A/N: As far as my description goes, there are two Madaras in this story. First is the one that Konan meets in her lifetime, who is Obito (the one mentioned in description), and the second being the REAL Madara in which she meets after she is teleported into the past. However, Konan doesn't know about Obito, so her hostility against him is the same.

Prologue is basically rewriting Konan's battle against Obito in a way, except with that little twist at the end. You are free to skip it if you'd like. Both the prologue and chapter 1 are posted in this one chapter. TBH I don't know how many times I tried to rewrite and edit this chapter, and even now I'm still not satisfied. But then I realized I'll never publish this story if I was seeking complete perfection.

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto in any way, shape, or form, other than the plot and any OCs. All of its rights go to Masashi Kishimoto.

Prologue/プロローグ

End Times

Day after day, storm after storm, Konan waited for him to come.

Overlooking Ame's cloudy sky rain upon the streets and skyscrapers of her home, Konan smiled. The view wasn't necessarily anything special; it rained the same way everyday. However, this was the very same rain that she grew up to until this point. The rain symbolised home—it reminded her of the people closest to her.

Looking at the sky, she didn't just see clouds. She saw a blur of orange, red, blue, and gray. She saw herself, Yahiko, and Nagato walking on the heavy rain heading towards their hideout. She saw herself and her two closest friends laugh at their sensei wearing a ridiculous toad costume. It was a memory so innocent it reminded that not everything that has happened to her was bad—she met them.

Konan now lived by what her, Yahiko, and Nagato always dreamed about while growing up: peace. Nagato entrusted the seemingly endless search for peace to Naruto Uzumaki as his dying wish, hence her final resolve to help Naruto achieve such thing at all costs. It didn't matter what the cost may be, but she was willing to give up her life if it meant stopping the man behind destruction, Madara Uchiha.

She has been waiting to confront Madara ever since she came back from her and Nagato's invasion of Konoha—after he died. He meant everything to her, as was Yahiko, and now that they're both gone, she now only lived by the remains of their age-old dream of peace.

The old memory blurred her back into reality upon sensing a familiar chakra signature suddenly appear behind her. Konan didn't need to guess who it was—she knew.

Madara Uchiha has finally come.

"Looking for something?" Konan asked, knowing all too well what he was looking for.

"Where did you put Nagato's body?"

The imaginary clock was ticking, and for every second that passed between their growing tension she knew that the moment was near. All those stimulations she went through the past few days, all the analyzation of Madara's Sharingan—this was all to prepare herself to battle against one of the most dangerous shinobi she has ever faced.

"It's not here."

Just a few more moments.

Konan closed her eyes, letting herself disband into hundreds of sheets of paper.

She travelled across the skyscrapers of Amegakure, heading over towards the lake where she decided to confront Madara with. The lake was not just water; it had 600 billion explosive tags in it.

Upon arriving in the middle of Amegakure's lake, Madara stated solemnly, "The Rinnegan… It looks like you won't tell me where Nagato's body is buried."

"I knew that you'd appear before me. I've been waiting…so I could kill you."

Konan's face remained calm, but her amber eyes stated otherwise. During the past few weeks, she felt heartbroken, angry, but all in all she felt determined. Her eyes have opened to see the bigger picture, and that picture did not include Madara on her side. Not anymore.

"I won't show you any mercy just because you were a former comrade," he warned. "Akatsuki does not forgive traitors."

Konan brushed it off—she didn't want his mercy. They both knew that this wasn't just a simple battle—they knew that it was a matter of life and death. One will die. Or both.

Konan wasn't scared of death anymore; she has experienced it in way too many ways.

"One question, though," he added. "Why did members, such as yourself, betray me? Both you and Nagato supposedly agreed to my Eye of the Moon plan. Uzumaki Naruto… do you think he is worth all that?"

"He is light," she responded without hesitation. "That is why everyone possesses a flower of hope." She raised her arm towards him as more pieces of paper started to disband from her hand.

The sound of the rain and the sound of her heartbeat was all she could hear now.

"Heh, while you try and go against me, you are still wearing those robes," Madara points out. "It seems like you still have a lingering affection for Akatsuki."

