Genji stared calmly at the smooth cuts ohorny branches before him.

  Anyone who had seen Hashirama or Madara in a would find it hard for any grand se to stir their heart again.

  Those two—anything you could imagihey'd already done, and on a scale beyond your wildest dreams.

  Simirly, anyone who had witnessed Muzo in bat and mao survive would no longer be fazed by bizarre occurrences. After all, nothing could outmatch the sheer variety of his teiques.

  Genji had, by ce, seen all of these people in a.

  To be ho, the se before him now her matched the grandeur of the first two nor the intricate creativity of Muzo.

  Having lived for so many years, expeg him to pull off a "stunned old man" face was really asking too much.

  In trast, Ao wasn't nearly as posed.

  "How did you do it?" he asked Masashi.

  Just moments ago, a wave of sharp thorny branches had surged toward them, and Ao had been sure it was the end.

  Abandoning the elder to escape on his own was not an option—if they were going to die, they'd die together.

  Then Masashi had appeared. With a single seal, a miracle occurred.

  The area they occupied became like a forbidden zone. Anything crossing the "boundary" simply vanished.

  When it was all over, the trio stood at the ter of a semicircur clearing, surrounded by a forest of cold, twisted thorns.

  "This is the Flying Thunder God of Tobirama, isn't it?" Genji observed. "It seems Konoha has perfected this jutsu."

  "Humbly speaking, it was the genius of the Fourth Hokage that perfected the jutsu, turning it into a mature teique. It's now much easier to learn," Masashi replied early.

  "As expected of the Hokage," Genji said with admiration in his tone. "Konoha is truly blessed with exceptional talent. I envy it deeply."

  Who are you fooling? He thought. You think I don't know what the Yellow Fsh's Flying Thunder God looks like?

  "Your trustworthio the Hokage is truly admirable," he said with a smile. "No wonder you've beerusted with such critiegotiations. The Uchiha and Senju seem to have finally put their grudges behind them and united. A truly joyous occasion."

  "Ihe Hokage specifically nominated our leader as an advisor. You wouldn't believe how much pressure he's under now—he's even stopped practig calligraphy because he's so worried about disappointing the Hokage."

  "Wonderful, truly wonderful," Genji said with an approving nod. "Kiri and the Uchiha have e to know each other through battle. Iure, we must foster closer ties."

  "We must," Masashi agreed with a sigh. "To be ho, Genji-sama, our struggles with social es. We've got plenty of young, eligible bachelors, but they're all single. I've noticed Kiri has more women than men—many outstanding young dies are stuck waiting to be chosen. That's just unfair."

  What a ing devil! Genji thought. I haven't even made a move on your Uchiha yet, and here you are targeting Kiri.

  "Young women deserve to be cherished," Masashi tinued righteously. "It's unjust for them to be overlooked. Why not build es through mutual exge?"

  "Well said! Masashi, you and I think alike." Genji nodded repeatedly, as though he had found a kindred spirit. "In fact, I won't hide it from you—I have a niece. She's proper, capable, and wise but has struggled to find a good match."

  "Oh? That's truly unfortunate." Masashi raised an eyebrow, instantly o. "But let's finish dealing with these traitors first. We discuss this ter."

  "Of course. We'll talk afterward." Genji wasn't ed. Oopic ehere was always room to revisit it.

  After this mission, the plementary strengths of Kiri and Konoha would undoubtedly usher in a stable honeymoon period. How best to leverage this would require skillful maneuvering.

  ---

  Meanwhile, Ao said nothing.

  He'd figured it out—these two weren't pnning anything good.

  Sigh… They hadn't even started w together, and already there was scheming and manipution. Genji was an elder, so it was uandable. But why was the so-called White Ghost just as full of tricks?

  Wasn't he supposed to be a bat specialist?

  Even with the fall of the "Darkness of the Shinobi," Konoha was still crawling with sdrels.

  Finally, the versation shifted to the task at hand. He rolled up his sleeves and readied his kunai.

  He'd already tried dealing with the thorny wood—they were tough as steel. Genji was an old man, so heavy physical activity was out of the question.

  "Ao."

