Naruto: Passerby and Returnee

Chapter 297 A Secret Experiment

The amazing Wood Release always has amazing uses. Even Hashirama himself, who mastered Wood Release, had not fully developed all of its functions. It is even more difficult for successors in later generations who can barely use Wood Release by relying on Hashirama's cells to break through.

Born in the Warring States period, Hashirama originally had no opportunity to explore the non-combat applications of Wood Release. To survive, all ninjas of that era pursued power, and the slightest lapse in concentration meant certain death, even Hashirama Senju was no exception. However, he was fortunate enough to live in a relatively peaceful era, finally having the time to study the hundred uses of Wood Release, a time of great diversity and variety.

Accelerating seed growth and breeding progress are minor matters. He's now adept at everything from planting trees and afforestation to building houses and constructing various civilian buildings; give him a blueprint and he can build an entire neighborhood in one go. Of course, in Hui's plan, concrete and steel structures are safer; the wooden houses are only temporary and will be gradually modified later.

You might think this is outrageous, but the combination of Wood Release and Hashirama always brings some surprises.

This brings us to another system developed by Tobirama, a theoretically continent-wide intelligence system. This is a byproduct of "planting" White Zetsu; the tree species catalyzed by the White Zetsu organization possess the ability to communicate with Hashirama Senju. Although Tobirama was baffled by the fact that the trees could "see" images, it simply happened. Hashirama could use these interconnected "trees" as his third eye, and even his shadow clones could communicate with the trees. Theoretically, a continent-wide surveillance system is achievable right now.

Did Hashirama ever attempt something like that?

Of course, the First Hokage's spirit of exploration never stopped. He actually dragged Tobirama along to try it once, and fortunately, he didn't mess around with it alone, which prevented a major disaster.

When all the shadow clones and the original body synesthetically connected, Hashirama's mind didn't just show the area where his original body was located. Instead, it was as if his meridians had been instantly opened, connecting all the points. A detailed picture of the continent instantly appeared in one person's mind—a burden no human could bear. Hashirama naturally "crashed," his mind drawn into that picture.

He observed busy anthills in the soil, listened to birdsong in the treetops, explored the deepest lakes to find hidden beasts, and watched farmers tilling the loess soil. In that moment, he seemed truly one with the earth, completely forgetting his human nature. He breathed with the earth's pulse, joyfully enjoying the vibrant nature, and then he saw countless lines… no, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say countless rivers. Those "rivers" flowing in the air, in the water, and underground weren't water, but the power of nature. Normal natural cycles don't create these "rivers" of energy; he felt inexplicably restless and fearful, and he "walked" along those rivers.

At the heart of the ocean, deep underground, he suddenly heard an extremely piercing screech, and then the energy-devouring figure appeared. It was a colossal beast with only one eye but ten tails, utterly hideous. It seemed to see him, opening its gaping maw filled with sharp teeth, and lunged at him!

"Big brother! Big brother!! Hashirama Senju!!"

The anxious voice finally brought him back to his senses. He opened his eyes blankly, only to find himself surrounded by tangled branches. He tried to raise his hand to clear them away, but his arm seemed to be trapped in something. It took him a great deal of effort to pull them out, and he then tried to brush away the debris. His arm turned out to be mutilated, covered in dust, and covered with vines and branches.

"I'm sorry, brother."

He heard the voice say those words, and then a high-speed jet of water shot towards him, tearing through the branches and blasting open his head. His vision went black for a moment, then slowly returned to light. He knew this feeling all too well; he had died again.

"Big brother, how are you feeling?" Tobirama squatted down beside him, his hand glowing with a green light that had no effect on the dead. He was probably just doing this out of instinct, because Hashirama's death had triggered his worst memories.

Short white hair, red eyes, wearing blue armor, and calling him "Big Brother"... "Little Brother"—Tobirama, it's Tobirama! How could he forget? What was he thinking just now? What was he doing?!

"I'm fine. What could happen to an impure body?" Hashirama forced a smile and sat up. As soon as he stood up, he saw a chaotic cave, with haphazardly growing branches almost completely covering it. They were probably in the center of the spreading branches, but Tobirama's Water Release had forcefully cut through the area, creating a space large enough for two people to stay in.

Hashirama raised his head, his eyes shifting from shock to a calm acceptance, and said, "I lost control again? How can even my Edo Tensei be out of control?"

"If it weren't for my Impure World Body, do you think I could have pulled you out?" Tobirama sneered, seemingly switching from being terrified to being furious. "I guessed that you lost control because you were too distracted, so I immediately sent out clones to destroy your wood clones. Those clones were the same; almost all of them merged with the trees you planted. I cut them off, and for those that I couldn't cut off, I just chopped down the trees. Don't blame me for that."

"I'm sorry, I didn't expect this outcome either. I thought we'd need a telepathic connection technique to synchronize the information, but..." Hashirama paused here. Just recalling his state at that time sent chills down his spine. Enemies who could make him feel truly formidable were rare indeed.

Tobirama immediately knew what his brother was wary of; he hadn't seen him like this in a long time. "What did you see?"

"...I think I might have seen it, the Ten-Tails."

The ten-tailed behemoth was so ugly it seemed impossible for anything to have come from this world. More importantly, its single eye was filled with concentric rings of markings, and nine tomoe were arranged in a perfectly regular pattern around its pupil. He couldn't be mistaken; it was definitely the Rinnegan, and not just any ordinary Rinnegan. There was no other possibility but the Ten-Tails.

Unexpectedly, that behemoth is still continuously devouring the world's energy. If the intelligence is correct, the Frost Kingdom's barrenness is indeed to be expected. With something like this present, how can the environment there possibly thrive?

How could that thing detect him? Did the emotions he felt truly belong to him? Could it be... that the world possesses its own consciousness?