"From the future?!"
Everyone's eyes widened as they looked toward the two figures battling in the distance.
"Could it be..."
"They're..."
The Clan Heads of both clans turned to look at their respective eldest sons.
Young Hashirama and young Madara also found themselves under the stares of their two younger brothers, who had been on the battlefield the whole time and still knew nothing of the truth.
Young Tobirama and young Izuna stared with round eyes.
"Aniki/Big Brother?"
The moment the two second sons spoke, it was like a prompt. Butsuma, Tajima, and quite a few Uchiha clan members all whipped their gazes toward the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju, and Izuna Uchiha, who were standing beside Minato and Kakashi!
The two had no intention of hiding it. They nodded to their clansmen and their fathers.
"Father."
That single greeting made young Tobirama and young Izuna stare at them in astonishment.
At the same time, after the shock faded from Tajima Uchiha and Butsuma Senju's faces, a trace of relief appeared there as well.
"I see. Tobirama/Izuna."
The two old rivals spoke almost at the same time.
"It's good that you lived safely into adulthood."
Tobirama Senju and Izuna Uchiha both froze slightly.
Having come through the Warring States Period, they had lost far too many brothers, relatives, and friends.
As fathers and Clan Heads, all they could do was remain silent.
Even when they buried their own sons, they had never shed a tear or shown even a moment's doubt about the war.
Tobirama still remembered that evening.
The coffins of their clansmen were buried one after another, and among them were the twelve broken limbs Kawarama had recovered.
His elder brother had gotten into a huge argument with their father, and they had parted on bad terms.
Now, after living to this age himself and becoming the leader of a Shinobi Village, Tobirama Senju finally understood. His father had not been unmoved by the deaths of his sons and clansmen, nor had he never thought of peace deep down.
It was just that, after being worn down by the years, too few people could be like his elder brother, possessing extraordinary strength while still holding on to their original ideals. So few they were almost impossible to find.
Izuna Uchiha and Tobirama Senju were both filled with emotion.
Young Tobirama and young Izuna stared at their future selves in disbelief. Suddenly seeing themselves more than ten years later left both of them a little dazed.
Then they looked again toward Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha in the distance.
Young Tobirama, young Izuna, and the Warring States Period ninjas could not help but sigh.
Their big brother/older brother/young Clan Head more than ten years from now was way too strong, wasn't he?!!
Was this still the ninja world they knew?!
A clap of the hands, and a giant Buddha came forth?
A shake of the body, and Susanoo became transportation?
This was completely beyond anything they understood!!
At that moment, Madara Uchiha and Hashirama Senju were getting more and more into their fight.
Madara Uchiha was the first to use the Rinnegan. "How about it, Hashirama?! You've never sparred with me when I had the Rinnegan, have you?!"
Not only was Hashirama Senju unafraid, his eyes were shining. He was looking forward to a full, exhilarating battle with his destined rival!
As Madara brought out the Rinnegan, Hashirama also used Senjutsu, and markings instantly appeared on his face.
The battle that followed was no longer something ordinary people could withstand!
There was no need to think about it. This would absolutely be a life-or-death clash capable of changing the earth's crust!!
"Everyone! Get out of here, now!!"
"If we stay nearby to watch the rest of this fight, even we'll be in danger!"
Minato Namikaze called for everyone to retreat as quickly as possible. To be safe, they needed to run for at least another thirty minutes at ninja speed.
This battle had already surpassed the Warring States Period ninjas' understanding of what a god was.
As they evacuated, Kurohi Uchiha asked Naruto, "Naruto-nii-san, is that really the future Madara-nii-san? He's not just a little stronger than Father!"
On the other side, Kawarama Senju sighed as well. "The future Hashirama-nii-san is way stronger than Dad too! Now Dad won't be able to casually beat him up anymore!"
The innocence of children was forgivable.
The clansmen thought their Clan Heads' expressions must be very complicated.
And that matter of seniority...
Obito and Sasuke cursed inwardly. Why call him brother? It made them seem like they had somehow been pushed several generations lower for no reason.
Butsuma Senju looked at the kid his son called "Naruto-nii-san." He was clearly not an Uchiha, yet both the Uchiha and his own son trusted him so much.
"Hey, kid."
Tajima Uchiha remembered that this boy had the Nine-Tails inside him, and the Nine-Tails even seemed to listen to him quite well.
"Which clan are you from?"
"Uzumaki. I'm Naruto Uzumaki."
"That does count as being related to the Senju."
The Senju and Uzumaki had always been allied clans.
"And what about the rest of you?"
He was asking Kakashi, Minato, and the other children.
"Minato Namikaze. I'm this child's father."
The Uchiha and Senju looked between Minato Namikaze and Naruto Uzumaki in surprise, inwardly marveling that the man looked far too young.
Minato did not explain. He introduced big and little Kakashi, Rin, and Sakura one after another.
"I've heard the Hatake surname before..."
The other families had no reputation at all.
"That's because Konohagakure isn't just a village for ninjas. Ordinary civilians without chakra can also live there, receive protection from ninjas, pay taxes to Konohagakure, and help support the ninjas' daily lives."