  Hm? What is the White Ghost calling mr for?

  Don't you dare use some massive jutsu! The elder 't hahat kind of stress!

  "Masashi, the elder's age makes him fragile. We must be cautious," Ao said nervously, eyeing the Uchiha.

  Everyone khe White Ghost's modus operandi: go big right from the start and keep esg. His jutsu left nothing behind but devastation.

  "Don't worry." Masashi pced a hand on Ao's shoulder, telep him back to Genji's side. Then, he began f seals. "My jutsu isn't that inve."

  Drawing on knowledge passed down from Bck Zetsu, he felt it—this time, he could do it.

  Fme-like patterns crept across his face. White chakra became visible, radiating a cold aura.

  Ao panicked and rushed to shield Genji.

  White Ghost, you're insane! You promised caution, and now you're summoning some ice giant, aren't you?

  Konoha ninjas were indeed unreliable.

  He heard Genji's breathing grow heavy.

  As expected, the elder's body couldn't hahe White Ghost's jutsu!

  "Whi—" Ao started, ready to berate Masashi.

  Suddenly, a powerful force pushed him aside.

  "Genji-sama?"

  "Shut up, Ao!"

  Ao stared, dumbfounded, at Genji. The elder was staring ily at Masashi.

  Crack. Crack.

  A strange sound filled the air.

  Ao witnessed something utterly bizarre.

  It ine. A massive one.

  This colossal spine seemed spiritual, passing through the two men as it stood tall before them.

  It was formed from Masashi's stantly expanding chakra.

  What kind of jutsu was this? Ao's fusion didn't hihe jutsu's pletion.

  Under Masashi's trol, the white chakra expao enpass all three of them.

  Before the two men, the initial spine had grown into a plete humanoid upper skeleton. Muscles began f on it, and the chakra shell tracted to create "skin."

  "Susanoo…" Genji murmured with a sigh.

  Konoha… No, the Uchiha had awakehis power once more. No wohis man could serve as an advisor to the Hokage.

  Although the White Ghost's Susanoo was immature, that depended on who you were paring it tenji also noticed something terrifying—his Sharingan remai the three-tomoe stage!

  The Uchiha had refihis teique to such a level!?

  If someoo tell Genji that a genius from the Uchiha could activate Susanoo at the three-tomoe stage, even if it was just a basic version, that person would probably be chased across the vilge by his wielding his staff.

  Did they think geniuses could achieve anything?! Was "it's a genius" the ao everything?

  He didn't believe individual talent alone could aplish such a feat; it could only be the result of collective wisdom.

  If Masashi knew what Genji was thinking at this moment, he would undoubtedly give him a thumbs-up.

  When he walked the world as Muzo, he had mastered almost all the Senju 's ninjutsu. In terms of sheer quantity, he knew more teiques than any other Senju.

  The reason it was almost all was that some teiques had ludicrous "hardware requirements" he couldn't meet, but he still uood their principles. During this process, he learned an enormous amount.

  Tobirama spent most of his life studying the Uchiha, but he wasn't the first Senju to do so—he merely built upon and perfected the knowledge of his predecessors.

  And all of this knowledge was taught to Muzo.

  Thus, when Masashi acquired this knowledge, he wasn't ag alone—he had the wisdom of geions standing behind him.

  After joining the Uchiha , he naturally gained access to the collective achievements and insights of the Uchiha's aors, including historical studies of activating Susanoo at the three-tomoe stage.

  So now, he essentially had two legacies supp him.

  On this foundation, Bck Zetsu gave him the final push, shoving him through the door.

  And now, bined with the immense amplifying power of Sage Mode, he had finally unleashed it.

  The appearance of Susanoo differs among Uchiha, but the basic versions are usually quite simir. At this moment, his half-formed Susanoo had taken on a rather generi.

  Simply put, it looked like something that screamed "bad guy."

  There was no helping it—basic versions are like that. Aesthetics couldn't be a priority; whether the figuratio requirements was key.

  The Susanoo raised its hand and swept aside the dense forest of thorny wood ahead.

  In the deafening roar, the entire Mizukage Building seemed to tremble.

