HSU: Ch. 334

Kurotsuchi's comings and goings didn't even register in Madara's awareness. Meeting the Tsuchikage was just a matter of convenience anyway, saved him the trip.

Right now, his focus was on training Nagato. The guy had the Rinnegan but didn't even know how to use its ocular power. If he ran into Masashi in this state, he'd be dead in seconds.

Masashi might not specialize in genjutsu, he focuses on counter-genjutsu, but that doesn't stop him from steamrolling weaker opponents with it.

Nagato was just painfully weak. That wouldn't do. This vessel still had plenty of uses.

So after sending Kurotsuchi away, Madara forced himself to calm down and began giving Nagato an authentic "Uchiha-style Genjutsu 101, Warring States Edition."

The Uchiha clan, after all, had made their name through genjutsu. For most ninjas, genjutsu was honestly kind of a useless skill, not very practical in direct combat, mostly used as a support technique for setting traps.

Very few ninjas specialized in genjutsu.

That's because both using a proper genjutsu and ensuring the enemy actually falls for it are equally troublesome.

But the Uchiha were different.

Because of their ocular power, chakra created by their special spiritual energy, they held an overwhelming advantage in both using and breaking genjutsu.

Most genjutsu were useless against high-level Sharingan. Uchiha with such eyes didn't need anyone's help to break illusions. They could do it themselves with their ocular power. And to use genjutsu on someone? Just eye contact. Done.

What most saw as a useless support skill turned into a basic attack in the hands of a high-level Sharingan user.

And once it became a basic attack, it was terrifying.

If Sharingan users might occasionally get caught in genjutsu, say, if their eye level wasn't high enough, the Rinnegan just outright hard-countered all genjutsu users without a Rinnegan.

Unless the genjutsu came from something outside the traditional chakra system, like natural energy.

That's why Nagato, even though he couldn't use ocular power properly, had never fallen for genjutsu. He hadn't even gone through a life-and-death battle with Jiraiya in this timeline.

Another Rinnegan user, Masashi, simply didn't like using genjutsu at all. He specialized in countering it. But Madara's life motto was to leave no regrets, so he decided to fix this gap for Nagato. The only problem was he was the worst kind of "film director." Watching his "movie" was pure suffering for the trainee.

"Is that it?" He looked at the sweaty Nagato. "Were you listening to a word I said? I told you to use ocular power, not to take a dump!"

Nagato: "..."

He suddenly remembered his training days with Jiraiya. Same village roots, but why did the experiences feel so different?

He didn't believe Madara was sincerely teaching him. The man must be holding back a dozen tricks. But he was absolutely sure Madara was sincerely insulting him.

"Again!" He straightened up and glared at Madara.

He refused to believe he couldn't do it.

"What are you opening your eyes so wide for? To show off how big they are?" Madara sneered at his stubbornness. "Forget it, take a break. After all, I've already seen how stupid you are. Honestly, your stupidity is so creative it's broadened my horizons."

Nagato silently took the scolding without talking back.

He understood.

If you don't have the skill, don't run your mouth. Especially after eating dirt with your face more than once.

Madara's words were harsh, but his teachings were solid.

Nagato had started to sense the ocular power inside his Rinnegan.

It had always been there, but before, he couldn't clearly distinguish it from chakra or figure out how to use it.

Madara's genjutsu training, though brutal, made him begin to grasp the difference between ocular power and chakra.

When Madara told him to rest, he didn't want to.

"I can keep going."

"You can't," Madara replied flatly. "Ocular power is a unique result of the Uchiha's spiritual strength. It affects both chakra and the user's mind. If I say rest, you rest, or I'll make you."

Nagato immediately sat down without a word. He suddenly realized, yeah, maybe a break wasn't so bad.

Madara stopped paying attention to him and turned to look at the landscape around them. As the former top name of the Uchiha, he had walked nearly every corner of the shinobi world, including the Land of Earth. The terrain hadn't changed. The stones were as hard as ever.

But the people were different. His friends and comrades who once shed blood here were long gone.

This country, now desolate, bore the marks left by people who had already passed on.

He didn't hate their way of doing things. If he put aside personal feelings, he even admired it. That included Tobirama. But Masashi, he wasn't quite as ruthless. No, not exactly "not ruthless." More like he enjoyed dancing within the rules.

Above, the sun blazed fiercely. But Madara couldn't feel the heat, nor did the sunlight sting his eyes. A neat little bug of Edo Tensei: immunity to bright light.

Blinding enemies all night while an army of undead charged forward? Pure comfort.

He chuckled to himself.

