Beside a lake not far from Nanga Shrine, stood a serious-looking ninja. He was wearing a black fan coat and was looking down at the boy beside him.
"Fugaku, have you seen all the seals clearly?"
"See clearly..." The young man swallowed, hiding his nervousness. "Si-wei-shen-hai-wu-xu."
It should be this.
The adult leaned towards the young man and said seriously: "Wrong, the last seal is Yin."
The boy felt a little ashamed that he had let his father down, but at this moment his legs were spinning and he couldn't control it, let alone concentrate.
"The Great Fire Ball Jutsu is the basic ninjutsu for our Uchiha clan to learn fire escape. As the young clan leader, you must master it earlier than your peers.
Did you hear that? "
"heard it."
"Then give it a try."
Gathering chakra in his throat, the boy told himself, then craned his neck and leaned back.
"Art fire escape ho fireball."
A flame less than two centimeters shot out, as if someone had lit a match.
The young man lowered his head in shame. How he hoped that he could succeed and be praised by the man next to him, "As expected of my son."
only…
The young man was about to apologize when suddenly, the ground shook violently. The originally calm lake surface seemed to have been cut open by someone from the sky, and the surrounding ground suddenly sank.
"Father!"
The boy screamed in horror, and then fell into the icy lake water along the crack.
"Am I going to die?!"
Fugaku opened his eyes suddenly, waking up from his nightmare.
The surroundings were dark, and the air was filled with the pungent smell of medicine. He tried to move his right arm, but a stab of pain stopped him.
Where am I
What happened
My whole body was throbbing, it was the kind of heart-breaking pain. Fugaku carefully raised his left arm and lightly touched his body with his hand. Everything within reach was covered with a thick layer of bandages.
He closed his eyes and racked his brain to remember what had happened.
Finally, the memories slowly took shape... just like the gurgling bubbles rising from the bottomless water.
"I jumped off the waterfall!"
Fugaku stared blankly at the darkness around him.
"Could this be hell?"
At this moment, an old voice suddenly came from beside his ear.
"are you awake?"
Fugaku turned his head. Just this movement gave him a splitting headache, as if a kunai was piercing his skull.
He took a few long breaths to fight off the pain. Then, he became more careful and looked at the approaching person slowly and methodically.
Through the dim light, he saw a scythe held by a pair of dead wood-like hands, black clothes and... a three-magatama Sharingan.
Fugaku opened his eyes wide and said in surprise: "Your eyes... Could it be that you are also a member of the Uchiha clan?"
The old voice said calmly: "Well, it's up to you what you think."
"It is impossible for outsiders to master the Sharingan, and it is impossible to transplant the Sharingan. Old man, you must be a member of my tribe. In that case..." Fugaku paused and asked tentatively: "Is this Konoha?"
"Konoha..." The old man narrowed his eyes, and even the hand holding the scythe tightened unconsciously.
"What a strange word. Since Hashirama's death, I have never set foot there again."
The old man's tone was calm, but his words revealed infinite regret and nostalgia.
Fugaku savored the information revealed by the other party.
"The First Hokage has not set foot in Konoha since his death. It has been at least thirty years, which means that this person is not a ninja of Konoha, but still lives in a strange cave... Wait!"
"Old man, are you a rebel ninja from Konoha?"
The old man seemed to have heard something interesting, and for a moment he laughed so hard that he couldn't stand upright.
"In a sense, I am indeed a rebel ninja of Konoha, but... no one has ever announced that I am a rebel ninja."
"Old man, have you ever thought about going back? I am the young patriarch of Uchiha. If you send me back, my father will definitely not treat you badly. Even if you are a traitor, I can deal with it."
The old man held the sickle tightly and said softly: "I can never go back."
There are some things in this world. Once you take a step, you can never look back. Even if you are reluctant to give up, you can only sigh and walk on alone.
Neither can I go back,
Can't go back either.
Fugaku opened his mouth, but suddenly remembered something, his face changed and he said: "No, my father said that the Uchiha clan has never had a rebellious nin in these years, and I have never seen you.
Who are you and where is this place? ! "
Facing Fugaku's aggressive tone, the old man still said calmly: "This is the gap between the cycle of life and death."
"Where?" Fugaku's whole body felt cold, "Is this... the gap between the cycle of life and death?"
"Yes, you are indeed in the cycle of life and death at the moment."
Fugaku trembled: "So you mean, I'm already... dead?"
"Not entirely."
"That's not entirely true?!" Fugaku was irritated by the old man's vague words.
"Life and death are either/or things. What do you mean it's not exactly the same!"
"My stupid tribe, you have disappointed me so much." The old man shook his head, "I thought you would have a better understanding of life and death."
"This is a world in between. At this moment, you are wandering here, either returning to your original world, or heading straight to death... It depends on your next actions."
Fugaku struggled to understand and asked again: "Then what do you want me to do?"
"It's very simple. I want you to help me cut off all the cause and effect in this world and create a world with only winners, a world with only peace, and a world with only love."
"I don't understand what you are talking about at all."
"Don't understand? It doesn't matter. One day, you will understand what I am talking about."
Fugaku's heart sank suddenly.
The old man continued: "Child, don't look like this. You should feel honored that I found you. This is the mission you have been waiting for your whole life. You are the chosen one."
This old man must be crazy!
"I'm sorry. Although I'm grateful that you saved me, you must have chosen the wrong person." Fugaku suppressed his anger, "I don't know how to help you cut off the cause and effect."
The old man shook his head and said: "Wrong, I didn't choose you... but fate."
"What?" Fugaku's voice was almost inaudible.
"You floated with the current to the underground passage I dug, and then I rescued you. Isn't this the guidance of fate?"
Fugaku understood that the old man in front of him must be a lunatic, so he softened his tone and said: "Old man, you must have made a mistake. You were waiting for someone else... and I am just a joke played by fate on you."
"I don't think so. I have been here for almost thirty years, and you are the first visitor, and I believe the last."
Fugaku felt angry and powerless.
"I'm warning you, my father is the leader of the Uchiha clan. No matter who you are, imprison me like this again."
The old man smiled and said: "I don't have to restrict your freedom. You can go out if you want. To put it bluntly, with our current bodies, neither you nor I can get out of here."
"You damn old man, who are you?!"
Fugaku roared, his voice echoing fiercely in the cave.
The old man was a little tired, so he walked to a huge chair with his scythe and sat down, then slowly said: "I am Uchiha Madara, the undead soul of Uchiha."
Fugaku lost his voice and said: "How is it possible? Madara died in the Valley of the End a long time ago."
A mocking look appeared on the old man's face, "Everyone in the world thinks I lost to Hashirama, but how can winning and losing be absolute?"
Fugaku was a little desperate.
If this old man is really Madara, then there is definitely a shocking conspiracy hidden inside. Likewise, knowing this secret, there is absolutely no way he can escape.
As if he had read through his inner thoughts, the old man smiled and said: "Stop struggling, I will need you to do many things for me in the future. Since you finally saved your life, don't rush to seek death."
"Of course, you can die if you want, but in return, I will accept a pair of your Sharingan as a reward for saving you."
Fugaku was completely desperate.
"Please, let me go. I have a friend named Uchiha Tatsu. He is much better than me and his strength is much higher. I can bring him to you. How about it?"
The old man said in a cold tone: "You haven't figured it out yet, have you? Why were you chosen?"
"I do not understand!"
"You'll understand," chuckled the old man, "you'll understand soon enough."
With that said, he closed his eyes and fell asleep again, and the cave became peaceful again.
… …