"Akatsuki was founded by Yahiko," Konan responded, her heart feeling angst. "This red cloud is a symbol of the rain of blood that ascended upon Amegakure during the war. You just came in for the ride. These clothes are our right—not yours. The Rinnegan was awakened by Nagato, a shinobi from Amegakure." More paper appeared around her. "His eyes are this village's greatest treasure!"

Paper shuriken attacked Madara, but to no vail as he turned intangible.

"You've misunderstood two things," he said. "But I'll tell you, considering this will be your end. The one who made Yahiko create Akatsuki was me, and the one who gave Nagato the Rinnegan was also me. From where I'm standing, you're nothing but a clueless girl."

Konan's amber eyes widened. Was it…?

"But right now you're a little girl that knows the location of Nagato… although it won't matter once I capture you. Do not underestimate the visual prowess of the Uchiha, little girl!"

She wasn't a little girl. Not only did she grow by the years, but from what she has seen, and from what she has experienced in all these years of her life… she was a woman, a powerful kunoichi capable of fending for herself—capable of following her ideals. And no matter what the outcome this battle may end up with, she will fight for those close to her heart: Yahiko, Nagato, and Naruto.

As she summoned more paper, it swiftly took shape as her wings. Konan was determined—she was set. This was the moment to do it.

Now.

Konan's wings thrusted up into the air and headed towards Madara as paper begun to surround him in all sides. There is no escaping now.

Suddenly, Madara grabbed her by the throat upon finding her location amidst the mix of paper around him, but it was too late. As explosive tags were mixed into her paper, there was no way Madara could be able to pull them all into his Kamui.

Nagato…

Yahiko…

"I'll take you to the other world!"

Boy, how reverse her statement was.

.

.

.

Chapter 1/第１章

Space-time Fallacy

Blue.

That was the first thing Konan saw as she slowly opened her amber eyes. Despite her dizzy and confused state, she could tell the sky was clear—completely clear. All she could see was blue from her short line of vision considering her eyes weren't fully open just yet. They were narrowed by the sunlight temporarily blinding her from the corner of her eye.

Slowly turning her neck to the side so that the sunlight wouldn't obstruct her vision, Konan realized that she was surrounded by trees—lots of trees. She was in the middle of a forest.

What's happening? Konan questioned herself. Am I dead?

All she can remember was a blur of her explosive tags activating as Madara tried to pull them all into his Kamui. Did her plan work? She was dead…wasn't she?

She didn't know what exactly proceeded after death. Some say nothing, and some say there was such a thing as a life after death. If this was her afterlife, then, where were Nagato and Yahiko? They must be here; they have been waiting for her after all.

Was this really an afterlife though? Do people in such place feel pain?

Konan realized then that she was hurting on her arm, exactly where a piece of her Akatsuki cloak was missing. From the way it was teared off, it must have been as a result of her explosive tags. The injury on her arm wasn't just any injury, it was a burn.

I have nothing in my possession to heal this, she thought to herself. Konan was not a medical-nin, and even if she was, the lack of chakra that she had in her wouldn't be enough to heal it all—a portion maybe. If anything, I need water source of some sort to clean the wound…which will be a problem. All she could see were trees and nothing else.

Konan remained lying on the hard ground, her hair disheveled and eyes looking at the sky for a few moments before trying to get up. She lifted her upper body up with a small moan, realizing now that she must have been on the ground for quite a while considering the stiffness of her neck and back. Blood quickly rushed up to her head, immediately causing her to black out for a few moments before her vision was turned back to normal.

With her new point of vision, Konan's eyes roamed the place surrounding her. This was most definitely not Amegakure, and she was slowly starting to think that she was not actually dead. But if both of her speculations were true, how was it possible that she ended up here, of all places?

Konan was completely lost. Her first—which she found quite stupid—guess was that Madara Uchiha purposely placed her here, but there was no way both parties came out alive during their short-lived battle. If Madara was alive, then she wouldn't be.

Still, nothing that she came up with explained how she was alive at this very moment, much less alive somewhere far off from Amegakure. Even if she did actually kill Madara, and she somehow forgot the events that proceeded after her final confrontation against him, there was no way to explain why she was here. Konan had a hard time to believe that their battle moved beyond Amegakure's borders.

