The wooden giant, over ten meters tall, rampaged through Kumo's army.
Even though Hikaru had not equipped the Wood Human with any weapon, and had deliberately restrained its size, a giant of that scale entering a crowd was still a massacre.
The Fourth Raikage and Killer B had tried to stop him.
Unfortunately, they could not.
Nor could they retreat.
Under Hikaru's control, every punch and every step from the Wood Human made the earth tremble.
And with every attack, countless shinobi lost their lives.
Kumo's forces were being depleted at a terrifying speed.
Faced with this situation, they tried to counterattack. Ninjutsu, taijutsu, weapons, all of it struck Hikaru's Wood Human and achieved nothing. Not even a ripple was raised.
The Wood Human Technique had been created to contend with Susanoo.
Even if Susanoo had its own history of being broken, against ordinary techniques like these, there was no possibility of the Wood Human failing.
"It's too much… the gap is too much. Can we really win against a monster like this?"
At last, one Kumo shinobi lost focus.
His comrades were falling one after another before his eyes, yet he could do nothing.
Looking at the enormous figure in the distance, at the giant wooden man that kept attacking, he could no longer hold on.
And it was not only him.
Many other Kumo shinobi were also on the verge of collapse.
The enemy they faced was too powerful.
So powerful it was suffocating.
A person's heart always had a limit. Even shinobi, whose tolerance far surpassed ordinary people, were no exception.
When comrades fell one after another, when they knew they were like mantises trying to stop a chariot but still had to charge forward, sooner or later, the first shinobi would run.
And once that happened, the entire Kumo army would instantly fall apart.
Besides, against a technique like the Wood Human, against an opponent like Hikaru, even if they did not collapse and kept their fighting spirit, it still would not matter.
"That damned bastard!"
The Fourth Raikage cursed under his breath.
He saw the state of the entire Kumo army. If this continued, the whole force would collapse before long.
But he had no good solution.
He had already coordinated with the army to attack once.
The result was that although he had smashed open a gap in the Wood Human, it healed almost immediately, while he himself was sent flying.
That level of defense was even more terrifying than the Deep Forest Emergence Hikaru had used against him last time.
Just how much strength had this brat hidden?
"Big Brother, we can't continue like this."
At that moment, Killer B suddenly spoke, his expression extremely grave.
"We have to use Gyūki's power."
"You mean the Eight-Tails?"
The Fourth Raikage's expression changed slightly.
"No. You haven't fully mastered the Eight-Tails' power yet!"
The current Killer B was not the future B who had fully adapted to the Eight-Tails' power.
Although because of Namikaze Minato, he had spent these years constantly improving, there was one thing that could not be ignored.
His use of the Eight-Tails' power still mostly came down to transforming into the tailed beast itself.
It seemed that in the entire shinobi world, jinchūriki used their tailed beasts' power in a very simple way. Only Naruto would eventually possess Nine-Tails Chakra Mode.
Whether that was because only the Nine-Tails had such power, or because the others had simply never developed it, was hard to say.
But what Killer B meant now was clear.
He wanted to fully activate the Eight-Tails' power.
However, his body had not yet reached its true peak. Recklessly using the Eight-Tails' power would inflict enormous damage on him.
Just like Naruto's early use of the Nine-Tails' power consumed his life, Killer B was now in the same situation.
"Big Brother, right now, the only one who can deal with that Wood Human is Gyūki."
Killer B sighed and shook his head. Then his gaze became incomparably serious.
"And right now, we don't have many choices left. If this continues…"
He did not finish.
But the Fourth Raikage already understood.
Because he understood, he fell silent.
Indeed.
If this continued, the situation would only grow worse.
Kumo's army could not withstand much more.
The Fourth Raikage closed his eyes helplessly.
Killer B, meanwhile, slowly closed his own.
In an instant, a vast chakra began to brew within him.
That chakra immediately caught Hikaru's attention.
The brilliant blue light in Hikaru's eyes flickered slightly, and he immediately understood what Killer B intended to do.