"Dad's right! It's not just ninjas! Konohagakure also has super delicious ramen!"
"Idiot Naruto! All you ever think about is ramen!"
"Ow, that hurts, Sakura! You're seriously strong now, you know!"
"Ah, I forgot for a second! Sorry, I'll treat you with medical ninjutsu."
"Sakura, watch your strength when you hit people. Or just don't hit people."
"Yes, Sasuke-kun~"
Obito looked at the huge bump on Naruto's head and silently felt lucky that Rin was so gentle.
Watching the Uzumaki, the Uchiha, and civilian ninjas interact so naturally, without any barriers between them, the Senju and Uchiha ninjas could not quite describe how they felt.
They felt sorrow that times had changed, and their descendants had already forgotten the hatred between clans.
At the same time, they were also relieved. Their generations of struggle and slaughter had finally allowed their descendants to live happy, peaceful lives.
They no longer had to hide their surnames in fear, and they could happily become friends with others.
"Hey! Are you from the Senju Clan and the Uchiha Clan?"
A teenager's voice came from the nearby forest, lazy and lacking much energy.
Calling out from far away meant he was exposing his position in advance, showing that he had no intention of clashing with the two clans.
"Who are you?"
"Introductions are such a pain. I'm Shikamachi Nara. Beside me are Taishi Akimichi and Tobi Yamanaka."
The three of them walked out of the forest.
Naruto and Sakura cried out, "Shikamaru?! Chōji?! Ino?!!"
Although they were a little older than the Ninja Academy classmates they knew, they were clearly the spitting image of the Ino-Shika-Chō trio they were familiar with!
Butsuma Senju said, "The Ino-Shika-Chō clans' territory isn't far from here. It isn't strange that they came to investigate after hearing the commotion."
"That's right."
Taishi Akimichi looked up at the dark blue chakra giant in the distance.
"What's happening over there?"
The two Warring States Period Clan Heads had no idea how to explain.
Were they supposed to say, "Relax, my son is just fighting with his friend. They'll make up in a while"?
Pah! Make up, my ass!! There was no way those two could become friends!
As long as he and Izuna/Tobirama were here, there was no way those two could ever be together!!
Tobirama Senju examined the terrain and was surprised to discover that the place where the two were fighting was actually the future location of the Valley of the End, near Konoha?!
After his surprise passed, he explained to the young Clan Heads of the Ino-Shika-Chō clans, "An artificial lake. It will improve the natural scenery. A hundred years from now, that place will be one of the Land of Fire's tourist destinations."
Shikamachi Nara: I don't believe a word of that.
Tobi Yamanaka asked, "It won't affect our territory, right?"
"No."
"Don't worry about that, ancestors of Shikamaru, Chōji, and Ino," Naruto said. "Madara and the First Hokage old man are just having a fight. They'll make up soon."
The moment he finished speaking, the Wood Release wooden figure vanished.
The Warring States Period ninjas breathed a sigh of relief, thinking the fight was finally over.
In the distance.
"I'm getting serious too, Madara!"
Under the effects of Senjutsu, Hashirama Senju absorbed the natural energy of all things.
"Senjutsu! Wood Release: True Several Thousand Hands!"
BOOM—!!
Where the wooden figure had vanished, a Senju Buddha several times larger than before thundered toward the dark blue Susanoo like a war chariot.
Then Madara Uchiha's Rinnegan went wild with excitement, and Susanoo doubled in size.
The Senju and Uchiha, who had stopped because they encountered the Warring States Period Ino-Shika-Chō trio:
"..."
Minato: "..."
"We should probably run even farther toward the outskirts."
This battle alarmed every large and small ninja clan in the Land of Fire.
One after another, they all rushed out to gather information.
That combat power could flatten a mountain with a casual move, and its techniques could split mountains and raise tsunamis at any moment.
After hearing that this was just a routine friendly sparring match between the young Clan Heads of the Senju and Uchiha, the Sarutobi Clan, Shimura Clan, Hyūga Clan, and others could only offer one big word in response: respect.
It pushed the combat power of the Senju Clan and Uchiha Clan to the maximum, then broke the scale altogether.
They had practically shattered the ceiling of the ninja world's battle power.
Who would still dare move against these two ninja clans?
The Hagoromo Clan, who had once wanted to join forces with the Uchiha to wipe out the Senju, instantly felt they were not worthy.
Would the Daimyō still dare hire these two ninja clans to keep each other in check?
He would have to consider whether his country had enough land to destroy...
The ones who became famous in a single battle were the adult Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha.
But young Hashirama and young Madara, who had no way to avoid becoming famous either, watched with blood boiling. They wished they could spar with each other right now using ordinary ninjutsu and Taijutsu.
Tobirama Senju said, "This battle between Big Brother and Madara won't end anytime soon."
Just like the time in their world when they created the Valley of the End.
But he suspected that this time, his elder brother would not kill Madara, and Madara most likely would not kill his elder brother either.
Watching his brother fight Hashirama Senju, Izuna Uchiha estimated that it really would take quite a while before the two were done.
He patted young Obito Uchiha on the shoulder. "Take my younger brothers to see Konoha."
***
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