The forest was silent, but not peaceful. Every sound was swallowed before it could reach my ears. The wind barely whispered. The trees stood still, like watchers waiting for something to happen.
I knew I wasn't alone.
I had felt their presence hours ago, footsteps light but steady, chakra faint but clear. ANBU. Ten of them, sent by the Hokage's office. They wanted me dead or alive.
But I was ready.
I waited in the shadows, hidden by the thick branches and the night's embrace. No Sharingan. I didn't need it.
When they reached the clearing, they spread out, cautious. Their masks were cold, emotionless. They thought themselves hunters. But they were prey.
"You're surrounded, Surrender, Izuna Uchiha."
I stepped forward, calm. "Why would I?"
They charged.
I moved like the wind, fast, silent, deadly.
Their jutsu hit nothing but air. Their blades met space.
I closed the distance with ease. A quick flick of my wrist, and two were on the ground, sealed by my fūinjutsu. Another tried to strike from behind; I twisted his arm, threw him to the dirt.
Within moments, all ten were incapacitated. No deaths. Not tonight.
I sealed their chakra, trapping their minds in genjutsu. They'd live, but they'd never follow me again.
Then, footsteps. Different this time. Familiar.
Kakashi and Obito.
I waited as they stepped into the clearing, eyes sharp, hands ready.
"Kakashi,Obito."
They looked at the fallen ANBU, then at me.
"You did this?" Kakashi's voice was hard, but with a hint of something else. Confusion?
"Yes."
Obito took a step forward. "Izuna… why? Why kill Danzo and the Elders? Why become a rogue?"
I smiled, "Maybe I was bored."
Kakashi's eyes narrowed. "That's not an answer."
"Not everything needs an answer. Sometimes people just get tired."
Obito's fists clenched. "We're your friends. You don't have to do this alone."
I looked at them, their hopeful faces. For a moment, a flicker of something stirred inside me. But I pushed it away.
"I don't need friends, not anymore."
Kakashi shook his head. "Come back. We can fix this."
I laughed, "Fix what? The lies? The betrayal? You think you know the truth, but you only see shadows."
Obito's voice cracked. "Please, Izuna…"
I raised a hand. "Enough."
The fight began.
Kakashi struck first, lightning crackling in his hand. Obito unleashed a wave of fire. I dodged without using my Sharingan.
I didn't need it.
I was faster.
I caught Kakashi's kunai mid-air, twisted his arm, and threw him into a tree. Obito lunged, but I caught his wrist and sent him flying.
"Why won't you fight with your eyes?" Kakashi demanded.
"Because this isn't a game."
I moved through them like a shadow. Each attack is precise, calculated. Neither could keep up.
When I finally stood over them, their chests rising and falling rapidly, I said, "Don't follow me."
Obito looked up, eyes full of tears and disbelief. "Izuna… please."
I turned away. "Next time, I won't stop."
And then I disappeared into the darkness.
————
Minato, Shikaku, and Sakumo stand in the room as Kakashi and Obito enter, exhausted and serious. The tension in the air is thick, heavy with the weight of the situation.
Kakashi: "Hokage-sama, we found Izuna."
Obito: "But… he didn't want to come back. He told us not to follow him."
Minato clenches his hands, voice quiet but determined: "He said that… Izuna? How could he so firmly reject the village?"
Shikaku frowns: "What about the ANBU report?"
Kakashi nods. "Izuna defeated ten ANBU operatives. Without even using his Sharingan. He was cold, almost emotionless. And he didn't kill them. He only incapacitated them and sealed their chakra."
Sakumo frowns deeply, speaking quietly: "If that's true, then Izuna is no longer the boy we knew."
Minato looks out the window, his tone lowers: "I can't believe he's become so cold. How much must he feel betrayed to act this way?"
Kakashi, looking down, whispers: "We couldn't convince him. He didn't want to come back. He even warned us not to follow him."
Shikaku folds his arms: "Fear in the village is growing. Rumors of Izuna, the 'God of Death,' are spreading like wildfire. People are beginning to doubt every Uchiha."
Sakumo clenches his jaw angrily: "If the village loses faith in its own, what's left for us?"
Minato turns to them: "We must be prepared for anything. If Izuna won't return, then we'll have to stop him… by any means necessary."
Hiruzen, entering quietly, adds: "Kakashi and Obito will continue the search, but now with the full support of the village. We cannot allow Izuna to be lost."
⸻
Fugaku sits at his desk, reading the reports Shikaku delivered. His expression is hard but worried.
Fugaku muttering to himself, "Izuna… Hope of the Uchiha clan. He has become what we all feared."
He thinks about his role as clan leader and everything that has been betrayed.
"If the clan falls because of one man, it will be a disgrace I cannot accept."
⸻
Raizen and Sukura sit together, holding hands. Their eyes are full of sadness and fear. After some time, Raizen said.
