The Necromancer: Revisited

by Pyro Flare

A revised version of my story The Necromancer. Two mysterious Akatsuki members have created a deadly zombie plague that endangers all of Konoha. Will its residents survive before the zombies or the Akatsuki cause their downfall? Chapter 18 added. Might as well be on hiatus now with this really sparse update pattern.

10. Memories of a Madman

(Author's Note: Just a warning: this chapter is quite large.)

---

The Necromancer Revisited, Chapter 10:

Madara weakly stood up, the process of doing so sending pain shooting through his body. He winced as he managed to fully stand, and he spat out a small amount of blood.

"Damned Hyugas..." he muttered as he started limping out of the building. They had decided to not pursue him... a wise choice on their behalf. He was about to show them no mercy, but now he was too disabled to continue fighting. What he needed to find was a place to safely rest and recover his body, and that would be difficult with Reiko out for blood. She was a sensor... evading her would be difficult, especially when he needed to remain still.

If I know her well enough, she'll leap at a chance to strike me dead while I'm debilitated... Madara thought grimly. He had managed to drag himself out of the building he was knocked into. He looked at the holes in the other buildings that his body had caused when Tsunade punched him... she certainly was powerful.

"I think... I'll rest at the old Uchiha Temple," Madara said to nobody in particular. The only thing about the "old" Uchiha Temple was that it wasn't old at all. It was a copy of the original temple, which had been at the original area of the village that belonged to the Uchiha clan. But the Uchiha clan had been relocated to a different area of the village because of his actions, and the old site was demolished and turned into a commercial and civilian area. The Senju made him sick with their blatant disrespect towards the Uchiha clan. Their attempt at an apology to the Uchiha was reconstructing the temple in the new Uchiha clan grounds, but it was more insulting than forgiving.

That was where he was heading: the Uchiha temple at the relocated Uchiha clan grounds. Of course, that place had been desecrated by Konoha, as well. Some buildings were turned into houses for civilians or markets, while others had been renovated to make room for apartments or other "necessary" buildings.

In fact, the only reason that the Uchiha temple was still standing was that it brought in great revenue. "Come see the remnants of the great Uchiha clan!" In fact, the only preserved buildings were those that held some significance during the Uchiha Massacre. "Come see where the criminal Itachi heartlessly slew his parents!" Sickening, all of it.

He despised this very village and everybody in it, but he couldn't help but remain attached to it. Sure, you remain attached to something you're actively trying to destroy, but he also always sought information about the latest happenings of the village. And now that he was in the village, he couldn't help but recognize some places where events happened in his past. Memories of old were resurfacing in his mind...

And before he knew it, he had managed to limp all the way to the Uchiha temple. Madara slid open the door and closed it. He reached into his cloak and pulled out a few paper tags with symbols on them. He placed them on the door of the temple, which created a barrier around it that would prevent chakra detection, as well as alert Madara if someone enters the building.

Madara limped to the main chamber of the building, which had a statue of a mythological tengu creature in it. Behind its head was the three tomoe signature of the Sharingan. He gathered a few cushions where Uchihas might have once sat upon while they meditated and laid them in a line. He then relaxed upon the makeshift bed, his eyes drooping as fatigue greeted him.

And as he drifted off into sleep, the memories flooded his dreams.

---

I was currently staring out the window at the lovely garden in our backyard that my wife had grown and tended with her own hands. My eyes were focused on the vegetation and their arrangements, but my mind was elsewhere. It had been nine years ever since the clan wars ended, but the memories of the war were still fresh in my mind. It was no wonder they lingered in my thoughts; I had been born into a warring country, and my entire life was based upon war until nine years ago. And now I was thirty-eight years old, with only nine years to adjust to a life of peace... a normal life. I was still having difficulties doing so.

I was snapped out of my thoughts as a pair of arms wrapped themselves around my neck. I jumped from my sitting position to a standing one as I spun around to see who had snuck up on me. My panic quickly subsided when I saw my wife's face smiling back at me.

"Don't scare me like that," I sighed as I smiled back at her.

"You're too jumpy," she said as she lowered her arms and took a few steps away. It was then that I noticed that she was holding a scroll in her hand.

"What's that?" I asked her as I pointed to the scroll. She looked down at the rolled up parchment in her hands and seemed to realize why she originally approached me.

"Oh, right! A Senju messenger sent it here. He said it was from Hashirama and that it was important," she said as she handed the scroll to me. I eyed it for a bit before reaching out and taking it.

Hashirama... that man had been my enemy and rival for a majority of the clan wars, but he was the one that proposed to finally end the war after a certain point. I initially refused his offer to try and make things more advantageous for my clan, but the Uchihas had spoken and they were tired of fighting. Reluctantly, I accepted the truce that ended the clan wars. The clans that survived the war all settled down in various villages and towns across the fighting country, and I had not heard from the Senju in some time. What could Hashirama want? I eagerly unfurled the scroll and began to read.

"So? What does it say?" my wife asked curiously as she tilted her head. I looked at her with a look of uncertainty.

"Hashirama is tired of all of the clans living apart. He wants all of the clans and any other people in this country to live in one large village... he wants to unite the clans," I said.

"All of them?" she asked.

"Yes, Aimi; all of them. The only clan that will not be a part of this is the Uzumaki clan... Hashirama said that they moved outside of the country and established their own country to the west."

"Really? For being such lapdogs to the Senju during the war, I'm surprised that they were able to do something that requires independence," Aimi said with mild surprise. This made me smile.

"No doubt the Senju had to help them with that, too," I said with a small chuckle. We both laughed for a bit. It was times like these that made me appreciate my dearest Aimi.

"So... we're going to hold a meeting over this, right?" she asked.

"The clan needs to know. Personally, I'm content with the way things are right now... but I don't decide everything for the clan."

"Well... there are certain advantages to living as a united people," Aimi mused as she stared at the ceiling while placing a finger on her chin in thought, "we'd all live together, and I'm sure there would be economic benefits. Life would be easier, too... with everyone contributing to the needs of the people, food and such would be much easier to obtain."

"I suppose... but I'm still weary of it. We will decide tonight... I'm going to schedule a clan meeting. Is that okay?"

"Hmm... I was going to work on that painting later today, but it seems like it will have to wait," she said with a small frown, but her voice held no disappointment.

"What is that painting, anyway? I've always wanted to ask, but I've been busy lately." She often painted scenery and animals, but the glimpses I had seen of the painting had humanoid figures. She was trying something new, and I always enjoyed her work. She was a great painter, and her works always livened up my day.

"It's us," she said with a coy smile, "but no looking until it's done! I'm almost finished with it... it should take no more than three days before it's done!"

"Well, I'll look forward to that," I said with a warm smile, "and I have to go set up the clan meeting now. I'll see you later."

I walked over to her and hugged her. She gave me a peck on the cheek and said softly in my ear, "See you later, too," in a suggestive manner. My smile spread as we let go of each other and waved goodbye as he went off to do our tasks.

---

It was almost time for the clan meeting. The Uchiha clan was gathered in the next room, and I was in the room to the left, thinking over what to say to the clan. I am afraid that they may easily align with the Senju on these matters, and we need to take a stand against them. I sighed as I stood up and walked into the room where the entire clan had gathered. When I entered the room, silence overtook the previously chatty Uchihas. I walked in front of a podium, cleared my throat, and spoke.

"My fellow Uchihas, today I have received a generous proposition from the Senju clan. They wish to unite the peoples of the country in one large village. I am uncertain on how to take this offer, so I ask you all for assistance," I announced.

"What's so bad about that idea?" an Uchiha man asked.

"Is it really necessary to all live in one large village? Is it really necessary to change our current lives? I see nothing wrong with the way things are now. And the Senju... they might try to undermine us."

I should have never had said that last comment if I wanted to convince the clan to ignore the Senju's proposal.

"Oh, I see; this has nothing to do with us, does it? You're just untrusting of the Senju!" another Uchiha man exclaimed.

"You're just being paranoid, Madara! The war is over, and they're not going to do anything to us. They even sought to bring an end to the war!" an Uchiha woman said.

"You all know that I didn't want to accept the treaty because I strived to end the war so that things ended up as advantageous to our clan as possible, but you chose peace over power. I don't blame any of you for that, and I am just voicing my concerns on this matter. Think of the power we hold right now. The Senju are obviously going to rule this village, and they will decide the fates of our clan and every other clan under their rule!" I explained to my clansmen.

"He does have a point there... we don't know what this village's government will be like," an elderly man said.

"Then tell the Senju that we want fairness. That should solve everything," an old woman said. The clan began murmuring amongst themselves, and they seemed to be taking the woman's side.

"Let us decide here, then," I announced, "all opposed to joining the village?"

Very few Uchihas raised their hands.

"And who would just want to join the village without questioning the Senju's motives and government?"

Again, not many Uchihas raised their hands.

"So I assume that we are to join, but demand fairness and equality for every clan involved in this village?"

Almost all of the Uchiha raised their hands and vocally showed their support for this. If the Uchiha clan had a position of power in this village, then maybe it won't be that bad of an idea after all...

"Very well! I shall contact the Senju regarding this matter. You all may leave now," I said as I walked back into the room I was in before the speech. I sat down in the chair I was sitting in before the clan meeting and leaned my head back. Even though the meeting was short, it took a lot out of me. I felt great comfort as a pair of hands began to massage my shoulders. I opened my eyes to see my wife smiling down at me.

"Good job at the meeting, honey," she said.

"I would have preferred to have convinced the clan to keep things the way they are, but if we can get a position of power in this village, then I don't have any problems with that."

"Oh, you speak calmly, but you feel so tense!" she said as she started to massage a particularly tense part of my neck. I sighed in relaxation as her soothing touch removed the pain.

"I think I'm going to talk with the Hyugas about this tomorrow. No doubt they have received this message, too."

"Then that means you'll be gone for a few days, won't it..." Aimi said with a hint of disappointment in her voice.

"Won't your painting be done by the time I return?" I asked, trying to cheer her up.

"Well, yes, but if you're going to be gone for a few days because of travel, then it seems that tonight... you know," she said suggestively.

A grin spread across my face. Tonight would be a good night.

---

After a day's worth of travel, I finally arrived at the Hyuga clan settlement. The travel made me realize that Hashirama had a point in wanting to construct a village; it took far too long to meet with friends outside of your clan settlement,

I walked up to the entrance of the gated community. Two Hyuga guards stood watch. As soon as they identified that the person approaching was me, their expressions lightened and they waved at me.

"Hey, Madara!" one of the guards exclaimed as I walked up to him, "What brings you here today?"

"I wanted to talk to Hizuro about Hashirama's proposal."

"That? We all agreed last night to support it. Are you against it?"

"Not at all; I just want to bring up some concerns I have about the village."

"Okay... he's out back playing with his kids. You can enter."

The two guards opened the gate, and I headed towards Hizuro's house near the back of the village. It was a beautiful day out, and many of the Hyuga citizens greeted me as I walked by, The Hyuga and Uchiha clans had been great allies for many years, so it was only natural that the people would know the head of the Uchiha clan.

I soon was at his house, and I walked around the front of the house and into its backyard. There I saw Hizuro Hyuga running around and playing with his two young sons. The boys quickly spotted me and ran up to me.

"Hey, it's Unky Madara!" the older boy cheered.

"Unky Madawa! Unky Madawa!" the younger one echoed.

"Hey there!" I smiled as I bent down and patted their heads, "And remember, I'm not your uncle. I'm your godfather," I added as Hizuro walked over to us. He grinned at his boys as he leaned down to place his hands on their shoulders.

"Why don't you two go inside for now. I'll play with you later," Hizuro said.

"Okay!" the two boys shouted as they ran towards their house and went inside. Hizuro stood, turned towards me, and brushed a loose bang of his long and dark hair out of his face.

"So... what brings you here on this fine day, my good friend?" Hizuro asked as he grinned at me.

"Well, I heard from one of the gate guards that the Hyugas agreed to Hashirama's proposal... we did, too, but there are some things our clan is concerned about," I said.

"Such as?" Hizuro asked as he raised an eyebrow with suspicion.

"All Hashirama's letter said was that the clans and people of the Land of Fire would all be united in a large village. He said nothing about the government of the village," I began.

"Wouldn't it just be like the separate villages we have now?"

"Maybe in some sense, but who would rule the village? What would be the power distribution among the clans? I fear that the Senju may hold too much power in this new village."

"Hmm... you do have a point there. Want to ask Hashirama in person? The Senju clan's village is only an hour away from here," Hizuro suggested.

"Yes, I'd like that... it'd be much easier and quicker to negotiate in person than to keep sending letters back and forth to each other."

"Okay, let me quickly write a letter and get a messenger bird to send it to the Senju. We don't want to show up uninvited," Hizuro said as he quickly ran into his house. A few minutes later, he was back.

"You ready?" he asked.

I nodded, and we both began to body flicker towards our destination. As we traveled, we caught up on what happened in the few months since being together last. Before we knew it, we had arrived at the Senju clan settlement. Hashirama was already waiting for us at the gate.

"Welcome, friends!" he greeted as he waved at us while simultaneously beckoning towards the Senju guards to open the gate to his village, "I have received your letter about your concerns. We will discuss this matter in my home. Please follow me."

Since it was sundown, most of the Senju were in their homes. We followed Hashirama through the quiet village until we reach his home. It was quite large and extravagant in comparison to the other houses in the village. We entered, and I was taken aback by the immense height of the rooms in the house.

"Please, sit," I heard Hashirama say. I must have zoned out while marveling at the size of his home to notice that I had still followed him into the room he wanted us to be in. I sat on a chair in front of a desk, with Hizuro next to me. Across the desk sat Hashirama, who was giving us a warm smile.

Before I could speak, Hashirama addressed the issue I was about to bring up. "I had overlooked something like that when I wrote the letter. I was just eager to notion my idea to the other clans. This isolation we have cannot be good in the long run," he said.

"So then what did you have in mind for the government of the village?" I asked him.

"I was hoping to discuss that with the other clans before we constructed the village, but that won't work anymore... well, we are the heads of the three most powerful clans around here... how about we form what the government should be like here and now?"

"Sounds good to me," I said with a nod.

"What is the Uzumaki clan's governing style?" Hizuro asked, "I mean, they made their own village, right? The entire clan had to agree on how that village would be run, then."

"They have a central ruler and an advising council that also holds power. They have also allied with the daimyo of the country they are in to gain finances," Hashirama said.

I was opposed to the thought of being controlled by a daimyo, "I would like to avoid being tied to a feudal lord unless it is absolutely necessary. They are who hired us to fight for control of the country in the first place."

"But the feudal lords have all decided on a single ruler, Madara," Hizuro said.

"And what if that ruler wants to expand this country? What if a feudal lord from this country gets in an argument with another one? Those clashes will make us be dragged out to war once more. I would like this peace to remain for quite some time."

"Madara has a point... the Uzumaki sacrificed safety for financial security. But our clans have enough funds to support a village for quite some time," Hashirama said.

"Well, then should we go with their governing style? It sounds good to me: have the people elect a main ruler, and then have the heads of the clans on this council," Hizuro said.

"But does the Uzumaki's government work?" I asked. I didn't even know they had formed their own village until recently, and while their governing system sounded like a good one, I had to be sure.

"Absolutely. We have always had close ties with the Uzumaki, and reports from them show that their village is prospering. Several bands of people in the country have joined their village, and I have heard next to no complaints about the village itself."

"Sounds like a winning formula to me," Hizuro said with a small grin.

"Yes, I suppose that will work. That will satisfy our clans' concerns," I said, "speaking of the clans, have all of the others agreed with this village idea?"

As I said that, a large grin spread across Hashirama's face, "It was a unanimous decision by all of the clans. I imagine that there were some concerns like your clans, but now that it has been decided that the clans shall have equal power in the government, I'm sure those concerns will be quelled."

"Equal power?" I asked with suspicion, "How can that be if there is an elected leader?"

"The clans will all choose one person to be in their council- most likely the leader of the clan. This includes the clan who has their representative elected as leader of the village. But it certainly won't cause any power imbalances, since the leader should look after the village as a whole and not just the concerns of their own clans," Hashirama said.

"But how can you prevent favoritism towards your own clan? It's only natural," I said as I crossed my arms.

"Come now, Madara. I don't see anything wrong with it. What harm can a little competition be?" Hizuro said with a small smile.

"Fine," I sighed.

"Don't worry, Madara; it will all turn out fine. Are we done here? Are you well-fed and rested? I don't want you two returning to your clans on an empty stomach," Hashirama asked.

"We're fine," I said. Now that the issue with Hashirama had been resolved, I wanted to return home as soon as possible... but I knew that would take another day. I would have to sleep at Hizuro's house.

"Very well. I have some letters to write to the other clans. Farewell, my good friends," Hashirama said as he stood and left the room. We stood up as well and exited the Senju clan settlement. As soon as we exited the gates, we began to rapidly body flicker back to the Hyuga clan grounds.

There was a long period of time where we said nothing, but Hizuro broke the silence. "So... that went well."

"Yes," I replied, "I was surprised how cooperative he was with us. That's quite unlike the Hashirama we knew back in the war."

"The war was a different time... nearly a decade ago. That's a lot of time for a person to change."

"I suppose you're right."

"Say... we're both candidates for the leader of the new village, right?"

"Yes, we are."

"Well, this is probably unsportsmanlike, but how about we ally through this whole election thing? You vote for me, I vote for you. What do you say?"

"I swear upon my life," I said with a smile at my good friend.

"I do as well," Hizuro said as he returned the smile, "and that's good. At least I know someone has my back."

"What about your wife?" I asked.

"That Hashirama's a suave fellow," he joked, "he just might steal her vote."

"I think if he's aiming to steal something from your wife, it will be something more than a vote."

"Hey! Shut up!"

We continued our joking for a bit until it became small talk. We soon arrived at the Hyuga clan settlement at nightfall. He led me to a guest room in his house and made sure that I was completely comfortable. I soon after fell asleep.

In the morning I awoke and ate breakfast with Hizuro's family. After that, I left the Hyuga clan and headed home. It would not be until mid-afternoon that I returned home. A few Uchiha greeted me as I walked to my house and entered.

"I'm home!" I called out.

"Oh! Oh!" I heard Aimi exclaim, "Don't come in here just yet! I'm almost done with the painting!"

I smiled at her enthusiasm as I walked into my room and changed into a fresh set of clothes. I walked back into the main room of my house and sat down as I waited for my wife to finish her painting. I leaned my head back and closed my eyes. It was good to finally be home after a few days of travel.

I must have dozed off; because the next thing I knew was that my wife was gently shaking me to wake me up.

"It's done!" she exclaimed with great excitement. She hurried off into her room, and I stood up from the chair, yawned, and stretched before I walked into the room.

When I entered, she was standing in front of the easel, her body covering her work. Her eyes held a sense of great accomplishment, and she sported a childlike grin as she stepped to the side to reveal her work with a "Ta-da!"

I felt my breath leave me and my jaw drop as I gazed at her painting. It was simply sublime. Her previous works had always been great, but she outdid herself with this painting. The painting depicted the two of us huddled next to each other in front of a campfire outdoors. We were sitting on the ground and looking at each other with a loving gaze and smile. The concept of the painting was simple, but it was the skill of her art that made it so impressive. Our depictions, the lighting, the shadows... it was all flawless.

"So? Do you like it?" she asked with eager expectation.

"I don't know why you're asking, love. It would take a fool not to appreciate the splendor of this painting. It's simply incredible," I said as I turned to her with a smile.

"I'm glad you enjoy it," she said with a small giggle. Was she fully aware of the talent she possessed?

"I'm going to hang this up in our living room above the mantle. I'm serious; this painting is astounding."

"Really? You think so?"

"...I hope you're feigning cluelessness. You've been painting ever since the clan wars ended. You're amazing."

"Silly, I know I'm good, but I just don't think I'm as good as you're saying I am."

"I'm serious! I love this picture! Say... want to recreate this picture tonight?" I asked with a suggestive grin.

My wife returned the grin, "I'd be glad to."

---

It had been a week since my wife showed me her painting. I received a message from Hashirama addressing to the clans just how the village would work. He had not changed his mind since our meeting, since he propositions were either the same or improved since then. He added some clarification about the leader that would be elected: they would be a paragon for the village and the protector of the people. It seems he was hyping up the election by giving such important qualities that the leader needed. The message also mentioned the candidates for Hokage position. There were ten of them, including me: Hashirama and Tobirama of the Senju, Madara of the Uchiha, Hizuro of the Hyuga, Sho of the Aburame, Shiro of the Nara, Inodo of the Yamanaka, Chozu of the Akimichi, Ken of the Inuzuka, and Azoro of the Hatake.

I found it quite unfair that the Senju had two candidates, but then I remembered the few encounters I had with Tobirama... he was quite different from his older brother. Just like how Izuna was different from me... he was far too kind to give me his eyes when I was becoming blind. If our positions had been switched, I doubt I would have done something that drastic to save his eyesight...

I shook the thoughts of my dead brother from my mind, for they would only make me depressed. For now, it was time to do what the message said near the bottom: to travel to the designated area Hashirama has chosen for the village. All of the clan members will be gathered there, and he assures that all of them will have proper housing by the end of the day. I know he can create buildings in record time with that wood release kekkei genkai of his... but the clans will still have to travel back and forth to take their personal belongings with them to this new village.

