Chapter 298: Uchiha Madara: Me, the First Hokage?

"BOOM!!!"

Just as Uchiha Gin was preparing to engage in some in-depth communication with Yamanaka Minako, who had revealed her status as a married woman, a massive tremor suddenly erupted outside the village, the sound exploding in the air like the sky collapsing and the earth splitting.

The ground beneath everyone's feet began to tremble, and the surrounding houses and trees swayed continuously with the vibration, like candles flickering in the wind.

"Tsk~"

Uchiha Gin, interrupted by the sudden situation, clicked his tongue inwardly; why did it have to return at this critical moment of all times?

"This commotion is the same as a few days ago."

Senju Itama, following closely behind Uchiha Gin, cast his gaze toward the outside of the village thoughtfully, then spoke softly.

"Hmm, but it's a little different."

Uchiha Gin scratched his head helplessly, gave a "let's meet again next time" expression to the bewildered Yamanaka Minako, turned around, and waited.

"Mr. Gin, no need to be discouraged, there will be another chance next time."

Sarutobi Sasuke, who knew the inside story of these earthquakes, spoke up to comfort him; in his view, this was once again the commotion caused by Hashirama Senju returning after capturing a Tailed Beast.

Is that so? Uchiha Gin also caught the implication in the other's words, then raised an eyebrow, his expression becoming somewhat strange; just then, a figure descended from the sky and landed steadily in front of him.

"Big Cousin! Big Brother is back!"

The person who arrived was none other than his long-unseen little cousin, Izuna; at only thirty years old, his face already carried a touch of maturity, but in front of Uchiha Gin, he was still that impulsive little brother.

"Causing such a huge commotion, it certainly fits his style~"

Izuna's words confirmed his guess; Uchiha Gin smiled and nodded, then turned to look at everyone present and asked,

"Is anyone interested in going to see the Tailed Beasts?"

"Tailed Beasts, where?"

Senju Itama, who had long been obsessed with Tailed Beasts, grabbed Uchiha Gin's arm with eyes shining and asked coquettishly.

The intimate gesture made Uchiha Mikoto, who was standing to the side, glance over slightly, her eyes hiding deep envy, and the small hands hanging by her sides could not help but twitch.

"Mr. Gin, is it something we can see?"

But with so many people present, the young girl's inner reserve overcame that flicker of desire; she took a step forward, stood by Uchiha Gin's side, tilted her head, and asked softly.

Her purple hair cascaded like a waterfall, and her cold, beautiful eyes held a glimmer of hope.

"Of course, no problem; I reckon everyone will be able to see them in a moment~"

The lingering charm of the lady still remained in his heart; Uchiha Gin looked at Uchiha Mikoto's cold and beautiful face, his heartbeat suddenly accelerated, he subconsciously looked away, and answered.

They are too alike; little Mikoto and Lady Eimi are practically carved from the same mold~

"You curly-head, what kind of big talk are you spouting?"

Shimura Kenichi was displeased; why are you acting like a riddle-monger here!

"Look, they're here~"

Uchiha Gin gestured with his chin toward the direction of the Konoha cliff wall, not bothering with Shimura Kenichi's poor attitude; he would settle the score with his son later anyway.

Everyone present was startled upon hearing this and looked in the direction Uchiha Gin pointed in unison; before they could even find the target, the terrified screams of the surrounding villagers already reached their ears.

"Ah!!! There are monsters!"

"Run, disaster beasts are invading!"

"Where is the Security Force? Where is the Security Force!"

"."

Accompanied by the chaotic cries of the surrounding people, everyone finally saw four massive figures standing on the cliff above the Hidden Leaf Village.

On the far left was a giant cat covered in blue flames, two burning tails floating behind it, revealing its identity as the Two-Tails.

Beside the cat lay a giant turtle, its shell covered in ferocious spikes, three thick tails wrapped in hard armor, slamming against the ground and emitting bursts of roaring sounds.

Looking next to the turtle, there stood a giant, bright red gorilla; even from far away, everyone could feel a suffocating heat radiating from it, and four thick tails were adorned with keratinous protrusions similar to those on its forehead.

And in front of these three Tailed Beasts stood a creature they had never seen before, as if its creator had acted on a whim and stitched together two completely unrelated animals.

The upper body was a robust minotaur, but the lower body consisted of eight sticky tentacles of a deep-sea octopus.

The bizarre combination did not make people feel it was comical; instead, it evoked a sense of horror from the depths of their hearts.