The familiar feeling of helplessness started to build up within her, but she swallowed it down. She wasn't weak. She will find out what was happening…eventually.

Mentally collecting herself back together, Konan slowly stood up, albeit a bit sloppily. Her legs felt weak, and if she didn't find shelter or a place to tend her injuries, she will probably be in big trouble.

Without giving too much movement on her left arm, Konan tried to feel her pockets to see if she had anything on her. She at least needed to find a nearby inn or small village of some sort and start from there. Trying to find her way home from where she was right now was basically suicide.

Looking into her pockets, she had no bandages or money whatsoever. Great.

Holding onto her injured arm, Konan noticed a path just a few feet away from where was. It was a start, although she wished she didn't have to go through this to find out what exactly happened. If she was dead, at least she knew what happened to her last: Madara wasn't able to Kamui all her explosive tags and thus resulted in both their deaths. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case. She had no idea what was going on.

While she walked amongst the pathway that led her to God knows where, she spotted a small puddle on the edge of the path. Looking down upon it, Konan saw her reflection. Despite not being able to see much, she could tell that her origami hair accessory was partially burnt off.

I'll make a new one later.

She also noticed that her hair desperately needed a comb, and that the dark circles under her eyes weren't making her physical appearance any healthier. She was also running quite low on chakra, which rendered her use of her paper wings for travel. Konan needed the chakra that she had left for protection, if ever needed.

Mentally speaking, on the other hand, she felt woozy and her mind wasn't fully up to speed. Konan really needed a proper night's rest.

Before continuing on to this pathway, Konan knew that she had to discard her Akatsuki cloak. If she was to encounter anybody that wasn't from Amegakure, she would be in serious trouble—much more than she was now. The blood-red clouds embroidered into the fabric of her cloak were notorious across the shinobi world. Only a thoughtless child could be ignorant enough of to not recognize the organization's insignia.

Konan could just leave it behind—she was done with the Akatsuki. Anything that happened in relation to them wasn't of her concern anymore. The only reason she still wore the cloak was because the Akatsuki once was an organization composed of her, Yahiko, Nagato, and other war orphans. It was home.

And once she was back home again, she will put it back on. It wasn't like she only had one Akatsuki cloak in her possession; she had several.

After a moment of thought, Konan slowly took off her cloak, carefully trying not to irritate the burn she had on her arm. Then, with the collar of her cloak in her hand, she let it drop onto a puddle of mud, and smothered it against the ground.

Once the cloak looked almost unrecognizable, she placed it behind a bush. Although it wasn't A-level camouflage, the piece of garment wasn't of importance to her at the very moment. There were much greater things to think about.

Hours passed, the sky was starting to darken, and Konan's feet were starting to get sore. She was simply not physically healthy at this very moment, and the fact that she was still pushing herself at this state wasn't doing her any good.

"Lady!" Konan suddenly heard the shout of a man behind her. Her amber eyes widened in shock, having not noticed that there were people approaching her whatsoever. This was, unfortunately, the extent of her weak state. "Where do you think you're going?"

Konan stopped in her tracks, contemplating on what her answer should be. She was aware that threats like these could happen anywhere—especially when outside of a village.

Slowly, Konan turned around to face the man who called her. His eyes were fierce, eyebrows frowning, and his sword was drawn out. The other men who accompanied him followed suit.

But then, she noticed one thing.

Some of them were wearing headbands. They weren't just normal headbands—they had the Konoha symbol embedded into them.

Have they not recognized her? Sure, it was 'Pein' whom all of Konoha remembers from that invasion, but she had also fought with numerous shinobi while assisting him as well. There was a fair chance they could recognize her as a member of the Akatsuki, despite her defection. It wasn't like it was widely known that she had defected after all.

There was also another thing that perplexed her. These shinobi were wearing armour, a piece of garment that she did not recall seeing during her time in Konoha. She had only seen these on historic books and perhaps from non-shinobi folk.

These anomalies…they're starting to pile up.

