Chapter 301: Captain Uchiha, Here to Pay a Visit

After a brief and friendly consultation, the four Tailed Beasts, led by the Nine-Tails, willingly signed a strategic agreement for mutual cooperation with Hashirama Senju.

"Release."

"Roar!!"

As Hashirama Senju lifted the restraints of the Four-Pillar Prison, the four Tailed Beasts, having regained their freedom, all raised their heads and let out deafening roars.

The sound waves, carrying massive gusts of wind, kicked up clouds of dust that forced the onlookers to cover their faces.

The moment it regained its freedom, a flash of sharpness flickered in the Nine-Tails' eyes.

Looking at Hashirama Senju, who was covering his face, it quietly retreated a small step, its massive beast pupils filled with cunning as it sought an opportunity to escape.

Let me help you humans fight? Keep dreaming!

However, just as the Nine-Tails prepared to slip away, several thick wooden branches suddenly shot up from the ground, startling it so much that it shivered and subconsciously clenched its rear, barely holding it in.

Huh... I don't think I've even moved yet; is this human's perception really that strong?

The Nine-Tails muttered to itself in its heart, then closed its eyes, waiting for the wooden branch bondage play.

"Roar~"

But after waiting for a long time, the Nine-Tails did not feel that suffocating tightness; instead, a familiar scream made it open its eyes at once and look toward the source of the sound.

It saw the Five-Tails Kokuo struggling on the ground, its four slender hooves firmly entangled by thick wooden branches.

At the same time, the miserable cries coming from its mouth made the hearts of the many Tailed Beasts tighten.

"To be a person, one must be honest... to be a beast, one must be even more so!"

Hashirama Senju, with his hands pressed together, looked at the Five-Tails with a serious face, his tone quite intimidating.

As it turned out, the moment the Five-Tails Kokuo was released, it had started plotting its own little scheme.

Rolling its eyes, the Five-Tails felt that as the fastest Tailed Beast at running away, slipping away from this human would be simple; its previous capture was merely due to its own carelessness.

Thinking this, it moved its hooves, preparing to flee in the direction without obstacles.

But it never expected that this human had been prepared; the moment it lifted one foot, several wooden branches had already bound it tightly with lightning speed.

Suffering a heavy blow, Kokuo's balance was broken, and after crashing to the ground, it could only lie there shivering like a lamb waiting to be slaughtered.

"Cough, cough, cough... I wasn't trying to run; I was just doing some warm-ups~"

The Five-Tails, completely countered by Wood Style, felt all its strength drained away; it struggled to lift its head and explained weakly to the displeased Hashirama Senju.

"Hi~ You should have said so earlier; I thought you wanted to run!"

Hashirama Senju laughed upon hearing this, giving Kokuo a way to save face, then relaxed his hands, and the wooden branches slowly loosened, eventually turning into rotten wood.

"You guys, keep it up; true freedom is right before your eyes~"

With a very warm expression, Hashirama Senju clapped his hands and spoke to encourage the four trembling Tailed Beasts.

Leading the four now-obedient Tailed Beasts, Hashirama Senju came before Madara Uchiha. Looking at his close friend who was resting with his eyes closed, he touched his head in embarrassment and said,

"Sorry, Madara, kept you waiting~"

"Doesn't matter, let's begin."

Slowly opening his scarlet eyes, Madara Uchiha revealed a rare smile on his cold face; full of anticipation, he was ready and waiting to accept Hashirama Senju's challenge.

Just then, a blue bolt of lightning suddenly streaked across the clear sky, and the familiar white hair made a grand entrance~

"Then, I shall serve as the referee for this match~"

Tobirama Senju, with his arms crossed, appeared between the two contestants. A faint light flickered in his scarlet eyes as he slowly spoke to state his identity.

He, Tobirama Senju, is absolutely impartial!

"Boo~"

As Tobirama Senju finished speaking, thunderous boos erupted throughout the arena; the deafening applause he had imagined did not appear.

"What do you mean by this?"

Frowning, Tobirama Senju looked at the people below with a gloomy face, especially Izuna Uchiha, who even made a highly insulting gesture to express his dissatisfaction.

The composed Gin Uchiha stood up from his folding stool, looking fearlessly into Tobirama Senju's sinister eyes.

