Madara (7000)

Aokiji snickered.

"What are you laughing at?"

"Nothing... I just hope you remember what you said today."

A meaningful smile curled at the corners of Aokiji's mouth.

Tsunade could not make sense of him and found him baffling. "Fine. Since you want to be a Medical Ninja, then be a good one. It's a bit of a waste for someone as talented as you to become a Medical Ninja, but it's still better than you neglecting your proper duties."

Aokiji smiled like his scheme had succeeded and came clean. "You don't seriously think I'll obediently become a Medical Ninja, do you? If that's what you think, you're underestimating me."

Sharing a few of his little secrets at the right time would bring him closer to Tsunade and the others, while also helping establish his lazy persona.

Besides, hiding everything was unrealistic. Truth mixed with lies was the hardest thing to discern. Even if his strength was exposed someday, it would not look as though he had deliberately concealed it, but rather as behavior motivated by his established persona.

Tsunade: ??? Aokiji was not afraid to tell her and made his stance clear. "My goal with Medical Ninjutsu is merely to dabble in it. As long as I know some basic medical methods, that'll be enough."

Tsunade had a bad feeling.

"Otherwise, if I become too outstanding on the path of a Medical Ninja, I'll definitely be entrusted with important responsibilities."

Tsunade did not understand. "What's wrong with being entrusted with important responsibilities?"

Aokiji replied with utmost seriousness, "What's good about that? Being entrusted with important responsibilities means I'm an important person, which means I'll end up on the wanted lists of every country. I don't want people constantly eyeing my head and living in fear every day."

"Honestly, enough already."

Tsunade rolled her eyes. This guy was far too cautious.

She had originally thought Aokiji might still be salvageable on the path of a ninja. She had not expected to have underestimated him. He was actually concocting such crooked schemes just to live comfortably.

Aokiji was extremely proud of his cleverness. "That way, even if I unfortunately become a ninja, I can still live a comfortable and peaceful life. Pretty smart, right?"

"I think you're just sly."

Tsunade sighed. "Aokiji, just how far are you going to fall? Stop while you can. I don't think your late grandmother would want to see you like this. She was a true inheritor of the Will of Fire. You should inherit her will and become an outstanding ninja, instead of being lazy all day and wasting your talent."

The mention of his grandmother and the Will of Fire instantly changed Aokiji's expression. The unseriousness vanished as though he had been provoked, and he snapped harshly, "Enough. Don't mention my grandmother in front of me again. And can you stop talking about the Will of Fire every other sentence? Anyone who didn't know better would think you'd been brainwashed. To be honest, I've always looked down on that kind of thing from the bottom of my heart."

Tsunade's pupils widened slightly. It would have been one thing if he did not appreciate her kind advice, but he even dared to scoff at the Will of Fire left behind by her grandfather. That was something she could not tolerate.

Tsunade's face turned icy. She was truly angry. "I can't pretend I didn't hear what you just said."

"What are you going to do about it?"

"Apologize."

Aokiji snorted twice. "Hmph, hmph. And if I don't apologize, what can you do to me?"

Tsunade clenched her fists, glaring at him with a trace of killing intent in her expression. "Then I'll beat you until you apologize."

"You know, my strength is actually far greater than you imagine."

Aokiji raised a thumb and poked his own forehead, curling his lips in disdain. "If I wanted to, you wouldn't even be able to touch a hair on my head."

"Perfect. I want to see your true strength too. I know your performance at the Ninja Academy is far from what you usually show."

The joking atmosphere that had filled the air abruptly vanished, replaced by a growing scent of gunpowder.

Jiraiya and Orochimaru both sensed that something was wrong. A fight was about to break out, and these two seemed genuinely ready to throw down. Worried that things would spiral beyond repair, Jiraiya stepped forward first and tried to persuade him. "Hey, Aokiji, that's enough. Keep this up and Tsunade's going to beat you to death."

Tsunade interrupted coldly, "Jiraiya, get lost. Otherwise, I'll beat you up too. I won't forgive anyone who disrespects my grandfather."

Jiraiya shrank back and did not dare make another sound. Tsunade's current expression was very unlike her usual self.

Tsunade had often lost her temper in the past, but those were always spontaneous outbursts that passed as quickly as they came. She had never glared with such fury as she did now.

Orochimaru watched the two people surrounded by tension in silence.