Konan didn't know where to begin. First she wakes up in the middle of a forest, her final battle against Madara as the most recent memory she can recall, and now these…odd Konoha shinobi. Although she didn't know what it was, she knew something was going on.

Taking into account the environment she was in, and these Konoha men, she can at least guess she was in the Land of Fire, near Konohagakure.

"Answer!" The man who previously called her demanded.

"Home," Konan responded candidly. "I'm merely just passing by, if I may."

If they are as clueless as they make themselves out to be, then let it be that way.

"Heading that way will lead you to Konoha," the man said. "I have never seen you there before, nor do you seem to belong to any of its clans." He noted. "Then, who are you?!"

Konan frowned. How could she possibly miss this? How could she not have realized that she was walking into her own death? She studied the maps of the Land of Fire, she should have at least recognized some type of geological structure, such as the mountains that weren't so far away from her. She simply could not believe that she had succumbed to such stupidity.

"My name is Konan," she introduced herself. "I've been injured, and I lost my way home. I wasn't aware going this way would lead me to Konoha."

"I'm having a hard time believing that, girl."

By now, it almost seemed like a confrontation was inevitable. By the way of their stance, she knew they were going to attack. They didn't trust her.

"I'm sorry to hear that."

"That's enough!" The man shouted.

While she was ready to defend herself despite her current chakra deficiency, she did not expect a pair of onyx eyes turn red, much less the two other men behind him.

Impossible, she told herself. The Uchiha clan were massacred, and these men were neither Madara nor Sasuke Uchiha. She, of all people, should know that.

What, exactly, was going on?

The front man of the group charged and swung his sword across her torso, but only resulting in her disbanding into hundreds of pieces of paper. She only rematerialized behind them shortly after, with only a few sheets of paper dangling around her.

This took a toll on her chakra, and now that she was facing three of these mysterious Uchiha, she didn't know if she would be able to last so long. At her full capacity, on the other hand, this wouldn't have been a problem.

"What—" She heard the man say in confusion. "You are definitely not from around here. Nobody in the Land of Fire possesses that kind of jutsu."

"That is because I'm not from here."

Konan swiftly released her sheets of paper and reshaped them into paper shuriken. They were ultimately able to hit one of the two men behind the leader, or at least the front-man of the group.

Looking back at his bleeding teammate, the man said, "Do not underestimate the power of the Uchiha, girl!"

The familiar structure of the sentence shocked her—it widened her eyes in memory of the person who told her a similar sentence. It was a sentence that was embedded into her mind forever. There was no way she could forget it.

Do not underestimate the visual prowess of the Uchiha, little girl!

Narrowing her amber eyes, Konan stated, "Only a foolish man could say that."

Using almost all the chakra she had left, Konan's papers charged towards the men. They didn't shapeshift into a sharper form; instead, they piled up around their skin to the point of asphyxiation. All she could hear were mumbles of the men trying to break free from the tight grip of her paper, but to no vail.

These Uchiha men were not a correct representation of the true 'visual prowess' of the Uchiha clan—Konan very well realized that. They haven't truly mastered the Sharingan just yet, even though they were in their late teens.

Nevertheless, it did surprise her that there were other Uchiha out there, as unbelievable as it was. It was widely known across the shinobi world that the Uchiha clan were massacred by no one other than Itachi Uchiha.

But then, how did it explain their Konoha headbands? If they were from Konoha, she should have definitely known of their existence.

Things weren't just adding up.

Walking over towards the three Uchiha men despite her extreme exhaustion, she removed a sheet of paper covering the man's mouth.

"Tell me," Konan trailed off, panting. "How did you Uchiha men survive the massacre?"

"Are you off your mind?" The shinobi shouted. "Is this what you were planning to do?! Massacre our clan? You'd be foolish to try that!"

Konan's eyes widened in shock. They had no possible idea what she was talking about, which was impossible unless they were living under a rock. Unfortunately, that wasn't a possibility either, considering they were from Konoha.

But then, a thought crossed her mind.

Their armour, their unexplainable Uchiha traits, and their cluelessness of the Uchiha massacre—if they really were from Konoha, they would know. Even non-shinobi knew about the massacre.

No—she believed they were from Konoha.

She just didn't think they were Konoha shinobi from her time.