Most of the Uchiha clan had departed for the new area. The few left behind were left to guard the village from any bandits or to construct a method to easily transport our belongings to the new village. The site for the new village was the geographical location suitable for a large village closest to the middle of the country. It took just under an hour to arrive there, and I was amazed.

Never before had I seen such a large gathering of people before. The people had ten distinct groups (including our clan), leading me to believe that the groupings were the nine major clans that survived the clan war, and one grouping of minor clans and non-shinobi that wished to join the new village. The area itself was perfect for a village: it was a large and flat circular clearing in a forest. The north end had a large mountain, and the south end was clear, leaving one entrance and exit, which would be easy to protect. The surrounding forest would provide excellent cover for any potential enemies.

I heard the all-too-familiar sound of wood bursting from the ground and looked in the direction of the sound. Hashirama had formed a large platform that he was now standing on located in the middle of the gathered people. The people stopped conversing amongst themselves as they waited for Hashirama to speak.

"First off, let me just say that you have all made me very happy in joining me in this village. I never expected to receive so much support for this idea. I am sure many of you have questions, and I can answer them in due time, but I will answer some prominent questions that I am sure some of you are thinking. Constructing this village will not be a problem at all. Many of you know my famous wood release kekkei genkai. With it, I can easily create buildings and some furniture, but they will all be made of wood. I doubt many of you would want to sleep on a bed without a mattress, live in a village the color of wood, or live in a windowless home. Painters and other artisans are encouraged to help assist in the fine-tuning of the buildings of this village," he announced, his voice echoing throughout the area.

He continued, "As for your belongings, that is what will make this village's construction arduous. I want to make all of you feel as if this place is home. I wish to make everyone here comfortable. So we will need to transfer farm animals and crops here, and we want the houses to feel and look just like your old houses, if that is your wish. I will make the buildings very basic in design, so they can be shaped into a replica of your old home. We will also need to create and pave roads and streets: that is something my kekkei genkai cannot do. As for where you will be in this village, I have already designated areas in the village for each of the clans, as well as residential areas for the minor clans and non-shinobi citizens. A commercial section will also need to be made. I have also thought of several important buildings for this community, such as a hospital, schools, and other such places. I can answer other questions you might have soon, and I am open to suggestions and complaints. I wish to make this new place comfortable for everyone here. So, let's not delay things, shall we? You came here for a village, and it's about time we have one!"

My eyes widened at his ending statement. Was he going to create the village right now? Can he even do that? In my battles with him in the clan wars, I never saw him use his wood release on any level that suggested that he can construct an entire village! Hashirama formed a single hand seal and then placed his hands on the platform he was standing on. There was immense rumbling and shaking as hundreds, if not thousands, of buildings of several shapes and sizes slowly emerged from the ground. Incredible! How much stamina did he have?

"I hereby name this new village Konohagakure, or 'Konoha' for short!" Hashirama shouted, his voice heard above the din of the surprised people talking about the village that had just been formed. As soon as he spoke those words, everyone began to cheer. I couldn't help but to cheer as well. Everything seemed like it would turn out perfectly. I don't think anybody had any objections to the village name. "The Village Hidden in the Leaves." Yes, the leaves of the surrounding trees hid it quite well.

And thus began the construction of the village. The year was almost over, so it was crucial that the homes would be properly furnished before the first snowfall. Everyone in the entire village was working to help everyone else by painting the buildings, reshaping them and adding on to them, making windows to place in the house, making furniture, and several other things. Craftsmen and artisans were making various trinkets and tools to sell, and farmers had moved their animals and tools to the new village and were setting up winter crops. Everyone was also helping the clans move their possessions to Konoha.

A week had passed since Konoha's creation. Hashirama and a few of the other clan heads had decided that it was an adequate time to begin elections for the leader position- the Hokage, as Hashirama called it. He was getting a bit too interested in naming things in my opinion, but that was just leftover feelings from when we were rivals in the war. We were still rivals now, but it became less of an antagonistic relationship in the era of peace.

They had decided that the populace would vote on who they would wish to be Hokage every three days, which would mean that it would theoretically take a month to decide the Hokage. The person with the lowest amount of votes would be eliminated from the election, and if there was a tie for the lowest number of votes, both would be eliminated. So this election could take less than a month, but it wasn't likely. We would have to start making speeches after a while, but since people were still busy working on Konoha, Hashirama instead just told the clan heads to write down their goals for the village should they be elected.

So I did. I received a message prompting me to do so, and I wrote a few sentences of my goals should I become Hokage. Great power; that is what this village should strive for. I knew that forming a great village was a revolutionary idea: other shinobi from different countries would likely emulate it, either following our or the Uzumaki's lead. We needed great power to deter anybody from attacking us. Security and peace is what we needed first and foremost. Once we have those two crucial things, then can we better our lives.

Later in that day I would receive a small pamphlet showing how the other candidates aspired to shape the village. The pamphlet had an attached voting slip that was simple in design (just use your finger to punch out a hole next to the candidate's name you're voting for), and that also had instructions on where to turn it in- a box in the center of the village, where Hashirama's platform still remained. I had a feeling that I was going to have to make speeches on that platform soon.

I had already promised to vote for Hizuro, so I punched out a hole next to his name. I was still curious to see what my opponents in this election were like, so I read their goals. Most were fairly basic, and I didn't think that they would win. Of particular note was Shiro Nara. His statement was literally "I'll make this village better somehow. I really can't be bothered with this right now... you should just vote for someone else." I think it was easy to tell who the first person eliminated would be.

On the opposite spectrum were the people I knew would be challenging opponents: Hashirama, Tobirama, and Hizuro. Hashirama's, as expected, as a reversal of mine: focusing on the prosperity of our village and its people over military force. Tobirama's was an interesting blend of my ideas and Hashirama's, with a few interesting twists thrown in, such as a need for a police force and schools that could teach civilians how to be shinobi. Hizuro's view was very different from the three of us: his primary goal was economic stability. He wanted to ally with the feudal lords for economic security, because without it our economy would be completely self-centered. I had never thought of the feudal lords as helpful elements... Hizuro's reasonings made sense. I found it odd that he never protested my dissent for the feudal lords back when we were discussing things with Hashirama...

I didn't exactly agree with his viewpoints, but I promised to vote for him. I'm sure I could persuade him to accept some of my viewpoints in the near future, and he could give me some of his views to consider.

And, as I had predicted, Shiro Nara was the first candidate eliminated. He seemed somewhat relieved by this news. I guess he wasn't the leader type.

As the days passed, more and more of the candidates were eliminated, and the village was becoming more refined. Starting from the third vote, we had to give speeches to anyone that attended them. I was no great writer; my speeches were concise and brief, which was a contrast to Hashirama's grandiose speeches. Tobirama and Hizuro both had a middle ground, with Tobirama's speeches being more formal and Hizuro's being more casual. I didn't care for the other clan leaders... I just knew that they wouldn't win.

And, sure enough, my predictions were correct. After the sixth round of votes, only Hashirama, Tobirama, Hizuro, and I remained in the running for Hokage. Every single time I voted for Hizuro, and he said that he voted for me every time, even though our goals were different.

The village had come a long way since its inception... it was truly awe-inspiring to see so many people helping each other in constructing the village. Nearly all of the Uchiha clan's possessions had been transferred to the village, and the carpenters of the Uchiha clan successfully shaped our new homes to an almost-perfect duplication of the original homes. The old Uchiha clan village was demolished so the lumber from the old homes could be used on new projects. It was a bit disheartening to leave behind the site of the old village, but it couldn't be helped. All that remained of the old village was the graveyard that held the bodies of past Uchiha.

Soon it was the night of the seventh election, on the day of the New Year. Tensions were high- any of the four candidates could be eliminated tonight, as we each had separate views that catered to a large populace of the village. We delivered our speeches as usual. Afterward, I approached Hizuro in the crowd of people.

"Nervous?" I asked with a slight smile.

"Oh man, you bet I am," he said with his characteristic goofy smile, "Did you vote for me?"

"Of course. I've voted for you all of this time, you've asked me this question every single election. I'm not going to betray you now," I said, still smiling.

"Good... because I voted for you again. Upholding promises is good." Something seemed a bit off with Hizuro... was he okay?

Before I could ask him that, Hashirama's voice called out, "Attention everyone!" The crowd became silent as we all turned to the platform in the middle of the village.

"There is a surprising result tonight: a tie between two of the candidates. The votes have been counted three times to make sure that there is no room for error. The two candidates with the least amount of votes are to be eliminated from the running, and they are...!"

What a jerk, pausing for dramatic effect. I could feel a sinking sensation in my chest, as it was possible that I could lose. I knew that Hashirama was safe; he showed no signs of worry at all. That means that either Hizuro or I would be eliminated...

"Tobirama Senju and Hizuro Hyuga!" he concluded. The crowd instantly began discussing this turn of events.

"Shit!" I heard Hizuro curse as he covered his face with his hand in frustration. I felt bad for him... he really wanted to be the Hokage. But now all that remained in my path was Hashirama... this would be a close election. But I couldn't celebrate my victory... I needed to console my friend.

"Hizuro... I'm sorry you lost," I said lowly, "but don't worry! I'll implement some of your ideas when I become Hokage, and that I promise."

"Of course you will..." Hizuro hissed, his voice laden with rage and sarcasm.

"No, I'm serious! Why would I be lying?" I asked, genuinely confused by my friend's actions.

"Just leave me be, Madara," Hizuro said as he walked away. What had I done? Did I say something wrong? I wouldn't get the chance to talk to him later; he seemingly disappeared from the village. I became a bit concerned for him, since not even his own family knew of his whereabouts. Ultimately, there was nothing I could do except wait for him to return, so I worked on my final speech.

On the day before the last election, it was announced that there would be two forms of votes for the last election: the popular vote, and the vote of the high-ranking clan members. Unless there was a vast difference between the votes of the two, then only the high-ranking clan member votes would matter. This was to quickly decide who would be Hokage so the government could be set up, for the popular vote would take far too long to count at this point. More and more people were getting involved in the elections by now, so of course this was not told to the general public. At least I wouldn't have to wait very long to know if I won or if I lost... there were only twenty-seven clan members with enough prestige to be included in the deciding votes, including Hashirama and I. Hizuro was also one of them, but I had still not seen him or heard of his whereabouts. His family did hear word from him yesterday, but they did not tell me anything else.

And now it was the night of the final election. A building had been prepared for the celebratory party for the Hokage. So they were too busy to count the popular vote, but they weren't busy enough to have a party... it didn't matter; I had nothing to do with this. I entered the small building where the last speeches would be given. Most of the high-ranking clan members were already seated and waiting. Hizuro was not among them. Even as Hashirama and I gave our speeches, Hizuro did not show. My speech was, again, full of brevity- it was only four minutes long. Hashirama's, on the other hand, was nearly half an hour long, giving me plenty of time to worry over if I would win or not. He sat down after the speech, and it was now time to vote.

I felt a small amount of guilt when I voted for myself, but I was determined to win at this point for Hizuro's sake, and for my own. The slips of paper were placed into a box, and once the votes of the twenty-six people who were present were put in the box, they started to be counted.

I had never felt so nervous before in my life. Not even on the battlefield have I ever felt this much dread. I could feel the sweat dripping down my forehead, along with my heart rapidly beating like a restrained beast trying to escape. I balled my hand into the tightest fist I could muster in an attempt to calm my nerves, but it was not successful. Still, I dared not relax my hand. I could feel my fingernails pierce into the skin and draw blood, but still my hand remained tightly closed.

"There is another tie," the counter of the votes said. What? How? How will this election be decided? By the popular vote? My questions were soon answered, "However, I have been told that Hizuro Hyuga is heading back here from a small trip. His vote will be the deciding factor in this election."

Normally, I would feel relieved, but I wasn't sure now. He seemed disappointed in me during the last election. Would he break our promise? Why would he do such a thing? All I could do now was wait for him to show up. I loosened up the hand that was in a fist because it hurt far too much. The palm was raw and bloody, so I pulled out a handkerchief from my robes and pressed it against the wound. I could feel my body shake with nervousness as my heart still continued to pound in my chest. I just wanted this election to be over. I lowered my head and closed my eyes. This suspension was tearing me apart.

A few minutes had passed, and I heard the door of the building open. My head shot up and turned to look at who arrived. It was Hizuro!

"Sorry I'm late. An emergency came up three days ago, but I made sure I would be back for this election," he said as he walked over to the empty seat and sat down.

"There is a tie between the two candidates," Tobirama said, "you are the deciding vote, Hizuro. Choose wisely."

"I thought about it on the way here," Hizuro said, "and the Hokage shall be..."

This is it. He is going to say my name, and all my worrying will have been for nothing.

"...Hashirama."

...What. Was my anxiety deceiving me? Did he just say what I think he said? My eyes were wide with disbelief as everyone in the building turned to Hashirama and began applauding. This was impossible! Why had he betrayed me? What did I do to him?

"Good job, Madara," I heard Hashirama say. I snapped out of it and saw him standing before me, his hand extended towards me, "you were an admirable opponent, and you fought well in this election and made excellent points."

I had no words for him. I simply stood up and nodded towards him as I left the building. Hizuro did nothing as I left.

I saw Aimi standing outside the building amongst a few other people. They were all eager to hear the results, but I could tell that she already knew them by my body language. She walked up to me with a worried look on her face.

"What? What happened?" she asked.

"I was betrayed," I replied. She didn't ask anything else, and she let me walk away. I only wish that I had made my devotion to Hizuro and I's friendship clear to him. I only wish I had spoke to my wife after this or said something different. There are so many things that I regret taking place, but this happened so long ago... fifty-six years ago. Hizuro's betrayal was the turning point in my life that would lead me down the path to darkness.

Hizuro would die on this night.

---

Some time had passed since I returned to my house. Night had fallen (the election took place during the evening), but I knew that the celebratory party for Hashirama would still be happening, and Hizuro was likely there. I had originally just planned to come here to retrieve a weapon, but I also had to plot out how I was going to commit the deed.

At this point, I was full of hatred. All I wanted was to punish Hizuro for his betrayal. The only problem was that I needed to know why he betrayed me. I had to kill him fast... if we ended up fighting, I don't know who would win. Hizuro is incredibly deadly, able to imbue the chakra point attacking effects of the Gentle Fist fighting style into ninjutsu. I had to kill him quickly and then get out before anyone could notice, so using my Mangekyo was out of the question.

So I retrieved the legendary Uchiha blade: Juuchi Yosamu. This would be the weapon that would end Hizuro's life. I hid it beneath my robes and went to the location of the party. The people there were too busy having fun or being drunk to notice that I was present. I looked fervently for Hizuro and soon found him sitting in a chair, sipping some sake.

"Hey Madara!" he called out with a hint of inebriation in his voice as he waved at me, "That sure was a close election!"

I glared at him and gritted my teeth tightly to prevent myself from killing him right there. That smug bastard... he was taunting me now!

"You promised you would vote for me," I said coldly as I continued to scowl at him, "So tell me why you betrayed me."

"I betrayed you? No, I think you have that wrong. You betrayed me," Hizuro said, his expression fading from that of a cheerful drunk to a cold and stern look.

"And just how is that possible?" I said in a quiet roar as I took a few steps close to him. I had to close the distance to him in case our conversation became too loud and started to draw attention.

"There was a draw in the second-to-last election. A draw. This was counting everyone who voted, not just a select few. What are the odds of that? All I needed was just one vote. Just one, and I would have still been in the running. So it's obvious that you voted for yourself over me."

"That's ridiculous!" I interjected, "Why would I-"

"Because," he interrupted, "I remember when we met with Hashirama before the village was made. You said you were opposed to allying with a feudal lord, and that was my goal as Hokage. You disagreed with me and voted for yourself, costing me the election. I know you won't ally with the feudal lords, but Hashirama might! So I voted for him."

"You idiot!" I said with anger as I activated my Sharingan, Hizuro was ready to activate his Byakugan in retaliation, but I instead projected some of my memories into his mind. All of the memories I had of my making my votes for him. I could see the realization spread across his face as he saw the truth, but his betrayal was too much for me to forgive. Oh, how I wanted to change this memory projection technique into a Tsukuyomi, but I held back my rage.

"You promised to vote for me, no matter what," I said in a harsh whisper as I drew closer, "you swore on your life to vote for me. Your unjust suspicion and foolishness led you to this fate, Hizuro. This is nobody's fault except your own."

"Madara... I-" he began, but his words died in his throat as I drew Juuchi Yosamu from its scabbard and thrust it into his heart, the blade piercing through his ribs. His eyes quivered with horror as he looked down at the sword entering his chest, and then he looked up at me. Blood was already running down his mouth and his nose. He mouthed one word: "Why?" as he slumped to the ground.

He was not dead yet, but there was no saving him. He would die of blood loss within the minute. I had delivered retribution! The rush of murder flowed through me, mixing with the madness that developed upon my defeat in the election. The Madara of old died at this moment, and the present Madara rose from his ashes. I had passed the point of no return and had sealed my fate.

I believe that, in my rush, my next move was to kill Hashirama and usurp the Hokage position. That was a foolish idea: all that would do would turn everyone against me. There was no chance for me to claim my rightful position as Hokage anymore without killing several people and transforming the village into a terrible dictatorship.

I think I began to further attack Hizuro's dying body. I can't remember for sure, since madness had taken me. What I do remember was my body suddenly becoming restrained and then forcefully impacting the ground, which knocked some sense into me.

Looking up, I saw Hashirama and Tobirama standing above me with disgusted countenances. Hashirama had likely bound my arms and legs with his wood release and drug me out of the village. I honestly thought I would die here for a moment, but then I noticed that my eyes were still free. I had fought with these two many times in the past: they knew of my Mangekyo Sharingan. They weren't intending to kill me.

"You... I never expected you would do something so vile, Madara," Hashirama said in a scornful tone, "You killed an innocent man, Madara! You killed your friend? And for what? Just because he didn't vote for you? This government is not a monarchy, Madara! It is an oligarchy! You could have still contributed your ideas to this village!"

"He promised to vote for me. He swore it on his life. We made an oath to each other," I said weakly. Tobirama silently glared at me and Hashirama shook his head in disgust.

"You are pathetic, Madara," Hashirama said, "You let your impulses conquer reason, and now a good man is dead because of that. A wife is now without a husband, and two children without a father. I am letting you realize this fact by exiling you from this village. Never again shall you see your clan or your wife. Nobody you know is left out there, Madara. They have all moved here. If you ever enter this village again, you will be executed on sight. Do you have anything you want to say to him, brother?"

Tobirama walked over to me and leaned down until his face was inches from mine.

"Listen to me, you son of a bitch," he growled lowly as he scowled at me, "you do not understand just how lucky you are in being exiled. If it were up to me, I would kill you right now or have you be stoned to death. I will personally make sure that you will die if you get anywhere near this village."

He returned to Hashirama's side, and Hashirama removed the wood binding my arms and legs.

"Leave," he commanded, "and don't think of fighting back. We are fully prepared to kill you if you retaliate, Madara."

I glared at them for a few seconds. I wanted desperately to attack them with my Mangekyo, but I knew it was a losing battle. Even if I killed them, there was no doubt that there were several more people ready to attack. There was no way to win.

"Hashirama... you hold a position that is rightfully mine," I said in a threatening hiss, "Your days are numbered. I will return and take what belongs to me. You will be one of the first to fall to the fires of my revenge."

"Your words are as empty as your soul, Madara," Hashirama said, "Begone!"

I turned and walked away from Konoha. I walked away from my life. Everything I owned and everyone I knew... they resided within that village now. My only regret was leaving behind my dear Aimi. The thought of her pain, sorrow, and anger towards me was the only thing that made me regret killing Hizuro.

All that filled my heart now was a burning hatred aimed towards consuming Konoha in its flames.

---

A few days had passed since my banishment from the village. The moments immediately after my exile were very rough: I could hardly contain my rage, but I needed to keep my cool and find a place to sleep for the night. The solution to that problem quickly presented itself to me in my thoughts. While the old Uchiha clan settlement may seem to be just a cemetery now, there is a secret underground building that few of the clan knew about. That place would be my new home during this time.

The underground chamber had several books and scrolls entailing the clan's techniques over the ages, and it was equipped with basic household elements. I needed to get new clothes and a steady supply of food, but I would have to go out in public for that. No doubt news of my crime had spread throughout the country, so I had to disguise myself. I doubt most of the towns around here knew what I looked like, so a simple mask covering my mouth would suffice for now, and I would just hide my long hair in my clothing.

So I spent my days wracking my brain for ways to kill Hashirama and crush his beloved village. Surviving was simple: all I needed to do was use my Sharingan on people, and they would kindly "lend" me their possessions. If some were sufficient in the shinobi arts to resist basic genjutsu, then I would simply kill them. I adjusted well to the lifestyle of a hermit, but trying to find a way destroy Konoha was maddening.

