Born with a great love for the Uchiha

Seeing that things were going badly, Orochimaru shed his skin twice more, barely managing to break free from the encirclement of the Wood Release and gain a little room to move.

'We can't let these trees continue to grow!'

Orochimaru clearly sensed that the moment the wood released by Hashirama Senju touched his body, a portion of his chakra was absorbed by the wood, just like the nutrients from the earth being absorbed by trees.

After absorbing his chakra, the wood would then undergo another round of frenzied growth, launching a continuous attack on him.

As time goes by, Orochimaru will only grow weaker, while those wooden figures will grow stronger.

We need to find a suitable scapegoat...

In that narrow and cramped space, Orochimaru bit his own finger and activated the Summoning Jutsu with the utmost precision.

bang——

A plume of smoke rose up.

A colossal, dark purple serpent, responding to Orochimaru's summons, crossed time and space from Ryuchi Cave.

Its enormous body helped Orochimaru break free from the constraints and blockade imposed by the tree branches in an instant.

Orochimaru's exclusive summoning beast, Manda!

"Orochimaru, you summoned me again—"

As soon as Manda appeared, it wanted to ask Orochimaru for "snacks"—in the past, when Orochimaru summoned it, it had to be fed fresh blood, such as humans.

But before Wanshe could finish speaking, as soon as it uttered the word "Grandpa," it felt itself being restrained by its surroundings.

"What happened?"

Manda's vertical pupils suddenly contracted, as if his chakra was being continuously absorbed as if a floodgate had been opened.

at the same time.

The massive body of the monstrous serpent became the new target of the [Birth of the Tree Realm].

Under the brute force of countless trees, the dark purple scales on the snake's body cracked inch by inch, and blood gushed out like a fountain, staining the surrounding brown bark red.

"what--!!!"

Stimulated by intense pain, the giant snake from Ryuchi Cave couldn't help but let out a shrill scream.

It's important to know that even the true tailed beasts couldn't withstand Hashirama Senju's Wood Release.

Not to mention this inexplicable giant snake!

The Manda summoned by Orochimaru only lasted for a breath or two before its massive body exploded into a cloud of smoke.

It did not die; it simply returned to Ryuchi Cave, covered in wounds.

We can use the space and time created by the sacrifice of the ten thousand snakes.

Orochimaru escaped from the underground laboratory through a pre-prepared escape tunnel, appearing on the outside world covered in dust and dirt.

The Wood Release: Advent of the Tree World was still in effect, causing the land of the Land of Rice Fields to tremble slightly until it was torn apart by the wildly growing giant tree.

Orochimaru stood on the torn earth, his face pale and still shaken, but his eyes gleamed with an unprecedented light.

"This is the power of the God of Shinobi..."

Chapter 217 It's easy to invite a god, and it's easy to send one away!

"Is this the level of ninjas in this era...?"

Hashirama Senju stood amidst the ruins of a laboratory, where trees intertwined, resembling a primeval forest.

He recalled the level of strength Orochimaru had just displayed and couldn't help but shake his head.

He has good learning and research abilities and was able to learn the forbidden techniques developed by his second brother.

However, his physical skills were limited to a couple of basic moves, and he couldn't even handle a kunai properly.

The most crucial and important thing is their fighting spirit, which is absolutely terrible!

When faced with a strong opponent, they only care about running away, even if it means abandoning their contracted spirit beasts without hesitation.

Hashirama Senju was truly disappointed in such a junior!

Why couldn't Orochimaru just stand there a little longer?

If all the ninjas in the village now are only at Orochimaru's level.

Hashirama Senju was very worried about the future of the village.

"I wonder how the village is doing now... They should have chosen a third leader by now..."

Hashirama Senju released his senses, wanting to check the situation outside.

However, his sensory range was ultimately limited, and he could only roughly discern that he was not within the Land of Fire.

"After we've dealt with things here, let's go back to the village and take a look..."

Hashirama Senju withdrew his senses and did not pursue Orochimaru, who had escaped from the underground laboratory. Instead, he focused his attention on the White Zetsu who were being controlled by Wood Release.

Under the control of [Wood Release].

The White Zetsu, whose mobility was restricted, were brought before Hashirama Senju.

However, in front of Hashirama Senju, these White Zetsu showed no signs of tension or fear, instead laughing and joking.

"whee……"

"The First Hokage..."

"Finally, I've met the First Hokage alive..."

"I can't be considered 'alive' like this right now... haha!"

Hashirama Senju laughed twice and voluntarily released the restrictions on the White Zetsu.

He had initially thought that these White Zetsu were just freaks with human-like appearances.

To everyone's surprise, White Zetsu could actually speak, demonstrating a thinking ability comparable to that of a normal human.

Hashirama Senju had never encountered a "ninja" of this type before.

"So, what's going on with you guys like this?"

Hashirama Senju sat cross-legged and asked the White Zetsu a question in a very open and honest manner.

"Is this skin color, so white it practically glows, because of some kind of special disease?"

“However, I sensed similar chakra from you to mine… Could it be that Orochimaru performed some kind of human modification on you?”

When Hashirama Senju was "resurrected," he noticed the "open-minded" White Zetsu lying on the experimental table and naturally knew that Orochimaru was conducting forbidden human experiments.

Therefore, it is understandable that he would now direct his suspicions at Orochimaru.

Facing the question of the God of Ninjas.

The White Zetsu weren't the brightest, but they knew that some things should be said and some things shouldn't be said.

The White Zetsu, who had just been quite lively, exchanged glances with each other and then started laughing again.

"Haha...I don't understand what you're saying..."

"Does the First Hokage even need to eat, drink, relieve himself, and sleep...?"

"What does it feel like to poop...?"

As Hashirama Senju faced several White Zetsu who had started spouting nonsense, he couldn't help but frown.

What's wrong with these guys?

He was like a human just a moment ago, but now he's completely inhuman...

What kind of weird questions are those?!

"I'm generally easygoing, but I'm not without a temper!"

Hashirama Senju refined his chakra once more, unleashing an aura that he intended to intimidate the dazed White Zetsu.

"Don't mistake me for a nice guy~"

If it were an ordinary person...

Even if it were Orochimaru.

Even those facing the overwhelming aura unleashed by the God of Ninjas would be so shocked that their legs would tremble and they would shake with fear.

But White Zetsu was born without normal human emotions and had no idea what fear was.

Facing the unleashed power of Hashirama Senju.

Instead of showing fear, the White Zetsu started laughing and joking again.

"Wow~"

"That looks amazing!"

"The First Hokage has gone berserk!"

Snapped!

Hashirama Senju slapped his forehead, and the momentum he had just built up instantly collapsed.

"This is really difficult to handle..."

Outside, on the ground above the ruins.

Orochimaru remained standing there, refusing to leave.

A figure, half black and half white, emerged from the ground behind him.

Orochimaru.

Black Zetsu's gloomy voice suddenly rang out.

Orochimaru jolted, turned his head sharply, and spat out a gleaming Kusanagi sword, thrusting it towards the direction from which the sound came.

The pitcher plant-like outer shell covering Black Zetsu's (and White Zetsu's) body was instantly sliced ​​off in half by the incredibly sharp Kusanagi Sword, and even a few of the green hairs on its head were cut off.