Suddenly, Aokiji laughed.

Tsunade questioned him with a predatory glare. "What are you laughing at?"

Aokiji sighed. "I really envy you. You were so well protected that you can live in a world of black and white."

Tsunade: ...

Aokiji suddenly said, "You know, at first, I truly hated your grandfather."

"Hated him!?"

The three of them looked down at Aokiji in surprise, unable to understand where such hatred could have come from.

Aokiji murmured softly, "When my grandmother was still alive, she told me something. Back in the early days, when your grandfather and the Uchiha Clan's leader at the time, Uchiha Madara, had joined forces to found Konoha, Uchiha Madara suggested using force to sweep across the entire world and unite it. Whoever refused would be killed—kill every dissenter until peace arrived. With the strength the two of them possessed at the time, it was entirely possible.

"But your grandfather refused. He believed slaughter would only breed more hatred, so he rejected the proposal. Uchiha Madara could only give up unwillingly and choose to trust your grandfather. After that, the major Ninja Clans joined Konoha one after another, and every country followed suit by establishing its own village. The one-country, one-village system flourished, and peace came to the world. It seemed as though everything was moving in a good direction.

"But peace was short-lived. After Uchiha Madara left Konoha and died in that battle, Konoha's strength plummeted. Without absolute power to suppress them, the nations began to stir again, and conflicts continued to arise. My parents died during that time. Afterward, your grandfather died as well. Without his military deterrence, the nations lost their final restraint. Then war broke out. More and more members of my clan went to war. For a while, I heard every day that someone's family member had died. Then, after some time, those voices grew quieter..."

At that point, Aokiji gave a self-mocking grin and said miserably, "Heh... Do you know why?"

"Why?"

The three of them held their breath.

"Because almost everyone was dead. Naturally, there were no more voices. I began to hate your grandfather. Why hadn't he listened to Uchiha Madara back then? Why hadn't he united the world and killed every dissenter? If he was afraid of breeding hatred, then he only needed to kill everyone. Kill everyone, and there would be no hatred. At least my parents would not have died so early."

Aokiji reached toward the empty air with clawed fingers and clenched them tightly. His gaze burned as he roared hysterically in a low voice, "From that moment on, I trained desperately day and night, hoping that one day I would awaken the Sharingan. I wanted that power. I wanted to surpass Uchiha Madara, even surpass your grandfather, become the strongest ninja in the world, and accomplish what Uchiha Madara had failed to complete. I wanted a world without war. More importantly, I wanted to protect my grandmother, the only person in this world who truly loved me. But then, an accident happened..."

As he spoke of it, it was as though all his strength had suddenly been drained away. Aokiji's shoulders drooped weakly, and tears welled at his lashes. "I became all alone..."

As tears spilled from his eyes, a power surged into them. His pupils stirred, turning from black to red as though stained with blood, and a tomoe-shaped pattern appeared within them.

The three stared at the changes in Aokiji's eyes in shock. "Aokiji, your eyes..."

"The Sharingan."

Aokiji touched the right side of his face with his right hand, a thin, self-mocking smile spreading across it. "Isn't it ridiculous? The power I had dreamed of finally came only after my grandmother died. But what use is it? There's no one left who needs this power to protect them."

Tears streamed down Aokiji's face. "After Grandmother left, a part of my heart died with her... After that, I shut myself away. After a long time thinking, I came to understand something."

The three took a deep breath and asked heavily, "What?"

Aokiji sighed. "Human beings have limits. Even if I possessed power unrivaled in the world, united the world, and brought peace to it, once I died, the world would immediately fall apart and return to how it was. Your grandfather is a living example. While he was alive, the world was peaceful and everything looked beautiful. But the moment he died, new wars immediately broke out. Me... I don't want to keep trying anymore. No matter how hard I work, everything will just return to square one. Since that's the case, I might as well live in the present. Whatever happens in the future has nothing to do with me."

The three were deeply moved. They slowly spoke Aokiji's name. Only now did they feel they truly understood him.

Aokiji brushed away the tears from his eyes, sniffed, and gave a bitter smile. "I hope the three of you can keep my Sharingan a secret. Wherever there is battle, there are often sacrifices. I no longer want to experience the pain of losing someone."

With that, he slowly closed his eyes. When he opened them again, they had returned to their black pupils.

