Chapter 52: Are You All So Confident?

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*****

With Hashirama's voice, the ground beneath his feet instantly began to shake.

The tremors spread, causing the entire river, controlled by Kisame, to quiver.

Buzz! Buzz! Buzz! Buzz! Buzz!

Amidst the violent tremors, rows of trees grew wildly, forming a wooden dragon.

The wooden dragon had branch-shaped scales, and it slithered forward with an appearance as if it were alive, its size immense.

Whoosh!

The wooden dragon suddenly raised its proud head, its green-glowing eyes staring at the oncoming shark.

"First Hokage, sir!"

"This is no ordinary water ball!"

"The shark formed from this water ball can absorb chakra!"

"The more chakra it absorbs, the stronger the Great Shark Bullet becomes!"

Kisame's lips curled slightly, confident in his Great Shark Bullet.

Even if he were to ultimately lose to the First Hokage, he did not believe the Great Shark Bullet would fail!

This was a jutsu that grew stronger when facing powerful opponents!

"Ah!!!"

Kisame suddenly shouted, pushing his hands towards Hashirama. The terrifying Great Shark Bullet opened its maw, aiming to swallow the wooden dragon.

Swish! Swish!

In an instant, the wooden dragon charged at the Great Shark Bullet, which opened its jaws to devour the dragon.

Boom!!!

The two attacks collided, creating a massive explosion that caused the water to surge and spread out in all directions, expanding with terrifying force.

Splash! Splash! Splash! Splash! Splash!

The water splashed violently, scattering onto the ground as if it were raining again in the Land of Rain.

"How is this possible?!"

Kisame's scream echoed from the collision's center, his eyes wide with disbelief as he stared at the scene before him.

The shark formed by the Great Shark Bullet bit into the wooden dragon, indeed absorbing some of its chakra.

However...

Before the absorbed chakra could strengthen the shark, an unexpected change occurred.

The wooden dragon opened its mouth, biting back at the shark.

In an instant, the wooden dragon absorbed all the chakra from the shark, causing the Great Shark Bullet to vanish as if it had never existed.

As the water splashed and the view cleared, everyone's eyes focused on the center of the field.

There stood Hashirama Senju, the First Hokage, looking as if he hadn't moved at all. The clothes that had been soaked moments ago were already dried by his immense chakra.

From the visual effect, it was as if nothing had happened.

Except...

In front of Hashirama stood a mighty, serpentine wooden dragon!

The wooden dragon's eyes glowed brightly as it looked down on Kisame, exuding an air of arrogant dominance that was unmistakable to anyone.

On the other side, Kisame, in his monstrous form, was surrounded by a pool of water that allowed him to move as if he were in his element. His face was etched with fear.

This was not how he had imagined it.

"How is this possible?"

Kisame's eyes widened, his chest heaving as panic set in.

His most powerful attack had been utterly ineffective.

It had been effortlessly neutralized without even making a dent.

"The Great Shark Bullet grows stronger when facing powerful opponents, so how was it absorbed?"

Only now did Kisame truly grasp the terror of the First Hokage, having previously only heard tales. Now, he was experiencing it firsthand.

"Stronger against the strong?"

Hashirama shook his head with a disdainful smile.

"That's because you haven't faced someone truly strong!"

Hashirama's victory over Kisame's Great Shark Bullet wasn't due to the wooden dragon's chakra-absorbing abilities, but because he himself was overwhelmingly powerful.

In terms of chakra absorption alone, Hashirama's chakra was so immense that it pushed the shark to its limits.

"It's time for the next one."

With that, Hashirama shifted his gaze towards the black dragon, ignoring Kisame entirely.

Simultaneously, the wooden dragon beside Hashirama lunged at Kisame with incredible speed.

Kisame couldn't evade it.

The wooden dragon coiled tightly around Kisame. Just the contact of its wooden body made Kisame feel his strength draining away at a terrifying rate.

"How is this possible?!"

Kisame was on the verge of questioning his own reality.

He was an absorption-type ninja, capable of absorbing chakra with his weapon, Samehada, and his own jutsu.

He never imagined he would be defeated by another chakra-absorbing ninja.

The wooden dragon constricted tighter and tighter, causing Kisame's chakra to drain continuously, making him weaker and less able to struggle free.

This was a feeling of utter helplessness!

"No!"

Kisame roared, still fused with Samehada, his body emanating a horrifying amount of chakra.

The sheer amount of chakra could be described as vast.

This was the origin of Kisame's nickname, "The Tailed Beast without a Tail."

His chakra was incredibly powerful!

However...

Even after unleashing all his chakra, Kisame couldn't withstand the rapid depletion. He was completely unable to resist it.

Hashirama didn't even spare him another glance.

It was nothing more than a futile struggle.

Forget about the Tailed Beast without a Tail.

Even the Nine-Tails would howl if entangled by the wooden dragon!

Whoosh!

At that moment, a shadow emerged from Kisame's body, darting towards Hashirama.

At first glance, it looked like a shuriken thrown from eight hundred miles away.

Smack!

Hashirama casually raised his hand and caught the handle of the sword—it was Samehada, Kisame's faithful weapon.

Samehada sensed the terrifying chakra emanating from Hashirama and opened its mouth, attempting to latch onto him.

"You want to follow me?"

Hashirama felt Samehada's intent, but his expression remained unchanged.

Samehada immediately nodded like a person.

"You don't deserve it!"

Hashirama gripped Samehada and flung it away with immense force, throwing it far into the distance.

Clang!

Samehada crashed heavily into the ground in front of Kisame, embedding half of its blade into the earth.

Almost simultaneously, the wooden dragon released the now utterly exhausted Kisame. He collapsed to the ground, landing near Samehada.

As soon as the wooden dragon let go of Kisame, its massive body transformed into trees that stretched across the ground.

"Are you all this confident?"

Hashirama's gaze swept over the remaining three members of the Akatsuki. They had fought him one-on-one from the beginning. Even now, with the black dragon looming, they still watched as Kisame fell.

"Are you sure you won't fight as a team?"

(End of Chapter)