UK:GSW Chapter 416 – Uchiha Madara: I See… My "Hashirama" Has Learned Everything
When it came to Tamamo-no-Mae, Uchiha Madara regarded her entirely with the mindset one would have toward a powerful opponent.
Decades ago, such a notion would have been absurd — and even in the No. 2 Shinobi World, it would have been absurd. After all, what kind of man was Uchiha Madara? Could he really look up to some woman of unknown origin?
But times had changed.
In the second world — the genjutsu world — anything from the real world was difficult to bring over.
Though it was still possible to transfer certain things, they weren't all that important to the balance of the game or to other aspects of the world.
At the very least, nothing from the real world could give Madara an overwhelming advantage to crush all opposition. He was still at the top of the pyramid, but there were a few players who could rival him.
In multiple encounters across different games, Madara and Tamamo-no-Mae had traded wins and losses. While he had more victories than defeats, to him, any loss was something to remember sharply.
Thus, Madara kept a close eye on Tamamo-no-Mae.
By the way, Madara had no fondness whatsoever for Tamamo-no-Mae's Nine Tails–inspired appearance. He considered it beneath her — in his eyes, she was clearly human, yet she chose to imitate a beast. A matter of poor vision, in his opinion.
Indeed, Madara never once connected Tamamo-no-Mae with the Nine Tails, much less guessed they were the same being.
The Nine Tails was an enormous orange fox, male (at least judging from the voice), while Tamamo-no-Mae's form was a white fox — and female — with a temperament completely unlike the violent, wild Nine Tails.
Most importantly, one was a human, the other a beast.
Under such circumstances, how vast would Madara's imagination have to be to connect the two?
Besides, Madara was never one for wild flights of fancy — and at his age, his imagination simply couldn't compare to that of the younger generation.
In short, Madara's interest in Tamamo-no-Mae was purely as an enemy.
Therefore, when Tamamo-no-Mae made a forum post, Madara clicked in to read it.
What he found was an announcement that Tamamo-no-Mae had formed a group — specifically, a clan called the Myriad Demon Court.
In this context, a "clan" was much like a guild in online games, but adapted to the shinobi world's traditions. After all, clans were common in the shinobi world, with only villages ranking above them.
In today's genjutsu network, many clans already existed. The moment this feature launched, plenty of people created clans, pulling in friends and acquaintances from both real life and online.
Clan names followed the freedom of the net: apart from banning certain words and symbols, almost anything went.
Since the network was still in its early days, there weren't yet any bizarre abstract names. Cool and "chūnibyō" names were common instead.
The name Tamamo-no-Mae chose was actually fairly "normal" — it drew attention mainly because she was the founder.
As a top-tier player, Tamamo-no-Mae had always been in the spotlight. Many clans had tried to recruit her before, but she always refused and never joined any group — at most, she'd team up with that not-so-skilled player, Sett, The Boss.
Now, with this high-profile announcement, those hoping to recruit her could give up.
Naturally, this only made more people want to join her clan. Beneath her post, many left messages asking to be accepted, while others offered congratulations and high expectations.
The post had been up for only half an hour, yet already had over three thousand replies — proof of Tamamo-no-Mae's immense popularity.
Remember, the genjutsu network had only a few hundred thousand users, many of whom didn't even follow forum posts. Some didn't have time to go online, and others only read without replying.
For Tamamo-no-Mae's post to get this many replies so quickly spoke volumes about her fame.
She was now, without question, the network's "goddess" — a super-popular figure, with hordes of admirers willing to pay for her wherever she went.
In fact, countless people had tried to ask her out, including powerful shinobi, nobles, and even daimyō — but every single one had failed.
With her personality, Tamamo-no-Mae never gave those admirers the time of day. Nor did she fear so-called power or status.
Indeed, quite a few nobles had tried to use authority to pressure her, but all failed. The "genjutsu goddess" remained as aloof as ever.
No wonder — her true body was the Nine Tails. Even if the genjutsu game and network had "tainted" her, making her no longer quite the same as before, her pride had not changed. To her, most humans were still mere insects. Her measure was strength, and worldly power meant nothing.
Nobles and daimyō had tried to have the Hidden Leaf investigate her true identity, but all failed. The Leaf's answers were always along the lines of:
"Who knows anything about the network?"
"If you want to know, ask Tamamo-no-Mae yourself."
"There are so many players — who could know them all?"
"We're not gods — how could we know so much?"
"We're all just trying our best to live."
This annoyed the nobles and daimyō to no end, but they were powerless to change it. The Land of Fire's daimyō's displeasure with the Hidden Leaf surely owed something to this.
Well… the legend of the Nine-Tailed Fox sowing chaos among men wasn't entirely baseless.
Of course, Madara knew none of this. To him, Tamamo-no-Mae was simply a formidable enemy. Now, learning she had founded her own clan, he was surprised — and thoughtful.
"Should I start a clan with Muzi?"
Yes — seeing the Nine Tails create a clan of her own had Madara thinking.