"It's getting late. The three of you still have training with your teacher this afternoon, so I won't disturb you any longer."

The three wanted to say something but stopped themselves. In the end, they sighed heavily and nodded in silence.

A trace of barely noticeable cunning flashed through Aokiji's tearful eyes.

That should make his persona quite solid. Revealing his Sharingan was a decision Aokiji had made after careful consideration.

As the strength of those three continued to grow, it would be hard for Aokiji, who frequently spent time with them, not to let something slip. Rather than wait for that, he might as well take the initiative. He would establish himself as someone who had become war-weary after losing his loved ones, while also harvesting a wave of sympathy and deepening their bond.

Aokiji had spent so much time with Tsunade that he had always been curious whether she had dedicated bodyguards around her to ensure her safety.

Because his own strength was insufficient, Aokiji could not detect them.

There was some risk in doing this, but it was within controllable limits.

This way, the impression others would have was not that he had deliberately hidden his Sharingan, but that he had concealed it because he feared losing his companions and hated fighting.

When he later revealed the Sharingan on his own initiative, Aokiji would have a lofty and righteous reason for it. He would have already achieved enlightenment, recovered from his decadence, and become a steadfast inheritor of the Will of Fire... a perfect image of a prodigal son returning to the right path.

By then, with his relationship with the Sannin and the full strength of the Uchiha Clan behind him, Aokiji refused to believe he would not become Hokage.

In a tree where no one noticed it, a Black Cat silently watched Aokiji's departing back with deep eyes.

A moment later, with a bang, it transformed into a puff of White smoke. The smoke scattered in the wind, leaving nothing behind.

"What's with those expressions today?"

At the appointed time, Sarutobi Hiruzen saw his three disciples arrive looking as though they had something on their minds. Even Jiraiya, usually the liveliest of them all, seemed preoccupied.

"Nothing." Tsunade brushed him off casually.

Yet the more she said that, the more it piqued Sarutobi Hiruzen's curiosity.

Perhaps noticing what Sarutobi Hiruzen was thinking, Orochimaru took the initiative to speak. "Teacher Yuan Fei, I have a question."

Sarutobi Hiruzen was surprised, then smiled. "That's rare. You're actually taking the initiative to ask me a question."

Orochimaru asked, "Among the three of us, who has the most Chakra?"

"Why ask that?"

"I'm just a little curious."

Sarutobi Hiruzen found it somewhat strange, but he still answered his disciple's question. "If we rank you from highest to lowest, Jiraiya has the most Chakra. Tsunade comes next, followed by Orochimaru."

"How much more Chakra does Jiraiya have than us?"

"If you are one, then Tsunade is about one and a half. Jiraiya would be around four."

"So much more?"

Orochimaru gave a bitter smile. Jiraiya, whom he had always looked down on, actually possessed such talent.

Chakra was one of the most important measures of a ninja's strength. No wonder someone like Jiraiya—slow-witted, reckless, and consistently at the bottom of the class—had been placed on a team with him and Tsunade.

Sarutobi Hiruzen nodded.

The three lowered their heads and murmured inwardly. It really was exactly as Aokiji had said.

Sarutobi Hiruzen thought Orochimaru looked so downcast because he had less Chakra, so he comforted him. "Orochimaru, your Chakra reserves are already quite considerable among people your age. Jiraiya is a special case. Besides, a ninja's strength is judged by many factors."

Even as he said it, Sarutobi Hiruzen knew the statement was not entirely convincing.

Chakra was simply too important to ninja, perhaps even the most important thing.

Many aspects of being a ninja could be improved through later training, but Chakra was like height. Training might improve it to a certain extent, but one's Chakra reserves, like one's height, were largely determined from birth. Training could only have a very limited effect.

That was the real reason Jiraiya, despite dragging the team down in so many areas, had ultimately been placed with geniuses such as Orochimaru and Tsunade.

It was absolutely not some flimsy excuse about balancing the team's strength.

Sarutobi Hiruzen looked at Jiraiya and saw that he did not appear especially excited. This confused him. By all rights, Jiraiya should have been delighted to learn that he possessed immense Chakra. Why was he showing no reaction at all, as though he had already known?

"What's wrong with you three?"

"Nothing. We're just feeling a little emotional..."

