Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I don't own One Piece, Naruto, or Heroes

Madara chuckled to himself. He had gained an excellent specimen for his first experiment in this new world, as the man's powers were logia, allowing him to turn into plants, and manipulate them. It reminded Madara of Hashirama's power, who he had always wanted on his workbench, but never could because of his promise to Izuna.

The man had put up a good fight, until Madara had used his first genjutsu. These people were completely helpless against that, and the man had succumbed to the illusion Madara had originally planned as a temporary distraction.

Still, he currently lacked a few things for his experiments, namely a lab, equipment and a certain solution. So he had to improvise. He had locked the marine into a trance so deep that the man was practically brain-dead, which allowed him to bypass the restriction on living things. Humans normally couldn't be sealed into scrolls, because the chakra interfered with the stability of the artificial dimension, despite the fact that no time passed in said dimension. But with the brain-activity at zero, there was no mental energy, meaning that there was no chakra. This method was accepted for prisoners, but not advised for ambushes, as awakening from such an experience was extremely disorienting. But as Madara had no intention of allowing his enemy to ever wake again, the point was moot.

That had been the easy part.

The difficult part was getting to Ohara. Crossing the continent at full ninja-speed had taken more than a week, and then he faced the problem that he didn't know much about navigation. In the end, he ran over water to the nearest island, where, after pickpocketing a sizable fortune, making liberate use of the henge, a jutsu he had once thought useless, and a little bit of Izuna's hypnosis, he managed to get himself to the island closest to Ohara. From there he only had to keep the rough direction, as he was ensured that the giant tree was almost impossible to miss.

And it was. He reached the island just before dawn, exactly five weeks after burning down Mariejois, and managed to infiltrate without being seen. He then had to decide on a henge-disguise. He decided to shorten his hair until it barely reached his shoulders, straightening it out while changing it's color to copper and pulling it in a ponytail. His armor was replaced by simple clothes, brown pants, a blue shirt and boots. His eyes turned a vivid amethyst, while his face widened a little more, losing it's aristocratic features, giving him more of a rugged good look. To top it off, a short beard covered his jaw, reaching above his lips. Nothing dramatic, just the look of someone who hadn't shaved in a few days, or rather chose not to shave. Altogether, he would probably turn a few heads, but less than if he walked in his real form, even in the unlikely case that news of his deeds in Mariejois hadn't spread yet. Still, he looked forward to what he could learn here.

-0-

He had entered the village, pretending to have arrived with a boat that had conveniently come by this morning to bring some supplies and books. Altogether, this was a peaceful town, nothing like his home, where every house was built with defense in mind, and battle was a common occurrence. The people were mostly friendly, giving short nods, which he answered alike. The biggest surprise was when he found a board showing wanted-posters, and found a picture of his real appearance.

'When was that taken?' He wondered, before whistling at the bounty. 'That's a lot. I'm almost tempted to turn myself in for that amount.' He mentally joked, before turning to the nearest passerby, a portly woman with curly reddish hair. For some reason, Madara instantly disliked her. "Excuse me, I am unfamiliar with your beautiful island, and since I am working on a problem, a friend suggested the Oharan library. Unfortunately he forgot to tell me what it looked like." He really had no idea, and if the stuff was as important as the book he'd read made it out to be, then it might be underground.

The woman frowned. "You want to go there, where those oddballs are? I mean, of course, the library of Ohara is famous around the world, so you've come to the right place. It's carved into the Tree of Knowledge, just follow that road, you can't miss it."

Madara nodded his head. "My gratitude."

With that, he left, heading towards knowledge. After all, if one doesn't know how it was built, he cannot truly fathom how and why it stands.

-0-

Meanwhile, in Marine-Headquarters, another discussion about the mysterious Madara had errupted.

