Chapter Summaries

Uchiha Madara and Kelana prepared to rest before attempting to enter the Royal City the next day, while he urged her to think carefully about the risks of pursuing the person she loved. Kelana remained determined to see him, and Madara promised to help her get in and bring her back out.

• Kelana insisted on staying with Uchiha Madara, and he explained that he usually traveled alone to avoid trouble.
• Uchiha Madara reminded Kelana that she needed to consider whether seeing her beloved was worth the risks, but Kelana said she only needed to see him once.
• Kelana rejected Madara's suggestion that she begin at the lowest rank in the Royal City and work her way up, saying she could not wait that long.
• Uchiha Madara brought Kelana to a room to rest before they acted the next day.
• Kelana thanked Uchiha Madara for helping her, and he promised he would bring her safely back out of the Royal City.

Uchiha Madara learned that the Magic Stone was held by the city lord and that winning the Racial League could earn him a wish, but the winner also had to marry the princess. He rejected that condition and asked Kelana what would happen if he refused, learning he could be executed for insulting the city lord.

• Kelana told Uchiha Madara that the city lord held the Magic Stone and warned that opening its guarded box could bring misfortune upon the country.
• Kelana explained that the Racial League champion could make a wish of the city lord, but had to marry the princess.
• Uchiha Madara refused to marry the princess and said he wanted freedom and hoped for a world without war.
• Kelana mocked Uchiha Madara as a coward, and he joked with her before asking where the Magic Stone was kept.
• Kelana said she did not know where the box was and warned that refusing to marry the princess after winning could get Uchiha Madara cut into a thousand pieces.

Uchiha Madara asked Kelana to help him learn where the Royal City kept a Magic Stone so he could steal it. He explained that he was collecting the stones to make a wish and return to his own world, while Kelana agreed to consider helping in exchange for seeing the person she loved.

• Uchiha Madara rejected Kelana's warning about the danger of obtaining the Magic Stone and said he would steal it if he could find its location.
• Kelana suggested asking someone in a high position in the Royal City for information, and Uchiha Madara realized she meant the person she longed to see.
• Kelana asked what the Magic Stone was and why Uchiha Madara wanted it, and he explained that it could tempt people and that collecting the stones might grant a wish.
• Uchiha Madara told Kelana he hoped to use the wish to return to his own world, and she said she believed him.
• Kelana called their exchange unequal, and Uchiha Madara offered to grant her another request while noting that seeing her beloved mattered more to her than her own life.

Uchiha Madara and Kelana prepared to enter the special examination grounds, where Kelana hoped to see someone important to her. Madara pointed out gaps in her plan and arranged for them to carry weapons as a disguise before heading to a shop together.

• Kelana and Uchiha Madara agreed to meet the next morning, and Madara looked forward to getting what he wanted most.
• Madara noticed crowds buying weapons and wondered why the city lord had made the competition a real battle.
• Kelana arrived at the inn the next morning, and she and Madara decided to buy weapons so their empty hands would not draw suspicion.
• Madara criticized Kelana for overlooking important details and told her to follow his instructions until they entered.
• Madara said they should enter when the grounds were most crowded, and Kelana took him to a weapons shop.

Uchiha Madara and Kelana entered the competition grounds as Kelana prepared to lead him to the person she wanted to see. They surveyed the arenas, where Kelana explained that Ji Sheng Zhipin was the favored competitor and a popular match for the princess.

• Uchiha Madara and Kelana entered the grounds after discussing their plans and Kelana admitted she was nervous about seeing the man she had missed.
• Kelana led Uchiha Madara past the arenas and explained that competitors' matches were spread across several days.
• Uchiha Madara noticed the uneven crowds around the arenas and asked Kelana what drew spectators to certain matches.
• Kelana identified Ji Sheng Zhipin as the country's hope, a confident guard captain from a noble family and the competition's favorite.
• Kelana said many people considered Ji Sheng Zhipin and the princess a perfect match, though she dismissed him as just another man.

Uchiha Madara helped Kelana sneak into the inner courtyard so she could confront the person she had long hoped to see. When they reached the room, the door opened to reveal the princess, leaving Kelana and the princess face-to-face in shock.

• Kelana led Uchiha Madara to a high wall, and he carried her over it into the inner courtyard.
• Kelana invited Uchiha Madara to come with her because patrols could find him alone.
• Uchiha Madara encouraged Kelana to enter the large house and knocked on the door for her.
• A young girl opened the door and identified the room as the princess's.
• Uchiha Madara stepped aside to reveal Kelana, and the princess exclaimed in surprise at seeing her.

Uchiha Madara left Kelana and the princess to reunite and went to the competition grounds to pass the time. He entered a match against a burly axe-wielding fighter, but his unfamiliarity with the arena’s customs drew laughter from the crowd.

• Uchiha Madara noticed the princess had recognized Kelana despite her disguise and left them alone to talk.
• Uchiha Madara went to the competition grounds and decided to enter a match while waiting for Kelana.
• Uchiha Madara walked up the arena stairs, and the burly fighter explained that contestants were expected to show off how they reached the platform.
• Uchiha Madara walked back down after the fighter offered him another chance, and the crowd laughed as the fighter claimed he had forfeited.
• The referee let Uchiha Madara return to the match, and Uchiha Madara leaped onto the platform, prompting the crowd to laugh again.