I read through all of the Uchiha scrolls, hoping for some powerful technique that would assist me. I learned of my grandfather, Adra, and his great accomplishments. He had been a Hyuga, but he had somehow transformed his doujutsu and created the curse of the Uchiha blood: that Uchiha siblings that inherit the Sharingan are capable of obtaining the Mangekyo Sharingan and the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan. I learned things that not even I knew the Sharingan was capable of. Jutsus utilizing the mysterious Yin and Yin-Yang elements, along with the terrifying powers of the Mangekyo Sharingan. The powerful flames of Amaterasu, the ultimate genjutsu Tsukuyomi that has powers based on the chakra of the user, and a jutsu unique to each Mangekyo user. I had always wondered why my brother's technique was different from my own. I also learned of the forbidden skill Izanagi that apparently required Senju blood... why was that?

I also found out my weapon for destroying Konoha: the terrifying Nine-Tailed Fox. This beast was one of nine that roamed the continent, wreaking havoc wherever they went. The Kyuubi has been dormant for quite some time, and some think the fox is simply a legend. I know that is not true- I myself have laid eyes on the fox once, but I do not think it will be in the same location now. I learned in the Uchiha scrolls that my Mangekyo Sharingan can control the Kyuubi, but the scrolls made no mention of the other tailed beasts, which I found particularly odd. Was the fox involved in my grandfather's conversion from a Hyuga to the first Uchiha?

Regardless, I now knew that I needed to obtain the Kyuubi, but I would need more than that. Hashirama is capable of controlling bijuu; the control of the fox might be pulled from me. Fighting Hashirama and Tobirama together will be a challenge for me, even if I had the fox on my side. I would still have an entire village against me, and I heavily doubt I could convince the Uchiha to join forces with me. I don't think even Aimi would listen to me. It seemed as if nobody alive would ally with me...

Wait... nobody alive! That was it!

In the clan wars, I was known as "Madara the Necromancer" because of a unique jutsu I had developed. It enabled me to temporarily resurrect corpses to extract any information that the person might have found out before they died. What if I transformed that technique into an offensive one? I had plenty of Uchiha corpses to experiment on, but I needed an army against Konoha...

What if those killed by these corpses would rise up as one of their own? There were so many brilliant ideas surrounding this jutsu, and I went hard to work developing them, occasionally traveling to various taverns and inns around the country for any rumors about the Kyuubi's whereabouts.

It took me a good, long three years, but both of my goals were accomplished. I had successfully created my new jutsu, and I had located the area where the Kyuubi dwelled.

I called my jutsu "Communion of Tortured Souls." It is not a perfect technique, but it is sufficient. The jutsu creates a toxic gas that enters the body and takes control of their chakra system, giving the body the jump-start to reactivate their organs and systems partially. I call the resurrected dead "zombies." These zombies are not intelligent, and their only form of communication seems to be growls, moans, and the like; but I can control them and give them simple commands. They are slow and lumbering creatures and are incapable of wielding any weaponry or using any jutsu, so I had to work around these limitations. I made it so that they crave the flesh of the living, for their strongest features are their hands and teeth. I made their cursed chakra able to be spread through the fluids of the zombie, most often through bite and saliva. The cursed chakra will quickly spread throughout the infected's system before taking it over and making them one of the walking dead. For some odd reason, even though their body is fresh, they are just like any other zombie. Another odd thing is that the eyes of all zombies are a pure white color. These features were unable to be removed, but I grew to like them despite the setbacks they gave me (those setbacks being a lack of versatility and an easier way to identify a zombie, respectively).

Another great thing about this jutsu is the fact that the zombies are invincible. The cursed chakra that flows throughout them slows the process of decay, and it controls just the necessary amount of systems. They cannot feel pain, or at least show no reaction to it. They cannot die from any bodily injuries. Even decapitation cannot truly kill them! The only way that they can die is through the destruction of the brain, which is what the cursed chakra uses to control the body and maintain the state of pseudo-life. I wish I could make them completely invincible, but two weaknesses that are known only to me is still a great advantage. But the greatest part of this jutsu is that a zombie will not hesitate to attack anyone they have recognized in life. I confirmed this by using my jutsu on a small village and zombifying the entire populace. They also do not require any sustenance that the living do. Food, drink, rest: all unneeded to a zombie. I have created a soldier that the world has never seen before! A soldier that cannot feel pain! A soldier that does not have any downtime! A solider that does not kill; only recruits!

By now, I had the bodies of the dead Uchiha left over from my experiments and the populace of the aforementioned village in my undead army. There was enough room in the underground chamber to cram them in so that they can remain hidden as I sought out the Kyuubi.

It took a few days, but I found the cave that was rumored to be where the Kyuubi was slumbering. The tailed beasts were mysterious creatures... nobody knew exactly how they worked or why they went into hibernations that lasted decades. They are said to be made of chakra, but they don't seem to be completely composed of it...

I used a simple fire jutsu to create a source of light that hovered above my hand as I delved into the cave. After exploring for a while, I heard the sounds of a sleeping beast. I followed them, and was soon in a massive room in the cave that housed the Kyuubi. The fox was curled up in a deep sleep.

The fox was enormous, towering several stories high. It was intimidating to face this beast, but I had the Sharingan on my side. I cleared my throat. The Kyuubi stopped snoring, but it wasn't entirely awake.

"O great beast!" I bellowed, my voice echoing through the cave, "I demand your cooperation!"

The fox opened up its blood-red eyes and glared at me while it bared its fangs.

"WHO DARES ENTER MY LAIR?" the fox said, its voice booming and causing the cave to shake and rattle.

"Did you not hear me? I demand your assistance!"

"WHO ARE YOU TO THINK THAT YOU CAN DEMAND ME TO DO ANYTHING FOR YOU?" the fox asked as it started to stand up. I had to act quickly before the beast attacked me.

"I AM MADARA UCHIHA! BOW TO MY WILL, FOX!" I shouted as I activated my Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan and stared into the eyes of the Kyuubi. Its eyes visibly changed shape, showing that the skill was a success. I then spent a bit of time forming a summoning pact with the Kyuubi, so I could catch Konoha by surprise.

I soon left the cave, leaving the Kyuubi spellbound inside. I didn't fear it breaking free of the powerful genjutsu. Even if it did, I could just summon it and reapply the genjutsu. All that was needed now was a bit more manpower...

I returned to the site of the old Uchiha clan settlement and removed my small undead army from the underground chamber. I suited up in old Uchiha battle armor. I began moving towards Konoha, my army following me. I would make purposeful diversions to convert the populace of any villages that were on the way to Konoha. It gave me a higher chance of being discovered, but I needed more troops for my army. The war against the Leaf would soon begin...

---

I had now amassed an army of zombies numbering in the hundreds. I marched towards Konoha, staying in the middle of the undead ranks. It was hard moving forward when they could hardly walk in a straight line, let alone move themselves, but I couldn't risk being in the front or the back of the army. I would be too recognizable and would risk myself getting killed by a ranged attack. And if I died, I wasn't sure if my zombies would remain animated or not.

The gates of Konoha were soon in view. They were closed... but luckily I had some firepower of my own. I rushed towards the gates while forming the hand seals needed for summoning. I slammed my hands on the ground and was suddenly lifted several stories up in the air as the Kyuubi appeared underneath me. With a flick of one of its nine tails, the gates were destroyed. I telepathically commanded my undead army to swarm the village, and I reverse summoned the Kyuubi. I could not risk it being defeated yet. I landed on a rooftop and began to body flicker towards the building under the mountain: the Administration Building, which was also the Hokage's residence.

As I approached the entrance, I noticed that there were no guards about. They were likely confronting my zombie forces, leaving this building mostly unguarded. A smirk appeared on my face as I quietly entered the building. As soon as I stepped in, a saw a man in a gray flak jacket wearing a mask running towards me. I quickly pulled out a small tanto from my robes and moved behind the man, pressing the blade up against his neck.

"Where is Hashirama?" I whispered.

"T-Third floor... the room with the double doo-" the man began, but I slit his throat before he could finish. I had no time to lose. I quickly ran up the long flights of stairs that led to the third floor, killing any of the masked men that came my way. I don't think they knew that I was in the village- they were likely moving out to face my army.

I was soon in front of the double doors... Hashirama's office, most likely. I quietly turned the doorknob and cracked open the door. I could see three of the masked men speaking with Hashirama. The very sight of him made me want to burst in and kill him, but I kept my anger under control as I listened in.

"We're serious! They are inhuman, and they seem to be dead by all means!" one of the masked men exclaimed.

"Nothing we can do is stopping them! They just keep coming!" another cried.

"And... they eat the living! Tear right into them! And those killed by them rise back up, just like them!" the last said. Hearing the terror in their voices was delightful.

"Don't worry! I will not let the village fall to these abominations! Let's go!" Hashirama stated with determination as he rose from his chair. I quickly formed some hand seals and kicked open the door before firing three large fireballs that engulfed the masked men. They cried out in pain for a few seconds before the flames killed them. Our eyes then met.

"Madara! I just knew you were behind this!" Hashirama indignantly exclaimed, "So killing Hizuro wasn't enough?"

"Hah! Were you deaf when I was exiled three years ago? I promised to destroy this village, and I never break my promises!" I shouted with a mad grin on my face.

Hashirama glared at me as we stood there in silence momentarily. We were both plotting our next moves.

"Fine, how about this: we will duel to the death with no interruptions. That should satiate your childish lust for revenge. There is only one condition: I pick the location of the battle," Hashirama stated.

That meant that I wouldn't get to use the Kyuubi more on the buildings of the village, but I was confident that my army would overwhelm the people of the village. And there would be no interruptions from anyone else, practically securing my victory! I jumped at his offer. "Very well... I accept."

Hashirama opened a window in his office and, without saying anything, leaped out of it. I quickly pursued him and saw him on the ground below before he body flickered away. I chased him for what seemed to be hours, but not once did I think of turning back. I was determined to kill Hashirama, and I would follow him to the ends of the earth if that is where he wished for the duel to occur.

After quite some time, he stopped. We were on a large rocky plateau.

"About time you stopped, Hashirama! Why exactly did you lead us here?" I asked.

"I knew that if we fought in Konoha, it would be destroyed in the following clash. To protect not only the village, but the other people in the Land of Fire, I lead us all the way to the border of the Land of Fire and the Land of Rice Fields, where nobody in several miles live," he said.

"Aren't you melodramatic?" I sneered at him.

"You mock me, yet you have no idea of how pathetic you are! You kill Hizuro because he voted for me over you! Your clan has abandoned you ever since, Madara! They side with us now! Even your wife has abandoned you!"

"DON'T MENTION HER, YOU SCUM!" I cried out as I summoned my gunbai fan and the Uchiha sword Juuchi Yosamu. I placed the sword in an empty scabbard at my side as I slipped the kusarigama attached to the fan's handle up the sleeve of my robe.

"I'm surprised you care about her when you've endangered her and your entire clan with those abominations you've created!"

"SHUT UP!" I screamed as I swung my fan at Hashirama, causing a powerful blast of wind to rocket towards him. Hashirama caused a large wall of wood to rise up from the ground. The gust crashed into it, causing the wall to break at the bottom. It fell towards Hashirama, but I saw him jump out of the way as it crashed against the ground. I activated my Sharingan and tracked his movements. He unsheathed a katana at his side and charged towards me. So he wanted to engage in taijutsu?

I placed my fan in my other hand as I tugged on the chain attached to the fan's handle. The sickle attached to the chain fell from my sleeve, and I began to swing the chain about. Before Hashirama could dodge, I threw the sickle at him. He pivoted his feet so his shoulder plates blocked the sickle, and then he used his free hand to grab the chain and pull me near. I dropped my fan and swiftly unsheathed Juuchi Yosamu, and our blades clashed together, sending a shower of sparks falling to the ground. How could this be? My sword should be able to cut anything! I didn't show my surprise to Hashirama as I spoke.

"I'm impressed that your sword wasn't cleaved in two by my legendary sword," I said as I stared at Hashirama's blade. Could it be...?

"This sword is the sister sword to the Uchiha's Juuchi Yosamu. It is the Yawarakai-Te. Both swords were crafted by the legendary swordsmith Muramasa Masamune. It seems it is fate that both blades would end up doing battle with each other," he explained, confirming my suspicions. He then moved his blade back before thrusting it at an unarmored area of my torso. I moved my arms to block Hashirama's second attack. I slid my sword off of his blade and nicked his leg, drawing a small amount of blood. He then jumped back and sheathed his sword.

"This battle isn't going to be decided by these swords, Madara," he said. I nodded and sheathed Juuchi Yosamu. I picked up my gunbai fan and strapped it to my back. My weapons still had their uses in this battle, especially my sword. While the two blades that Hashirama and I possessed may have been crafted by the same swordsman, the one he wielded was the older one: it was less refined, and there was no doubt that it lacked the power that Juuchi Yosamu held within...

Hashirama began forming hand seals, and I did the same. He used an earth jutsu that caused several large stalagmites to burst from the ground. From his point of view, it would seem as if I was swallowed by the attack, but I noted what hand seals he was using with my Sharingan, so I knew he would use an earth jutsu. My lightning dragon jutsu easily crashed through the rocks and rushed towards Hashirama, who quickly raised yet another wall of wood to block the attack. I leaped from the large hole in one of the stalagmites in front of me to see that Hashirama had turned the wooden wall into several large wooden spikes that were now rushing towards me. I took my gunbai fan and swung it, sending a large gust of wind that stopped the momentum of the spikes.

I took this chance to go on the offensive. I used an earth jutsu that caused a powerful shockwave to spread out and cause several cracks in the ground. I quickly followed it up with a fire jutsu that surged throughout the cracks, heating the ground and sending pillars of flame shooting up from the cracks in the earth. The flames then rushed towards Hashirama, who created a jet of water that pushed him up off of the ground and then exploded, sending water raining down over the battlefield to quell the flames and cool the ground. He landed on the ground and used another water jutsu that dragged forth the water underground and it coalesced into a large ball that hovered above him. He then formed the many hand seals for the water dragon jutsu at lightning speeds, and I used an earth jutsu to form a wall of rock before the dragon reached me. I tried holding up the wall, but the force of the water jutsu was causing it to crack. I had no choice now...

I formed the seals needed for a summoning jutsu and brought forth the Kyuubi. It let out a menacing roar as the water dragon bullet crashed harmlessly against the fox's body. I stood atop the beast's back as its tails thrashed about in the air. If only I could see Hashirama's reaction from up here!

"Attack, Fox!" I commanded to the Kyuubi, and it growled as it began swinging its tails at Hashirama. They collided with the ground, causing large craters to form upon their impact. With my Sharingan I could track Hashirama's swift movements as he avoided every tail swipe made by the Kyuubi... but how long could he keep this up?

"Burn him until there is nothing left," I said to the Kyuubi. The fox stopped its assault and charged up a massive ball of chakra hotter than the flames of most fire jutsu. Hashirama took this moment to form several hand seals and cause several massive trees and roots to sprout from the ground, ripping the land apart as they emerged from the earth. Foliage now surrounded us, and there were several branches and roots for Hashirama to stand upon, many of them at a height matching the Kyuubi's size. His efforts to reach me were ultimately futile, as the Kyuubi had finished charging up its devastating attack. It ingested the ball of chakra it had formed and then spat it out as a powerful beam of energy. The beam engulfed Hashirama and much of the giant tree that he was currently standing on. I grinned, seeing no way that he could have survived that attack. Victory was mine!

The smoke from the blast faded, and I was dumbfounded to see that he had an incredibly thick tree to block the attack! The tree then shattered into thousands upon thousands of wooden spikes that sped towards me. The Kyuubi moved its tails to shield me as the spikes harmlessly batted against the fox's fur, most of them burning up before they even contacted the Kyuubi due to its intense chakra. The Kyuubi lowered its tails, and I could now see Hashirama. He was standing on a large branch with a big scroll in his hands. He unfurled the scroll, summoning ten swords by his side. What was he planning to do with those?

I mentally ordered the Kyuubi to charge up another chakra sphere, all while I kept a close watch on what Hashirama was doing. He made some hand seals, and the swords suddenly vanished in puffs of smoke. What was he planning?

I cursed when I heard the Kyuubi make a pained growl. It continued to charge the ball, and I mentally demanded it to work faster. I turned around to see that all nine of the fox's tails were pinned to the ground by the swords. But where was the tenth?

"Your weapon is gone, Madara," I heard Hashirama shout at me. I whirled around in enraged surprise to see him standing on the Kyuubi's head. The chakra ball had vanished, and he was holding the tenth sword, which was imbedded inside of the fox's skull. He then made several more hand seals.

"While I didn't expect you to violate the dead in your eventual attack upon Konoha, I did expect you to use a tailed beast," Hashirama said. He finished the jutsu, and the crystal necklace he wore began to glow. He jumped off of the fox, and I did the same as I felt it began to vibrate. I watched in disbelief as the fox began to bubble and split apart into ten different blobs of chakra that got sucked into each of the swords, which then vanished once more in puffs of smoke. How did he manage to seal the fox all by himself?

I turned towards Hashirama and glared at him as I thought of my next move. His face was stern, but I could feel the underlying smugness he seemed to be projecting. The battlefield was ruptured by the Kyuubi and the forest Hashirama created. The only flat surfaces seemed to be Hashirama's trees and roots, along with the large river of underground water that had been surfaced during the devastation of our battle. It would be unwise to fight on Hashirama's trees, as he could manipulate their shape... but the same could be said for the river, too. I had to take my chances with the river. I body flickered over the running body of water and collected chakra under my feet to stand on the liquid.

"You may have stopped the fox, but I still have the upper hand!" I taunted, "I have many jutsu that you are unaware of, and my dead are most likely ravaging your precious village!"

Hashirama glowered at me. That got his blood boiling again. He followed me, turning one of his arms into a large bludgeon made of wood and covered in several spikes. He swung his arm at me, and I sidestepped it and unsheathed Juuchi Yosamu. I slashed the sword at his arm, hoping to sever it, but the wood changed shape so that I cut off only a section of the arm, which turned into chakra upon hitting the ground. His arm turned back to normal, and he quickly casted a jutsu that made the water around me rise up before rushing towards me at great speeds. I smirked and formed a one-handed seal as the water approached me.

Hashirama would think his attack connected until he noticed the large blade-shaped rock splitting the water so that it harmlessly fell besides me. I swung Juuchi Yosamu, flicking the water off of its large rock-encased blade.

"Surprised? Juuchi Yosamu is more than a fine sword: it is able to channel elemental chakras through it more efficiently than any other weapon!" I boasted as I swung the sword vertically at Hashirama. He caused a tree trunk to sprout from the ground to block my attack, but it was futile. While he successfully stopped the momentum of the earthen blade, I simply made the rocky cover shatter and used another one-handed seal to make the blade burst into flame. The fire easy burned through the wood and I began madly swinging the sword, causing fire to fly everywhere.

A few of the flames singed Hashirama, and I could tell by his expression that he was through playing around. He was ready to use nothing but his strongest attacks. I removed the fire sheathe around and the blade and applied lightning chakra to it, determined to cut Hashirama and completely fry him by channeling massive amounts of electrical chakra through him. I was surprised when he did not move and simply began forming large amounts of hand seals. I smirked and ran towards him, but my smirk faded as I fell down a few feet and hit the ground. The ground? But we were on water!

I looked up to see that Hashirama had sucked up the entire river that we were fighting on! He had used a similar jutsu earlier in the fight, but I had no idea he could use it on such a scale! He had a single arm raised above him, the massive sphere of water floating inches above it. He glared at me as he made a throwing motion with his arm, causing the massive sphere to rocket towards me. If I was hit by that much force... I had to dodge or block this attack somehow! But how? I wouldn't be able to move fast enough to get out of the massive radius of the attack...

The solution suddenly entered my head. I activated my Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan and focused chakra through my right eye.

"AMATERASU!" I yelled for dramatic effect as a substantial amount of black fire shot from my eye and quickly grew in size to match that of the giant orb of water. The two techniques clashed, but the fires of Amaterasu caused the water to start to evaporate. The water suddenly fell to the ground, essentially returning most of the river to its proper place. By that time, I had jumped up on a relatively smooth rock, so I wasn't drowned by the water as it rushed by where I once was. Hashirama must have canceled the jutsu when he saw that there was no way the water would beat the fires of Amaterasu, and I did the same.

"So you've finally begun to use your Mangekyo Sharingan," Hashirama said, "Then I must end this battle now!"

He slammed his hands to the ground. I felt a gigantic surge of chakra beneath me, and I knew that I had to move now! I focused my chakra in my legs to enhance my jumping prowess. I leaped into the air and looked down to see most of the battlefield erupt into thousands of sharp wooden trees. He must have noticed that I had jumped, for they began to grow at an alarming rate. Once they were near me, they began sprouting several spiky branches. I used my great speed to jump from branch to branch, avoiding every sharp tip that attempted to skewer me. I formed a single hand seal amidst my dodging, inhaled, and spat out a large amount of fire. I would have used Amaterasu again, but its flames were unique and burned slowly. Fire made from chakra would act much faster. As I fell to the ground, I saw the massive tower of spiky wood get encroached within fire. I pooled chakra beneath me feet to cushion my landing.

"It's over, Hashirama!" I mocked the visible exhausted Hokage, "You've used up too much chakra trying to destroy me, while I still have about half of mine left!"

"That may be..." he responded as he formed a combination of hand seals that I had never seen before, "...but victory is still mine! Bringer of Darkness!"

