Naruto, my father's name is Uchiha Madara.

Page 13

Finally, Itachi took a deep breath and made a move that surprised even Madara.

He knelt on one knee and performed the oldest ritual of the Uchiha clan.

"Our ancestors, please guide us."

Ban raised an eyebrow slightly: "Oh? You don't suspect my identity?"

Itachi raised his head, his jet-black three-tomoe Sharingan gleaming in comparison to Madara's: "I can't think of another Sharingan with this kind of Mangekyou Sharingan pattern besides Madara Uchiha from back then."

Shisui also struggled to his feet and bowed, saying, "Please save the Uchiha clan."

Madara looked at the two young Uchiha descendants, a barely perceptible ripple flashing in his eyes.

For so many years, someone has once again sought his help with such piety...

"Hmph, get up." He turned around, his voice still cold and hard. "I've said it before, the life and death of the Uchiha are none of my business. However—"

The Sharingan reverted to its three-tomoe form.

"Since you've made such a sincere request, I'll take pity on you and play along."

Soon, Ban used kunai to draw clear lines on the ground, and a brilliant plan gradually took shape.

Madara pointed and said, "First step! Itachi brought the heavily injured Shisui back to the village, claiming that he had discovered Danzo's attempt to exploit Jinchuriki."

Madara jabbed the word "Danzo" with his kunai, then pointed to Shisui's damaged right eye: "Important point: his act of gouging out his eye and his Wood Release experiment."

Madara's plan convinced Itachi and Shisui, who both nodded in agreement.

After all, if Danzo wanted to steal the Sharingan, he should be prepared for retaliation.

Moreover, their reasons are all true, without a single lie.

Madara continued, "Afterwards, I will release the Nine-Tails' chakra outside the Uchiha clan's territory to create the illusion of a 'Jinchūriki going berserk.'"

Madara's lips curled into a cruel smile: "Remember to have the current clan leader, I think his name is Fugaku, 'just happen' to see Danzo."

Hearing the plan being laid out, Kurama chuckled and said, "Danzo, you're quite the scapegoat!"

Ignoring Kurama, Madara looked at Itachi and Shisui: "When the Anbu come to 'suppress' me, I will pretend to be sealed away."

Madara's kunai reached its finish line: "And what you have to do is make everyone believe—this is all Danzo's conspiracy."

Itachi's eyes gleamed: "The Third Hokage won't believe you so easily..."

Ban scoffed: "So he needs 'evidence'."

As he spoke, Madara pulled out a blood-stained scroll from his robes, then formed a hand seal with one hand, summoning the arm inside.

"This is……"

Itachi looked at the white arm with suspicion; it clearly didn't look like an arm a human should have.

Madara said, "This is Danzo's arm."

Shisui gasped, "You even know this..."

"Battlefield cleanup is a basic skill."

Madara gave a disdainful snort, but said with some doubt, "I'm just a little curious, the cells in this arm seem to be composed of Hashirama."

"Lord Hashirama? How could this be?"

Shisui and Itachi were completely baffled by this.

Madara was able to determine that the cells came from the First Hokage just by looking at his arm.

Moreover, after the First Hokage died, his body was already buried by the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju.

Furthermore, there are secret agents guarding the area near the cemetery. How could anyone possibly obtain Hashirama's cells without anyone noticing?

Madara said dismissively, "Hashirama's cells are very active."

As he spoke, Madara remembered something interesting and said to the two of them, "You know what? That guy doesn't have to do anything. He can just stand there and his minor injuries heal themselves."

Both of them stared wide-eyed at this.

If the First Hokage was so powerful, then just how strong was the ancestor who could go toe-to-toe with Hashirama?

However, neither of them noticed that Madara muttered to himself, "It's amazing that he was able to commit suicide with that kunai back then."

Soon after, the plan was finalized.

The pre-dawn moonlight shone through the broken window, casting a silvery glow on the three of them.

Itachi suddenly spoke up: "Ancestor, why did you help us?"

Madara looked at the rising sun in the east: "Who said I was helping you?"

Madara's eyes immediately sharpened: "I'm just cleaning house. After all, that old bastard Danzo dared to meddle with the power of the Sharingan."

In response, Kurama narrowed its eyes, grinned to reveal its sharp fangs: "Haha, old man, you're worried that guy has started to threaten Naruto's safety, so you want to kill him, right?"

However, inside the sealed space, Madara, unusually, did not refute, but silently looked ahead, as if he had something on his mind.

Kurama's ears twitched as it stared suspiciously at Madara's back.

Normally, even if Madara doesn't refute himself, he would definitely punch himself with Susanoo.

