Inside the summoning space, Hirofumi Ito's chakra clone stood face-to-face with Uchiha Madara.
"What's up, Madara?" Hirofumi asked.
"Hmph! Kid, you're way too casual calling me that!" Madara scoffed. "I bet that's the real you, huh? Gotta say, your acting back there was pathetic! Especially in front of that Sarutobi Hiruzen—playing the innocent little saint. It was so fake it made me nauseous!"
Hirofumi gave Madara a helpless look. Did this guy seriously drag him here just to roast him?
"What else am I supposed to call you? The Man Who Rivals the God of Shinobi?" Hirofumi shot back. "I'm not exactly strong right now, you know. If I don't act all sweet and harmless, what if someone takes me out? But if you'd actually act like a proper summoned beast and follow my orders, I'd march right up to Sarutobi Hiruzen, kick him in the butt, and declare myself Hokage!"
"Pfft!" Madara snapped. "Kid, quit spouting nonsense! I called you here for something serious!"
Madara was starting to get a little wary of Hirofumi. This kid kept throwing around phrases like "the man who rivals the God of Shinobi," making it sound like he and Hashirama Senju had some shady relationship!
"What's the deal, then?" Hirofumi asked, noticing Madara's grim expression.
"Who's that Shimura Danzō guy?" Madara demanded.
Hirofumi raised an eyebrow. He hadn't expected Madara to ask about Danzō. Could it be… did Madara sense the Sharingan's chakra coming from him?
"Danzō? He's a member of the Hidden Leaf's elder council and the leader of Root. Total shady creep," Hirofumi said bluntly.
Madara didn't know what "shady creep" meant, but he could tell it wasn't a compliment. His frown deepened. "Shimura, huh… But why does he have the chakra signature of the Uchiha clan's Sharingan? And not just that…"
Madara's brows furrowed tighter. Because it wasn't just the Sharingan he'd sensed on Danzō. There was something else—something far more familiar. It was the same chakra he carried: Hashirama Senju's!
"An arm full of Sharingan? Yeah, that tracks for a creep like him," Hirofumi said casually.
Madara's jaw dropped.
From within Hirofumi's summoning space, Madara could sense what was happening in the outside world, as long as Hirofumi didn't seal the space off. He'd definitely picked up on the Sharingan's chakra earlier, and he'd noticed that one of Danzō's eyes was sealed. But an arm full of Sharingan?! Since when were the Uchiha's sacred eyes so cheap?!
And that bandaged arm… it reeked of Hashirama's chakra!
"Kid, what's going on here? What do you know?" Madara pressed, his voice low and urgent.
"Oh, I know a lot. What do you want to hear?" Hirofumi teased.
"What's this about 'an arm full of Sharingan'?" Madara growled.
"Well… I know the details. But why should I tell you?" Hirofumi said with a smirk.
"You—!" Madara's temper flared. "Don't push it, kid!"
This brat was getting cockier by the second, hiding behind the fact that Madara couldn't lay a finger on him! Back in the Warring States era, no one dared talk to him like this—except that goofball Hashirama! Anyone else who tried was long dead.
"Alright, how about a deal, Madara?" Hirofumi proposed. "I'll tell you everything I know about Danzō, but in return, you train me."
Hirofumi knew there was no way someone as prideful as Madara would ever follow his orders. Expecting him to act like a loyal summoned beast was a pipe dream. So, he pivoted to a more realistic goal: getting Madara to mentor him.
Madara's strength was undeniable—his combat experience, his mastery of ninjutsu, everything. Plus, Hirofumi now carried Indra's chakra, the same chakra that flowed through Madara, Indra's reincarnation. If Madara trained him, Hirofumi's progress would be lightning-fast. And since Indra's chakra essentially made him the origin of the Uchiha bloodline, he was certain he could awaken the Sharingan!
"You want me to train you?" Madara sneered. "Kid, you're dreaming! I've never taken a disciple in my life!"
"You gonna train me or not? If not, I'm out. You can sit here and guess the truth about Danzō forever," Hirofumi said, turning to leave.
"Gah!" Madara barked. "Did I say I wouldn't? Fine, I'll train you, you little punk! Now spill it—what's the deal with Shimura Danzō?!"
Hirofumi's lips curled into a smug grin.
"You little—! That disgusting smirk of yours again!" Madara growled.
"You wouldn't get it. It's called the 'Smirking Dragon King' vibe," Hirofumi quipped.
"Dragon King? All I see is a smirking idiot! And I'm this close to smacking you!" Madara snapped.
"You still want the truth or not?"
"Grr! Yes!" Madara gritted his teeth, fuming.
"Alright, here's the deal," Hirofumi said casually. "The Uchiha clan was wiped out. Their eyes were harvested. That Danzō guy you saw? His sealed eye is a Mangekyō Sharingan, and that bandaged arm of his? It's loaded with Sharingan."
Hirofumi dropped the bombshell like it was no big deal.
Madara froze, his eyes wide with disbelief. "What did you say?! The Uchiha clan… wiped out?! Impossible! Absolutely impossible! How could the Uchiha clan be destroyed?! Kid, you'd better not be lying to me!"
Hirofumi sighed, giving Madara a pitying look. "You told me to talk, so I did. Now you don't believe me? Want me to take you to the Uchiha clan's district right now? It's a ghost town."
"No way! You're lying!" Madara roared. "If the Uchiha clan was wiped out, then how come I saw an Uchiha in your class today?!"
"You mean Sasuke Uchiha? Yeah, he's the last Uchiha in the Hidden Leaf. There's one other out there—his older brother, Itachi Uchiha."