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Hashirama crossed the distance in a blur and landed in the heart of Konoha.
"WOOSH!"
The Nine-Tails loomed above the village, smashing through buildings as it rampaged. Hashirama's eyes narrowed. Despite all the stories, seeing the beast's power in person still surprised him.
"So this is one of the legendary beasts from the Sage of Six Paths. The stories weren't exaggerating." Hashirama quickly formed hand seals, Wood Style chakra gathering in his palms.
"Wood Style: Wood Golem Jutsu!"
"BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!"
The ground shook under Konoha as a huge wooden golem rose from the earth, towering over the buildings. It stood between Hashirama and the Nine-Tails, blocking the beast's way.
At the same time, Tobi appeared on a raised stone platform and fixed his gaze on Kurama. "That's enough. Time to pull out."
"..." Kurama narrowed his red eyes and nodded. He and Tobi had just started to leave when Hashirama's cold shout resounded across the battlefield.
"You storm into Konoha, hurt my people, and think I'll let you walk away?" Hashirama's face stiffened as Wood Style chakra gushed from his body.
The wooden golem swung its huge fist as a wooden dragon burst from the ground. Both attacks closed in on Kurama from different sides.
Seeing the dragon and the golem's fist coming at him only made Kurama more excited.
"Fine, kid. If you want a fight, Big Kurama will give you one. Try swallowing a Tailed Beast Bomb!"
Kurama opened his jaws, compressing a dense mass of tailed beast chakra inside his mouth. The Tailed Beast Bomb formed and shot toward the wooden golem and dragon.
"BOOOOOOOOOM!!"
The explosion echoed through the night, sending a shock wave across the battlefield and raising a wall of dust. When the dust settled, the wooden golem still stood, holding the Tailed Beast Bomb in one hand.
The golem charged forward, took three heavy steps, swung its arm, and slammed the attack right onto Kurama's head.
The blast knocked Kurama to the ground. Before he could get up, the wooden dragon wrapped around his huge body.
The dragon's coils tightened and its claws dug in, trapping the Nine-Tails in a crushing grip.
"Wood Style: Deep Forest Emergence!" Hashirama gave him no chance to fight back.
He made another set of seals, sending chakra into the ground. The earth shook as thick trees shot up from below.
"WOOSH!"
Trunks, roots, and branches rushed in from all sides, wrapping around Kurama until a living wooden cage covered most of his body.
Kurama roared and struggled with all his strength. Tailed beast chakra burst out, breaking branches and trunks, but more wood kept closing in before he could escape.
Wood Style naturally held back tailed beasts, so every time Kurama tried to escape, he failed.
'Damn it! Why does Hashirama's Wood Style suppress me this badly? Every Asura reincarnation I've known was powerful, but even they needed allies in battle. None of them could overpower me alone…' Kurama only knew about Asura and Indra's reincarnations from past eras.
There had been strong shinobi among them, but none had ever beaten a tailed beast like him with just their own power.
Kurama didn't know that Hashirama hadn't even used Sage Mode yet. If Hashirama had used senjutsu, one Sage Art: Gracious Deity Gates would have ended the fight right away.
Tobi watched from the stone platform, his face growing tense.
'This is bad. Hashirama is much stronger than the rumors said.' Tobi began making hand signs to release the Summoning Jutsu, but Hashirama moved faster.
A detailed sealing mark appeared on the golem's palm, and its huge hand hit Kurama right on the forehead, filling him with sealing power.
"You live up to the name of a tailed beast passed down by the Sage of Six Paths. Your power is too dangerous. I have no choice but to seal you!" Hashirama drove more chakra into the mark.
"Kakuan's Tenth Edict on Enlightenment!"
"Damn it! What did you put in this seal? My mind… I can't move…" The seal pulled Kurama into unconsciousness.
His red eyes closed, his huge body went limp—and he fell into a deep sleep.
"No! He broke the summoning link!" Tobi flinched as his connection to Kurama disappeared. His face went pale, but before he could react, Hashirama turned toward him with a deadly glare.
"Wood Style: Wood Dragon Jutsu!"
"Wood Style: Wood Golem Jutsu!"
A huge wooden dragon lunged at the platform while the golem's fist smashed down nearby. Tobi didn't stay. He used Earth Style to burrow underground and escaped Konoha without looking back.
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With Tobi gone and Kurama sealed, the Nine-Tails' attack on Konoha was finally over.
Inside the Hokage Tower, Hashirama listened as Tōka Senju delivered the casualty report.
"Lord Hashirama, we only suffered two casualties. Everything else was property damage, and most of the buildings were either abandoned or unfinished."
"It looked much worse than it was. If anything, the Nine-Tails saved us some trouble. Now we won't have to demolish those buildings ourselves."
Hashirama finally relaxed.
"We were lucky. If hundreds or even thousands had died, I would have had to pay for it with my own life."
Konoha had never been attacked at home before. Hashirama was in charge of protecting the village, and if there had been heavy losses, he would have been blamed.
"The casualties aren't our biggest problem, Lord Hashirama. Public opinion is turning against us!!" Tōka's expression grew grave.
"Most people have always regarded the Nine-Tails as a sacred beast. Since Konoha started this war, they believe its attack was divine punishment. They think the Sage of Six Paths sent it here to punish the village."
"..." Hashirama sighed and frowned as he looked down at the desk. He couldn't ignore the rumor, since part of him wondered if it was true.
Konoha had started the war, and maybe the Nine-Tails really had come to punish the village.
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