Chapter 268: I'm Afraid a Kunai Won't Stab You to Death

"Swish! "

Accompanied by a cry of grief and indignation, the members of the Senju clan, startled, instantly assumed a highly defensive posture; over a dozen pairs of eyes widened, all staring in unison at the newcomer.

"Hashirama, I thought you were an honest man, but I never expected you to do something so shameless!"

A slender figure descended from the sky; it was none other than the person who had just shouted in rebuke at Hashirama Senju.

This person had a rare head of curly hair, and his exceptionally handsome face wore an expression of deep distress. His lifeless, dead-fish eyes held a trace of disappointment as he frowned at Hashirama Senju, who was pressing forward step by step, kunai in hand.

"Ah? Big Brother Gin!"

Seeing that the newcomer was the familiar Uchiha Gin, Hashirama Senju's heart tightened immediately. The two had interacted extremely frequently over the years, and the other party would always give his young son generous red envelopes during holidays.

"There must be some misunderstanding here!"

Thinking of this, Hashirama Senju felt somewhat at a loss. He scratched his head awkwardly and explained cautiously to Uchiha Gin.

"Hmph! I saw it clearly from afar. You even took off your pants—do you still want to quibble?"

Uchiha Gin covered his eyes with one hand and pointed at the thin undergarment Hashirama Senju was wearing with the other, looking as if it were an eyesore. His voice was so loud that everyone on the entire battlefield heard it clearly.

"What? Lord Patriarch actually suffered such humiliation for our sake!"

The Uchiha clansmen who had been captured after their defeat were all filled with righteous indignation upon hearing this bombshell. One by one, their eyes split with rage as they struggled and shouted,

"Come at me if you have a problem, don't hurt our Patriarch!"

"Come on! I'm not afraid. See if I don't crush you, you despicable Senju villain!"

……

"Hey! Big Brother Gin, stop joking around. I'm a man with a family."

Facing the Uchiha clansmen who were clamoring to take his place, Hashirama Senju, who was already quite familiar with Uchiha Gin, smiled awkwardly and spoke up.

"U! Chi! Ha! Gin! If you spout nonsense again, I, Madara Uchiha, will not let you off even as a ghost!"

Lying on the ground unable to move, Madara Uchiha seemed to have suffered a great insult. His ice-mountain-like face flushed red, and his black eyes were filled with monstrous killing intent. Looking at Uchiha Gin, who wore a teasing expression, he used his last bit of strength to loudly accuse him.

"Madara~ be polite!"

Hearing Madara Uchiha's words, Uchiha Gin had yet to respond, but Hashirama Senju, standing to the side, was the first to squat down and knock on his best friend's head, his tone full of sycophancy.

"Don't you think so, Big Brother Gin~"

"Hmph, hmph. Since that's the case, carry on!"

Truly, comparing people only makes one angry; if his cousin had even half the sensibility of Hashirama, he wouldn't have to worry so much.

"Alright, since you're here, Big Brother Gin, you can be my witness."

Seeing Uchiha Gin nod, Hashirama Senju felt relieved. His expression turned serious, his eyes filled with the determination to die, and he frowned slightly as he spoke slowly.

"Huh? This… although it is said that an elder brother is like a father, isn't this too sudden? Why don't I go back and notify the clan, and then you two can…"

Uchiha Gin showed a look of hesitation, waving his hand at the resolute Hashirama Senju, his tone full of evasion.

"You guy, what are you thinking! Big Brother he…"

Tobirama Senju, who had been silent for a long time, sheathed his long sword and pursed his lips. He explained to Uchiha Gin, who was feigning misunderstanding, his eyes full of resentment.

If it weren't for the sake of the curly-haired one, I would have already Flying Thunder God-ed this old man!

"Oh! So that's how it is. My cousin actually made such an exciting request; I must witness it, I must!"

After carefully listening to Tobirama Senju recount the ins and outs of the matter, Uchiha Gin slapped his thigh, declaring that he would definitely witness this classic moment.

"Listen well, Tobirama, take my words as a dying wish and keep them in your heart."

Seeing that Tobirama Senju had finished speaking, Hashirama Senju walked to his brother with the kunai, a look of unrefusable resolve in his eyes as he gave his instructions.

"Big Brother."

Seeing the determination in his big brother's eyes, Tobirama Senju sighed slightly in his heart. He knew he couldn't stop the development of this matter, so he chose to compromise.

"These are words I exchanged my life for; the other clansmen must also remember: after I die, you must never kill Madara."

Hashirama Senju looked around at the nervous clansmen and said in a deep voice.

"From now on, there shall be no fighting between the Uchiha and the Senju. Swear to abide by this in the name of your fathers and the grandchildren you have yet to meet!"

Having said this, Hashirama Senju glanced at Madara Uchiha. His eyes were clear, without a trace of impurity. Then, the corners of his mouth curled up, and with a look of relief on his face, he turned the cold-glinting kunai in his hand and slowly stabbed it toward his own abdomen.

