Kisame: "....."
Madara?!
That name was familiar, incredibly familiar.
Wasn't that supposed to be his boss?
The man who controlled Kirigakure, the one who claimed he would bring a brand-new world to all shinobi.
Whether he believed it or not—whether the masked man or the one standing here now was the real Madara—Kisame honestly didn't care. As a rogue ninja, the only place he had to go was the Akatsuki anyway.
Because of Tobi's overwhelming power, his deep understanding of the Warring States Period and the concept of shinobi villages, and that peculiar Mangekyō Sharingan of his, Kisame had once believed without hesitation that he was truly Madara.
And now another man steps out saying he is Madara Uchiha?
"If you're gonna lie, at least know your limits," Kisame sneered, hefting Samehada onto his shoulder. "You think just anyone can call themselves Madara Uchiha?"
Hashirama glanced at his friend, a hint of pity in his eyes.
Tobirama: "..."
Speechless. Honestly, it was a little funny.
Madara, being questioned twice in one day about whether he was really Madara Uchiha, looked extremely sour.
A man who had always believed in acting rather than talking, Madara was fully prepared to let this shark-man across from him find out exactly whether he was the genuine Madara Uchiha.
Itachi stepped forward, placing himself slightly in front of Kisame.
As unbelievable as it was, Itachi reasoned that if this truly was the past, he might be able to gather more intelligence about Tobi.
"It may sound strange," Itachi said politely, "but may I ask where this place is?"
His tone was courteous, and—most importantly—he looked remarkably similar to Izuna. Even their build and hairstyle bore some resemblance, and seeing the young man open his Sharingan over and over distracted Madara more than once.
That softened Madara Uchiha's "nuclear kindness" into something far gentler, making him answer the young man personally.
"It's a village..." He paused, remembering that the ones claiming to be from the future called this place Konoha. So he told Itachi, "It's Konoha... Yes, Konohagakure."
Clang!
Hashirama drooped, looking defeated. "You just copied the name directly? Isn't that way too simple? It has no depth at all..."
Publicly embarrassed, Madara reflexively spun around and barked at Hashirama.
"What's wrong with that name compared to 'Hokage'?! Idiot! And can you fix that ridiculous habit of sulking at every little thing?! At least try to act dignified when people are watching!!"
Jiraiya: ...
Kakashi: ...
Kisame: ...
Itachi: ...
At that moment, everyone's thoughts unexpectedly lined up perfectly.
Namely: You're not exactly dignified either...
Tobirama Senju couldn't help pressing a hand to his forehead, letting out a long, exhausted sigh.
"Do you know Minato Namikaze?" he asked.
The four across from him froze.
A flicker of confusion flashed in Itachi's eyes. If this really was Konoha's founding era, why would the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju, know the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze?
It made no sense.
Kakashi and Jiraiya exchanged a glance. Both reached the same conclusion: Minato—Minato-sensei—must have traveled to this era as well.
Tobirama Senju said, "Either way, this isn't the place to talk. Follow me."
This area was crowded and noisy, not at all suitable for discussing matters related to the future.
He led the four individuals, each possessing space-time ninjutsu traces, back toward the room where Minato Namikaze and the others were staying.
Before he even slid the door open, they could already hear chaotic voices coming from inside...
"Damn it, Sasuke! What did you just say?! Call me the bottom of the barrel again and I'll beat you up!!"
"Hmph, super big idiot."
"Sasuke, you'll end up with no friends if you keep this up. As your clan uncle, I feel it's my duty to properly educate you."
"Ha, before you lecture others, why don't you get your own act together? Stop causing trouble for Minato-sensei, you idiot."
"What?!!! Stupid Kakashi, do you have to diss me at a time like this?!! Would you die without being a smartass?"
"Yes."
Listening to the teasing and bickering coming from inside, Itachi Uchiha and Jiraiya—along with Kisame—turned to look at Adult Kakashi.
Jiraiya even joked, "Stupid Kakashi… that's actually a pretty good name."
Thinking about it carefully, the person who gave Kakashi that nickname…
Wasn't it the one who had pushed him into becoming the laid-back slacker he was today? Minato's first disciple to die.
Realizing this, Jiraiya's gaze toward Kakashi softened with pity.
"You've been through a lot…" As someone who had lived through similar pain, he understood that feeling well.
Facing a parallel world's Obito and his own younger self, this man—who had weathered countless hardships—must feel even heavier sorrow, bound by a ninja's endurance to say nothing aloud.
Itachi heard Sasuke's voice from inside the tatami hallway. He hadn't expected to run into Sasuke here.
With Kisame by his side, if necessary…
He would have to hurt Sasuke.
The thought tangled in his mind for only a second before he settled on the decision.
Sasuke needed to hate him even more.
Only then would the future Sasuke accept his Mangekyō Sharingan.
Hashirama Senju slid open the tatami door. Inside, two pairs of boys still looked ready to argue: one pair held back by Namikaze Minato and a pink-haired girl, the other forcibly reconciled by a brown-haired girl holding both their hands, preventing the fight from starting again.
"Hahaha, you guys are so close! Just like me and Madara used to be!"
Hashirama strolled in with careless enthusiasm.
His white-haired younger brother scowled at the remark.
Madara stumbled over his own foot and nearly face-planted right onto Tobirama.
"Hashirama, shut your mouth!"
"Hahaha, what's the big deal? We were the same way when we were kids!"
"Big brother, take this seriously!" Unable to tolerate it anymore, Tobirama shoved Hashirama aside and stepped into the tatami room first.
As Tobirama, Hashirama, and Madara entered, the doorway opened wide—and Itachi Uchiha's figure instantly fell into Sasuke's line of sight.
"Itachi—!!!"
Sasuke activated his Sharingan, drew a kunai, and lunged forward!