In his vision, a massive beast hidden deep within Killer B's body was awakening.
At the same time, Killer B's body began to change.
In only a few moments, an Eight-Tails roughly the same size as Hikaru's Wood Human rapidly appeared before him.
"Still holding back?"
Seeing this, Hikaru chuckled softly.
Of course, he could see how severely the Eight-Tails' chakra was corroding Killer B's body.
But no matter how serious that corrosion was, facing Hikaru's current power in this state still seemed far from enough.
But after laughing, Hikaru suddenly paused.
Because he suddenly felt that he was becoming more and more like a villain.
Looking back at everything he had done since arriving in the shinobi world, he realized that almost all of it was a slap in the face to the traditional hot-blooded shōnen protagonist.
More specifically, he seemed to have been doing the things villains usually did.
He wore a mask every day. No one knew whether he was good or evil.
When personal interest conflicted with the mission, he killed Kusunoki and took the captain's seat.
When someone from his own clan wanted to scheme against him, he did not compromise. He used Senju Shōta's family to force him into losing everything.
After becoming Anbu Minister, when facing subordinates loyal to the Third Hokage, he did not try to reform them. He simply kicked them all out.
When the previous Hokage was still in power, and the opportunity to become Hokage appeared, Hikaru had never stopped scheming against those previous Hokage.
He even knew that if a former companion betrayed him, he would probably kill them personally.
Perhaps the only thing he had not yet done was decide how to deal with two girls who liked him.
But judging from his actions, he might very well say: I want them all.
No matter how he looked at it, everything Hikaru did seemed like something only unscrupulous villains would do.
"Since I'm the villain, I might as well go all the way."
Thinking this, Hikaru's smile became even brighter.
Hero or villain?
To Hikaru, only the victor had the right to speak.
Win, and everything was yours.
Lose, and you would have nothing.
With that thought, Hikaru rose from within the Wood Human.
He folded his arms and swept his gaze over everyone present. Then, from above, he spoke.
"You've all brought me some pleasant surprises. The Eight-Tails looks quite interesting. But…"
"Have you ever experienced despair?"
Have you ever experienced despair?
The moment Hikaru said those words, the Fourth Raikage and the transformed Killer B both felt an ominous premonition.
Yet they had no way to stop him.
Hikaru formed a single hand seal.
In an instant, his chakra shook violently.
"Wood Release: Deep Forest Bloom!"
Unimaginable chakra burst out of his body.
The blue chakra cloak around him grew slightly chaotic, and his hair danced wildly in the wind.
Boom!
The earth shook madly.
Countless branches and vines surged out from beneath the ground.
These branches and vines resembled Deep Forest Emergence, but there was a clear difference.
When the endless branches climbed to their limit, closed flower buds appeared at the joints of the vines.
Under Hikaru's mixed chakra, these plants continued to emerge endlessly.
In only a few seconds, they had grown to an unbelievable size, surpassing all natural plants in the world.
And as the branches and vines appeared, Kumo shinobi who could not react in time were instantly bound.
Some even died the moment the giant trees erupted, buried directly underground.
However, Kumo's shinobi were still elites.
They quickly reacted and began dodging the branches chasing them.
But their minds were collapsing even further.
At this moment, they finally felt true despair.
"It's actually… Deep Forest Bloom?"
In the distant Konoha camp, all the Konoha shinobi erupted into wild cheers.
Only the clan heads fell silent.
Disbelief flashed in their eyes.
That was Deep Forest Bloom.
As clan heads of Konoha, they naturally had records passed down within their clans.
Many of their ancestors had once fought alongside the First Hokage.
Of course they knew many things about him.
Especially the battle between the First Hokage and Uchiha Madara. That was one of Konoha's greatest events.
They also had records of the techniques used in those battles, and those records had been carefully preserved.
They knew very well the difference between Deep Forest Emergence and Deep Forest Bloom.
Deep Forest Bloom could be considered a complete upgrade of Deep Forest Emergence.
And Deep Forest Bloom was one of the First Hokage's signature techniques.
