At the edge of the battlefield, Hashirama Senju stood motionless, half-hidden among the trees, quietly watching as his brother fought for his life.
Beside him, Kai stood with his arms crossed, calm on the surface, though even his eyes narrowed slightly the moment Tobirama was struck by the lightning grid from the Banana Fan, then caught in the sealing trap of the Six Paths Ninja Tools.
"…Sir," Hashirama finally said, voice low but sharp with concern. "What are those tools? Are they the reason Tobirama's struggling?"
He'd never seen them in action before. Not like this.
Back when he was alive, no village—not even Kumogakure—would have dared to point such weapons at him. Not even with their full forces. They couldn't even secure a single tailed beast. Meanwhile, he'd captured all nine on his own.
The power gap had been overwhelming.
But now? In this alternate world—this "World No. 2"—his absence had shifted everything. Lawless thugs like Kinkaku and Ginkaku ran rampant. No fear. No order.
Kai's tone was level, almost textbook.
"The Six Paths Ninja Tools. Five legendary weapons. Said to have been passed down from the Sage of the Six Paths himself."
He went down the list.
Amber Purifying Pot: "Seals the target instantly if they answer to a call."
Banana Fan: "Can release all five elemental chakra natures. Powerful, but drains chakra fast."
Golden Rope: "Forces the victim to speak a word-spirit—the phrase they use most often."
Seven Star Sword: "Cuts that word-spirit and reveals it in written form."
Crimson Gourd: "Seals the victim if they repeat, mispronounce, or fall silent around that word."
Hashirama's eyes narrowed.
"That's… terrifying."
He was beginning to understand how deadly these tools were.
If you didn't know how they worked, the battle was already lost. Most shinobi wouldn't survive long enough to learn from the mistake.
Even someone like him, if caught off guard…
But right now wasn't about him.
It was about Tobirama.
And things were turning bad.
Down on the field, Tobirama stood bloodied and shaking. Not from fear—just exhaustion. His chakra reserves were nearly gone.
But anger still burned in his chest.
"Bastards…"
He grit his teeth.
"Mocking me with that phrase…"
Everyone knew about his history with the Uchiha. It wasn't a secret. But having it weaponized against him like this—thrown back as a joke—it stung more than he expected.
"Damn you… You think I care about the Uchiha? Aside from Izuna and Kagami, I've always hated that clan!"
"And now you turn that into a curse?!"
The sealing ropes still burned against his body.
He didn't have time.
He had to end this—now.
Suddenly—
Whoosh.
He vanished.
Ginkaku blinked in surprise. "Flying Thunder God again?"
He looked around, but didn't panic.
It didn't matter.
Tobirama had already triggered the word-spirit. The curse was active. The Crimson Gourd would seal him soon enough—no matter where he ran.
Or so he believed.
Until—
Shhk!
A blade pierced clean through his back.
Straight into his heart.
Ginkaku gasped, eyes wide.
"You—"
He turned his head, trembling.
Tobirama stood behind him. Bloody. Expression grim.
"You… shouldn't… still…"
Tobirama didn't speak. Just pulled his sword out and disappeared again in a blink.
He'd marked Ginkaku earlier in the fight. Quietly. Through a shadow clone.
His original plan was to kill both brothers in one clean strike.
But now that the sealing curse was active, there was no time.
So he changed the plan.
If he was going down, he was taking one of them with him.
"GINKAKU!!"
Kinkaku's roar split the sky.
His twin dropped to his knees, blood gushing from his chest.
Then—
Rage.
Tailed Beast chakra surged outward in a violent storm.
A thick red cloak wrapped around Kinkaku's body. Six enormous tails snapped through the air like whips.
Half-Tailed Beast Transformation.
His eyes turned savage. His muscles swelled.
In that moment, Kinkaku transformed into a monster on par with a Kage.
Tobirama staggered back.
"What… the hell… is that?"
The red chakra. The density. The pressure.
It was the Nine-Tails.
"That's… the Nine-Tails' chakra?!"
His thoughts raced.
The Nine-Tails was supposed to be sealed inside Mito. So how—?
Did Kumo manage to get a sample? Did this lunatic eat part of it?
There was no time to figure it out.
Even at full strength, fighting a half-transformed tailed beast was dangerous.
And right now?
He had barely enough chakra to stand.
But Tobirama wasn't the kind of shinobi who walked into a fight without a backup plan.
As Kinkaku charged—
Boom! Boom! BOOM!
Three coffins exploded from the ground—Impure World Reincarnated bodies, each packed with explosive tags.
They clung to Kinkaku—
[Forbidden Jutsu: Multiplying Detonating Tags!]
A chain of explosions followed—each blast spawning more in an endless loop of destruction. The shockwaves ripped through the battlefield, blowing trees, soil, and smoke into the air.
For nearly two minutes, fire and thunder ruled the field.
At the edge of the woods, Hashirama narrowed his eyes.
"…That's my brother's forbidden jutsu."
Kai nodded. "He's pretty good with traps."
When the smoke cleared, only one figure still stood at the center.
Kinkaku.
Burned. Bloodied.
But still alive.
Still growling.
Tobirama stared.
"You've… got to be kidding me."
His jutsu had vaporized half the Cloud jonin force.
But Kinkaku, covered in that cursed red chakra, was still on his feet.
"Damn tailed beast cloak… it's too strong…"
If only he had more time.
More chakra.
He cursed under his breath.
If my brother were here… none of this would've happened.
Then—Tobirama's eyes widened.
Kinkaku bent over and opened his mouth.
From inside—Ginkaku.
He'd swallowed his own twin, shielding him inside the beast cloak during the explosions.
A grotesque act of loyalty.
Kinkaku turned slowly, eyes glowing.
He locked onto Tobirama.
"You're next."
A tail lashed out, fast as lightning.
Tobirama teleported—but his body was slow.
He blinked back into view, only to be hit by three more tails.
He blocked one. The other two struck home.
His left arm. His gut.
"Guh—!"
He dropped to a knee, blood pouring from fresh wounds.
Kinkaku began forming a dark orb of chakra at his mouth.
The Tailed Beast Ball.
"...Shit."
Tobirama couldn't move anymore.
He was out of chakra.
Out of time.
And out of cards.
The black sphere condensed—dense, volatile, howling with raw destruction.
"Guess this is it…"
His thoughts began to drift.
Izuna… sorry.
Monkey, Danzo… keep going.
Konoha must live.
Big brother… I failed you.
The Tailed Beast Ball fired.
It screamed toward him like a comet of death.
Tobirama shut his eyes.
Then—
"TOBIRAMA!!!"
A voice—roaring across the battlefield.
Familiar.
No… it couldn't be.
He forced his eyes open.
And saw him.
Senju Hashirama.
Standing between him and death.
One hand extended.
Slapping the Tailed Beast Ball aside like swatting a fly.
BOOOOM!
The black sphere exploded far off in the distance, incinerating a stretch of forest in a single blast.
Tobirama just stared.
Frozen.
"...That wasn't a dream?"
The shockwave passed, shaking the trees.
But he didn't feel it.
He was too stunned.
Was this the afterlife?
An illusion?
No.
It was real.
The man standing in front of him—
"Big Brother…?!"