Late at night, the Hokage's office was still brightly lit.
"Where the hell did that brat go?"
Senju Tobirama lifted his gaze to the darkening night outside the window and muttered.
After attending Hiruzen's wedding, Renya had completely vanished.
He hadn't even sent Tobirama his dinner tonight.
There wasn't a trace of him in the village—it seemed he had already left.
Tobirama had no mood to handle official work right now. All he wanted was to know where Renya had gone.
Logically, if the boy left the village, he would have informed him beforehand. He would never just disappear without a word. Something must have happened...
Tobirama ordered the Anbu to check Renya's mission records, but there was no sign he had accepted anything today.
That meant the boy had left the village for some other reason.
"What kind of matter would make him leave in such a hurry without even saying goodbye?" Tobirama fell into thought.
He couldn't shake the feeling the brat was hiding something from him.
He decided to wait two more days. If Renya still hadn't returned by then, he would leave the village personally to search for him.
After all, he had already planted the Flying Thunder God mark on the boy. Finding him would be as easy as lifting a finger.
Yet Tobirama still couldn't understand—what could possibly be so important that Renya would leave without a word?
"Grrrumble—"
His stomach growled in protest.
"That brat didn't even warn me before leaving," Tobirama said discontentedly, then pulled open a drawer and took out two Soldier Pills.
Tonight, he would have to make do with those.
...
Land of Fire, a mountain cave.
When Renya woke up groggily, he realized he was still inside the cave. Outside, the sky had gone completely dark.
Damn it!
He had gotten drunk and overslept.
Damn it, drinking had messed everything up!
He hadn't prepared dinner for that old man Tobirama!
If the old man came looking, wouldn't Hashirama and Madara's situation be exposed?
The more Renya thought about it, the more terrified he became. After all, he bore the Flying Thunder God mark. If Tobirama teleported here and saw Madara and Hashirama, who were already dead...
Wouldn't that blow everything up?!
Wait, where were Madara and Hashirama?
He looked around doubtfully but saw no sign of either of them.
"Hashirama-san? Madara-sama?" Renya called softly.
He called several times, but no one responded.
"Strange, where did they go?" Renya rubbed his dizzy head and climbed down from the wooden bed.
The other wooden beds were covered in moss, but the one he slept on wasn't. It looked freshly made—Hashirama must have crafted it with Wood Release.
Renya walked over to the table and found a note on it. It must have been left by Hashirama and Madara.
[Hahaha, Madara and I left first. You looked drunk, so we didn't wake you. Next time if someone pours you alcohol and you can't drink anymore, you can refuse. Don't foolishly drink it all...]
Reading the first half of the letter, Renya gave a bitter smile and shook his head.
So he could have refused? He had thought it was disrespectful to decline when elders poured him a drink.
If he had known that earlier, he wouldn't have drunk so much.
His eyes moved further down the note, and the words that followed made his face sink.
[Renya, be careful. Madara wants to lure you into joining the "Eye of the Moon" plan. I don't know what tricks he'll use, but you must stay cautious! Madara is nearly mad in pursuit of his dream—I can't stop him anymore!]
"So Uchiha Madara really has his eyes on me..."
Renya had long known Madara had designs on him, but he hadn't known what methods he would use to sway him.
Would it be like with Uchiha Obito?
First killing those he cared about, making him witness their deaths, then forcing him to awaken the Mangekyō Sharingan in grief and fall completely into darkness...
Finally joining Madara to create a world without pain.
If Renya hadn't known the truth about Infinite Tsukuyomi, perhaps he might have agreed to Madara's invitation.
But precisely because he knew, he would never join Madara's side.
Even if he awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan, he wouldn't be deceived like Uchiha Obito, led astray without realizing it.
Still, Hashirama had reminded him—Madara had already started scheming to rope him in.
To avoid another tragedy like Obito's, he had to protect the people he cared about from danger.
If Madara really made a move, then the ones most at risk would be Tobirama, Shimura Danzō, and Koharu Utatane.
And Sarutobi Hiruzen, Uchiha Kagami, and Mitokado Homura would also be in danger!
Although the chances of them being targeted weren't as high as the first three.
The possibility of Tobirama being harmed wasn't great. As long as he didn't leave the village, there was practically no danger.
Madara wouldn't charge into the Hokage's office, right?
Even if that old man couldn't beat Madara, he couldn't be killed so easily.
Besides, wasn't Hashirama still by Madara's side?
For the sake of his friend's feelings, Madara shouldn't lay hands on Tobirama.
The ones he worried about most now were Danzō and Koharu, his teammates.
He didn't know if their deaths would trigger his own eye awakening, but he didn't want to just watch them die.
"Looks like from now on, I'll have to take them with me on missions."
...
Somewhere in the forests of the Shinobi World, two men sat by a campfire.
"Hashirama, did you leave that brat a message?" Uchiha Madara lifted his head, the firelight casting his face in shadows.
Senju Hashirama hugged his knees, head lowered in silence.
After a long pause, he finally spoke in a low voice: "Madara, your plan is too extreme."
Putting everyone under a genjutsu—how was that any different from killing them all?
Would that kind of peace really be peace?
He couldn't stop Madara's plan, but he also couldn't let Madara drag Renya into it.
So before leaving, he had left that note...
Hashirama had thought Madara wouldn't notice, but he had been discovered anyway.
Madara stared at his downcast friend, his expression blank, filled only with cold indifference.
"Hashirama, even you want to stop me from achieving my dream?"
"Madara, it's not like that..." Hashirama quickly lifted his head and explained, "It's just that your plan is far too extreme..."
If Madara could use a gentler method, Hashirama might have joined him in realizing that ideal.
"Heh, extreme?" Madara sneered. "Hashirama, you're still as naïve as ever."
The war had only ended a few years ago, and already this man had forgotten everything.
Hashirama's way couldn't bring peace. Only his plan could!
"Madara..." Hashirama looked at his best friend with a complicated expression.
If he could, he desperately wanted to stop him. But right now, he was powerless, forced to watch as his dearest friend walked into the abyss.
The feeling was unbearable.
"Don't look at me with those disgusting eyes." Madara snorted coldly. "You're useless as you are now. Don't even think about interfering with my plan, or I won't bother keeping you by my side."
If not for their past bond, he wouldn't even be dragging along such dead weight.
"I understand, Madara." Hashirama sighed helplessly.