Sengoku walked up and down his new office, looking at Tsuru. "It has been more than a month now, and we still don't have a single clue as to where this Madara could be! The Gorousei are already furious with the loss of Mariejois. Even if the new structure is twice as grand as the old one, the World Government has been humiliated. The Holy Land of Mariejois was the symbol of the World Government for over 800 years, and now it's gone. Not just the structure, but we can't even rebuild it, as the very ground it stood on is gone. And the culprit has up and vanished, so retribution is not an option. We have to bear the humiliation that a single man infiltrated Mariejois, killed numerous Tenryuubito, destroyed the Mariejois beyond any salvage, and vanished into the mist. The only good news is that the remaining Tenryuubito have not been attacked, though that may be because that bastard wants us to drop our guard."

Tsuru nodded. "Tiger Fisher's attack would have been enough of a scandal, but that man throws the world into chaos. Mariejois was not only a symbol, it was a meeting-place for kings, and residence for our most important, namely the Tenryuubito and the Gorousei, latter of which have stationed themselves here."

Sengoku dropped into his seat. "And worst of all, we have no idea what power this Madara has. The destruction of Mariejois would suggest a fire-based fruit, though the attack on vice-admiral Sakazuki would suggest a water-fruit, which would be impossible since water is the weakness of all devil-fruits, and it would be a paradox. Not to mention that witnesses reported that the Tenryuubito were killed by giant arrows that vanished a moment later. What fruit could grant such powers?"

Tsuru sighed. "We know nothing of him. We don't even know enough to give him a codename, as there is nothing precise to set him apart."

That was true. They had sought a name, and though many popped up, nothing that really fitted. The first suggestion had been Godslayer, since he murdered the Tenryuubito, who were divine by the definition of the World Government, but voices had risen that such a title would perhaps sound too grand. Hell's Archer had come up, but with a Kitetsu of the first Generation, assuming it didn't kill him, that would soon no longer fit, as only few would buy a cursed item. Someone had suggested antichrist, after a figure out of a religion that prospered in some countries, but the reference was too obscure. Tsuru had in frustration suggested enigma, just to end the meeting, and it actually was in the race. Still, they had more pressing worries than a title, considering the only title they really wanted Madara to have was 'Madara the corpse'.

"The Marine is currently on red alert. The Buster Call is still blocked, and I was told that that won't change until we're certain Madara is not after the Tenryuubito, which they will be only after at least two more months, and even then it will be limited to operations with the World Government."

Tsuru rubbed the bridge of her nose. "That man is just a giant complication given human form."

-0-

Madara knocked on the door in the tree. He found it odd that the people had cut away at the lower bark, as that would weaken the stability, though the base was still gigantic. When the door opened, he was momentarily taken aback.

The man who opened had his hair and beard styled so that it looked like a three-leaved clover. What the hell. "Good morning." The man spoke. "My name is professor Clover, how can I help you?"

The only thought that went through Madara's head was 'You're shitting me. Clover? Are you for real?' Still, he cleared his throat. "Good morning. My name... is Izuna Nara. You see, I was born far away, and one day realized that I knew little about this world, so I decided to travel. I was told that this was the greatest of all libraries, especially in history, so..."

Professor Clover smiled. "So you came here. Quite understandable my boy, come right in."

Madara entered, and whistled. "Color me impressed."

Clover nodded. "Yes, the library is our heart and soul. You can take any book you want, though please don't leave the library with them. They're ordered in three layers. First, here are the more common books, which you can freely read. The further you go in, and up, the rarer the texts become, and I ask you that if you want to read anything from category III or higher, please consult one of our scholars, as we have to supervise you to ensure that the text isn't damaged. The second distinction is, of course, by topic, while in the topics, the books are ordered alphabetically. We ask that you put a book back where you got it from, unless you notice it was misplaced. Any questions so far?"

Madara looked around. "Just two. How long is the library open, and where can one wash his hands to continue reading after a meal?"

Clover laughed. "A man after my own heart. The library is open around the clock, as there are always scholars working, of course different ones, but all the same. As for washing hands, we have bathrooms."

Madara rubbed his hands, then showing them to prove they were clean. "Do you mind if I start now?"

Clover laughed. "Of course not Izuna, help yourself. I'll pass by sometime to see how you're doing."

Madara nodded, and went to the first bookshelf. Category I, Biology, A-C. He pulled out a few books, and started reading.

