My Name Is Uchiha Madara

In the underground space of Zetsu's secret base.

"Konoha put a bounty on me?"

Uchiha Obito, wearing a Spiral Mask, spoke in puzzlement.

For the past month or so, he had been staying in Kirigakure.

He had already placed the Fourth Mizukage under a genjutsu, then used the Fourth Mizukage's identity to enforce a series of Bloody Mist policies in Kirigakure.

This was revenge—revenge against all of Kirigakure.

Revenge for Kirigakure driving Rin to her death.

He wanted all of Kirigakure buried alongside Rin.

Quite a few Kirigakure ninja had died under the Bloody Mist policies over the past month, and he had been in a rather good mood.

Yet the moment he returned, he heard that Konoha had placed a bounty on him.

"Yes. Konoha has put a bounty of fifty million on your head—the highest bounty in history. Quite an honor, isn't it?"

Zetsu said with a hint of schadenfreude.

"What happened?"

Uchiha Obito asked.

His instincts told him that something must have happened during the past month or so.

"An Elite Jonin named Uchiha Sen was killed. Konoha suspects you did it, so they placed a bounty on you."

Zetsu's white half said.

"Someone framed me?"

Behind the mask, Uchiha Obito frowned slightly.

He did not care about the bounty.

No one in the Underground Black Market had the strength to threaten him.

Anyone who targeted him for the bounty was simply seeking death.

Besides, he possessed a space-time ability and feared no siege. Even if several Kage-level opponents joined forces against him, he could still retreat with ease.

But being framed for no reason undoubtedly put him in a foul mood.

"Have you found out who framed me?"

"No. Other than a wound suspected to have been caused by Wood Style: Cutting Sprig, Uchiha Sen's body had no other injuries."

"If I didn't know you had been in Kirigakure all this time, I might have thought you were responsible as well."

Zetsu said, shaking his head.

"Can you confirm that the wound was caused by Wood Style: Cutting Sprig?"

Uchiha Obito asked.

"I can't confirm it. I had no chance to examine the corpse up close."

Zetsu's black half said.

"Looks like I'll have to make a trip to Konoha and get to the bottom of this. I can't let someone pin the blame on me."

"Besides, I want to speak with Uchiha Shisui and see if I can bring him into the Akatsuki Organization."

Uchiha Obito made his decision.

Buzz—

A vortex appeared. Uchiha Obito's body twisted like flowing water and was drawn into the vortex, vanishing without a trace.

Late at night, in the Uchiha Clan cemetery, gravestones stood in neat rows.

A vortex appeared out of thin air, and along with it, the masked Uchiha Obito appeared within the cemetery.

His gaze swept across the gravestones. When he saw one inscribed with the name "Uchiha Obito," a strange curve formed at the corner of his mouth.

"Earth Style: Earth Flow Divide."

Arriving beside Uchiha Sen's grave, he used Earth Style Ninjutsu. The earth split apart, and Uchiha Sen's coffin rose from the ground.

Opening the coffin, he tore open Uchiha Sen's clothes and inspected the wounds on the corpse.

"It really was caused by Wood Style: Cutting Sprig!"

He was slightly surprised.

He knew the wounds on the corpse better than anyone. They were the wounds left by the Wood Style: Cutting Sprig he often used.

"Other than me, only Black Zetsu can use Wood Release. But it couldn't possibly have been him. That means someone besides us can use Wood Release!"

"Besides me, the only ones who possess Hashirama Cells are..."

A mocking smile appeared beneath his mask. He had already formed a guess as to who had used Wood Release.

Other than himself, only the Konoha High Command could have acquired Hashirama Cells.

Someone among Konoha's high command must have stolen Hashirama Senju's flesh and blood to conduct research related to Hashirama Cell Transplantation.

In other words, Uchiha Sen had been killed by one of Konoha's own. This was Konoha infighting.

Konoha's high command was as skilled at infighting as ever.

Back then, Kakashi's father, Hatake Sakumo, had been driven to death by this very sort of infighting.

Thinking of Kakashi, the expression beneath his mask became complicated—there was nostalgia, but also hatred.

Although Kakashi had killed Rin only because he had no choice, the fact remained that he had failed to protect her. He would never forgive Kakashi.

Shaking his head and suppressing his complicated feelings, his gaze turned cold.

"Whoever you are, since you dared frame me, you had better be prepared to pay the price!"

A vortex appeared, and his figure vanished from the cemetery.

When he appeared again, he stood before a relatively secluded house in the Uchiha compound.

It was an old house, somewhat dilapidated from years of neglect.

This had once been his home, where he and his grandmother had lived.

Once, this place had brought him warmth. But now, nothing remained here.

He had left Konoha, and his grandmother had passed away from old age, compounded by overwhelming grief.

Only after lingering for a long while did he leave and head toward Uchiha Shisui's residence.

Having once lived within the Uchiha Clan, he naturally knew where Uchiha Shisui lived.

Furthermore, he had received information from Zetsu that Uchiha Shisui was currently in the village.

"Who goes there?"

In the bedroom, Uchiha Shisui suddenly awoke.

He flipped upright, pulled a Tachi from beneath his pillow, and his eyes transformed into the Mangekyō Sharingan.

The vigilance he had developed through long-term missions as an Anbu Ninja, along with the keen perception of a Kage-level expert, had allowed him to sense something amiss and wake up.

"Not bad vigilance!"

Standing in the bedroom, Uchiha Obito said in an inscrutable tone.

"It's you!"

The powerful vision of the Mangekyō Sharingan allowed Uchiha Shisui to see the face of the person who had suddenly appeared in his bedroom, and his voice was filled with shock.

"How did you infiltrate Konoha?"

All of Konoha was enveloped by an enormous Sensory Barrier. Even Kage-level experts would find it difficult to evade detection and infiltrate Konoha.

"For others, infiltrating Konoha without being detected would be difficult. But for me, it isn't all that hard. After all, I used to live here."

Uchiha Obito said mysteriously.

"You used to live here? Who exactly are you?"

Uchiha Shisui was unsettled.

This person had once lived in Konoha. This person had once been one of Konoha's own. The shocking revelation left him utterly stunned.

"My name is Uchiha Madara!"

Uchiha Obito's exposed right eye transformed into the Mangekyō Sharingan as he spoke in an aged, authoritative tone.

As an "actor," he had clearly become immersed in the role.

At this moment, even he believed that he was Uchiha Madara—the Uchiha Madara who had dominated the ninja world decades ago, the only man capable of rivaling the First Hokage.