But today, Ban is behaving very strangely.

"Hey! Old man? Old man with freckles? Give me some response!"

Nine-Tailed Fox's roar wasn't enough; it even poked Madara's back with the tip of its tail.

Ban remained motionless.

Nine-Tailed Fox's tail froze in mid-air, and its fox face gradually became serious.

Is this guy under a spell?

Just as it hesitated whether to swat at the spotted creature with its paw...

With a muffled thud, the blue Susanoo punch slammed into Kurama's face without warning, the enormous impact sending ripples through the sealed space.

The nine-tailed fox was slammed into the water, splashing water several meters high.

"Ahem! Ahem!"

Nine-Tails crawled out of the water, shook its wet fur, and glared at Madara. "You old bastard! If you're going to play the deep thinker, fine, but what kind of skill is a sneak attack?!"

Madara slowly withdrew his Susanoo, and snorted coldly, "So noisy."

Seeing Madara's reaction, Kurama smiled with satisfaction: "Heh, that's more like it. You looked so lifeless just now, I thought you were possessed by something strange!"

Madara ignored its taunts and remained silent for a while before suddenly speaking: "Kyuubi, I had a dream yesterday."

Kurama was taken aback, then sneered: "The mighty Uchiha Madara, actually troubled by dreams?"

Ban ignored its teasing and kept his gaze fixed on the distance: "That was a very strange dream."

Chapter 15 Strange Dream

Madara's Sharingan shifted slightly, its crimson pupils reflecting the desolate battlefield deep within his memory.

It was a land devoid of anything, the sky a sickly dark red, as if torn apart by some force.

There was no sign of life on the cracked earth, only endless dust drifting in the wind.

In the distance, the mountain peaks, cut in half, stand like giant tombstones, silently recounting the fierce battles that once took place here.

In the center of those ruins stood an indescribable monster.

It has ten twisted tails, each as huge as a mountain range, covered with strange scales and protruding bone spikes.

When those tails lashed out, the air was compressed, creating a deafening explosion, and the ground shattered layer by layer like fragile glass.

The monster's body was like a mobile fortress, its skin covered with writhing black lines that twisted and changed as if they were alive.

What's most chilling is its enormous single eye—a dark red pupil with nine tomoe embedded within it, coldly gazing down upon all things in the world.

Ban could sense that in that dream, he was standing on top of a monster.

However, compared to himself, he not only had the cracks that only the Impure World Reincarnation would give him, but also those eyes...

The wind whipped his long hair, and there seemed to be a figure beside him—blurry and indistinct, yet emanating a familiar chakra.

Together they controlled the monster as if it were a natural disaster.

On the opposite side of the monster, a golden nine-tailed fox was letting out an indomitable roar.

Unlike its usual appearance, this golden nine-tailed fox is not made of flesh and blood, but rather of a mass of golden chakra.

Its entire body was ablaze with golden flames, and its nine tails were spread out, assuming its strongest fighting stance.

However, even with its nine tails, it kept retreating under the monster's oppressive aura.

One of the Ten-Tails' tails swept across, and the golden Nine-Tails barely managed to leap up to dodge, but was struck from the side by the other tail.

The sound of bones shattering was clearly audible. A tail was torn off, and the broken tail turned into golden chakra fragments that scattered in all directions.

The Nine-Tails let out a painful howl, but still bared its fangs and pounced again.

Madara saw in his dream that the one controlling the Nine-Tails was none other than his current son, Naruto Uzumaki.

At this moment, Naruto was completely wrapped in a coat of golden chakra, and his eyes had vertical pupils resembling those of a fox.

The figure atop the Ten-Tails seemed to look down on Naruto. He raised his hand, and the Ten-Tails' single eye immediately condensed world-destroying energy.

A blinding beam of light pierced the heavens and earth, and the golden nine-tailed fox's figure gradually dissipated in the light...

The scene returns to the sealed space, where the water surface suddenly trembles violently.

Nine-Tails' tail involuntarily tensed as it stared at Madara, lost in memories. A rare look of seriousness appeared on its fox face: "Old man, you weren't dreaming about Ten-Tails, were you?"

Madara's Sharingan shifted slightly as he looked at Kurama: "Ten-Tails?"

Ancient books he had consulted before flashed through his mind.

As the head of the Uchiha clan, he knew countless secrets, yet he had never seen any record of the "Ten-Tails" in any documents.

All ancient texts clearly state that there are only nine tailed beasts in the world.

Faced with Madara's doubts, Kurama hesitated.

The nine-tailed fox unconsciously scratched at the water's surface, creating ripples.