Chapter 149: Death
The Kazama Plains battlefield... or rather, it was impossible to say what this place should be called now.
Under Madara's Susanoo and Masahiko's Dust Release, the battlefield had been continuously shattered and reshaped.
Masahiko had closed the Seventh Gate. His body was covered in injuries. He felt that if he kept it open any longer, he would shorten his lifespan. And looking at Madara's condition, he felt there was no need to reopen it.
Two hours had passed since their battle began, and the sky was beginning to brighten. In reality, Masahiko was showing signs of slight defeat. In the end, his strength was still slightly inferior to Madara Uchiha, who possessed a portion of Hashirama's power. Masahiko had thought about "cheating" and using his remaining 200 Witness Points to restore his stamina, but...
The Susanoo giant crumbled and collapsed. Madara Uchiha could no longer maintain his youthful appearance.
"Tch, is it time?"
Madara snorted coldly and sat down.
Masahiko sighed and relaxed, the soreness throughout his body making him unable to stand.
"Madara, in the end, you won." Masahiko shook his head with a bitter smile.
"Old man, are you pitying me? Victory belongs to the one who is still alive in the end!"
Masahiko was stunned, then shook his head quickly. "Are you saying that to comfort yourself? Do you think you won against Hashirama?"
Madara's aged face darkened slightly. A moment later, he repeated: "Old man, you still have such a punchable face."
Masahiko laughed. "Punchable? Then come and hit me!"
After that, both fell into silence.
After a long while, Masahiko asked tentatively, "Madara, do you regret it?"
Madara Uchiha paused, then said decisively, "No!"
"Is that so? I understand."
"Sage Art: Storm Release — Laser Circus!" Masahiko formed seals, firing Storm Release lasers from his hands. Several screams came from not far behind Madara; they were scouts sent by the Hidden Grass Village who had come seeing the battle pause.
"Old man, do you still have the strength to use that kind of ninjutsu?"
Masahiko shook his head. "Stop calling me 'old man.' Look at yourself now..."
Madara's appearance had become increasingly aged, resembling how he looked when facing Obito in the original story.
"Birth, aging, sickness, and death—it's the way of humans. Old man, you will have such a day too. I will be waiting for you underground!"
Masahiko paused. "You make it sound like you're about to die immediately. With your strength, you could still linger on for a few months."
Madara was stunned. "Old man..."
"Are you pitying me!"
Masahiko shook his head and clutched his stomach. "My stomach suddenly hurts. I'm going to the toilet, so I won't send you off personally. The battle is over, and more and more people are rushing here. Don't die at their hands!"
Masahiko stood up and hesitated.
"Farewell then, Madara!"
He flew rapidly toward the south.
"Stomach ache? Going to the toilet? What a laughable excuse. But... farewell, old man." Madara muttered, looking at a figure slowly approaching from the distance.
"I won't die at the hands of trash like this!"
The figure gradually approached, revealing its full appearance.
Madara frowned slightly. "Who are you? A clone of Hashirama's cells?"
White Zetsu spoke slowly: "Madara Uchiha, it seems you need my help."
...
Masahiko flew rapidly toward the south, not toward Konoha, but toward the Shikkotsu Forest (Wet Bone Forest). His stomach really did hurt.
After opening the Seventh Gate, seeing Masahiko weakened, Black Zetsu began to struggle inside his body. He needed to quickly find a safe environment to reinforce the seal.
Halfway through the journey, Masahiko found it unbearable. Looking down at the uninhabited forest below, his sharp eyes spotted a cave.
"This will do!" Masahiko murmured and dove in.
"Sealing Jutsu: Four Red Yang Formation!" Masahiko used a weakened version of the Four Red Yang Formation to block the cave entrance.
"Now, to deal with you!"
This time, Masahiko got serious about sealing Black Zetsu. He basically used every sealing technique he knew on his body. The seal formula on Masahiko's abdomen had become a blurry mess; presumably, no one could recognize what kind of seal it was anymore.
Finally, unable to feel Black Zetsu's struggle, Masahiko breathed a sigh of relief. His chakra was nearly depleted, and his consciousness was becoming blurry. He focused his last bit of energy, mobilized his chakra, and performed the Summoning Jutsu.
"Lady Katsuyu, sorry to trouble you. Just maintain my necessary life functions."
Masahiko felt that this sleep would last about a week, and he didn't want to wake up as skin and bones. If he had known he couldn't make it to Shikkotsu Forest, he would have flown to Konoha. Previously, he thought it would be awkwardly embarrassing to be fed and cared for by juniors if he fell into a coma, so he subconsciously flew toward Shikkotsu Forest.
Katsuyu seemed to respond with something, but Masahiko could no longer hear clearly as his consciousness faded.
Suddenly, a familiar line of Chinese characters flashed before his eyes, rousing him slightly: *Witnessed and completely changed the Naruto world Main Story (Majority): Death of Madara Uchiha. Received 50 (/2) (10) Witness Points.
"Madara died?"
"Suicide?" Masahiko felt that even a weakened Madara wouldn't let some random trash kill him.
"Lost quite a few Witness Points... and the Rinnegan..."
This final thought flashed through Masahiko's mind before he fell into a coma.
Meanwhile, at the Kazama Plains battlefield.
Hiruzen had arrived with Konoha's elite forces, and Mito was among them.
"Lady Mito..."
Mito entered Nine-Tails Chakra Mode and sensed with all her might. After a moment, she shook her head.
"There are no chakra reactions from either of them anymore. But Great-Uncle should be fine; he seems to have gone south."
Hiruzen breathed a sigh of relief. "It seems Elder Masahiko won. Alright, let's go back and wait for him!"
Tsunade in the team also breathed a sigh of relief, but failed to notice the glint in her teammate Orochimaru's eyes.
A small snake slithered across the ground, taking away a few drops of blood. Whether they were Masahiko's or Madara's was unknown...
Time passed, and Masahiko slowly woke up in the cave.
Moving his slightly rusty body, Masahiko regained his spirits.
Scanning the surroundings, the Katsuyu summon had been dispelled at some point, and the Red Yang Formation at the entrance was gone, replaced by a giant spider web.
Masahiko's mouth twitched. "What the hell? Did I enter the Spider Cave? How long was I out..."
Masahiko moved a few steps and used a Fire Release to burn away the spider web. Walking out of the cave, the dazzling sunlight made him squint. Suddenly, an unbearable, intense pain came from his waist.
...
"Second Grandpa!" Tobirama's voice, seeming both distant and near, rang out, startling Masahiko.
"Old man, die!"
Masahiko looked up and saw Madara's ferocious face, clad in the second stage of Susanoo, appearing right before him.
Looking down at the massive wound on his waist, then at the Uchiha and Senju fighting around him, Masahiko murmured softly.
"What the hell? Tobirama is still alive? This place... is this the war where Izuna Uchiha died?"
"Am I under Madara's Genjutsu?"
His consciousness gradually blurred.
"Am I... dead?"
☆☆☆
-> 30 Advanced chapters Now Available on Patreon!!
-> https://www.pat-reon.co-m/c/Hollowborn
(Just remove the hyphen (-) to access patreon normally)
If you like this novel please consider leaving a review that's help the story a lot Thank you