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"What an annoying brat."
This was Uchiha Madara's first impression of the young girl in front of him after he opened his eyes.
However...
Uchiha Madara slowly lifted his eyelids, and the pupils of his slightly cloudy eyes rotated. His originally dark eyes transformed into a pair of crimson Sharingan.
He looked at the young girl before him.
In the Sharingan's vision, the young girl, who otherwise seemed unremarkable except for being somewhat pretty, had a substantial, dark aura coalescing behind her. Strands of it, like ribbons, tightly wrapped around her body, suspended in the air.
Uchiha Madara, who had fully experienced the process of evolving his Eternal Mangekyo into the Rinnegan, could even claim to be the person who understood 'pupil power' the most in the entire Ninja World. Naturally, he recognized it at a glance.
"Is it… all Mangekyo pupil power?"
"The once prosperous Uchiha Clan has truly produced an extraordinary monster."
He muttered slowly, his gaze finally falling upon the child before him.
"Are you 'Uchiha Hikari'?"
"Not bad."
However, this name instantly angered the seemingly easy-to-bully young girl, as if it had hit a sore spot:
"I'm not Hikari!"
"Uchiha Hikari, that's my name."
Perhaps it was the shaping of different experiences after the seal was released, but Uchiha Hikari in this timeline was far more vibrant than in the other timeline—or perhaps, it was because she felt and saw the path to achieving 'love'.
For this reason, she valued her 'existence' exceptionally.
Coupled with her inherent dislike for Uchiha Clan members, seeing that the so-called leader who wanted to 'save the world' was also a member of her clan, she immediately became exasperated and muttered:
"Stinky old man!"
Uchiha Madara's brow twitched slightly, but he dismissed it as childish talk and didn't pay much attention.
Instead, Zetsu beside him reminded her in a low voice:
"Hikari, in terms of age, he's actually your junior!"
"You are an ancestral elder from his third uncle's lineage, nearly forty years apart."
Upon hearing this, Uchiha Hikari was also stunned. She stared at the decrepit old man in front of her for a few moments, finally having a tangible sense that over a hundred years had passed in the world.
But then, the young girl suddenly put her hands on her hips, righteous and bold:
"I am your third uncle's grandma!"
"Show some respect, junior."
The layers of wrinkles on Uchiha Madara's forehead compressed tightly together, and his eyebrow twitched with increasing frequency.
Zetsu next to him quickly reached out to stop her.
The cave immediately erupted into a noisy squabble.
"Enough."
Finally, Uchiha Madara's large hand gently slapped the stone chair.
From his seemingly emaciated palm, an extremely powerful Chakra reaction suddenly erupted. A mere tremor created a violent gust of wind throughout the spacious cave, whistling and causing the young girl's clothes and long hair to flutter completely.
"Hoo—"
Uchiha Hikari's voice instantly stopped. She instinctively opened her Sharingan, frowning slightly as she looked at the old man before her.
An expert sees the essence, a layman sees the spectacle.
This brief display alone made Uchiha Hikari suddenly realize something—this old man in front of her seemed to be an extraordinary individual as well.
Upon realizing this, even Uchiha Hikari did not continue to be willful, turning instead to regard him cautiously.
Seeing her Chakra change, subtly entering a vigilant combat stance, Uchiha Madara's expression finally relaxed a bit.
This was how people should look when they saw him.
He paused until the cave was completely silent, then his voice became slow and deep: "Since you chose to come here, you should already understand what we intend to do, correct?"
"Hikari."
Uchiha Hikari frowned: "I haven't agreed to join you yet. I just came to hear how you plan to save the world."
Upon hearing this, a relaxed smile slowly appeared on Uchiha Madara's face, and he said calmly:
"No matter."
"As a member of the Uchiha Clan, you should have seen the clan's secret Six Paths Stone Tablet, correct?"
"From Sharingan, to Mangekyo, and then to Rinnegan—as the Uchiha's bloodline evolution reached each different stage, different content could be seen on that stone tablet."
