Senju Tobirama locked himself in his study as soon as he returned home.
Renye sat alone on the doorstep, staring blankly at the full moon in the sky.
At this moment, he suddenly realized that even someone as eternally brilliant as the sun could one day have their light extinguished.
"No, there must be a way, there must be!"
He began to recall details he had previously overlooked...
Senju Hashirama was severely injured in his battle with Madara.
Logically, with his physical constitution and recovery speed, this injury should have healed quickly.
After all, Hashirama didn't seem to have suffered any fatal injuries.
Injuries of this magnitude should not be irreparable!
Unless his cells were depleted, Hashirama's self-healing ability was achieved by accelerating cell division, and in his battle with Madara, he might have overused his ability, causing the number of cell divisions to reach its limit, leading to the exhaustion of his life force and death.
It should be known that Hashirama's cells possess strong tenacity and aggressiveness.
Even if his body cells were depleted, he wouldn't die so quickly.
As long as he rested well, living for several more decades would absolutely not be a problem.
At most, his combat power would be greatly reduced, as for why he became like this now.
It is very likely that Hashirama instinctively resisted his body's recovery...
The reason is simple: he personally killed his closest friend, Uchiha Madara, with whom he had realized his dream and co-founded Konoha Village.
Even though their ideals diverged later, and they embarked on completely different paths.
Hashirama still regarded Madara as his only true friend.
To protect the Village, he personally killed Madara...
Compared to the physical pain, the guilt in his heart caused him even more suffering.
He might have felt that he betrayed Madara, betrayed their shared ideals, and he couldn't forgive himself.
Both his body and mind suffered unprecedented severe damage; the psychological trauma combined with the severe physical injuries caused his life force to rapidly drain away.
In just a few short years, he became incredibly weak.
Renye stood up excitedly, his eyes gleaming with anticipation.
He seemed to know the reason for Hashirama's serious illness.
If Hashirama knew that Madara had not died, his decaying body might be able to regain vitality!
"Uncle, Uncle Hashirama might still be saved!"
Renye shouted towards the house, then left the courtyard.
Senju Tobirama suddenly opened the study door and followed him out.
---
Mito sat by the bed, her trembling fingertips brushing Hashirama's pale cheek, tears welling up in her eyes.
"Hashirama, are you really not going to call Tobirama and the others over?"
After Hashirama returned home, his injuries worsened.
She had a premonition that her husband might not make it.
Hashirama shook his head, "No need, I don't want them to worry."
He laboriously raised his hand and gently held his wife's hand.
Mito bit her lower lip, turning her face away, not wanting her husband to see her breaking down, but her trembling shoulders still betrayed her sorrow.
Tsunade was slumped over the edge of the bed, her long golden hair falling down, covering her red, swollen eyes from crying.
"Grandpa, you're lying!"
The little girl's fists pounded on the quilt, tears streaming down her face uncontrollably.
"Didn't you say you'd get better? Waaah, I haven't won my money back yet, you can't die!"
Watching Tsunade cry so mournfully, Hashirama laboriously reached out to stroke his granddaughter's head.
"I'm sorry, Tsunade," Hashirama said with a bitter smile, "The money I won from you back then, I already lost it all at the gambling den."
Hearing this, the little girl cried even louder.
"Waaah, Grandpa is a big bad guy!"
"Tsunade, don't cry... Grandpa won't gamble anymore. In the future, you must listen to Grandma, and if anything happens... you can find Great Uncle and Uncle Renye..."
Before he could finish, a violent cough erupted.
Specks of crimson seeped through the gaps in his fingers covering his mouth, blooming into dazzling bloodstains on the quilt.
Hashirama slowly closed his eyes; at this moment, he felt an unprecedented sense of ease.
Madara's figure appeared before his eyes, and the corners of his mouth curved slightly upward.
He could finally go down and personally apologize to his closest friend.
Madara's death was like a thorn constantly stuck in his heart, causing him pain every single moment.
With his physical constitution, not to mention restoring his body to its original state, but an improvement was certainly achievable.
It was just his subconscious resisting...
Although he was somewhat reluctant to leave like this, his ideal had already been realized.
It wasn't bad to leave this way; the remaining matters would be up to Tobirama.
However, Hashirama believed that Tobirama would be able to handle everything.
"Madara, I'm coming to find you..."
Bang—
Just then, a loud noise came from outside.
Renye kicked open the courtyard gate and walked directly into the house.
Hashirama looked at the boy's crimson eyes, a bitter smile tugging at his pale lips: "Renye, you still came."
Actually, he didn't want Renye to see him in his current state.
Tsunade turned and hugged Renye's thigh, crying loudly:
"Waaah... Uncle Renye, Grandpa seems to be dying!"
"Aunt Mito, please take Tsunade away first," Renye said in a low voice, "I have something to tell Uncle Hashirama."
Mito hesitated, but seeing the boy's serious expression, she nodded and pulled Tsunade away.
Seeing the two leave, Renye set up a barrier to prevent outsiders from hearing.
He only intended to tell Hashirama about this matter.
Some things, the more people who know, the worse it is...
Senju Tobirama, who had rushed over, saw the barrier inside the house and suddenly frowned.
"What does this kid want to do?"
What exactly did Renye want to tell his elder brother, to the point of guarding against even them?
Although he had doubts, he was still willing to trust Renye.
"Renye, what do you want to say?" Hashirama asked weakly.
He just wanted to send Renye away quickly now, and then follow in Madara's footsteps.
If there was a Pure Land, he could still apologize to Madara.
"Uncle Hashirama, are you really planning to leave like this?"
Renye's crimson Sharingan stared directly at Senju Hashirama.
In Hashirama's eyes, Renye's figure gradually overlapped with Madara's, and in a daze, he seemed to see his deceased closest friend.
He softly murmured, "Madara, I'm coming to join you soon."
Upon hearing this, Renye couldn't help but frown.
Clearly, Hashirama had long harbored a death wish.
However, he finally found the reason...
Renye's tightly furrowed brow relaxed as he watched Hashirama ignore him.
He decided to change his way of speaking.
A way that Hashirama would listen to...
"Uncle Hashirama, do you really believe that Uchiha Madara is dead?"
Hearing this, Senju Hashirama suddenly opened his eyes, and those dim eyes actually showed a glimmer of light.
He struggled to sit up from the bed, his eyes fixed intently on Renye.
What did he just hear?
Renye seemed to be saying that Madara was not dead!
His previously decaying body seemed to have regained vitality.
"Renye, what do you mean by that?!"
PS: Actually, I wanted to write Hashirama's death, but seeing that everyone didn't want that, I'm preparing to change the approach...