Naruto: Wooing Tsunade from Day One!
Chapter 552: One Step Ahead

Chapter 552 - 552: One Step Ahead

"Wood Release: Nativity of a World of Trees."

Hashirama once again sent the First Raikage flying, his hands clasping together as his immense chakra surged.

With the sound of the earth splitting apart, countless massive trees burst from the ground.

Their branches intertwined, twisting and coiling like vicious dragons lunging toward the First Raikage to ensnare him.

"What an enviable power!"

Even though he had already obtained Wood Release, Madara still couldn't help but admire Hashirama's mastery as he watched.

Under his control, the First Raikage charged back and forth, his violent Lightning Release chakra shattering countless branches into pieces.

Taking a mighty step forward, he used the towering trees as leverage, propelling himself high into the air.

"Lightning Release: Purple Lightning Dragon Lance!"

While airborne, the First Raikage rapidly formed hand seals, gathering a massive amount of Lightning chakra in his right hand.

After continuous compression and shaping, a long spear crackling with violet electricity took form.

The air around it surged with wild currents, spiraling like a coiling dragon.

Locking onto Hashirama, the First Raikage hurled the lance with all his might.

Whoosh!

The Purple Lightning Dragon Lance streaked through the sky, leaving a dazzling arc in its wake.

As it traveled, the sheer intensity of the lightning scorched the air, causing it to crackle and hiss.

"Summoning Technique: Quintuple Rashōmon!"

Seeing the incoming attack, Hashirama's expression grew serious.

Without hesitation, he bit his thumb and slammed his palm onto the ground.

With a powerful shout, five colossal gates—each engraved with demonic faces of different colors—rose from the earth one after another.

The lightning lance, carrying unimaginable destructive power, instantly obliterated the first gate.

The impact sent arcs of electricity surging outward in all directions.

Then, the second gate shattered as well.

The third... the fourth... finally, the fifth gate barely managed to halt the spear's momentum.

"Useless," Madara muttered, clearly dissatisfied with the First Raikage's performance.

But he could understand—after all, Quintuple Rashōmon was far from an unbreakable defense in his eyes.

"I have no patience to waste any more time on you."

"I'll wait for you to come to me yourself."

"Wood Release: Wood Dragon Technique."

Hashirama ignored Madara's grumbling. As he formed another set of seals, the devastated sea of trees instantly began to regenerate.

Chakra surged through the seeds in the earth, and thick vines coiled and twisted, rapidly merging into several enormous wooden dragons.

The moment their eyes snapped open, the massive dragons writhed and lunged toward the First Raikage at terrifying speed.

Their gaping maws roared through the air, the sheer force distorting the atmosphere and carving deep trenches into the ground beneath them.

Under the relentless assault of the Wood Dragons, the First Raikage found himself overwhelmed, unable to launch any meaningful counterattacks.

...

Meanwhile, the other battles were reaching their climax.

Byakuren's relentless attacks failed to land a single effective hit on Mito, while her sealing techniques gradually cornered him.

"Water Release: Surging Sea!"

Byakuren barely evaded another sealing array, quickly forming a hand seal and channeling a massive amount of chakra into the environment.

Moisture from the air and nearby water sources rapidly converged.

Then, towering waves erupted from both the ground and the sky.

These waves crashed and merged, forming colossal walls of water that soared tens of meters high.

With Byakuren at its center, the twin tidal waves spread wildly outward, crashing down like the wrath of an enraged ocean.

In an instant, they engulfed the battlefield, swallowing Mito within their depths.

Seeing her disappear beneath the raging waves, a smug smile crept onto Byakuren's lips.

No matter how powerful your sealing techniques are, you still can't escape my Water Release.

However, before he could celebrate for even a moment, Mito—her body still partially regenerating—burst forth from the waves.

"Fūinjutsu: Adamantine Sealing Chains."

Mito's commanding voice rang out, reverberating through the open battlefield.

In an instant, thick golden chakra chains shot out from her back like serpents striking their prey.

Each chain glowed faintly, twisting and writhing with a life of its own as they rapidly coiled around Byakuren.

In the blink of an eye, he was completely bound.

The overwhelming chakra surging through the chains bore down on him like an unstoppable flood, suppressing his every movement.

Byakuren's eyes widened in shock as he struggled to unleash his own chakra in resistance.

His entire body tensed, veins bulging as waves of energy burst forth, crashing against the chains again and again.

But Adamantine Sealing Chains was a technique strong enough to restrain the Nine-Tails.

No matter how much he struggled, the chains didn't budge an inch.

"No wonder you're the princess of Uzushiogakure," Byakuren sneered.

"Looks like wiping out Uzushiogakure was the best decision we ever made."

His words struck a deep nerve, and Mito's expression turned ice cold.

"You dare bring that up?"

She stepped forward, her hand snapping out in a blur.

A series of sharp slaps landed across Byakuren's weathered face.

"Why wouldn't I?" he scoffed.

"If Konoha hadn't sheltered you, do you think you'd still be alive?"

Licking the blood from the corner of his mouth, Byakuren met her gaze with defiance.

He had already died once—what was there to fear?

"Hmph. I never got my revenge for the destruction of my homeland."

"Consider yourself a substitute."

Mito wasted no more words and unleashed a relentless assault, delivering one blow after another.

Yet she remained in control, ensuring that Byakuren's Edo Tensei body couldn't break free.

The sight of it sent chills through those watching.

...

Hiruzen Sarutobi, wielding the Adamantine Staff, shattered Reto's body multiple times, but the reanimated corpse reassembled itself just as quickly.

As time passed, Hiruzen's attacks grew weaker.

His prime years were long behind him—he simply couldn't match the endurance of Reto's undying form.

The exhaustion of both chakra and stamina was taking its toll.

"At this rate, you might actually die here."

Reto's blade slashed through Hiruzen's robes, carving a deep wound into his chest.

Blood seeped from the gash, staining his clothes.

Yet Hiruzen's eyes remained steady as ever, completely devoid of fear.

"So what if I die?"

"The mistakes I once made—I will atone for them with my life."

"As long as I'm still breathing, I won't let you have your way."

At this moment, Hiruzen proved himself worthy of the title Third Hokage.

"I think I finally understand why Konoha remains so strong," Reto murmured.

A flicker of respect crossed his eyes before he twirled his sword and lunged forward once more.

While Hiruzen struggled to hold his ground, his master had already seized control of his own battle.

Tobirama had trapped Ishikawa in a Bringer-of-Darkness Technique, leaving him completely vulnerable.

With his Edo Tensei body in a constant state of destruction and regeneration, it was only a matter of time before he was sealed.

...

"Saru can't hold on much longer," Hashirama muttered, frowning as he caught sight of Sarutobi's worsening condition.

Unlike the others, Hiruzen was a living human.

If he died, that was it—no coming back.

"Sage Art: Gate of the Great God."

Making his decision, Hashirama ruthlessly suppressed the First Raikage.

Sealing him would take effort, but this would buy time.

With his movement restricted by the Wood Dragon, the Raikage had no way to evade as the crimson torii gates came crashing down from the sky, pinning him in place.

With the Raikage subdued, Hashirama finally had the freedom to assist Sarutobi.

Just as he was about to speak, however, a familiar chant echoed across the battlefield.

"Summoning Technique: Impure World Reincarnation."

As the smoke cleared, a single coffin appeared before everyone's eyes.

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