Hashirama announced the name of a jutsu. That was not a good sign. My eyes widened in shock as darkness encroached the battlefield. I tried using my Sharingan to see through the chakra, but it didn't work! All I saw was a huge field of chakra that was the darkness! I felt my body become restrained as wood formed beneath me and wrapped around my body, leaving only my neck and head fully exposed. I didn't even detect the chakra of the wood approaching me!

"It's pointless to struggle, Madara," Hashirama said, his voice echoing through the black, preventing me from pinpointing his location. He continued, "I developed this genjutsu specifically to counter the Sharingan. I knew that you would return to destroy the village one day, so I had to make this jutsu as a trump card. You have lost, Madara. You cannot reverse this genjutsu, and you cannot break free of my restraints. All I want you to do is listen to me before I kill you."

Damn it all! Was this really the end? I refused to die to this man! I was not going to die here! He was giving me time to think of how to escape from this... I can still win if I can figure out a way to break free...

"I want you to realize the gravity of your choices before you die Madara, because I still don't think you do. It was a surge of anger, a spur-of-the-moment thought, that caused Hizuro to die. I do not know what caused him to vote for me, but the point is that I won. But the rage caused by Hizuro's betrayal gave you the indication that the Hokage spot is rightfully yours. It isn't. I won the election fairly. The Hokage position is mine, Madara, and there isn't a damn thing you can do about it. Killing me will result in nothing! Open your eyes and see how foolish and childish you are being!" he said.

"Do you even realize how many people trusted you?" He continued, "How many people looked up to you? Preferred you over me? Nearly half of the voters! Your clan, too! You have been their leader for several years, and now you have utterly disgraced your name among your own clan! Through a foolish quest for unnecessary revenge, you have betrayed far more people than Hizuro ever did. You shattered their perceptions of a powerful military leader, replacing them with a madman. Your own wife was torn apart by your exile, Madara! Did you even stop to think of her when you planned to kill Hizuro? And your brother? What would he think of this if he were still alive? Did you think of anybody? No. No you did not. All you thought about was yourself. You didn't even think of the consequences! You didn't even care about how your clan would be viewed by the populace. You just left them to clean up the mess that your actions left on the Uchiha name."

"That is what makes us different, Madara. I have noticed it many times in the past, but I never thought that it would manifest in this way. All you care about is yourself and your interests. Other people are just means to your ends. Do not try and deny it; why else would you drag out the clan war? You claimed it would better the Uchiha's standing amongst the clans, but what you really meant is that it would increase your power. Hizuro himself was just a tool for you to gain Hokage. Why else would you hold the promise he made to vote for you to a ridiculously high standard such as life and death? Even Izuna-"

As soon as I heard my brother's name, my building anger exploded, "SHUT UP! DON'T YOU SPEAK OF MY BROTHER!" I screamed.

"Even Izuna was a tool to you, Madara!" he continued, ignoring me, "Why else do you have that special variant of the Mangekyo Sharingan? Don't think I didn't notice the designs of both your and Izuna's Sharingan combined! I don't know what you did to your brother, but it would certainly explain the sudden loss of his eyes!"

"HE SACRIFICED HIS EYES SO THAT I COULD SEE AGAIN! IT WAS HIS KIND HEART THAT CAUSED HIM TO GIVE UP HIS EYES! I HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH IT!" I shrieked.

"Are you sure? Or is that what you've just convinced yourself? The point I am making here, Madara, is that we have two different ideologies. In retrospect, I am glad that you never obtained the Hokage position. You would have just led the village to ruin. All your care about is yourself, but I care about all of the people of Konoha! All of the people I have sworn to protect! I am fighting for all of them, so that they can continue to live out their lives!"

"It's monsters like you, Madara, that prevent mankind from living together in harmony. People like you do not want peace. Through whatever motives, they want power, and power can only quickly be gained by putting others down. You tried hiding the beast that dwelled within you, but it was pulling the strings you had tied to others. Your existence is focused on causing pain, misery, and death to others, so long as you benefit from the results. Loathsome insects like you are the parasites of humanity that prevent us from achieving true peace."

He was done speaking. I thought he was spewing nonsense at first, but everything he said made sense. Now... now I see why he was made Hokage. I loathed this man and respected him as well, but he was arrogant. His righteous feelings made him arrogant, and I would rip that high and mighty feeling right out of him and crush it in front of his face. I knew how to escape. I struggled with the wood that bound my body. If I could just get my hands close together...

"I already told you not to struggle, although perhaps now you are desperate to live. It's too late for that, Madara. You signed your death warrant as soon as you killed Hizuro. I only exiled you so you could reflect on your mistakes, but I realize that I was being far too generous. Tobirama was right; I should have executed you on the spot. Well, I am going to mend that mistake right now."

I felt the cold steel of Hashirama's blade touch my neck. I was not worried; the wood binding me was not as strong as usual... his chakra was weakened from our battle, and I had managed to moved my hands around enough to move Juuchi Yosamu slightly out of its sheathe. It was able to cut through some of the wood as I pressed it against the blade. When my arms were free, I made a small cut on my hand, mixing my blood with Hashirama's blood that I had drawn from him early in the battle.

"Do you have any last words?" Hashirama asked me, "Especially for Aimi?"

"Do you know of the forbidden technique Izanagi?" I asked as I finished the hand seals needed for the jutsu. A wide grin spread across my face as I imagined the fear plastered on his face as I spoke. Izanagi was a skill used by the Sage of the Six Paths, who is thought to be a legendary figure. He may have been, but the Uchiha scrolls contained this jutsu! All it needed was a mixture of Uchiha and Senju DNA.

Hashirama moved his sword to decapitate me, but it was too late; Izanagi had been activated. I phased through the attack, as well as through the wooden restraint. As soon as I escaped, I canceled the technique. I could not risk the side effects of the powerful jutsu, but all I needed was to break free. I had won the battle.

While I still could not see or properly hear, I knew that Hashirama was near me. And since I could not reverse or dispel this genjutsu, I would have to disrupt Hashirama's chakra. And what better way of doing that than with the ultimate genjutsu? I poured chakra into my left Mangekyo.

I felt the Tsukuyomi connect, and the darkness quickly faded. I had trapped Hashirama in the strongest genjutsu!

"It seems that I am victorious in the end, Hashirama," I said sardonically, "And I shall punish you for making such nasty assumptions and implications about my brother."

And punish him I did. I made Hashirama go through various grueling beatings and tortures while he was trapped within Tsukuyomi's realm. Being cut by many blades, being burned alive, being vivisected... I unleashed all of my rage into the man until I was satisfied. I canceled the genjutsu, and Hashirama fell to the ground, in shock at the sheer amount of torture he had gone through: a day's worth of nonstop torture that had passed by in mere seconds in the actual world.

But reflecting upon what he had said made me angry again. Mental pain wasn't enough for me. I had to actually deliver the blows here. I kicked Hashirama sharply in the gut, causing him to snap out of his state of shock.

"Now I am going to use Izanagi's counterpart: my unique Mangekyo technique. I call it Izanagi's counterpart because while Izanagi affects only the user, this technique affects everyone except the user. I shall now show you the power of Izanami!"

I poured chakra into both of my eyes. I could feel some strain on my body as I used Izanami, but I was determined to make Hashirama suffer before he died. Izanami was an incredibly powerful jutsu, and I had not mastered it, let alone approached anywhere near being efficient with it. All I knew how to do was slow everyone else except me to a crawl, and that is what I did.

I cracked my knuckles as I walked towards the hapless Hashirama, his face frozen with an expression of fear. I slammed my fist into his face, relishing at experiencing the blow in slow motion. I continued beating up on him for quite some time until that got boring. I decided to end it by unsheathed Juuchi Yosamu. I made quite a few cuts throughout his body, and then I rose the blade up. I deactivated Izanami and swung the blade down on Hashirama's left hand, cleaving it off of his body. He howled in pain, from both the sudden hand loss, and from the sensation of several beatings and cuts still flowing through his body.

"YOU'RE ALL TALK, HASHIRAMA!" I exclaimed with mad glee at my battered and bruised enemy, "WHAT GOOD WILL YOUR WORDS DO NOW?" I prepared to use Amaterasu on him to watch him scream in pain as the flames slowly burned him to death. Before I could launch the black flames from my eye, I was knocked to the ground by a blast of water. I looked towards the direction of the jutsu and I felt my confidence plummet.

Tobirama stood before me, his face contorted with rage. Behind him were some of the masked men in gray. Tobirama beckoned for a few of them to tend to Hashirama, and for the rest to stay back.

"What the fuck did you do to him, Madara?" Tobirama spat at me, his question sounding more like a statement of disbelief that I defeated Hashirama rather than a genuine question.

"I... almost killed him. I was about to deliver the final blow until YOU FUCKING SHOWED UP!" I howled in fury as my eyes bulged with ferocity.

"It's over, Madara," Tobirama said with a quiet growl, "We figured out how to stop your undead army."

WHAT? How was that possible? My creations were foolproof! How did they figure out...? NO! THIS WASN'T SUPPOSED TO HAPPEN! KONOHA WAS SUPPOSED TO FALL!

"DIE DIE FUCKING DIE!" I shouted in lunacy as I launched Amaterasu from my right eye. It hit nobody; they all dodged it. Tobirama pulled out two scrolls and summoned several weapons, launching them at me. My desperate Amaterasu had reduced my chakra to critical levels... I couldn't dodge. Wait... there was a way out of this! I would live after all! I quickly activated Izanagi once more. To the Konoha shinobi, the weapons would appear to pierce into me. I faded away from that position and reappeared out of sight from any of the Konoha ninja. I deactivated Izanagi, but before the illusionary body of me faded, I applied a normal genjutsu to maintain it. By this point, I was virtually empty on chakra, so I limped away from the battlefield.

Damn it all! I was so fucking close to killing Hashirama! To destroying Konoha! So fucking close! Damn it all! DAMN IT ALL!

I closed my eyes and took many deep breaths. I had to look at the bright side of things: I was still alive. I could have very well died in the battle. And as long as I lived, I could still enact my revenge. My vengeance had grown since this battle. I was no longer concerned with something petty like killing one man and taking a position that was rightfully mine. Even my goal to destroy Konoha was just to make Hashirama suffer. I despise Hashirama so much that my hatred transcends the general meaning of the term. I wanted to destroy the village that he convinced everyone to join. I want to remove the Senju from the world, to make them extinct. I want to ruin the Hyuga by cutting them down. The Uchiha were all traitors and had to be punished. My goal was now to annihilate Konoha and everyone within. None shall be spared from my wrath... nobody except Aimi.

I sighed as I thought of my wife. I didn't know how she felt about my exile or what she was doing right now. She was the only remaining person that prevented me from going all out. I had commanded my zombies not to harm her... I hope she still feels for me, because I feel for her. I need to speak with her some time. I have to set things straight. Our bond cannot end because of my exile...

I shook the unsettling thoughts from my head as I slowly limped back to my home, the small underground chamber. I needed to rest, and I needed new ideas to destroy that damn village.

---

I would learn in the following year that there were several advantages and drawbacks to the unexpected outcome of the battle Hashirama and I had. For one: the entire country was convinced that I had died. This was a blessing and a curse. It was a curse because I had no idea how Aimi was dealing with things, but she was most likely devastated by this "news." It was a blessing because of what I was doing.

I had exhausted all of my creative energy when creating the plan to use the zombies and the Kyuubi to destroy Konoha. Nothing new was entering my mind, so I decided to wander the country in search of rumors. Rumors are what led me to the Kyuubi's location, after all. I'm sure some rumors would give me ideas or lead me to something that I could work with. Normally, it would be hard to wander if you were a wanted criminal, but I was assumed dead. All I had to do was cut my hair and conceal my face (a mask covering a mouth won't cut it anymore), which is exactly what I did. My hair was now at a length just past my shoulders, and I wore a mask that completely covered my face. It was a featureless slate blue mask with a single eyehole over my right eye. I decided on just having a single eyehole to convince people my face was disfigured without showing any evidence, and it worked.

During my wandering in this year, I heard several rumors, but only a few interested me, and they were simply news pertaining to Konoha and other ninja affairs. It seems that other countries were constructing villages, following Hashirama's ideas. Hashirama had sealed the Kyuubi inside of his wife, making the first of what would come to be known as jinchuuriki. He had apparently sealed away other bijuu before the formation of Konoha, and now he was using them as diplomatic tools to get the newly-forming ninja nations a reason to ally and make peace with him. He also allied with the feudal lord of the country, seeing it as an easier way to receive funds. So Hizuro got what he wanted after all...

I was ecstatic when I heard the news that Hashirama had died. He had died from medical complications following the great battle against Madara. So I did kill him after all! It just took a while for him to die. The place where he had fought was now a memorial site to the great battle, and it was named "The Valley of the End." Apparently they were going to carve statues out of the plateau. They would be depictions of Hashirama and I facing each other, and they would be on both sides of the river that had formed during our fight.

Since Hashirama died, his younger brother was appointed the Second Hokage. He must have been very bitter towards me, for he discriminated against my clan. He gave them control of the Konoha Police Force, but this was to keep them under check and out of government, as my spot in the council was still vacant, and it would remain that way until a non-Uchiha took its spot. I would have delivered retribution towards him if I still cared for my clan, but I did not. All I cared about in Konoha was Aimi.

And near the end of the year, I would hear the rumor that set my new plan into notion. It was of a shinobi nation undergoing development. Normally, it was of minor note like the other ninja villages, but this one was on an island. There was already a great island nation that had formed some time shortly after Konoha, but this one was new. And since it was an island nation far to the east, it was likely that the denizens did not know much about me, since news travels faster on land. That land would be my next destination... if I played my cards right, I could rise to a position of power and declare war on Konoha. With Hashirama dead, I doubt the bijuu peace treaties would deter some of the other villages from attacking Konoha; especially considering they were given the bijuu as a sign of peace. I had to act on this plan! I joined a crew of fishermen that was setting sail for the new island nation, eager to enact my new plan.

---

After a few weeks of travel, I arrived on the island. I was eager to learn as much about this place as I could, so I began asking the locals for information about this island. It is the largest island in an archipelago close to the other continent to the east. This archipelago was only recently discovered by our continent because of a great mist that covers most of the islands for most of the year. Indeed, as we approached the island, there was some mist that made navigation difficult.

This island country, called the Land of Water by feudal lords eager to gain control over this new land, used to be in possession of the eastern continent, but it was given up after a resolution of border disputes. The government officials in the eastern continent must have been bitter over the results, because they never told our continent that there was an archipelago in the eastern seas.

This archipelago was unusual in that groups of islands had rather different climates from each other. This island had a temperate climate and felt much cooler than the Land of Fire. The weather was different, too: mists and rain was commonplace, while it was often sunny in the Land of Fire.

The denizens of this country consisted of several kinds of people. There were the natives, which were people originally from the eastern continent. Then there were the immigrants from all over our continent, including some from the southern continent. Sailors, fishermen, and other people with maritime professions came here in search of reaping the resources of the archipelago. Several people and ninja from other countries, most of them refugees, came here in search of a new life. The natives were accepting of the influx of immigrants and they were going to assist in the construction of this shinobi village. The village was going to be constructed simply to make a central hub that connected all of the small settlements scattered throughout the island, and also to protect the people of the island from any pirates or vandals. The settlements had been in place for five years, but it was only recently that they started constructing a shinobi village.

Construction of a village is a lot harder without someone that can make an entire village spring forth from the ground. I assisted sometimes with the building process, but my main role was organizing things. I already had experience governing a settlement, and I had a good village government system to work off of (with a few modifications, of course). The people of the village quickly began to look up to me. Most weary of me would be convinced to support me when a large amount of bandits organized in an attempt to take over the village in construction. I easily fended them off. There was still some resistance among the populace after the bandit attack, as they supported my staunchest opponent: a grizzled and battle-hardened old man that seemed to be the leader of sorts before I stepped in and took charge. He should have taken the opportunity to spearhead the village's construction when I had the chance. Some genjutsu easily changed his mind and the minds of his followers after he showed his support to me. The only disadvantage about this new place was that some of the ninja used to be from the Land of Fire. I couldn't use my real name here, so I had to use a false one: Motoi Uchizo.

My prestige amongst the people would rise to the point where they wanted me to name and lead this new village. This couldn't have gone any better! Since the mist around this village and the island itself seemed to be prominent, I named the village "Kirigakure," or "The Village Hidden in the Mist." They would crown me the "Mizukage," following what the other shinobi villages were doing. It was unofficial in the eyes of the world, though: the feudal lords of the continent had decided that there would only be five major shinobi world powers, and those five had already been filled. The Uzumaki's village and the Mist were outside of those five nations. In addition, we had no feudal lord controlling this island yet.

It felt a bit odd going by "Motoi Uchizo," but it was worth it to have the amount of prestige and political power that Hashirama held. I was well-loved by the people of the village, but I still felt that something was wrong with me. Something was missing, empty... that something was Aimi. I had kept shoving my thoughts and concerns for her in the back of my mind, but they kept resurfacing. I had to know if she was okay, if she would forgive me...

I managed to get some of the sailors in Kirigakure to sail me back to the Land of Fire. Sneaking into Konoha would be simple with my disguise, and it was even easier now that two years had passed since Kirigakure began construction. News of the village would no doubt have reached the mainland by now, and it would be foolish to deny the esteemed Mizukage entry. Soon we were off, and I couldn't wait to see my wife again. I just hope that everything was okay...

---

In a few weeks, I was back in the Land of Fire. It took another day to travel to Konoha, and, as I suspected, it was easy to get inside. The guards kept pestering me if I had diplomatic business, and I had to keep telling them that I was just visiting the village as a tourist. Other than that, there were no other hassles in entering Konoha.

Once I was inside, I needed to act stealthy. It would be odd if the people saw me heading towards the Uchiha clan and going nowhere else. Luckily I had a jutsu that would make this task easy, as it turned me completely invisible and undetectable to all but the most skilled sensors.

Upon activating it, I quickly headed towards the Uchiha clan grounds. My mind was racing, trying to think of what to say to Aimi. I soon decided that there was no way to plan my responses and I would simply have to improvise. I could feel my heart pounding as I approached my old house. I made sure nobody was looking, and I slipped inside.

I knew that things weren't as bad as I might have thought when I was greeted to the painting of Aimi and me by a campfire that she painted for me a few years ago. If she kept that, then she must still have feelings for me... right?

I walked through the house until I saw her, painting alone. I had to stop and stare at her for a while. It had been seven long years since I last saw her, and she was still so beautiful. I decided that if I hesitated to reveal myself, then it would never happen, so I deactivated my invisibility jutsu.

"Aimi," I said, my voice cracking through the quiet room. She turned to look at me and screamed in fright.

"Who are-" she began.

"Shh... it's me, honey," I said as I removed my mask. Her mouth hung open as her eyes welled up with tears.

"I..." she began, but the words died in her mouth. We stood in silence, staring at each other for what seemed like an eternity. She finally walked over to me and embraced me tightly as she sobbed into me chest. I returned the hug, and stroked her hair to comfort her. She soon quickly released the embrace and slapped me across the face. The blow stung, but I didn't feel bad about receiving it. I deserved it, after all.

"I don't know what to say to you, or how to feel," Aimi said quietly, her face turned away from me, "You murder Hizuro, get yourself exiled, and then attack our village and get yourself 'killed' in the process. I thought you were dead, Madara. I thought..."

"I made a lot of foolish mistakes," I admitted, "Mistakes that I can't turn back from. Mistakes that force me to keep walking on the road I have paved for myself. But believe me, Aimi: even in my deepest descents into lunacy, I never stopped caring and worrying about you. I may have sworn eternal vengeance against this village, but I will never harm you. I don't know if you realized it, but the walking corpses... I forbade them from harming you."

"Please, don't remind me of that day..." Aimi said as she turned to look at the painting she was working on, "Damn you, Madara. You're an idiot... a stubborn fool. What do you mean you can't turn back? Why are you so focused on ruining this village?" She looked at me with pleading eyes.

"I can't just return to this village peacefully. I have committed horrible crimes against this village. Even if I could return here without any problems, I can't let Tobirama's transgressions against this clan go unpunished."

"I wasn't aware you cared about the clan," she said with a hint of bitterness, "seeing as they were indiscriminately attacked by those monsters."

"Because I don't. Look... Hashirama told me something that day. Something that, no matter how I try and deny it, is mostly true. He said that I have always only cared about myself. Everything I have done was to advance my position and to gain power. But that's not true... I don't just care about myself. I care about you, too. If I didn't, then why am I here? I couldn't bear not knowing your fate any longer."

"You're still a fool!" she cried, "Why do you have to destroy this village? What is the point of that disguise? If you're actually the head of another village, then couldn't we just live there in peace?"

"Peace is no longer in my life," I said, "the entire reason I helped form Kirigakure was to have a weapon that can crush this village."

"Why? Why are you so fixated on destroying Konoha? And why are you telling me this? I could just tell Tobirama, and-"

"I am telling you because I trust you, and I know that you will not tell," I said, "and my fixation of vengeance is just a hatred I have always harbored against the Senju. Hashirama claimed that we would all be equal in this village. I'm not seeing that. What clan has held both Hokage spots? What other clan members were even considered for Hokage? I know of these things because I hear people discussing them. This is not a village belonging to all of the clans; this is a village belonging to the Senju. I cannot allow this village to continue existing. Some lives may have to be sacrificed, but it is too late to change this village without force."