Before, he hadn't cared, and neither he nor Muzi had considered forming one. To him, the word "clan" evoked the Senju and Uchiha — true clans. An online "clan" was laughable in comparison.
But over time, watching clan after clan appear, Madara realized this online version was nothing like the real thing — just small groups playing together. Some had only a handful of members.
Even then, he had thought about forming one — but because of that troublesome yellow-haired Uzumaki Kenshin, he dropped the idea. If he created a clan with Muzi, Uzumaki Kenshin would inevitably join, given their relationship.
To Madara, that would be unbearable — so he shelved the thought.
Now, however, seeing his great enemy Tamamo-no-Mae found a clan made him reconsider.
After all, even if her clan wasn't huge, she would no longer be fighting alone — she'd have her own force.
In-game, having a force meant having backup in PVP. Facing her clan in a fight would put him at a disadvantage without a clan of his own.
Tamamo-no-Mae was already strong enough — now, with her own force, her advantage would be complete. Wouldn't that mean he'd be on the losing end every time they clashed?
Unacceptable!
Absolutely unacceptable!
Of all things, this could not be endured!
As he pondered, Madara's competitive spirit burned hotter and hotter — the strange pride of an old man in full flame.
Then, just as he was thinking this over, Madara suddenly felt a wave of dizziness. The scenery around him shifted rapidly, and he was struck by intense vertigo.
When he came to, the world around him had completely changed — he was somewhere entirely different.
"Where is this?"
He frowned deeply, sharpening his vigilance.
He was in a dark realm, the air gray and heavy, the far distance pitch-black, the land littered with broken rock and mountains.
Looking upward, his eyes widened, the Sharingan flaring — above was an uneven "rock ceiling," as if this were an unimaginably vast underground world. The "sky" was simply the underside of stone.
It was strange yet familiar — strange because he had never seen such a massive underground space, familiar because, having lived underground for so long, he recognized the feeling.
"What is going on? Where is this place?"
He frowned again.
Then, a voice — shocking, familiar, and long-forgotten — sounded.
"Long time no see, Madara!"
Madara spun around. Standing there was the very image of Hashirama Senju as he remembered him, just as he'd appeared at the Valley of the End.
The sight made Madara's heart skip a beat, a surge of indescribable emotion flooding through him — and he shouted without thinking:
"Hashirama!!!"
Hashirama grinned broadly:
"Seeing you still so full of energy puts me at ease, Madara."
Hearing those words and seeing that smile, Madara felt his blood boil, a fierce urge to fight nearly overwhelming him.
But soon, he forced himself to calm down, suppressing the "Hashirama Syndrome" by sheer will.
Because he thought of Muzi — the girl he had spent nearly a year with.
He had already accepted that Muzi was Hashirama's reincarnation. If so, then who was this Hashirama before him?
Or rather — why was he here? What was this place? He had been in the genjutsu network a moment ago — how had he suddenly met Hashirama?
Such questions bred countless suspicions and wariness. Madara instinctively assumed this Hashirama was a fake, and the scene around him an illusion.
Seeing Madara's sudden caution and sharp gaze, Hashirama seemed unconcerned. He simply smiled and said:
"No need to be tense, Madara. I truly am the Hashirama you know — though not complete. I'm only a chakra spirit I left behind."
Madara blinked. Then Hashirama turned his back, facing the pitch-black abyss in the distance, and spoke in a wistful tone:
"Madara, do you know what this place is? This is the Land of the Dead."
Madara's eyes widened. He hadn't expected those to be the first words from Hashirama's mouth.
Still with his back turned — mostly to avoid slipping up or being read — Hashirama continued:
"Yes, this is the Pure Land of the shinobi world, the place only the dead can enter. I've spent quite some time here, waiting for you."
"But I never saw you, which disappointed me."
"Then, when I thought you'd been refusing to see me, the Sage of Six Paths came to me and told me you were still alive in the world of the living."
"He gave me a chance — to return to the living world and see you again. I accepted."
Madara's Sharingan tomoe spun rapidly, his eyes widening in shock.
"The Sage of Six Paths? He's still alive?"
Hashirama shook his head slightly:
"No — he still exists, but he is not alive. The Pure Land of the shinobi world was created by him. He is, without question, the god of the underworld."
Such shocking information made Madara's heart quake. Hashirama left the matter of his return to the living unsaid, letting Madara fill in the gaps himself.
And indeed, Madara's mind was already racing, making connections.
At last, understanding dawned on him:
"I see… In the Sage's arrangement, Hashirama was reincarnated — and the one he reincarnated as… is Muzi."
He pressed his lips together, then couldn't help but ask:
"Hashirama, you are Muzi… aren't you?"
A flicker of guilt crossed Hashirama's face — but with his back turned, Madara couldn't see it. In a slightly awkward tone, he said:
"Uh… yes, Muzi is me…"
Madara's expression said it all: Just as I thought. Everything now made sense — at least in the way he had imagined it.
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