Resonance of Fate

Year 2 of the Hidden Leaf Village.

A man stepped out through the gates of the Hidden Leaf Village alone.

Dressed in black, his black hair cascading down his back, he carried a scythe and a war fan. Facing the golden setting sun, his silhouette was proud yet bleak and lonely.

He was Uchiha Madara.

Three days ago, he had lost the Hokage Election. Hashirama Senju had ascended to the position of Hokage by an overwhelming margin.

Reality had been completely different from Hashirama's promise. Not only had he failed to become Hokage, but he had become increasingly despised by the villagers.

He had thought that founding the Hidden Leaf Village would bring about peace, but in truth, the divide between the Senju Clan and the Uchiha Clan had never disappeared.

The village streets were filled with laughter and joy, but all he could feel was unfamiliarity and distance.

So it turned out that everything had merely been a false illusion.

From that moment on, he understood that prejudice in people's hearts was like a mountain. As long as barriers remained, so-called peace would be nothing more than a fleeting mirage.

If this continued, the Uchiha Clan would sooner or later head toward destruction beneath that superficial peace.

Having realized this, he called upon the Uchiha Clan to leave with him. Yet... within the vast Clan Territory, not a single clansman had been willing to follow him!

Now, he had not only lost his younger brother, but his clansmen as well. He had completely become someone no longer admired, accepted, or needed—someone who seemed somewhat superfluous both in the village and within his clan.

The breeze was desolate, the dying sun lonely. His long hair danced gently in the wind, and where no one could see, his gaze was lost and his heart filled with sorrow.

Yet at that moment, a young and urgent cry suddenly came from behind him.

"Madara-sama!"

Uchiha Madara halted. The bitterness in his eyes swiftly vanished, and he resumed his usual imposing, aloof demeanor.

When he turned around, he found that a boy had chased after him.

The boy had delicate Facial Features and fair skin. He wore the Uchiha's distinctive High-Collared Clan Robe, and his neat black short hair was clean and sharp. His long eyelashes seemed gentle, while his eyes were dark as ink and clear as jade.

His steps were light. Though he had been far away, he had caught up within a few breaths. That was clearly not speed someone his age should possess.

"It's you?" Madara recognized him.

The child was called Uchiha Shin'yu, and he had become a ninja at a very young age.

Madara remembered him because four years ago, Shin'yu had gone to the battlefield and fought the Senju Clan to the very end. He seemed to have earned the title of "Godspeed Ghost."

"Lord Madara, what a surprise. I didn't expect you to remember me."

The boy's gaze was sincere. He stopped behind Madara and said, "I am Uchiha Shin'yu. I am willing to follow you!"

"What?!" Madara's emotions stirred slightly, and his Pupils trembled. "You are willing... to leave the Hidden Leaf Village with me?"

Shin'yu bowed respectfully, his words earnest. "Yes! Unlike those foolish clansmen, I am willing to leave with you!"

Madara's feelings suddenly became complicated. He looked Shin'yu up and down, and after a long silence, he suddenly gave a cold snort.

"Hmph. Have you come to pity me?"

Uchiha Madara turned his head back, presenting Shin'yu with the back of it.

"Go back. Although I am no longer your Clan Head, I, Uchiha Madara... need no one's pity!"

"Uh, pity?" Shin'yu tilted his head in confusion.

But he quickly noticed that although Madara was telling him to leave, his body remained rooted in place. He had not even moved a single step.

What's this? Deep down, he's still hoping I'll leave with him... Understanding flashed through Shin'yu's eyes.

Uchiha were such tsunderes.

He immediately said, "Lord Madara, I truly want to leave the Hidden Leaf Village. There is no longer any meaning in staying here."

"Why?" Madara asked without turning around.

Hearing that question, Shin'yu finally breathed a sigh of relief. When Madara had told him to go back without hearing him out, his heart had indeed skipped a beat.

After all, he truly... did not want to go back.

He was a transmigrator, and one who had been reborn from the womb.

He had been born five years before the Hidden Leaf Village, during the final years of the Warring States Period, when the Senju and Uchiha were still slaughtering one another.

Later, the two clans reconciled and the Hidden Leaf Village was founded. But how could someone who knew the plot not know the Uchiha's future?

Besides...

