Indra's Mangekyō Sharingan flared as he stared at Madara Uchiha, letting out a cold laugh.
"I don't like admitting it, but my chakra does exist within you."
Being told that by Indra naturally put Madara Uchiha in a foul mood, especially when the other man also possessed Susanoo.
To Madara, being told "you carry my chakra" felt no different than someone claiming Deidara's art was stolen.
The two stood sharply opposed, tension crackling between them.
Indra flicked his gaze toward Sasuke. "Compared to that brat over there, you're far more irritating."
Madara was on the verge of exploding. The other's attitude was blatantly dismissive, not taking him seriously at all.
If Indra truly belonged to the Uchiha clan, there was no way he wouldn't know who Madara was.
Sensing what Madara was about to do, Hashirama hurriedly stepped in to stop the man who was already preparing to summon Susanoo.
"Madara! Listen to the Fourth Hokage first. Indra isn't one of your clansmen. He's the eldest son of the Sage of the Six Paths, the legendary progenitor of the Uchiha clan!"
That answer left Madara Uchiha completely stunned.
The progenitor of the Uchiha clan?
Madara stared at Indra.
Him? The eldest son of the Sage of the Six Paths?
"Eldest son? If that's the case…"
That meant the Sage of the Six Paths had other children as well.
On this point, Tobirama Senju was clearly unwilling to elaborate. He simply snorted and turned his head away.
Hashirama Senju, on the other hand, was delighted at the idea of being brothers with Madara and immediately leaned in with an ingratiating smile.
"Madara! Indra is the eldest son of the Sage of the Six Paths and the ancestor of the Uchiha clan. His younger brother, Ashura, is the ancestor of the Senju and Uzumaki clans. The Uchiha, Senju, and Uzumaki are actually one family!!"
As Madara Uchiha stared in disbelief, Hashirama continued enthusiastically.
"It was all because of Black Zetsu. Indra and Ashura ended up in conflict, and later their chakra reincarnated into you and me. So in a way, we're brothers too, Madara!"
"What kind of nonsense are you talking about?!"
Madara couldn't accept it.
Yet the expressions on everyone around them clearly said otherwise.
Only Pain and the others, who had only recently moved into the missing-nin lodging, were just as lost as Madara Uchiha.
Looking at the man in front of him, the one the First Hokage called Madara Uchiha, Pain finally came to a realization. The Madara Uchiha he had known before was not truly Madara Uchiha at all.
At that moment, like Madara, he lowered his voice and asked for an explanation.
Young Obito, having lived through Naruto Uzumaki's entire life in the previous parallel world, naturally knew Black Zetsu's true identity and purpose. He explained everything, including the full truth behind Infinite Tsukuyomi.
As the newly revived Madara Uchiha listened, his expression grew darker and darker.
By the end, it could only be described as twisted.
He threw out a single line, "Who would believe your lies!" and disappeared from everyone's sight, vanishing without a trace.
Hashirama wanted to chase after him, but Tobirama stopped him and advised letting Madara cool down first.
Nagato also found it impossible to accept reality.
By the time everyone returned to the missing-nin lodging, their moods were heavy.
After experiencing Itachi's entire life, Sasuke was caught in deep conflict. He was willing to trust the Fourth Hokage, yet couldn't easily forgive Konoha for its past exclusion of the Uchiha. He felt lost and helpless over Itachi's suffering, but at the same time, he couldn't simply ignore the fact that Itachi had slaughtered the clan.
The others noticed this as well. The brothers still needed a turning point, something that could ease their relationship and rebuild the bond they once had.
They had thought this SSS-rank mission reward might help.
Instead, all it did was revive Madara Uchiha.
Setting aside the fact that Madara himself was a source of immense suffering, after going through so many astonishing A-rank, S-rank, and SS-rank mission rewards, this SSS-rank reward felt surprisingly underwhelming.
At the same time, the relationship between adult Obito and the members of Akatsuki had also become extremely awkward.
When it came to the future, the fragmented bits and pieces of information made Nagato and Konan distrust Obito Uchiha and view him with open hostility.
Obito Uchiha himself also carried guilt. He knew all too well that he had been one of the three key factors behind Yahiko's death.
That night, no one could sleep anyway. With a room full of missing-nin next door, everyone stayed on edge, instinctively alert like shinobi always were.
So Naruto and young Obito simply dragged Sasuke and adult Obito over to see Itachi and Nagato.
One excuse was that they wanted to help Itachi study the compass he had.
The other was that, as devoted fans, they wanted to discuss the plot of The Tale of the Utterly Gutsy Shinobi with Nagato.
The excuses were painfully bad, but somehow they still got in.
The moment Sakura saw Kisame Hoshigaki's rows of jagged shark teeth, she shrank back a step.
"When there's no mission, Kisame doesn't strike without reason. Don't worry," Itachi Uchiha said, explaining on his partner's behalf.
He considered it a stroke of luck that the two companions he'd ended up with in Akatsuki were both from Kirigakure, and neither of them was truly rotten at heart.
