Kannabi Bridge, underground base.
In the dimly lit stone chamber, a man slowly opened his eyes.
Heterochromatic red and white eyes, eerie and sinister.
He noticed the movement at the door, a flicker of urgency flashing across his otherwise calm and unreadable face before quickly disappearing.
A few seconds later, Kamihane pushed the door open and plopped down casually across from him.
Madara glanced at him and spoke calmly, "Did the plan succeed?"
Kamihane casually picked up the water jug on the table, tilted his head back, and gulped down several mouthfuls before wiping his lips and calmly fixing his gaze on Madara.
"It's done. Everything is proceeding exactly as I envisioned."
Madara's pupils trembled slightly, as if an electric current surged from the base of his spine to the crown of his head, leaving his emotions scorched and unsettled for a long while.
The boy's expression didn't seem like a lie. He knew Kamihane well—though usually a bit mischievous and fond of playing around, when it came to serious matters, he never joked.
"So... you really defeated... Hashirama?" He stared unblinkingly into Kamihane's eyes, leaning forward, his hands digging deep into the armrests of the stone chair without even realizing it.
Kamihane took a deep breath and nodded solemnly, "Yes!"
"To be honest, my victory wasn't exactly honorable, considering he was already at the end of his days..." He sighed softly and admitted without hesitation, "According to the intelligence I've gathered, Senju Hashirama should have already... perished."
Madara leaned silently against the stone chair, staring blankly at the ceiling with a distant gaze, lost in prolonged silence.
Upon hearing the news of Hashirama's death, he thought he would calmly accept the outcome, as it had been within his expectations.
He was full of confidence in the disciples he had personally trained, just as he was confident in his own strength.
Yet somehow, upon personally confirming this news, the corner of his eye twitched slightly, and his heart suddenly felt hollow.
In his mind, the figure of that boy from his childhood inexplicably surfaced—their playful banter and laughter by the river, their running under the sunset, the sound of that person's voice and smile still seeming to linger in his ears.
But that was decades ago.
"Lord Madara..." Kamihane hesitated before speaking, tentatively reaching out a hand.
"It's fine."
Madara slowly came to his senses, like a man awakening from a long dream.
His gaze regained its usual calm, but a deeply concealed emotion in his eyes, as rich and potent as aged liquor, could only be left to time to gradually fade.
"Tell me about what you've been up to during this time," he said, leaning back in his chair with his eyes closed, resting.
Kamihane cleared his throat and began to narrate slowly and in detail.
From infiltrating Konoha, manipulating Kagami's emotions, to controlling the bodies of the Four Kages in a chaotic battle...
From kidnapping Tsunade and using Kagami's body to provoke Hashirama's desperate battle, to adapting to Wood Release, to facing the 'True Several Thousand Hands' with the 'Eight Gates Formation'...
From silently adapting to the Flying Thunder God Technique, to hurling a flying sword that severely wounded Tobirama...
Finally, successfully provoking Uchiha Kagami to awaken his Sharingan, unleashing his acting skills, and tricking Kagami into completing the battle between brothers...
No detail was too small to be shared.
"How is your brother's Mangekyō?" Madara opened his eyes—this was his third question.
"Hmm, the ocular jutsu is decent—a bit troublesome, but the execution is crude. Everything is proceeding as planned." Kamihane nodded, a profound smile flickering at the corner of his lips.
"I just want him to think he can use the Mangekyō Sharingan safely and soundly, trapped in the illusion that I can do nothing about it."
Madara stared at him for a moment, then suddenly smiled faintly. That smile couldn't help but send a shiver down Kamihane's spine.
"The student has surpassed the master. To think you could devise such a method to obtain the power of all creation..." Madara paused. "Are you so certain that Uchiha Kagami can withstand Hashirama's power?"
"Lord Madara, do you know why I spared Tobirama Senju's life?"
A short blade emerged from Kamihane's fingertip, its hue a deep, dark cyan with a rich metallic sheen, exuding an overwhelming aura of slaughter that even Madara couldn't help but feel startled by.
"Impressive. The ultimate form transformation with high output—this level of condensation has surpassed even the Susanoo... Hmm, a fine technique, though the chakra consumption is a bit heavy," he remarked.
"Mhm." Kamihane lifted his chin, pride dancing at the corners of his eyes and brows.
"The newly learned technique came in handy. I deliberately made my blade strike slightly off-target—damaging the heart meridian but not fatally. This highly condensed chakra will remain in his body for a long time, clogging his meridians. If he ever releases chakra, the sword energy will pierce straight into his internal organs, causing unbearable agony."
Madara rubbed his chin thoughtfully, "A lot of the time, I can't help but feel you're a bit extreme..."
Kamihane shook his head calmly, "No choice. Paralyzing Tobirama's strength for years, rendering him unable to recover, is also a crucial part of this plan.
After all my meddling, Konoha is now strong in appearance but weak in reality—nothing but a paper tiger. Once war breaks out, the only Kage-level powerhouse who can truly hold the front line will be Uchiha Kagami!"
"And soon, Tobirama will realize that Kagami's Mangekyō power is finite. Once he loses those eyes, his Kage-level strength will immediately drop, and he'll revert to his original state.
The curse I've placed can forcibly lock away the last remnants of Kagami's ocular power, preventing his eyes from going blind. And every time he nears his limit, I'll sense it.
To sustain Kagami's combat power, maintain the strength of his Mangekyō, and considering the information I deliberately leaked earlier... Can you guess what this legendary master of forbidden techniques will do?"
With a glint of contemplation in his eyes, understanding flashed through his mind in an instant, and he slowly began to speak, "He would go to any lengths, spare no effort, to transplant Hashirama's self-healing power to Uchiha Kagami."
"Moreover, we must succeed, not fail!" Kamihane's eyes burned with intensity, and Madara could even hear his heartbeat like the pounding of war drums.
Madara nodded, "Hmm, once it fails, the Hidden Leaf Village will lose its last hope. Knowing that guy as I do, he can only succeed."
"I've been waiting for that moment," Kamihane said with a profound gaze, his index finger unconsciously tapping the table. At this moment, he resembled nothing more than a cunning 'little fox.'
"A Mangekyō Sharingan fused with Hashirama's cells—just thinking about it is thrilling," he licked his lips. "My dear brother has already endured the pain of yin-yang fusion for me, and all I need to do is wait for the fruit to ripen."
Madara raised an eyebrow, "That's rather cruel of you to do to him."
"Cruel? Do you know how he treated me back then? If it weren't for him, why would I have become irreconcilable with Konoha? Lord Madara..."
Kamihane raised his right hand, and only then did Madara notice that his fingertips were twitching slightly. It wasn't epilepsy, but an unconscious tremor brought on by extreme excitement.
"As for me... I just barely restrained the urge to kill him, forcing myself to play along with his little charade..."
He clenched his wrist, suppressing the overwhelming surge of murderous intent rising from the depths of his heart. After taking several deep breaths, he finally managed to calm his mind.
Among all the conversations with Mirror, only one sentence was true:
"My younger brother died forever on that night eleven years ago. It was I who buried him with my own hands."
Five years... haha!
Good brother, I can't wait that long!
At this moment, Madara spoke up: "Hikari has already set off for the Land of Lightning according to your plan. If you have nothing to do, you can go take a look along the way."
Kamihane nodded hesitantly and asked, "And what about you, Lord Madara?"
"I want to be alone for a while."
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