Sarutobi Hiruzen's disciples were lamenting Aokiji's circumstances, while also deeply regretting that such a talented friend did not wish to become a ninja.

On a remote island in the Vast Ocean, south of the Land of Fire.

The Land of Water.

Kirigakure was famous for being deep in the mountains and shrouded in mist year-round.

Inside a cylindrical building was a dark room.

A Black-haired Middle-aged Man with a fluffy, wild hairstyle slowly opened his eyes. One eye glowed crimson, with three tomoe around the pupil. If anyone had been present, they would surely have cried out the name of the Sharingan in shock.

Yet strangely, his other eye was white. His vision had been lost, and the eye had turned white as a result, making one wonder about the man's identity.

"Meow, meow..."

Following two cat cries, a Black Cat emerged from a dark corner and jumped onto the man's lap in two quick leaps. The middle-aged man pressed a hand against the cat's head. He was not petting it, but searching its memories. After a long while, his lips moved, and a murky, dark, twisted smile appeared on his face. "Uchiha Aokiji..."

To anyone watching, that smile was undoubtedly plotting some kind of sinister scheme and was enough to send chills down their spine.

"You seem quite happy, Former Mizukage. No, Madara..."

Suddenly, a second voice rang out in the room.

A middle-aged man with long, straight black hair stepped calmly out of the shadows. His eyes were closed, and his appearance was strikingly refined.

He was none other than Kirigakure's current Third Mizukage. It was curious why the supreme leader of Kirigakure, a man who wielded such authority, had come here. However, compared to the man before him named Madara, even the Third Mizukage's status seemed somewhat insignificant.

Because Madara had a surname known to everyone—Uchiha...

Put together, the name was Uchiha Madara, the peerless powerhouse who had stood alongside the First Hokage.

After losing to Hashirama, Uchiha Madara had gone into hiding in order to verify the information on the Stone Tablet at the Uchiha Clan's Naka Shrine.

The Land of Water was the place he had chosen.

Located overseas, shrouded in mist throughout the year, far from the mainland and isolated from the world, it was an ideal place to hide.

At the Five Kage Summit, in addition to the Five Kage of the time, there had also been guards responsible for protecting the Hokage. Without exception, after the First Kage died, those guards had become the Second Kage. Yet there was one exception: the current Third Mizukage. He had lost the contest for the position of Second Mizukage to Hozuki Gengetsu, and he had never let go of that grudge.

Madara had seen his unwillingness to accept it and secretly approached him, promising to help him become the Third Mizukage. In exchange, the Third Mizukage would gather intelligence for him. Each got what he wanted, and the arrangement was quickly settled.

Besides, the Third Mizukage had no ability to refuse.

Water and Fire had always been incompatible. The Uchiha Clan was the Ninja Clan most skilled in Fire Release, and now its strongest member, Uchiha Madara, controlled the leader of the ninja most skilled in Water Release, becoming Kirigakure's secret Second Mizukage. The irony was immense.

Madara snorted, seemingly displeased at having his mood interrupted, and asked expressionlessly, "What do you want?"

The Third Mizukage smiled. "Nothing much. I merely came to report that, following your suggestion, the overall quality of this year's students has reached unprecedented heights. The Daimyo of the Land of Water is extremely pleased with a policy that reduces military expenses while maintaining combat strength."

"Of course."

Madara was unmoved by the report. It was something he had expected long ago.

After all, graduation for this class was very different from before. To graduate, students had to kill their own companions.

So the students trained desperately in order to avoid being killed.

In his eyes, no matter how many Trash Ninja there were, they could not compare to a single elite ninja.

The idea came from Madara's own experience of killing his friend to awaken the Mangekyō Sharingan. Only by experiencing pain early could ninja grow rapidly.

When this policy had first been proposed, it naturally met unanimous resistance in Kirigakure, led by the Second Mizukage. But such matters were not problems in the face of the Uchiha Clan's overwhelming Dojutsu Power. Madara had directly used the Sharingan to control the Second Mizukage and force him into submission.

However, Kirigakure's strong were not fools. It would not take long for them to notice something was wrong. To eliminate future trouble, Madara had sent him to perish together with the Second Tsuchikage, whom he hated.

The matter became a mystery between the two countries. After all, the Land of Water and the Land of Earth were nowhere near each other. Not only were they separated by an enormous distance, but the Land of Fire lay between them. There was no geopolitical conflict at all.

