Konoha Year 80 — July 1st — 7:30 PM
Beneath Konohagakure.
The forbidden burial grounds.
A tall man in a black Hokage robe stood before a coffin. His long hair fell to his shoulders, and on his back the Uchiha clan crest—the fan symbol—stood out clearly.
In his hand, he held a struggling Konoha guard by the collar.
The man rasped, "Uchiha Chen… do you even know who's inside that coffin?!"
Chen's tone was calm.
"I do. Madara Uchiha."
"Then are you trying to become the enemy of the entire shinobi world?! The Hokage won't let you get away with this!"
"Spare me."
A crimson flash burst from Chen's Sharingan.
The overwhelming spiritual shock struck instantly. The ANBU operative's eyes rolled back as he lost consciousness.
Chen casually tossed him into the corridor behind him, where several other fallen ANBU already lay.
He placed a hand on the coffin and gazed at it, complex emotions flickering in his eyes.
"Seven years… and I've finally reached this point."
Chen was a transmigrator—reborn into this world from birth.
In Konoha Year 48, he was born in the Land of Lightning.
His parents were descendants of the Uchiha clan. Long ago, they had been assigned to guard the forbidden site of the Blood Prison clan. Afterward, they erased their identities and lived as ordinary civilians to escape calamity.
They were never meant to have children.
Yet Chen was born with fate tied to a brother.
Two years after Chen's birth, his younger brother Jin was born.
Both brothers awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan at an early age. Their bond was like that of Madara Uchiha and Izuna Uchiha in the past—deep, loyal, inseparable.
Because Chen knew the future of the shinobi world—the coming disasters of the Boruto era—he began preparing early. Together with Jin, he laid plans for what was to come.
At first, those plans centered on cooperation: the Chen–Jin brothers working alongside Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha.
After the Fourth Great Ninja War, Chen stepped out of the shadows. He approached Naruto's administration and laid out the dangers ahead, hoping to prevent the fate where Naruto and Sasuke would slowly be pushed to the sidelines.
But his warnings were dismissed.
He was treated as a dangerous radical spreading fear.
Then, seven years ago, tragedy struck.
Jin died unexpectedly.
Chen transplanted Jin's eyes, merging their ocular powers. Upon awakening the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan, new abilities were born.
In total, six rare ocular techniques resided within those eyes.
Including his original ability, Chen now wielded seven.
More terrifying than the number was their quality.
Those peerless eyes showed him another possibility.
A path that did not rely on Naruto Uzumaki or Sasuke Uchiha.
A way to break the future alone.
So he adjusted the plan he had once made with his brother.
And today, he would take the first decisive step—
To use Edo Tensei to resurrect Madara Uchiha.
And recruit him—alongside another already persuaded reanimation—as his right and left hands.
"Naruto. Sasuke."
Chen's voice was quiet, yet firm.
"I won't stand still and wait for you anymore."
"From here on… either keep up—"
"Or be left far behind."
His three tomoe spun.
The pattern shifted, unfolding into a breathtaking design.
The Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan.
A black vortex spiraled outward from his right eye, swallowing both Chen and the coffin whole.
7:38 PM
A cave chamber prepared in advance.
The stone walls and ceiling were plastered with forbidden talismans.
At the center of a massive ritual array on the floor stood a being that should not exist in this era—
A White Zetsu.
Its body was encased in ice crystals, slowly melting as Chen's right eye glowed.
The White Zetsu's dull yellow eyes regained clarity. It looked around—and then froze when it saw Chen.
Fragmented memories snapped back into place.
"You… it's you! I remember—you were just a short-haired brat! How did you suddenly grow into a long-haired drifter like Madara?!"
Near the end of the Fourth Great Ninja War, the White Zetsu army perished as the Infinite Tsukuyomi was undone.
Chen had used his unique ocular ability to freeze time itself, preserving a portion of them.
This one was among those survivors.
"I'm impressed you recognized me so quickly."
"How could I not?! You look like the child of Madara Uchiha and Hashirama Senju!"
Chen chuckled lightly. "That's… a rare description. I've never quite known how to define my own appearance."
"Enough nonsense! What is this?! Why have you suddenly grown up?!"
"Your time was frozen by my eye technique. To you, it felt like a blink. In reality… fifteen years have passed."
"Fifteen years?! What about the war?"