He then turned his head, looked at the silent members of the Ninja Clan Alliance, and said seriously,

"Having someone from your Senju clan act as referee all the time is truly unfair, wouldn't you agree, Brother Sasuke~"

Not expecting Gin Uchiha to put him on the spot, Sasuke Uchiha, feeling like he was sitting on pins and needles, had to bite the bullet and reply,

"Uh... it really is a bit..."

Waving his hand to signal Sasuke Uchiha not to be nervous—the Uchiha clan was his solid backing—Gin Uchiha looked at the gloomy Tobirama Senju and said in a tone of negotiation that brooked no refusal,

"Look, everyone thinks so; how about we let the Uchiha send a referee for this match?"

"Exactly, exactly~"

Itama Senju, who loved to watch the chaos, also fanned the flames from the side, making Tobirama Senju feel a wave of sorrow in his heart.

The spine he had just straightened was bent once again by his own younger sibling.

"Since it is the wish of the majority, I shall comply. For this match, your Uchiha clan may send a referee to oversee the battle."

Sighing in his heart, Tobirama Senju lowered his hands and nodded at Gin Uchiha, indicating his withdrawal from the refereeing world.

Seeing that the position of referee was about to fall into Uchiha hands, the little cousin was immediately excited, tugging at Gin Uchiha's arm and volunteering himself,

"Big Cousin! Let me do it, I guarantee a biased call~"

"Stare~" The white-haired one's gaze.

"Cough, cough, cough... Izuna, how could you say such chilling words~"

Discretely shaking off Izuna Uchiha's hand, Gin Uchiha immediately drew a line between them.

His gaze was full of regret, as if he were looking at a child who had gone astray, appearing very heartbroken.

"Forget it, let me, this elder, uphold justice for you all!"

Since the little cousin had already exposed himself and was disqualified from refereeing, the only person left capable of the task was himself.

"You're going to be the referee?"

Tobirama Senju withdrew his mocking gaze from Izuna Uchiha, looked at the sighing Gin Uchiha, raised his eyebrows, and asked in surprise,

"Is that not allowed? Does a referee need a professional license?"

"That's not the case; if you want to do it, I have no objections."

Gin Uchiha was a bit curious why Tobirama Senju didn't stop him; this white-haired man was a ruthless person who would even shake the eggs sold by the Uchiha Trading Company to break their yolks.

"Then I'm going up~"

Seeing that Tobirama Senju had no objections, Gin Uchiha turned his gaze toward the two people in the match, his eyes filled with inquiry.

"I trust Brother Gin's way of doing things!"

Hashirama Senju was confident and not panicked at all; he smiled and nodded at Gin Uchiha, indicating he had no objections.

"..."

Madara Uchiha said nothing, which was equivalent to silent consent, but there was a strange look on his face; he always felt that his cousin would stir up trouble.

"Hmph hmph! Here I come~"

Bearing a heavy responsibility, Gin Uchiha straightened his face, reached into the bag behind him and fumbled for a while, slowly pulling out a luxurious golden cane, then laughed and flew forward.

As his figure disappeared, a deafening voice resonated throughout the entire battlefield,

"First: Absolutely no acting on impulse."

"Second: Absolutely no missing any bad deeds."

"Third: Absolutely refereeing fairly and beautifully."

Landing steadily and holding the golden cane high, Gin Uchiha loudly declared to everyone present,

"Ta-da~ Captain Uchiha, here to pay a visit!"

"Clap clap clap~ Wow~"

Itama Senju's eyes shone, his small hands clapping until they were red.

Such a soul-stirring declaration, such a handsome and compelling entrance—truly the man I have my eyes on.

"Uh... this..."

Hikari Uchiha and Chirori Uchiha on the side were relatively calm; after looking at each other, a trace of shame appeared on their pretty faces simultaneously.

This line is just too embarrassing~

"I didn't expect Mr. Gin to be such an impartial person; he is truly a role model for our generation!"

The members of the Ninja Clan Alliance were also shocked by Gin Uchiha's speech; Sasuke Uchiha nodded excitedly and couldn't help but comment,

"Hmph! It's definitely an act. If it's not a biased call, I'll stand on my head and eat ten pounds of sh*t!"