What was this compared to what he envisioned?

In the world of the Eye of the Moon plan, sunlight wouldn't sting, and darkness would have nowhere to hide. He would be the enemy of the world, and of all its darkness.

The name "Uchiha" would be sung through eternity. And that legacy wouldn't be a lie. The so-called "peace" of today was the real illusion.

He turned back. He figured Nagato had rested enough.

It was just the right moment. Nagato still remembered the overwhelming sensation of being dominated by ocular power, and his mind had recovered as well.

"You can get up now," Madara said. "I'll give you one second."

Nagato, who'd been on standby, instantly jumped to his feet, only to be hit head-on by another genjutsu and sink right back into illusion.

Watching him flail and dance in confusion, Madara began to wonder when this idiot was ever going to surprise him. But, well, this was the vessel he'd chosen himself. He had to endure it.

Besides, there was also Obito. Meeting the Tsuchikage had also been for this. Time to "recruit" a big fish. If the Mizukage could be used, the Tsuchikage could too.

As these thoughts crossed his mind, he continued Nagato's training with his trademark, sharp-tongued commentary included.

That was part of the package. Buy one lesson, get one insult free.

One thing about Nagato that did satisfy him: the kid could take a beating, both physical and verbal.

Finally, as the sun began to dip and the evening sky glowed, Nagato successfully withstood Madara's genjutsu for the first time. At the same time he resisted the illusion, he mobilized the Rinnegan's ocular power to break free.

At that moment, Nagato felt proud.

Proud of his willpower. Proud of his talent. He truly was the chosen one!

He lifted his gaze to the sky.

It was a vivid blue, and distant mountains were painted with a faint blush under the evening glow. His eyes stung a little. He hadn't expected the sky of the Land of Earth to be this beautiful.

"Are you crying?"

Nagato could tell from the tone, bad news. He turned to look at Madara.

"Judging from how long it took you to break that genjutsu," Madara said calmly, "you'd already be dead. That illusion is something Uchiha kids use to trick other kids into thinking they've already had dessert. You actually dragged it out this long. Since you've now reached preschool level, I'll raise the difficulty a bit. Next, we go with academy graduate standard."

Damn it! There's no way that was preschool level! You just don't want to admit how great I am!

Nagato screamed three times in his heart.

"Got it," he replied flatly.

He believed Madara, like Jiraiya, would eventually acknowledge his extraordinary talent. He had been given this gift by fate to change the cruel world, and he wasn't going to give up. The stronger the enemy, the greater the obstacle, the fiercer his resolve would burn.

Madara wanted his Rinne Tensei. Nagato wanted Madara's power. As long as his dream could be achieved, he didn't care about his life.

"Come on then!" Nagato felt his fatigue melt away. He was fired up.

"What the hell are you so excited about?" Madara gave him a cold look. "Follow me."

Nagato froze.

What, no more training?

If that was the case, he'd rather not tag along. There was still a war going on at their base.

"Relax," Madara said, already striding north. "Even though your men are a bunch of trash, the Suna ninjas aren't any better. They'll fight for a while yet. You've got enough time to finish your training. By the time we're done, even if you're the only one left, the Land of Rain will still have peace."

Nagato wanted to roll his eyes and just leave. What do you mean, "even if only I'm left"?

But he couldn't walk away now. He'd already tasted the benefits of training under Madara. After some thought, he decided to trust Konan, Kakuzu, and Sasori.

Because only by becoming stronger could he do more.

This world was ruled by those with power. The fate of the common people was decided by such powerful individuals. If he wanted to change the world, he had to stand at the very top. And the opportunity was right in front of him.

He followed Madara, though keeping a safe distance between them.

The two moved across the Land of Earth.

The scenery slowly became less desolate. The country had started rebuilding after the war. The place where they had been training earlier was still a ruined zone waiting to be restored. But the direction they were heading made him curious.

"Where are we going?"

"To Iwa, of course," Madara replied. "You've been jumping around here for ages, and the Tsuchikage hasn't shown up. Clearly, they're refusing my summons. I'll make them remember the respect due to the Uchiha."

"You still keep calling yourself Uchiha?" Nagato said. "You've already left Konoha. Being indecisive doesn't suit someone like you."

"You seem to be mistaken," Madara glanced at him. "As long as I live, I am Uchiha. Before I meet that guy who calls himself Tsuchikage, everyone in our way, you'll deal with. But only with genjutsu."

---

When Masashi returned home, it was already pitch dark outside.

