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Half a month had passed since that cataclysmic battle on the Sai River.
Madara still hadn't woken up.
An unnamed country. A desolate mountain wilderness. Rain poured outside a cave.
Izuna never left his side.
Black Zetsu was out gathering food.
Through these days and nights, Izuna had tossed and turned. In the unending drum of rain, his chaotic thoughts slowly untangled themselves.
My brother… when I was alive, he saw life and death clearly. He said, "Live when you must. Die when you must. If I could choose my death, it would be spilling the last drop of blood for the Uchiha!"
But… would that brother… let the Uchiha be hunted down and exterminated by the Senju's Konoha?
Black Zetsu didn't tell me everything. Something happened to my brother. Something no one knows.
Of course! I'm such a fool! A man as proud as my brother… would he willingly take shelter in some brat's body?
He would never choose this!
And that beast, Itachi… his retort lingers. What did he mean? "Join me… let the whole world dream a dream from which they'll never wake"?
Izuna's single eye turned. It fell upon the sleeping face that had felt so wrong to him.
His trembling hand reached out. Hesitated. Pulled back. Then reached out again, firm. Fingers brushed the eyelid of the "Naruto" before him.
The cerulean iris stared back, unfocused.
Zzzt.
Izuna's left eye bled into the Mangekyō Sharingan.
"Forgive me, brother. I need to know. I need to know what happened to you."
"Izuna… you really shouldn't do that, you know."
The voice was low, murky, weaving through the patter of rain.
Black Zetsu stood there. A straw raincoat and hat. A bundle of wild fruit in his arms.
Izuna's brow furrowed. "Are you telling me what to do?"
"I wouldn't dare."
Black Zetsu stepped forward. He set down a cloth bundle, took off his hat. He saw the impatience, the raw agitation in Izuna's face. If he didn't offer something real now, this wouldn't end well.
He chose his words carefully. "Two wills exist within this body. Lord Madara's. And Uzumaki Naruto's. Originally, Lord Madara's will completely suppressed the boy's. However… within Itachi's Tsukuyomi, Lord Madara's will suffered a terrifying impact. He held on through sheer force of will. He even unleashed greater power to counterattack."
"But… that didn't solve the root problem. One wanes, the other waxes. Naruto's will could surge back at any moment. At this critical point, your genjutsu… might be the final straw. The one who wakes might not be Lord Madara. It might be Naruto."
Izuna paled. A wave of cold dread washed over him. "Something this critical… and you're only telling me NOW?!"
Black Zetsu's tone softened, persuasive. "I am a projection of Lord Madara's will. I act according to his wishes. You are his brother. A brother not wanting to worry his sibling… is that not human nature?"
Izuna had no retort. Then, rage—for his brother's plight, misdirected onto the Senju.
"It's all the Senju's fault! If they hadn't driven the Uchiha to the brink… if they hadn't spawned a traitorous beast like Itachi! My brother wouldn't be struggling like this! I should have ignored everything… taken the place of our fallen clansmen… and hit Itachi with an Ame no Hakarai!"
He took a wild fruit from the bundle. Made a small cut. Let the juice seep. Gently parted his brother's lips. Let the liquid trickle in. A swallow.
His gaze darkened. "Is there a way? To completely kill Uzumaki Naruto's will. To make this body entirely my brother's?"
"None that I know of for now," Black Zetsu said.
Heh. Even if there was… why would I tell you? Naruto is the core of this era's plan. Madara's only purpose is to accelerate his growth. Nothing more.
His expression remained blank. "But you needn't worry overly much. Without external interference, Lord Madara is unlikely to lose to Naruto's will just yet."
Within the shared mental landscape of Madara and Naruto, a chaotic sea churned.
On the surface, countless black, flocculent fragments floated. They seemed adrift, yet an invisible, iron will pulled them against the current, gathering them back together.
Meanwhile, deep below the surface…
A golden light pulsed. Shaped like a heart. A cocoon.
Each pulse was a powerful cry.
Inside, a golden-haired boy, eyes shut tight, seemed to sense the oppressive dark will above weakening, growing feeble. He fought. Struggled to break free.
As time passed, cracks spiderwebbed across the cocoon. Golden light bled through. The darkness was on the verge of being shattered.
WHOOSH!
Suddenly, a violent whirlpool erupted on the sea's surface. The black fragments madly gathered. At the vortex's base, they coalesced into a silhouette of pure darkness.
"My will… which once saw through all… is now being rejected by this world."
"Without a doubt. That Naruto brat… has grown stronger."
"Itachi… he had the chance to kill me. Yet he only used Tsukuyomi to weaken my spirit. I finally understand his reasoning."
Heh. "He wants Naruto to awaken under my very nose. To retake this body."
"Pity… everything that fails to kill me only makes me stronger!"
"Thanks to you… I've become stronger!"
RUMBLE!!!
Madara's colossal willpower erupted. It permeated the sea's depths. Black tendrils shot forth, tangling around the golden cocoon, forcibly halting its breaking.
The light bleeding from the cracks dimmed. But a few strands of that light… traveled back up the dark vines.
Images—scenes absent from Madara's own memory—flashed through his mind.
Starting with a lonely child… on a swing.
"These are… Naruto's memories?"
Madara's brow creased slightly. He didn't resist. He delved deeper. If anything, he was curious about this boy he'd never met.
The final image… the inside of a coffin. The first thing he saw when his eyes opened in this body.
Having witnessed Naruto's entire life—the loneliness, the hatred, the struggle—Madara felt no pity. Only a cold, detached realization.
"So, Hashirama… this is the village you were willing to kill me to protect?"
"Humans… are incapable of understanding each other. War or peace, it makes no difference."
"As long as the bonds of karma in this world remain unsevered… countless wretched children like this Naruto will continue to be born."
"The Infinite Tsukuyomi… is the world's only true path."
"Naruto. Sleep soundly in the darkness. I, Madara, will take you to that dream woven of endless happiness and sweetness."
The closed eyelids… snapped open.
Two figures—one black, one white—walked side by side out of a different cave.
"The Five Kage have formed an alliance."
"Naruto's confirmed. Taken by Black Zetsu. And he's let Madara replace him."
"Also, the Eight-Tails is alive. Tough bastard. We have a recent sighting report too."
Tap.
They stopped just outside the cave entrance.
Black robes. A gunbai strapped to his back. Beneath the white mask, a Sharingan and a Rinnegan swirled with cold intent, fixed on the path ahead.
"—Whether it's Sasuke or Madara… whatever they do is meaningless."
A gloved black hand rose. Placed over his chest. The Rinnegan gleamed with an ominous light.
—"I… am the Sage of Six Paths."
~~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~~
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