Uchiha Madara defeated a burly competitor in the arena with a single kick, though the spectators thought the man had slipped. Afterward, Ji Sheng Zhipin approached Madara with a severed head and challenged his claim that he had merely been lucky.

• The burly man warned Uchiha Madara about the brutal competition, and the referee began their match.
• The burly man charged and swung his axe at Uchiha Madara, who dodged and kicked him off the arena.
• The spectators assumed the burly man had slipped, and the referee declared Uchiha Madara the winner and scheduled his next match for the following afternoon.
• Ji Sheng Zhipin tossed a blood-covered head at Uchiha Madara's feet and called him an interesting dark horse.
• Uchiha Madara said the burly man had slipped, but Ji Sheng Zhipin claimed he had seen through Madara's fast movements.

Uchiha Madara spoke with Ji Sheng Zhipin before going to rescue Kelana from the princess's room. Kelana agreed to provide the item Madara wanted and left with him, though she asked him to crouch so she could step on his shoulder as planned.

• Ji Sheng Zhipin challenged Uchiha Madara about his mask and predicted they would meet in the tournament.
• Uchiha Madara heard the princess had appeared and went to Kelana's room to take her home.
• Kelana told Uchiha Madara that she would have the item he wanted brought to him the next day.
• Uchiha Madara encouraged Kelana to leave the royal residence, and she took his hand and went with him.
• At the city wall, Kelana asked Uchiha Madara to crouch so she could step on him as she had planned.

Uchiha Madara helped Kelana climb over a city wall, then caught her when she jumped down, and the two crossed the bloody arena. At the city gate, Ji Sheng Zhipin told Madara to return for the next match, while Kelana questioned their connection; they left for a quiet tavern, where Kelana said things were over between them.

• Kelana climbed onto the city wall using Uchiha Madara’s shoulder, then jumped down and was caught by him.
• Uchiha Madara and Kelana crossed the blood-soaked arena, and Kelana defended the competition as a price participants had chosen to pay.
• Ji Sheng Zhipin found Uchiha Madara at the city gate and urged him not to lose to an interesting opponent in the next match.
• Uchiha Madara said he might not return, but Ji Sheng Zhipin claimed Madara’s eyes showed a thirst for war.
• Kelana asked how Uchiha Madara knew Ji Sheng Zhipin, but Madara avoided answering and led her to the quiet tavern.
• Kelana ordered the best wine and told Uchiha Madara that things were over between them.

Kelana told Uchiha Madara that she had been separated from the woman she loved because of the heavy duty and high status she carried, and she struggled to accept that they could never be together. Uchiha Madara comforted Kelana by speaking about loss and time, and learned that Kelana’s hatred of men came from a painful experience in her childhood.

• Kelana explained that the woman she loved had ended their relationship and warned that their romance would become a scandal, while Kelana had asked her to bring the Magic Stone so Uchiha Madara could leave the next day.
• Kelana said that only Uchiha Madara still felt real to her, and he shared that war had taken the people and things he cherished.
• Uchiha Madara told Kelana that time would ease her sorrow, though she might never fully forget the woman she loved.
• Kelana said she wanted the woman to be happy and accepted that their separation seemed inevitable.
• Kelana revealed that childhood events had made her hate men and feel uncomfortable when they touched her, and Uchiha Madara apologized for what had happened between them.

Kelana confided in Uchiha Madara about her love for a woman who could not abandon the obligations keeping them apart, and asked him what she should do. Kelana decided to say a final goodbye the next day, while Uchiha Madara prepared to leave the country after receiving what he wanted.

• Kelana asked Uchiha Madara whether he would leave the country after she gave him what he wanted, and he said he was destined to keep traveling.
• Kelana asked whether she and the woman she loved could still be together, but Uchiha Madara said he did not know how they could overcome their restraints.
• Kelana questioned whether her lover's inability to give everything up meant she loved Kelana less, and Uchiha Madara advised her that love did not need to be proven through death.
• Kelana said her relationship was over and that she would say a proper goodbye to her lover the next day.
• Uchiha Madara offered to take Kelana home, but she said she could walk back herself.

Uchiha Madara and Kelana set aside the previous day's emotional tension and went to meet the princess. The princess gave Madara the black box containing the Magic Stone, then asked him to wait outside while she spoke with Kelana.

• After Kelana left him the previous evening, Uchiha Madara drank wine and spent the night worrying about her and their relationship.
• The next morning, Kelana arrived in good spirits and told Uchiha Madara she had figured things out.
• Uchiha Madara lectured Kelana as they walked to the venue, and she joked about his constant nagging.
• At the city wall, Kelana accepted Uchiha Madara's offer to carry her, and they went together to the princess's room.
• The princess handed Uchiha Madara a black box containing the Magic Stone, then asked to speak privately with Kelana.