"Minister Hikaru's strength has truly surpassed our imagination."
Hiashi spoke at that moment, still shaken.
But soon, he frowned.
"And Minister Hikaru's eyes… do any of you know what is going on with them?"
"I was just about to ask you that."
Aburame Shibi seemed to relax slightly now that the battle looked favorable, and for once, he did not remain silent.
"You are also from a dōjutsu clan. Even you don't know?"
"Everyone, I truly do not know."
Hiashi was helpless.
He really did not understand what Hikaru's eyes were.
He did remember that his clan seemed to have similar records, but recently, he had been under too much pressure. His mind had not been on that matter at all, so he had never gone looking for them.
But now, he felt that with Senju Hikaru here, the war was no longer a problem.
Perhaps even he had not realized it, but he had already begun to see Hikaru as someone capable of ending a war by himself.
Unlike Konoha's relaxed atmosphere, Kumo had now completely fallen into panic.
With the thunderous rumbling, the terrain of the land changed.
Towering plants appeared from nowhere, making everyone feel as if they had been thrown into a primordial forest.
Looking up, all they could see were endless vines and trees.
Nothing else remained.
If these trees had been ordinary, the Kumo shinobi might have been able to use them as cover.
But all these trees had been created by Hikaru.
They were man-eating trees.
"Don't even dream!"
The Fourth Raikage and Killer B attacked the trees frantically.
They were among the few who could still fight back.
But their resistance looked so powerless beneath Hikaru's countless trees.
Still, their performance was indeed impressive.
The Fourth Raikage used Lightning Release Chakra Mode to resist the spreading branches, constantly rescuing Kumo shinobi caught by them.
Killer B controlled the Eight-Tails to tear apart Wood Release branches while also launching attacks toward Hikaru.
Both showed excellent fighting will and a determination to protect Kumo's shinobi at all costs.
But Hikaru had no sympathy for them.
No matter how tragic and heroic they appeared, it did not change one fact.
They were the invaders.
Against confirmed enemies, Hikaru had never possessed much compassion.
What he would do was simple.
Bury them all.
"Not bad."
Hikaru controlled the Wood Human to grab the arm Killer B swung at him. Standing on the Wood Human's shoulder, he smiled.
"But this is still far from enough."
As he spoke, Hikaru controlled the Wood Human to throw a heavy punch.
The punch smashed into the Eight-Tails' face.
At that instant, the Eight-Tails flew backward like a cannonball, crashing into Hikaru's Wood Release forest.
It was true that Hikaru had not released the Wood Human's full size, keeping it at only over ten meters tall.
But the Eight-Tails' current manifestation was even worse.
Against this kind of opponent, Hikaru felt no difficulty at all.
However, Hikaru also planned to increase the pressure.
There were still some techniques he had not used.
He had no intention of ending this hastily.
But before that, he wanted to clear the field a little and use that to stimulate the two before him.
The two of them had potential, especially considering their importance in the future.
Although they had not grown into their future selves yet, that did not prevent Hikaru from trying to force their growth.
As for what harm that might cause them, Hikaru did not care at all.
After all, if there were no problems, he might even leave both of them here.
"Didn't I ask you earlier? Have you ever felt despair?"
Thinking this, Hikaru stopped the Wood Human's movements and formed another seal.
"Do not think this is everything.
"Because this is only the beginning."
As he spoke, chakra surged from Hikaru again.
The flower buds began to bloom slowly.
Extremely fine pollen drifted outward.
A faint fragrance appeared in the air.
Alluring.
And deadly.
"Lord Tsuchikage… what should we do now?"
In a cave far from the battlefield, Ōnoki watched the scene before him with Kitsuchi and several subordinates. All of them were drenched in cold sweat.
Especially Ōnoki.
He seemed almost dazed.
The combat power Hikaru displayed today chilled him to the bone.
This brat was already not inferior to the First Hokage, Senju Hashirama, was he?
Ōnoki had never personally faced the Deep Forest Bloom Technique, but he had found records of it in his grandfather's notes.
