Uchiha in the Shadows

An unknown underground space.

An extremely aged man sat leaning on a stone chair, several tentacles extending from behind him, connecting to the unknown depths of darkness.

He had a pair of scarlet eyes that, at first glance, resembled the mythical god of death.

A long time ago, his name was more terrifying than the god of death.

A legendary ninja, spoken of in the same breath as the God of Shinobi.

Uchiha Madara!

A mass of white substance rose from the ground, breaking the silence.

"Lord Madara! They're fighting! They're fighting!"

"Konoha and Sunagakure have already started fighting at the border, and the other ninja villages seem to be stirring too!"

After a moment of silence, a hoarse cold laugh filled with contempt followed.

"This is how the Ninja World is. Even if we do nothing, people can't live in peace with each other."

"Hashirama, the illusion of peace you maintained has completely shattered after your death."

Sigh, Lord Madara is going to have another one-sided conversation with Hashirama Senju.

White Zetsu obediently waited for a while.

"How is the task I gave you coming along?"

White Zetsu took out a piece of paper with information on several names and their suffixes.

"As you ordered, here is the information on Uchiha children between the ages of five and ten."

Foremost among them was Kagami Uchiha's name.

He had awakened the Three Tomoe at the age of seven. Such a genius, even in the Warring States period, Uchiha Madara had never heard of.

But it wasn't that impressive.

Moving fast wasn't as good as moving far.

Uchiha Madara's research into the Sharingan was extremely thorough; he understood that the Sharingan wasn't necessarily better the earlier it was awakened.

Possessing abilities beyond what one's body could handle at such a young age was not a good thing.

The more he understood, the more Uchiha Madara felt that Uchiha Kagami would not awaken the Mangekyo, or rather, if he did awaken it, it wouldn't be to his liking.

This kid was too calm, too mature.

Although he had people he cared about, if someone were to harm his grandmother and younger brother, given this kid's personality...

He would most likely figure out what happened and wouldn't be blinded by rage.

Thus, he wouldn't turn into the person Madara expected.

Uchiha Madara carefully examined the list, finally locking his gaze on the name Uchiha Obito.

He knew the conditions for awakening the Mangekyo very well. Besides the basic requirements, the most important thing was immense stimulation.

When an Uchiha lost a loved one, they gained power.

This... curse-like condition.

Therefore, the more emotional an Uchiha was, the more intense the hatred they gained after losing their love.

"Go and keep an eye on this kid named Obito. Investigate his information in detail. I want to know what he values most."

"Alas~ Lord Madara, wouldn't Uchiha Kagami be more suitable as your successor?"

"If I didn't know you were still alive, I would think he was your reincarnation. Such overflowing talent..."

"Shut up."

Uchiha Madara grunted, "The true talent of the Uchiha is not the Three Tomoe or ninjutsu."

"Uchiha Obito has higher potential than Uchiha Kagami!"

He paused.

"Also send a clone to make contact with that Kagami... He can serve as a backup."

White Zetsu's words had still touched him.

Uchiha Kagami couldn't possibly be his reincarnation, but... if reincarnation truly existed...

Was it possible for him...

After all, his personality was very similar to Izuna's, and he had extraordinary swordsmanship talent...

Even his appearance bore some resemblance to Izuna when he was young.

This was where Uchiha Madara had it wrong.

The Uchiha were all benchmarks for good looks. It was just that Uchiha Kagami's handsome direction was the same as Izuna's, both leaning towards the clean-cut type.

Even Fugaku, who was considered the lowest in terms of looks, could still be praised for looking mature and steady.

"That's how it will be..."

After giving his final instructions, Uchiha Madara slowly closed his eyes.

He was too old, and his accumulated injuries were too severe. If not for the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path maintaining him, he would have died long ago.

This feeling of powerlessness annoyed him greatly. He just wanted to quickly select a successor to restrain Nagato and then go to his death.

When he returned again...

It would be in his prime!

