“Mangekyo Sharingan!
Hahaha, as expected of my son!” When Uchiha Tajima saw Madara’s eyes, he laughed excitedly.
He knew that with these eyes, Madara’s strength would make a qualitative leap, and the hidden danger that had always existed within the Uchiha could be dealt with today.
In this ninja world where the weak were prey to the strong, nothing was more persuasive than absolute power.
The old faction, which had still been trying to resist, suddenly fell completely silent at this moment.
They knew well the power of the Mangekyo Sharingan.
Now that the young clan head possessed these eyes, Headquarters would not show mercy to them.
Once both sides went to war, the old faction would suffer heavy losses.
“The Uchiha do not need alliances, and will not enter a Marriage Alliance.” Seeing that his intimidation had achieved its purpose, Madara left these words behind, then turned and departed under everyone’s gaze.
Sitting by the window in your room, an ancient book lay open across your knees, but your gaze had long since moved from the yellowed pages to that lonely moon.
“Could it really not be him?” Your voice carried doubt and confusion.
Your slender fingers unconsciously rubbed the pages.
You slowly put the book down, rose, and extinguished the swaying candle flame.
The room instantly fell into darkness.
Only moonlight came through the window, outlining mottled light and shadow on the floor.
Just as you were preparing to rest, a faint yet urgent knock broke the night’s silence.
You had no time to light a candle.
Relying on your familiarity with the room’s layout, you walked toward the door.
“Madara?” you probed.
The person outside did not answer; only slightly heavy breathing could be heard.
After hesitating for a moment, you still reached out and opened the door.
A thick smell of blood instantly rushed toward you, and by the moonlight, you saw the person outside clearly.
Madara’s black hair was somewhat disheveled, and his pale face was splattered with blood.
Those eyes, originally sharp, now showed a straight-tomoe Mangekyo Sharingan.
“Straight tomoe?” you exclaimed in surprise, unable to understand how Madara had awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan.
Even more unsettling was that Madara’s current state was extremely strange, his entire body giving off a suppressed aura.
By the moonlight, Madara slowly reached out and gently touched your face.
His fingers were cold and carried the smell of blood, while his gaze was terrifyingly deep.
“What happened?” you asked softly, your tone full of concern.
“I heard you have a Marriage Alliance partner?”
“This is the family’s arrangement.” You tried to keep your voice calm, but waves rose in your heart.
“The family’s arrangement?
Then what exactly am I in your heart?” Madara took a step forward, the scent of blood on him growing stronger.
His tone carried anger and unwillingness, and his clenched fists trembled faintly.
“Madara, we should keep some distance.” You took a deep breath and said what you had already prepared.
In your view, being too intimate with Madara might bring many variables to the plan you were arranging.
Hearing this, Madara froze at first.
Then a sneer appeared on his face.
That smile carried unruliness and arrogance, as if mocking the absurdity of your thoughts.
His hand suddenly reached out and tightly gripped your wrist, with enough force to make it hurt.
“Keep distance?” Madara pressed closer to you until your bodies were almost touching.
The pressure radiating from him made it hard for you to breathe.
“Do you think that is possible?”
You tried to break free from Madara’s restraint, but discovered his strength was beyond imagination.
“You…” Just as you were about to speak, Madara suddenly trapped you in the corner, his heated breath spilling across your face.
An aggressive kiss fell without warning.
Madara’s movements were fierce and urgent, as if he wanted to release all the repression and unwillingness of these past days.
His hands tightly held your waist, leaving no gap between the two of you.
You had never imagined Madara would express his emotions so directly and intensely.
In shock, you instinctively slapped him across the face.
The crisp sound of the slap echoed through the silent room, and the scene instantly fell still.
Madara tilted his head slightly, a striking red mark appearing on his face, but he quickly came back to himself.
He tightly caught your other hand as well and kissed you again.
This time, Madara’s kiss carried both dominance and gentleness, as if he wanted to melt you into his body.
After a long time, Madara finally released you.
Both of your breathing was hurried and disordered.
“You are simply mad!” You leaned against the wall behind you, breathing in fresh air in large mouthfuls.
“They have already been killed by me.
You understood that “they” referred to the old faction elders who had advocated the Marriage Alliance.
You had not expected Madara to be so decisive, and complex emotions surged in your heart.
You wanted to turn your head and avoid Madara’s gaze, but Madara used his fingers to turn your chin back, forcing you to look directly into his eyes.