Uchiha Madara went to watch Ji Sheng Zhipin's match, but Ji Sheng Zhipin won by default when his opponent failed to appear. Their conversation revealed that Ji Sheng Zhipin suspected Uchiha Madara was from a neighboring country, leaving Uchiha Madara concerned about whether he could continue participating while Kelana waited for him.

• Uchiha Madara entered the arena and went to watch Ji Sheng Zhipin's match.
• Ji Sheng Zhipin's opponent did not appear, so the referee declared Ji Sheng Zhipin the winner.
• Ji Sheng Zhipin confronted Uchiha Madara, who said he had only come to watch and did not intend to fight.
• Uchiha Madara removed his mask, and Ji Sheng Zhipin remarked on his age and praised his skills.
• Ji Sheng Zhipin suspected Uchiha Madara came from a neighboring country, and Uchiha Madara said he had no interest in taking the country's rights or competing.

Uchiha Madara refused Ji Sheng Zhipin’s challenge and went to fetch Kelana after the princess appeared at the competition. He found Kelana’s room unlocked and empty, leaving him worried about where she had gone.

• Uchiha Madara told Ji Sheng Zhipin he would not enter the bloody competition, while Ji Sheng Zhipin accused him of backing out from fear.
• Uchiha Madara saw the princess arrive and decided it was time to bring Kelana out.
• Uchiha Madara went to the princess’s room and knocked, but Kelana did not answer.
• Uchiha Madara found the door unlocked and searched the empty room, then worried about Kelana’s disappearance.

Uchiha Madara found Kelana at the arena, where she chose to compete despite his warnings because she wanted to win the princess back. The match began, and Kelana stood frozen as her sickle-wielding opponent cautiously approached.

• Uchiha Madara went to the arena after discovering Kelana was missing from their room.
• Uchiha Madara found Kelana heading toward the platform and learned she intended to win the contest for the princess.
• Kelana rejected Uchiha Madara's pleas, stepped onto the platform, and told him to return home.
• Kelana faced a man carrying a bloodied sickle and challenged him for the princess.
• The referee started the match, and Kelana stood motionless as the man advanced and then abruptly retreated.

Kelana faced a sickle-wielding contestant in the arena while trying to rescue the princess, but her disguise was exposed when his attack cut off her headband. The hostile crowd and her opponent threatened her, and Kelana prepared to keep fighting despite the danger.

• Kelana urged the sickle-wielding man to attack, while he grew wary and assumed she was powerful.
• The man charged, and Kelana ducked instinctively, evading his fatal strike as the sickle cut off her headband.
• Kelana's black hair fell loose, revealing to the arena crowd that she was a woman.
• The crowd demanded Kelana's death, and the man threatened her with a fate worse than death if she survived.
• Kelana insisted she would fight until final victory, and the man said he would kill her without holding back.

Kelana resigned herself to death in the competition, but Uchiha Madara intervened and tried to withdraw her. After the referee refused to decide the matter immediately, Madara and Ji Sheng Zhipin waited for the authorities to rule on Kelana’s fate.

• Kelana closed her eyes and said goodbye as her opponent charged at her with a scythe.
• Uchiha Madara appeared, seized the scythe, and told Kelana he would take her back safely.
• Madara tried to forfeit the match, but Kelana insisted on fighting until the end and the referee said their country had no surrenders.
• Madara persuaded Kelana to let him handle the situation and asked to take her place in the match.
• Ji Sheng Zhipin challenged Madara’s request, and the referee left to report the dispute while ordering them to stay.
• Madara told Ji Sheng Zhipin not to exhaust himself by caring about others’ opinions.

Uchiha Madara tried to protect Kelana from Ji Sheng Zhipin, who offered to let only one of them leave. After Kelana insisted on staying by Madara’s side, the referee reported that Madara could compete in her place if he defeated everyone who opposed him.

• Ji Sheng Zhipin said he wanted to teach Kelana and Uchiha Madara a lesson before letting them leave.
• Kelana explained that the princess had given her a token to leave, and revealed that she had planned to die in the arena if she could not be with the princess.
• Uchiha Madara learned that Kelana now cared most about getting him safely out, and he offered to stay in her place so she could leave.
• Ji Sheng Zhipin said only one of them could leave, and Kelana refused to go without Madara.
• The referee told Xiao Ping that Madara could compete in Kelana’s place if he defeated everyone who opposed him.

Uchiha Madara accepted the arena’s rules and faced a crowd eager to challenge him, while Kelana stayed beside him. After Madara effortlessly kicked the scythe-wielding man off the platform, Ji Sheng Zhipin rallied the crowd, and the princess appeared to address them.

• Uchiha Madara accepted the rules and challenged anyone who opposed him to step forward.
• Kelana clutched Uchiha Madara’s arm, and he reassured her that he would protect her as she stayed on the platform.
• The scythe-wielding man returned to challenge Uchiha Madara, who kicked him off the platform without killing him.
• Uchiha Madara warned the crowd not to challenge him unless they could kill him instantly, and no one stepped forward.
• Uchiha Madara asked the referee if the challenge was over and said he would return for the competition the next day.
• Ji Sheng Zhipin urged the crowd not to cower, and the princess appeared on the viewing stand to address them.