At first, Madara believed it was nothing more than a stone labyrinth.
He advanced several dozen steps with Izuna at his side and then stopped.
Behind them, Senju Hashirama and Senju Tobirama were gone. Not merely out of sight but gone completely.
Madara frowned. Even the faint chakra thread he had deliberately left behind, an almost unconscious habit, had vanished without a trace.
It was as if the space itself had been quietly overwritten.
"…Tch." He clicked his tongue, irritation flashing across his face. Separating from Senju Hashirama, even unintentionally, was a mistake.
Against an unknown and potentially powerful enemy, splitting the group was a tactical taboo.
They ran.
Ten minutes passed.
The corridor stretched on endlessly, stone walls unchanged, turns repeating in subtle patterns that made distance meaningless.
Madara halted abruptly.
Izuna nearly collided with his back. "Brother? What is it?"
"This won't work," Madara said flatly. His Sharingan spun, scanning the passage. "This isn't only a maze."
"There's space manipulation mixed into it. Running forward is pointless."
Izuna nodded at once. "Then what do we do?"
Madara turned and pointed at the wall beside them. "We attack. Right here."
"Understood." Izuna didn't hesitate.
The brothers gathered chakra simultaneously, heat swelling in their chests as their hands flashed through seals.
"Fire Release: Great Fireball!"
Two fireballs erupted far denser and hotter than those of ordinary shinobi roaring toward the stone wall.
Just before impact, the wall shimmered.
Blue light flashed, and stone vanished entirely.
On the other side sat Hashirama and Tobirama, cross-legged on the floor, mid-conversation.
They had been discussing how long it would take Madara to realize the maze wasn't ordinary and whether he would brute-force his way out or do something smarter.
Then two Uchiha appeared in front of them, fireballs still dissipating in the air.
"Oh. That was fast." Hashirama blinked.
Tobirama reacted instantly. Both Senju brothers vanished in a blur, reappearing several steps back.
"You idiots!" Tobirama snapped, drawing his blade. "Do you have any idea how dangerous that was?!"
Madara had already stopped moving the moment the wall vanished. He stood with his arms crossed.
Hashirama raised a hand, stopping Tobirama before things escalated.
"Easy, Tobirama." His expression turned serious. "This wasn't their fault."
He looked around, eyes narrowing thoughtfully. "This maze can alter distance, direction, possibly even space itself."
"It was designed to separate us and provoke misunderstandings. If we'd fought now, we'd have been playing right into its hands."
Madara snorted quietly. Annoying as it was, Hashirama's analysis matched his own perfectly.
Tobirama hesitated, then lowered his sword.
Izuna stepped forward and bowed slightly. "Sorry."
"There was a wall blocking us. We ran for ten minutes without finding an exit, and even our chakra traces disappeared. Breaking through was the only option."
Tobirama studied him for a moment, then nodded. "Understood."
Hashirama clapped his hands together and stood up, patting Tobirama on the shoulder to keep him from continuing the argument.
"Well," He said cheerfully, turning to Madara, "We've got two options."
"Either we break this place apart using full force… or we invite that orange cat out and talk our way through."
Madara considered it. "…Talking first might be better."
Hashirama raised an eyebrow.
"You said it yourself earlier," Madara continued. "The other party hasn't shown any real hostility. Aside from eating everything in sight."
Hashirama laughed. "True. I didn't sense any killing intent either. And that little girl even asked me for an autograph."
He grinned proudly.
Tobirama took one step sideways, putting physical distance between himself and his brother.
…This level of narcissism was still difficult to accept.
"Hey, little brother," Hashirama said cheerfully. "Why'd you step back just now?"
"Stupidity is contagious." Tobirama didn't even look at him.
Hashirama blinked. "How could say that about your brother, Tobirama?"
"Hmph."
Madara grabbed Izuna by the collar and tugged him backward a step, clearly signaling that remaining too close to the Senju brothers was hazardous to one's sanity.
Enough nonsense.
Hashirama and Madara exchanged a look.
In an instant, Tobirama, Madara, and Izuna subtly adjusted their stance chakra rising.
Hashirama raised his voice.
"Orange cat!" He called out. "This maze was your doing, right? We admit defeat."
"Can we talk?"
One minute passed.
Two.
Three.
"…Orange cat~!" Hashirama tried again.
Nothing.
"…Is there really a cat here?"
"Hey!"
"Hrrrnnnng… hoo… hoo…" Snoring echoed from every direction.
Hashirama scratched the back of his head, utterly baffled. "Did… did it fall asleep?"
Madara frowned deeply. "If that's true, I refuse to accept this outcome."
Hashirama cupped his hands around his mouth. "Hello? Mr. Orange Cat?"
"I'm Senju Hashirama, the one who shared Madara's money with you earlier!"
"You bastard. So, it really was you." Madara's temple vein bulged violently.
Tobirama covered his eyes with one hand. He had no words left.
Hashirama burst out laughing, utterly unashamed.
Garfield hadn't fallen asleep.
The Ouroboros withs its forgiving paws glowing with green light, was coiled loosely around him as he maintained control of the maze.
The snoring had been deliberate. Listening to Hashirama shout was genuinely exhausting.
But now… the timing felt right. With a lazy thought, Garfield disengaged the maze's settings.
The walls dissolved. Space snapped back into place.
In the blink of an eye, the living room returned to normal. Hashirama, Tobirama, Madara, and Izuna stood exactly where they had entered, as if nothing had happened.
To avoid disturbing Rin, Garfield left a gentle barrier around her room and manifested himself in the living room as a projection.
A vortex twisted open.
An orange cat floated out, suspended in midair, bathed in blue-green light.
Slash
Madara struck first.
A golden magic circle snapped into existence, blocking his blade with a resonant boom.
At the same time, two glowing golden chains lashed out, binding Tobirama and Izuna in place before they could complete a second movement.
"Impossible!!" Tobirama hissed.
"So fast!" Izuna gasped.
Garfield yawned. Of course, it was fast.
He had activated the unforgiving Time Gem. Time around them crawled like syrup. From his perspective, every shinobi movement was slow motion.
"All actions are meaningless," Garfield said lazily, "Before a god who governs time and space."
God…?
Hashirama, the only one who hadn't moved, frowned deeply.
"Then tell me, Cat God," He said calmly, "Why did you come to our village? And what is your purpose?"
Garfield smirked.
Because I anchored the wrong time when sending Rin home, he thought.
Naturally, he didn't say that.
"I found a lost little girl drifting through a fracture in time." Garfield said instead. "She said she came from your world."
"I returned her here."
He paused. "As for the result… use your imagination."
Hashirama replayed the meeting in his mind… Rin's confusion… her reactions.
"…She's a ninja from our village," He said quietly. "From the future."
Garfield nodded. "You figured it out. No need to say more."
"I don't believe you." Madara stared, jaw tense.
Garfield shrugged. "Believe or don't. Your choice."
Then his gaze shifted, and he looked directly at Izuna. Behind him, loomed the horned silhouette of a death god.
"…Interesting," Garfield murmured. "I need to speak with your brother about something."
Madara stepped forward instantly, placing himself between Garfield and Izuna. "What are you planning to do?"
Izuna gently moved past him, having been released, placing a hand on Madara's arm.
꧁𓊈𒆜༺⚜༻𒆜𓊉꧂
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