Ōnoki's grandfather was the First Tsuchikage, Ishikawa.
He had witnessed the power of Senju Hashirama, and he had recorded that power in his notes.
Ōnoki had always believed that after Senju Hashirama's death, no one would ever use Wood Release techniques this terrifying again.
Even if Wood Release was reproduced, it would never have Hashirama's power.
But today, Hikaru's performance had completely overturned his imagination.
He even wondered: if Konoha and Iwagakure went to war, and Hikaru fought, could Iwa stop him even with Ōnoki himself included?
That question lingered in Ōnoki's mind for only a moment before he sighed and shook his head.
Perhaps there truly were not many people who could stop Hikaru.
With his Light-Weight Rock Technique and Particle Style, Ōnoki himself might be able to pose a serious threat to Hikaru.
But he alone could do that.
No one else could threaten Hikaru.
They might not even withstand his assault.
Ōnoki sighed deeply.
He knew it was time to choose.
Should he help Konoha take down Kumo, or should he start preparing to guard against Konoha?
Konoha becoming too powerful was, strictly speaking, not a good thing.
No one wanted to return to the era when they lived under Konoha's overwhelming pressure.
After thinking it through, however, it seemed that in the current situation, taking the initiative to help Konoha would bring greater returns.
From a long-term perspective, that might not be a good idea.
But judging by Hikaru's current strength, Ōnoki felt they might not have much of a long term to consider.
He sighed helplessly.
Then his expression became extremely serious, and he turned toward Kitsuchi.
"Go back," he said firmly. "Notify the troops to prepare to advance toward Kumogakure's direction. Occupy favorable terrain as much as possible and build defenses. We will use them to defend against…"
Before Ōnoki could finish speaking, the earth shook violently again.
On Killer B's side, another enormous change occurred.
When Hikaru controlled the flower buds to bloom, fine pollen instantly spread through the entire forest he had created.
At that moment, countless Kumo shinobi smelled the floral fragrance entering their noses.
The scent was extremely pleasant.
It was smooth, relaxing, and intoxicating.
Soon, all the Kumo shinobi felt fatigue spreading through their bodies.
They no longer wanted to move.
Their fighting will was continuously being dispersed.
They felt so tired.
They only wanted to sleep within that fragrance.
Clink!
The sound of a kunai striking the ground suddenly rang out.
That sound was like the shattering of silence.
Soon, more and more kunai slipped from shinobi hands.
As they lost their weapons, they collapsed one after another.
But what greeted them after they fell was not true rest.
It was the branches and vines of Deep Forest Bloom.
At that moment, countless Kumo shinobi were caught by Hikaru's vines.
And at that moment, their fate was sealed.
"Not good! The pollen is poisonous!"
The Fourth Raikage finally realized something was wrong.
His body was very strong, but he had still been severely affected.
If he had not detected the problem in time and forcibly expelled the poison with chakra, he might have lost much of his combat ability by now.
But even though his reaction was fast, Hikaru was faster.
Those Kumo shinobi had already been captured, and some had been directly killed.
The Fourth Raikage surged with chakra like a madman.
He leapt up and cut at the vines with a hand chop.
Some vines were forcefully severed by him.
But that was far from enough.
Hikaru had created too many vines.
His actions were futile.
But he did not give up.
As a Kage, protecting his shinobi was something he had to do.
Yet no matter how hard he tried, he could not quickly clear all the vines.
Even the transformed Eight-Tails could not resist them.
In this desperate situation, a trace of despair appeared in the Fourth Raikage's heart.
He truly could not accept this reality.
"If only I were stronger…
"If only I were stronger!"
Grief and despair wrapped around him.
His body trembled continuously.
His hands kept attacking the trees until blood appeared.
He even knew the bones in his arms had developed serious problems.
But he did not stop.
His rage kept rising.
He swore he would kill Hikaru.
He swore he would save Kumo.
Under this near self-destructive assault, the Fourth Raikage suddenly discovered that his chakra was constantly rising.
His strength also seemed to be growing.