"Is Izuna safe? What if he… has lost himself?"
Sukura added, "You know he's not the same boy he once was. But that doesn't mean he isn't our son."
Raizen quietly said, "I just hope he comes back home."
⸻
Kurenai sits alone, holding the bracelet with the hiraishin seal that Izuna gave her.
"Why did he give me this bracelet if he knew he was leaving? What did he want me to keep?"
A tear rolls down her cheek as she thinks of the time they spent together and the trust she had in him.
Kurenai in her mind, "Is there still a part of Izuna I know? Or has he completely disappeared?"
⸻
Konoha Streets — The Next Day
Rumors of Izuna's chase and his power spread among the people.
Shopkeeper: "Did you hear? Izuna Uchiha, the God of Death, defeated ten ANBU without using his Sharingan."
Young woman: "I don't know if I can trust the Uchiha anymore… What if they all turn against us?"
Children play quietly, looking at the Uchiha with fear.
Old shinobi added, "The war may be over, but the darkness inside people has not faded."
—————
Izuna steps cautiously into the shadowed cave. The air is thick with chakra. At the far end sits a tall man with long silver hair and the unmistakable Rinnegan — Madara Uchiha.
Madara slowly turns his head, eyes sharp and calm.
"So, Uchiha Izuna… The God of Death. I did not expect you to come."
Izuna's eyes narrow. Without hesitation, he activates his Mangekyō Sharingan — a star-shaped pattern blazing. A chakra barrier swiftly forms around them both, sealing the cave.
"Good. No Black Zetsu here."
Madara's eyes flicker in surprise.
"How do you know about Zetsu?"Madara was shocked.
Izuna smirks faintly.
"I know everything."
"You ruined my plans from the very start. If only you hadn't saved Rin and Obito… I could have executed my true plan."
"I'm your grandson."
"You're my grandson?"
"Yes. You thought you had no children… but the blood of Madara runs through me."
Madara's shock turns into a cold bitterness.
Izuna stands firm, expression unreadable.
When I think about it, you look a lot like my brother, Izuna."
He pauses, then his eyes narrow sharply.
"But tell me — what do you truly want? Let me guess, you want to kill me?"
Izuna's Mangekyou Sharingan flares brightly.
He projects a vision — the manipulation of Black Zetsu, the twisted future he has seen.
"This is how Black Zetsu used you. The future is darker than you realize. The Infinite Tsukuyomi is no true peace."
Madara's eyes widen, struck by the vision.
"How do you know this future?"
Izuna's voice lowers.
"That is my secret."
He steps closer, voice urgent.
"I need your help. There is a real threat coming, stronger than even the First Hokage. If we do not act, all will fall."
Madara's face hardens, but a hint of respect flickers in his eyes.
"Very well, Izuna. If fate has brought you here, then we shall face this threat together."
——————
I felt it.
A shift in the air. A ripple of something… foul.
From the damp cave wall, blackness began to slither out. Like tar peeling itself off stone. A shape, half man, half shadow.
Black Zetsu.
Madara didn't move. Just narrowed his eyes.
"So… you came after all."
Zetsu smiled with that warped mouth of his.
"I felt the chakra shift. I see the two of you have met properly."
I kept my gaze locked on him. Calm. Steady. I'd been waiting for this moment.
"You've been hiding a long time, parasite."
He chuckled.
"You were always meant to follow the path he carved."
Madara let out a cold breath.
"He still thinks he's in control."
"You don't need to fight it. With the two of you, Tsukuyomi will be perfect. The world will know peace. No war. No death. Just… unity."
I could hear it in his voice, twisted, patient, rehearsed
"No. Your peace is a lie. Just like everything you whispered to him."
His grin faded slightly.
"You speak of lies, yet here you stand… following the plan."
I let my chakra rise.
"No. I'm rewriting it."
Madara took a step forward, arms crossed. His tone was colder than ever.
"He knows everything, Zetsu. Your games are over."
For a second, even Zetsu was silent.
That was all I needed.
I moved faster than he could blink. My fingers carved the seal into the earth beneath us.
"Fuinjutsu: Black Moon Seal."
Chains erupted inky, glowing, ancient. They wrapped around him like they'd been waiting just as long as I had.
"What—! No! You fool! She will return! Kaguya—!"
I pulled the seal tight.
"Not today."
And just like that… he was gone. Trapped.
Silence. Heavy. Real.
Madara stared at the spot for a long moment. Then he looked at me.
"That seal… it won't hold him forever."
"It doesn't have to," Just long enough."
His eyes shifted. I could feel them weighing me. Judging.
"Seems like you are my grandson." he laughed
I let my Mangekyou fade. The tension in my body eased—but only slightly.
A smirk played at the corner of his mouth. The first one I'd seen from him.
I turned from the fading light of the seal and stepped deeper into the cave.
"Let's prepare, old man. We have work to do."