Everything about the Fourth Hokage's era was good, except for the endless overtime. He alone had somehow set off an overtime craze across the entire village. Only the jonin squads didn't have to work overtime, since their work had little to do with desks or offices anyway.

"Did you eat dinner on time at the office?" Hikari asked as she helped him take off his flak jacket. "You're sitting in an office every day now. Maybe you don't need to wear this anymore?"

"I'm just used to it," Masashi said with a smile. "Look at Minato. He's been Hokage for years, and he still wears his battle vest to work every day."

"But his vest doesn't have scrolls stuffed inside it," Hikari replied with a grin.

She remembered the days when they had just met, him holed up in a room, furiously crafting explosive tags.

In the blink of an eye, years had passed. They were now bound by blood, sharing a family of their own.

"It's different," Masashi said after thinking for a moment. "Honestly, whether you're Hokage or the head of the ANBU, you never know when you'll have to fight. That's just the nature of a ninja's life. Anything can happen, and the whole world's only a few days' travel anyway."

To be fair, the current generation of ninjas had some decency. Back in the day, things were much uglier. People were ruthless, downright deranged. Compared to that, things now were a huge improvement. It would be shameful not to appreciate that.

"You still haven't answered me. Did you eat properly?"

"Oh, right. Don't worry. Everyone's been working late lately, so the cafeteria's been providing set meals for us."

"That's good," Hikari nodded. "Go take a bath then. I've already warmed the water."

"Ah, next time, don't wait up for me, okay? You're already exhausted from taking care of the kids. I can manage myself."

"It's not a big deal," Hikari sighed. "Besides, it's not like I can help you much with work. And Pakura's got it tough too."

"Alright, I'll go bathe then. Oh, and once this mess is over, I'll ask the Hokage for some time off. Let's take the family out for a proper trip. We can't just stay cooped up at home forever."

"Mhm, I'll hold you to that." Hikari smiled.

As he went to wash up, she found herself wondering how exactly a Hokage requested vacation from their own advisor or assistant.

Lately, Masashi had been too busy with overtime to think about such things. Pakura was also a jonin, often away on missions, leaving Hikari as the one who interacted most with the outside world. Nowadays, Hikari was one of the Uchiha clan's representatives in the village association. Though she appeared to the public mainly as a homemaker, she was a capable and influential woman in her own right.

While the village kept a firm grip on public opinion, the association was a different story.

From her contacts there, Hikari already knew that the daimyō's court had reached a quiet consensus. Masashi becoming Hokage would be a good thing. And within the association itself, spirits were high. With stronger backing, morale soared. Money wasn't the association's real source of confidence. The Uchiha clan's military power was. And that power was now on the verge of becoming Konoha's own.

Of course, no one said a word about this in front of Masashi. Everyone knew he wanted to retire. It was common workplace sense, not to annoy your boss with loose talk.

As family, Hikari and Pakura had tried their best to persuade him to abandon that stubborn idea. They simply couldn't understand why he was so bullheaded about it. It was as if he'd already smashed through one wall just to find another to ram into.

Becoming Hokage didn't seem bad at all. To the two women who still carried the scars of their past, Masashi as Hokage would mean one thing above all, safety. For him, and for their family. After all, even the Third Hokage was still lively and well.

While Masashi was bathing, Hikari gathered up his old clothes, planning to wash them tomorrow. By the time he came out, dressed in a black yukata, she was already waiting on the sofa with a pot of hot tea prepared.

That was one of his habits.

He loved tea, morning, noon, or night. Most people couldn't sleep after drinking it so late, but it never affected him in the slightest.

"By the way," Hikari said, "you haven't gone to the hospital for your annual check-up yet, have you?"

"No, why?" Masashi asked.

He didn't think there was anything wrong with him. Honestly, most medical-nin at the hospital weren't necessarily more skilled than he was.

"You're the one who proposed the system. You should set an example. Fugaku asked me to remind you."

"Got it," Masashi said, immediately understanding.

The new medical check-up policy had been well received among the senior ninjas, but the lower- and mid-level ones often ignored it. Still, it was a village welfare benefit, and for many lower-ranked ninjas, most of their lasting injuries were accumulated at that stage.

"I'll go," he promised. "Once the situation with Suna and Ame settles down, I'll take the ANBU with me. That'll set a good example."

The ANBU were highly respected among lower-ranked ninjas, the embodiment of the Will of Fire.

If the ANBU took the lead, others would surely follow.

"Anyone else dropping by tonight?" he asked, remembering the flood of people trying to get on his good side. It made his head hurt.

But most of them were either old comrades or relatives, hard to turn away outright. There wasn't much he could do about that.

