"Wow, what a beautiful view."
At Future Hokage Rock, three young men were imagining the future.
"I've decided." Hashirama Senju spread his arms, his face alight with excitement. "I'm going to build a village here."
"A refuge without discrimination, where children won't have to fight on battlefields and every clan can live together in peace."
Beside him, Madara Uchiha was stirred as well. He, too, looked forward to that future.
"What about you, Kyosuke? Will you help us?" Both turned toward their newest companion.
"Me?" Kyosuke walked to the edge of the cliff, his eyes seeming to reflect the Konoha of the future.
The Hokage Building, Ichiraku Ramen, Food Street, the Ninja Academy... The complexity in his gaze left the other two utterly unable to read him.
"I'm looking forward to building the village, too."
"Hahaha, great!" Hashirama was beside himself with excitement. For so many years, he had had no one to share his dream with.
Even his closest brother couldn't understand his thinking.
People really could understand one another, even the Senju and the Uchiha.
"Madara, Kyosuke, I'm truly..."
"Hold on." Cutting off Hashirama, whose features were practically contorted with emotion, Kyosuke said calmly, "Don't celebrate too soon. In the grand scheme of the Shinobi World, we're insignificant."
"Yes, I understand. In the future, when..."
"You're too naive, Hashirama." Cutting him off without ceremony once again, Kyosuke turned, his gaze sharp. "People's ideas change with time. That goes for all of us."
"Once you truly understand the cruelty of war and the helplessness that lies between people, you might not feel the same way you do today."
Stopping the young man before he could argue, he continued in a subdued voice, "Think before you speak. Otherwise, you'll only make me think less of your dream."
At that, Hashirama took a deep breath and said with unwavering eyes, "I'll overcome the pain and keep moving toward my dream."
Looking at that seemingly sincere face, Kyosuke wanted to ask, What would you do if I killed Tobirama myself?
But before he could speak, Madara quietly stopped him.
After a moment's thought, Kyosuke decided not to press further. Perhaps he had just been reminded of the Uchiha's tragic fate in the future.
One of Konoha's founding clans, a prestigious powerhouse ranked among the greatest of the Warring States Period, would ultimately be reduced to suffering coercion from minor clans like the Sarutobi and Shimura.
From where they stood now, it was an absurd joke.
"No one can say what the future holds." Kyosuke's words carried a deeper meaning.
Whatever the course of their conversation, the three had at least made an initial exchange of ideas that day.
After they said their goodbyes and an excited Hashirama Senju left, Madara suddenly asked, "Kyosuke, why did you show up?"
Kyosuke chuckled and shook his head. Instead of answering, he muttered something seemingly unrelated. "I've noticed you lose your composure whenever Hashirama is involved."
"No way. We're just ordinary friends. Don't overthink it." Madara fired off three denials in a row.
"Be careful." Unwilling to say much more, Kyosuke left him with a warning. "Even I could track you down. Do you really think no one in the clan knows what you're doing?"
"If you're together with him, neither of you will ever get your families' blessing."
"Yeah, I know... Wait, what do you mean, together with him?!" Madara glared at him.
But Kyosuke had already darted far away.
When it came to speed, even several Dance Kings combined couldn't match him.
With his friend's warning in mind, Madara didn't go to meet Hashirama over the next few days.
Unfortunately, the truth couldn't stay hidden forever.
One night, Tajima Uchiha cornered his son at home.
"Madara, who have you been meeting lately?" Tajima's voice was grim, and he looked furious.
At first, Madara planned to make up some lie to brush him off.
But for some reason, he decided to sound out his father's views a little.
Three minutes later, Madara paid for his stupidity.
"The Uchiha and Senju declaring a truce, then building a fucking happy home together?!" The Clan Leader stared at his son as though he were an idiot.
"The enemy has gotten into your head." Bitterly disappointed in his son, Tajima demanded, "I never imagined you could be this naive. Have you told any outsiders about this?"
"...Kyosuke knows, too."
"You idiot!"
The Clan Leader nearly choked with rage. "Who is Uchiha Kyosuke? Your greatest future rival! You've practically handed him leverage over you."
At that, Madara grew impatient as well. Nothing annoyed him more than his father's constant talk of threats.
He had heard far too much of it over the years. "Father, Kyosuke isn't the kind of person you think he is."
"Madara, I truly never thought you could be so naive." Tajima wouldn't listen to a word his son said. In truth, he was a stubborn, overbearing old man.
Someone like him understood only obedience. There was no room in his mind for any bullshit about mutual understanding.
Snap!
He lightly snapped his fingers, and more than a dozen dark figures instantly appeared around them. They were the Clan Shadow Ninjas specially trained by the Uchiha.
Their purpose was simple: to deal with matters-or people-the Clan Leader couldn't conveniently handle in person.
"Uchiha Kyosuke's collusion with the enemy is proven. Arrest him tonight. If he dares resist, execute him on the spot." Tajima Uchiha stared his son down and asked coldly, "What do you think of that?"
Madara clenched his fists. He knew his father was probably trying to frighten him.
The problem was that he didn't dare gamble. If he lost, there would be no undoing it.
"What exactly do you want?" Madara finally gave in.
This time, he felt utterly drained.
If persuading his father was this difficult, what hope did he have with the clansmen consumed by hatred?
Kyosuke had been right after all. Getting everyone to abandon their hatred would require extremely heavy-handed measures.
Expecting everyone to understand one another?
That was nothing more than a child's idle fantasy.
Seeing his son yield, the Clan Leader waved a hand, and the Secret Shinobi vanished without a trace.
"Do you know who that person you've been meeting by the river is?"
Without waiting for Madara's answer, Tajima revealed the truth. "His name is Hashirama Senju. Oh, you probably know that much. But did you know he's Butsuma Senju's son?"
Butsuma Senju, the current Clan Leader of the Senju of the Forest, was unquestionably one of the most powerful fighters of the Warring States Period.
One of Madara's younger cousins had died at his hands.
The hatred between the two sides ran as deep as the sea, and each wished the other would drop dead.
"Hashirama is..." Madara's eyes widened slightly. He had never imagined his friend was the Senju Clan's Clan Heir.
Could this really be fate?
"Now you understand." Tajima patted his son's shoulder, his tone softening. "There's still time to set things right, as long as you..."
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