On the other side, the Eight-Tails transformed from Killer B suddenly released a roar.
Its body expanded wildly.
The surging chakra brought an unprecedented sense of suffocation.
But soon, that chakra stabilized.
In the end, the Eight-Tails' body stopped at around seventy meters tall.
"A complete Eight-Tails… B…"
The Fourth Raikage looked at the towering, massive Eight-Tails, and pain flashed through his heart.
Killer B had become stronger after fully transforming into a tailed beast.
But it would also inflict greater harm on his body.
Looking at Hikaru, who still looked completely unconcerned, the Fourth Raikage took a deep breath.
He decided not to deal with the vines anymore.
He had to deal with Senju Hikaru, the one using this technique.
The Kumo shinobi had clearly been poisoned.
If he wanted to save them, he could only defeat the caster.
Only by defeating the caster could he save them.
Or avenge them.
Hatred and rage echoed wildly in the Fourth Raikage's mind.
This hatred was even stronger than when his father had been surrounded and killed by Iwa.
He knew he hated Hikaru to the bone.
He knew he had to kill Hikaru.
"Roooar!"
Along with the Eight-Tails' furious roar, the Fourth Raikage stepped forward, the lightning around him growing even brighter.
"Senju Hikaru…
"I will kill you!"
Hikaru looked at the two of them with a strange expression.
He knew his actions would definitely make them explode with power.
After all, power-ups in the Naruto world had never been reasonable.
As long as it involved "love" or "protection," anyone could unleash unimaginable strength.
That was why Hikaru had deliberately been ruthless toward the Kumo shinobi.
The power of Deep Forest Bloom was not something Deep Forest Emergence could compare to.
Deep Forest Bloom not only possessed the power and traits of Deep Forest Emergence, but also had an even wider range and flower buds that released poison.
The moment Hikaru released this technique, the fate of every Kumo shinobi caught within it had been decided.
Although Hikaru did not know exactly how many had died, one thing was certain.
These Kumo shinobi were basically beyond saving.
Unless the Fourth Raikage and the Eight-Tails jinchūriki could defeat him before the branches and vines drained those shinobi dry.
"Your courage is commendable. Your momentum is not bad either."
Hikaru still stood on the Wood Human with his arms folded, a faint smile on his face.
At this moment, he felt like a complete villain.
But he did not care.
He said calmly, "Then I'll give you a chance to choose."
As he spoke, the chakra within Hikaru suddenly surged.
In the eyes of the Fourth Raikage, Killer B, the Konoha shinobi behind him, and Ōnoki's group, Hikaru's Wood Human began to rise wildly once more.
The wooden giant did not stop until it reached a height of one hundred meters.
At the same time, the earth shook madly.
"Roooar!"
With a strange roar, a wooden dragon suddenly burst from the ground.
This Wood Dragon was larger and longer than any Hikaru had used before.
It split the earth, then coiled around the massive Wood Human's neck.
At this moment, Hikaru had finally displayed the complete Wood Human Technique.
"If you can defeat me within a certain amount of time, they still have a chance."
Hikaru's indifferent voice rang out again.
With his back to the sun, his figure could not be seen clearly, but his tone made everyone feel as if they had fallen into an ice cavern.
"If not, they all die."
"The only one dying will be you!"
The Fourth Raikage roared.
The next second, he charged like a bolt of lightning, his fist wrapped in terrifying electricity as he swung it toward Hikaru.
"You damned bastard!
"Go to hell!"
His punch tore through the air with lightning and violent wind.
Facing this terrifying blow, Hikaru did not move at all.
Just as the fist was about to strike him, the wooden dragon coiled around the Wood Human's neck moved slightly.
Then the dragon easily blocked the Fourth Raikage's attack.
The Wood Dragon was not only there to strengthen the Wood Human's offense.
More importantly, it also served as a defense.
The moment the Fourth Raikage collided with the Wood Dragon, his body was sent flying backward.
At the same time, Hikaru frowned.
Not far from him, the Eight-Tails threw another punch.
