Standing waiting outside the house door was a woman with an elegant face. A blue ninja dress wrapped around her beautiful curves, and her captivating long hair cascaded like a waterfall to her lower back.
She crossed both hands behind her back, with a sparkle in her eyes radiating a gentle smile.
"You know me?" Madara observed the woman who had just called him Grandpa Madara.
The woman smiled cheerfully: "Ehm, Ayato already told me that tonight he'd be bringing you as a guest."
"Oh." Madara stared at her without looking away, feeling a bit dazed. This woman's face gave him an indescribable feeling.
(Just because she knows who I am, but isn't afraid of me at all?)
At that moment, a small head with a hime-cut hairstyle peeked out from behind the woman's slender legs. The little girl stared at him full of curiosity, showing her small pointed fangs, "Is this grandpa Mama's relative? Why does his face look so similar to Mama's!"
"Ah." The little girl's words awakened Madara. He finally understood what strange feeling he had experienced earlier.
The woman greatly resembled him, especially the aura and expression between her brows and eyes. Compared to Ayato, this woman was far more similar to him, as if Madara were looking at himself in a mirror.
Ayato smiled while introducing them to Madara: "This is my wife, Hikari, and my daughter, Tsuki."
Madara shifted his gaze from Hikari's face, greeting a bit stiffly: "Hello... to you both."
Hikari stroked Tsuki's short, somewhat rough hair and said: "Tsuki, greet Grandpa Madara~"
Tsuki was shocked: "Eh? Grandpa Madara is a grandpa? But he looks so young! Not old at all!"
Madara's stiff face immediately softened hearing that childish voice. He bent down to look closely at that small round face and asked: "How old are you?"
"Grandpa Madara! This year Tsuki is four years old!"
"Four years old... good, the perfect age to go to the battlefield!"
"Why does Grandpa Madara have a strange uncle's face growing on his chest?"
"..." Madara looked down at his exposed chest, Hashirama's face there.
In the past when he danced with this face in front of the Five Kage and the Allied Shinobi Forces, he didn't feel embarrassed at all. However, facing this innocent little girl's question, he felt he was experiencing social death.
(This Edo Tensei is already excessive, how hard would it be to bring me clothes too?)
But in front of this small Uchiha descendant, he couldn't lose face.
"That's right, this Grandpa Madara was indeed born with a second face. Are you scared?"
"Not scared! I think it's super cool! Can I touch it!" Little Tsuki's eyes sparkled full of admiration!
Madara couldn't hold back his broad laugh: "Hahaha, good! I like your spirit! Uchiha Tsuki, right? Your taste has been acknowledged by me, Uchiha Madara! Touch it, I give you special permission to touch it as much as you want!"
While saying so, he even crouched down so Tsuki's hand could reach Hashirama's face.
Ayato, witnessing this unexpected scene, thought in surprise: Hey, this is really beyond my expectation... Madara-sama actually has a side like this!
Hikari said at the right moment: "Tsuki, quickly invite Grandpa Madara inside the house, or the food will get cold."
After entering, Hikari took Ayato's black robe from the cabinet on the terrace and handed it to Madara with both hands: "I apologize, Grandpa Madara, my preparations were inadequate. Please wear Ayato's clothes first. Your body sizes are almost the same, it should fit. Tomorrow I'll buy you new clothes."
Madara accepted the robe, wrapped his body, then looked down at the Edo Tensei shoes on his feet and said: "If you have time, find me shoe covers too."
When passing through the living room, Madara looked around.
The arrangement was very simple yet warm. On top of the TV cabinet was a photo frame displaying a family portrait of four people.
When opening the sliding door to the Japanese-style room, abundant food and drinks were already served on the tatami table.
Hikari took the initiative to hold Tsuki's hand and said to Ayato: "Tsuki and I have already eaten. We're going out for a short walk, let you two chat~."
Ayato smiled and nodded: "Ehm, go ahead~."
The eye contact they exchanged showed the extraordinary compatibility of husband and wife.
After bowing respectfully to Madara, Hikari held Tsuki's hand and left the room, closing the sliding door.
The atmosphere became quiet.
Before long, Madara broke the silence.
"Hikari is also an Uchiha clan survivor, right?"