"Farewell~"

Seeing this scene, Tobirama Senju could no longer sit still. He had thought his brother was just putting on a show, but he hadn't expected him to make the fake act real. He immediately refined his chakra, preparing to activate the Flying Thunder God to stop his brother's idiotic behavior.

"Can a kunai really kill someone?"

Uchiha Gin, standing in front of the Uchiha clansmen, swallowed the sunflower seed kernel in his mouth and muttered to himself in confusion as he watched Hashirama Senju prepare to perform a seppuku suicide with a kunai.

Hashirama Senju possessed a Sage Body; if he could die by a kunai, wouldn't that mean Kakuzu could have successfully killed a god?

Madara Uchiha, lying on the ground, never took his black eyes off Hashirama Senju. When he saw the tear fall from the corner of the other's eye, memories of his youth flooded his heart. That falling teardrop was just like a stone thrown while skipping stones, hitting the ground and splashing ripples.

"Whoosh! "

Hashirama Senju's eyes were tightly shut, carrying the determination to die, as the kunai in his hand flew toward his lower abdomen. At this critical moment, a large hand suddenly appeared, tightly gripping the hand holding the kunai.

"Eh? Madara?"

Hashirama Senju, eyes closed, felt his hand, which was attempting suicide, blocked by a great force. His heart surged with joy—sure enough, Madara couldn't bear to let him die. He excitedly opened his eyes, wanting to see Madara Uchiha's expression, but unexpectedly, he saw another awkward smiling face.

"Big Brother Gin?"

Hashirama Senju never imagined that the person stopping him would be Uchiha Gin. Even if Tobirama had come over and elbowed him, he could have accepted it. In his surprise, he saw another hand hanging in mid-air. Madara Uchiha, who had forcibly stood up, had a face full of embarrassment; he never expected that he would be a step too late.

"Madara! I knew you couldn't bear to let me die~"

Seeing the hand Madara Uchiha had extended, Hashirama Senju smiled happily and thanked his red-faced best friend.

"Hmph! I was just afraid you wouldn't die thoroughly, so I wanted to help you put in some effort!"

Madara Uchiha, his face slightly red, immediately turned his head away, desperately denying his attempt to stop Hashirama Senju's suicide.

"Hehe~ everyone is happy. Cousin, since you don't want him to commit suicide, does the promise you made to him still count?"

Seeing his cousin about to be so embarrassed he could dig out a three-bedroom apartment, Uchiha Gin stepped in to defuse the situation. He patted his shoulder and sent a burst of chakra rich in life force into Madara Uchiha's body, giving him the strength to stand.

"Eh... I, Madara Uchiha, always keep my word. I agree to a ceasefire."

Feeling the gentle power nourishing his body, Madara Uchiha glanced at his cousin in surprise. But the top priority now was to put an end to the conflict between the two clans, so he suppressed the doubts in his heart, turned to look at the expectant Hashirama Senju, slowly extended his palm, and gave his response.

"Bang! ~"

Just as the two shook hands to make peace, a huge explosion suddenly rang out. Everyone was startled, thinking a third party had been lurking and had launched a sneak attack while they were off guard, so they hurriedly looked toward the source of the sound.

They saw Uchiha Gin smiling broadly, holding a giant party popper. The ribbons sprayed into the sky had not yet fully fallen. Seeing everyone staring at him intently, he wasn't afraid; instead, he smiled even more happily. He had finally waited for this moment.

"Congratulations to the Warring States period, officially wrapped up~"

A few days later.

Today was the day the Uchiha clan and the Senju clan officially concluded their alliance. Madara Uchiha and Izuna Uchiha, dressed in the Uchiha clan's standard high-collared attire, were pulled into a secluded corner by a mysterious-looking Uchiha Gin.

"Cousin, what exactly is the matter that you can't say in front of everyone?"

Madara Uchiha, still thinking about his speech, furrowed his brows into a 'chuan' shape. He didn't want his speech draft to be worse than that guy Hashirama's, so he asked his unreliable cousin, not wanting to waste time here.

"That's right, that's right!"

Izuna Uchiha, also dressed formally, had eyes full of confusion. He also wanted to know why his cousin had pulled them into a dark room; could it be that there was some good thing to hand over to them?

"Eh... Cousin, actually..."

Glancing at the figure hiding not far behind him, Uchiha Gin rolled his eyes in his heart. Wasn't it agreed to wait here? Why were they hiding? So, not knowing how to start, he scratched his head in distress, his speech carrying a bit of hesitation.

"Stuttering and mumbling, I don't know what you're talking about. I still have to go talk to Hashirama about the details. If there's anything, let's talk after the alliance is finished."

Watching Uchiha Gin's hesitant appearance, Madara Uchiha suddenly felt his eyes twitch. Although he had doubts in his heart, hearing the noisy sounds outside, it must be the Senju clan arriving, so he waved his hand, signaling to talk later.

"Then Big Brother and I will go first. Big Cousin, if you have any good things, you must save them for me~"

Seeing his big brother about to leave, Izuna didn't linger either. After saying a word to Uchiha Gin, he followed behind Madara Uchiha and left.

"Sigh~ Uncle, why didn't you come out? Cousin even pledged the whole clan~"

(End of chapter)