"Madara!"

Hashirama Senju's eyes lit up like stars as he locked onto Madara Uchiha up on the stage, and in that same instant his chakra exploded outward in a frenzied surge!

Madara Uchiha took one look and split into a grin.

"Hashirama!"

"Come on! Madara!"

"Here I come! Hashirama!"

Madara Uchiha's chakra pillar shot straight up into the sky!

Then the two of them picked up their microphones at the same time...

"Let go and give it everything, don't worry too much~~~

..."

The venue was blazing. Madara Uchiha and Hashirama Senju were using their chakra pillars as stage lighting, and that alone was a flat-out cheat move.

Add the pounding DJ music on top of that, and the tens of thousands packed into the crowd all broke into wild, full-body dancing.

Meanwhile, Hirofumi Ito and the Konoha 11 had gathered backstage.

Their turn was next.

The nine boys and the four girls were performing separately.

When Madara Uchiha and Hashirama Senju finished, Madara Uchiha held the microphone and swept that ice-cold gaze across the sea of faces below...

"Ore wa... Uchiha... Madara!

Ninja of the Hidden Leaf Village!

I hope every single one of you remembers this song...

Let go and give it everything — don't hold back!"

Those words set the entire venue ablaze. Ninja and civilians alike screamed Madara Uchiha's name at the top of their lungs.

"Lord Madara!"

"Lord Madara is so cool!"

"Lord Madara!"

"..."

After Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha cleared the stage, Hirofumi Ito did not walk out alone to host as usual. Instead, he stepped up together with every one of the boys from the Konoha 11.

And none of the nine on stage were in their normal clothes. Every single one of them had gone full rebel: chains, earrings, hip-hop fits, the whole look dialed up to max.

Hirofumi Ito walked forward, raised one finger, and pointed it out at the tens of thousands in the crowd.

"To every single person here tonight! This one's called Personal Bio — hope you enjoy it! SCREAM!"

The BGM dropped instantly. All nine of them fell into the rhythm, bodies moving to the music across the stage, hyping up the crowd as they went.

Hirofumi Ito was the first one on the mic.

"You should know...

Someone this good-looking only shows up in anime...

Figure out if you're ready to be my partner in crime!

I know the road ahead never runs short on chaos...

But trust me — the scene waiting for you is unlike anything you've ever dreamed!"

Sasuke Uchiha threw down a few breakdance moves and snatched the mic right after.

"The recording studio is my regular club...

The moment I pick up the mic, I never run out of heat!

A ninjutsu feint, then one clean step back...

..."

And just like that, one after another, they carried the song all the way through.

The Shinobi World does have rap, it's just that the rap in the Shinobi World is, well...

The fact that Killer B could become a megastar in the rap scene says everything you need to know about the level of it.

This time, Personal Bio left everyone in the crowd completely stunned.

One word: cool.

Two words: so cool.

Three words: way too cool!

Down below the stage, Madara Uchiha, Hashirama Senju, Tobirama Senju, Izuna Uchiha, and the others watched the whole thing with undisguised longing on their faces.

"Madara~~ that thing called rap sounds amazing! I'm going to learn it too! If I can't figure it out on my own, I'll just have Hirofumi rearrange Qiu Fo into a rap version!"

Madara Uchiha hadn't even had a chance to respond before Tobirama Senju, standing nearby, thought for a moment and spoke up.

"How about: I draw my blade and cut down these wicked disciples!"

Pfft... pfft...

"Izuna Uchiha, why did you just poke me?!"

Izuna Uchiha let out a scornful laugh.

"The naturally evil Tobirama Senju!

You're nothing but a fossil!

One Personal Bio track and you're already at a standstill!

Just sliced your whole song down like a platter of fruit!

Skr~ Skr~~~"

Hearing the person right beside them dropping rhymes, Tobirama Senju's face went red instantly.

"AHHHHH! You damned Izuna Uchiha!"

"Heh~~ The evil Tobirama Senju!"

Right at that moment, the song on stage wrapped up, and the four girls of the Konoha 11, Ino Yamanaka, Hinata Hyūga, Sakura Haruno, and Tenten, walked out carrying bouquets of flowers.

Every one of them looked completely different from usual. All four were dressed in hip-hop fits, and the look was both fierce and stunning.

