Chapter 50

This summer was destined to be spent in turmoil.

Friction along the border between the Land of Lightning and the Land of Water intensified, triggering a chain of unfortunate domino effects that cast a shadow over the relationship between the two nations. On the other hand, the Land of Fire and the Land of Wind slowly eased their tensions; while no official announcement was made, private personnel exchanges between the two countries became much more relaxed. With the support of a potential ally, the burden on the First's shoulders lightened a little.

The seemingly solid four-nation alliance now appeared to have many invisible cracks. The people caught in the middle did not know that as time passed, these fissures would eventually shatter the entire alliance.

To achieve this much in such a short time—the First truly had mettle.

Regardless of how the winds of change blew outside, Konoha Village remained as peaceful and tranquil as ever. Merchants traveling between the Land of Wind and the Land of Fire had increased, and the shops along the streets were even more bustling. This was not only due to the easing and improvement of relations between the two nations but also because of the approaching Summer Festival, an annual grand celebration about to begin.

Uchiha Madara used space-time ninjutsu the entire way and finally rushed back before the festival.

"Madara..." The First greeted him with a smile, only to be directly ignored by the gloomy-faced Uchiha Madara.

"Where is that bastard! Get out here!" Disregarding his image as the head of a great clan, Uchiha Madara cursed right in front of the Hokage Building!

"Madara, what happened?" the First asked in surprise. For Madara, who was usually quite rational, to be resentful to this degree—could it be...

"Ah, so you've finally returned, U-chi-ha Ma-da-ra." The other Madara appeared, sporting a smile that everyone found incredibly punchable. "I came running the moment I heard you were back!"

...It really was him...

The First finally understood how Hashirama must have felt back then... Two Madaras about to fight; should he intervene or not?

"You want it?" Uchiha Madara flicked the small bag, less than a palm's width, that he held—it contained the one tael of tea leaves he had brought back—and sneered at the other Madara, "Come and take it yourself!"

Uchiha Madara had been royally screwed by that guy!

The mission had lasted over a month. Beyond the standard mission allowance from Konoha, the First had thoughtfully provided his own private stash for emergencies. With his level of spending, he could have lived comfortably in the Land of Water, killing targets and cutting down bandits at his leisure. But it was all ruined by one sentence from that freeloader!

—That godforsaken Jingxi Milk Bud! A tiny amount that wouldn't even fill the gaps in his teeth had cost him his entire budget!

Uchiha Madara was a man of his word and would never go back on his promise. He had gritted his teeth and spent a fortune on that one tael, then spent the rest of the time living on air. Eat for free? He didn't have the shamelessness of that guy! Rob people? He had already ransacked the few bandit dens in the area! Do you know what it feels like to have the surrounding villagers be eternally grateful while a group of village girls throws flirtatious glances at you? It's a stomachache!

Madara's eyes turned red, activating his Mangekyo. "It's a waste to give good tea to you. It seems I'd be doing myself a disservice if I didn't snatch it!"

Uchiha Madara drew his Flame Fan, while the other held a shuriken. Killing intent surged from both sides, ready to erupt at any moment.

"Tomorrow is the Summer Festival, and everyone has their preparations ready. Can you two not spoil the mood?" The First rubbed his temples, his head aching. The lanterns were hung all over the streets, the shops were newly decorated, and fireworks were piled high in the warehouses, all waiting for tomorrow. If these two started fighting, it would definitely be ruined!

Could it be that the Summer Festival of Konoha's first year was going to be a wash?

The First felt melancholy.

"Brother! You two... Uchiha-kun?" Tobirama, who had just arrived, was stunned by the scene. "You aren't going to fight again, are you!"

"Tengzhi is coming back tomorrow as well. It's rare for him to visit, and if the Summer Festival can't be held..." The First sighed to his brother.

Uchiha Madara's hand tightened on the Flame Fan. He struggled internally for a moment before being the first to withdraw his killing intent. He tossed the bag in his hand. "Hmph, considering you've helped Konoha quite a bit..." With that, he turned and left without looking back.

Tobirama scratched his head, his tone full of disbelief: "Uchiha-kun actually didn't strike? How is that possible! Am I seeing things?"

The First pursed his lips and smiled without a word.

Madara pierced the cloth bag with a shuriken, pinning it to the wall. He pulled out the shuriken, took the bag, weighed it, and turned to smile at the First. "Many thanks."

The First's eyelid twitched.

Is he so fearless because he knows I can stop him?

...So I really should send this monster away as soon as possible!

Time passed quickly amidst the anticipation of the people. It was as if the heavens understood their urgent desire, and night fell quickly on the day of the Summer Festival.

Hashirama was still wearing a black yukata; his face made it truly unsuitable for him to appear in high profile when there were so many tourists. Madara did not wear the luxury items he had brought from his original world but had changed into a deep blue yukata—provided by the Uchiha clan here as a souvenir of the clan head from another world coming to Konoha...

Leaving their lodging and stepping onto the street felt like entering another world. Almost everyone had come out of their homes; apart from the patrolling ninjas, the residential area was bustling with noise and excitement, illuminated by brilliant lights.

Happiness is infectious. The smiling faces passing by almost made one hallucinate that the chaotic times had already ended. A festival is, after all, a time to release joy and welcome hope!