"You noticed?" Ayato smiled unsurprised. He took the sake bottle, poured it into the cup in front of Madara, then poured for himself.
"Hikari has another name, you definitely won't feel unfamiliar hearing it."
"What name?"
"Nanashi."
"Nanashi..." Madara murmured the name.
A flash of memory crossed his brain. As the Uchiha clan leader at the end of the Warring States Era, he naturally knew about the legend within the clan!
"Nanashi... you mean the girl from the middle of the Warring States period who, because she awakened the rare eye power Yachigahoko, was made into a weapon by the Uchiha clan, and was finally sealed by the combined Senju and Sarutobi clans?"
"Correct. Hikari is her real name. She was active in the Warring States Era earlier than yours. At age twelve, she was sealed. After passing through two hundred thirty-one years, only sixteen years ago I released her seal."
Madara sipped his sake. Indeed, there was no taste. However, the emotions that should be there still felt present.
"In that case, she should be full of hatred toward this world. But it's not visible at all..."
Ayato also raised his sake cup. Warm sake flowed down his throat, memories of the past emerging one by one.
From the vengeful girl who once wanted to destroy the ninja world and annihilate all Uchiha, Sarutobi, and Senju descendants, to now becoming his gentle and sweet wife (though sometimes tsundere), mother of two children...
Ayato spent sixteen years giving Hikari redemption no less than Boruto in the original timeline, as well as companionship that Boruto couldn't provide. Although the wound in her chest sometimes still hurt, those memories were sweet.
Ayato reminisced: "Initially it was like that, but I spent a long time returning what was lost from her time with the clan, and giving what this world owed her... So, now she's become my wife."
They married precisely on Hikari's 16th coming-of-age ceremony.
Because Hikari came from the early Warring States Era, Ayato followed the coming-of-age ceremony customs of that time. At that point, the Fourth Ninja World War had ended three years prior.
"I see." Madara didn't ask further about Hikari. He picked up chopsticks and began eating the meal he couldn't taste.
Ayato refilled his cup. Actually, Madara felt somewhat amazed... he could sit and eat very naturally here. Yet it had only been slightly over half an hour since he was revived through Edo Tensei, and he wasn't even certain yet what the other party's purpose was in reviving him.
Objectively, the surprise brought by Hikari and Tsuki indeed invisibly shortened the distance between himself and Ayato.
Madara tried to read Ayato's thoughts: (He dared to bring me directly home when his wife and child were here, at the very least his motivation must be honest. Besides, he's very confident I won't do anything dangerous to his family. But I can't wrap my head around it. I'm Uchiha Madara, doesn't he know I once nearly destroyed this ninja world with my own hands?)
After several rounds of drinking, Madara put down his cup, returning to his serious demeanor: "Let's talk business."
Ayato glanced at him, sipped his sake, then began speaking while eating.
"Alright. Currently, although the war has ended, members of Otsutsuki Kaguya's clan are still hiding in this land waiting for an opportunity to create chaos."
"Naruto, Sasuke, and the Five Kage who lost their sense of vigilance and did nothing for years have caused the ninja world's overall combat power to decline. That won't be enough to face the coming crisis. The ninja world isn't far from real chaos."
"So, someone must stand up to change this situation."
Madara listened to Ayato's explanation. "So, that person is you?"
Ayato said: "Correct. But my strength alone won't be enough. I need comrades who share the same vision to complete this plan with me." He added: "Those comrades with the same vision include you in front of me."
Madara's brows furrowed. The other party's words were brief, but the information contained within was massive. He extracted keywords from the statement, quickly organized his thoughts, then began asking.
"Kaguya's clan, who's creating chaos? Hiding where? How could Naruto, Sasuke, and the Five Kage do nothing? Why will the ninja world become chaotic?"
Ayato put down his chopsticks, wiped his hands with a napkin.
*ZZZ!*
Sharingan spun in his eyes.
"Explaining it with words is too troublesome. Let's speak directly through our eyes."
Madara thought for a moment. The Rinnegan in his eyes changed back to Sharingan mode, returning Ayato's gaze.
Genjutsu: Sharingan!
"What you'll see in this illusion is the future of the ninja world that will occur if I don't intervene!"
That's right, here Ayato would let Madara-sama watch the Boruto series!