Strike!!! Strike already!!"

"Don't tell me you don't even have the courage to make a move?!"

While pummeling the future Sasuke without pause,