"As the strongest Uchiha in history, I saw everything with these eyes."
Uchiha Hikari raised an eyebrow subconsciously upon hearing this.
"The strongest Uchiha in history… I didn't expect this stinky old man to be quite arrogant."
However, she had indeed seen that stone tablet before and understood its special nature, but she hadn't seen any particular secrets, so she remained quietly listening.
"...Two opposing forces, when united, give birth to Six Paths."
"It was in this way that I finally managed, at this age, to cultivate the ultimate evolution of our bloodline—the Rinnegan."
"The Sage of Six Paths's final words were then revealed to me."
Uchiha Madara paused here, seemingly to suppress his excited emotions, but his voice still conveyed the intense emotion of someone who had seen all truth:
"Infinite Tsukuyomi."
"This is the technique that can bring permanent peace to the entire Ninja World."
As she listened, Uchiha Hikari's thoughts were involuntarily drawn in, and she immediately asked:
"Tsukuyomi?"
"But isn't that a Genjutsu?"
She herself could use that technique, so how could she not know its nature.
"No, it is the ultimate Genjutsu."
Uchiha Madara slowly shook his head, his expression still carrying a hint of fanaticism for the name of 'savior', and he sighed: "To think, the Sage of Six Paths had already left all the answers for us."
"Once this technique is cast, everyone will be eternally sealed within the Divine Tree, experiencing all the happiness they desire in the infinite world created by the Infinite Tsukuyomi."
"Ageless, immortal, never perishing."
"And there will be no conflict or struggle; everyone can live the life they desire…"
However, Uchiha Hikari frowned and emphasized once more, with a more definite tone:
"But that's Genjutsu!"
The more an Uchiha like her, who had personally experienced how a Genjutsu world is created and formed, the clearer they are about how fragile such a Genjutsu actually is.
No matter how powerful a Genjutsu appears, it only takes a slight unexpected turn for it to be easily broken.
There has never been such a thing as a permanent solution in this world.
However, her decisive tone inexplicably angered him. Uchiha Madara looked at her coldly, questioning word by word:
"What's wrong with a world of Genjutsu?!"
"Do you know how much unbearable pain this so-called 'reality' has brought to people, from their hearts to their bodies?"
"If there's a way for people to live forever and endlessly experience the lives they desire, then what if it's Genjutsu?"
His voice suddenly rose, which only made the young girl angrier:
"That's why, you 'Straight-Bar' idiots, your Mangekyo abilities are all direct attack types, your heads are full of muscles, so why do you always think of such inexplicable things?"
"It's always been like this, whether in the past or now."
"Since it's Genjutsu, of course, it will all fall apart with just a slight unexpected turn! Where in this world is there such a good thing as sleeping in a beautiful dream for a lifetime?"
Upon hearing this plan, even the young girl, who knew she might not be very smart, dared to righteously curse out the word 'idiot'.
If you don't understand Genjutsu, don't mess around!
However, despite saying this, the technique named 'Infinite Tsukuyomi' suddenly sparked an idea in Hikari's mind.
"If I could make my 'Yachihoko' imprint fall upon everyone, like the Infinite Tsukuyomi, then wouldn't everyone be unable to harm each other in reality?"
It was quite clear that although Miss Hikari called Uchiha Madara an idiot, she herself wasn't much smarter.
What she was thinking was also a compulsory measure.
"Foolish."
Although there was no change on Uchiha Madara's aged face, his eyes had clearly grown colder.
Anyone whose lifelong dream, even after death, is ridiculed by others would obviously not be in a good mood, let alone when the other party is a clan member with a Curved-Bar Mangekyo, clearly more skilled in Genjutsu-type abilities.
This feeling of being negated was naturally difficult to accept.
But what's wrong with us Straight-Bars?
Is the Infinite Tsukuyomi cast by a Straight-Bar somehow inferior to one cast by a Curved-Bar?
