The man who was deceived

"As the savior, I brought an end to the conflict that has plagued the shinobi throughout their long history of war. Accept reality. It is all over."

After more than a century of scheming and a second lifetime, Madara Uchiha had finally unleashed his Infinite Tsukuyomi. By now, he had sent all of humanity into blissful dreams. Only a handful of stubborn holdouts still sought to overthrow the peace he had worked so hard to bring about.

Madara Uchiha looked with regret at Sasuke Uchiha, who stood before him, panting yet determined to stop him. This gifted young man from his own clan looked so much like his younger brother. Had he been born a few decades earlier, perhaps his help would have allowed the Uchiha Clan to defeat the Senju Clan outright. But Madara Uchiha no longer needed powerful subordinates. Once he defeated Sasuke and Naruto, this world would remain at peace forever.

Just as that thought crossed Madara Uchiha's mind, searing pain erupted in his heart. A black hand pierced straight through it, pinning him in place.

"You're wrong, Madara. You aren't the savior, and this isn't over yet."

With his Six Paths body, Madara Uchiha should have stood in the realm of gods, looking down upon all living things. Yet after Black Zetsu pierced his heart, he discovered to his horror that he could no longer move.

"What makes you think you're different from Obito, that you're the one who can use everything to your advantage? Don't you find it laughable to believe you alone are special? Madara, you're in an illusory dream too—a dream I painted for you!"

"Black Zetsu, what are you talking about? I created you! You are my will!"

The one who pierced Madara Uchiha's heart was none other than Black Zetsu, whom he believed he had created from his own will. For all his insight into people's hearts, Madara had never imagined he would be betrayed by his own creation.

"You're wrong about that too. My will is Kaguya's!"

After Black Zetsu answered, vast amounts of chakra poured from the God Tree into Madara Uchiha's body. Though this was his own body, though he had created this God Tree through the Ten-Tails, under Black Zetsu's control, Madara Uchiha, with all the power of his Six Paths body, had been reduced to a puppet. He could only watch the immense chakra flood into him, unable to make a single move.

Agony tore through Madara Uchiha's entire body. He began to swell, ballooning into a sphere. In this state, he finally learned the whole truth.

Just as he had treated Obito as a pawn, he himself had been nothing more than Black Zetsu's pawn.

The Infinite Tsukuyomi was not a jutsu through which the Uchiha would bring lasting peace to the shinobi world. The inscriptions on the Sage of Six Paths' stone tablet, which he had trusted so completely, were nothing but lies Black Zetsu had written to deceive him. The Infinite Tsukuyomi was, in fact, a jutsu meant to resurrect Princess Kaguya.

Now that he knew the whole truth, Madara Uchiha watched his body swell little by little, watched humanity's chakra flow into him, and sank into utter despair.

Why? Why did it turn out like this? Hashirama, where did I go wrong?

In his despair, Madara Uchiha watched his body transform into an unfamiliar woman with an eye on her forehead and two horns on her head. She had to be the Kaguya Otsutsuki Black Zetsu had spoken of. Meanwhile, Madara Uchiha was reduced to a wandering spirit who could do nothing but watch events unfold.

How ironic. Had I, who wanted to save the world, brought about its destruction instead?

Now a disembodied soul, Madara Uchiha sensed Kaguya Otsutsuki's unimaginably powerful chakra and smiled in self-mockery.

The future of this world truly rested on the shoulders of those two young men, Sasuke Uchiha and Naruto Uzumaki, now. Fortunately, they seemed far more dependable than Madara Uchiha himself.

Working together, the two young men finally defeated Kaguya Otsutsuki and saved the world. Watching from the sidelines, Madara Uchiha saw Sasuke Uchiha and Naruto Uzumaki form the Seal of Reconciliation and awaken the entire world. Only then did he truly feel at ease.

In the end, the world had not been destroyed by his foolish actions. The so-called lasting peace had been nothing more than bait someone had used to toy with him. At that thought, Madara Uchiha smiled in self-mockery. Then his soul faded from the world.

"Mikoto, let's name this child Uchiha Itachi."

When he opened his eyes again, Madara Uchiha discovered that he had somehow become a baby. A woman with soft, lovely features held him in her arms. Across from her, a young man of the Uchiha Clan wearing the uniform of the Konoha Military Police Force was looking at him with a smile.

The Konoha Military Police Force? Though he had no idea why, he had undoubtedly been reborn as a baby of the Uchiha Clan. Judging by the clothing, the man was wearing the Uchiha Clan's attire from the time of the Third Shinobi World War. But there was another possibility: this could be some unknown number of years after Sasuke and Naruto had saved the world. With only the information currently available and his own knowledge to go on, Madara Uchiha could not yet be certain of his situation.

"Fugaku, look, the baby's frowning. Does he dislike the name you gave him?"

As Madara Uchiha pondered which era he was in, his brows naturally drew together. Mikoto, who had been watching her child closely, noticed the unusual expression and could not help sharing her concern with her husband.

"He hasn't cried or smiled since he was born. Should we ask a doctor in the village to give him another thorough examination?"

The moment he heard that Mikoto wanted someone else to examine his body, Madara Uchiha had no choice but to cooperate and cry, showing that he was no different from an ordinary baby to prevent anything unexpected from happening. Only when Madara Uchiha began "bawling" did the first-time parents, Uchiha Mikoto and Uchiha Fugaku, finally relax.

"Heh, what do babies know? I think Itachi is a wonderful name. Uchiha Itachi, you're my son from now on!"

Breathing a huge sigh of relief, Fugaku happily began playing with Madara Uchiha, who was still in a baby's body. He had no idea that the son he was teasing was now thinking of nothing but curses.

Time passed. In the blink of an eye, the helpless infant had grown into a four-year-old. By then, Madara Uchiha had finally figured out both the era he was in and his own circumstances.

It was the eve of the Third Shinobi World War, and he was the son of the Uchiha Clan's current leader. It seemed that, after some unknown event, Madara's soul had traveled through time.