"That is..."

The members of the Ninja Clan Alliance looked blankly at the giant Tailed Beasts overhead that were exuding a man-eating aura, unstoppable sweat soaking their clothes; Sarutobi Sasuke swallowed with difficulty and asked in a dry voice,

"Sigh~ Big Cousin is still too young; he started showing off after catching only four. Does he think he has the victory in the bag?"

Compared to the tension of Sarutobi Sasuke and the others, Uchiha Gin appeared very relaxed; with the aid of his super-strong dynamic vision, he had already seen Uchiha Madara standing on top of Gyuki, arms crossed, looking down with disdain.

"Sasuke, look quickly, those Tailed Beasts have Sharingan in their eyes!"

Akimichi Shinji squinted his small eyes, sweat covering his broad forehead; he, who was always ready to transform into a Human Bullet Tank, suddenly discovered that the pupils of those four terrifying Tailed Beasts were in the shape of Sharingan, with three mysterious tomoe slowly rotating within them, emitting a cold and obscure aura.

"Nani!"

Everyone who discovered this blind spot immediately opened their mouths in shock, and their gazes toward Uchiha Gin became somewhat strange.

The Uchiha are truly a clan of great love~

"Your gazes are a bit impolite."

Uchiha Gin sensed the bad thoughts; although there was no malice, it felt even more annoying than malice.

"Whoosh~"

Just as everyone was astonished, a flash of blue-and-white lightning streaked across, accompanied by a blue-clad, white-haired figure.

Senju Tobirama, who had arrived late, had veins bulging on his forehead, his scarlet eyes carrying a cold light as he stared fixedly at the giant Sharingan in the eyes of the four Tailed Beasts above.

How is it possible? Big Brother had such a hard time finding two Tailed Beasts; how could this guy Uchiha Madara catch four in one go?

Could it be that he also bought intelligence?

Wasn't it supposed to be exclusive? Profiteer, refund!

Senju Tobirama could not figure it out, but the facts were right before his eyes; no matter how much he wanted to appeal, it was too late.

"Hehe~"

Uchiha Madara, standing on top of Gyuki, looked with satisfaction at the shocked expressions of the people below; it was worth it to put on such a big show. Now, everyone in the whole village knows how powerful he is~

"Senju Tobirama, where is Hashirama? Don't tell me he went into hiding to cry secretly?"

Turning his scarlet gaze toward Senju Tobirama, Uchiha Madara asked, the smile at the corners of his mouth unable to be suppressed even by a few more Tailed Beasts.

"Hmph~ Big Brother has already returned twice; who will have the last laugh is still an unknown."

Senju Tobirama retorted stubbornly, but his heart was pounding.

According to intelligence, there were only eight free Tailed Beasts in the entire ninja world; now Uchiha Madara had already caught four.

If he couldn't catch the remaining two, then Big Brother would lose to this detestable Uchiha before him.

"Hashirama only caught two? Heh heh, I'm definitely going to win this time!"

From the snippets of conversation, Uchiha Madara quickly analyzed the progress of the competition; learning that Hashirama Senju had only captured two Tailed Beasts, his nose instantly went up, and he prepared to pop the champagne with great pride.

Below, upon learning that these four Tailed Beasts were captured by Uchiha Madara, the hearts of the people finally settled, and they began to discuss the Tailed Beasts before them with ease.

"So that's a Tailed Beast; it's quite a bit bigger than in the legends~"

"The blue cat is kind of cute, meow~"

I have knowledge, and I am proud!

"Uh, that red gorilla, why does it look a bit like the 'Big Boss' that Enma mentioned?"

Sarutobi Sasuke looked at the Four-Tails standing there and said thoughtfully.

Among them, the most excited was Senju Itama, the loyal fan of Tailed Beast dolls; she excitedly patted the arm of the curly-haired man beside her, the immense strength contained in her body making Uchiha Gin feel a dull pain.

"Curly-haired baboon, it's a turtle, a real turtle!"

At the same time, she pointed with shining eyes at Isobu, who had the most honest appearance among the Tailed Beasts, and shouted loudly.

"Turtle this, turtle that all day long, are you a security guard for the Tengyang Group?"

Rubbing his sore arm, where the bruises were fading at a speed visible to the naked eye, he rolled his eyes helplessly at the noisy sound in his ears and complained.

"Huh?"

"Is this what a real Tailed Beast is like? It's not much different from the Tailed Beast dolls."