-0-

A few hours later, Professor Clover decided to check up on the man that had come. He had halfway expected him to be gone, bored by all the reading, but he was still sitting there, two orderly piles of books framing him. He glanced at the titles, and found they were, while still biology, from the lower half of shelf D-F. Also, Izuna seemed to be looking for something, as he only scanned the pages for a second or two, before flipping to the next page. He walked down to him. "Are you looking for anything in particular?" He asked.

Izuna shook his head. "Not really. I'm more interested in general information."

Clover nodded. "But why are you only skimming over the books?"

"What?" Izuna asked, before he had an epiphany. "Of course, you couldn't have known. You see, I was born with a rather unusual gift, if I do say so myself. I have a photographic memory, which allows me to read faster than normal."

Clover's brows raised. "Really? Do you mind if I test that?"

Izuna shrugged. "Please. The pile to my right is the books I've already read."

Clover picked one from the middle, and opened it. "Please recite the text on page 74, starting at the 29th word."

Izuna looked at the title and frowned. "...to remember that, while most of these creatures are harmless, there exists a sub-species, identified by the red stripe on its head, that contains a deadly poison which dissolves tissue, and is highly aggressive. The only known antidote it the fruit of the curtola-tree, which these predatory birds must eat to prevent their own poison from killing them. This thankfully flightless subspecies is therefor only found in areas which support the growth of..."

Clover's eyes had widened as Izuna word for word recited 'Poisonous Creatures of the North Blue', by Olf Cortner. "That's enough, thank you. What an amazing gift."

Izuna, or rather Madara, smiled. 'Yes, the Sharingan is a wonderful tool.' Loud he only replied "Thank you."

Clover smiled at him. "So how long do you intend to stay on Ohara?"

Izuna shrugged. "I have a lot of time, so probably as long as I can. Either when I read every book, or when you get tired of me and kick me out." The last part was spoken in a humored tone, and Clover laughed.

"Far be it, Izuna my boy! It's good that there are still those that seek knowledge in this world. I'm old, and most of my colleagues are also at an advanced age. Every young man and woman who willingly seeks knowledge warms our hearts, as it shows us that our work will continue even after we have passed."

Izuna frowned. "Now now, it's a little early for such talks, professor. You still have your best years ahead of you."

Now Clover really laughed, and patted his back, Madara being grateful that the henge was solid. "If you say so, my boy. But as I said before, call us if you want to read rarer and more valuable texts."

Izuna smiled. "I will." With that, he turned back to the book.

-0-

Secretly Madara had begun to wonder what was wrong with him. He had never been this giddy or friendly before. He pondered this newest change in personality, and finally came up with an explanation. It was because he was free.

Back in his world, there had always been pressure and expectations on him. Pressure of being a member of the Uchiha-clan, having to meet high expectations the moment he learned to walk, pressure of being the head of such a powerful clan, then of being a founder, and finally, of being the only one who could put a stop to Hashirama's madness. There had always been this weight on his shoulders, forcing him to be cold, supreme and emotionless.

Here in this world, nobody had known him, nobody could pressure him. Of course, there was a bounty on his head, but while some may expect different things from him, their thoughts were without consequence for Madara. He was not accountable to anyone but himself, he owed nobody but himself. All the things that had weighed him down back home, here, they were nothing. Nobody could demand anything from him, and nobody had a right to expect things from him. There were no blood-feuds to settle, no bitter enemy that had to be stopped, the only thing that was here was Madara, and what he wanted to do.

Madara had, in his entire life, never played around, or really enjoyed something, but here, there was an entire world to explore, and nobody to tell him what to do. He chuckled.

"This is certainly new." Madara muttered to himself. He smiled. "Well, it might be fun."

-0-

Madara stayed for two months, reading and expanding his knowledge. The library had five rarity-grades, and he had read everything up to Category IV, though a few works might have slipped past him, and Category IV still had half its content for Madara to read. The scholars liked him, as he not just blindly believed what he read, but asked questions and developed his own ideas. In fact, they had allowed him to stay in the library hours after the sun went down, and most scholars slept.

