Chapter 276: Hashirama, Admit Defeat!

"Kid, Lord Ban lives just ahead."

In front of a hidden cave in the Ninja World, a man and a cat stood side by side.

"This place is truly rarely visited..." Lian Ye stood before the cave and couldn't help but sigh.

Madara Uchiha and Senju Hashirama live in such a remote spot; it would be a miracle if anyone else could find their trail.

Even Qianshou Feijian wouldn't think that two strong ones reside inside.

The two have hidden in the deep mountains, living a reclusive forest life.

If Dao Ba hadn't personally led the way, no one would have come here at all.

One can only say Madara Uchiha is overly cautious; to prevent his identity from being exposed and jeopardizing the Moon's Eye plan, he even hides away in a corner.

When Lian Ye thinks of Madara eventually relying on the Outsider Demon Statue to sustain his life, surviving like a rat in a gutter, he feels relieved.

To realize the Moon's Eye plan, he is willing to abandon certain things.

Speaking of it, Madara Uchiha is also pitiful—his lifelong ideal exhausted, merely Heijue's plot to rescue his mother.

He foolishly becomes a pawn without realizing it...

Lian Ye intends to rewrite Madara Uchiha's tragic fate, but not now.

Madara's physical condition is at its peak, so even if Lian Ye tells him the truth, Madara wouldn't readily accept that explanation.

Instead, he would think Lian Ye is opposing his ideal of achieving Ninja World Peace.

Lian Ye can only first join Madara Uchiha's side, keeping Ban from striking those around him.

After about a decade, Ban's power wanes, and he will then reveal the truth.

Although he knows Ban still won't believe it, as Ban ages his strength will decline, making him no longer a match.

By then, he can fully persuade Madara Uchiha with his fists!

Even the strongest will have a day of decline; a fist's fear of the youthful and robust is precisely this principle...

It both protects those around him from Ban's harm and prevents Ban from being deceived by Heijue as in the original story.

It's a win-win!

Lian Ye can't help admiring his own brilliance; I'm truly a peerless genius!

A slight scheme is all that's needed to stop the outbreak of the Fourth Ninja World War.

If Heijue discovers that Madara Uchiha knows the truth, he'll definitely die of anger, right?

A plan plotted for a thousand years, undone so easily by him—just thinking about it is amusing.

"What are you staring at, meow?" Dao Ba entered the cave, but found Lian Ye hadn't followed, stuck his head out and asked.

"I'm coming, I'm coming," Lian Ye snapped back to his senses and hurried inside.

He entered the cave, found signs that someone had lived there, but saw no trace of Hashirama or Ban.

The cave's furnishings were simple: two wooden beds, two wooden chairs, an earthen stove, and a spot in the middle where firewood had been burned.

"Looks like Lord Ban went out, meow."

"When do you think they'll be back?"

"They should be back before nightfall; they're probably fishing by the river."

Lian Ye nodded at the words, sat on the chair, and silently waited for the two to return.

"Chu Zi really came looking for Madara Uchiha and Senju Hashirama!"

Heijue saw Lian Ye enter the cave, confirming his suspicion.

Chu Zi traveled thousands of miles here; could it really be to cook for the two?

If that's the case, one can only say he's extremely dedicated!

But Heijue has a premonition that things aren't as simple as they appear. He prepares to continue covert observation, to understand Lian Ye's purpose here...

Heijue's form slipped into the ground, moving silently into the cave.

Its Mayfly Technique is extremely powerful, allowing it to fully merge with the floor or walls, erasing its chakra and scent, making it hard for sensing ninjas to detect.

This is precisely why it has remained undisclosed after scheming in the Ninja World for millennia.

In other words, as long as Heijue doesn't voluntarily reveal itself, even strong ones like Madara Uchiha and Senju Hashirama cannot perceive its existence.

Not only Heijue, but Bai Jue can also use the Mayfly Technique.

Bai Jue is an army transformed from humans devoured by Infinite Moon Reading millennia ago, a tool Kaguya Otsutsuki uses to combat her clan.

Heijue belongs to Kaguya's will, so it can naturally command Bai Jue for its purposes.

Its intelligence network is built from countless Bai Jue...

"Uncle Hashirama and Lord Ban haven't returned yet?" Lian Ye murmured softly, watching the sky grow dim.

He'd been waiting here for almost an hour, yet still hadn't seen the two return.

Didn't Dao Ba say they went out to catch fish?

If Dao Ba hadn't already left, he would definitely have questioned Fat Cat.

Half an hour ago, Fat Cat, after receiving Lian Ye's promise of three Grilled Fish, cheerfully lifted the Summoning Technique.

"Gurururu—"

Lian Ye's stomach made a protesting sound.

He'd been traveling all afternoon; his body was indeed quite drained.

Not knowing when the two will return, he decided not to wait any longer; he'd eat first.

Lian Ye took ingredients from his Storage Scroll and began preparing dinner inside the cave.

"That kid really came here to cook..." Heijue, seeing this, didn't know what to say.

Seeing Ban and Hashirama's prolonged absence, it sent a Bai Jue to scout their whereabouts.

Counting the time, they should be returning soon.

Heijue slipped into the deeper underground and indeed saw the returning Bai Jue.

"Lord Heijue, I've found Senju Hashirama and Madara Uchiha!" Bai Jue said joyfully.

"Where?"

"They're drinking in the tavern in the small town."

Heijue: "???"

"Hahaha, Hashirama, concede defeat, you can never outdrink me!"

In the tavern's dim yellow light, Madara Uchiha rested his chin on one hand, a smug, arrogant smile curling at the corner of his mouth.

The wine jar before him was more than half empty, yet his black eyes remained clear and sharp, as if that little wine was merely water to him.

Opposite him, Senju Hashirama's cheeks flushed, his gaze a bit unfocused, but still unwilling to lose, he shook his head, reaching for the wine jar.

"Ban... I can still drink... not, I won't lose..."

His movements were a bit clumsy, spilling some wine onto the table, but he stubbornly refilled his cup and gulped it down.

Madara Uchiha saw this, sneered, "Since that's the case, I'll make you lose completely!"

Before the words finished, he grabbed an unopened vat of wine, broke the clay seal, and tipped it back in one go.

The wine streamed down his jaw, soaking his collar, but he paid no mind; as his Adam's apple bobbed, the vat emptied in an instant.

Senju Hashirama's eyes widened, and unwilling to be outdone, he also grabbed a vat, imitating Ban's style and chugging it greedily.

However, his capacity was clearly less than Ban's; after only half a drink, his arm grew weak, the wine jar tipped, and the remaining wine spilled all over him.

Heijue, who had just received the news, said: "..."

Based on their drinking style, he's even afraid that Madara Uchiha might drink himself to death here...

"Um... Ban, you..." Hashirama mumbled incoherently, then collapsed drunk onto the floor.

Madara Uchiha set the wine jar down, his body swayed a bit, but he steadied quickly.

He walked to Hashirama's side, Ban lowered his head and looked at him for a moment, then sighed, "You clearly can't drink that much, yet you insist on showing off... what a fool."

While saying that, he grabbed Hashirama's arm and hoisted him up in one motion.

Hashirama's head drooped weakly on Ban's shoulder, his breathing steady, clearly already asleep.

"Come, I'll take you back."

Ban supported Hashirama, stumbling out of the tavern.

ps: I have no inspiration to write three chapters at once, so only two; tomorrow I'll get up before work to write one chapter, and write two after work, Ying ying ying...