A: "It is not that the First Hokage's power is too weak, but rather that this Honkai Beast's defense is too strong."
Onoki: "If it were merely a matter of high defense, that would be one thing, but I fear its offensive power is not weak either."
["Fortunately, although its defense exceeded my expectations, it hasn't reached an unmanageable level yet."
Senju Hashirama breathed a sigh of relief seeing that while this Honkai Beast could still move, it was severely damaged.
However, seeing how unique it was, he actually didn't want to end the battle so quickly.
I'll test its special abilities first to gather intelligence, so the Ninjas won't suffer if they encounter similar Honkai Beasts in the future.
Having made his decision, Senju Hashirama relied on the fact that he could not die and refrained from continuing his attack, instead waiting for the Honkai Beast to strike.
Next, the Honkai Beast did not disappoint him.
The Honkai Beast's battered body hovered unsteadily as it aimed one of its Floating Blades at the ground. As the light on the Floating Blade flared, Senju Hashirama instinctively tilted his body to the right.
Whoosh—!
A Laser shot out from the ground, grazing Senju Hashirama's body as it streaked toward the horizon.
He subconsciously looked down at the Great Buddha beneath his feet.
He saw that the entire body of the Great Buddha had been pierced through by that Laser!
But it didn't end there. Next, he saw all the Floating Blades around this Honkai Beast form a circle, rotating slowly around it.
After the Honkai Beast briefly charged its power, the rotation speed of these Floating Blades suddenly accelerated. Simultaneously, it charged toward him with the speed of a colliding Chariot-class Honkai Beast.
Crack!
The indestructible Great Buddha, which even a Susanoo would find difficult to damage, could not withstand these rapidly spinning Floating Blades. Both of its legs were easily sliced off.
Rumble...
The massive frame of the Great Buddha lost its balance and fell into a kneeling position.
But soon, the Great Buddha's legs regrew, and it extended two giant hands to pin the Honkai Beast down.
Under the Great Buddha's colossal frame, this Honkai Beast was as tiny as a kitten and was easily restrained.
Normally, anyone would feel nervous, experience an accelerated heartbeat, or struggle when restrained.
But a Honkai Beast would not, because Honkai Beasts feel no pain!
Not only do they lack a sense of pain, they do not even possess fear!
Light flared from this Honkai Emperor's body, and immediately after, energy connected all the Floating Blades, forming something akin to a ring.
Then, before Senju Hashirama's widened eyes, the ring suddenly expanded, and after reaching its limit, it snapped back instantly!
This back-and-forth expansion almost cut the entire Great Buddha in half!
Even Senju Hashirama was nearly hit by the attack!
"I guessed this Honkai Beast's offensive capabilities might be different, but I didn't expect them to be this different."
"Compared to those Honkai Beasts that only know how to crash into things, it has actually learned how to use Honkai Energy to attack!"
"It's just like the Companion Honkai Beasts of those Herrschers... no, it's still a bit inferior to them, both in terms of size and its utilization of Honkai Energy."]
Hiruko: "What terrifying power."
Might Guy: "To think that even the First Hokage-sama's Wood Release couldn't handle it; the power of these monsters is truly getting stronger and stronger! Yosh! Starting today, all training will be doubled. We must protect the Ninja World at all costs!"
Rock Lee: "Right! I will also work hard alongside Sensei!"
Might Guy: "Well done, Lee! This is the fire of youth!"
Hatake Kakashi: "No, ordinary training probably won't be enough..."
Seeing that even the First Hokage-sama's Wood Release struggled so much against such a terrifying monster, many weak Ninjas and even civilians fell into despair!
They could not imagine any way to defeat such a monster.
Were they ordinary people destined to just wait for death?
"Sage of Six Paths, please manifest your divinity and eliminate these monsters!"
Countless people began to pray to the legendary Sage of Six Paths.
["The attack power is great, but the attack patterns are too straightforward. As long as one pays attention, they are easy to dodge."
Afterward, Senju Hashirama tangled with the Honkai Emperor for a while longer, only to find it repeated the same few attack patterns without any variation.
"Are these the only attack patterns it has?"
"It's not surprising. It is just a Honkai Beast after all, possessing no intelligence, only the instinct to destroy."
Unable to test any further, Senju Hashirama intended to end the battle!
"Sage Art: Wood Release: True Several Thousand Hands!"
Senju Hashirama clapped his hands, and the battered Great Buddha instantly restored itself to its original state, its arms regrowing behind its back.
"It's time to end this!"
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Countless fists rained down upon the Honkai Emperor's head.
This time, Senju Hashirama did not stop his assault until every single arm had been shattered.
Once the attack ended, the Honkai Emperor's already damaged body became even more dilapidated; not a single part remained intact.
Its primary means of attack, the Floating Blades, received special attention and not a single one survived.
"The battle is over!"
After finishing the fight, Senju Hashirama did not immediately take the Honkai Beast back. Instead, he cleared the other Honkai Beasts off the island before returning to the Honkai Beast's mangled remains.
"No matter how many times I see it, it's hard to believe these Honkai Beasts are actually made of energy. Once the Core is broken, it doesn't take long for them to turn back into Honkai Energy and vanish."
"Fortunately, I didn't break this special Honkai Beast's Core just now, or it would have been a problem."
Senju Hashirama did not deactivate the Great Buddha technique. Instead, he repaired its arms and controlled it to pick up the Honkai Emperor's remains, heading toward a deserted island in the Land of Water.
Senju Tobirama's laboratory was located there.
"Hahaha! Tobirama, I'm back! Look at what I've brought for you!"
On a seemingly unremarkable and deserted island, Senju Hashirama controlled the Great Buddha to set down the still-living Honkai Emperor and shouted loudly.
Hearing the commotion, Senju Tobirama came out to check and immediately saw the Honkai Beast his brother had brought back.
"This is... a new type of Honkai Beast?"
"This is indeed a surprise."
A new type of Honkai Beast would provide a significant boost to his research.
"Tobirama, let me tell you, this Honkai Beast is very strong. If it were any larger, I might not have been able to handle it."
Senju Hashirama walked to Senju Tobirama's side and slapped his shoulder.
"It's actually that formidable?"
The look in Senju Tobirama's eyes changed as he stared at the Honkai Beast.
He had originally thought it was just a Honkai Beast with a different form, but he hadn't expected there to be other differences.
His elder brother had truly given him a massive surprise!