In one of those occasions, he finally managed to sneak into the hidden room he had noticed on his first day, without anyone noticing. He found a room, thankfully empty, which had no books in it. Instead, there were handwritten papers spread all over, and a giant square rock with odd carvings. Madara made a few Kage Bunshins to read the texts, and memorized the rock. Then he left and meditated, preparing for the moment that the clones would dispel and send back the information they had gathered. Of course, only one dispelled every fifteen seconds, to prevent him from getting migraine.

He had read about the Void Century before, but the knowledge and theories the Oharans had developed were way beyond anything else. What they were doing warranted their executions.

Madara had to laugh when he realized this. They were acting so similar to himself back then, figuring things out, damning the consequences. It was how he had researched.

On that note, he had finally found a place where he could do what he had wanted to do with the plant-man. He had been surprised when the lower brainstem turned into plant, allowing him to remove the brain from the head without severing the connection to the body, aka the oxygen-supply. This was awesome. While he studied the brain, the veins around his eyes bulging, he remembered how it had started.

-0-

Flashback

Izuna was worried. Madara had grown odd over the last year. He had locked himself in his lab, occasionally taken defeated enemies, delivering their bodies a few days later. Finally, he decided to visit his brother's lair.

Izuna was almost physically ill when he saw the inside of Madara's room. It was tiled, giving more the look of a laboratory. On a shelf were brains in tagged jars, though Izuna didn't bother reading them. In front of a lone desk, his brother was sitting, looking horrible. He had rings around his eyes, and he obviously hadn't washed for a few days. Izuna was sure that if Madara had facial hair aside from his eyebrows, they would show he hadn't shaven either. He was wearing a white coat, stained with blood.

"Madara? What are you doing?" He demanded.

Madara looked up. "Izuna. I don't recall giving you permission to enter. But no matter. What I'm doing here Izuna, is researching kekkei genkai. What allows them to work?"

Izuna stared at his brother. "It's blood, genetic abnormalities, what else."

Madara pointed at him. "Exactly, what else? You see, it is an interesting fact that while we can identify individuals by genetic traces, but not a single test has ever been able to show if someone had a kekkei genkai. We can prove that they belong to a clan, but what is responsible for the fact that some members have kekkei genkai and other members don't? And where lie the origins of kekkei genkai? Every chromosome is checked, every part of the DNA deciphered, yet the nature of these powers elude us. I have developed a theory."

Izuna looked at his brother, who seemed to be the embodiment of a mad scientist right now. "What is your theory?" He asked.

Madara laughed. "It's simple. Kekkei genkai is a completely wrong term. It has nothing to do with our blood. The real secret," He tapped his forehead "is right here. Kekkei genkai are an abnormality in the process of the mind. Don't you see Izuna? All humans have the potential for all kekkei genkai of the world in them, and likely countless more, but our brain doesn't allow us to function in a way to activate them. Those that have kekkei genkai's are not granted with a different body by biology, they were born with a defect that allows their brain to work in ways that a normal brain doesn't, which coincidentally matches the requirement for a specific ability. This ability allows him to perform better, which according to biology allows the individual to be more successful in spawning offspring that inherit the defect, spreading the bloodline. Of course such a power may be prone to change, how else did our Sharingan come out of the Sage's Rinnegan? His wife's genes altered the brain of the child, altering its powers. Clans intermarry because the genes of outsiders could blur their genes, robbing the child of the bloodline, so it is forbidden, even if new bloodlines could be found by that. And it's not just biology. We can alter our own brain-pattern to awaken more bloodlines, or lose what we have. Humans change, and those changes can effect kekkei genkai. There were traumatized fighters who no longer could use their limit, even after their trauma was over. The doctors say that they are subconsciously blocking their abilities, but I say that what they went through changed the working of their brains, and they are simply no longer able to utilize their abilities."

Izuna stared at his brother. In a odd way, his words made sense. But Madara wasn't done.

"But the opposite can also happen. You and I are the best examples. We killed our best friends on accident. This traumatization has caused an alteration in our brains, which allowed us to unlock a new bloodline very similar to our original one."