A trace of hatred flashed across Shin'yu's youthful face. "The Senju Clan slaughtered my parents. They were not even ninjas; they were only helping injured clansmen... yet the Senju still brutally murdered them!"

In a low voice, he said, "No matter how much time passes, I will never be able to let go of this hatred!"

Madara nodded. "It seems you share the same pain as I do, but that is not enough reason for me to take you with me. If I remember correctly, you still have a younger brother, don't you?"

"I do, but that foolish thing has already been brainwashed by the Senju. All he wants is to devote himself to the so-called Will of Fire. He has completely forgotten the hatred, shaken hands with the enemy, and made peace with them. How laughable!" Shin'yu's expression turned mournful, and a fierce glint crossed his eyes. "Uchiha Kagami betrayed me. He is no longer my younger brother!"

Uchiha Madara's gaze drifted as he fell silent, clearly moved by his words.

Shin'yu stared at his back. "Ever since you lost the Hokage Election, I understood. If even you could not become Hokage, then who else in the Uchiha could stand up?"

"All of this is a false peace bought through our compromises, yet those pathetic clansmen actually believe the Hidden Leaf Village will accept them?"

"Like Kagami, they have all been softened. Like frogs being slowly boiled, the only thing awaiting them is a slow death!"

Every word struck at Madara's heart. He remained silent, but Shin'yu could clearly see his body trembling faintly.

Seeing that the time was ripe, Shin'yu immediately delivered his finishing blow. "Living there, watching those ignorant and foolish clansmen one after another, sometimes I even forget who I am. My vessel has already become utterly disappointed in this boring, stupid clan..."

This time, Uchiha Madara was finally moved.

He raised his eyes to the sky and let out a long breath.

Although Shin'yu could not see his expression, under the twilight, that figure was just as solitary and desolate.

The youth's resentful and helpless accusations struck straight into his heart. Uchiha Madara felt utterly lost, and a sense of being Fellow Sufferers arose within him.

Shin'yu also understood that his words would never gain anyone's approval, but to Madara at this moment, their destructive power was fatal.

"I do not need weak followers." Uchiha Madara spoke in an arrogant tone.

Shin'yu smiled and slowly closed his Eyes. When he opened them again, his originally pitch-black eyes had become a vivid, mournful crimson. Three Pitch Black Tomoe spun around each Pupil.

"Oh? This is the aura of the Three-Tomoe Sharingan..."

Uchiha Madara finally turned around, his interest slightly piqued. "No wonder you could go to the battlefield at such a young age. So your eyes have already developed to this extent."

He crossed his arms. "At this level, you are qualified to follow me..."

The corners of Shin'yu's lips curved upward. Red Light blossomed from his lustrous Pupils as the three Tomoe revolved around one another, spreading and growing until they formed a magnificent Mangekyo Pattern in an instant.

It resembled gears, yet also a Magic Array, symbolizing some sort of cycle and harmony. The pattern was intricate and beautiful, like a flawless work of art.

"You actually Opened... the Mangekyo Sharingan!" Madara seemed to choke on his breath, his expression turning grave in an instant.

His voice carried a hint of astonishment. Even he could not remain calm upon seeing those Eyes.

Because they almost represented the pinnacle an Uchiha clansman could reach!

"What exactly... have you experienced?"

Throughout history, there had been only a handful of clansmen who had evolved their eyes to the Mangekyo. Madara himself had only seen two pairs.

Yet now, this third pair of Mangekyo had appeared on a boy. Though Shin'yu's Eye Power was far inferior to his own, it was restrained and tranquil, like still water. He was clearly a promising seedling!

Shin'yu's future... was filled with limitless possibilities!

"A similar fate to mine, Resonance of Fate, and this pair of Mangekyo..." Madara instantly appeared before Shin'yu, excitement surfacing in his eyes. "If it is you, perhaps you really can carry out my will!"

In truth, when Shin'yu had declared himself utterly disappointed in the Uchiha, Madara had already decided to take him away. But he had never expected such an unexpected delight!

"A true Uchiha will never submit to false peace. Only those who have Opened the Mangekyo Sharingan can see the true nature of the world, because they have already tasted the most soul-searing pain and despair in this world!"

Madara suppressed the excitement in his heart and stared intensely into Shin'yu's Eyes, because what he was most curious about now was:

"What ability does your Mangekyo possess?"