Ino Yamanaka walked straight up to Hirofumi Ito and handed over the bouquet. Hinata Hyūga found Naruto Uzumaki. Sakura Haruno moved to Sasuke Uchiha's side. Tenten, cheeks faintly flushed, looked toward Neji Hyūga.

Neji Hyūga looked at Tenten dressed like that and could not help swallowing.

The tens of thousands in the crowd saw the whole thing and erupted.

"Get together!"

"Get together!"

"Get together!"

"Get together!"

"..."

The rest of the Konoha 11 boys, the ones without girlfriends, stood there feeling like their hearts were being stabbed. Every single one of them was frantically reminding himself that he really, seriously needed to find a girlfriend soon.

The flowers changed hands, and then so did the microphones.

Hirofumi Ito stepped in as host one more time.

"Next, please welcome the Hidden Leaf Girls Group, Ino Yamanaka, Hinata Hyūga, Sakura Haruno, and Tenten, performing: The Sun Never Sets!"

"The mist in the sky drifts in without a care~~

The river sits as still as an oil painting~~

A dove treads lazily, pressing down on the beat~~

The heart quietly clears up~~

..."

The four girls' performance sent the sweetness in the venue surging off the charts, and the screaming rolled in one wave after another.

At that same moment, somewhere in a corner of the crowd.

"Captain... shouldn't we be making our move?!"

A jonin from Kumogakure in the Land of Lightning stared at their captain, Matsushita Yugou, with barely concealed exasperation.

Because right now, that elite jonin captain was holding up a support sign and screaming the Hidden Leaf Girls Group's name at the top of their lungs...

"Captain!"

"Shut up!"

"Captain... all four of those girls are performing right now, this is the perfect opening! We grab those four first, then go and take Mito Uzumaki, Kushina Uzumaki, and Tsunade as well!"

Matsushita Yugou glanced at the jonin beside them, an old squadmate by the name of Watanabe Yuzhu.

"Yuzhu... this is absolutely not the right time to move. If you ask me, we wait until those four finish their song. That's when we strike!"

And having said that, Matsushita Yugou's gaze snapped straight back to the stage, burning with intensity.

"AHHHH! Ino! Tenten! Sakura! Hinata! I love you all!"

Watanabe Yuzhu was at a complete loss.

Nothing to be done, rank always wins, and that meant following the captain's orders...

Though those four girls really were stunning. Once they dragged them back to the village, they'd have those four singing every single day!

Hehehehehehehehehe...

➤ Next: The Confident Matsushita Yugou

Chapter 242 - The Confident Matsushita Yugou

What those ninja from the Land of Lightning didn't know was that Hidan was right there, massive scythe hefted over one shoulder, tucked into a corner not far away, eyes locked onto every single one of them.

As the music faded, Ino Yamanaka, Sakura Haruno, Hinata Hyūga, and Tenten stood on the stage, all four of them breathless and flushed.

They'd just been singing and dancing their hearts out, and the crowd, tens of thousands strong, had been relentless in their enthusiasm.

All four girls were more than a little flustered.

The assembled powerhouses watched with deep satisfaction. Tonight, the Hidden Leaf Village was truly alive.

And the concert was far from over. It had only hit the halfway mark, and there were still plenty of performers who hadn't taken the stage yet.

On the other side of the venue, Kakuzu had already been counting money long enough for the hand to cramp up. The atmosphere was so electric that wealthy merchants and businesspeople were lining up on the spot, throwing down extra ryo to rent last-minute advertising space.

Kakuzu turned none of them away.

Of course, squeezing in extra advertising space on short notice wasn't impossible.

But.

It was going to cost more!

Nearby, the younger Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzō Shimura sat together. Hiruzen was handling things reasonably well, there'd been enough time in the Hidden Leaf Village to adjust to the new reality, at least somewhat.

Danzō was not adjusting at all.

By the time the various powerhouses had appeared, Danzō had already been dead. There had been one brief revival, but it had ended just as quickly as it came. After that, nothing, no awareness, no sense of time passing, until this latest resurrection.

And the Hidden Leaf Village that greeted Danzō was almost unrecognizable.