Izuna's eyes widened. "The Mangekyo? You're telling me that you think the Mangekyo is different from the Sharingan, and only has similar abilities? So you're saying that it would be possible for a clan with Mangekyos but no Sharingan to exist somewhere?"

Madara nodded. "Yes. Granted, the odds are small, but it is possible. I am trying to find these alterations. A normal Sharingan would not do it, but the Mangekyo has increased abilities for analysis. It took over two years, but I now know how a brain that can activate no ability works, so the groundwork is done. I can finally proceed to learning how kekkei genkai work."

Izuna looked at him. "What for?"

Madara smiled. "Thoughts, the very function of our mind and body, is nothing but the transmission of electrical signals. Once I find out how..." Instead of continuing, Madara channeled Lightning-chakra into his hand, letting sparks dance through his fingers.

Izuna stared. "You think you can forcefully seal or activate kekkei genkai?" He asked in disbelief.

Mad laughter escaped Madara's lips. "Exactly! It will take work though. Would you mind leaving me alone for now?"

Izuna tiredly shook his head, retreating out of the room. He had to report this to father. Madara was destroying himself, and the clan-head would surely stop him.

-0-

"What do you mean you will let this go on?"

Izuna's father sighed. "Understand, Madara's work is important. If it succeeds, then we may have a way to gain Mangekyo-wielders without having to murder. We may even regain the Rinnegan, which was lost ever since the Sage of the Six Paths."

Izuna growled. "If you're that desperate for it, why don't you try breeding it with the Senju? They have the other half of the Sage's DNA, after all. My brother is destroying himself with that work, have you even seen him?"

"IZUNA, WATCH YOUR TONGUE!" His father shouted, enraged.

Izuna realized he was out of line. "I apologize father, but what Madara is doing is not good for him. Even if his work would work, if he kills himself over it, all our clan will have is one less Mangekyo. He doesn't wash, he barely eats, I'm uncertain if he even sleeps. It's not healthy."

That argument gave pause. Of course, the results of Madara's work could make the Uchiha great, but losing Madara would be a harsh blow.

After five minutes of silence, he finally nodded. "Izuna, inform your brother that he is to dine with the family at least five times a week, that he is to eat when he is brought food, to ensure that he is presentable, and that he sleeps at least six hours every night."

Izuna's fist clenched. This was not what he was hoping for, but he had to deal with it for now. "Yes father."

-0-

Madara had not been happy, but he obeyed the command his father had given. Still, Izuna's worry increased rather than ease. After a few months, he entered Madara's room once more, only to find his brother weighing a brain in his hands, looking at it from all sides.

"There's something missing." Muttered Madara. "I know I'm close. This should do it." With that, he put the brain back into the jar, floated two drops with chakra, and dripped something into his eyes.

"Madara, what are you doing?" Izuna demanded.

"The Byakugan. It should be simple, as all it allows you to do is perceive light invisible to a normal human's eye. But it seems that I've underestimated it's complication. There seems to actually be a slight anomaly in the makeup of their eyes. But now, I should be able to..."

Izuna's eyes widened. "You injected yourself with Hyuuga-DNA? Are you insane? That has been tried before, and all lost their Sharingan without getting anything, even at only 0.05 milligram!"

Madara absentmindedly shook his head. "Don't worry, I used much less. It shouldn't really effect anything, it should merely make the eye more sensitive to light it normally can't perceive."

"How much was it?" Izuna demanded.

Madara shrugged. "4.7 nanogram. The rest was merely a eye-relaxant. I sometimes get the feeling that something's off with my vision, and it helps."

Izuna had to admit that that was really wasn't much. Still... He noticed another set of drops, probably a spare, and made a decision. Using chakra, he pulled the drops up.

Madara froze. "Izuna, what are you doing?" Izuna didn't answer. Instead, he sent the drops into his open eyes. Madara tried to stop him. "Izuna, NO!" But it was too late. "What have you done?"

