"That evil Madara Uchiha, what does he plan to do now?"
Tobirama's voice came from between clenched teeth.
His furious expression thickened the air with killing intent.
The temperature in the living room plummeted to freezing, making everyone shiver involuntarily.
"To achieve what he believes is true peace."
Hashirama frowned slightly, a flicker of complex emotion flashing in his eyes.
As the one most deeply connected with Madara, he was uniquely attuned to piercing through layers of mystery and revealing Madara's hidden ambitions.
In Madara's deep and complex heart, this quest for peace had warped into an extreme obsession.
"That's right."
"Are you aware of the Moon's Eye Plan?"
Kawaki wasn't sure whether Madara had ever mentioned the plan to Hashirama.
"The Moon's Eye Plan?"
Hashirama slowly shook his head, with a puzzled expression.
This was the first time he had heard of such a plan.
"The Moon's Eye Plan is Madara's ultimate goal."
"He intends to plunge the entire Ninja World into a beautiful illusion created by the Moon's Eye Plan."
"In that illusory world, sunlight will always be bright, flowers forever blooming, everything as wonderful as a dream."
"But this is merely a false vision spun from Madara's corrupted soul."
"In his eyes, only such a Ninja World can be called true peace. Yet, he completely disregards the fact that it desecrates human free will."
"And those deceived by this genjutsu will eventually become nourishment for the God Tree, fading away into false beauty."
"Once this plan succeeds, the Ninja World will be bereft of all life forever."
Kawaki's words landed like hammer blows, making both Hashirama and Tobirama grasp just how dire the situation truly was.
"He's nothing but a madman."
"I won't let him get away with this."
Tobirama slammed the table and shot to his feet, fury blazing in his eyes.
Rage blazed in his eyes as if ready to reduce everything before him to ash.
"A genjutsu of that scale can't be pulled off by Madara alone."
"Therefore, he plans to gather all the Tailed Beasts, awaken the Ten-Tails, and resurrect the God Tree."
"Then, he will use the God Tree's power to achieve his goal."
"Am I right?"
Hashirama recalled bits of information Madara had revealed to him before, nearly piecing together the full scope of the Moon's Eye Plan.
"Yes."
"Madara has already captured three Tailed Beasts."
"And used Impure World Reincarnation to control over a dozen Kage-level experts."
"We're not confident handling this ourselves, which is why we've summoned you, Grandpa, and Grandma back from Pure Land through Summoning."
Though meant to be a condensed summary, it still took Kawaki this long to fully explain the current situation.
"The Ninja World has already been unified."
"Why didn't you take full control of all the Tailed Beasts yourselves?"
"You failed to handle this correctly."
Upon hearing this, Tobirama immediately became furious.
In his eyes, the Tailed Beasts were the Ultimate Weapons capable of reshaping heaven and earth, and should have been kept under absolute control.
Now that the Tailed Beasts aren't properly controlled, this is undoubtedly a huge mistake.
It's like opening a fatal gap in the ninja world's defensive line, giving Madara an opportunity to strike.
If it were up to him, all Nine Tailed Beasts would be under Konoha's control after the Ninja World's unification.
"This is my fault."
"I thought that once the Ninja World was unified and there was no more war, controlling the Tailed Beasts wouldn't matter anymore."
"I never expected Madara to return to the Ninja World at all."
Kawaki stepped forward to admit his mistake. Thinking back now, he really had been too careless.
He had continued sending people to search for Black Zetsu's trail, but never expected that Zetsu could use the [Impure World Reincarnation Jutsu].
It was also his own fault for relying too much on the original plot he knew so well, neglecting other possibilities.
"Enough, blaming each other now serves no purpose."
"I believe none of us here wants to see this situation happen."
"What do you need us to do? Just tell us straight."
Hashirama raised his hand, stopping Tobirama from speaking out blame immediately.
Since things have already gone this far, arguing over details now means absolutely nothing.
"We've already arranged our personnel."
"Other than the Seven-Tails and Nine-Tails, the remaining four Tailed Beasts are scattered across the Ninja World."
"Now we'll split up and head toward them, determined to protect the Tailed Beasts."
"If Madara himself appears, don't engage him directly—wait for backup."
"His current power is unfathomable."
Kawaki spoke with extreme seriousness, because only he truly understood how powerful the resurrected Madara had become.
This was a force beyond reason itself. Even before becoming the Ten-Tails Jinchūriki, Madara was nearly invincible within the Ninja World.
"You're only boosting the enemy's morale while undermining ours."
"In life-or-death battles, sometimes you rely on your mind."
Tobirama scoffed, his eyes still burning with stubbornness.
He had full confidence in his own power. After countless battles throughout his life, could Madara really kill him instantly?
"Ikeda Nidaime, I know you're strong."
"But caution leads to long life."
"I've already lost one disciple—I don't want anyone else getting hurt."
At the mention of Nagato, Kawaki felt a sharp pang of sorrow, a flash of bitterness crossing his face.
"Nagato, Kawaki's disciple, was recently killed by Madara without even being able to fight back."
"He was no weaker than you, Second Hokage. I think you should be more cautious."
Tsunade looked at Tobirama, her voice laced with persuasion.
She knew Tobirama wasn't one to ignore others' advice—it was just his deep-seated prejudice against the Uchiha clan.
Because of this, whenever discussions about Madara came up, his emotions sometimes clouded his thinking.
"You little girl~"
"I understand."
Tobirama sighed helplessly, a slight smile forming as he saw the concern in Tsunade's eyes. His own stubbornness gradually softened.
He always believed what Tsunade said. He knew she meant well, and realized that letting personal emotions lead to recklessness could lead to unimaginable consequences.
"We can't delay any further — let's move out now."
The Impure World Reincarnation had already taken too much time, and Kawaki wasn't planning to delay any further.
"Fine, we'll follow your arrangements."
Hashirama didn't resist. He knew he didn't fully understand the current situation, so compliance was all that was needed.
"Minato, explain your plan."
Kawaki called over Minato, who had taken full responsibility for organizing the team divisions.
"We don't know how Madara will deploy his forces either."
"With our current numbers, we'll split into teams of four."
"Teacher, you'll be alone as backup."
"This is how the arrangement goes."
Minato pulled out a paper clearly listing the four assigned teams.
As for who went where, no one seemed to care.
"Well then, let's head out."
Everyone nodded in agreement, choosing directions and heading out swiftly.
Kawaki lingered a moment, reluctantly murmuring a few final words to Tsunade before walking off alone...
Please bookmark: Naruto: A Journey Beginning with Courting Tsunade (m.