"Too foolish!"
Unlike Madara Uchiha's amused expression, Black Zetsu frowned and reminded him, "Madara-sama, if Yuki Seisui has become a jinchuriki, then our plan—"
Madara's laughter abruptly stopped. He coughed lightly, his tone calm again.
"You're right… it won't be easy to get close to him now."
He paused, then a grin crept back onto his face. "But what if there's a war?"
Black Zetsu's eyes narrowed slightly.
"First, we let the great villages exhaust each other," Madara continued coldly. "Konoha has someone who's always been coveting the Hokage's seat."
"You mean… Danzo?"
"Hmm." Madara nodded. "Go stir up conflict between the hidden villages. With that boy's power, he's bound to make quite the name for himself."
"Then, join forces with that one called Danzo. He knows better than we do what strings to pull."
"Understood, Madara-sama," Black Zetsu replied at once.
Madara gave a satisfied nod before asking, "And the one I told you to find—how goes the search?"
At that, Black Zetsu's expression turned uneasy.
"We haven't found anyone suitable yet. The one named Uchiha Haru fits some of the conditions, but…"
He trailed off, not daring to finish. Madara understood anyway.
"Then keep looking," Madara said indifferently.
What he needed was a single Uchiha who could awaken Mangekyo, someone who could be molded—guided to carry out his will.
No one understood the Sharingan better than Madara.
As long as an Uchiha had boundless love, that love would inevitably breed boundless hatred.
The deeper the love, the deeper the hate. And the deeper the hate, the greater the talent.
Such people were always prime candidates for the Mangekyo Sharingan.
But within the Uchiha, souls like that were few—pitifully few.
When Black Zetsu departed with Tobi in tow, the cavern fell silent again, leaving Madara alone.
"Hashirama…" he murmured, voice heavy. "The peace you dreamed of can only exist within the Eye of the Moon."
"The village system you created—it's the ROOT of all chaos."
"You compromised for peace, but the moment you died, war erupted again."
"The First Great War… then the Second… and now, I will personally ignite the Third."
He smiled faintly, eyes dimming.
"The Eye of the Moon Plan will bring true peace."
"That boy's dream of unifying the world… even that's closer to peace than your village system."
With that, Madara closed his eyes. His body weakened, his chakra fading, but he would endure—sleeping, surviving, until he found a worthy successor to complete his grand design.
==========
Yuki Seisui ordered took two and a half months to complete.
In that time, Konan, Yahiko, and Nagato had already moved into the Uzumaki compound.
They didn't borrow money from Seisui as he had offered; instead, they bought three small houses right beside Tsunade's residence.
Kushina was still living with Tsunade and Nawaki, and Seisui's new house was also nearby.
When construction finally finished, Seisui stood before the completed building and nodded in satisfaction.
If it were just a small apartment—one bedroom, one living room, one kitchen, one bath—he wouldn't have minded.
But these were traditional Japanese-style detached houses, full of that quaint "little island life" aesthetic.
He truly couldn't stand it.
So, he'd requested a courtyard.
He even drew the design himself—not that he'd studied architecture, but he'd seen enough examples to sketch out a simple plan.
He didn't bother with calculations or exact angles. He just wanted the builders to follow the general layout he envisioned.
"Seisui," Minato said, frowning as he looked around. "Your new place… feels a little hard to describe."
Before Seisui could reply, Tsunade appeared behind them with her arms crossed, gazing at the house.
"It has a kind of grand, dignified air to it," she said. "Not bad at all. But tell me, brat—don't you think this is a bit too extravagant?"
A house like this must have cost a fortune. Her gaze shifted, eyes narrowing suspiciously.
This kid… actually loaded?
"I only spent five hundred thousand ryō," Seisui said matter-of-factly. "Besides, I'm the clan head. What's wrong with living a little better?"
Then his eyes caught something new—Tsunade's forehead.
"Wait—Sister Tsunade, did you master the Yin Seal?" he asked, surprised.
Touching the diamond mark, Tsunade nodded softly. "Grandma kept pushing me to learn it. I kept putting it off… shame she didn't live to see it."
She sighed, then forced a change of subject. "Anyway, the house is finally done. About time—those construction noises were driving me crazy!"
Her tone grew impatient, and Seisui instinctively pulled Minato in front of him like a shield.
Though Tsunade looked calm most of the time, she was, in truth, explosively short-tempered.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Tsunade glared, clenching her fist. "Are you afraid of me or something?"
"No!" Seisui shook his head furiously. "I just—uh—saw something dirty on Minato's back. I was helping him dust it off!"
He patted Minato's shoulder rapidly for emphasis.
"Hmph." Tsunade snorted. "As if I'd waste my energy on a brat like you."
Just then, a loud boom echoed above.
A two-meter-tall toad dropped from the sky, and standing proudly atop it was—
"The Toad Sage of Mount Myoboku! The Wild Ghost of Konoha—Jiraiya has arrived!"
Both of them exchanged a silent look, equally speechless.
Minato, on the other hand, looked awestruck.
"Jiraiya-sensei! That was amazing! I want to make my entrance like that next time too!"
"HAHAHA!" Jiraiya laughed heartily. "That's my student! Excellent taste!"
"You gonna get down, or what?" Tsunade said dryly, arms folded. "If you don't, I'll make sure you never do again."
"W-wait! No need for that!" Jiraiya yelped, and the toad vanished in a puff of smoke. He landed smoothly on the ground, grinning.
"Tsunade, that mark on your forehead looks beautiful," he said, inching closer. "How about we go soak in a mixed bath—"
Before he could finish, both Seisui and Minato stepped back in unison.
"He's done for," Seisui muttered.
"Definitely," Minato agreed.
Just then, Uchiha Haru appeared behind them. "What's done for?" she asked curiously.
Seisui turned, gently taking her hand. "Jiraiya-sensei is," he said simply. "Watch closely—he's about to end up in the hospital again."
Right on cue—
BANG!
Jiraiya went flying across the yard, smashing into the ground with a thud.
"JI—RAI—YA!" Tsunade's voice trembled with fury as she cracked her knuckles.
"Die already!"
She vanished in a blur, while Jiraiya scrambled to his feet and bolted.
"Tsunade! It was just a joke!"
"Then die laughing!"
"Yameteeee—!"
As their voices faded into the distance, Seisui shook his head helplessly.
"If Jiraiya-sensei just pursued Tsunade honestly, he probably would've won her over ages ago."
Minato nodded seriously. He himself had won Kushina over the honest way, after all.
"Minato," Seisui said flatly, "some people are just born to be single. It's destiny."
He clapped his hands together. "Anyway, come on. Let's go check out my new place."
"Sure," Minato and Haru said in unison.
As they walked, Minato suddenly asked, "Shouldn't we be taking missions again? It's been two months."
Seisui stopped for a moment, thinking. "Now that you mention it… you're right."
Then his lips curved into a grin. "So, where do you want to travel next?"
At their level, ordinary missions were just busywork.
Even S-rank missions barely counted as training anymore.
"I want to visit the Land of Hot Water again," Uchiha Haru said. "Last time we rushed through. This time, I want to relax properly."
"Alright then," Seisui said without hesitation. "Tomorrow, we'll take a mission to the Land of Hot Water."
The last time they'd passed through, they were chasing a rogue ninja and hadn't stayed long.
But now—
Far away, deep within the Land of Hot Water, a group of people stood around a blood-stained altar, their faces painted, their movements wild and frenzied as they danced to an eerie, ritualistic rhythm.