Izuna looked at his brother. "I am tired of seeing you decompose like this brother. I may not be the leader of the Uchiha-clan, but I expressly forbid you any self-experimentation. I will do anything that you do to yourself to myself if you don't stop it."

Madara looked at his brother, then he sighed. "Alright Izuna, you win. I'm not going to use myself as a guinea-pig anymore."

Izuna smiled sadly. He knew that it would take more to stop his brother.

-0-

A few months later, Madara laughed out loud. It had finally worked! Granted, it was a very inferior version of the Byakugan, but now, if he absolutely concentrated on a object for a few minutes, he could see through it, layer for layer. It wasn't much, but Madara was working from scratch, so it was a first success. One that would make the future study much easier. If he now could scan the brain layer for layer without damaging it, then perhaps the assimilation would go from taking months to taking days.

However, before he could work any further, he was called to battle.

Where both he and Izuna found out that their eyes degenerated with usage of the Mangekyo's abilities. Soon after Izuna learned that he had cancer. Three days later, Madara was knocked unconscious after refusing to be implanted with his brother's eyes.

After he woke up, finding the world suddenly too clear, he rushed to Izuna, only to learn that his brother was laying on his deathbed.

-0-

Madara barged into the room. "Izuna, what have you done?"

His brother, now blind, smiled weakly. "What was necessary. I am dying Madara, and the Mangekyo cannot be lost, not now." He grimaced, before speaking again. "I don't have much time left Madara, so promise me one thing."

Madara looked at his brother. "Anything."

"Promise me Madara, from brother to brother, that as long as you live in this world, you will never again do one of those experiments."

Madara bit his lip. All he had worked for, he was just supposed to give up? For what?

For his brother. "I promise."

Izuna smiled. "Thank you, bro...the..." He was dead.

-0-

The clan had urged him to continue, but Madara, bound by the oath he had given his dying brother, had said that it was enough, and sent all the things he had used in his work to his private dimension, where it would be safe from all attempts to reconstruct his work, not that it would work.

Looking back, that was probably one of the reason the clan had betrayed him.

End of Flashback

-0-

Madara sighed. Back in those days he really had been obsessed. It had gone so far that, after picking apart the brains of Senju and even some Uchiha that had fallen in battle, so it would be a Sharingan and not a Mangekyo, he had grabbed a no-name mother and child, and used Lightning-chakra to alter their brainpattern into both Uchiha and Senju, just to see if it really created the Rinnegan. The woman hadn't taken it, he pattern fixing itself after a few hours, but the infant, less than a day old, had accepted the alterations, although nothing had come out of it. Madara suspected that there was a condition for the activation, but the odds that an infant would get to meet them before at least five years old was rather small, and Madara had lost sight of the little girl in the endless fighting. Last he heard they were heading to Ame, but after his brother's death, he had lost interest in his research. If the Rinnegan awakened he might have paid a visit, but the fights and then Hashirama's ploy had kept him busy.

However, in this world, while there were no bloodlines, his research could continue. Not in the obsessed way that it had before, he owed that much to Izuna, but he had a theory about Devil-fruits.

It was simply not possible that a fruit altered the entire body in less than twenty seconds. For a complete renewal of the body, years would be needed, which had left Madara to wonder what, since he didn't believe in devils, could cause such changes, and he had come to a conclusion.

Devil-fruits contained neurotoxins. They damaged the brain in specific ways, which caused an alteration in the brain that in turn awakened specific abilities. The disability to swim was likely a result of the nerve-damage, destroying the portion of the brain that held all knowledge of how to stay afloat, or perhaps the toxin simply caused the body to slacken when submerged. However, it likely only had a short lifespan outside its fruit, so the toxin decomposed when subjected to fresh air. The reason that one bite out of a fruit caused the next one that bit off to not be affected was likely that it only lasted a few seconds in fresh air before decomposing in a chain-reaction.

Essentially, all who ate such a fruit poisoned themselves, the poisons altering their brains, though every type of fruit contained a slightly different toxin. And while he didn't buy the whole 'only one fruit exists at a time and until the one who ate it died, there will be no new one', he could believe that those fruits grew very slowly, perhaps with only one every fifty, or even hundred years.

