Chapter 18

Madara redid his long hair, which had been loosely tied with silk ribbon, and pinned it up a little higher with a small jade crescent-moon crown. He changed into formal robes with a deep-blue brocade lining and a sheer outer layer of the same color, then went out. Madara was handsome to begin with, and the solemnity of his formal attire, paired with the flowing gauze, only enhanced his extraordinary presence. Even the ninjas he passed on the way couldn't help lowering their hostility toward him, despite knowing the Uchiha's fearsome reputation.

He had to make use of every resource available—and beautiful people always got more leniency, didn't they?

The inn where the Senju were temporarily staying happened to belong to the Merchant Alliance. The Senju clan members there watched warily and uneasily as their mission target—the enemy Boss they'd marked in red and pinned to the top of their list as "Not to be provoked"—sauntered up and knocked on their clan head's door.

Senju Hashirama looked a little surprised, then smiled. "Good morning, Madara-kun."

"Good morning, Senju-kun." Madara tilted his head. "Won't you invite me in?" Uchiha Etsu's eye twitched beside him. When did our clan head get so chummy with the local big shot?

A Senju clan member hesitantly spoke up. "My lord..."

"What is it?"

"Your breakfast—"

"Bring it to my room. Come in, Madara-kun."

The Senju clan member was left reeling. My lord, I was trying to stop you from letting the wolf in! Uchiha Etsu glanced between the demon king and the hero, who were getting along in a way that made no sense. Realizing it wasn't a situation a bit player like him should get involved in, he wisely chose to leave. "My lord, I just saw Yuli-kun and remembered I had something to take care of..."

Uchiha Madara knew exactly what his elder had in mind. He gave him a sidelong, smiling glance and waved him off.

Though he was staying at an inn and had spent the night there, Senju Hashirama's room was still clean and tidy. The bedsheets were unwrinkled, as if he hadn't slept at all. Even the teacups he'd used had been put away, neatly arranged near the door. Madara couldn't help admiring how considerate the man was.

"Madara-kun..."

"Just call me Madara."

Hashirama blinked. "But you've been calling me Senju-kun. I can't be too impolite."

Madara was speechless. Remembering their earlier conversation about height, he silently added a bold note to Hashirama's mental file: natural-born schemer. "All right, then. Hashirama."

Hashirama smiled at that. "What brings you here so early, Madara?"

"The negotiations can begin."

"The negotiations?" Hashirama asked, confused. Surely it wasn't time yet... Then his expression turned serious as he watched chakra gather at Uchiha Madara's fingertips and slice through space. A black spatial rift flashed into existence and vanished, leaving a stack of documents in Madara's hand. He can just casually cut through space?! Has Uchiha Madara really become this powerful? He'd known that Madara was hiding his strength. Even the time he sealed the Three-Tails had been more of a test than a show of force; otherwise, why would he have handed the Three-Tails over to the Senju so easily? But he hadn't expected...

It seemed he would have to reassess Uchiha Madara: his equal, his rival, his friend, and his partner.

Uchiha Madara couldn't yet open portals at will, since he hadn't awakened the Eternal Mangekyo. His ability to pull off that trick was thanks to a top-of-the-line creation from the clan's Seventh Research Division: the Space Eater, which looked like a jade ring. By feeding it high-density chakra, he could activate the space-time formula inside and open a separate twelve-cubic-meter space. He didn't mind letting Senju Hashirama keep his little misunderstanding, though.

"The Uchiha and Senju are the leading powers in most of the Ninja World. Rather than waste time with those minor, irrelevant matters that come with negotiating with small and medium-sized clans, I'd rather have a proper talk with you." Uchiha Madara spoke softly. "We can simply announce the outcome of the negotiations at noon."

Senju Hashirama shook his head. "We're working with those clans. I have no right to make decisions on their behalf."

Madara chuckled. Just as he'd expected from Senju Hashirama. "You're worried they won't honor the agreement?"

"That's a matter of basic respect." Hashirama straightened up and said solemnly, "Madara, if only the Uchiha and Senju make the decision, how can we expect the whole Ninja World to accept the outcome? Every clan has its own needs and considerations. Acting unilaterally will only make the other clans resent us."

Acting unilaterally.

Madara smiled almost imperceptibly. Wise, patient, graceful... Nearly everyone who knew him thought of him that way. But he'd only had to use a few roundabout tactics and cloak his words in a little disguise to fool all those supposedly "clear-eyed" masses. People were so ignorant. And yet Senju Hashirama, who had met him fewer than three times, had seen right through him. Madara's opinion of him rose another notch.

Still, Hashirama clearly hadn't fully grasped just how unilaterally Madara could act... Madara had the ability to coax everyone onto his own wavelength. "They all have their own interests. You're right about that. Every clan is focused on its own gain, willing to do whatever it takes to benefit itself. They're nothing but a pack of dogs fighting over food. Toss them a bone and they'll tear into each other, with no desire to unite or consider the bigger picture. They're selfish, with no regard for the future of the Ninja World or the difficulties others face. In this situation, your concessions would only encourage them. No matter how many pacts you sign, you won't be able to establish order in the Ninja World or achieve the result you want."

Hashirama was firm in his resolve. He hesitated only briefly before replying, "That's exactly why we need to negotiate: so that each clan can make the most suitable concessions, reducing friction and resentment. An agreement like that will have the best effect."

"The best..." Madara shook his head. "Would you give up your original goal for 'the best effect'? They'll certainly do whatever benefits their own clan. But—" His long, slender finger gathered chakra and moved slowly across the table. "If I'm not mistaken, your goal would harm the interests of many powerful clans in the Ninja World, as well as some of the mid-sized ones. Otherwise, the Senju wouldn't have agreed to work with the Uchiha, would they?" Bringing the Ninja World's forces together and placing them under constraints for the sake of peace might benefit smaller clans and some mid-sized clans whose strengths leaned toward support. But for clans with great reputations, their own intelligence networks, and established webs of influence, it would be like having a piece of themselves carved away. Consolidating the Ninja World's forces meant disrupting the existing balance of power and building a new system of order—one that required them to sacrifice some of their own interests for the greater good. Senju Hashirama and the clan he led would undoubtedly face enormous pressure and resistance. The Senju had been under pressure in recent years for reasons that had nothing to do with the Uchiha alone.

Senju Hashirama looked at the words Madara had written on the table in deep-blue chakra, momentarily stunned.

"I have a wish similar to yours." Madara gazed at him, his expression sincere and resolute. "Not just for the clan, and not just for the shinobi. Too many people have lost themselves in war and slaughter, completely forgetting that there are things beyond all this: humanity, and even the world itself."

"And..." Madara covered the remaining chakra on the table with his hand and softly spoke the word. "Peace."

The room fell silent.

"So, Hashirama, I need to know what you think. What kind of world do you want?"

Hashirama fell silent, then suddenly smiled warmly. "Madara... I'm truly glad I met you."