Uchiha Madara, having been strong his entire life, with no blind spots in ninjutsu, taijutsu, and genjutsu, would naturally never acknowledge such a strange viewpoint!
"Is it because you are still too young?"
Uchiha Madara's voice was slow and deep as he looked at her with his dim eyes: "You, with too little experience, simply don't understand. How many people in this world yearn to forever sink into a dream until death, yet cannot."
"In this cruel world, those who possess happiness are truly the minority of minorities."
Uchiha Hikari became even angrier, pointing at him: "I am your great-aunt! Show me some respect!"
Uchiha Madara suddenly fell silent, his body faintly exuding immense ocular power and Chakra that seemed to calm the abyss, slowly raising his head:
"In that case."
"Then I can only let you, you little brat, witness how truly cruel this existence called 'reality' is."
"Tsk."
Uchiha Hikari gritted her teeth: "Sure enough, with you idiotic Uchiha, it's still best to talk with fists!"
However, if there was any use for the suffering of yesteryear, it was probably only this powerful strength.
I can't defeat Sawara Kiri, but surely I can defeat you, a dying old man?
Suddenly, deep within those crimson eyes, the tomoe connected, forming a pair of crimson pinwheels.
A massive amount of Chakra, like floodgates opening, continuously surged out from the seemingly slender body of the young girl, and dark ocular power constantly coiled around her body, as if substantial.
Just releasing this Chakra caused a storm, like a tornado, to erupt within the entire mountain stone chamber, and the entire ground subtly trembled under this terrifying pressure, emitting a 'humming' roar.
However, neither Uchiha Madara nor Black Zetsu showed any change in expression when facing this scene.
It seemed that this level of strength was already commonplace to them.
Uchiha Madara looked at the young girl not far in front of him, who had unleashed her ocular power to the extreme, with dark ocular power even seemingly coiling around her body in a substantial form, and a long-lost smile slowly appeared on his aged face.
"Alright, alright."
"Then let me show you."
"The true ultimate of the Uchiha Clan's bloodline."
He slowly closed his eyes, seemingly connecting with an existence an unknown distance away.
Land of Rain, wilderness.
Three little ones, hiding in the damp forest, waiting for a water snake in a muddy hole, were quietly lying on the ground, ready to scoop up their fishing net at any moment.
Just as everyone was holding their breath, one of the red-haired little ones suddenly screamed 'Ah!' and fell to his knees, covering his eyes tightly with both hands, lying motionless on the ground.
"Nagato?"
"Nagato!"
"My… my eyes..."
When they opened again.
Within Uchiha Madara's eye sockets, they had already transformed into a pair of pale purple, concentric Rinnegan.
Although he had already given those eyes to the child's body to nurture as a vessel, if it was only for a short time, he could still retrieve some ocular power for limited use.
However, the duration of maintenance would not be long.
But, it was enough.
Almost the instant she saw these eyes, Uchiha Hikari's expression froze, and even the furiously spinning pinwheels in her eye sockets seemed to slow down a bit.
Just by meeting his gaze, she could clearly sense that her ocular power was significantly weaker than his.
'How is this possible?'
This question instinctively arose in the young girl's mind.
This was ocular power formed by the transplantation and merging of all the Mangekyo Sharingan owners in the clan, how could it...?
However, the current situation no longer allowed her to think much, and the Mangekyo ocular power, poised to unleash, had already begun to bloom.
"Amaterasu!"
Dark flames suddenly manifested from the depths of nothingness, continuously spreading towards Uchiha Madara.
However, they were blocked three inches in front of him.
Uchiha Madara still stood before that stone platform, not moving a single step.
Only a surging ocular power, like a tsunami, continuously poured out from his body, solidifying into a tangible form.
The Chakra blocking the Amaterasu quickly gained color, transforming into the skeleton of a deep blue giant, continuously extending upwards.
The Third Power, Susanoo.
Seeing this, Uchiha Hikari showed no sign of weakness, and her dark red Susanoo also manifested in front of her, emitting a silent roar.