"It ended. You were meant to die alongside the others when the Infinite Tsukuyomi was lifted. Because of me, you're breathing air from fifteen years in the future."
Chen turned toward the upright coffin behind him.
"But you won't be for long."
At the center of the coffin was a special sealing talisman.
It had been personally placed by Sasuke Uchiha—the one who had originally proposed preserving Madara's body.
The seal was absolute.
If anyone other than Sasuke removed it, the corpse would be destroyed instantly. At the same time, a space–time technique inscribed with the Rinnegan would activate, summoning Sasuke to deliver judgment.
Chen's right eye focused.
A flicker of light.
The talisman disintegrated into black particles.
The destruction trigger and space–time technique collapsed at the source—erased completely.
Chen's ocular technique—Shenzhao—could directly annihilate external objects, chakra phenomena, and even jutsu formulas anchored to a medium.
Simply put—
Anything that was not a living being.
The coffin creaked open.
Madara Uchiha's remains lay within.
White Zetsu stared in shock.
Then it examined the ritual array surrounding it.
Recognition dawned.
"Wait… this formation…! Don't tell me—you're going to use me as the living sacrifice for Edo Tensei! Just like Orochimaru did when he revived the Hokage!"
"Sharp as ever."
Chen sliced Madara's shoulder lightly with a kunai, drawing preserved genetic material. He flicked the blade into the ritual circle.
The coffin lid shut again.
Chen placed his palm on top.
Both eyes shimmered.
Ten seconds later, frost crept across the coffin, sealing it in ice.
When the mist dispersed—
The coffin vanished.
White Zetsu groaned. "So I never had a choice, huh?"
Chen's hands formed rapid seals.
Hidden beneath his bangs, his left eye glowed crimson.
Midobone.
In myth, Midobone was the deity of irrigation waters.
As an ocular technique, it amplified any jutsu performed in conjunction with it—producing overwhelming returns.
White Zetsu screamed as its body began to crumble.
"You cursed brat! I curse you to never find a wife! And if you do, may she be just like me—"
"Apologies," Chen said calmly. "I already have a wife."
"And my wife… sees more than you ever could."
The ritual ignited.
Midobone — Edo Tensei!
A violent storm erupted inside the cave.
White Zetsu's body dissolved into dust.
The dust gathered.
Solidified.
Formed the towering figure of a man.
Long, wild hair fell over his shoulders.
His upper body was bare, clad only in black trousers.
On his chest, molded from pale material, was the face of Hashirama Senju—his former friend and rival.
The Sage Mode markings faintly emerged upon that face.
The man's eyes were closed.
Then—
His hair lifted as if caught in a rising gale.
Within his eye sockets, the Rinnegan manifested perfectly—restored as they had been before Kaguya's sealing.
Madara Uchiha had returned.
The moment his eyes opened, a shockwave blasted through the stone chamber. The talismans on the walls fluttered violently.
Chen stood unmoved, as if basking in a gentle breeze.
He remained silent, allowing Madara time to assess the situation.
Madara looked at his own hands, frowning slightly.
"Edo Tensei again? What are Naruto and Sasuke doing? Have they allowed another snake like Kabuto to emerge—"
His words halted.
In the darkness, a pair of crimson eyes glowed back at him.
The outline sharpened.
The flame-like hair of the Uchiha clan.
Long hair.
"The pattern in those eyes… Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan?"
Surprise faded into something colder.
"So you're not some coward hiding in the shadows. Aside from Sasuke, there are still Uchiha alive. That's unexpected."
He folded his arms.
"Brat. State your name."
"Uchiha Chen," he replied evenly. "It is an honor to meet you, Madara Uchiha."
"Chen…"
Madara's gaze drifted to Chen's partially concealed left eye.
"You used an ocular technique in tandem with Edo Tensei. What have you done to this body?"
Chen answered simply.
"Everything except the Ten-Tails' power has been restored to your peak condition."
Madara examined his chest—the face of Hashirama. Then he touched his eyes.
When he looked at Chen again, his expression had changed.
Arms folded, voice low, he said,
"To preserve the true power of my Rinnegan within Edo Tensei… not only do you possess remarkable eyes—"
"You possess remarkable courage."
Without warning, Madara's right Rinnegan focused.
"Lie down. I'll interrogate your intentions at my leisure."
Limbo: Border Jail.