Chapter 371

"When I stepped down as head of the Senju clan and appointed him as the new head, the scene still feels vivid…"

"To me, it seems as if it happened just yesterday…"

"But in an instant…"

Hashirama Senju also felt a surreal, dreamlike sensation!!

Especially the reconciliation between the Senju and Uchiha clans had already astonished him greatly,

Now the Senju and Uchiha clans are so close they seem like a single family!!

What once seemed utterly impossible to him,

Not to mention the entire ninja world's shifting landscape,

His original hope for Hashirama Senju was merely that he would grow the Senju clan into something stronger,

Become a more powerful family in the Land of Fire!!

But he never imagined,

That now Hashirama Senju had abolished the daimyo system,

Even replaced it by becoming the ruler of the Land of Fire,

Completely reforming the entire system of the Land of Fire!!!

The Land of Fire today is so drastically different from the one he once knew,

That Hashirama Senju believes the changes in the Land of Fire have surpassed his understanding!!!

"Ragname… what do you think of this child, Mizuki? What are her chances?"

"I heard she's now the strongest in your Uzumaki clan—even you can't beat her?"

Hashirama Senju turned to Uzumaki Ragname and asked curiously.

Upon hearing this,

Uzumaki Ragname's face lit up with a hint of pride!!

"Yes… Mizuki's strength has completely surpassed mine."

"Several years ago, I was already no match for her."

"No one in the entire Uzumaki clan can defeat her…"

"Even the Uzumaki clan's Grand Elder has publicly acknowledged Mizuki as the most gifted ninja the Uzumaki clan has ever produced…"

"The Grand Elder even believes Mizuki may surpass the Uzumaki ancestors and become the strongest ninja in Uzumaki history…"

As he said this,

Uzumaki Ragname's face glowed brighter,

As if becoming the strongest in the Uzumaki clan were his own achievement!!!

But as he spoke on,

The smile on Uzumaki Ragname's face slowly faded,

And he let out a quiet sigh.

"Yet no matter how gifted Mizuki is, no matter how fast she progresses,"

"Compared to Hashirama… she still falls far short…"

"I believe if Mizuki fought Hashirama, she would have no chance of winning."

Even Uzumaki Ragname couldn't understand,

How could a being like Hashirama Senju exist in this world?!

Throughout the entire ninja world's recorded history,

There has never been a figure like Hashirama Senju,

Under twenty years old,

Already bearing the title of the strongest ninja in the world!!!

Just how far Hashirama Senju's power has reached,

Perhaps only he himself would know.

It is said that the strongest ninja from the four great nations once joined forces to challenge Hashirama Senju in the Land of Fire,

And since that battle,

The four great nations vanished entirely,

Becoming the four great cities of the Land of Fire!!!

No one knows the details of that battle or its outcome,

But the fact that the four great nations made such a decision,

Makes the result of their battle with Hashirama Senju obvious.

"Hashirama… I honestly don't understand what's going on with him."

"To be frank, sometimes even I doubt whether he's truly my son…"

A look of frustration appeared on Hashirama Senju's face.

It's good that one's child is talented,

But too much talent isn't a good thing!!!

Hashirama Senju is so extraordinarily, almost unnaturally gifted,

That Hashirama Senju himself feels utterly invisible!!!

So sometimes he even doubts whether Hashirama Senju is truly his blood.

Tobirama Senju and his other children are all extremely talented,

Tobirama Senju and the other children were all exceptionally outstanding,

But their excellence still remained within reasonable bounds,

but Hashirama Senju's excellence seemed almost monstrous!!

Sometimes Hashirama Fukan even felt he was the child of Hashirama Senju,

and Hashirama Senju was his father,

their roles had been completely reversed!!!

【Jiraiya: It seems the First Hokage was too outstanding—even his own parents found it deeply troubling... After all, he was simply too monstrous!!】

【Orochimaru: A power surpassing all, a vision and scope far above everyone else—I even feel this First Hokage borders on omniscient!!】

【Tobirama Senju: Though I envy the other me for having such a brother, if my own brother truly became like this, I would be under immense pressure... Having such an outstanding elder brother makes being his sibling unbearably difficult!!】

【Madara Uchiha: I don't know whether to envy or pity the other me—the gap in power between him and Hashirama is absurdly vast; I suspect he'll never catch up to Hashirama in this lifetime.】

【Fourth Raikage: Fortunately, the First Raikage didn't stubbornly insist on his own way—otherwise, the Land of Lightning wouldn't exist anymore... Even if it became just a city of lightning, it would be better than vanishing entirely.】

【Tsunade: If only I could travel to another world—I can clearly feel that in this world created by my grandfather, their medical ninjutsu will soon surpass ours!!】

【Kushina Uzumaki: I thought the maximum number of Jin Gang chains was five, but after seeing Grandma Mizukami wield them, I realized this was far from their limit...】

【Minato Namikaze: Five Jin Gang chains should be the limit of this ninjutsu... The reason Mizukami could wield far more than five is surely because of herself—she must have already cultivated this technique beyond its creator!!】

"Hashirama... I hope you seriously accept my challenge this time."

"I've mustered the courage to challenge you after much deliberation."

"No matter what, I won't avoid my inner thoughts and feelings anymore..."

"I've reached the limit of my own strength; I won't achieve any significant leap in power anytime soon."

"Though I have no confidence in defeating you, I no longer wish to wait..."

"Who knows how long I'd have to wait if I miss this chance?"

"The longer I wait, the greater the gap between us will become—my chance of defeating you will only shrink further."

Kushina Uzumaki clenched her fists,

her face showed not the slightest hesitation or fear!!!

When she came to challenge Hashirama Senju,

she had already fully believed in her inner conviction!!!

Therefore, she would not hesitate at all!!

This woman...

Madara Uchiha, standing at a distance,

had clearly heard every word exchanged between Kushina Uzumaki and Hashirama Senju.

Hearing Kushina Uzumaki's sincere words to Hashirama Senju,

Madara Uchiha felt only annoyance,