Uchiha Kagami had always been aware that his clan was a contradictory one. They possessed a deep love for those they cherished, even developing kekkei genkai powers from the loss of that love. However, their inherent arrogance and extremism could also lead them to abandon other emotions they should have valued, without a second thought.
Every member of the Uchiha clan valued only those they loved. If they lost that love, even if other affections were presented to them, they would ignore them. Despite an inner yearning, they would still choose a solitary path. This had played out countless times in the history of the Uchiha clan.
The most recent example was Uchiha Kagami's uncle, Uchiha Madara. He shared a precious friendship with the First Hokage, Senju Hashirama, and was once willing to reconcile. But after Madara's brother, Izuna, died, he again chose to oppose Senju Hashirama. Although he later reconciled due to a change of heart, he ultimately went his separate ways.
Even now, Uchiha Kagami didn't know why Uncle Madara chose to abandon that friendship. Among the hawks, it was rumored that Uncle Madara was ostracized by their teacher, Tobirama, which made him feel disappointed. But Kagami didn't believe that was the reason. Uncle Madara wasn't the kind of person who would give up because of something like that; that would be underestimating his magnanimity.
Although he didn't know the exact reason, Uchiha Kagami could sense that it must be a natural tendency deeply rooted in his clan's bloodline. Historically, it seemed there hadn't been a single powerful Uchiha clan member who enjoyed a happy and fulfilling family life; almost all of them were solitary.
In this new era, Uchiha Kagami believed such traditions were unsustainable. The Uchiha clan should find a different way of life than in the past to survive. Otherwise, clinging to tradition would sooner or later lead to self-destruction—he didn't know this would happen in the normal timeline, but he had already foreseen it.
Uchiha Kagami had always been searching for a new way of life for the clan, but that inherent nature in their bloodline didn't seem to want to accept it so easily. Was it truly impossible to change the contradictory temperament of the clan? Did they really have to continue down that path of conflict, pursuit of power, and ultimate demise?
Alas, why did his clan's bloodline possess such a contradictory nature? Uchiha Kagami was constantly troubled by this. He used to be satisfied with his achievements, but now, seeing Uchiha Setsuna's actions, he couldn't help but feel a flicker of doubt.
At this moment, Uchiha Kagami's mind once again recalled what Fumori masaki had said before. At that time, Fumori masaki's innovative reforms made Uchiha Kagami somewhat doubtful if they could truly succeed. Fumori masaki replied that if one didn't even have the desire to pursue something, then there was no point in discussing whether it was feasible. One shouldn't be afraid to back down just because it was difficult; if one didn't even try, how would one know if it would work? Even if obstacles were encountered, they could only be discovered during the process of exploration. Even if a solution couldn't be found immediately, perhaps someone in the future could come up with one, thereby advancing it a step further.
Fumori masaki gave several examples, such as the ninja village system established by Senju Hashirama, which allowed many ninja clans to live in the same village and allowed ninjas to emerge openly before people, no longer hiding. This was something that ninja clans of the Warring States period could not have imagined. If they were told that this would be the future, they would probably dismiss it as "impossible."
Ultimately, whether something is possible or not can only be known by doing it. And even if obstacles are encountered, it doesn't necessarily mean it's impossible; it simply means the core problem hasn't been identified, the true contradiction hasn't been resolved. This is a result that requires long-term proof, not a conclusion that can be reached by one person.
If a person gives up after encountering a difficulty, thinking it's impossible, it's only because their heart harbors the idea of a permanent solution. And the idea of a permanent solution often leads to tragedy. As the world develops, new contradictions are constantly arising. If there truly was a permanent solution, it would likely lead the entire world to stagnation.
For example, in the world after the Infinite Tsukuyomi, all humans were immersed in an illusory dream. The world stopped developing, and there was no need to consider anything. Naturally, all problems were solved once and for all, and war ceased to exist. To some extent, Fumori masaki felt that the so-called permanent solution was a very terrifying idea.
Because Fumori masaki's pursuit of reform aligned with Uchiha Kagami's desire for clan change, he had always supported Fumori masaki and agreed with some of his statements. Although he wavered for a moment, he quickly reaffirmed his beliefs.
The current situation was caused by the illusion Uchiha Setsuna presented—it was the cunning of others and his own failure to identify the true contradiction, not because his ideas were wrong. And now, Uchiha Setsuna was an enemy of the village and even the clan; there was no possibility of him holding back.
Uchiha Setsuna was also somewhat surprised by the other party's silence. Uchiha Kagami must have known he was poisoned, otherwise he wouldn't have made the previous move. But why wasn't he in a hurry to attack? Even if he took such measures, it would be impossible to detoxify, and the poison would gradually take effect as time passed.