Prejudice is truly like a mountain. After a brief moment of stagnation, Kenichi Shimura snorted coldly, indicating that if Madara Uchiha could lose, he would eat the entire stock of the Hidden Leaf public toilets on the spot.

Trying to scam a free meal?

"Phew~ Can we start now?"

With his face twitching violently, Madara Uchiha looked stiffly at the self-satisfied Gin Uchiha, suppressed a mouthful of old blood in his throat, and asked in a deep voice.

Madara Uchiha felt that every second now was a torment; he had almost dug a four-bedroom, three-living-room, two-bathroom apartment into Gyuki's bald forehead.

"Brother Gin, you set the rules!"

Hashirama Senju, also with shining eyes, said with a smile to the newly appointed referee.

"Hmm~ Since neither side has any objections, I announce that the first Hidden Leaf Village Pokémon Master Tournament officially begins!"

Having received the approval of both contestants, Gin Uchiha felt his responsibility was heavy and dared not slack off in the slightest; a faint light flickered in his dead-fish eyes, and he already had a plan in mind.

He then threw the golden cane in his hand into the sky, where it split into four in mid-air and landed steadily in the four corners of the arena.

In an instant, an obscure and profound power traveled from the canes to the ground, and golden ripples spread rapidly, enveloping the eight massive Tailed Beasts in the blink of an eye.

As for the spectators outside the arena, they were isolated from this power.

Subsequently, a blinding golden light flashed, and an arena large enough to hold several Tailed Beasts appeared before everyone.

Seeing this incredible scene, everyone present was shocked; they had not expected that the seemingly unreliable Uchiha Gin would possess such magical means.

Attempting to touch the golden transparent barrier, they discovered that golden light flickered within it, and no matter how much force they used, they could not shake it in the slightest.

"What is this?"

Immediately, several puzzled eyes turned in unison toward the satisfied-looking Uchiha Gin, waiting for his explanation.

"Phew~ That was quite exhausting!"

Wiping away non-existent sweat from his forehead, Uchiha Gin let out a breath and looked at the stage he had built, revealing a gratified smile.

"Big Cousin, where did you learn this kind of move?"

After sensing it for a while, Uchiha Madara finally dropped his aloof demeanor and asked his cousin.

What kind of ninjutsu was this golden barrier, exactly?

When asked, Uchiha Gin blurted out immediately,

"Hehe, see those staves? I spent a huge fortune on them, from..."

He was preparing to use the same old excuse he had already worn out to fool everyone.

"It's the Land of Artisans again, right? Can you change your story?"

Uchiha Madara's ears were almost calloused from this explanation of Uchiha Gin's; in the past, when he was young and ignorant, he had believed it deeply.

But later, while passing through the Land of Artisans on missions, he learned that the people of the Land of Artisans had never even heard of the ninja tools his big cousin used.

"Ahem, ahem, I've explained it to you so many times, these are ninja tools exclusively crafted by a reclusive family in the Land of Artisans; they are all one-of-a-kind, not available on the market."

Coughing lightly a few times, Uchiha Gin replied with a normal expression.

Seeing his sincere expression, which didn't look fake, Uchiha Madara couldn't help but mutter to himself.

Could that guy named Seimei be lying to me?

Phew~ Big Cousin is getting harder and harder to fool.

Looking at the frowning Uchiha Madara, Uchiha Gin secretly breathed a sigh of relief, then looked at the golden barrier rising around them, a flash of smugness in his eyes.

This golden barrier was originally called the "Four Red Yang Formation," an A-rank barrier ninjutsu he had drawn from the backyard.

The contributor was the Monkey~

However, the original version was red, and scorching chakra was attached to the barrier, making it impossible for people to touch.

After Uchiha Gin's modifications, he used Yang Release chakra full of healing power to replace the scorching Fire Release chakra.

While eliminating its lethality, he reinforced its defensive power and added the ability of self-repair; the color also changed from red to the current gold.

As a heavily modified version, Uchiha Gin named it the "Four Radiant Yang Formation."

It's not the four table-flipping Crow Brothers, oh~

"So it is a ninja tool; I didn't expect it to have progressed to such a degree."