To his joy, it not only turned out that he was correct, but that his Eternal Mangekyo, a ability that had awoken after the trauma of finding out that one had his brother's organs, it didn't have to be the eyes, and replaced his Mangekyo, was even better at understanding than his old eyes, and what he suspected to take days took less than ten minutes to comprehend. Of course, altering his brainpattern from default to plant took exactly fifteen seconds, and again required absolute concentration, just as changing it back did.

It was a tricky procedure, and a mistake could easily have very uncomfortable consequences, but in the end, a success was a success.

-0-

Sengoku sighed. The three months had passed, and Madara had not made a single appearance. There was not even a rumor about his whereabouts, and while that was worrying in and of itself, it truly seemed that Madara had no further interest in the Tenryuubito.

So the world government had informed them that the Buster Call was now restricted instead of blocked, and that one should be prepared for Ohara. It would take exactly one week until the ships were ready and floating at Ohara's coast.

Sengoku prayed that nothing went wrong.

-0-

Another interesting meeting Madara had was with a little girl that lived on the island. She was cute, with black hair, tanned skin, and blue eyes, and apparently she was quite lonely. Madara had first met her under quite unusual circumstances.

-0-

Madara had to on occasion leave the library, mainly to buy food. On one of his trips back, he noticed a quartet of kids running in a direction, and curious, decided to follow them.

He found them in front of a clearing, observing another girl, who seemed to be reading. He dimly recalled seeing her a few times in the library, but aside from that, he knew nothing of her. Then he noticed that the other kids were picking up rocks, and his eyes narrowed when they threw them.

"Monster, monster." One called, while another shouted "Why don't you just die, nobody misses you anyways!"

Okay, that was enough. Madara approached the children, but it seemed the girl could fend for herself. At first he thought her hand was stretching, then he saw that hands were sprouting, a new one out of the palm of the one before it, until they bonked the closest brat, apparently the leader, on the head.

"Ah, the monster's attacking!" One cried out, and they spun around... only to be face to stomach with Madara.

Said man looked down on them. "Throwing rocks. Really now. If you were my children, I'd give you all a good smack for this. You don't just throw rocks at others."

"Who cares, she's a monster." The girl of the group called out.

Madara looked to the attacked girl, who looked almost confused that someone would take her side. "You there, what's your name?"

"Me?" the girl asked. "I'm Robin. Nico Robin."

Madara gave her a friendly smile. "Well then Robin, could you look after my shopping?" He nodded towards his bags "seeing that I have my hands full with these rascals." And really, two kids each were hanging from his outstretched arms.

Madara looked at them. "So, you think throwing rocks at others is fun, huh? Maybe we should let Robin try that game, see how she likes it."

"That's different. Robin's a monster!" The boy declared.

Madara looked at them. "She ate a Devil-fruit, that's all. Many others did too. Many marines, and many pirates. What do you think will happen if they here you call them monsters? I know of a vice-admiral that can turn into lava, that's monstrous. Will you throw rocks at him too? I warn you beforehand, he has very little patience for such things."

The kids shook their heads. Madara snorted. "Didn't think so. Really, four of you must gather so you're brave enough to attack one girl, what heroes. You should cool your tempers, but you probably can't even swim."

Now the kids were upset. "What?" "Of course we can swim!" "We're not babies!"

Madara looked at them, playing shocked. "So all four of you can swim."

Four heads nodded.

"You are all really good swimmers?"

They laughed. "Of course! We're the best of our age, not like the monster."

Madara's grin turned evil. "Good, then I won't have a guilty conscience when I do this."

They hadn't noticed, but Madara had carried them to a shore while talking, so he was now standing over a cliff, dropping nine feet before reaching the water, which was fairly deep. Madara had a few clones mentally map out the island beforehand, so he knew the route. With those words, he tossed the children over the edge, and into the water.

He wasn't worried, thirty feet away was a beach that they could climb from. He turned to Robin. "I'm pretty sure I've seen you a few times in the library. So, what are you interested in?"