If it came down to it, he hoped he would die before Kisame did.
Kisame didn't bother responding. If there was no mission, he really wouldn't lay a hand on a few kids. Besides, one of them was the Fourth Hokage's son, and two were Uchiha with Mangekyō Sharingan. He wasn't about to invite trouble.
Of course, Kisame wasn't kind enough to leave and give them privacy, either. He simply picked a spot near the window and sat down, looking like he was casually keeping watch.
Compared to the compass, young Sasuke actually wanted far more to ask Itachi what kind of illusion he had lived through in the previous parallel world.
But the poor kid had been turned down so many times that now he couldn't even get a simple question out.
Coincidentally, Naruto was curious too.
When Naruto asked first, Sasuke felt an almost physical sense of relief.
Itachi's dark eyes swept past Naruto, briefly catching on Sasuke beside him.
After a few seconds of silence, Itachi Uchiha finally spoke.
"The illusion let me live through several other possibilities for my life."
"Other possibilities?"
Itachi's voice lowered as if he'd fallen into memory.
"The first time, I made the exact opposite choice from the one I made in this life. I chose the Uchiha… and abandoned Konoha."
In this parallel world, only the twelve- or thirteen-year-old Naruto and young Sasuke stared at him, eyes wide with disbelief.
"I led the Uchiha in a coup against Konoha. Shisui still died by suicide, unable to stop any of it."
"Then what happened?!" Naruto leaned forward, unable to hold back. "What happened to Konoha after that?!"
"Konoha was badly weakened by internal conflict and became prey in the eyes of the other Great Shinobi Villages. It had vast land, rich resources, and a climate fit for survival, but relying on the Uchiha alone, it was impossible to keep it intact in a chaotic era."
Sasuke's expression darkened. "Because it was a coup, the other clans refused to accept Uchiha rule over Konoha."
"Yes." Itachi showed no resentment, only a calm nod.
Sasuke clenched his fists.
Then Itachi continued, "It was obvious that choice was wrong too, just like the one I made in my real life. So in the second life within the illusion, I used the fact that I already knew Black Zetsu's scheme and told the Fourth Hokage I knew ahead of time."
Naruto froze. "You told Dad in advance?!"
"That choice was probably the right one. You and Sasuke both grew up with your parents still alive…"
But looking back, even though that world seemed perfect, everything still drifted apart. Whether it was Shisui and me, or Naruto and Sasuke, we ended up as two parallel lines, never truly crossing again, no bonds left between us.
"Was that the right choice?" Sasuke asked.
Itachi shook his head. "That's why there was a third life. And in that life…"
He paused.
For no clear reason, Sasuke's chest tightened.
"Sasuke."
Itachi suddenly called his name. "In this life, I chose to believe in you and Father."
The boy across from him froze, eyes wide as his pupils shrank sharply.
He repeated Itachi's words almost mechanically. "Believe in me and Father…?"
Itachi's words, and the guilt carried in his gaze, left young Sasuke Uchiha's mind completely blank.
"Believe in Father's resolve as a Konoha ninja. He simply bore too much of the negative emotions that welled up from within the clan, and as the clan head, he couldn't help but lean toward the family. Believe that you could change Father's and the clan's way of thinking, and together with Naruto, change the relationship between the Uchiha and Konoha."
As he said this, a gentle smile appeared on Itachi's face, one Sasuke hadn't seen for many years.
No… it wasn't true that he hadn't seen it in years.
In the illusion, when Itachi released Edo Tensei and departed, he had once said—
Perhaps I, too, couldn't escape the Uchiha clan's arrogance and self-importance. As a double agent, I tried to shoulder everything on my own.
If I had trusted you earlier, discussed the clan's conflicts with you, maybe I could have changed Father's and the clan's thinking and reached a different ending.
No matter what choices you make in the future, I will always love you.
Young Sasuke Uchiha felt his vision blur.
Through the haze, he caught sight of the surprise on Itachi's face.
Sasuke knew he was being pathetic, unable to control his emotions, but as he spoke about that final life, he simply couldn't hold them back.
At that moment, Naruto chose to pretend he hadn't noticed anything. To help Sasuke cover it up, he even laughed extra loudly when he heard about Sasuke becoming "Chara-Sasuke," going around every day with roses to flirt with girls.
By the time everything had been said, Sasuke had more or less regained control, but the dampness on his eyes and face was impossible to hide. Acting as the older brother, Itachi went to get him a towel. Sasuke stubbornly yanked it out of his hand and blew his nose hard.
Seeing Sasuke act so childishly left Naruto completely stunned.
Itachi could only feel both helpless and indulgent.
Only now did the brothers truly reconcile, with each other and with themselves.
Off to the side, Kisame: "....." A miscalculation. I should've left earlier.
This kind of gentleness…
It's a bit hard to get used to.
"Oh, right! Sasuke's brother!" Naruto steered the topic back to the SSS-rank mission reward. "So what does that compass actually do, anyway, dattebayo?"