"You're insane! You're... I just don't know anymore. My mind is overwhelmed... I can't believe that you are Motoi Uchizo... that you didn't die on that night..." Aimi said as she walked over to a chair and sat down in it, leaning forward and burying her face in her hands.

"I've always been insane, honey. This is my nature. You stuck by me when I did similar things in the clan wars."

"That was a different time!" Aimi shouted as she snapped her head up to glare at me.

"It may have been, but the Senju are still in control. They are still dominating the country and manipulating how the other clans act."

"What is it you want? Do you want me to join you? Turn my back on my clan selfishly like you did?"

"You don't have to... I'm just explaining my actions. I know that my actions have split us apart, and there is nothing I can do to fix that. I just want to try and repair the rift in our relationship as much as possible. I don't want to completely lose you."

"I don't agree with you, but I can't tear myself apart from you..." she said lowly as she looked at the ground.

"This might be the last time I can come here... Motoi will be an enemy of Konoha sometime in the future."

"You're a damn stubborn fool, Madara... but I can't help but still feel love for you. We can keep in touch with messenger birds... and if this is truly the last time I'm going to see you in person..."

She stood up from the chair and walked over to me. She embraced me again and leaned up to whisper in my ear.

"...then I want one last moment of passion. I want to just forget everything for a while and experience a last moment of bliss with my husband."

I said nothing as she led me to the bedroom. I felt sorry for how she felt, but I had already began my descent into darkness, and that is something you cannot back out of. But I would do as she did and forget everything for the few hours we spent together. We didn't want to split apart, but it had to be done. We wordlessly bade each other goodbye as I slipped out of the village and returned to the coastal village where the men that had sailed me to the mainland were waiting. I sailed back to Kirigakure.

Aimi and I kept in touch with messenger birds, just as she had suggested. She didn't seem as angry with me as I had predicted she would have been. Nothing in her letters suggested hostility towards me or my plans to destroy Konoha, and she always diligently responded back when my bird reached the mainland. I would discover that on the night we reunited, she became pregnant. I felt further guilt upon not being around to raise our child, but she assured me that it was fine. I think she had accepted me as dead, and that the revelation that I was still alive was taking its time to sink in. There was nothing I could do for her about that... she would have to come to terms with things herself.

Several months later, I received a message from her saying that our child had been born. It was a healthy boy that she had named Fugaku. I felt proud for being a father, but remorse and guilt for only being a father through blood. I could not truly be a father to a child that I would never raise or directly talk to.

Shortly after that, Kirigakure had finished its construction, and there was much celebration. My encounter with Aimi had softened me, and I wasn't sure when I would make the move and declare war on Konoha... I wasn't even sure if this village could win against Konoha. I decided to wait things out and monitor the great ninja nations closely. Perhaps I could manipulate things to turn in my favor...

---

A few months had passed, and it was now mid-spring of the next year. I had still not made any moves against Konoha, but I think soon would be my chance to strike. The Rock Village in the Land of Earth to the far northwest was demanding more land from both the Land of Fire and the neighboring Land of Whirlpools. Combating both the Senju and the Uzumaki at once... the Rock had to have been powerful to make such a threat.

Sure enough, the Rock declared war on both the Whirlpool and the Leaf. I then publicly declared war on Konoha, but only in my village. It would be foolish to announce it to the entire ninja world. The people of the village were unsure if attacking both the Leaf and the Whirlpool was a wise idea, but I convinced them that they were busy on one front, leaving their homes mostly undefended. If we could quietly sail to the Land of Fire, we could strike the village undetected. The village soon rallied behind my plans for war, seeing only benefits for the village if we could pull this off.

I stayed behind and orchestrated things while the first wave of soldiers was sent out. As soon as our troops attacked, the current battle was dubbed the Shinobi World War because of the number of different ninja villages involved. As soon as the world war was announced, the great island nation to the north, Taiyogakure, stepped down from its position as a world power to prevent any ninja villages from attacking it. Thus, our country gained the title due to our power. I was now officially recognized in the world as a Kage!

Two weeks had passed since the beginning of the war, and I had sent out more waves of troops. The Leaf and the Whirlpool had more men than I originally suspected, but fortune would be in my favor once more. The Cloud and the Sand would enter the war to gain more land, wealth, and power. The Sand was our enemy, since they believed they rightfully deserved the title as a world power since they had a daimyo and we did not, but they did not attack us. The reason they didn't attack us was because the Whirlpool and the Leaf were also their enemies, and those were the two villages in their way from reaching us. In fact, none of the nations directly attacked the islands, but only our forces on land.

I was ready to join the battle in another two weeks, but I heard shocking news of terrifying invincible shinobi on the side of Konoha, including Hashirama! How could that be? Further reports showed that Tobirama had developed a jutsu that brought back the dead, letting them use all of their abilities and making them invincible! That bastard! He took my technique and improved upon it! But why? Why would he take such an amoral jutsu and...

He knew. He knew I was still alive. He knew the Mist had no logical reason for attacking Konoha. No doubt there were other clues I had left behind without noticing that he picked up, but this was him calling me out. I couldn't come out and challenge him; my secrecy and illusiveness was my greatest advantage. I had to flee the Mist before someone figured things out. I didn't want to completely abandon the people of this village, though. I gave them some suggestions on how to take out the dead ninja. It turns out Tobirama couldn't overcome the same drawbacks I had faced: decapitation or destruction of the brain killed his undead forces just as well as it killed mine.

I took two of my most faithful and powerful followers, the close friends and spiritual brothers Kazuo Hozuki and Taro Terumi, and gave them power over the village. The eldest and strongest, Kazuo, would assume the position of Second Mizukage, while the youngest, Taro, would remain a powerful advisor figure. I then fled the country, but not before changing my hairstyle slightly, as well as changing my mask to a bright yellow one with many straight lines emerging from the eyehole and stretching across the length of the mask. I knew where my next destination was and what my next course of action would be. The official story behind my disappearance was that Motoi Uchizo had been assassinated by special operatives from the Leaf. Kazuo had slain these assassins, and he took the reins of the army and the village. I now casted away the Mist just as I had casted away my own clan. They were irrelevant to my plans and my concerns. I set sail to the north, to the Land of Light...

---

When I arrived in the Land of Light, it was late summer. I was shocked at the sheer size of its ninja village, Taiyogakure, the Village Hidden under the Sun. It was far larger than Konoha, and it seemed to be at the peak of technological and economical achievement at the time. I bought a home on this populous island nation and decided to hone my skills and perfect my jutsu.

I would spend twenty-eight years of my life on this island, involving myself with little in the ninja world other than hearing news from the people on this island and news from Aimi. I would find out the Shinobi World War would last for another three years. The Sand pulled out of the war due to excessive casualties due to their foolish attempts at attacking both the Rock and the Whirlpool at the same time. The Mist surrendered after some time due to losses in battle, and the Whirlpool backed down from the war upon great losses, as well. The Rock valued the Mist attacking the Leaf, seeing them as useful distractions. The Tsuchikage became enraged upon the Mist's withdrawal, and seeing as how they would lose if they kept attacking the Leaf, he ordered all of his men to pursue and kill the retreating Mist forces. Kazuo was among the dead, leaving Taro in power. The last part of the war was between the Leaf and the Cloud. The Cloud sent their elite shinobi team, the Kinkaku Force, out to destroy Konoha. Tobirama managed to fend them off at the cost of his own life. A young man named Hiruzen Sarutobi would become the Third Hokage, further dragging out the power of the Senju. The Sarutobi clan was just an offshoot of the Senju.

The Mist degraded into riots, which were silenced by the rise of a totalitarian dictatorship. It seemed that Taro wasn't the best choice for leading the village after all. The Mizukage gap was not being filled, leaving him as an acting Mizukage of sorts. The riots in the Mist started when Taro handed over control of the country to a daimyo to gain funds the village desperately needed, but it seemed that the villagers didn't like being tied to a feudal lord. To silence them, he assembled an elite unit of ninja, the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist, to take down the rebels. Throughout most of my time here, I would hear many back-and-forth struggles between the Mist and the rebels.

The Sand became a great nation after the war, for the Whirlpool was heavily weakened. They were close allies with Konoha after the war, but they had lost some land, with more land being lost from further attacks over time. Two new shinobi villages, the Rain and the Grass, would arise from land the Whirlpool lost. Over time, they would continue losing land until they were what is now known as the Land of Rivers. The Lands of Wind, Waterfalls, and Fire would gain land from their loss of territory.

But other than that, I paid little attention to the affairs of the other nations. Konoha seemed to have entered an era of peace, so I did as well. I pushed myself to the limits, training my jutsu and Mangekyo Sharingan techniques. I would also delve into the secrets of the Yin Release, which I seemed to have a rare affinity for. The Yin and Yang forces were an oddity in the ninja world: every jutsu uses Yin and Yang together in some balance. For example, genjutsu is mostly Yin, while clone techniques are mostly Yang. Yin is spiritual energy, and Yang is life energy. The fire, wind, and lightning elements had more yin than yang due to their energy-like state, while the earth and water elements had more yang than yin due to their physical-like state. Izanagi was formed from a perfect balance of Yin and Yang; the same with Izanami. Hashirama seemed to have an extremely rare affinity with directly manipulating life energy. Likewise, I seemed to have the same rare affinity with directly manipulating spirit energy.

I developed many jutsus strictly only utilizing the Yin Release. This is what took up most of my time on this island: studying the properties of spiritual and life energies as well as studying the aspects of spiritual energy. Of particular note were the souls of humans: their uniqueness and a rich source of energy and power. I learned many new techniques involving souls, including one that allowed me to essentially live forever. By absorbing the souls of people, I could extend my lifespan and restore my youthful appearance, and I did so. Seeing no need to use my mask to hide my physical appearance, I discarded it. Nobody would recognize me as Madara with my appearance when I was twenty, and even if they did, I could just pass it off as an uncanny resemblance.

On the twenty-first year since I began living in Taiyogakure (twenty-seven years from the present time), tensions between the Leaf, the Rock, the Sand, and the Rain would erupt into a second Shinobi World War. The Rock, once again, started the conflict. I overheard news that the leader of Taiyogakure, Teruo Hideshi, was going to provide aid to Konoha. I couldn't let that happen! I snuck in his mansion late at night and killed him in his sleep. I had to kill him in that matter... if I fought him directly, he might have killed me with his powerful Plasma Release kekkei genkai.

I made up another story about assassins, and the people made me the second ruler of the village. Like the Mist, I was greatly respected throughout the village. My false name this time was "Masaru Uziro." I wasn't exactly subtle with hiding my initials, but it would take a very paranoid and old man to suspect that every man with the initials "MU" was me in disguise, especially since I had been inactive for two decades.

I kept the Sun out of the war, although part of me now regrets doing that. The Second World War was where most of the shinobi legends of the modern days arose, including the Sannin. It would have been fun altering the course of history by entering the war and potentially killing some of these heroes. This war would last seven years, and the Sun would play no part in it.

My great proficiency with the Yin Release had made me deeply connected to the Sharingan and everyone who possessed one. It was a strange link, and I suspected that my grandfather had manipulated the bloodline to make things this way. It was only of great use when I sensed the birth of an Uchiha child that would rise to great power. I couldn't resist; I had to have this child as an apprentice. I would wait for three years before stealing the child, just because I still wasn't done perfecting my jutsu.

Studying Yin and Yang had consumed most of my time, but I was finally done with them for a while. Now I was set on improving my zombies to be similar to the ones that Tobirama had created. I succeeded with that in two years, and then I was going to improve upon my normal zombies to see what kinds of undead creatures I could create. Developing my jutsus was much easier with a large mansion that formerly belonged to the leader of the village as your house: it had quite a spacious basement perfect for experiments.

Another year had passed, and I had made some progress on my zombie jutsu development, but it was surprisingly difficult. But the Uchiha child prodigy was now three years old... it was an optimal time to strike. The war was still going on, so it would be easier to kidnap the child because of a lack of shinobi, but harder to sneak into the village because of increased defenses. I took a boat and set sail to the Land of Fire...

---

I was easily able to sneak into the village with my invisibility jutsu. I was not concerned with any opposition that I would face upon kidnapping the child. The only person that I would not want to see was Aimi, and she was out participating in the war. If she saw me kidnap this child... I think it all would be over. But I could feel the potential power in this child. If I could properly harness it...

I was getting ahead of myself. What I needed to do now was take the child. I arrived at the Uchiha clan grounds and frowned as I realized that I had no idea where to start looking for the child. I saw an Uchiha walking about, and I clasped my mouth over his hand and dragged him into a nearby alley. I activated my Sharingan and used a simple genjutsu on him. He told me the location of the household the child lived in, and I then erased his memories of being dragged into an alley by an invisible man.

I quickly made my way to the house, and I soon saw the child. It was a young girl, three years old, and she was playing in the yard of a rather large house. I deactivated my jutsu out of her sight and walked up to her. She turned her head to look at me as I approached, and her cheerful expression instantly changed to a concerned one.

"Hello there, little girl," I said with a warm smile, "How are you today?"

"I... um..." she stammered, looking around in nervousness.

"Hey!" I heard a man call out, "Who the hell are you? Get away from my daughter!"

Well, there go my chances of peacefully convincing the girl to come with me. Before I could say anything to the man, I heard a woman approach.

"What's wrong Fugaku?" the woman asked as she exited the house along with the man. They both laid eyes on me. The man glared while the woman looked concerned. So the man was Fugaku? My own son? The young girl with such power was my granddaughter?

"Don't worry, Mikoto; I'll deal with him," Fugaku said to the woman as he approached me. This wasn't good... Fugaku was slated to be the next head of the Uchiha clan when Aimi stepped down... he was no doubt very powerful. And that woman was Mikoto... Aimi told me that she had been trained under the powerful Konoha ninja known as Jiraiya, who himself had been trained by the current Hokage. I couldn't use my Sharingan because it could potentially give away my identity... this could be a hassle.

"Mom? Dad? Who's this man?" the child asked with fear. I looked towards her and used a basic genjutsu to knock her unconscious. I picked her up, slung her over one shoulder, and began to run.

"Damn you! Give Reiko back!" I heard Fugaku yell as he began to pursue me. I placed my feet on a nearby rooftop and turned around, forming a few seals. I inhaled and then unleashed a slew of fireballs that rushed towards him. He countered with a much larger and more powerful fireball that consumed my smaller ones. I cursed under my breath and quickly body flickered away before the fireball hit me. I formed several clones that were carrying clones of the girl in an attempt to confuse him, but it didn't work. He had probably already activated his Sharingan to track me better, making the clones useless.

I suddenly stopped fleeing when I was in an open alleyway behind a few stores. Before Fugaku could react, I hurled his daughter high up into the air, surely distracting him. I took this time to use an earth jutsu that caused the ground beneath him to rise up and ensnare his legs, preventing movement. I smirked and raised an arm to catch the falling child, who I believe I heard Fugaku call Reiko, but she never fell. I looked up and did not see her, and I looked around to see that Mikoto had showed up, and Reiko was in her hands. This wasn't good...

"What do you want with our daughter?" Mikoto asked with ferocity as she turned to look at me, "And just who the hell are you?"

"Just a stranger. That's all I am," I said with a grin. The grin spread to a sarcastic smile as I reached my hand out towards Mikoto, "Now if you would kindly give me back the girl."

"FUCK YOU!" Fugaku yelled from behind me as I heard him break free from the jutsu I had placed him in. I had to end this fast! I looked away from them both and activated my Sharingan before powering them up to their Eternal Mangekyo state. I formed the seals needed for Izanami, and then all sound was drowned out as everything around me slowed to a crawl.

I walked over to Mikoto and gently plucked the unconscious child out of her arms. I did not stop using Izanami until Konoha was well behind me.

---

A few weeks had passed, and Reiko is adjusting well to her new home. As expected, she was confused and depressed upon the forceful change of environment, but it was easy to make up bullshit and convince her that it was true. To her, I was her older brother. I had saved her from some "bad men" that were going to kill everyone in the Uchiha clan. I could only save her in time, and I was truly sorry that I couldn't save anyone else. Children are so easy to manipulate.

And I began to teach her to give her things to look forward to and to remove her sorrow over the "fate" of her family. She was already well-taught in several areas, but the skills of a ninja were alien to her. She was very gifted, though; that I knew. She was well-spoken for a child of her age, and new concepts were easy for her to grasp and apply. She also already knew how to use her Sharingan... a sign of a fine pedigree.

As the time passed, I became more impressed with Reiko's progress. The only time I felt any guilt for my actions was when I received news from Aimi that someone kidnapped an Uchiha child. I had no choice but to feign innocence in my reply.

In just a month, she could use many basic ninja techniques, and she was skilled in the use of ninja tools. I taught her more and more, and she never failed anything I tried to teach her. Taijutsu, genjutsu, ninjutsu... every time she surpassed my expectations.

I spent two years training her, and she was now five. It was simply remarkable seeing how powerful she had become. I would guess that she would be on the level of a special jonin, if not higher. She was certainly more powerful in the area of ninjutsu than several ninja, as she was naturally proficient in three different elements. She would make a fine apprentice, indeed. But there was one last test that I had been holding off. I had not revealed to her my dark nature. She saw me as her warm and kind brother, a shining role model that led the powerful Sun village. I'm sure she was curious as to what dwelled in the basement of my mansion and why I frequently went there at night. I would show her, but I don't know if she has a dark nature. Everything about her seems to be pure. But if I hesitated, the likelihood of any potential evil inside of her revealing itself would only decrease. I had to act soon.

A few days passed, and I heard that the Second World War had ended. The Leaf and the Whirlpool had emerged victorious in the war. However, the Whirlpool had been severely damaged in the war, and their people entered a schism. Some wanted to uphold the country's status as a ninja nation, while others wanted to renounce that status for peace. The majority of the people wanted to renounce their title as a ninja nation. Konoha stopped any rebellions by letting the Whirlpool ninja that wanted to remain ninja inhabit a small island off of their east coast. The old Land of Whirlpool became the Land of Rivers. The Whirlpool ninja that relocated to the island called the nation the Land of Eddies, and their village became the Village Hidden among the Whirling Tides, or the Whirlpool for short. This event was insignificant now, but it would play a larger factor later on.

I decided to act upon revealing to Reiko my dark intentions the following night. On that night, I led her down into the basement. I was undergoing many experiments with my zombie jutsu using people I had kidnapped from the village. I was pushing the zombies to their limits, observing the thresholds of various things about them, such as how long and how cold before they completely froze. There were also prototypes of other variations upon the basic zombie down in the basement. Some had sharp claws that could rend steel. Some retained all the agility that had in life. Some could use basic jutsu. I had all sorts of various zombies restrained down there.

And as soon as she saw them, I knew that it was hopeless. She would not be persuaded to my side. She held a look of utter shock and repulsion towards my experiments. But I had prepared myself for this. I would now play the monster and push her to her limits. I would make the following days an absolute hell for her. If I expose her to the sheer power and evil of my zombie jutsu, then she will no doubt be tempted to use it at times in the future. Taiyogakure would fall tonight, but it was just a small setback.

"Aren't they beautiful, sister?" I asked as I smiled at her, "I think you are powerful enough to use this jutsu. Here, let me teach it to you."

"You... how... how could you?" she asked in a breathless, shrill tone. "These are innocent people! And you... you turned them into these monsters!"

I wanted to smirk at her, but to properly play my role, I took a step back and displayed a baffled look. "Is there something wrong with that? Think of the possibilities of this jutsu. You and I, sister, we can rule the world with this jutsu. Starting with this pathetic village."

"You... YOU'RE A MONSTER!" she shrieked as tears fell down her cheeks. Her eyes changed from jade green to crimson red as she activated her Sharingan. This was going to be interesting to see what skills she would use on me. I had to push her, but I couldn't overdo it... she can't die here.

She made a few seals and took a deep breath before exhaling several blasts of wind at me. I gritted my teeth in frustration; I didn't expect her to start with such powerful jutsus. I maneuvered out of the way of the wind blasts as best as I could, but I received a few cuts. I retaliated with a jutsu that ripped a large chunk from the earth beneath me and hurled it towards her. She countered with a jutsu that made four pillars of electricity that not only shattered the earthen lump, but also began rushing towards me. I was through playing with her. I dodged the pillars and made sure that Reiko was looking at me.

I made the seals for my zombie jutsu, making sure that she could analyze the order they were in. A yellow gas emerged from my hands. I saw her eyes widen; she knew what the gas did. She bolted out of the basement, causing me to laugh at her predicament. There was nowhere she could hide. I poured more chakra into the jutsu, causing the gas to grow and spread even more. It would envelop the entire island, and everyone except Reiko would turn into zombies. She would have succumbed to the gas if I let it, but that would go against my plan. I had to nurture the hatred inside of her and let it grow.

I disposed of all of the experiments in the basement. I had no use for them anymore, and I couldn't leave behind any evidence. Such a catastrophe is not going to go unnoticed by the world. I strolled out of my mansion nonchalantly, admiring the power of my zombie jutsu. The howls of thousands of zombies echoed throughout the now-desolate island. I sensed that Reiko had fallen unconscious, so I mentally commanded the zombies to ignore her for now. When she awoke, I would reprogram them to attack her, but not to bite her.

