Wammyman: I am so very very very sorry for taking this long to update. This summer I had a trip, and a part time job, grad parties and I had to prepare for college. Tune in for two special announcements at the end of the chapter.

Chapter 7: The Second Kira

In an underground chamber in a cave, isolated from all villages, there was a man with an orange mask. A black robe with red clouds covered every inch below his neck. Konan had given the Death Note to this man for inspection. The man looked over all the pages quickly and learned of all that was written inside of it.

"This book's powers must be real considering that so many of our comrades died recently," concluded the man closing the book.

"Madara," asked Konan, "what's our next move? And what are we going to do about him?" Konan was pointing to Ryuk when she asked the second question.

"You're the one he's stalking," Madara threw the notebook back to Konan, "so he's your problem. I have other matters to attend to." With that, Madara left the chamber, leaving Konan alone with Ryuk.

Konan's mind was flooded with questions that were left unanswered. Madara's ambitions were beyond her knowledge and she was tired of being left in the dark. Ryuk seemed to be the key to bringing her into the light.

"Ryuk," she commanded, "try to find out what Madara's up to, and don't let him see you."

"That'll be tricky," the shinigami explained, "he can see me now since he touched the Death Note."

"Just keep quiet and don't get too close to him," ordered Konan out of frustration.

"Fine," hissed Ryuk, "but you'll owe me for this."

So the shinigami slowly phased his head into rooms until he found the one Madara was in. Inside the room, Madara had his back facing Ryuk. In front of Madara was a young man with countless injuries and had no consciousness. The shinigami saw the man's lifespan so he knew the man was alive. Ryuk also learned that the man's name was Saskue Uchiha.

As Madara entered, Saskue's eyes began to open. After awakening, he sat himself up while Madara crept out of the shadows.

"So you're finally up," said the masked man revealing only his head. This introduction caused Saskue's eyes to turn red and black as they shot dark flames at Madara. He screamed from the piercing pain and backed away. Somehow the flames were extinguished and Madara returned.

"So that bastard Itachi went through all this trouble to keep you away from me," concluded the masked figure.

"What are you talking about," asked Saskue confused.

"Before he died," answered Madara, "Itachi transferred his powers into you. Then he set the Amaratseu to activate whenever I got near you. He went through all that trouble to protect his little brother from me, Madara Uchiha." Ryuk quietly giggled after hearing the masked man's name.

"That bastard never cared about me," roared Saskue, "he killed our clan, and I know you helped him!"

"It's true that Itachi and I destroyed the Uchiha clan together. However, you don't know the truth behind it all," replied Madara.

"I know why you did it," barked Saskue, "you wanted to test your abilities like my brother."

"No," said Madara calmly, "I'll tell you the truth, but it will be your choice to believe it." After Saskue calmed down, Madara began his story.

The story dated back to before the five great nations were founded. Back when clans of shinobi battled in an endless blood bath. The strongest of these clans were the Uchiha clan and the Senju clan. They were always pitted against one another but neither clan could vanquish the other. Eventually, the two clans made peace and founded the Village Hidden in the Leaves. However, Madara, the leader of the Uchiha clan, was dissatisfied with the alliance. Because of this, Madara took control of the nine-tailed fox in an attempt to destroy the village. This plan was thwarted by the first hokage. Overtime, the village elders grew to distrust the Uchiha clan, and exiled them to the edge of the village. Out of anger, the clan plotted to take over the village. Their plot was crushed when Itachi Uchiha, a ninja loyal to the village, vanquished the clan with Madara's help under the elders' orders. Itachi, however, allowed only his little brother to live.

Saskue was speechless after hearing the tale. To think that his own village ordered his brother to slaughter his family and live like a criminal. How could they do that without feeling a shred of guilt? This couldn't go unpunished. If Saskue was to avenge his clan, he would have to destroy the village.

Assuming he heard enough, Ryuk snuck out of the room and met Konan in the hallway.

"So," she asked anxiously, "what's he up to?"

"I don't know," answered Ryuk plainly, "he just told some kid about how some clan got killed."

"What," glared Konan, "that's what all this is about? Getting revenge?" Konan couldn't believe it. Everything she and her friends worked for was crushed by one man's dream for vengeance. That was it. There was no longer any reason for Konan to stay with Akatsuki. So she dropped the notebook and walked away.

"Hey," Ryuk called out, "where are you going? And what about the Death Note?"

"I'm done being a madman's puppet," answered Konan, "and I don't want that thing."

"Alright then," said Ryuk with a wave of his bony hand, "good-bye Konan." By the time Konan left the hideout, she had forgotten everything about Ryuk and the notebook.

Soon after Konan's departure, Saskue walked through the hall with Madara and picked up the Death Note. He nearly fell to the floor at the sight of Ryuk.

"Yes, this freak is pretty creepy, isn't he," said Madara. Ryuk scowled at Madara for the insult.

"Hello Saskue," greeted the god of death, "I am Ryuk, a shinigami who follows the owner of the Death Note."

"Death Note," repeated Saskue looking at the cover.

"Yes," the shinigami explained, "write a person's name in it while envisioning their face, and they'll die. And those who use the Death Note are burdened with the title Kira." Saskue slowly processed the information.

"Okay then," Saskue finally said, "I'll use this book's powers to my full advantage. But for now, I'd like to see my comrades."

"Very well then," replied Madara, "use the third door on your right." With that, Saskue and Madara parted ways. Saskue found it pretty weird to have someone like Ryuk following him. However, his mind was more interested in the name Kira. After all, it had a nice ring to it. After finding the right door, Saskue entered into a new chamber. In the chamber were Saskue's comrades unharmed. Ryuk's eyes revealed the man with short, white hair to be Suigetsu, the large man with orange hair to be Jugo, and the woman with red hair and glasses to be Karin. Saskue didn't bother with any small talk so as to make his point clear.

"We are no longer Hebi," he announced, "we are Kira and we have a new goal. To destroy the Hidden Leaf Village."

Wammyman: I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Now for my announcements. First, for those of you who don't know, Toonami is back. Tune into Adult Swim on Saturday nights. Toonami begins at midnight. Second, there is a poll on my account. Vote now if you want me to write a sequel to this tale. Voting ends when all my current stories end. I'll be heading off to college so I don't know when I'll update again. Please be patient.