In a flash—
Madara stepped in front of Itachi, his Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan bearing down on Sasuke with crushing pressure, like a force from another dimension.
Beside Itachi, Kakashi seized his arm in that exact instant, protecting his student and preventing Itachi from harming Sasuke.
Minato Namikaze understood better than anyone that the Uchiha clan's deadliest weapon was their eyes. He covered Sasuke's eyes with his left hand, pulling him close to stop his reckless charge, and to block him from looking directly into Itachi's or Madara's gaze.
At the same time, Minato's right hand moved toward the pouch at his lower back—the Flying Thunder God kunai already locked between his fingers.
Both Hashirama and Tobirama pressed their index and middle fingers together at their chests, their left hands ready to seize and intervene at any moment.
Jiraiya, too, had already prepared the Gerotora scroll in his mouth.
In just a heartbeat, the ninjas' battle stances were fully formed.
Sakura, Naruto, Obito, and the young Kakashi had the same reflexive combat awareness, but compared to the veterans in the room, they lacked over a decade of battlefield experience.
They were startled by the sudden escalation.
Everyone else held their stances for several tense seconds.
"Let me go!" Sasuke's roar was hoarse, filled with despair and agony.
Naruto stared at the man Madara shielded—someone who looked so much like Sasuke.
So this was…
Itachi?!
Sasuke's older brother? The man who murdered every member of Sasuke's family in one night?
But also the gentle boy who held his younger brother close during the Nine-Tails' attack, soothing him with soft whispers?
Seeing that neither side intended to lower their guard, Hashirama shed his earlier lack of authority and radiated overwhelming presence...
"No matter what the reason is, do not engage in private combat indoors!!!"
The chakra that had been on the verge of erupting pressed down on everyone in the room, making even the walls tremble.
Maybe Madara Uchiha saw Itachi Uchiha—who resembled Izuna—as a replacement… or maybe he was simply incapable of yielding to Hashirama Senju.
"I'm not afraid of you, Hashirama," Madara said.
At the same time, chakra surged faintly from within him as well.
Two men capable of shattering the power ceiling of the entire shinobi world were about to let their chakra collide.
The tension was so overwhelming that everyone present felt a primal fear well up inside them.
"...."
Hashirama was the first to soften. "Don't stoop to a child's level, Madara."
"Have you forgotten our fathers' lessons? As long as someone holds a blade, even an infant can be an enemy."
"Aren't we trying to change that era?" Hashirama argued earnestly. "Aren't we working so children won't have to go to the battlefield, becoming casualties of adult ambitions?"
Madara: "....."
Hashirama continued, "More clans will join us—Sarutobi, Nara, Inuzuka… And then, at least in this village, children from different clans could grow up as friends, couldn't they?"
Madara said nothing.
Hashirama pressed on. "Think about it. Once… no, even now it's hard to imagine that a young Uchiha and a young Uzumaki could bicker like friends instead of drawing blades the moment they meet. Isn't that exactly the future we're trying to build?!"
Naruto Uzumaki didn't understand why these two were arguing, but still chimed in loudly,
"Sasuke and I are friends, dattebayo! Not 'like' friends—real friends!"
Sasuke found himself unable to retort under such righteous confidence.
For some reason, Hashirama felt unusually eloquent today.
Even Madara Uchiha began to lower his guard.
Minato Namikaze leaned close to Sasuke's ear and whispered reassuringly, "Remember what I told you? Don't judge by appearances alone. As a ninja, you must understand everything before you decide."
"..."
Sasuke's instinct to attack Itachi the moment he saw him came from years of festering pain and obsession.
But after seeing the conflict between the village and the Uchiha clan, and after witnessing his father and his brother in another timeline, he slowly calmed under Minato's guidance.
As Sasuke gradually loosened his grip, his kunai slipped from his fingers and fell to the floor with a soft clack.
Itachi's face never changed, but inside he felt a quiet relief—he didn't have to hurt his younger brother.
Even if he knew he would someday have to, human nature always wished to delay that pain.
To prevent further conflict, Hashirama and Tobirama separated the four newcomers from Minato's group.
Madara Uchiha, unaware of the situation, boldly sat down beside Itachi.
This youth who resembled Izuna so much drew Madara's instinctive protection.
He had no idea that between Sasuke and himself, he was the far more guarded one.
Jiraiya, seeing his obedient young disciple again, almost couldn't restrain the emotion rising in his chest. Even so, a rough "Minato, you little…" came out in a voice still dry with emotion.
For Minato Namikaze of the Kannabi Bridge timeline, it was simply a matter of Jiraiya-sensei having wandered the shinobi world and being gone for a long time.
He greeted his teacher politely.
When Naruto learned this strange white-haired man was his father's teacher, he peered at Jiraiya curiously—no matter how he looked, he didn't seem like a serious person.
Seeing the shark-like man beside Itachi wearing the same cloak and bearing the Kirigakure missing-nin forehead protector, Minato guessed he must be Itachi's partner in the Akatsuki—and likely the spy planted by the mysterious leader to monitor him.
If he wanted to continue speaking in depth with the First Hokage-sama, he would need to find a way to send this man away.
He turned to Hashirama Senju.
"These people are also from my era. My sensei, Jiraiya, and my student, Kakashi—this boy here when he grows up…" He patted the young Kakashi's shoulder.
Then he looked toward Itachi Uchiha.
"This is Itachi Uchiha, Sasuke's elder brother. He is currently a missing-nin from Konoha and a member of an organization called Akatsuki."
Itachi: "....."
He guessed the Third Hokage had already told the Fourth Hokage about his undercover mission.
Now the question was how to get Kisame away.
Or… should he pull the Fourth Hokage-sama into the world of Tsukuyomi?