After some time, I found her unconscious form. I used a genjutsu to jolt her into an awakened state. She looked about in confusion until her brain registered what had happened, and then her countenance changed to one holding the utmost fear. I smirked at that expression.

"Reiko, Reiko, Reiko..." I said calmly in a chastising tone, "I was planning for you to accept my offer. But you didn't, and now you have doomed this entire island. Everyone here is now one of those mindless creatures, and they will hunt you down. Every. Single. Person. On this island. Good luck, sister. You'll need it to survive. And you need to survive. Do you understand? Live. Do not give up. If you ever want to kill me, you'll need to live and let that hatred inside of you grow. Do not fail me..."

She said nothing and began to cry as the gravity of the entire situation dawned upon her. I shook my head at the pathetic girl and walked away. I found an abandoned boat and decided to find a new base of operations in the Land of Water. I sailed south, leaving behind the damned island forever.

It took a few days to reach the main island that housed Kirigakure, and it took a few more days to buy a house. I had to alter my appearance to not draw any suspicion towards me. Once I had my new house, I made myself a new mask to hide my identity. This one was red with a flame design on it, and it still was featureless except for a single eyehole on the right side.

A few more days had passed, and I overheard that a serious disaster had happened in the Land of Light, and that all of the ninja nations were sending forces to help. I suppose there were a few people that had not become zombies other than Reiko that managed to contact the outside world, but I wasn't angry. I was actually proud of myself. The ninja world had never been united before, and because of my actions, they had all united under a single force to try and liberate the Land of Light. And only a few months after the end of the Second World War, too, when tensions were no doubt still high. They were not successful, of course, and the island was abandoned and its history covered up. Even in the present, the island holds zombies and is regarded as cursed.

A month had passed since then. I sensed the birth of another Uchiha prodigy, but I ignored the child, weary over the possibility of being betrayed again. I regret never kidnapping this child... Itachi would have been a great ally.

I would spend the next four years in the Land of Water, soaking up information and continuing to hone my skills. The Third World War would break out during this time, but it would not last long in comparison to the other world wars. The war was won, once again, by Konoha, no thanks to their Yellow Flash, Minato Namikaze. There was a bit of turmoil in the village as Taro, the ruler I had put in my place, was overthrown by a younger man, a jinchuuriki, who became the Fourth Mizukage. It would seem that Taro was overthrown sometime before, as I had no idea who the Third Mizukage was.

My patience for the past few decades would soon pay off, and many opportunities would present themselves to me. I gladly indulged in all of them, and I do not regret doing so, even if it caused rumors to emerge that suggested that I was still alive...

---

The first of these opportunities showed up after I spent four years in the Land of Water. This event happened sixteen years ago in the summer of that year. I remember it well because it launched a good streak for me where I manipulated many events. Even if some of them failed, I still made the ultimate outcome desirable for me in some manner.

It started when I heard various citizens and Kirigakure ninja complaining about the alliance between the Leaf and the Whirlpool. This alliance happened at the end of the war, when Minato Namikaze wed Kushina Uzumaki, the princess of the Whirlpool. The two countries were becoming far too powerful, and they wanted something to be done about it. Apparently, the current Mizukage was weary of their alliance, too. I think it was time to pay the Mizukage a visit and persuade him to attack the Leaf. The Mist had a powerful military, and I think they had the capability to defeat both the Leaf and the Whirlpool if they put their full effort into it.

I requested a meeting with the Mizukage, telling the guards outside of the Administration Building that I had a great proposition. They seemed weary to let me in, but the Mizukage himself made the guards back down. He personally greeted me and led me to his office. Once inside, he sat down at his desk. He offered me a chair that was positioned in front of the desk, and I sat down. There was one other person in the room besides the two of us: a stern-looking tall man with dark brown wavy hair that fell past his shoulders. The man had some stubble, and he didn't acknowledge either of us. Instead, he just stared out the window.

"Let me just start off by saying that I know your identity," Yagura said as he leaned forward, his strange purple eyes staring into mine, "That mask isn't necessary, Madara."

I smiled under my mask and took it off, placing it on the desk. "Well, you're a bright one. Do tell me how you figured out my identity."

"If you paid attention when you entered this building, you would have seen that there are ice sculptures of all of the Mizukages in the lobby. Your body shape matches that of the first. And while the sculpture of the First Mizukage has lost its head, it is well documented in history that he wore a plain mask with a single eyehole."

"And you figured out that 'Motoi Uchizo' was Madara Uchiha how...?" I asked incredulously.

Yagura smiled at my skepticism, "Well, the catastrophe in Taiyogakure certainly raised a panic among the people of the world. The creatures on that island were the same kind of creatures that attacked the Leaf many years ago. They shared this information with the high-ranking people of each village. I wasn't in office then, but I have the records that show this information. Upon doing a bit of research, I found out the Second Hokage developed a similar technique that resurrected the dead, demonstrating it during the First World War. And who knew how to get rid of the dead ninja? The First Mizukage. I just pieced things together, and your willingness to confirm my guess only made things that much easier."

"What a clever one you are. Am I going to have to dispose of you now?" I asked in a joking manner, but there were threatening undertones in my voice.

"I would strongly advise against doing that," the man by the window spoke in a threatening baritone. He walked over from the window and stood over me with an intense glare. This man's chakra felt incredibly powerful...

"There's no need for that, Genji," Yagura said, "And don't worry, Madara. Your secret is safe with me."

Genji turned away from me with a "Humph," and walked back over to the windows to look out of them.

"Now, what did you come here for?"

"Well," I said, "I just overheard people talking about the alliance between the Leaf and the Whirlpool, including your disapproval towards it. I came here to suggest that you attack them."

"I don't think that is a very wise idea. Both nations are quite powerful, and-"

"Oh, come on. I've spent my recent years in this country. I know Kirigakure's military force. It has the capability of taking both of the villages out. And who else is going to act except the Mist? The Sand and the Rock have been weakened by the war, and the Cloud isn't going to do anything. Strike now before word of your disapproval reaches their ears. Besides, you're a jinchuuriki. They don't have one."

"Actually, they do. Kushina Uzumaki holds the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox inside of her," Yagura said, "and the Yellow Flash is the Fourth Hokage. Not to mention the past Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi."

"Well, the real threat here is Konoha. The Whirlpool has its share of strong ninja, but it's a new nation that formed from conflict. Most of their men stayed behind. If you want to win, you direct most of your forces towards the Leaf," I suggested.

"Are you suggesting a joint attack?" Genji asked as he turned away from the windows and towards me.

"Precisely. Send a sizable amount of troops to strike the Whirlpool first. Just enough to make it look like the first wave of an army. Make the Leaf think that only the Whirlpool is under attack. Then take the larger army and strike Konoha when they least expect it. You still have those Seven Swordsmen guys, right? Make them lead the attack on the Whirlpool while you attack the Leaf," I said.

"I am the head of the seven," Genji said, "and I don't see anything wrong with his plan, Lord Yagura."

"Very well, then. I thank you for your suggestion, Madara. I shall start to amass our forces. You are dismissed," Yagura said. I stood up from my chair, took my mask, and bowed. I put my mask on as I turned away and left the Administration Building with a wide smile on my face. That couldn't have gone any better!

I would learn in the following week the results of the attack. Unfortunately, the Mist's forces were defeated, but there was a bright side to the attack: they had destroyed the Whirlpool! The forces attacking the Leaf were defeated, allowing the Leaf to go and assist the Whirlpool. By the time they showed up, the Whirlpool Village was in ruins, with their leader and many other shinobi dead. Genji was holding Kushina hostage, and he delivered a fatal blow to her when Konoha refused to surrender. This made the Fourth Hokage so livid that he single-handedly defeated all of the Mist's forces. Kushina was gravely injured, but she was healed back to health. The Mist feared great retribution from the Leaf, but they were offered peace from the past Hokage instead. I suppose they didn't want another war to emerge, but I didn't care at this point. I was no longer in the Land of Water: I had heard something a few days ago that was a calling to me.

Apparently, there was a rebel group in the Land of Rain that was trying to overthrow the leader Hanzo. Hanzo tricked the rebel group and led them to a trap during the Third World War. He aimed to take them out, but was fended off. News started spreading that there were two prominent members, (there used to be three, but one of them was killed in the trap) and one of them possessed the fabled Rinnegan. It wasn't a hyperbole over-exaggerating his power: there were several eye witness accounts that he actually possessed the Rinnegan! The fabled eye of the Sage of the Six Paths... I had to obtain it! But I was patient... I would arrange events in my favor of taking it in the future.

So I traveled to the Land of Rain. It was difficult to get in the country, as they were cautious around outsiders. But once I was in, I made my way to Amegakure. I met with Hanzo and gave him several suggestions on how to deal with the rebel group before leaving. I stayed in Amegakure for a few months, assisting Hanzo with attacks on the rebel forces. He thought I was a great ally, but I was simply manipulating him. My tactics would not defeat the rebels, but they would definitely threaten and push them. And that was what I needed. I needed to nurture the Rinnegan, to make the wielder realize its full potential.

I left Amegakure after several months (it was now the next year), and I once more decided to wander about in the Land of Fire. It had been far too long since I directly attacked Konoha, and I was eager to hear rumors that would lead me to another method of destroying the village.

---

It would not be until late September of that year that I heard the rumor that sparked my next plan. Kushina Uzumaki was far into her pregnancy and she would give birth soon. I remember from my studies on the tailed beasts and their hosts that the seals are at their weakest during childbirth. It seems that I would be using the Kyuubi once more.

So I patiently waited and stalked throughout the Leaf with my invisibility jutsu, searching for news about Kushina. I followed her around the village and carefully watched her, along with the Fourth Hokage. I luckily followed them into the little meeting they had with the past Hokage. There I learned of the location they were being taken to. Fate seemed to be on my side for once!

And the day finally arrived when she would go into labor. The tenth of October... I followed them to the cave were she would be giving birth. I waited a while, carefully monitoring the guards outside. I couldn't alert any of them... I had to kill them quickly and quietly. I decided to use the water around them by using a jutsu that made the water forcefully enter their lungs, which suffocated them. I smirked and entered the cave, but not before disabling the barrier they had erected.

Judging by the sounds I heard echoing in the cave, it seems that she had already given birth. I missed the optimal time to unseal the fox, but the seal would still be weak. I body flickered into the chamber they were housed in and swiftly killed the two people that were not Minato and Kushina. I held their newborn child in one hand and held another hand over its head. I could easily crush the child's skull if I wanted to.

"Fourth Hokage... Minato. Back away from the jinchuuriki, or your son dies at the ripe old age of one minute," I said.

Minato looked at me with shock. His gaze flickered from me, to his son, to the two dead people on the ground, and towards the direction of his wife.

"Didn't you hear me? Back away from her, or your son dies," I commanded.

"J-Just chill out, okay?" he asked as he inched towards Kushina.

"I think you need to chill out with that nervousness about you. I'm cooler than ever," I said as I nonchalantly tossed the baby into the air. He didn't back away from her, so I pulled a kunai out from my robes and pointed it so the baby landed on the point.

"NARUTO!" I heard Kushina cry out. So that was the child's name... too bad he was going to be dead.

Naruto never impacted with the kunai. I was suddenly reminded of the time I kidnapped Reiko. I glanced to me side, and sure enough, Minato had moved fast enough to catch Naruto in mid-air. But this time, I was prepared.

"Well, you live up to the title they give you. But you really should listen to the man holding your son hostage."

I had placed several explosive tags on the underside of the towel that Naruto was wrapped in. I smirked as the woman cried out her son's name, but my smirk faded as Minato and the child suddenly vanished. I still sensed his chakra, though... he was quite some distance away. Both he and the child were still alive. It seems he used his teleportation technique, but that was good. He had no easy way back here, leaving me alone with the jinchuuriki.

I walked over to her and grinned maniacally as I grabbed her and body flickered outside of the cave. I made the seals to a jutsu I had made when I learned she was late in her pregnancy. It made several stones rise from the ground around her, and it bound her in place, too. The seal was weakening, and this jutsu I used would only weaken it further. I activated my Sharingan and used it to preemptively place the Kyuubi under my control. I then used another jutsu to break the seal and remove the fox from inside of her.

"Well then, Kyuubi, shall we go to the Leaf?" I asked it in a mocking tone.

"S... Stop..." Kushina weakly muttered.

"Oh, yes, I forgot about the tenacity of the Uzumaki clan. Always clinging to life when normal people would have died. But I don't think you can survive being crushed by the hand of the demon fox," I said to her as I commanded the Kyuubi to smash her. I knew it failed, because I sensed her suddenly move as Minato's chakra appeared. He managed to save her, and he faded away once again.

I sighed and quickly body flickered to Konoha, leaving the fox behind. I arrived in the middle of Konoha, and I used the summoning jutsu. The Kyuubi appeared in the village and immediately started wreaking havoc. And without Hashirama, it would be incredibly difficult for them to defeat the Kyuubi!

The fox seemed to notice something quickly. It charged up a sphere of energy and launched it towards the mountain with the Hokage's faces on it. The blast suddenly vanished and reappeared several miles behind the mountain. It was Minato! I formed the seals for my zombie jutsu and let an orb of the gas form in my hand. It would be the easiest way to dispatch him... if I shoved the gas in his face, he was dead.

I body flickered to his position and thrust my hand at his head. He vanished, and I cursed. I still sensed his chakra, so I rapidly body flickered to his position.

"So... are you going to stop running from me?" I asked him. He looked all over me and at the gaseous yellow orb in my hand.

"You... you're Madara Uchiha, aren't you?" he asked with vehement indignation.

I suppose I was being a bit too bombastic with all of my actions today, but I was succeeding! So what if my identity was able to be guessed!

"Perhaps... but I'm pretty sure that guy is dead," I said casually as I sprinted towards him and thrust the ball of gas towards his face. He ducked and did a sweep kick, knocking my legs out from under me. He thrust one of his unique kunai down at my neck, but I rolled out of the way before he could pierce me. I stood myself up, cracked my neck, and charged at him once more. He charged me as well. The fool; he had damned himself!

He formed a spiraling ball of chakra, but I wasn't afraid. He had no way to dodge my attack!

"Checkmate," I said as my ball of zombie gas was inches from his head, but it contacted nothing. My eyes widened with shock as I turned around. I saw behind me one of his kunais... he must have thrown it at speeds that not even my Sharingan could detect. Minato was above me and he slammed the spiraling sphere of chakra down onto my body.

"RASENGAN!" he yelled as the ball hit my back. I could feel its force grinding throughout my entire body, causing me great pain until the attack ended. I body flickered away a small distance in a standing position. I started forming the seals to make another ball of zombie gas, but Minato interrupted me before I could finish. He appeared in front of me and slammed his palm into my stomach. I felt my chakra system being disrupted.

"You didn't...!" I gasped.

"I did," he replied, "the Kyuubi is no longer under your control."

I leaped back and considered my options. I had grossly underestimated Minato's strength. If I continued to fight with him... I might be killed. I couldn't risk that.

"You deserve the title of Hokage, Minato," I said as I slowly backed away from him. He glared at me and looked as if he was ready to attack me once more, but I warned him, "Really? Do you want to pursue me? Feel free, but you'd be leaving behind your wife and your village to rot."

Minato balled his hands into tight fists and vanished from the area. I punched the ground in frustration. I knew I had failed today. There was no way the Kyuubi would succeed in destroying the village without me commandeering it. I returned back to my home in the Land of Fire... the old site of the previous Uchiha clan settlement.

My mood was lifted the next day when I learned of the results of my actions. Konoha had suffered major casualties, Kushina and Minato among them. Minato sacrificed his life using the Dead Demon Consuming Seal to seal the Kyuubi inside of his son. The Third Hokage was forced to come out of retirement, and now they had the world's youngest jinchuuriki. I was relieved that Minato was dead. It would have been a nightmare thinking of ways to circumvent his space-time techniques.

I remained in the Land of Fire for a few months, resting my body. That Rasengan technique had greatly injured me in ways I did not expect.

---

I was concerned. It was a new year, and I was starting to hear rumors that Madara Uchiha was behind the attack, or that I was still alive. This wasn't good at all! I had to remove the attention from myself! But how?

It was simple: I would make a monster worse than me in the eyes of the world. But who? Who trusted me enough and was in a position of power?

Yagura... the Fourth Mizukage. I set sail for Kirigakure, eager to remove the attention from me. I returned to my home in the Land of Water and planned on how to manipulate Yagura, who didn't seem that evil. I decided on a powerful genjutsu, and I went to the Administration Building there.

Genji was away, which was good. I had heard of his terrifying might in battles, and I didn't think I would be able to successfully manipulate Yagura if he was there. I used my Sharingan and put him under the genjutsu, implanting commands and suggestions that he should follow. I left, and returned to my home. For several months I stayed there, listening for any complaints from the people. I learned that the daimyo of the country had been assassinated, and a new violent way of graduating the academies had been adopted. It seems that I was successful, as Kirigakure was now being known throughout the world as "The Bloody Mist." I decided to keep Yagura under the genjutsu. The more attention shifted from me to him, the better.

This year was very painful for me to remember, because it is the year Aimi died. She was sixty-nine years old, and a disease took her life. I didn't care if my return was heavily speculated by Konoha. I attended her funeral, and I laid flowers at her grave every night after for two weeks. I was not only mourning losing her, but also losing the last essence of purity inside of me. She was the reason I felt guilt, remorse, and hesitation...

It was hard, but I had to tear myself away from her grave and leave the Land of Fire. I had stayed far too long, and people were suspecting I was the one behind the Kyuubi's attack, as some people had seen a "strange masked man" before the Kyuubi was summoned. I fled the country and returned to my home in the Land of Water.

---

Another year had passed, and Yagura has surpassed my expectations. A number of clans in the country that possessed kekkei genkai opposed his actions. So what did he do? He ordered an extermination of all kekkei genkai users in the country, including those who supported him!

I also learned that Konoha suspected that the Uchiha were behind the attack, so they moved them all to a small district where they could keep an eye on them. This would no doubt cause great discontent among the members of the clan. Perhaps I could convince the head of the clan to stage a coup d'état. I traveled to the Land of Fire and used a clone technique to alter my appearance, and I entered the village.

I met with Fugaku, who was now the head of the clan since my wife had passed, and successfully convinced him to consider overthrowing the heads of Konoha. What was great about it was that he had his Sharingan active during our conversation: he could see through my disguise. He knew of my identity, but still agreed to work with me. Good thing he didn't see the face under the mask, or else he would see the man that kidnapped his daughter several years ago.

Satisfied with our dealings, I left Konoha and returned to the Land of Water.

---

The following year, violence in the Mist had intensified. A group of rebels consisting of many past Swordsmen of the Mist rose up to overthrow Yagura. They were defeated, but the fighting still continued between supporters and denouncers of Yagura. Apparently, Yagura was now annexing nearby islands for sinister uses, such as a massive torture facility and a slave-breeding area. He even directly approached me and said he had plans to utilize the zombies on the Land of Light! I had to leave before things got too violent here. I could not risk being seen and identified by any people of the Leaf that might come here for diplomacy or whatever.

I left the islands, and in a good time, too. A month after I left, Taro (the Village Ruler of the Mist) would reappear with a massive amount of forces, and the Mist would fall into a civil war that would last for four years. Yagura would be killed during the war and Taro would assume his position once more. The Mizukage position would remain vacant from here on out, as Taro assumed all of the roles of Mizukage.

But when I left the Land of Water, I left it for good. My next location of interest was the Land of Rain. The rebel forces had become a famous mercenary group known as "Akatsuki." I had thought of a good way to conquer the world, and I was going to present my ideas to them. I never fancied myself a ruler of the world... I had only ever wanted to destroy Konoha, but I decided to increase the scale of my plans. I found it odd that the rebels still existed when Hanzo was in power... but I'm thinking that Hanzo is dead and Akatsuki controls the country now. It just hasn't been made official to the world because the Rain keeps information locked inside of their borders.

I entered the Land of Rain, and, as I had suspected, Hanzo was dead and his supporters were a minority. The rebel forces now ruled the land. I requested an audience with the leader of the country. I was led to Amegakure, the ninja village of the country. I was amazed at the sheer level of technology this country possessed- it was like nothing I had ever seen before.

I was led to a tall tower, and I rode an elevator to a floor near the top. I exited it and entered a lavish room with two people wearing black cloaks with a red cloud pattern on them. One of them was a girl with blue hair, her hair tied up in a bun and an origami flower resting in her hair. The other was a thin man with pale skin and blood red shoulder length hair. His eyes... they were the Rinnegan!

"Welcome to our village, Madara," the man said. I was using my actual identity in this village, as I had nothing to fear, "I am Nagato, and this is Konan. What brings you here today?"

"First off, I have to thank you for being so polite and courteous to a world-renowned criminal," I said.

"No need; we are all criminals here, Madara. If wanting to change the status quo makes you a criminal, then so be it. You have also made no direct contraventions towards us, but several towards the countries that recklessly used our land as the battleground in their selfish wars. You are a welcome ally, Madara," Nagato said.

"You are too kind. But I have come here to lend you certain information, along with a proposal."

"I'm listening."

"It originally seemed far-fetched to suggest such a thing to a stranger, but I figured if you had the legendary Rinnegan... and you did just mention that you wanted to change the status quo. May I ask how?"