In order to see the details of the Tailed Beasts more clearly, Uchiha Mikoto, at Uchiha Gin's side, had long since activated her Sharingan; after her scarlet eyes swept over the four Tailed Beasts above, she showed a puzzled expression.

"Such creatures can actually be controlled by genjutsu; is it because the Clan Leader's strength is stronger?"

Sensing the cold pupil power unique to the Sharingan, Uchiha Mikoto furrowed her delicate little brows and couldn't help but ask Uchiha Gin beside her.

"Ordinary genjutsu certainly wouldn't have such a good effect~"

As the girl's teacher on the surface, Uchiha Gin still carefully gave an explanation.

"The Sharingan can be considered one of the natural enemies of Tailed Beasts~"

Wood Release and the Sharingan, as the greatest natural enemies of Tailed Beasts, were perhaps the two trump cards left behind by the Sage of Six Paths to prevent his descendants from being unable to curb the Tailed Beasts' rampages after his death.

"One of them? Besides the Sharingan, are there other ways to restrain Tailed Beasts?"

With a thirst for knowledge, the purple-haired girl tilted her head and asked cutely.

"Hmm, the sealing jutsu of the Uzumaki clan, the Sage ninja tools of the Otsutsuki clan, and Hashirama Senju's Wood Release are all considered methods to restrain Tailed Beasts."

Uchiha Gin was still very cautious and did not single out Wood Release, but listed it alongside the other methods of restraining Tailed Beasts.

"I see... then Mr. Gin, do you think I can take down a Tailed Beast?"

After hearing Uchiha Gin's explanation, a flash of thought crossed the girl's eyes; she then raised her head, pointed to her own crystalline eyes, and asked softly.

"Mm~ definitely, little Mikoto is the best in the world!"

Looking at the earnestness of his little disciple, Uchiha Gin felt she was delicate and lovely, and immediately patted his chest to indicate that a mere Tailed Beast was nothing more than little Mikoto's pet~

"What about me, what about me! I also want to ride that turtle!"

Senju Itama, who had been watching intently from the side, also leaned over with an excited face, pointed to her own little nose, and asked repeatedly.

"You? You're not on my level yet!"

Waving his hand in disdain, Uchiha Gin signaled that she was just daydreaming.

Admittedly, Senju Itama's current strength was not bad, especially in terms of her physical body; nourished by the metabolic accelerator, her health points had been maxed out, and through the Yang Release power converted from life force, she could already use her monstrous strength as a basic attack.

Ordinary attacks could hardly even break Senju Itama's skin, but even so, while she could flip over that turtle, the Three-Tails Isobu, wanting to control it to ride for fun would likely take some effort.

"Hmph!"

Not receiving a satisfactory answer, Senju Itama wrinkled her small, delicate nose in annoyance, deliberately turned her head away, stopped paying attention to Uchiha Gin, and continued to stare with shining eyes at the silly, dazed Isobu.

"Itama, with so many Tailed Beasts, why do you only like that... turtle?"

Feeling very puzzled by Senju Itama's constant obsession with the turtle, Uchiha Chiharu couldn't help but ask her good friend.

"Uh, this... liking is just liking, how can there be so many reasons!"

Senju Itama, who had been smiling while examining Isobu, was suddenly stunned by Uchiha Chiharu's question; her shifty eyes subconsciously glanced at Uchiha Gin, who was yawning to the side, and her tone carried a hint of evasion, as if she were hiding something.

The Isobu doll was, after all, the first gift the young girl had ever received, and it was of extraordinary significance.

"Hey, it's a matter of personal taste; this guy's taste has never been very good~"

At this moment, Uchiha Gin popped up to interject; he couldn't understand why Senju Itama would be obsessed with Isobu, who ranked at the bottom of the Tailed Beasts in terms of looks, but this was a matter of personal aesthetics—he didn't understand it, but he respected it.

"Shut up!"

Senju Itama angrily used a million-ton punch.

"Crunch~"

Uchiha Gin took a critical hit, with excellent effect.

"Is it so lively today?"

Just as Uchiha Gin was clutching his red and swollen kidney, looking miserable, a familiar voice rang out from behind him, making his crotch tighten subconsciously; he then carefully turned his head, looked at the black-haired girl with a serene smile, and asked,

"Hikari? Or is it..."

"Gin, it's daytime now, I am Hikari."

