This sentence is like a huge stone thrown into a calm lake, setting off a storm in Sasuke's heart.
Madara Uchiha was not in a hurry to continue. He sat up straight and spoke slowly after a moment.
"Where should I start? Well... although the story is a bit long, believe it or not."
"All of this starts from the early days of Konoha's founding."
"Itachi, he is just a victim born of this fate."
His voice was low and steady, like a slowly unfolding projector, slowly presenting the past events that had been sealed away for many years in front of Sasuke.
At the beginning of the establishment of Konoha, the feud between Uchiha and Senju.
At Nine-Tails' Attack, Uchiha Clan was suspected of being involved in the incident and was forced to move to the edge of the village.
That distrust and suspicion that has accumulated over time.
And finally, the genocide order issued by Konoha High Command.
This is a necessary means to maintain the stability of the village.
Because Uchiha Clan was ready to launch a coup, and Itachi, between being forced and choosing, became the sword to carry out that cruel order.
"To protect the village, to prevent the war, and to prevent you from becoming a victim of this political struggle."
"Your brother chose the cruelest way to protect the people he cares about most."
The sound fell, and the ruins fell into deathly silence.
Sasuke's pupils were trembling violently, his breathing became rapid and chaotic, and his body was shaking uncontrollably.
Then, he raised his head suddenly, his voice carrying an uncontrollable roar.
"What are you talking about, guy?"
He pushed away Karin who was supporting him, and rushed straight towards Madara Uchiha regardless of his weak body.
Karin was pushed and staggered. Suigetsu and Jugo wanted to stop them, but Sasuke threw them away.
"Everyone get out of here!"
He raised his fist, exerted all his strength, and swung it hard towards the mask.
But the fist passed through that body as if it were passing through air.
Sasuke's pupils shrank suddenly, and his body fell forward due to inertia, almost falling to the ground.
And the next second, Madara Uchiha's hand had already grasped his wrist. The force was not heavy, but it carried a kind of calmness that could not be broken away.
"Although this is unbelievable, what I said is true."
"Everything your brother did was for you."
"Shut up!"
Sasuke's reason was almost overwhelmed by his emotions. He squeezed out the last remaining Chakra in his body and condensed Chidori with his backhand. The lightning exploded in his palm and pierced Madara Uchiha's chest.
But the lightning also penetrated the body without causing any damage.
But precisely because of this penetration, Sasuke's wrist also escaped from the opponent's grasp, and the whole person took two steps back due to inertia.
"Calm down..."
Madara Uchiha hasn't finished speaking yet.
A blue Ice Blade had already slashed through the air. The blade passed through his neck and slid past his eyes, but it still seemed to cut through the air, leaving no trace.
Ning Xue missed the blow, but did not pursue it. Instead, he quickly retreated and stood in front of Sasuke.
Suigetsu pulled Sasuke back almost at the same time, protecting him behind him.
Jugo followed closely behind, and the right arm completed partial Cursed Seal transformation in an instant, becoming extremely huge. The surface was covered with a rough cuticle, and several exhaust holes extended at the joints, spraying out powerful airflow like a propeller.
"Boom--!"
The moment his fist hit the ground, gravel and dust rose into the sky, and a huge crater was made in the ground.
Madara Uchiha jumped back the moment before his fist landed, landing lightly on another broken stone pillar.
He glanced at the deep pit, then looked condescendingly at the three people who were waiting, and finally fixed his gaze on Sasuke who was blocked behind him, and left his last words in a calm tone.
"If you want to realize what you want, bring your brother's body with you. I will wait for you at Amegakure."
After he finished speaking, he raised his right hand and pointed the palm of his hand at his face, covering the eye on the mask.
Immediately, with his right eye as the center, his body slowly and silently disappeared into the air as if it was wiped away by an invisible hand.
After he disappeared, Jue also quietly escaped to the ground.
Only the gravel smashed by Jugo was left in the air, still falling.
Ning Xue's Byakugan never closed. He confirmed that the absolute Chakra had indeed gone away, and then his tense body relaxed slightly, and he couldn't help but breathed a sigh of relief.
He put away Ice Blade, turned his head, and looked at Sasuke behind him.
At this moment, Sasuke is slumped on the ground, his body is weak, his eyes are empty and unfocused.
He lowered his head, his shoulders trembled slightly, and his distracted eyes were filled with extremely chaotic emotions.
The amount of information is too much.
It was so much that he didn't even know how to digest it. The hatred that had supported his survival collapsed at this moment and turned into ruins.
Karin opened his mouth and wanted to say something, but he swallowed the words again.
She could feel that Sasuke's emotions at this moment were like the sea in a storm. She didn't dare to speak rashly and didn't know what to say.
Suigetsu scratched his head and rarely put away his playful smile.
He looked at Sasuke, then at Ning Xue, and finally just sighed, squatted down, picked up Kubikiribōchō that fell on the ground, and stood aside silently.
Jugo didn't speak, but his thick arms had returned to their original shape.
He just stood quietly beside Sasuke, his eyes full of worry.
Ning Xue was silent for a moment, and finally took the initiative to step forward and squat down in front of Sasuke, his voice calm and steady.
"Sasuke, don't believe everything that guy says."
Sasuke raised his head after hearing this, his expression twisted and painful, and two lines of clear tears silently fell from the corners of his eyes.
His voice was hoarse and low, as if he was suppressing some uncontrollable emotions.
"Then tell me, is what he said true?"
Ning Xue was silent.
He carefully recalled the few words his friends in his previous life said in his ears.
Those fragmentary fragments were pieced together and reorganized in his mind, and finally converged into a relatively complete outline.
After a moment, he spoke, his voice still calm, but with a hint of unnoticeable consideration.
"Your brother's love is true."
The moment these words fell into Sasuke's ears, his painful and twisted expression relaxed slightly.
The two lines of tears flowed faster, but no cry came out.
"But his words are definitely adulterated."
Ning Xue continued, his tone cautious.
"What about the early days of Konoha, what about the fate of the Uchiha Clan... these have no clear historical basis.
Some of his words are facts, and some are meant to guide you."
Sasuke's breathing became slightly calmer, and his eyes were locked on Ning Xue, as if he was desperately grasping for a life-saving straw.
"So which ones are true?"
Ning Xue was silent for a moment, and his tone became more solemn.
"Based on some of the truths told in your conversation, I deduce that what your brother said is true."
"Nine-Tails' Attack, it was Madara Uchiha who did it."
"As for the subsequent series of things, they all originated from Nine-Tails' Attack."
He paused and continued.
"I speculate that Nine-Tails should have had traces of being manipulated at the time, and the only one who could do this was Sharingan."
"Therefore, Uchiha Clan was naturally suspected and wary of Konoha High Command."
"As for the truth about the genocide that Madara Uchiha later said, they are probably all true."
"But when it comes to the early days of Konoha, just listen to it and don't take it seriously."
Sasuke Listening to these words, the confusion in his eyes gradually faded away, replaced by a more complex and contradictory emotion.
He lowered his head and looked at his palms stained with blood and dust, his voice hoarse.
"So... are my real enemies Madara Uchiha and Danzo?"