After a long time, Kyosuke finally saw Uchiha Tajima again.
He still looked gloomy all day long, as if he found fault with everyone he saw. He wasn't likable in the slightest.
They said the Uchiha Clan was full of handsome men and beautiful women, but when it came to this Clan Head's looks... well, there wasn't much to say.
Kyosuke grumbled to himself, but maintained at least a basic level of respect on the surface.
"Wonderful! I knew I was right about you." Tajima patted the young man on the shoulder, looking thoroughly pleased with himself.
Anyone who didn't know better might have thought Kyosuke's rise had something to do with him.
His shameless manner made Uchiha Madara across from them turn his head slightly, thinking, Father, please don't embarrass yourself.
After exchanging a few pleasantries, the Clan Head suddenly asked with interest, "You two brothers just fought. Who won?"
At that, Kyosuke and Madara exchanged a glance, both a little surprised.
In Kyosuke's eyes, Madara-sama truly lived up to his status as the reincarnation of Indra Chakra. His strength had increased at a rocket's pace.
His physical strength in particular had improved. The Dance King, who was already over eleven, had entered a period of rapid growth.
During their first clash, Kyosuke had nearly lost his grip on his weapon.
His physical strength had reached the level of an elite jōnin, and so had his Chakra. His mental strength was hard to judge, but Kyosuke couldn't remember anyone ever trapping Uchiha Madara in a Genjutsu.
With a Sharingan whose degree of evolution was anyone's guess, Madara-sama now had strength close to that of an elite jōnin at his peak.
His rate of improvement was no slower than Kyosuke's.
On the other side, Madara was just as impressed.
The boy was more than two years younger than him. If they'd fought when they were the same age, Madara might have lost after just a few exchanges.
Kyosuke's swordsmanship was sharp, his speed terrifying. Madara hadn't dared let his attention waver for even an instant while fighting him.
He'd heard that Kyosuke had also created an extremely powerful Lightning Release technique, one especially suited to the Uchiha Clan.
Madara wanted to see it for himself. He could use Lightning Release too, but usually preferred to focus on mastering Fire Release.
"It was a draw," Madara answered his father.
"I see." Tajima's smile didn't change. He seemed genuinely happy.
Unfortunately, Kyosuke wasn't falling for it.
The old man was thick-skinned and devious. He was exactly the sort to stab you while smiling.
Kyosuke couldn't imagine how a man like him had fathered the Dance King.
After glancing around, Kyosuke suddenly asked curiously, "Where's Izuna? Why didn't that kid come to welcome me?"
At that, the doting older brother Madara burst out laughing. "He heard about your many accomplishments on the battlefield and started demanding like crazy that he be allowed to go fight too."
Madara glanced at his helpless-looking father and continued, "After Father refused, Izuna shut himself away to train. I hardly ever see him now."
"Hahaha!" Kyosuke laughed, his voice full of glee. "I'll go see him sometime and give him a little extra motivation to keep getting stronger."
What sort of motivation?
Naturally, he'd beat him up fair and square. Izuna was stubborn by nature; a good beating would make him train even harder.
As long as he knew to work hard, that was good. It would save him from getting cut down by someone else one day.
How embarrassing.
At the thought of Tobirama Senju, a figure leaped into Kyosuke's mind.
Looking at the Dance King, whose presence had grown steadier, Kyosuke knew he must have started secretly meeting with Hashirama.
How far along are those two?
I'm so curious.
He rubbed his chin, slapped his thigh, and decided he'd go on a little tailing expedition in this other world.
It would be a shame not to witness the two divine beings meeting in person.
Soon, the various bigwigs from the main battlefield arrived one after another.
With more than two hundred ninja under his command, Kyosuke had become a powerful figure in the clan, highly sought after by all sides.
Aside from the elders, no one dared put on airs in front of him.
Perhaps Tajima was also trying to show off his strength and warn Kyosuke not to entertain any other ridiculous ideas.
Kyosuke didn't care in the slightest.
With Chidori in hand, he had the means to recruit anyone he wanted. As long as he kept growing stronger, no one could stop his rise.
Sooner or later, the Uchiha Clan would belong to him and Madara.
Everyone else would either submit or leave the battlefield and return to the clan to enjoy retirement.
Uchiha Tajima was strong and skilled at wielding influence, but his narrow-mindedness meant he was never going to achieve anything great.
At the banquet, Kyosuke drank freely without the slightest restraint and even began competing with Madara to see who could hold their liquor better.
Their ages?
A joke. No one there truly dared think of him as a boy.
Anyone who did had already died by that short blade.
At night, Kyosuke and Madara strolled through the darkness, chatting on and off about their experiences on the battlefield.
"When will the war finally end?" the Dance King suddenly asked, sounding a little sentimental.
Kyosuke glanced at him and replied flatly, "When all our enemies are dead, the war will end."
"Yeah." Madara looked up at him, uncharacteristically hesitant.
His reluctance to speak filled Kyosuke with curiosity.
"If you have something to say, just say it. Since when did you get so wishy-washy?"
"Oh." Uchiha Madara nodded blankly, then finally voiced the thought he hadn't even shared with his younger brother. "Kyosuke, do you think there's any chance we could make peace with the Senju?"
Did Hashirama brainwash you or something?!
Kyosuke was silent for a long time before giving him a definite answer. "Making peace isn't actually that hard. We've been killing each other for a thousand years. We're tired of it, and so are they."
Madara gave him a strange look. He probably hadn't expected Kyosuke to answer like that.
Ignoring the Dance King's astonishment, Kyosuke continued explaining his thoughts.
"Tell me, how many people still bring up the grudges from the previous generation? What about the generation before that?"
"Not many, right? Do you know why?"
"Uh..." The young Madara hesitated before answering, "Because everyone's... old?"
In truth, he'd wanted to say they were all dead, but felt that would be disrespectful to the clan's fallen.
In a daze, he seemed to understand what Kyosuke was getting at.
No matter how deep a grudge ran, it would slowly fade with time. Before anyone realized it, few people were talking about the old generation's grudges anymore.
To end the hatred and even build their ideal village together, they didn't need to worry about so much. They only had to force the two clans to unite.
Anyone who dared cause trouble?
One word: kill!
Give it thirty or fifty years, and there'd be enough time to resolve the conflicts that had built up over the years.
The reason was simple: everyone who couldn't let go of their hatred would be dead.
The new generation of ninja had lived in a village since birth. It would be hard for them to feel the same way.
Kyosuke stopped speaking, still feeling there was more to say. His views had all come from the story's original plot.
In hell, plenty of people could fight just to survive.
But once they'd experienced heaven, it was hard to make them return to hell.
That was why Uchiha Madara ultimately ended up abandoned by everyone.
Before you continue