"Shit! Shit! Shit! Are we really that scared of him?!"
After their cover was blown, the rest met up once more. In his wrathful state, Shin punched so hard that the trees and surroundings collapsed, displaying the fluctuating turmoil in his head.
As for the others, they merely shook their heads in submission, yet were even more resolute about their plans in mind.
Once again, Yoichi's arrival sparked their inner fear of him, like a nightmare in the middle of a great dream, shattering their near-perfect fantasy.
"Calm down. I know we have different goals, but we are tied by one thing here, which is to defeat that pretentious bastard and have this world to ourselves! In the meantime, accumulate and gather strength. We have so many things to do," Seimei replied.
With that said, each talented individual in the group made some concessions and left without any prior disagreements or discord.
Black Zetsu felt that his schemes were slowly slipping away due to one causal factor and eventually decided to reignite the fire-water relationship between Uchiha and Senju even more.
"Mother... Just wait there; I'll only take a little time."
As soon as the rest left, Black Zetsu blended into the surroundings as the scene became silent, with the calm night being relaxing and comforting.
...
"What's up, kids? Feeling good about the test?"
"Sensei!"
After a few days, Yoichi came back and went into their gathering place as Hashirama greeted him with a smile while Madara glanced at him with seriousness, an absolute focus in mind.
"Madara... What do you think about this surprise test? I feel like it will be another beating!"
A chill crept up Hashirama's body as soon as he whispered it as if the excruciating pain was deeply ingrained in his senses, making him tremble.
"Truthfully, I don't know... Maybe it's another form of different training. It's gonna be alright; don't worry."
On the side, Madara flinched a little and shrugged his shoulders, yet his words didn't bring much optimism to Hashirama, who was contemplating whether it was truly a good decision to be here or not.
"Your goal was to push me out of this circle. Of course, I have another handicap to let this test on the even playing field. Using only one hand, being blindfolded by this cloth, and having a little circle as my space should suffice."
Upon hearing him, the two nodded as Yoichi added:
"If you two win, I'll give you some generous rewards. You know how valuable Genesis Bank's resources are, don't you? So take it seriously!"
With incentives on the table, the eyes of the two glimmered like a bright lamp in the middle of the night. However, Madara ever the realistic one replied:
"What if we lose? What's the punishment?"
Right after saying that, Hashirama felt like his raging enthusiasm was splashed by a cold bucket. Then, he stared at Madara with resentment as the black lines on his forehead resurfaced.
"Hahaha, that's enough. Have some confidence in yourselves! Now, let's begin!"
"Fire Style: Flame Bullet!"
"Wind Style: Great Breakthrough!"
Now that things are out of the way, Hashirama and Madara weaved hand seals right at the start, unleashing an intertwined combo of fire and wind into Yoichi's designated position.
"Water Style: Water Formation Wall!"
With the incoming series of ninjutsu, Yoichi resisted with his defense as the mix of blazing fire and gigantic water let out a steamy, almost hazy atmosphere that permeated the surroundings.
Right after the failed attack, Hashirama rushed into close combat quarters while Madara launched several shurikens in succession.
At a disadvantage, Yoichi parried the powerful kicks and punches along with the lethal shurikens aimed at him. At this point, it's a no-holds-barred battle against him, his students clearly displayed their eagerness and determination to defeat him.
'Hm? flapping sounds of something light... Leaves?! No, explosive tags!'
In his impeccable conclusion, Yoichi noticed something more devious about Hashirama's movements. Moments later, his impressive student landed a kick on his stomach and instantly left out of his combat range, surprising Yoichi even more.
"Madara, now!"
During the fight, the kunai strapped with explosive tags touched down to Yoichi's spot. Consequently, Hashirama also implanted his sole with a timed explosive tag, sticking the deadly tag in his mentor's stomach, and left out with a barrage of metal projectiles right after his disengagement.
*Boom!*
In the end, both explosive tags detonated as the concentrated smoke and debris flew out of the spot, shaking the ground for a little bit.
"Did we get him?" Hashirama took a breather. In his mind, the bet was on the bag. No one's gonna risk their own life with such overwhelming power packed in those explosive tags earlier.
"Probably..." Madara replied. His eyes were on the spot, still attentive and sharp while the visual clarity of the surroundings became much clearer in every second.
"...not." A word escaped from Madara's mouth as a faint silhouette slowly emerged from the cluttered aftereffects of the explosive tags.
"Hahahaha, good job! Distraction while impressively unleashing some of those difficult techniques. How incredible! However, I don't think you two will be complacent after that, no?"
Upon hearing Yoichi's statement, a mix of amazement and seriousness appeared in both of them even Madara wanted to release his Sharingan openly.
Unscathed and seemed to be unharmed, Yoichi's figure triggered the competitive spirit of Hashirama and Madara, who rushed once more for another battle of wits and capability as a shinobi.
Using the Universal Swap: Forced, Yoichi transported the explosive tag on his stomach while the sneaky tag strapped in kunai was encased in Earth Style: Rock Shelter with sufficient Chakra density, therefore escaping both deadly bombs in an instant and still adhering to the no out-of-bounds rule.
Back into the test, three individuals fought again without any restraint. Of course, Madara's Sharingan wasn't unleashed for the sake of secrecy.
...
"Ahhhh! I give up! How can we even defeat this guy?! It's like an impenetrable turtle in disguise!"
"..."
Moments later, Hashirama plopped down and was intensely exhausted, grumbling in frustration. On the other hand, Madara was constantly checking on his teacher's unblemished condition, cursing inwardly for his helplessness and skills.
"Do you also admit defeat, Madara?" Yoichi chimed in. In response, Madara merely nodded and immediately reviewed all the things that happened earlier on.
"Hmmm... Fair enough. You two are very impressive! With adequate training and nutrition, both of you will be tough contenders in the Shinobi World." On the side, Yoichi wasn't stingy in praises, applauding them for their hard work and effort.
"Anyway, recall all of your movements early and think clearly about your weakness. Rest up here, we'll be out of the woods later on. Such efforts must be rewarded with diligence."
The two pairs of eyes glimmered once more right after Yoichi made those comments. Hashirama was delighted while Madara was sighing in relief, elevating their teacher's spot right back into one of the admired and respected individuals in their heads.
"Have the two of you had enough rest?" After a few minutes, Yoichi glanced at them.
"Ready!" With an optimistic smile, Hashirama replied.
"Let's go now, Sensei," Madara responded yet a glint of excitement flickered in his eyes.
"Then, follow me." Yoichi hopped into the trees like a monkey as the two followed suit, thrilled and excited by whatever their sensei's surprise for them.
~~~
Can you please comment on how I am doing right now? Is it exciting or pretty lame? The flow of the story wasn't that good or boring? I'm just trying to see how it goes. Be critical of my pretty ass work please. Anyways, thank for reading the chapter XDD.