"Oh?"
Looking at her appearance, which was directly confronting him, the aged Uchiha Madara seemed to be roused by a rare interest, and a smile slowly appeared on his wrinkled face.
"You didn't choose to flee, but instead approached me, Uchiha Madara?"
"Then let me see."
"How far can you go?"
Almost as soon as his words fell, the already tall deep blue giant skeleton suddenly rose a section, and dense, fiber-like muscles quickly covered the skeleton, forming a human-like upper body.
Second stage.
Uchiha Hikari did not hesitate at all, and her own dark red Susanoo continued to rise even higher.
The armor of a Karasu Tengu was almost synchronously draped over the two opposing Susanoo, and they confronted each other with shield and sword, constantly vying for power.
Third stage!
Just the aftershocks of their struggle caused the ground beneath their feet to crack like a spiderweb, emitting fine crackling sounds.
Zetsu's figure had long since floated to the corner of the ceiling, still wearing that annoying smile, calmly watching the scene unfold.
Looking at the young girl who still had strength, Uchiha Madara's smile grew even more interested; it was the unique, delighted smile of a hunter seeing a strong prey.
"It's not over yet!"
He further infused his ocular power into the Susanoo.
The azure armored giant's form suddenly swelled.
A pair of long legs, like celestial pillars, extended from beneath his armor, their volume and height suddenly expanding to several times their previous size.
The situation that had just barely been evenly matched instantly turned into a one-sided suppression.
"Boom—!"
Blasting airflow furiously flowed towards the only opening in the mountain space.
Uchiha Hikari's clothes fluttered, and she held one hand to her forehead, the pinwheels in her eyes spinning faster and faster, pouring all her ocular power at once.
The next moment, a pair of small, short legs also grew out with difficulty from beneath the dark red Susanoo armor, though they looked slightly deformed from a distance.
A heavy tower shield firmly resisted the twin blades in front of it.
Susanoo · Fourth Stage!
"Hahahahaha—!"
Seeing this, Uchiha Madara, instead, cast aside his previous annoyance and suddenly burst out laughing, his voice hoarse:
"Uchiha Hikari! You are truly even more excellent than I imagined!"
"Can you really achieve this much with just a pair of Mangekyo Sharingan?"
"I acknowledge you!"
"However..."
As his words fell, Uchiha Madara suddenly widened his Rinnegan.
Suddenly, an unimaginable aura abruptly erupted from this aged body, forming an unprecedentedly terrifying power.
Uchiha Hikari stood rooted to the spot, her expression suddenly frozen, and she looked up with some difficulty.
She saw that Uchiha Madara was now standing high in the sky, looking down at her from above.
A Karasu Tengu body resembling a true god—fully armored, with wings on its back, holding twin blades, its entire form a completely materialized Chakra entity.
Its gigantic body almost filled and illuminated the entire spacious mountain chamber, as if it could stand shoulder to shoulder with the Outer Path Demonic Statue covered in shadow behind him.
Just by standing there, the intense Chakra pressure made it almost impossible to move.
The dark red Susanoo, which had barely been able to confront him a second ago, now simply could not compare, its height barely reaching his knees.
Susanoo · Perfect Susanoo.
Uchiha Hikari stared blankly at this scene, feeling a sense of absurdity in her heart.
The ocular power gathered from the entire clan was still not even a fraction of his alone?
At this moment, she suddenly somewhat acknowledged the declaration from earlier: 'The strongest of the entire clan, throughout history.'
The aged Uchiha Madara stood on the firmament, his voice calm and indifferent:
"This is the heaven-and-earth-like gap between me and you."
"Hikari."
As his words fell.
Under Uchiha Hikari's gaze, those sword blades formed entirely of Chakra...
Suddenly slashed down.
join p atreon.com/KeyofStars and become a Sequence 9: Reader for dozens of advance chapters for over a dozen fics | Every 100 powerstones = 1 extra chapter