No leader of a major country with even a little sense would fight to the death over a personal grudge, crippling their nation and allowing other countries to take advantage.

But both men were already dead, so neither country pursued the matter further. Focusing on an arms race was the proper course.

Since the Third Mizukage was here, Madara happened to have something to ask him about—information regarding the Sage of Six Paths.

According to the information on the Stone Tablet, he had already obtained Hashirama's flesh and implanted it into his own body. Combined with his Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan, it should have evolved into the Rinnegan. Yet so much time had passed, and his eyes had not changed in the slightest. Even Madara had begun to doubt the information on the Stone Tablet.

Therefore, he could not keep waiting. He needed to take the initiative and search for more information about the Sage of Six Paths, to see whether there were flaws in the Stone Tablet's contents.

At the same time, he needed to leave behind many contingencies. For the dream in his heart, the more pawns he had, the better.

"I'm sorry..."

The Third Mizukage did not dare look directly into Madara's soul-stirring eye. Madara's immense strength during the Warring States Period had left too deep an impression on him, leaving him unable to harbor even the slightest thought of defiance.

Madara closed his eyes as though pondering something. After a long while, he opened them again and said evenly, "I may leave this place in the future..."

"Leave? Where are you going?"

The Third Mizukage was surprised.

Madara narrowed his crimson eye as though asking, Are you probing into my whereabouts? The Third Mizukage fell silent, not daring to say more.

Uchiha Madara received the answer he wanted and spoke two words. "Konoha."

He told the Third Mizukage so it would be easier to contact him in the future. He might need their cooperation here to carry out his plans.

The Third Mizukage's eyes widened slightly. As if trying to dispel his earlier cowardice, he forced out a smile. "True. Hashirama is already gone. No one in this world can stand in your way anymore. The position of Hokage must already be yours for the taking. When Tobirama sees that you're still alive, his expression is sure to be quite a sight."

Uchiha Madara looked at the Third Mizukage with gloomy eyes. "Something as mundane as the position of Hokage means nothing to me."

After saying that, as though unwilling to speak further, he silently closed his eyes. The Third Mizukage wisely shut his mouth. He knew the other man was dismissing him. After giving Uchiha Madara one last wary look, he left.

Now, only one person remained in the room.

Uchiha Madara slowly parted his lips and murmured the name of his former dear friend in a voice only he could hear.

His friend's method had already failed. Next, it would be Uchiha Madara's method.

He would eliminate every war in this world, and then everyone would live in happiness.

Infinite Tsukuyomi...

"Ah-choo."

After school, Aokiji suddenly sneezed. He rubbed his nose. "Strange, why did I suddenly sneeze for no reason? Could that little loli in class be thinking about me?"

He had always been good at amusing himself. The sun hung low in the west, its fading glow as red as blood, reflecting Aokiji's small, thin figure. As he passed through the streets, he saw several girls gathered together, chattering away about who knew what.

Aokiji recognized one of the blond girls. It was Tsunade. Unlike him, her social circle was far from limited to just a few people.

Apparently noticing Aokiji, Tsunade used the excuse that she had something to do and bid the other girls goodbye. She walked over to him, and seeing his awkward, hesitant expression, she guessed he had something to say to her.

"Do you have something to say to me?"

Ever since that incident, it seemed as though a thick barrier had formed between them. They had not spoken in a long time.

"S-Sorry." Aokiji scratched his head awkwardly. "I shouldn't have said those things to you last time."

"What things? I've already forgotten."

Aokiji grinned foolishly. He understood that Tsunade was giving him a way out.

"Hold out your index and ring fingers together."

"Why?"

"Just hold them out. Why are you asking so many questions? Believe it or not, I'll beat you up."

Tsunade had quite a temper, but Aokiji found that one of her cute qualities. Sometimes, when he thought about it, he felt that he was too calculating and somewhat sorry for her pure feelings.

Aokiji held out his index and ring fingers.

A moment later, a warmth spread through his fingers.

Her index and ring fingers clasped tightly around Aokiji's fingers. This gesture was the Reconciliation Seal.

"Tsunade..."

"Don't let it happen again."

In an inconspicuous shadowy corner, a Black Cat licked its paw, its eyes fixed vaguely yet intently on the two of them.

PS: Now that this chapter is done, I can finally skip past this childish age a little.