"I wish to bring peace to the world. Wars are senseless and a violation of the sanctity of life. Our dear friend was lost in a war, and I delivered swift retribution to the man responsible. I personally killed Hanzo, along with everyone connected to him. Only a few supporters are left."

"Really? You killed Hanzo? May I ask how you did that?" I asked, genuinely curious. Hanzo was a terrifyingly powerful ninja, master of fire jutsus and wielder of the Boil Release kekkei genkai.

A small smile appeared on Nagato's face, "These eyes are as powerful as the legends claim they are, and more. You are especially privileged to be meeting with me... nearly everyone in this village thinks of their leader as Pain..."

"Pain?" I asked. I doubted that it was just a nickname with the way he worded his sentence.

"Yes, Pain," a voice spoke from behind me. I turned around to see a pale man with spiked orange hair and several piercings on his face. The most striking feature of the man was that he had the Rinnegan!

"This man is the one known as Pain. He is the body of my deceased friend, Yahiko. Those piercings are actually a long metal tube that snakes throughout the inside of his body. I can channel my chakra through this metal, giving me control of the body. I can control up to six bodies at once, but the process is severely draining, leaving me little but skin and bones if I control all six for prolonged periods of time," Nagato explained.

"Are you sure it's wise to explain your powers to this man?" Konan asked, finally speaking up.

"No need to fear, I am a friend," I said to her as I admired the powers of the Rinnegan. Pain vanished in a puff of smoke and I then turned to Nagato, "And if you seek peace, I have the methods to attain it. Harness the power of the tailed beasts."

"The tailed beasts?" Nagato mused to himself.

"Yes. Have you not heard of the destruction the Kyuubi caused in Konoha a few years back? That was just one tailed beast that had a little over an hour before it was sealed away. Think of what all nine can do. If we can seal them away and directly siphon their chakra, think of the weapon we will have," I said.

"How will a weapon promote peace?" Nagato asked in a disgruntled tone.

"The same could be said of diplomacy. If you seek peace, there is simply no rational way of making it through peaceful methods. But if you have a weapon that could wipe out a village in the blink of an eye... then people will listen to you. True peace can only be obtained through force."

"I see..." Nagato said as he started to pace about the room, "You have a valid point. We could only create peace in this village using force..."

"And I'm sure the holder of the Rinnegan could easily create a method of sealing away the bijuu," I added.

"But most of the tailed beasts are already sealed inside of people," Konan said. I think she was the quiet type, since this was the second time she had said something since I entered the room.

"They are... which means we would be declared enemies of the villages if we tried to take their jinchuuriki," Nagato said with concern.

"Which would be a significant upgrade from a small-time mercenary group, no?" I asked, "And unless you raise enough money to bribe everyone to peace, which is doubtful, you'll just have to keep dealing with wars."

"If we are going to attack other villages for their jinchuuriki, then we will need powerful men on our side. The men of this village are not strong enough to undertake such dangerous tasks... and I know just where to find them. Konan, bring me the bingo books."

Konan nodded and left the room, quickly returning with several different-colored books. She laid them all out on a table, showing the insignias of several different ninja villages.

"We will find our men here. Anybody worth a damn will have a bounty on their heads, and that bounty will be in these books," Nagato said. I picked up the Leaf's bingo book and flipped through it. I was somewhat disappointed that my name wasn't in there, but I suppose it was good that I was still regarded as dead to the world.

"There are nine bijuu," I began, "The One-Tailed Shukaku belongs to the Sand, the Two-Tailed Cat belongs to the Cloud, the Three-Tailed Turtle belongs to the Mist, the Four-Tailed Monkey and the Seven-Tailed Armadillo belong to the Rock, the Five-Tailed Wolf belongs to the Moon, the Six-Tailed Weasel belongs to this village," I started.

"The host of the weasel is one of Hanzo's supporters. He's the only legitimate remaining threat against our village," Nagato interrupted.

I continued, "The Eight-Tailed Snake is sealed away in the Land of Rivers, and the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox is possessed by the Leaf."

"The Eight-Tailed Snake?" Konan asked, raising an eyebrow in suspicion, "That's... not correct."

"Yes, the Eight-Tails is an ox-like creature. It belongs to the Cloud," Nagato said.

"That can't be," I said in disbelief, "I've been alive for quite some time. The Cloud never had two tailed beasts, and there was never an ox. It was always a snake. It was sealed away in a man who would eventually become imprisoned in the Whirlpool, which is now the Land of Rivers."

"Do you suppose it's possible to... create a tailed beast?" Konan asked with concern.

"Well... they are just masses of chakra, right? I don't see why they can't be created..." Nagato said.

"We can deal with the ox later. For now, let's focus on obtaining the legit nine," I said.

"Actually, we need to focus on recruiting members," Nagato said in a chastising tone.

"Oh... right..." I said, slightly embarrassed. A thought then entered my head, "Um... they're going to want to know a name of what they're joining, right?"

"Akatsuki," Nagato said, "I see no reason to change the name of our organization here in the Rain. And I believe I have found our next member."

Nagato laid down a bingo book he had been flipping through during our conversation. The picture on the page was of a dark-skinned man wearing a white hood and a black mask, concealing all of his face except for the area around his eyes. His eyes were of an unusual color: pupilless bright green irides with dark red sclera.

"Kakuzu Shihaku. A renowned bounty hunter that indiscriminately kills anyone in his way, so long as he gets his bounty. He attempted to assassinate the First Hokage, and he stole a secret technique from his home village, Takigakure," Nagato said.

"He was alive at the time of the First Hokage? He doesn't even look older than forty!" I exclaimed.

"The technique could have something to do with it," Konan suggested.

"It must," Nagato said, "because he is regarded as notoriously powerful, able to use all five elemental affinities. He is also regarded as being immortal and impossible to kill. I'm sure there's a catch, but he sounds like a great ally."

"That he does, but what makes you think he'll join us?" I asked.

"It says here that his one passion in life is money. If we can convince him that joining us will bring him riches, then we're set. If that won't work, we have plenty of money stored in our village."

"But what about other members? We need to think of something that can bring them in. We can't simply just cater to their wishes, especially if the bingo books don't mention them," Konan said.

"Madara... you have been alive for quite some time. What is one thing that you have strived for?" Nagato asked.

"Immortality," I said without a second thought, "and I have obtained it in some form through a jutsu. Bait these criminals with the promise of immortality. We may not have a method now, but I can think of a way if there is an absolute need to do so."

We continued discussing things, and we decided on several things. Nagato decided on ten major members: just enough to pose a threat to ninja villages, but not enough to cause internal fighting. We had narrowed down a few other criminals that we were going to seek out.

The first was a man known as Zetsu Jeiton, formerly from the Grass Village. He had a very odd appearance, half of his body being white, and the other half being black. He also had some sort of plant that was seemingly attached to his body. Nagato told me that the Jeiton clan of the Grass bonded with plants and utilized their powers. Zetsu had left his village and was a spy for hire. The bingo book didn't know most of his abilities, but it regarded him as one of the finest spies in the world, and we could always use a spy.

The second was a man from the Rock, Sajin Korura. He had distinct silver hair with a blue tint to it and striking orange eyes. He was a master of earth jutsu, and was formerly highly regarded in his village. He was no longer affiliated with Iwagakure because he refused to carry out a suicide mission during the Third World War, choosing the lives of his friends over direct orders from the Tsuchikage. Nagato said that he would be easy to recruit, as we could just promise destruction of the Tsuchikage.

The third was a man formerly from the Sand known as Sasori Hiruko. He was a master of the mysterious puppet style utilized by some ninja from Sunagakure. He was also a master of poisons and possessed a huge arsenal of puppets. He had destroyed and/or terrorized many villages in the Land of Wind, and also the Land of Stone to the north, and he was regarded as incredibly dangerous.

The last of the criminals that caught our eye was Orochimaru Yamaji. He was a callous and cold criminal that wanted nothing more than to learn every jutsu in existence. His lust for power led him down a dark path, and had performed many experiments on innocent people. He defected from Konoha before they discovered his vile actions, and his current whereabouts were unknown. Nagato said that finding him would be difficult, but recruiting him would be simple.

We decided to split up to cover more ground since these five criminals resided in different countries. I was to track down Kakuzu, Konan was to find Zetsu, and Nagato was searching for Sajin. Sasori and Orochimaru would be searched for after these three, for their known location was less concrete. Nagato didn't have to worry about leaving his village without a leader- he simply just used the body he controlled, his Pain alias, from afar.

Kakuzu was remarkably easy to find, I checked in to the nearest Bounty Station and asked for the whereabouts of Kakuzu. Surprisingly enough, I was given them with little questions asked, but only a warning of how dangerous he was and that I wouldn't be able to defeat him. I guess Kakuzu's infamy was great enough to warrant several bounty hunters attempting to kill him.

I traveled to the location given to me: an area in the Land of Fire near the borders of both the Grass and Waterfall countries. The only significant feature in the wooded area was a small, run-down shack. Was this seriously where Kakuzu lived?

"So another one has arrived to forfeit their life..." a deep voice spoke as Kakuzu emerged from the shack. He was quite threatening in person, most likely due to his large height.

"You're mistaken, Kakuzu. I'm not here to collect your bounty. I have a proposal that might interest you," I said.

"Does it involve money? If it doesn't, I'm not interested," Kakuzu said in a hurry.

"I assure you, it involves loads of money, and it will be an investment most profitable for you."

"Before I can begin forming the concept of trusting you, you'll have to take off that mask," Kakuzu demanded.

I complied, and I saw Kakuzu's eyes widen as he saw my face. It seems that I was still recognizable to some people even with my youthful appearance.

"Madara Uchiha?" Kakuzu asked in bewilderment.

I smiled, "The one and only. As for my offer, I have formed an organization with a few friends of mine. You might know them as the leaders of the rebel force that overthrew Hanzo. One of them has the Rinnegan."

"Yes, I've heard some things about them," he said in mild interest.

"Well, we're planning on conquering the world, and the tailed beasts are the keys to this goal. We need powerful ninja like you to make this daunting task easier. And before you say anything, their organization has lots of money and could use a treasurer. You'll have to keep your hands clean, though. All of the riches of the world can be yours when we seize the world. And your living environment will be much better than... that." I pointed to his shack.

Kakuzu looked at me, then at his shack. "I think you strike a good bargain, Madara. I'll join as long as I can keep collecting bounties."

"Of course. It will take quite some time to capture all nine of the bijuu."

"Very well... let me get my stuff," Kakuzu said as he entered his shack. As I waited, I put my mask back on. He emerged a few minutes later holding two rather large briefcases.

"Let me guess... they're full of money," I said as I stared at them.

"Millions and millions of ryo," Kakuzu said. Most of his face was obscured, but no doubt there was a cocky smile beneath the cloth covering his mouth.

I was surprised upon our return to Amegakure. Nagato and Konan had both returned, and they both had brought back their targets.

"I'm glad that we were all successful bringing in new members," Nagato said with a smile, "and I believe introductions are in order. As the three of you likely know, I am Nagato. My partner here is Konan. The man in the mask over there is none other than Madara Uchiha."

Zetsu and Sajin both seemed shocked by this news.

"Really? The Madara Uchiha?" Zetsu asked.

"But I thought he died years ago!" Sajin exclaimed with wonder.

"Heh... the fact that I am alive is one of the greatest secrets of the ninja world," I said.

"I'm Kakuzu," he said abruptly, "infamous bounty hunter and bounty target. Anyone who's ever tried to kill me has ended up dead. If you'll excuse me..."

"Please stay, Kakuzu. We have important information we need to share. And I don't see where you will be going... I haven't told you the layout of this place, let alone where your rooms are," Nagato said, causing Kakuzu to grumble as he sat down.

Zetsu and Sajin quickly introduced themselves, and Nagato began telling them about their plan, revealing new information that I did not know. Apparently Nagato had a large demonic being sealed in the basement of the tower we were in. It was a product of his Rinnegan, and he modified it to be capable of holding the tailed beasts within it. When Akatsuki is not hunting tailed beasts, its agents and lower members will remain the mercenary group they have always been, and they'll accept jobs for far cheaper than the shinobi nations. This was simply to build trust with smaller villages and to undercut the money gained by the great shinobi nations. We could also use the tailed beasts to create a "disaster," causing the village under attack to hire us to take it out. And then he explained to the new members what we would do once we had obtained all nine bijuu, and he also told them that we planned to have ten members.

"Ten, eh? Do you have anyone else in mind? I'd assume that you found us through the bingo books," Sajin said as he reclined back in the chair he was sitting in.

"Just two more members for now: Sasori of the Red Sand and Orochimaru," Konan said.

"Orochimaru? I think I know where that snake is hiding..." Kakuzu said.

"And I know where Sasori usually is. I sought him out once to try and hire him to help take down Iwagakure," Sajin said.

"And I can help in finding them. I can merge with the ground and travel great distances," Zetsu added.

"Then we will split up into three-man cells to track down our two remaining targets," Nagato said, "Konan and I will track down Orochimaru with Kakuzu, and Madara can search for Sasori with Sajin and Zetsu."

It took us a few weeks of searching around the northern areas of the Land of Wind, but we finally found Sasori. It was difficult to convince him to join Akatsuki, but it seemed that in the end he was just playing hard to get. He was just messing with us, causing me to be rather annoyed with him. When we returned, Nagato's team had found Orochimaru.

"Well, isn't this interesting," Orochimaru said, "Sasori is here, too."

Nagato repeated his plan to the new members and he added even more information that I did not know. He had decided on a dress code for the members: the black robes with the red cloud pattern that he and Konan were wearing. He knew that wearing the robes while capturing the tailed beasts will bring negative attention to our organization, but he said that any attention would be good, so long as the mercenary forces got work. He also showed us the forehead protectors he and Konan possessed that had a scratch through the village symbol, which symbolized severing the ties to their old village.

"...and I have also developed these rings," Nagato said as he laid out ten rings on the table in front of all of us. Each had a kanji symbol on it, and each had a different color, "These rings are crucial to being a member of the elite Akatsuki. These rings are directly tied to me. They will let you send mental messages to anyone through me, and they will also let you participate in the sealing ritual for the bijuu. You can also astral project into the chamber housing the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path, which means we can seal the bijuu without actually being present to seal them. As for the rings themselves, they can change size to fit your hand, but only on one finger. They are synced directly to one of the fingers of the Outer Path. I have laid them out in order, and the one I am taking goes on the right thumb."

He picked up a ring that was a purplish-gray color and slid it on his right thumb. Konan took a white ring that fit her right middle finger. Kakuzu took a dark green ring for his left middle finger. Zetsu's ring was a lighter shade of green and it was for his right little finger. Sajin took an orange ring for his left index. Sasori's ring was purple and it fit his left thumb, and Orochimaru took a blue ring for his left little finger. I was left with three choices: a teal ring for my right index, a red ring for my right ring finger, or a yellow ring for my left ring finger. I chose the red ring.

"Good... we are evenly balanced, with four members on each hand. When we are recruiting new members, do not forget to bring these rings with you. If one of our members dies or defects, it is crucial to take the ring back. Do not lose these rings!" Nagato explained.

He continued, "I have also decided that we shall operate in two-man cells. I have read over your abilities, and I have partnered you all with the person that most compliments your abilities. My partner shall be Konan, as we are used to working and fighting together. Kakuzu shall be partnered with Sajin, as Kakuzu's earth affinity is lacking in comparison to his other four, and Sajin will be able to fill that gap. Sasori and Orochimaru shall work together, as they both can use poisons, several jutsu, and can swarm the enemy with puppets or snakes. Madara shall be partnered with Zetsu, as they have the widest variety of jutsu, letting them cover all of their bases. Now, let me show our newest members their rooms..."

A few months had passed without much activity, which bled into the new year. We were all getting used to each other and getting a feel for each other's abilities through sparring and such. I was most impressed by Nagato's vast amount of abilities... the Rinnegan was simply incredible! Everyone else in the organization was also incredibly powerful, with very useful jutsu. I was impressed and proud with all of them, and I was beginning to think that this organization would greatly succeed in any task we tried.

The period of inactivity was ended when Nagato made an announcement to all of us. The first batch of jinchuuriki that we were to capture had been decided: the host of the Seven-Tailed Armadillo. He was from Iwagakure and was falling out of favor with the Tsuchikage, which would make capturing him easier. The beast was assigned to Kakuzu, and Sajin would be assisting him as his partner. He then assigned the Six-Tailed Weasel to Zetsu, meaning I was to assist him. Konan was assigned to capture the Eight-Tailed Snake, Orochimaru the Five-Tailed Wolf, Sasori the Three-Tailed Turtle, Sajin the Two-Tailed Cat, and Nagato assigned himself the Nine-Tailed Fox. He told us that our assignments did not mean that we were to rush out and capture them as fast as possible. He said that we would take our time and wait for the opportune moment to strike, which could take years. But, for now, Kakuzu and Sajin's target was ready to capture, as well as Zetsu's target.

Shortly after the meeting, I was approached by Sajin.

"Yes?" I asked him.

"This is going to sound rather demanding of me, but..." Sajin started, his voice nervous.

"Out with it, kid," I barked.

"Um... yeah... I was... well... we were..."

"Just tell me," I sighed.

"Right! In addition to capturing the Seven-Tails, I also want to assassinate the Tsuchikage. I have strived for vengeance against him. It is the reason I joined this organization, and it seems that it would be an opportune time during this mission. I would feel more confident with the legendary Madara on our side, but it would mean leaving Zetsu to capture the Six-Tails by himself."

"Oh, that's no problem," Zetsu said as he emerged from the ground behind us, "I was going to take my time on that, anyway. If you three aren't back by the time I was planning to attack, then I'm sure I could take him out by myself. I have a few tricks up my sleeve..."

So it was decided, then. I would be accompanying Sajin and Kakuzu to Iwagakure in an attempt to assassinate the Tsuchikage. We departed for the mission after a day of preparation.

---

"So, who's our target?" Sajin asked Kakuzu. We were on our way to Iwagakure, and we were traveling through the Land of Grass. The Rock Village was pretty much almost directly north from Amegakure, which made travel easy: we just needed a compass to guide ourselves, and no doubt Sajin knew the layout of the Land of Earth well.

"Shusuke Toguro," Kakuzu said, "A powerful jonin of Iwagakure that has the Seven-Tailed Beast inside of him. He has sharp claws that let him burrow and tunnel underground, no doubt from the bijuu's influence. Apparently, if water touches these claws, it will cause great pain to him, which is good since I am naturally affiliated with water. He controls the ground about him and the terrain, and when he taps into his bijuu's power, he can supposedly terraform the land and use its powers. He's falling out of favor with the village because he is disagreeing with the Tsuchikage's ideas and policies."

"Which isn't hard to do..." Sajin grumbled, "the man is stubborn and holds far too much power for such a closed mind."

"The Tsuchikage... who is he? The Rock is one of the villages I have never involved myself with," I said.

"His name is Onoki, and he's the Third Tsuchikage. Much like Konoha, the First and Second Tsuchikage lost their lives in the First Shinobi World War. Onoki has been in power ever since, and his stubbornness and drastic demands are what started the Second Shinobi World War, and his rudeness increased the hostility of the Sand, and is probably what caused them to start the Third Shinobi World War," Sajin explained.

"Sounds like a prick. What're his powers?" Kakuzu asked.

"He may seem old and small, but he's very powerful. He can use a jutsu that lets him levitate, and he is the bane of taijutsu users, as he can petrify people with a touch. His most fearful ability is his kekkei genkai. You see, Onoki is of the Ryokuzo bloodline, which is quite similar to the Senju bloodline of Konoha. Their blood is widespread throughout the village, and they possess the capability of inheriting a kekkei genkai. In the Ryokuzo clan's case, it is the Lava Release, which has been held by the First Tsuchikage, Onoki's son, Kitsuchi, and his granddaughter, Kurotsuchi. The First Tsuchikage, Durumaga, was Onoki's father. Somehow, Durumaga had managed to take an incredibly rare kekkei genkai and passed it down through his direct descendants."...But he doesn't have the Lava Release?" I asked.

"No, and that's the strange thing about it. Logically, he should have the Lava Release, but he has a the elemental combination of Durumaga's brother, the Second Tsuchikage."

"I fail to see what is so shocking about that," I said.

"Muu... the Second Tsuchikage. He was the result of a rather dark experiment. The Rock has another kekkei genkai clan... the Hitsume clan. They can fuse earth and wind chakras to make the Explosion Release. The father of the two brothers, obviously, was a Ryokuzo, and his wife was a Hitsume. The father must have altered the DNA of his two children somehow... it's the only explanation. The first child, Durumaga, had the ultra-rare Lava Release and would be able to pass it on to his children. The second child, Muu, had a completely new bloodline composed of three elements. Those elements were the elements that made up the Lava and Explosion Releases: fire, wind, and earth. This new element is the Dust Release."

"So he has the power to throw sand in our eyes. Terrifying," Kakuzu said with a sarcastic tone.

Sajin shook his head, "Oh, no. He's much stronger than that. The Dust Release is not named for what it manipulates, but what happens to those hit by its jutsu."

"Okay, that is actually terrifying," Kakuzu said.

