Madara's fate

The battlefield where Hashirama and Madara fought was so far away that Kazemori Masaki could no longer feel any major disturbances from Konoha Ninja Village. Only the faint bursts of chakra light in the distance told everyone how tremendous their clash was. Had they fought here, Konoha Ninja Village would surely have been razed to the ground already.

Their overwhelming power even reshaped the terrain, leaving behind a deep gorge. In later years, the site of their decisive battle would come to be known as the Valley of the End.

Had he not witnessed it himself, Kazemori Masaki would never have believed that people powerful enough to reshape the land existed in this world. In the thousand years since Princess Kaguya fought the Sage of Six Paths and his brother, perhaps only the battles between Asura and Indra had reached such a scale. By coincidence, Hashirama and Madara were precisely this era's "Asura" and "Indra."

The village's strongest fighters had all headed to the battlefield, but they dared not approach and could only linger on its outskirts. Kazemori Masaki and the other young ninja remained in the village. If they saw the signal for defeat, they would immediately take the young children away and flee as far as they could.

Unease and fear marked every face. They had thought a peaceful life had finally arrived, only to face a crisis unlike anything before. How could these young ninja, who had grown up in Konoha Shinobi Village, remain calm? Fortunately, their training kept them from losing control of their emotions.

Satomi gripped Kazemori Masaki's hand nervously, her eyes fixed on the intermittent flashes in the distance as she listened to the sounds of battle, silently praying that Hashirama would win.

Kazemori Masaki breathed slowly, sensing the flow of natural energy. There was no sign of it being drawn away in large quantities yet, which proved that Hashirama had not entered Sage Mode. He was still locked in combat with Madara. With the Nine-Tails helping him, Madara's strength had come very close to Hashirama's. And since both Hashirama and the Nine-Tails possessed enormous amounts of chakra, this battle would last a very long time.

Hashirama had expected the Nine-Tails to be immensely powerful, but not this powerful. Every attack it launched demanded his full attention, while Madara waited nearby for an opening. To avoid being attacked from both sides, Hashirama quickly used the Wood Dragon Technique to bind the Nine-Tails. The Wood Dragon could absorb chakra, allowing it to hold the Nine-Tails back for a while.

Even temporarily deprived of the Nine-Tails' assistance, Madara's fighting spirit remained high. His movements never faltered, and his attacks were exceptionally fierce. As Hashirama focused on dealing with Madara, his control over the Wood Dragon slipped, gradually weakening its restraints. It had never been able to hold the Nine-Tails completely, and now the beast was breaking free even faster.

How long had it been?

The thought rose in Hashirama's mind. This battle with Madara was undoubtedly the most dangerous of his life. He had to give it everything he had, and for the first time, he even felt his strength beginning to fail. Not even their battle before the village's founding had pushed him this far, but now he truly found himself driven into that corner.

His attention had been entirely focused on Madara and the Nine-Tails, making him forget the passage of time. Only when his chakra began to run short did he realize just how long they had been fighting.

Now Madara had unleashed a new technique, combining his Susanoo with the Nine-Tails. Together, their power far surpassed either one alone. Hashirama's Wooden Figure could no longer stop their attacks.

"Madara, do you really intend to destroy our Dream?" Hashirama asked gravely, staring at Madara within the Lan-colored chakra.

After the prolonged battle, Hashirama's voice sounded unusually hoarse. Madara gazed at him for a moment before replying, "Hashirama, I already told you. You stand in the way of true peace."

"Is that so?" A sharp pain pierced Hashirama's heart, almost leaving him unable to breathe. He had still held out hope for Madara, which was why he had delayed until now. But it seemed Madara had already resolved to sever their bond.

In that case, Hashirama would unleash his full strength as well. He brought his hands together, using the Wooden Figure to hold off Madara's attacks for the moment while he rapidly absorbed natural energy. Sage Markings appeared on his face. At that moment, Hashirama truly entered Sage Mode.

"This is..." Madara had never seen Hashirama use this power before. His Mangekyō Sharingan clearly perceived the immense chakra within Hashirama, leaving him stunned.

"Come on, Madara!" Hashirama shouted.

At the same time, back in Konoha Ninja Village, Kazemori Masaki's eyes widened. He could feel the shift in natural energy. There was no doubt that Hashirama had entered Sage Mode. The battle was approaching its end.