“We were born to be together.
No one can separate us.” Madara held you tightly and whispered by your ear.
“What do you think, future clan head’s wife?” Madara’s tone carried threat and obsession.
Pressed against Madara’s chest, you could clearly hear his powerful heartbeat.
You did not know whether you could accept Madara’s love.
This feeling of being loved made you feel that you were still alive; it made you long for this warmth and reluctant to push him away.
Your heart was full of conflict.
It was not that you had no feelings for Madara, only that all this time, you had buried those feelings deep in your heart and did not dare reveal them easily.
You did not answer Madara’s question directly, and instead suddenly asked, “What is the relationship between that ninja cat and you?”
Madara chuckled softly, his warm breath brushing your ear.
“It is my clone.”
You suddenly understood.
You finally understood why Madara’s three younger brothers had acted so unusually when they saw that ninja cat, and why that ninja cat was especially close to you.
“You were monitoring me?” You frowned slightly, not understanding why Madara had made a clone become a ninja cat to approach you.
“If that is how you want to think of it, then so be it.” As he spoke, Madara held you even tighter.
A powerful possessiveness surged in his heart.
He wanted to hide Nagi away, hide her in a place where only the two of them existed.
“It is late.
You should go.” You tried to keep your voice calm and pushed Madara away.
You needed time to sort through your chaotic thoughts and clarify the complicated relationship between you and Madara.
Madara looked deeply at you without speaking, then turned and left the room.
After Madara left, you crouched on the ground and hugged your knees.
You did not understand why your relationship with Madara had become so complicated.
After organizing your emotions, you had just sat by the bed when that ninja cat jumped in.
Its red eyes were as deep as Madara’s, quietly looking at you, then curling up beside you as though nothing had happened.
You lowered your eyes, your expression unclear.
In the end, you still accepted the fact that Madara’s clone had approached you.
Lying on the bed, you looked at the ceiling, countless thoughts in your mind.
Occasionally, the cries of night owls broke the dead silence of the night.
You could not count how many times you turned over.
After who knew how long, dawn finally quietly climbed onto the windowsill, announcing the arrival of a new day.
Cold water struck your face, trying to dispel your weariness, but reflected in the mirror was still a bloodless face.
The ninja cat sat properly at the doorway, its blood-red eyes staring straight at you.
For a certain reason, you did not want to be overly intimate with this cat.
“What are you doing here?”
Seeing you unmoved, the ninja cat first tilted its head, seeming puzzled, then bit the corner of your death warrior robe and tugged hard outward.
Following this fluffy figure through winding corridors, you passed through the Uchiha station, which had not fully awakened in the early morning.
The patrol ninja’s gazes moved back and forth between you and the ninja cat.
When the vermilion wooden doors of the council hall appeared in view, the ninja cat suddenly jumped onto the steps and lazily lay down, its tail sweeping the ground now and then.
The instant you pushed the door open, the scent of sandalwood mixed with ink rushed toward you.
Uchiha Tajima was sitting in the main seat, wiping his sword.
The blade reflected his sharp gaze.
Madara leaned against the carved window lattice, morning light passing through his slightly messy black hair and casting alternating light and shadow across his face.
When he heard the door and raised his eyes, you clearly saw the guilt that flashed deep in them, as well as the scorching possessiveness.
“Elder Nagi, did you sleep well last night?” Madara’s voice carried the hoarseness of morning, yet its ending rose for some reason.
You lowered your eyes to avoid his gaze and silently walked to the cushion opposite him to sit.
Tajima silently sized up the two of you, the sword sheath turning lightly in his palm.
“Now that the old faction has no leader, it can no longer pose a threat to the Uchiha.
What thoughts do you have?”
The hall fell into brief silence.
Only the copper bell under the eaves rang as the draft blew through.
You clenched the fist hidden in your sleeve, your nails leaving dark red crescent marks in your palm.
When you raised your head, you happened to meet Madara’s interested gaze.
“I will first hear Elder Nagi’s opinion.”
“Pull out the weeds by the roots.” Your voice stirred a faint echo through the spacious council hall.
Surprise first surged in both their hearts, then was replaced by unconcealed appreciation.
Only by completely clearing out the old faction could the Uchiha have no worries left behind.
“Same as me.
That saves a lot of trouble.” Madara suddenly laughed, his laughter carrying a bit of recklessness.