He had to admit, objectively, that it made sense. After all, just because someone didn't try to pull strings didn't automatically mean they were upright or pure-hearted.

"No one came today," Hikari said. "Almost everyone's already visited. It won't be as frequent as before."

"That's true..." Masashi felt a bit lighter and took a small sip of tea.

After a moment of thought, he decided to be open with his wife about what was on his mind.

"Hikari, what do you think about this whole Hokage thing?"

"I think it's great," she said naturally. "If you become Hokage, you won't have to go out fighting all the time. We can finally stop worrying."

"I'm strong enough, you know."

"I know," she replied softly. "But still, fighting less is always better."

"But if that happens, I'll have even less time for you and the kids. It won't just be occasional overtime like now. It'll be constant. You know how every department in the village is so competitive lately."

"If you don't have time, we can go find you. And if you become Hokage, the children will have a brighter future."

She was being completely honest. As a mother, her greatest concern was always the children's future. And the Hokage's children would never be mistreated by the village, right?

"So, you all really want me to compete for the Hokage position?"

Hikari sighed. "I don't want to discourage you, but I don't think there's going to be any competition this time."

"Alright," Masashi said after a pause. "There's actually something I haven't told you all, mainly because I didn't want you to worry."

He set his teacup down and pulled Hikari into his arms.

"The reason I don't want to be Hokage isn't because of personal feelings. It's because the current situation isn't as stable as everyone thinks. I have a feeling Madara will try to recreate the events from the legends. His intentions might be good, but the result, at least in my eyes, would be disastrous."

Hikari didn't ask what he meant.

For one thing, she didn't really understand the intricacies of ninja politics. She knew that every profession had its own world, and outsiders couldn't always grasp it.

For another, she knew her husband. If he wasn't explaining, it was because he didn't want to add to his family's worries. That feeling, she understood all too well. After all, she was born into a ninja clan herself.

"Masashi," she said carefully, choosing her words, "isn't it possible that you just don't trust the abilities of others enough? You work so hard, but others are working hard too. If you do everything yourself, they might not see it as protection. They'll see it as you not trusting them."

"I'll try," Masashi said sincerely, without arguing.

Because she was right. He didn't trust them. But honestly, after reading that manga, how could anyone?

A vast shinobi world, yet Nagato and Obito still managed to exploit the divisions between the great villages, gathering enough power to nearly flip the table on the entire world.

If Sasuke hadn't crashed the Five Kage Summit, forcing Obito to reveal himself early, he probably could've stayed in hiding much longer. The five villages would've gone through a few more rounds of internal conflict before realizing it.

Danzō's actions at the summit weren't actually that unreasonable. None of the others were any better. Kumo, for example, treated the summit purely as a chance to renegotiate profit and influence.

How could anyone protect the world with that bunch?

Sure, Konoha had never been spotless, but at least in that affair, the village had been on the right side.

"This time, I've temporarily reassigned quite a few people from the jonin squads," Masashi said, kissing Hikari's forehead. "Everyone's working hard. I believe this issue will be settled soon. Go to bed early, alright? I need to think for a bit."

"Mm. Don't think too long," Hikari said, returning his kiss before heading upstairs. "Come up soon."

Masashi sat on the sofa for a long time.

Long enough for the entire pot of tea to run dry. He didn't bother refilling it. He tucked both hands into his sleeves.

He said quietly. "What's the matter?"

A figure appeared in the living room. It was a member of the ANBU.

As the ANBU commander, he naturally had his own guard detail. It was standard protocol, both for protection and for communication.

They rotated shifts, staying near the commander at all times, part bodyguards, part messengers, ready to report information the moment it came in.

"Masashi-sama," the ANBU operative said, "a messenger from Suna requests an audience again."

"They really have no patience," Masashi sighed. "No wonder they keep declining year after year. We even returned their mission quota to them, and they still can't get back on their feet."

"They're desperate," the operative reported. "Nagato still hasn't appeared, but Sasori has already neutralized all of their poisons. And this time, he used over a hundred human puppets at once."

"Oh? He's stocked up well then," Masashi said. "None of those puppets are from Konoha, I hope?"

"There are," the ANBU replied. "They're old cases, but confirmed. Former jonin once listed as missing from the village."

"Then it's worth meeting them," Masashi said with a cold smile.

"Tonight's overtime," he added dryly, "will be on Sasori's account."

He thought for a moment, then decided not to bother changing clothes. He would meet Suna's envoy just as he was, to show Konoha's strength and confidence.

Besides, he was rather looking forward to revisiting the Land of Rain himself.