"Ugh..."
In the Kamui Dimension, the Masked Man, whose half-body was blown to pieces, let out a low, painful groan.
The damage from this attack was akin to that Rasengan during the Nine-Tails' attack night.
The Masked Man's half-body began to dissolve and slide off.
The difference was that after being hit by the Rasengan, what dissolved and slid off was normal white.
But now, it was stained with a thick, ominous color.
The Masked Man's half-body looked like a chocolate fountain machine at a buffet.
"Did that bastard Kakashi treat my eye as a mobile toilet?"
The Masked Man struggled to stand up, surveyed the terrifying scene around him, and the happy White Zetsu, deciding it was best to leave this place first.
In an unknown forest, space twisted.
The physically and mentally exhausted Masked Man appeared, half-kneeling.
He planned to contact other White Zetsu to replace his half-body.
However, the irritating smell emanating from him attracted the attention of a team of mountain bandits on patrol.
The dog led by the bandit captain barked and rushed towards the Masked Man.
The smell made the dog think it was mealtime.
"You, you, you... what kind of monster are you?!"
The bandit squad chased the dog to the Masked Man, staring in horror at the terrifying humanoid creature in front of them, who was clutching the dog's neck and covered in an unknown substance.
"...My name is Uchiha Madara."
The Masked Man mercilessly twisted the neck of the dog in his hand and threw it to the ground.
Then, he subconsciously touched his face.
Realizing that his mask was half-broken and these few bandits had seen his true face, the Masked Man's killing intent surged.
"Since you have seen my true face, then stay here."
The Masked Man began to form hand signs.
The bandits were completely terrified.
What? Where's the true face?
With curry smeared all over his face, what the hell did they see?!
This was an unwarranted accusation!
"Fire Release: Exploding..."
Just as the Masked Man was about to launch his attack, a crucial issue suddenly occurred to him.
The explosion that Kakashi had just transferred into the Kamui Dimension must have been a methane explosion.
If he used Blast Wave Wild Dance now, it was highly likely to cause a secondary explosion.
If his body were to be injured again now, it would be dangerous.
Thus, the Masked Man abruptly stopped using Fire Release.
Blast Wave Wild Dance was a Fire Release ninjutsu that could only be used by those with Kamui Dojutsu.
The principle was to first distort space with Kamui, causing a strong whirlwind, and then use Fire Release to create a huge flame vortex.
So, what would happen if Fire Release was not used now?
A terrifying "mudslide" spiraled out from the Masked Man's Mangekyo Sharingan, sweeping towards the bandit squad.
The bandits suffered an unbearable weight of life, letting out screams as piercing as the Masked Man's earlier.
The Masked Man realized that changing Blast Wave Wild Dance to Blizzard Wild Dance could also clean up the Kamui Dimension, so he stabilized his output and continued to maintain it.
Only after all the filth in the Kamui Dimension was expelled did the Masked Man stop his attack.
The bandit squad had all fallen dead.
The Masked Man turned indifferently, preparing to leave.
"Hmm?"
The Masked Man suddenly stopped.
He noticed that one bandit was not completely dead yet.
There was chakra fluctuation on him; he must be a ninja, barely clinging to life.
This bandit, using his last breath, dipped his finger in blood and chocolate sauce and painstakingly wrote the characters "Uchiha Madara" on the ground, then completely lost his breath.
"Hmph."
The Masked Man, relying on the insight of his Sharingan, clearly saw this dying message, paid no attention to it, and left directly.
Soon after, terrifying rumors spread from here: "Shinigami Uchiha Madara has returned to the world, harvesting lives with his excrement."
Unfortunately, no one believed such an absurd rumor, except for a group of people who discovered the crime scene.
—
Konoha.
After Kakashi fainted, he was found by an Anbu ninja who was searching for support.
"Kakashi-senpai?"
The masked Anbu seemed to know Kakashi, and upon seeing Kakashi unconscious, he anxiously went forward to check his condition. After confirming there was no danger to his life, he picked up Kakashi, preparing to send him to the Medical Department.
The Anbu, carrying Kakashi, ran at a slower pace along the way, afraid that too much movement might touch any hidden injuries on Kakashi that he hadn't discovered.
When passing by Shiro and his group, the Anbu stopped: "Jiraiya-sama?"
"Oh, is that Kakashi? Is he injured?"
Jiraiya nodded in acknowledgment, then looked at his grand-disciple on the Anbu's back.
"Yes, Kakashi-senpai fainted there for some unknown reason. I checked him, but found no external injuries. I'm not sure what the situation is."
The Anbu reported the situation.
Little Tsunade observed from a distance and roughly saw that Kakashi had likely overused his Sharingan chakra and mental energy. There was no danger, so she didn't linger and slipped away directly.
"Kakashi overused his Mangekyo Sharingan, didn't he?"
Shiro spoke.
"Mangekyo... Sharingan? Overused? What will happen then?"
The Anbu was stunned for a moment and quickly asked Shiro.
"Something like the Mangekyo Sharingan, after its first use, one easily becomes subconsciously reliant on it.
Kakashi's self-control is quite good; he must have been forced to use it this time.
With continuous use of the Mangekyo, the eyes will gradually lose their light.
A certain Uchiha even managed to blind himself in fifteen days.
To avoid such a thing, unless..."
Shiro paused here.
He seemed to have guessed who this Anbu was.
"Unless what?"
The Anbu anxiously pressed.
"Unless he can obtain Hashirama Cells. Hashirama Cells can greatly delay, or even eliminate, the negative effects of using the Mangekyo Sharingan, preventing it from losing its light due to use."
After Shiro finished speaking, he and Jiraiya left, leaving the Anbu alone in place for a while.
"Hashirama Cells? So, only I... I and Kakashi-senpai actually have such a bond, a destiny. It seems Kakashi-senpai won't be able to do without me in the future."
The Anbu muttered to himself for a while.
After taking Kakashi to the Medical Department, the Anbu stroked his chin and began to ponder.
Hashirama Cells can eliminate the side effects of using the Mangekyo, so how could he give them to Kakashi?
Transplantation was definitely out of the question.
Not to mention that the experiments for transplanting Hashirama Cells had long been halted by the Third Hokage, even if they hadn't been, the success rate was too low; he was the only surviving experimental subject.
Feed Kakashi his flesh?
The Anbu touched his arm and gasped.
That would be too painful, wouldn't it?
Moreover, Kakashi's personality, given his past of killing a teammate, which led to his deep obsession with protecting comrades, would likely never agree to something like eating a comrade's flesh.
The Anbu, knowing Kakashi's deep-seated commitment to protecting his comrades due to his past, immediately dismissed this idea.
"Forget it, I'll report this to Lord Third Hokage. As the Professor of the ninja world, Lord Third Hokage will surely come up with a solution."
The Anbu stopped thinking and decided to find Hiruzen Sarutobi.
But not now.
Currently, post-war matters were being discussed in the Hokage Building.
....
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