Uchiha Setsuna, having also experienced many battles, immediately saw the problem. His gaze narrowed slightly. Just then, a person suddenly sprang out from the ground behind him—it was Uchiha Kagami.
"What?!" Uchiha Setsuna turned back in surprise. At that moment, Uchiha Kagami on the opposite side formed a single hand seal and spat a fireball at the Flame Fan. The Flame Fan, having absorbed the fireball, suddenly unleashed a gust of strong wind towards Uchiha Setsuna.
And Uchiha Kagami, who had sprung from the earth, then formed the Fire Release hand seal and blew out a massive fireball. Uchiha Setsuna immediately understood his intention—both were chakra, and both were Fire Release. The effect was completely different from one Wind Release and one Fire Release. The former was simply addition, while the latter was multiplication.
Uchiha Kagami cleverly utilized the properties of the Flame Fan, creating a Wind Release that was on par with his Fire Release. When combined with the Fire Release, the explosive power was terrifying. The moment wind and fire collided, a violent explosion was triggered, quickly filling the entire space.
Uchiha Kagami's shadow clone immediately dispelled before being engulfed. Uchiha Kagami almost experienced the sensation of being blown to smithereens. In an explosion of this magnitude, he wouldn't be incinerated by Fire Release, but directly pulverized. Of course, he didn't believe Uchiha Setsuna would die so easily.
Uchiha Kagami rotated his Sharingan, capturing everything around him. At this moment, he suddenly wished he had a Byakugan. If he had a Byakugan, he could ignore the exploding fireballs and observe the presence of chakra. This was also a limitation of the Sharingan's observation abilities; it couldn't see through obstacles.
Earlier, Uchiha Setsuna had ambushed Uchiha Kagami by springing from underground, and Uchiha Kagami also used this point to counterattack. Neither of their Sharingan could see the person hidden underground; only the penetrating power of the Byakugan could achieve that.
Uchiha Kagami fiercely swung his Flame Fan, blowing away the intense flames in front of him. He didn't see Uchiha Setsuna's figure, nor even a corpse, which led him to conclude that the opponent was definitely still alive. Since he couldn't find Uchiha Setsuna's figure from any direction, there was only one place he could be hiding.
Uchiha Kagami immediately left his spot, and then a steel wire sprang from the ground, wrapping around Uchiha Kagami. After the steel wire detached from the ground, he saw sheets of explosive tags tied to it. The explosive tags detonated one by one, transmitting along the steel wire.
Uchiha Kagami raised his Flame Fan to block, not using its special ability, but allowing himself to be blown away. Although it didn't convert to Wind Release, its absorption ability prevented Uchiha Kagami from being significantly harmed by the Fire Release. The reason he didn't choose to convert to Wind Release for a counterattack was because he guessed the opponent might use the same idea as him; if it were an indirect explosion caused by wind and fire, he too could be caught in it.
And upon seeing Uchiha Setsuna leap from the trees on the other side, Uchiha Kagami confirmed his suspicion. The opponent threw a large number of kunai, which Uchiha Kagami immediately blocked, then pursued closely. However, the opponent dodged away at that moment.
Uchiha Kagami couldn't help but grit his teeth. He knew that from the moment he was poisoned, he had fallen into a disadvantageous situation. The opponent didn't need to defeat him head-on; they only needed to engage in a war of attrition to slowly wear him down, especially since he still had sufficient combat ability.
With intense exertion, the simple treatment was clearly insufficient to stop the spread of the poison. Uchiha Kagami could already feel his stamina rapidly declining and his body becoming increasingly uncomfortable. After several rounds of offense and defense, he was no longer able to pursue Uchiha Setsuna and could only defend in place, which was also a passive situation.
Blood involuntarily seeped from the corners of Uchiha Kagami's lips, and his vision began to waver. At this moment, Uchiha Setsuna's figure appeared before him once more, a triumphant smile on his face. Uchiha Setsuna, with his Sharingan, could confirm that Kagami was truly on the verge of collapse.
"I didn't expect it to be so troublesome, but thankfully it went very smoothly. Teacher said that when I saw you walk out of the valley unharmed, I was genuinely surprised," Uchiha Setsuna said.
"Since you revealed the information, why didn't you mention that I would be leading a surprise attack unit through there?" Uchiha Kagami asked, gasping for breath.
"What?" Uchiha Setsuna was somewhat surprised.