The person who arrived was none other than Uchiha Hikari, who was obsessed with training; seeing Uchiha Gin heave a sigh of relief, the girl immediately walked up with a teasing expression, raised an eyebrow at the man before her, and said in a mocking tone,

"I heard you're obsessed with night running; are you hiding from something?"

"You two, are you already close enough to share senses?"

Looking at the familiar glint in Uchiha Hikari's eyes, Uchiha Gin's just-relaxed crotch tightened again; he wore a bitter expression on his handsome face and asked the girl in front of him,

"Hehe, guess~"

The girl stood with her hands behind her back, left Uchiha Gin with a meaningful smile, and then stood beside Senju Itama and Uchiha Chiharu, and the three began to chatter about the Tailed Beasts.

"Ah, this..."

Uchiha Gin felt mentally exhausted; these women, one and all, were not easy to deal with.

"Izuna, are you ready to be the Second Hokage?"

Kicked out of the circle by the three women, Uchiha Gin had no choice but to find his little cousin; looking at Uchiha Izuna, whose face was flushed with excitement, he asked with a hint of mischief in his eyes.

"Huh? Big cousin, what are you saying? How is that possible~"

Uchiha Izuna, who was admiring his big brother's heroic posture, felt a bit reserved after hearing his big cousin's teasing; he scratched his head and revealed an honest smile.

"Why not? Big cousin is taking office as the First Hokage, so wouldn't the position of Second Hokage be destined for you~"

Patting Uchiha Izuna on the shoulder, Uchiha Gin explained earnestly, fooling his little cousin into a daze.

"Haha, if you put it that way, it's not impossible~"

Uchiha Izuna, who had originally wanted to refute, suddenly had a flash in his mind and subconsciously began to imagine the beautiful scene of himself becoming the Second Hokage, ordering that hateful white-haired Senju Tobirama to clean the toilets with his bare hands, and he laughed out loud.

"You guy, you're thinking quite beautifully; Big Brother hasn't returned yet, so who will have the last laugh is still an unknown."

Senju Tobirama, who was in a standoff with Uchiha Madara, was furious after hearing the undisguised rebellious words of Uchiha Gin and the others; he turned into a bolt of lightning on the spot, appeared in front of them, and said through gritted teeth,

"Hehe~ My big brother has already captured four Tailed Beasts; what do you Senju have to compare with that?"

Uchiha Izuna was naturally at odds with Senju Tobirama; the two basically bickered whenever they met, and they weren't comfortable unless they were roasting each other.

"It's just a temporary lead; looking at your smug, petty-minded appearance, I'm truly ashamed to be a fellow villager with a hedgehog-head like you."

"Good for you, white-hair, you've started personal attacks because you can't compete, right?"

"&*#￥%￥#@#**&%&#@！%&￥."

The frustrated Senju Tobirama went straight into a face-to-face confrontation mode with the smug-looking Uchiha Izuna; the two were nearly thirty years old, yet they showed none of their usual calm and steady demeanor.

"Fight, fight~"

Uchiha Gin, who loved to watch the chaos, fanned the flames from the side; as long as he saw that white-haired Senju Tobirama suffer, his mood would improve by several notches~

"Izuna, mind your manners!"

Just as the two were arguing incessantly, Uchiha Madara, having shown off enough, spoke slowly.

???

No, Big cousin, you are usually not this kind of person!

If it were usual times, Uchiha Madara would have long since instigated his little cousin to start a fight; how did he change his personality after going on a long trip?

Are you sure you just went to participate in the Tailed Beast Capture Competition and didn't secretly sign up for a reality show?

"Huh? Big brother..."

As the person involved, Uchiha Izuna stood stunned on the spot; feeling deeply aggrieved, mist began to well up in his eyes.

Wuwuwu, so love really can disappear; Big brother, you've changed!

"Ahem, ahem... Big brother is a man who is going to be Hokage; if you shout like this, what will the villagers think of me!"

Uchiha Madara straightened his expression, coughed a few times as a pre-casting animation, shook his head, and then spoke very seriously.

"!!!"

"Pfft!!!"

Senju Tobirama: I'll go straight to Water Style: Great Dam Breaking Technique.

"Ahem... indeed, this Senju clansman, please mind your demeanor and don't lose face for us people of Konoha~"

Uchiha Izuna, who understood the implication, immediately straightened his clothes, put on a formulaic smile, transformed into PR Sasuke, revealed a shiny tooth, and advised Senju Tobirama, who was almost vomiting blood.

"Amino..."