  The strength of a perfect jinchūriki y in their ability to tinuously use the Tailed Beast Cloak. Even simple punches and kicks carried the same destructive power as elemental ninjutsu.

  Whether or not Susanoo was based on this principle for debate, but in terms of results, it was just as, if not more, effective.

  The thorny wood was hard and sharp, but in front of Susanoo, it was meaningless.

  Even protected within the Susanoo, both Ao and Genji could feel its overwhelming power.

  It was as if a blual on were smashing through tofu.

  Segments of thorny wood were effortlessly torn apart, flying out alongside debris into the clear blue sky outside, then crashing down freely. The nearby Kiri ANBU, who were stationed as watchers, wailed in misery, their curses rising to new creative heights.

  The thorny wood tried its best to hinder Susanoo on its path. Unfortunately, its sharp edges couldn't even leave a scrat it.

  This level of defense far surpassed the Sage Art: Majestic Attire that he had previously used.

  That was a teique forcibly mimig Susanoh Sage Mode amplification. The chakra hadn't undergone any qualitative ges, and the strength was deliberately reduced; otherwise, he couldn't have used it at all.

  This time, however, he was unleashing Susanoo at its inal strength.

  In truth, the Mangekyō Sharingan didn't require hand seals to activate Susanoo. This was likely due to the skill bonus that came with the Mangekyō. But this was Masashi's first time, and he was meticulous about his ninjutsu.

  The result was excellent.

  Even though it was just a basic, armorless version of Susanoo, it effortlessly dispyed incredible defensive power.

  "Absolute defense" might be an exaggeration, but unless he faced a god, it ractically absolute.

  Susanoo, truly worthy of being the symbol of the Uchiha's power.

  In Bck Zetsu's words, this was the "Eye of Indra."

  Every pair of three-tomoe Sharingan ily possessed the power of Indra. In the past, due to the Uchiha's chosen path of power, they had to stimute their spirit to awaken the Mangekyō Sharingan, f out their tent potential.

  But achieving Mangekyō meant abandoning the infinite possibilities that came with Indra.

  Now, Masashi decided that the three-tomoe was good enough. He didn't see the o ge it.

  Between Indra and Obito, he chose Indra.

  After clearing the thorn forest, he tio release chakra.

  An enormous flow of it surged into the lower half of Susanoo.

  That familiar sound echoed again.

  Susanoo's body began to grow taller.

  Along with it, the three octs were lifted into the air as chakra gained form, supp them.

  Susanoo's head pierced through the ceiling and emerged into the upper floor. Its arms swung, tearing through the floor above.

  Finally, it was plete: a colossal warrior, radiating white light, stood tall.

  With its movement, the ground creaked ominously. Cracks spread out like spiderwebs.

  Both Ao and Genji immediately realized what was happening.

  Genji instinctively tightened his grip on his e.

  Despite his vast experie his age, he o take free falls seriously.

  Ao instinctively reached out to suppenji, earning a gre iurn—Are you pnning to help me jump off a building?

  In the moment, with the sound of shattering floors, Susanoo's body began to fall.

  The anticipated feeling of weightlessness didn't e. From their perspective, they only saw a tide of rubble crash against the chakra barrier ahead, uo advance.

  Genji let go of his e, sighing with awe.

  Who would have thought that in his lifetime, he would experieting inside Susanoo?

  It was… surprisingly fortable.

  And so, to the sound of tinuous booms, Susanoo desded floor by floor.

  Finally, with a thunderous crash, it nded firmly.

  In front of the two, Masashi released his hand seals.

  Guided by his will, Susanoo took a step forward and began walking outside.

  It's far more flexible than Prometheus…

  Feeling the differen operation, he was quite satisfied.

  In the inal timeline, Madara and Sasuke had demonstrated the endless possibilities of Susanoo.

  It could only be said that Yin Release ower that pushed imagination to its limit—if you could think it, you could do it.

  The chakra ption is higher pared to Prometheus. I'll use Ice Release for the small fry iure.

  Masashi quickly grasped many of the differences betweewo.

  Boom—!

  Like a raging bull, Susanoo burst through the thorn forest, revealing a clear view ahead.