The moment he saw his expression, Uchiha Kagami confirmed something in his heart. He then swiftly flashed away, charging towards Uchiha Setsuna. This was power he had accumulated for a long time, and its explosive force was not to be underestimated. In the blink of an eye, he was in front of Uchiha Setsuna.
Uchiha Kagami swung his kama with force. The opponent barely managed to parry it. Uchiha Setsuna didn't expect the opponent to still be able to exert such power under these circumstances, but that was all. He didn't believe the current Uchiha Kagami still had the strength to kill him. His own condition was excellent right now.
The safest method would have been to simply wait for Uchiha Kagami to succumb to the poison, but Uchiha Setsuna's inner arrogance made him unable to resist showing off in front of someone he had always disliked. So, he openly stepped out, and it was precisely because of this that he gave Uchiha Kagami an opportunity to counterattack.
Uchiha Kagami quickly released a genjutsu in a short amount of time. The Sharingan's counter-genjutsu was almost instinctive. It was this brief moment that allowed him to inflict several wounds on Uchiha Setsuna. The opponent also seemed to sense something was amiss and, taking advantage of Uchiha Kagami's body being unwell and stiff, kicked him flying.
However, the moment Uchiha Kagami flew away, Uchiha Setsuna heard the sound of a steel wire being pulled. He couldn't help but be slightly stunned. His Sharingan saw that as Uchiha Kagami's body moved further away, the explosive tags buried in the ground were also pulled out. As soon as they surfaced, they quickly ignited.
"You bastard—" Uchiha Setsuna hadn't expected the other party to have thoughts of a mutual kill. He hurriedly flashed away, fortunate that his reaction was quick. With good luck, he might only be seriously injured and not die.
And in that instant, Uchiha Setsuna suddenly felt his body stiffen. His gaze shifted slightly, and he saw a black shadow entanglement his foot. That black shadow was very familiar, and his heart was greatly shocked and confused. Before he could utter, "Why," he was engulfed by a violent explosion.
When Uchiha Setsuna heard that the Sand Hidden ninjas ambushed in the valley didn't know how Uchiha Kagami got through, he felt it was a bit strange. He wondered if Zetsu had other plans and intended to ask him when he returned. Of course, complaints would definitely be unavoidable, as it had taken him a lot of effort to deal with Kagami.
However, seeing Zetsu's actions at this moment, Uchiha Setsuna suddenly realized that the other party might have had other considerations, and he obviously couldn't pursue it further, because he had already been caught in the explosion, reduced to a mangled corpse. He had completely lost consciousness, and even if he still had a breath left, he wouldn't live much longer.
"Heh heh, what I need is your corpse." Zetsu quickly merged into the ground, chuckling to himself. To him, whether Uchiha Kagami lived or died was irrelevant; the main point was that Uchiha Setsuna had to die. Hmm, Uchiha Kagami's performance was quite good; he died a worthy death.
Uchiha Kagami was also blown away. He felt a sharp pain in his internal organs, and blood flowed uncontrollably. But after seeing that Uchiha Setsuna had not escaped, he breathed a sigh of relief. He knew he might not be able to kill Uchiha Setsuna, but even before dying, he had to take him down to prevent him from causing further harm.
However, he was somewhat curious about that strange black shadow—in that instant, his Sharingan clearly saw the suddenly appearing Zetsu.
At this moment, Uchiha Kagami could faintly hear the voices of his subordinates, but he could no longer maintain consciousness. He felt his body slowly sinking into cold water, thinking he might be dying. In any case, making Uchiha Setsuna die was all his strength could accomplish. As for what would happen next, it was up to the other members of the clan. His will wouldn't just disappear like this, would it?
Thinking this, Uchiha Kagami completely lost consciousness. When he vaguely regained sensation, he felt as if he was walking on the mythical Yellow Springs Road, incredibly cold around him. Sometimes, light would pass by, and those seemed to be the faces of people he knew, but they were all dead.
—Indeed, I must be heading to the Pure Land.
Facing death, Uchiha Kagami felt no fear. Recognizing this, he accepted the fact and began to walk forward. Midway, he suddenly saw a bonfire in front of him.
By the bonfire sat a long-haired man dressed in crimson armor. He had never forgotten this familiar figure. Uchiha Kagami walked up to the man and said, "You haven't left, Uncle?"
In the world after death, there was no need to consider the social differences of their living lives, to address him as'sir,' but rather, as an adopted son, he frankly used a familial address towards the man he could consider his father.
"Hmm? I didn't expect you to come too, Kagami." Hearing Uchiha Kagami's voice, the man paused slightly, then turned his head a little. The faint firelight illuminated his face, revealing the man who could truly be called a legend—Uchiha Madara.