Chapter 119: I Didn't Get Cuckolded, That's Great
"Tobirama, be serious!"
Hashirama scolded him.
That made Tobirama pause in surprise.
Big brother… is that really 'your' line to say?
After scolding Tobirama, Hashirama turned to Shiromo with a heavy expression.
"I'm guessing… Madara didn't actually die after the battle at the Valley of the End, did he?"
"Oh?"
Shiromo looked slightly surprised.
Did the First and Second Hokage swap brains or something?
The First Hokage wasn't supposed to have this level of insight.
"Judging by your expression, that really is the case."
Hashirama's face remained solemn.
"What? Seriously? Big brother, how did you deduce that?"
Tobirama was as shocked as Shiromo, so shocked it was almost frightening.
Had his big brother been possessed by an Ōtsutsuki too?
If there were any clues, shouldn't 'he' have been the one to notice them first?
"Do you know Izanagi?" Shiromo said. "In that battle, Madara used Izanagi, sacrificing the light of one eye to turn the reality of death into an illusion, thereby escaping his destined death…"
"So that's how it was."
Hashirama waved his hand, interrupting him. "You don't need to continue. I already know the rest."
"Big brother, whether Madara is dead or alive aside, first tell me how your brain got fixed."
Tobirama stepped forward and grabbed Hashirama by the shoulders.
"Tobirama, I usually just let you have your way. You don't seriously think the so-called God of Shinobi only relied on Wood Release, do you?"
"My valor, my strategy, my character, my looks… all of those are essential qualities of the God of Shinobi."
Hashirama said this with a stern face, delivering words so narcissistic they bordered on the absurd.
"...Forget it. Big brother, let's talk about Madara instead. What exactly is going on with him?"
Tobirama was speechless for a moment and decided to change the topic.
"Other than what Shiromo just said about Madara using Izanagi, which I didn't know, I had already guessed everything else."
Hashirama let out a long sigh and began explaining his reasoning.
"After the battle at the Valley of the End, Madara faked his death and slipped away."
"I don't know what his plan was, but the appearance of this Rinnegan child has confirmed a truly terrifying thought for me…"
"Terrifying?"
"Yes. Madara, that bastard, that beast, after I died, he actually did something to Mito, and so there came to be a child of the Uzumaki clan, but with eyes that look extremely similar to Madara's!"
As Hashirama said this, sorrow welled up in his heart. He tilted his head at a forty-five-degree angle toward the sky, his face filled with melancholy.
Good grief.
No wonder this normally goofy First Hokage suddenly became so emotional, it turned out he thought he'd been cuckolded!
And even more terrifyingly, it was a 'double' cuckolding!
His two "wives" got together and even had a kid!
After Hashirama finished speaking, an eerie silence fell over the scene.
Especially among those following Shiromo, including Nagato himself, everyone knew the true origin of the Rinnegan.
Shiromo had even theorized, based on Impure World Reincarnation Nagato retaining the Rinnegan and the properties of chakra fusion and linkage, that Nagato might further develop these eyes while remaining healthy.
The goal was to outright hijack Madara's account.
"Th-that can't be true, right?"
The only uninformed person, Senju Tobirama, looked at Shiromo with lingering fear, seeking confirmation.
In Tobirama's view, Madara wasn't interested in women, but there was always the chance.
What if, after big brother died, Madara became psychologically twisted, wanting to become his "kindred spirit," savoring what remained of his presence? It wasn't completely impossible.
Even so, Tobirama desperately hoped Shiromo would deny this theory.
It was simply too horrifying.
"Of course not."
Shiromo felt ashamed that he'd actually believed in Hashirama's intelligence for even a split second.
"These eyes came from Madara obtaining the First Hokage's cells, implanting them into his own body, and then enduring for most of his life. He only awakened them when he was on the brink of death."
"Then, for the sake of his resurrection plan, he gave the eyes to Nagato, intending for Nagato to use the power of the Rinnegan to revive him someday."
"So that's how it was. That's a relief."
Upon hearing this earth-shaking conspiracy, Tobirama instead let out a breath of relief.
Schemes and conspiracies from the inherently evil Uchiha Madara were perfectly normal, nothing surprising at all.
"What?! So I wasn't betrayed after all? That's great! Hahahahaha!"
Upon hearing he hadn't been cuckolded, Hashirama also relaxed instantly and burst into laughter.
It wasn't clear whether he was laughing at Madara, or at Mito.
"Honestly, that Madara… If he wanted my cells, he could've just asked me. I wouldn't have refused."
After laughing, Hashirama complained in a tone full of grievance.
Wouldn't have refused…
Nagato and Orochimaru both wore strange expressions.
They thought of the method Shiromo had given Sasuke for upgrading the Rinnegan.
Seen this way, Hashirama and Madara really 'were' a pure male–male relationship.
Because if their relationship had been filthy, Madara would've gotten Hashirama's cells a long time ago.
The only thing to watch out for would've been filtering out certain fecal particles during extraction.
"Second Hokage, besides teaching Hikari Shadow Clones, there's one more thing you need to do."
Shiromo addressed Tobirama.
"Go ahead. I already said it, so long as you go help Konoha after things are done here, I'll agree to anything."
Tobirama replied calmly.
"Those eyes of Nagato's belong to Madara, but I want you and Orochimaru to research and explore them, and figure out a way to help Nagato fully take control of these eyes."
"Simply put, hack Madara's eye permissions."
Shiromo was well aware that Nagato was only using the basic abilities of the Rinnegan to their extreme.
The true power of these eyes was completely sealed off.
For example, Limbo. Or Susanoo in its pre-evolution Mangekyō state.
"...Alright. It's a deal!"
After hearing Shiromo's request, Tobirama fell silent for a few seconds, then suddenly agreed with enthusiasm.
Was this really a 'request'?
He thought it was a 'reward'.
He could both stop Uchiha Madara's scheme 'and' disgust Madara at the same time, was there really such a wonderful thing in the world?
Forget being in an Impure World Reincarnation body. Even if he were still alive, he'd work day and night to figure this out!
"Huh? Isn't that kind of bad?"
Hashirama was completely dumbfounded.
So the one getting cuckolded wasn't him, it was Madara?
"Big brother, right now they hold the knife and we're the fish. We're asking him for help, and we still need him to save Konoha and save little Tsunade. We don't have a choice. You have to think about the village!"
Tobirama placed a hand on Hashirama's shoulder, speaking earnestly.
He looked pained and conflicted, but inside, he was already laughing his head off.
"Sigh… then I guess we'll have to sacrifice Madara a little. He's already dead anyway. As long as we don't revive him, he'll never know."
Hashirama compromised.
In the end, he loved the village more.
As long as Madara wasn't revived, he'd never know his eyes had been cuckolded.
"Alright then. Let's to get to work. Nagato, summon the Gedo Statue…" (Demonic Statue of the Outer Path)
"Wait!"
Tobirama suddenly called out, frowning as he walked forward and looked around.
"You're being way too careless. Aren't you afraid something will go wrong? You're really relying on just that one Uchiha as a safety net?"
(End of this chapter)