Naruto: Wooing Tsunade from Day One!
Chapter 560: Madara Retreats

Chapter 560 - 560: Madara Retreats

"All of your strength comes from Mother."

"What's wrong with me reviving her?"

"The ones at fault are you."

"You don't know how to repay kindness."

"And you, Madara Uchiha."

"Sacrificing yourself for Mother's revival should be an honor."

"Hahaha~"

Having lost his chance to escape, Black Zetsu dropped his usual facade and began ranting.

"So this is your true nature."

"You really had me fooled."

A cold sneer appeared on Madara's lips—he had already thought of hundreds of ways to deal with Black Zetsu.

"That thing is hard to kill."

"My advice? Seal him away permanently."

Kawakaze chimed in at the right moment, making Black Zetsu seethe with rage.

"I should thank you."

"I'll make sure to leave your body intact."

Madara lifted his gaze to Kawakaze, still as arrogant as ever.

"No need to be polite."

"Compared to Kaguya Ōtsutsuki, you're much easier to handle."

Kawakaze made no attempt to hide his intentions. At this point, if Kaguya Ōtsutsuki were to emerge, no one would be able to stop her.

"Hah! I'd like to see how you plan to deal with me."

Madara couldn't help but laugh at Kawakaze's words. Had he really become someone others viewed as an easy target?

He wouldn't deny that Kaguya might be stronger than him, but he refused to accept such blatant mockery.

"Enough nonsense."

"Take care of your little problem already."

As Madara's attacks grew more intense, Kawakaze became increasingly cautious.

"Did I ask for your opinion?"

Madara controlled the twin blades of his Susanoo, swinging them in a powerful horizontal slash that successfully forced back Kawakaze's Great Buddha.

At the same time, a massive Tailed Beast Ball began forming in the mouth of the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path.

Madara fused one of Susanoo's chakra blades into the sphere, combining its power with the Tailed Beast Ball to create an overwhelmingly powerful attack.

The Susanoo-enhanced Tailed Beast Ball radiated a dazzling blue light as it shot toward Kawakaze's Great Buddha.

"What terrifying power..."

"Can Kawakaze withstand that?"

Staring at the incoming attack, Hashirama was reminded of the time he had used the Quintuple Rashōmon to divert a similar blast.

But the one Kawakaze was facing now was even stronger than the one Madara had once unleashed on him.

He didn't dare imagine what would happen if Kawakaze failed to block it.

There might not even be a trace of him left.

Hashirama struggled to rise, but the black rods impaling his body disrupted his chakra flow, rendering him unable to move.

Madara wasn't going to make the same mistake twice. After taking them down a second time, he had carefully placed the black rods to ensure they stayed down.

At this moment, it wasn't just Hashirama who looked grim.

Mito, Tobirama, Orochimaru, Jiraiya, and Fugaku all fixed their eyes on the Great Buddha's figure, their expressions tense.

"Sorry."

"This attack is useless against me!"

Kawakaze smirked with contempt.

The moment the Great Buddha made contact with the heavily armored Susanoo's Tailed Beast Ball, the massive sphere vanished.

Boom!

A deafening explosion erupted in the distance, sending a powerful shockwave sweeping through the battlefield, kicking up a storm of sand and dust.

Hashirama and the others were sent rolling several meters before they could stabilize themselves, their bodies covered in yellow sand.

Flying Thunder God: Guiding Thunder had successfully redirected the Tailed Beast Ball.

Kawakaze had long anticipated this situation and had taken precautions in advance. He had chosen an uninhabited desert within the Land of Wind, ensuring it was within his sensory range for a precise transfer.

"I forgot you had a technique like that."

Madara's expression darkened. He hadn't expected his carefully prepared ultimate attack to be neutralized so effortlessly.

"If you've got any other tricks, go ahead and use them."

Kawakaze commanded the Great Buddha to continue its advance, engaging Madara in another close-quarters battle.

No one knew how long they fought, but by the time their clash subsided, the very landscape of the Land of Rain had been completely reshaped.

The sky had darkened and brightened again, a testament to the sheer duration of their battle. Both Madara and Kawakaze were struggling to stay on their feet.

Even for them, no amount of chakra could sustain such reckless expenditure forever.

"Hah... You're stronger than I expected."

"I acknowledge you, Kawakaze Hatake."

The brilliant blue glow of his Armored Susanoo had dimmed significantly, and Madara was panting heavily.

This fight had been even more exhausting and perilous than his legendary battle with Hashirama.

"I don't need your recognition."

"I only need your life."

The Great Buddha's strikes had lost much of their initial force, and Kawakaze's exhaustion was becoming more and more apparent.

But from start to finish, he had never lost sight of his goal.

"Arrogant fool."

"This ends here. Guard the Tailed Beasts well and don't give me an opening."

"The moment I absorb all nine of them... will be the moment you die."

Madara knew that continuing this fight would only lead to mutual destruction, and Kawakaze clearly had more allies than he did.

No one had interfered so far simply because they couldn't, but that didn't mean he would survive if he collapsed from exhaustion.

He could sense how many people had gathered around in the past few days.

"You think you can leave?"

"Not a chance."

Kawakaze immediately caught on to Madara's intent. There was no way he was letting him escape.

"You can't stop me, and neither can they."

With a single swing of Susanoo's massive blade, a chorus of agonized screams rang out in the distance.

At their level, this battle had long since surpassed what ordinary shinobi could interfere with.

Even most Kage-level ninjas were nothing more than slightly stronger insects in the face of their power.

"You bastard..."

Kawakaze halted, his fists clenched so tightly that his knuckles cracked.

This was a blatant threat. If he moved, Madara would kill them all.

The reinforcements that had arrived weren't a help—they had become a liability, an obstacle in his way.

"Goodbye."

"I'll make sure to seal this guy away. Thanks for the suggestion."

Madara grabbed Black Zetsu with one hand, leaped onto Susanoo's head, and in an instant, soared into the sky, disappearing from Kawakaze's sight.

"Damn it!"

Kawakaze roared at the sky, his frustration and fury pouring out in a desperate cry.

As the Great Buddha faded away, he collapsed to his knees, utterly drained.

Pain surged through him, an unbearable weight pressing down on his chest.

He lay there, motionless, his silent tears soaking into the ground.

"...Kawakaze, I'm here."

He didn't know how much time had passed before he felt a gentle hand on his shoulder, accompanied by a voice he hadn't heard in so long.

"Tsunade?"

Kawakaze looked up in disbelief. That familiar face... there was no mistaking it. It was Tsunade.

But her dull, lifeless eyes and the cracks along her skin made it painfully clear—this was an Impure World Reincarnation.

"...I'm sorry. I didn't ask for your permission."

"But I figured... you needed her right now."

Orochimaru's voice came from nearby. He had taken it upon himself to bring Tsunade back with Edo Tensei.

Blood trickled from the corner of his lips, his face pale—he was clearly heavily injured.

"Thank you... Thank you."

"Let's go home."

"I will bring you back. I will bring everyone back."

Kawakaze stood up and took Tsunade's hand. The cold, lifeless touch sent a sharp pain through his heart, a cruel reminder of the truth he refused to accept.

"I believe in you."

Tsunade tightened her grip, her lips curling into a smile—one that Kawakaze had seen countless times before.