"Wh-what is it, Masaki?" Satomi asked. Only when she spoke did she realize how hoarse her voice had become.

The battle between Madara and Hashirama would decide whether Konoha Ninja Village survived, yet it had dragged on for an extraordinarily long time. Everyone waited for the outcome in constant tension, fearful of the future, forgetting to rest. Even knowing that they needed to conserve their strength and be ready to evacuate at any moment, how could they rest easy under these circumstances?

"The battle will be over soon," Kazemori Masaki said quietly.

Satomi was puzzled. How did Kazemori Masaki know? As far as she could tell, the commotion in the distance had not diminished at all. Instead, it was growing more intense. How could he say the battle was about to end?

Kazemori Masaki watched the distant battle intently. He could only sense natural energy, not chakra, so he could not determine who would ultimately win. Hashirama had won in the original course of history, but who knew whether something unexpected might happen?

What happened next, however, proved his worries unfounded. The signal Tobirama had arranged appeared in the distance. It was not the signal for defeat, but for victory.

Everyone who had stayed in the village immediately cried out in delight. As their tension eased, exhaustion washed over them, and they sank to the ground, their bodies drained of strength. At least they had not passed out.

Kazemori Masaki breathed a sigh of relief. Unlike the others, natural energy kept him mentally refreshed. He prepared to head to the battlefield. He knew that Madara had planted an Izanagi technique in his Mangekyō Sharingan beforehand, set to activate when the time came. Counting on Tobirama to preserve his body, Madara would revive and escape.

His goal was to prevent the Rinnegan from ever appearing in this world. The best way to do that was to stop Madara from reviving, and Izanagi was the greatest threat to that plan. This Dōjutsu could turn even death into a dream. It was the Uchiha Clan's ultimate Dōjutsu.

However, Izanagi was not without a weakness. That weakness was not Izanami, but its prerequisite: only while active was Izanagi the supreme Dōjutsu capable of averting every unfavorable outcome. Yet Madara had not activated it immediately. He had set it to activate later, giving Kazemori Masaki an opportunity to deal with it.

The Sharingan was the vessel for Izanagi. Without the Sharingan, Izanagi would lose the basis for its activation and naturally be unable to manifest its ability to evade any outcome.

Kazemori Masaki did not know how Hashirama would handle Madara's body, but he knew that Tobirama had secretly hidden it away. He had to make sure Tobirama did not conceal it while it was being transported here. As long as he could ensure the body was genuinely Madara's, he could find a way to have it cremated.

Before Izanagi activated, it could do nothing to prevent anything from happening to Madara's body. The instant his pair of Mangekyō Sharingan disappeared, Izanagi would lose the prerequisite for activation.

Kazemori Masaki had also considered keeping the Mangekyō Sharingan. After all, they were the only pair in the world that would never lose their sight. But he could not guarantee that Izanagi would not activate after the eyes were removed. The technique was far too strange, and with Black Zetsu to consider as well, he decided to destroy them.

Seeing Kazemori Masaki move, Kagami Uchiha, who was also sitting on the ground, quickly called out to stop him. "Masaki, what are you going to do?"

"I'm going to see how Lord Hashirama is doing. Madara brought such a powerful monster beast with him. Even if Lord Hashirama won, something might have happened to him," Kazemori Masaki replied without looking back.

"Wait! I'm coming too!" Kagami Uchiha did not take issue with Kazemori Masaki's disrespectful way of referring to Madara. To be honest, after this incident, he was deeply disappointed in Madara. Even if their ideals differed, there was no need to attack the village. It was the fruit of Madara and Hashirama's hard work.

Even so, Madara had raised Kagami Uchiha and seen him safely into adulthood. Now that Madara had lost, his fate could hardly be a good one. Kagami felt that he should at least see him one last time.

Seeing Kagami Uchiha's expression, Kazemori Masaki initially wanted to refuse. Then he reconsidered. If Kagami came along, perhaps he could be put in charge of watching over Madara's remains, increasing the chances of having the body cremated. He nodded and said, "If you want to come, then follow me."

Kazemori Masaki immediately dashed off, with the Uchiha Clan following close behind. Hiruzen Sarutobi and the others wanted to follow too, but someone still needed to look after the village. They stayed put rather than acting rashly and waited there.

(End of chapter)