Robin happily talked about her interest in archeology, and Madara was impressed by the girl's knowledge.

After they said their goodbyes, Madara looked out to the ocean. Something was coming, he could feel that in his bones. His old friends, fire and death, would soon come over this land to claim it. And he wasn't even done with the library yet.

Chapter 4 is finished. A little later than some might have hoped, especially with me making that blunder and updating the wrong story. I still don't know how that happened. In return, I wrote a slightly longer chapter.

Well, I guess this makes it clear. I have given Madara Sylar's ability to gain the powers of others by analyzing their brains. I have given a reason for why this works, and a theory about both Devil-fruits and kekkei genkai, which would match with the latest twist Kishimoto came up with, Madara claiming to have given the Rinnegan to Nagato. To those who are wondering, the infant was Nagato's mother. Anyways, Madara's ability is not absolute. First of all, he needs time to alter his brainpattern to allow him to use the taken ability without losing his Eternal Mangekyo, and he is a sitting duck in the meantime. Also, he needs to practice in order to be able to perfectly use the ability, so unlike Sylar, he doesn't instantly have it down. At the current point, he can only use one fruit-power at a time, and changing between powers takes as long as activating them does. And no, Madara does not have Sylar's insane hunger for more powers, and he definitely won't cut Robin open.

Oh, and logia-users can survive the operation, and a few paramecias might as well, like Luffy or Buggy, not that I'm saying either will be used.

Madara will never actually eat a Devil-fruit, as he feels that the drawbacks definitely don't outweigh the glaring weaknesses.

Regarding Madara's crew, I haven't decided on all members, though it will be a mix out of canon-characters and at least one OC that I decided on, though I'm generally careful with those, as they can easily destroy whole stories when not controlled. And no, Robin won't be a member. She'll join Luffy's crew. I just like her there.

Oh, and Madara's personality may be a bit unstable in the beginning, him shifting from somber to giddy in moments. That is because he for the first time is really free from all, and doesn't know how to react to the situation yet.

Another thing I'm having trouble on is deciding Madara's nickname. Antichrist was tempting, but the only nun I saw so far in OP was a bounty-hunter, so I'm not sure how far Christianity has spread. In the end, the man is just too versatile, and with the stealing of abilities, will become even more so, so I ask this here. Do you have a suggestion for Madara's nickname?

Oh, and someone criticized Madara using violence against Charloss. It is true that in our society, violence is generally a sign of helplessness, commonly used when one runs out of arguments, but please remember that Madara was born in a world that was in constant conflict, and into a clan that trained its members to be killers from childhood. Physical punishment is not drastic, it is actually a very likely statement to say that the Uchiha-clan and most other clans used physical punishment to discipline their younger members, the Hyuuga still do! So Madara resorting to violence would only be him acting on the only basis of child-raising that he himself knew. If anyone watched Kingdom of Heaven, there is a very practical example in it. "That is your vow." SLAP "And that is so you don't forget it."

And yes, Madara is out of character. Madara's character is that of an evil megalomaniac, not exactly hero-material. So I altered his personality, since canon-Madara would be more likely to join up with 'my' Hashirama than fight him, at least until the bijuu are gathered.

As for Madara's speech towards the boy, I came up with that myself, and I actually believe that. If you point a lethal weapon at someone, then the gloves are off, no matter who you are.

And to what FTFCHRIS said, point taken, I'll reconsider, though that doesn't necessarily change the decision. Point is, he doesn't have it right now.

Now, to answer a few questions.

Q: Will Madara meet Gol D. Roger?
A: No, Roger has been executed nine years before Madara's arrival. And for the last time, YES, I moved Ohara's destruction by seven years, it was intentional!

Q: Will Madara meet Luffy?
A: The odds are very high, more I won't say at this point

Q: Is the OP-World the future/past of Madara's world?
A: I'm leaning towards no. For one thing, that would mean Madara would break his promise, and that talent will cause too much terror to not be used, and also, both the animal/plant-life and the geography are just too different. I reserve the right to change my mind, but until further notice, Madara stranded in a different world, not a different time.

Well, that's all for now,

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