Senju Tobirama, who had taken ten thousand points of critical damage, almost passed out; he extended a trembling hand, resisted the urge to point his finger, and his pent-up fury was about to erupt.

"Hey hey hey, aren't you angry?"

On the side, Uchiha Gin, who was happily eating melon seeds, nudged Senju Itama beside him and asked in a low voice.

"Angry? Why be angry? Give me some~"

Suddenly asked, Senju Itama turned her head in confusion, looked at the melon seeds in Uchiha Gin's hand, and reached out without any hesitation.

"Hey hey hey! Don't take them all! Your second brother is being teased like this, aren't you angry?"

Watching his plump melon seeds being swiped by Senju Itama, Uchiha Gin was instantly trembling with anger; while sighing about when men would finally wake up, he threw his question over.

"Crunch~ You mean this? Everyone is family now; it's just a joke, no harm done. And look, isn't Second Brother much livelier than before~"

Holding her spoils and crunching away, Senju Itama looked at her second brother, who was jumping with rage, and didn't feel there was anything wrong with it; wasn't this just standard operation between family members~

"Boom!!!"

Just as Senju Tobirama was brewing the most vicious vocabulary of his life, a loud noise came from the forest outside the village; everyone felt the ground shake, and after steadying themselves, their eyes immediately ignited with thick flames of gossip.

This movement—Senju Hashirama is back; there's a good show to watch~

"Hahahaha, Hashirama is finally back, let's go!"

As if by telepathy, upon hearing this sound, Uchiha Madara's eyes lit up; he excitedly raised his hand and loudly ordered the Tailed Beasts he was controlling.

"Rumble~"

The hundred-foot-tall Tailed Beasts, under Uchiha Madara's control, walked like docile sheep with uniform steps, carefully bypassing Konoha, looking cautious as if they were afraid of damaging the village's public facilities.

This delicate operation truly shocked everyone, making them forget to follow along to watch the show for a moment.

"What are you still stunned for? Such a big spectacle, the next time you might see it will be in fifty years~"

Watching his big cousin's retreating back, Uchiha Gin, worried about missing out on the big gossip, called out to the people around him.

"Hurry, hurry, hurry, there won't be any good spots left later~"

The crowd, as if waking from a dream, immediately scrambled and ran toward the forest outside the village, fearing they would miss the good show.

In the forest.

"Eh, where is that kid Tobirama?"

Senju Hashirama, who had just finished manipulating the Wood Golem to throw Chomei and the Nine-Tails into the wooden cage, looked around in confusion for his younger brother.

"Lord Hashirama, Lord Tobirama rushed back to the village!"

The Senju clansmen stationed there stepped forward in time to clear up his confusion; looking at the two captured giant beasts, their eyes were filled with fanatical worship.

"Huh? Did something happen to the village?"

Hearing this, Senju Hashirama's heart suddenly tightened; could it be that someone had tried to harm the village while he was away?

"This subordinate does not know; Lord Tobirama didn't leave any instructions and just disappeared in a hurry."

The Senju clansman shook his head, indicating that he was just a guard and knew nothing else.

"No, I have to rush back and see!"

Seeing that the situation was unclear, Senju Hashirama immediately jumped onto a towering branch and looked toward Konoha; he didn't expect that this look would make his heart go cold.

"Ah! So many Tailed Beasts, is that Madara?"

He saw four massive Tailed Beasts charging aggressively in his direction; if this were anywhere else, Senju Hashirama would have laughed in his sleep seeing this scene.

But now, near Konoha, the appearance of these four Tailed Beasts indicated that his best friend had already taken a step ahead of him.

"Sigh~ Am I really going to lose?"

Upon seeing the familiar patterns in the eyes of the four Tailed Beasts, the heart of Hashirama, which had still been harboring a sliver of fantasy, finally died.

Just as he did when frustrated in the past, Hashirama became somewhat dejected, dropping to all fours in an Orz pose, his bitter heart filled with regret.

"Hehe, didn't I originally want Madara to be the Hokage anyway~"

After a brief moment of being emo, Hashirama suddenly laughed and straightened up, all signs of dejection gone from his eyes.

Pursing his lips, Hashirama realized that he was not sad about the impending loss of the Hokage position, but merely felt dejected because he had lost the competition to Madara Uchiha; having figured out the reason, he immediately pushed off with his feet and headed toward his friend.

"Madara, congratulations, the position of First Hokage is indeed yours alone~"

(End of chapter)