Hokage Conference Room.

The war situation was tense. Shimura Danzo had been very busy lately, acting as the mastermind behind other ninja villages and provoking conflict between them.

Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura had also gone to the Land of Fire's capital to have the Daimyo prepare war resources and not become a burden.

Everyone realized...

The Third Shinobi World War might be imminent.

There were signs of this. After the First Hokage's suppression ended, every few years, after the villages had recuperated, they would want to re-divide the territory.

It was no wonder the Land of Fire possessed the most and best territory and resources.

The Kage of each village were not fools. If they allowed the Land of Fire to develop peacefully, in a few decades, it would once again become the sole dominant power as it was during the First Hokage's era.

No one wanted to be a subordinate; everyone wanted a piece of the rich pie that was the Land of Fire.

Recent events had made the smoke in the Hokage's office even thicker.

Sarutobi Hiruzen sat alone, looking at the front-line battle reports, constantly producing secondhand smoke.

Requesting the Uchiha Clan to advance to the front lines...

Among the "Four Shinobi Gods of Konoha," Sarutobi Hiruzen was the least prejudiced against the Uchiha.

But being less prejudiced didn't mean having none.

He wanted to use the Uchiha as a blade, yet he feared that if the blade became too sharp, it would harm him in return.

According to Jiraiya, Kagami's intentions were not bad, but compared to the village, he cared more about the Uchiha Clan.

This was... the inability to escape the narrow-minded views of one's clan.

In Sarutobi Hiruzen's opinion, for this reason alone, he could not give Uchiha Kagami any opportunity to touch high-level power.

However...

The plan proposed by Orochimaru, if successful, could indeed end the war and friction with the Land of Wind.

If they could quickly subdue the Land of Wind and form an alliance, it might deter the other ninja villages.

It could even... postpone the Third Shinobi World War.

Peace – these two words were too tempting for Sarutobi Hiruzen.

After deep contemplation, he summoned a ninja.

"Have the ninjas I've marked on this list prepare themselves and head to the Western front."

Sarutobi Hiruzen hadn't followed Orochimaru's list entirely. Those individuals were all staunch Uchiha hardliners.

He selected half of them and then added some moderate Uchiha, including Uchiha Fugaku.

Sarutobi Hiruzen had had an in-depth conversation with Fugaku.

He could see that Fugaku did not want the rift between the village and the Uchiha to widen further, and he was willing to make some compromises for it.

At dusk, Sarutobi Hiruzen met Uchiha Fugaku alone.

After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Sarutobi Hiruzen got straight to the point.

"Fugaku-kun, what do you think... of Kagami?"

Fugaku was slightly taken aback and replied with his head lowered, "He is a ninja of immense talent, very friendly towards his friends and family, a remarkable child."

Although he had had a conflict with Uchiha Kagami before, he wouldn't mention such things to outsiders.

Sarutobi Hiruzen exhaled a thick plume of smoke and said gravely, "He's only friendly towards his clan members, right?"

"Hokage-sama..."

Raising his hand to signal him to listen quietly, Sarutobi Hiruzen continued, "I specifically arranged for Jiraiya to take Kagami as a student because I recognized his talent."

"But in this past year or so, it seems his thoughts haven't changed. He still doesn't get close enough to other Konoha ninjas..."

Sweat beaded on Fugaku's forehead as he resorted to the universal excuse: "Hokage-sama, he's just a child, he just doesn't express himself very well."

"You know I'm not looking for that answer."

Ever since Fugaku could remember, Sarutobi Hiruzen had been the Hokage.

The imposing aura accumulated over decades made Fugaku tread on thin ice.

This calmly spoken sentence made him feel like a child being reprimanded by a teacher, utterly flustered.

"Hokage-sama, I will definitely change Kagami's mind and help him build deep bonds with his comrades in the village!"

Sarutobi Hiruzen smiled.

"Then I'll be counting on you, Fugaku-kun."