Hashirama and Madara walked side by side, occasionally meeting an Uchiha or a Senju, both responding with smiles. The Senju clansmen were mostly just pleasantly surprised, but the Uchiha side would first widen their eyes in horror, then offer stiff greetings, and finally flee, never daring to return to that street again. Madara found it quite amusing to tease them.

Hashirama eventually couldn't help but laugh, asking, "What exactly did you do to them?"

"Just a little bit of discipline."

"...And what else?"

"I imagine the Finance Elder would want to cry if he saw me."

Imagining those arrogant Uchiha acting as pitifully as rabbits in front of Madara, Hashirama couldn't help but chuckle. The Uchiha were actually quite cute sometimes...

The two lingered for a while in front of a puppet show stall and happened to run into the First and Tobirama, who were walking together, accompanied by a young boy.

The First looked at Madara in surprise: "You like puppet shows?" Puppet shows were a craft brought over from the Land of Wind; people in the Land of Fire found them novel. The stall was surrounded mostly by children, and the two of them standing there looked quite out of place.

Madara shook his head. "I am listening to the shamisen." The musician at this stall was very skilled.

Hearing Madara's praise, the blind old musician in the stall became as excited as if he had found a kindred spirit, his thin, withered fingers plucking the strings with even more vigor.

The First was even more surprised, then smiled: "I didn't expect that besides books and paintings, you were also well-versed in music theory."

"I know a little." Madara nodded, then asked: "You are the Hokage, shouldn't you be presiding over the festival ceremony?"

"It has already ended."

The two looked at each other, and Hashirama sighed: "We really did come too late..."

"It's fine, it's fine!" Tobirama said with a smile. "The so-called festival ceremony is just reciting a bunch of opening remarks; it's not interesting at all. It's much more fun to just walk around the streets and eat!"

"Is this your son?" Madara shifted his gaze toward the youth. The boy looked to be around fifteen, with short black hair and a Konoha forehead protector strapped to his brow. His face was handsome, and he met Madara's gaze without a hint of fear. "A pleasure to meet you, Lord Uchiha. I am Senju Fuji."

Having already guessed as much, Senju Hashirama's expression turned slightly unnatural.

As if struck by a thought, Madara smiled faintly: "And your mother?"

The boy blinked. The First replied: "Mito is feeling a bit unwell, so she stayed behind at the clan compound to rest."

Hashirama breathed a secret sigh of relief.

Madara glanced at him, the corners of his lips curling: "Oh, that is truly a pity."

The First's mouth twitched, deciding not to dwell on the other man's perfunctory attitude. Tobirama let out a dry, awkward laugh, changing the subject: "Don't you feel it's much livelier tonight? It's not just Konoha; so many people from other nations have come to visit! Konoha is finally on the rise!"

Having survived the most difficult initial period, Konoha had finally broken free from the shackles of the old order and embarked on its own path! The joy of the common people was for this hard-won peace and stability, while those who founded the village looked toward an even brighter future. What could be more precious than hope in one's life?

Hashirama looked at the Tobirama of this world and couldn't help but think of his own brother: he hadn't returned in a long time, so he must be worried sick. He should be able to handle clan affairs, but it was hard to say what the situation was like in that world...

"Indeed, it has great potential." Madara nodded. Looking at the high spirits and optimistic state of the people, if they could avoid war, they should be able to catch up to Muyun City within ten years.

Putting his longing for his family on hold for the moment, Hashirama looked over to see Madara's calm and relaxed expression, feeling somewhat puzzled: Madara's relationship with his brother was excellent, so why had he never seen him express such longing?...

Madara bid farewell to the Senju brothers and the youth. With a single glance, he saw the thoughts turning in Hashirama's mind and tugged on his yukata to pull him back to reality: "When you have a chance to enjoy yourself, just enjoy it. Stop thinking about unnecessary things."

"Aren't you worried at all?"

"What is there to fear? Izuna is my brother. Besides, if the sky falls over there, you Senju are there to hold it up."

Hashirama was silent for a moment, "...What did you do?"

"I didn't do anything." Madara smiled, "It's just... before coming to this world, the Senju clan had already gathered four Tailed Beasts, including the Eight-Tails, the strongest one aside from the Nine-Tails, right?"

"Yes..." A detail he had overlooked surfaced in his mind, and a sense of foreboding rose in the depths of Hashirama's heart.

"Look at the fate of a Konoha that has gathered all nine Tailed Beasts; isn't it obvious?" Madara smiled without a shred of guilt.

Because they were the strongest, they had become the target of everyone!

This was the reason Uchiha Madara had always refrained from capturing the other Tailed Beasts! All that talk of alliance agreements and dividing the labor of capturing the beasts? He had exploited even his allies to the fullest!

Realizing the sequence of events, Hashirama shook his head with a bitter smile: "Is there anything you say that isn't a trap?"

"Although we had formed an alliance at the time, you and I both know the true nature of our relationship; it was good enough that we didn't stab each other in the back," Madara said bluntly. "Without binding you completely to the same front, the so-called agreement would have had no real substance."

"And what about now?" Hashirama tilted his head to look into his dark eyes. "When we go back, what will you do?"

Madara extended a hand. "I look forward to our pleasant cooperation, Senju Hashirama!"

Those who have figured it out, keep it quiet! Just smile and say nothing, understand~?

ps: I can't believe I actually wrote ten thousand words today?! Human potential is truly infinite!

But... getting up at four in the morning to write, oh, the agony!