The very first thing after coming back to life: the village was throwing a concert. If Hiruzen hadn't been sitting right there the whole time, patiently explaining everything that had happened, Danzō would have been completely lost.

"Danzō... are you even listening to me?"

Pfft. Pfft.

Hiruzen reached over and poked Danzō in the side.

"Ah, oh — I'm listening!"

Seeing that completely vacant look, Hiruzen threw an arm around Danzō's shoulder.

"You. How many years have we been friends? You think I don't know what's going on in that head of yours?

You weren't listening to a single word I just said! And now you're sitting there lying to my face! I know which way you're squatting, so I know exactly what shape comes out.

The village has changed a lot. It makes sense you're not adapting. That's fine."

Danzō gave a small nod.

"It really has... I never imagined that after being dead for just a short while, everything would look so completely different."

"So then, Dango — doesn't that prove the two of us were wrong back in those days? We have a chance now to make up for it. Isn't that our good fortune?!"

BANG!

"Hey~~ Dango, why did you hit me?!"

"How many times do I have to say it, my name is Danzō! Not Dango!"

"Tch! I've been calling you that since we were kids! And back then you used to call me Monkey!"

"That was when we were children!"

"Hmph! I'm calling you Dango!"

"Monkey! You'll regret this!"

"Dango! Hirofumi is the Hokage now!"

BANG!

A thunderous crack rang out from the stage. Both Hiruzen and Danzō stopped bickering instantly.

The assembled powerhouses all furrowed their brows at once.

Several ninja had appeared on the stage out of nowhere. One look was enough, they hadn't come in peace.

.................................

Just moments earlier, the Hidden Leaf girls' group had finished performing "The Sun Never Sets." They took their bow and were about to leave the stage when a group of ninja came charging at them from across the floor.

A shout cut through the noise.

"Yugou! Move! Take your people and lock down the girls on that stage, I'll personally go after Kushina Uzumaki and the others!"

Ino Yamanaka, Hinata Hyūga, and the others reacted in an instant.

The targets were themselves.

And not only themselves, it extended to senior figures like Kushina Uzumaki as well.

Watanabe Yugou had already led several Kumogakure ninja onto the stage, and the group was already closing in around Ino Yamanaka and the others, forming a tight circle.

As far as they were concerned, these Hidden Leaf girls were already theirs.

"Kehehehehe... Listen up, Hidden Leaf! I am a jonin of Kumogakure in the Land of Lightning!

I'll admit — this concert of yours really is something.

But still... kehehehehe...

These women. We want them. Starting today, they belong to Kumogakure."

While Watanabe Yugou stood there certain the situation was locked down, squad leader Matsushita Yugou moved into action on the other side of the venue.

The tens of thousands in the crowd hadn't seen any of this coming. The whole arena had gone still. One moment everyone was screaming themselves hoarse, and the next, ninja from the Land of Lightning were on the stage.

Trying to abduct the Hidden Leaf Village's most beloved women.

Right then, while Watanabe Yugou was still basking in smug satisfaction, a massive scythe came spinning through the air.

SLASH,

Two Kumogakure chunin standing beside Watanabe Yugou dropped. Heads clean off.

Hidan stepped onto the stage.

"Kehehehehe... I've been watching you lot for a while. Starting to think you'd never actually make a move.

Seriously, who gave you the nerve? A pack of strays walking into Jashin's territory looking for trouble.

You even tried to take Jashin's women.

You're dead!"

Watanabe Yugou never had time to react. And down in the VIP section below the stage, everything went sideways at the same moment.

Matsushita Yugou was already moving, straight toward Kushina Uzumaki.

An elite jonin from the Land of Lightning, and no pushover. In seconds, Matsushita Yugou had closed the distance and reached Kushina Uzumaki's side.

"Kehehehehe... Hidden Leaf! Nobody moves! Move and I kill this red-haired woman right now!

Unless I'm wrong, this is the Fourth Hokage's partner, isn't it? And the previous Nine-Tails Jinchuriki on top of that.

Kehehehehe..."

Matsushita Yugou held a kunai in hand, eyes fixed on Kushina Uzumaki with absolute confidence.

"Be a good girl, now. The Land of Lightning has always had a special appreciation for beautiful women like you."

➤ Next: This Guy Has Bad Breath!