You tightened your grip on the samurai long blade in your hand.
“I will handle it.
In any case, the clan members have no real way to deal with me.”
Hearing this, Tajima could not help the corner of his mouth twitching.
Although what she said was true, why did he feel this girl carried a certain arrogant air?
“In that case…” Before he could finish, Madara interrupted him.
“I will go with you.” Madara directly stood and walked before you, looking down at you from above.
You tried to avoid Madara’s pressure, but when you passed by him, Madara suddenly grabbed your wrist.
“I said together, so together.” Madara’s voice was low and domineering, carrying power that allowed no resistance.
“I can do it alone.” You struggled hard, but Madara’s hand was like an iron clamp, not moving at all.
“No.” Madara’s answer was brief and decisive.
After saying it, he dragged you toward the outside of the council hall.
Tajima looked at the two of you leaving and sighed helplessly.
“As expected, once a son grows up, he no longer listens to anyone.”
Madara’s fingers never loosened.
You could feel the strange gazes cast by the patrol ninja, and your ears gradually grew hot.
When you reached the training field at the edge of the clan grounds, Madara suddenly pressed you beneath a cherry tree.
“Uchiha Nagi,” Madara’s breath brushed past your ear, carrying the scent of cherry blossoms, “you are avoiding me.”
You subconsciously wanted to push him away, but Madara seized your wrist and pressed it against the tree trunk.
“Look at me.” Madara’s voice carried an irresistible command.
When you were forced to meet his eyes, surging emotions churned within that scarlet vortex.
The soft sound of falling cherry blossoms came from afar.
Madara’s thumb gently rubbed the pulse at your wrist.
“Last night, I was serious.”
Your heart trembled fiercely, and the scenes you had deliberately forgotten suddenly surged into your mind.
When Madara’s lips pressed down again, you heard your disordered heartbeat mixed with the cawing of crows in the distance.
Your breathing mingled together.
After who knew how long, Madara finally released you.
Lowering your head to look at your reddened wrist, you thought that perhaps from this moment onward, you could no longer turn back, and could only sink deeper and deeper into this love of blood and fire.
Uchiha Madara arrived early at that familiar river.
He quietly stood on the riverbank, his eyes deep and firm as he stared at the water, while in his heart, he thought about his coming meeting with Hashirama.
Although the two of them belonged to different families, that sincere friendship was especially precious in this war-torn era.
Before long, Hashirama arrived burdened with thoughts.
His steps were somewhat heavy, his brows tightly furrowed.
When he saw Madara on the opposite bank, he froze slightly, then raised his head.
Their gazes met in the air, and in that instant, it seemed even time stood still.
After a long while, Madara was the first to break the silence.
“Let us greet each other by skipping stones first.” Hashirama nodded slightly in agreement.
And so, each of them lightly swung an arm, and stones skipped across the water, splashing strings of crystal droplets.
Madara’s gaze fixed tightly on the stone Hashirama sent over.
When it came near the bank, he reached out and caught it steadily.
Turning it over, he saw the words “Run quickly!” written clearly on it.
Madara’s eyes instantly sharpened, and an ominous premonition surged in his heart.
At the same time, Hashirama also saw the words Madara had written on the stone in his hand: “Danger!”
“I just remembered, I seem to have something to do,” Hashirama said with a somewhat panicked expression.
“So do I,” Madara answered without showing anything.
Both of them understood.
This was the tacit understanding between them, wanting to use this chance to escape this dangerous situation.
Just as they pretended to have matters to attend to and prepared to leave, the people lying in ambush on both sides jumped out.
On the Senju side, Butsuma watched the Uchiha Clan on the opposite bank with a cold face, his eyes revealing dense fighting intent.
On the Uchiha side, Tajima’s gaze was steady, arms folded, showing no fear of the current situation.
On the river surface, Izuna and Tobirama stared at each other, their eyes full of hostility and vigilance.
Izuna tightly gripped a kunai in his hand, his posture agile, while Tobirama’s face was serious, ready at any time to respond to Izuna’s attack.
“Hmph, today is the end of you Senju!” Izuna gave a cold snort and attacked first, throwing the kunai in his hand rapidly toward Tobirama.
Tobirama dodged sideways, easily avoiding it.
At the same time, he quickly formed seals, and a stream of water rose from the river, transforming into a water dragon that lunged toward Izuna.