Unlike Uchiha Madara, Hashirama Senju believed Uchiha Gin's words implicitly; he touched the golden barrier with his hand, looked at the four staves stuck in the ground with glowing eyes, and exclaimed in surprise.

"Can ninja tools reach this point?"

As one of the top scientific research experts in the Land of Fire, Tobirama Senju was not so easily fooled; from this golden barrier, he could sense a dense aura of Yang Release.

If this was the effect of a ninja tool, then this technology must be monopolized by them; otherwise, if it fell into the hands of enemies, it would become a major disaster.

"Hey, hey, hey, Kurama, what are you spacing out for?"

Equally surprised were the four Tailed Beasts with normal consciousness; after studying the Four Radiant Yang Formation for a long time, the Five-Tails...

... discovered that the usually noisy Nine-Tails was terrifyingly quiet at this moment, and its attention was not on the barrier, but fixed tightly on that curly-haired human.

"Didn't you guys sense it?"

Interrupted in his thoughts, the Nine-Tails turned his head with a deep frown, his yellow beastly pupils filled with deep confusion.

"We know your sensory ability is strong, stop showing off~"

The Six-Tails Saiken also leaned over; hearing the Nine-Tails' words, it shook the antennae on its head and said,

"That human has the Old Man's aura on him—no, not just the Old Man's, but the aura of his lecherous younger brother too!"

Sniffing, the Nine-Tails checked repeatedly several times, but the result remained the same.

"Uh, how is that possible? Did your rhinitis flare up? Chomei, I told you long ago not to scatter that lousy scale powder of yours!"

Kokuo shook its head, revealing an incredulous expression; after studying Uchiha Gin for a while, it bluntly stated that the Nine-Tails' perception had gone wrong, and the culprit was that traitor Chomei.

"I just feel that human is quite punchable, and he doesn't have anything to do with the Old Man at all~"

"Indeed..."

The Nine-Tails covered its nose, observing only with its eyes, and also felt that Uchiha Gin was very punchable, then began to doubt itself.

"This is the effect of the ninja tool; after injecting chakra, it unfolds a barrier. People outside cannot enter, and attacks from inside cannot cause damage outside the barrier."

Glossing over the effect of the ninja tool, Uchiha Gin rolled his eyes, raised his right hand, and said,

"Now, I will announce the competition rules."

The people who were originally studying the barrier had their attention drawn over; looking at the expectant gazes of the crowd, Uchiha Gin said loudly,

"The competition is a king-of-the-hill match. Both sides will each send out a Tailed Beast to compete. The loser leaves the field, the winner stays to defend, until one side's Tailed Beasts are all defeated. The side that is the last one standing on the arena wins!"

Hearing this, everyone nodded; the rules set by Uchiha Gin were very simple and did not show any favoritism, making them convincing.

"I really didn't misjudge him."

Tobirama Senju, feeling settled in his heart, looked at Uchiha Gin's curly hair moving without wind and nodded with gratification.

"Then, please have both sides send out their Tailed Beasts to fight!"

After confirming that both sides had no objections, Uchiha Gin raised his hands high, signaling the start of the match.

"Madara, the strength of a Tailed Beast is linked to the number of tails, you know~"

Seeing the match begin, Hashirama Senju smiled and said to Uchiha Madara, who had difficulty making choices,

"Hmph~ How is that possible!"

Uchiha Madara naturally did not believe such remarks; he then lowered his head, looked at the large blue cat lying at his feet, a red light flashing in his eyes, and asked,

"You Tailed Beasts, do you measure strength by the number of tails?"

"Nonsense, meow. Our tails are just decorations; strength depends on one's own means."

When asked, Matatabi, even while hypnotized, did not forget that "tails are useless" rhetoric.

"Alright then, you go first and prove it to me with your strength."

Practice is the only criterion for testing truth.

Since you say tails are useless, then I'll let you go first.

"Meow~"

The hypnotized Matatabi had no room to resist; under Uchiha Madara's manipulation, it jumped onto the golden arena, its scarlet eyes giving off an invisible sense of oppression.

"Sigh~ Madara, why do you just refuse to believe it~"

Shaking his head with a sigh, this Uchiha Madara really wouldn't give up until he hit the Yellow River.

He then turned his head to look at the four whispering Tailed Beasts behind him and asked,

"Which one of you is going first?"