"Yes... he can create energy that crushes and grinds whatever it hits into dust. But he does have a few weaknesses. His body is frail. While that doesn't mean much when you apply it to a ninja, it does mean that he's not physically strong, nor is he good at taijutsu. He can't take many hits and keep going. He also has quite a temper and can get mad easily. We can use that to our advantage."

"I'm sure the three of us together can kill him," I said.

"Yes, but we won't be at our peak performance. Capturing the jinchuuriki takes priority, and the Tsuchikage comes afterward. And that's only if the conditions are suitable to try and kill him," Kakuzu said in a stern tone.

"Right..." Sajin said with a hint of defeat in his voice.

"Don't whine. It took long enough for me to drag you out on this mission," Kakuzu growled.

"What can I say? I'm always apprehensive before doing a mission. I don't want to screw things up."

"Or you just don't want to do the mission," Kakuzu remarked back.

They continued to throw little quips at each other for the entire trip to Iwagakure. While Nagato may have done a good job grouping these two based on their abilities, there was definitely no synergy in their personalities. Sajin had said we arrived a few days later, but we were in front of mountains. Lots of mountains.

"Those are mountains, Sajin," Kakuzu helpfully pointed out.

"And Iwagakure is in these mountains," Sajin sighed.

"You two... stop bickering like a married couple," I snapped, fed up with their constant bitching, "I know how to lure our jinchuuriki out. I'll just walk in, probe the mind of people with my Sharingan, and see who knows where our jinchuuriki is. I will then cast a genjutsu on them, and they will find him and tell him the Tsuchikage has an important message for him and that he wants to meet him outside of the village."

"Sounds good to me," Kakuzu said with a small yawn.

"Are you sure your genjutsu will go undetected? I mean-" Sajin started. His doubt in my abilities infuriated me. I stared into his eyes, my Sharingan blazing. His eyes widened and he gulped in fright.

"That's what I thought," I said. I turned away and faced the mountains, "Be back in a bit," I added as I body flickered away. I rushed upward to a tall mountain and saw the village below. I reached it within a few minutes, and used my invisibility jutsu on the way towards it. I began probing the minds of the nearest people, and I quickly found someone who knew the jinchuuriki we were searching for. It was here I realized that the Rock had a second jinchuuriki, but there must have been some reason Nagato did not mention the second jinchuuriki, so I disregarded him.

I reappeared in front of my two partners, "Now we wait. Who wants to be the 'messenger'?" I asked.

"It's probably best that it's you," Kakuzu said.

"Yeah. It certainly can't be me; Shusuke would recognize me," Sajin said.

"Very well. You two go hide yourselves. I doubt he'll be much trouble, so just jump in once the fighting starts," I said. The two nodded, and then vanished.

After about an hour of waiting, I finally saw someone approaching in the distance. The man was tall and muscular, his bare chest exposed. He had tanned skin and his head was clean shaven, but he had a beard. He had rather significant claws instead of normal fingers. This was definitely the jinchuuriki.

"Who are you? I can already tell you're not associated with the Tsuchikage," he growled as he assumed a defensive stance.

"Your bane," I said as I used a water jutsu that fired a simple jet of water at fast speeds towards his hands. The water struck his claws, causing him to howl in pain. The cracked and dry earth beneath him suddenly rose up and tried to crush him, but he escaped before it crushed him.

"You didn't do that," he said at me.

"No shit," Kakuzu said as he emerged from his hiding spot and casted a water jutsu. He lowered the cloth around his mouth and spat out a large amount of water. Shusuke growled and jumped on a rock that was above the shallow lake Kakuzu had created. Sajin took this time to manipulate the rock he was standing on to grow taller and sprout spikes. Shusuke had managed to detect the changes before they occurred, but he foolishly leaped away without seeing if there were any more rocks to stand on.

There were not any, of course, and he tumbled into the shallow lake. His claws touched the water, causing great pain to him once more. He growled, and an aura of orange chakra surrounded him before exploding into a large shape akin to an armadillo. A hard shell covered his back, and five tails composed of orange chakra whipped about.

"EVERYONE! GET TO HIGHER GROUND!" Sajin warned. Kakuzu and I didn't question and did so. Shusuke roared and slammed his hands into the water, which suddenly began to bubble and steam as it changed into solid rock. Shusuke roared again, causing the sea of rock to shatter into thousands of pieces of shrapnel that were now rushing towards us.

Kakuzu appeared in front of us, along with a strange black creature with a mask that I can only assume was a summon. The mask on the creature opened its mouth, and a powerful surge of electricity rushed out of it, destroying the rock and continuing towards Shusuke. The jinchuuriki curled up to protect himself from the attack.

"It's not working!" Kakuzu cried.

"Don't worry! He's doomed himself!" Sajin exclaimed as he formed several seals and clapped his hands on the ground. The rock around Shusuke rose up and enveloped him, but it did not crush him. Muffled roars could be heard within the stone prison as it shook about from his struggling, but it didn't break. It showed signs of wear, though.

"I can't hold him for long!" Sajin warned us.

"Leave it to me," I said as I charged towards the prison, my Eternal Mangekyo flaring up. Sajin released his jutsu, and as soon as that happened, I fired a shot of Amaterasu from my right eye. The black flames engulfed Shusuke, causing him to scream in pain. I quenched them after a minute because I didn't want to kill him, only knock him out.

"Kakuzu, take him back to base," I said.

"Of course," he said as he walked over to Shusuke and picked him up, slinging him over his shoulder. He body flickered away, leaving just me and Sajin.

"Wow... we defeated Shusuke!" Sajin exclaimed with wonder, "I mean... wow!"

"Save the praise, kid. We have the Tsuchikage to deal with, don't we?" I asked.

Sajin's face paled, "R-Right..."

"Oh, come on! This was your idea! Don't back down from it!"

"I'm not!" Sajin assured me, "I had just got caught up in the rush of taking down Shusuke that I forgot about Onoki..."

"I'm faster than you are. I picked up the strongest signal of chakra while I was briefly in the village. I know his location. Here."

I walked over to him and put my invisibility jutsu on him and me. I moved his arm so that it was around my neck, and I body flickered, causing both of us to rush towards Iwagakure.

We both appeared on the top floor of the Administration Building. Nobody was in the room except Onoki, who was remarkably short. He was standing on a chair so he could look out the window at the village beneath his building. I removed our invisibility jutsu and looked towards Sajin, motioning at him to say something to his hated enemy.

"Tsuchikage!" Sajin called out. Onoki whirled around in shock, his eyes practically bulging out of his head.

"How did you get in here? GUA-" he began.

"Don't even think about it," I commanded in a deep and threatening tone, "The fight here is between the three of us."

"You ordered me to lead my friends to death!" Sajin spat, "And then exiled me when I defied your orders! You're a selfish, stubborn old man with too much power!"

Sajin's words made him laugh, "Do you even know what a shinobi is, boy? They are a tool! A weapon! Your orders were to fight a losing battle to distract the enemy, and, by the gods, you were supposed to do just that! Go ahead and blame the neglections of your responsibilities on me, but that will not change the fact that you weakened the village and dishonored yourself by disregarding my orders!" Onoki claimed.

"You ruined my life! You stirred up two world wars! You're the monster here, Onoki, not I!" Sajin shouted.

"Who's your friend here, boy?" Onoki asked.

"None of your concern," I said, "or, thinking about it, I should be all of your concern."

"Big words from a faceless man! I'll gladly humor you two! Go ahead, try and kill me! It's not the first time pathetic assassins have tried to take my life because they think I'm responsible for the state of things! You'll find it much harder than it seems!" Onoki boasted as he made a few seals. His body lifted itself off of the ground, and he hovered a few feet in the air.

Sajin used an earth jutsu that made the ground beneath him rise up. The wave of concrete split off, the branched part speeding towards Onoki. The old man simply flew out of the way. Sajin responded to this by causing two chunks of the earth to rip themselves from the ground and speed towards Onoki.

"Hah! You think you can beat me with earth?" Onoki asked as he made a single seal, inhaled, and then exhaled a single blast of air that ripped apart Sajin's rocks. Onoki then made a few seals and formed a large boulder out of his own chakra which he lifted and hurled at us. In mid-flight it burst apart into several smaller rocks that rained over the large room we were in. Sajin had erected a wall of stone to defend himself, and I simply dodged the rocks. I used a jutsu that caused several pillars of flame to burst out of the ground beneath Onoki, but the short old man just flew out of the way.

"Sir Tsuchikage!" a few guards exclaimed as they burst in the room. They must have heard the sounds of battle from outside.

"Bah! Get out of here! I'm fine!" Onoki yelled at his guards, which complied. The distraction was most welcomed, as Sajin had sent a single spire of stone towards the Tsuchikage, which I had enhanced by greatly heating it with fire. Onoki's eyes widened to almost the size of his nose as he swerved out of the way to avoid the jutsu.

"Stop fucking flying around!" Sajin cursed as he used a jutsu that encased his hands in stone. He jumped up at Onoki and began madly swinging his fists at the Tsuchikage. The ground was rising up as pillars to support Sajin as the old man kept dodging his attacks.

"Hey, geezer!" I shouted, gaining Onoki's attention. As soon as he looked at me, I fired a simple bolt of electricity that he dodged. He didn't dodge the punch aimed right at him, however. I heard a loud crack as Sajin's earthen fists crashed into the old man's head, sending him falling to the ground.

"That FUCKING HURT!" Onoki shouted as he flew up into the air, "I'm through playing around! Feel the power of my Dust Release!" he boasted as he held his hands up. A high-pitched ringing was heard as a sphere composed of energy appeared between his hands. A cube of energy encased the sphere, and the shape suddenly grew to a large size. Onoki yelled as he thrust the cube downward towards us. We both leaped out of the way as the area we occupied moments ago was crushed to dust. Before we could even counterattack, the cube burst into several small cubes that began raining down on the room. Thinking quickly, I used a jutsu that made a large surge of electricity pulse through the room. The small cubes vanished, along with my electricity.

"Ha! I've figured out how to beat your Dust Release, Tsuchikage," I said, "It's composed of earth, wind, and fire chakras, correct? Earth... a matter-based element is in the construction of an energy-based result. So I figured electricity, pure energy, would cancel it out."

"Damn you!" Onoki cursed as he formed another sphere between his hands, but this time a cone surrounded it.

"MADARA! GET OUT OF HERE!" Sajin shouted. That idiot! Why did he mention my name? I turned to chastise him, but he had fled out from a window. Suddenly I didn't feel so good facing the Tsuchikage's next attack.

The cone between his hands began to grow and spin.

"Madara, eh? I figured you weren't dead, what with that cursed island and all! But it doesn't matter, because this next attack will pierce right through that blackened heart of yours!"

The cone sped towards me, and I had little choice but to retaliate with my Amaterasu technique. The black flames shot forth to consume the energy, but... it pierced right through the flames! My eyes widened as I instinctively used Izanami to save myself. I dashed out of the way and deactivated the technique. I retaliated with another blast of Amaterasu that hit the confused Tsuchikage. He began yelling and flailing about as the fires began consuming him. I smirked and leaped out of the same window Sajin did. I sensed him away from the village, so I followed him.

I should have stuck around to confirm my kill, but I was in a hurry to escape. Onoki survived the attack, presumably by using his Dust Release on the flames in some way that removed them from his body but protected him from being crushed to dust. Now my identity was known by someone that was not my ally... I suppose it was only a matter of time with my recent activity, but nobody would believe the words of just one man, even if that man was the Tsuchikage.

I found Sajin near the area where we fought the host of the Seven-Tails. I told him that I almost killed Onoki, but he somehow survived my attack. Sajin was disappointed, but concluded that Onoki was just far too powerful to take down with only two men. I had to agree with him... if not for an instinct, I would have been killed by that cone technique. We both headed back to the base, carrying the shame of defeat on our shoulders.

---

Four months had passed since the attempted assassination of the Tsuchikage. We had sealed two of the nine bijuu (Zetsu had successfully captured the jinchuuriki of the Six-Tails), but I could tell that Nagato wanted to bide his time with these things. I was far too impatient for that. It was time to confront him.

"Yes, what is it, Madara?" he asked me when I approached him.

"This organization is moving far too slow for me. I'm leaving," I bluntly said.

Nagato's countenance held a look of both disbelief and sorrow, "But... Madara!"

"Do not worry, Nagato. I will still be with you. It's just that my spot could be better occupied by someone else."

"But... that's not true! You're the leader of this organization! You inspired me to reform it in its current state!" Nagato complained. I smiled and chuckled at that comment.

"Me? The leader? What have I done? You have done all of the work, Nagato. You are a fine leader. And I said I will still be with you, and with this organization. I will be in its shadows, monitoring its progress. I will return when the time is right. You have my promise. As for now..." I removed the ring from my right ring finger and handed it to Nagato, "...this ring is for someone else. Goodbye, Nagato."

Before he could say anything, I body flickered out of the tower.

---

I never told Nagato the primary reason why I left. Witnessing the powers the Rinnegan held made me feel inadequate in comparison. I had decided to spend a few years honing my skills to the point of perfection. I will ascend past the Rinnegan itself!

My new home was an abandoned cottage I found in the Land of Fire. It was some distance away from Konoha, so I was safe from discovery. Almost every day I thought of one of my many jutsu and began experimenting with ways to improve it. My training would continue uninterrupted for three years, until something most interesting happened...

Someone had found my cottage. I heard a knock at my door and opened it to see a young Uchiha man with crimson Sharingan on the other side. His hair was tied back in a low ponytail, the rest of it cheek length and framing his face. He was wearing the gray outfit that the ANBU of Konoha wore. He had long and pronounced tear troughs under his eyes.

"Madara," the man stated. I was shocked that he knew my identity when I was still wearing my mask. I heavily doubted that Onoki leaked my identity across the world, especially to their enemies in Konoha... no, this man figured it out on his own. I then realized that this man was the second Uchiha prodigy I sensed many years ago.

"Interesting... most interesting..." I said as I looked up and down the young man, "What is it you want? You're obviously not here to kill me."

His face remained fixated in the cold and stern look, "My name is Itachi. I know of the past of our clan, and I know about you. I'm here to strike a deal."

"Oh? Is that so?" I asked, genuinely curious.

"My clan... it is sickening to see how low they have dipped. They've stooped to your level. They plan to violently overthrow the government of Konoha. I'm proposing that we partner up to annihilate the remaining Uchiha. To kill all of them."

"That's a strange goal, especially since you sound as if you despise me."

"I do. You've poisoned what was once a pure clan. You've planted the seeds of chaos, and they are blooming in my father and other members of the clan. I would try and kill you right now if I could, but you are a necessary ally. I cannot take down the entire clan by myself... so I figured I would seek another man that hated the Uchiha. A man betrayed by them long ago."

I thought about his offer. I realized that if the entire clan was wiped out, I could take all of the Sharingan from their corpses. The experiments I could perform on them... they would certainly make me stronger and more knowledgeable.

"But I convinced Fugaku to plan a coup d'état. Konoha is discriminating against the Uchiha, after all. So wouldn't I be helping Konoha by assisting you? You're wearing ANBU attire... is this a black op you've been put on? Konoha knows they're in trouble, don't they? So they send you to wipe out your entire clan. What sick individuals."

I saw the cold look on his face falter for a moment into pure, unbridled rage. Itachi charged towards me and grabbed the scruff of my robes. He stared into the eyehole of my mask, his Sharingan morphing into Mangekyo Sharingan.

"I have already committed the ultimate sin, Madara. While it is true that Konoha has assigned me to end the uprisings before they start, I harbor a hatred for the Uchiha, as you can see in these eyes. And you will assist me, whether you like it or not."

"Big words from a young sapling. But don't worry; I will help you. Only on one condition."

"If you are making a condition, then I must as well."

I sighed, "Fine. My condition is that I want access to all of the Sharingan of the dead Uchiha. Corpses don't need their eyes anymore, and I wish to experiment on the Sharingan."

I saw the emotionless look on Itachi's face slightly falter once more. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and exhaled slowly.

"My condition is that you must not lay hands on Konoha ever again," he said.

"Very well," I said, a slight smile under my mask. I was not lying to him; I was just manipulating the wording he used. Technically, I never have attacked Konoha. It was the Kyuubi and my army of zombies. And I don't need to attack Konoha in the future: Akatsuki will accomplish that for me.

"Good. If you break that promise, then I will seek you out, and I will kill you," Itachi said coldly, "Meet me in the Uchiha district at midnight."

I waited a bit after Itachi left and finished up what I was doing before heading for Konoha. It was night by the time I arrived, and I sneaked in as I always did: by use of my invisibility jutsu. After darting around town, I found the area where the Uchiha clan had been relocated. As I entered the district, I removed my shroud of invisibility.

"You're a bit early, Madara," I heard an unfamiliar voice proclaim. I turned towards the direction of the noise to see an older man with black shaggy hair and a small X-shaped scar on his chin. He was leaning on a cane and his countenance was very calm.

"Who are you? Did Itachi set me up?" I demanded.

"Don't worry, Madara; Itachi has not deceived you," the man said. I growled. How did he know who I was?

"How do you know I am Madara?" I asked.

"Let's just say that a snake told me."

"Orochimaru?"

"...This is not what I came here to discuss. I am striking a bargain with you. Of course, you have no choice in the matter, but my demands are simple."

I frowned, "What is it?"

"You see, I am a member of the council. I could easily report the details of this massacre to the others. Of course, they have ordered the massacre, but they do not know that Madara is an accomplice of Itachi."

"How do you know this if Itachi hasn't ratted me out?" I asked in a quiet roar.

"I have eyes and ears everywhere, Madara. Even where you would least expect it. As for my bargain, I simply ask for a few Sharingan from the bodies of these Uchiha. Not many; just ten or so. Is that a reasonable exchange for keeping your identity secret for a longer period of time? Or... would you rather I reveal everything? Your history with the Mist, the Rain, the Sun. I know it all, Madara," he said, his mouth turning into a wicked smile during his last sentence.

I had no choice. I couldn't let all of that information leak, "Very well... now get out of here."

"It was a pleasure doing business with you, Madara," the man said as he vanished. I balled my hand into a tight fist as I held back my anger. I waited in the area for a few minutes, and then Itachi showed up.

We silently began the slaughter. I was swift and silent with my killing skills, and for every Uchiha I killed, I plucked out their eyes and summoned them to a refrigeration unit I had set up in my house. After about an hour, I bailed out of there before I had the chance to be discovered, leaving Itachi to finish the job, as well as a few Sharingan behind for that old man.

When I returned back to my home, I was amazed at the number of Sharingan I had looted. There were easily over a hundred! I began making preservation fluid so I could keep them in jars... and I would need a new home to store all of these...

---

Eleven years had passed since the Uchiha Massacre, and it was now the present time. In those eleven years, I had perfected every possibility of the Yin Release. My mastery over souls was complete, and my other jutsu had been perfected, as well. I had even taken some lengths to ensure that I would remain alive, even in the off-chance that I would be killed. One of these methods included resurrecting a vessel that I placed in the Akatsuki to keep an eye on it.

And the reports I receive from the unknowing vessel of mine are unsettling. There is a new member in the Akatsuki that is using my title. I suspected that it was Reiko, finally emerging from the shadows she hid in for twenty years.

My suspicions would not be confirmed until I sensed my weakest zombie jutsu being used. My plan had been a success in regards to Reiko! I had successfully festered her hatred to the point that she unleashed it against the world! But now I had to finish what she survived two decades ago. She most likely knows all about me, and she must also be punished for using my title. And, most of all, for setting in motion the destruction of a village that was mine to vanquish.

But there was another reason I was heading towards Konoha. For some time, I had been developing my own plan for world domination... and I think now is the perfect time to achieve it. The end of days will usher forth my new world!

---

Author's Note: If Kishimoto reveals something that makes any part of this chapter difficult to work around upon editing it to match said revelations (unless I can work around them in a different way, such as the tailed beasts), I will not be a happy person. And since with the recent (as of Janurary 26) spoilers of chapter 525, he has revealed things that have required me to edit small parts of the chapter. So I shall simply make a little changelog here of what I have edited, and when.

01/26/11: Changed Onoki's Dust Release story to fit the revealing that the Dust Release is composed of three elements, not two as I had originally suspected. The Second Mizukage was revealed, and he certainly isn't the age of my Second Mizukage, so I fixed that up. Taro is now a Village Ruler of sorts that advised the Second Mizukage, his elder brother. When the Second Mizukage died, he assumed control over the village, but was never officially a Kage. For all intents and purposes, he is considered one by the village and the rest of the world. The part of chapter 8 where Gaara talks to the other Kages has been slightly edited to reflect this.

09/21/11: The Second Mizukage is of the Houzuki clan, so Taro and he are now spiritual brothers.

5/25/12: So canon Izanami is rather different than Madara's Izanami, but only in execution: the concept is the same. But Izanami's sole reason for existing in the manga makes little sense (unless the Uchiha were a clan full of blind people) so I'll just ignore it.

9/25/13: I've been ignoring most of the revelations in canon, because they're worse than mine (and awful) and I refuse to adapt to them. But this chapter showed the first Kages, and I liked the Mizukage's design. Unfortunately, there was little way to work him in other than a brief mention. If Madara never stepped in, he would have become Mizukage... but unfortunately for this alternate timeline, he did.