Unlike the previous Eight-Tails, which was only around ten meters tall, the current Eight-Tails was in its complete form.
If its previous punch could only be said to be forceful, yet weak before Hikaru's Wood Human, then this punch carried pure power and penetrating force.
It was like a million-jin boulder smashing down.
The power was not refined, but its raw force was enormous.
"As expected of the Eight-Tails. That force is quite something."
Hikaru silently praised it, but his hands did not stop.
In the blink of an eye, the Wood Human raised its arm and blocked the Eight-Tails' fist at the crucial moment.
This time, however, the Eight-Tails' strength did somewhat exceed Hikaru's expectations.
Or rather, a fully manifested tailed beast's power was indeed extraordinary.
Crack… crack…
Hikaru clearly sensed that small cracks had appeared on the Wood Human's arm.
However, those cracks did not continue spreading, nor did they bring the Wood Human anywhere near shattering.
After all, this was a construct capable of withstanding Susanoo.
How could it be broken so easily?
In the blink of an eye, under Hikaru's chakra support, the damage on the Wood Human's arm fully recovered.
"Lightning Release: Liger Bomb!"
At that moment, the Fourth Raikage, who had just been knocked away by Hikaru's Wood Dragon, stepped on the Eight-Tails' body and charged up again.
He completely ignored the state of his own body.
In Hikaru's eyes, the Raikage had already suffered multiple fractures.
Yet he still charged forward, even launching this attack with everything he had.
That made Hikaru look at him a little more highly.
A full-power punch smashed toward Hikaru's position.
He seemed to have completely locked onto Hikaru, ignoring the Wood Human and Wood Dragon entirely.
But to Hikaru, his attack was still futile.
Under Hikaru's control, the Wood Human displayed unbelievable speed this time.
Its thick arm rose rapidly.
In an instant, the Wood Human met the Fourth Raikage head-on.
Boom!
Their fists collided.
A powerful shockwave spread outward from the point of impact.
The vines around Hikaru and the Fourth Raikage were instantly destroyed by the aftershock.
But the Wood Human remained motionless.
The Fourth Raikage was sent flying again.
"Now!"
At that moment, the Fourth Raikage suddenly roared.
Beside him, the Eight-Tails had already completed a Tailed Beast Bomb.
Actually, Hikaru had already seen that Tailed Beast Bomb.
After all, they were not far apart. The chakra movement was enormous, and most importantly, Hikaru had the Jōgan active.
He simply had no intention of defending against it, which was why he had not moved.
Killer B controlled the Eight-Tails and leapt up.
Then it fired the Tailed Beast Bomb straight at Hikaru.
Hikaru still stood in place with his arms folded.
When the Tailed Beast Bomb finally approached him, the Wood Human quickly crossed both fists in front of him.
Boom!
Heaven and earth changed color.
A violent explosion thundered across the sky.
Within the massive blast, flames faintly appeared in midair.
In an instant, the top of Deep Forest Bloom was ignited by those flames.
The fire fully erupted.
With the Wood Human at the center, the entire world turned into a sea of fire.
The leaves and branches at the top of Deep Forest Bloom became the perfect fuel.
As far as the eye could see, there was only crimson flame.
Heat waves slammed into everyone's faces.
The pollen evaporated under the high temperature and merged into the thick smoke.
And as the Eight-Tails continuously waved its tails, the smoke was driven into the sky.
The surviving Kumo shinobi beneath Deep Forest Bloom seemed to wake up at that moment.
They struggled to break free from the branches binding them.
For Kumo, it seemed as if everything was turning in a favorable direction again.
"Is he dead?"
The Fourth Raikage stood on the Eight-Tails' shoulder, murmuring with exhaustion.
"He should be…" Killer B's voice came from within the Eight-Tails. "After taking a Tailed Beast Bomb, he should…"
"I'm afraid I have to disappoint you."
Before Killer B could finish speaking, Hikaru's voice reached their ears.
The smoke gradually dispersed.
The massive figure became clear again.
Hikaru still stood there completely unharmed.
At that moment, despair filled their hearts.
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