"Fighting that guy Matatabi? I'll go~"

The four Tailed Beasts temporarily set aside the topic of Uchiha Gin; looking at the Two-Tails that had already jumped onto the arena, after some discussion, Kokuo stood out.

There was no help for it; who told it to have the fewest tails~

After saying that, it turned into a white bolt of lightning and appeared on the arena in the blink of an eye.

"Alright~ First round, Two-Tails VS Five-Tails, the battle... begins!"

A Tailed Beast brawl was a very rare scene; Uchiha Gin watched the two Tailed Beasts ready to go with great interest, waved a flag he had gotten from who knows where, and announced the start of the match with a grand gesture.

"Roar!"

Following the fall of Uchiha Gin's flag, the blue Matatabi vanished from its spot in an instant.

The next moment, sharp cat claws had already landed quietly on top of Kokuo's head; this strike showed no mercy at all.

"Hmph~"

Even though the cat claws were about to land on its head, Kokuo did not panic in the slightest; a flash of contempt appeared in its eyes, and the four sharp horns on its forehead suddenly rose, carrying unparalleled brute strength to meet the Two-Tails' signature cat claws.

"Boom!"

The two collided, and with a loud bang, in the astonished eyes of the crowd, the Two-Tails, which had just been swearing that tails didn't represent anything, was sent flying dozens of meters away and then slammed heavily against the golden barrier.

The huge impact made the people behind the barrier dodge subconsciously.

As a result, the Tailed Beast's massive body did not shake the barrier in the slightest, not even causing a ripple.

"Is that it? Is that all?"

The Five-Tails shook its slightly aching head, looked up at Matatabi, who was panting on the ground, and mocked it with a sarcastic tone.

"Phew~ Damn it!"

Feeling as if its whole body was falling apart, the Two-Tails gritted its teeth and stood up; looking at the smug Five-Tails, it opened its big mouth, and a huge fireball shot out from its mouth, aimed directly at Kokuo.

"Who are you looking down on?"

Kokuo didn't continue to indulge the Two-Tails; after all, the outcome concerned its freedom.

Thinking of this, it decisively opened its big mouth, and a black Tailed Beast Ball expanded within it.

In comparison, the fireball spat out by the Two-Tails seemed a bit pathetic.

"Tailed Beast Ball!"

Seeing the Five-Tails was playing for real, the Two-Tails didn't continue to probe; it also brewed a black Tailed Beast Ball in its mouth, deciding to settle the outcome with one move.

"Bang!"

Both Tailed Beasts finished charging their Tailed Beast Bombs at the same time; a flash of brilliance sparked in their eyes, and the massive Tailed Beast Bombs were unleashed, the scorching chakra colliding to produce a deafening explosion.

As the smoke kicked up by the explosion dissipated, everyone curiously craned their necks, wanting to see the outcome.

"Who won?"

The two Tailed Beasts in the arena were still holding the poses they had used to fire their Tailed Beast Bombs, their fur singed with patches of charred black.

"Ah~"

Just as everyone thought the outcome was still undecided, the blue giant cat swayed, let out a mournful cry, and crashed to the ground, its sharp eyes turning into swirls, signaling that it had lost its ability to fight.

"Matatabi, you should be convinced of your defeat now, right?"

The charred King Mu slowly opened its mouth, wisps of white smoke drifting out.

"First match, Five-Tails wins!"

After confirming that the Two-Tails had lost its combat capability, Uchiha Gin decisively raised the flag, announcing the winner to the world.

"Haha~ Madara, sorry about that~"

Having won the first battle, Hashirama laughed as happily as could be, waving his hand at the cold-faced Uchiha Madara and shouting loudly.

"Hmph~ Useless thing!"

Not expecting the Two-Tails to lose so decisively, Uchiha Madara was so angry his nose was crooked; not even wanting to look at Matatabi, he fixed his gaze on the muscular Four-Tails and spoke up.

"Can you win?"

"Fighting? Old Sun has never feared anyone!"

Exuding a violent aura, the muscular Four-Tails straightened its body and pounded its robust chest with its massive fists, demonstrating its strength.

"Then you go; smash that sarcastic white-haired donkey for me!"

(End of chapter)