"It's to make Kagami stronger," Kai said, his tone calm but deliberate.
He stood between two of the most dangerous men to ever live—Tobirama Senju, the Second Hokage of Konohagakure, and Uchiha Madara, the Ghost of the Uchiha.
In this world, Kai knew Konoha's future hung by a thread.
Tobirama, while brilliant and sharp, lacked the raw power needed to singlehandedly unify the entire shinobi world. And Konoha's army—fragmented by losses, politics, and ideology—could not bear the burden alone.
Kai had already begun measures to strengthen Tobirama's individual capabilities through interdimensional support. But one man couldn't carry an entire era on his shoulders.
That meant the other path had to be taken too.
Raise the next generation. Strengthen the village from within.
And among those young flames, Uchiha Kagami was the brightest spark.
Kai turned his gaze toward Madara. "You're here for a reason. Help raise your successor."
Madara blinked. "Uchiha Kagami? One of your students, Tobirama?"
Tobirama nodded. "Yes. One of my best."
Madara's eyes narrowed.
"Well now… That's unexpected. You? Training an Uchiha? The man who's spent most of his life whispering that we're cursed by hatred?"
Tobirama scoffed. "Believe what you want."
Madara gave a humorless chuckle.
"I suppose it makes sense. Training one Uchiha to keep the rest in line. A loyal dog with red eyes."
Tobirama didn't respond, but his silence spoke volumes. Kai could see it: a moment of pride in Tobirama's posture—but also defensiveness.
He didn't hate Kagami. He admired him. But Madara had hit close to the truth. Kagami was part of his strategy to prevent the kind of rebellion that had once torn the Uchiha clan apart from within.
Madara saw through it instantly.
But what surprised Kai wasn't Madara's accuracy.It was that he didn't react with rage.
In fact, Madara looked… indifferent. Maybe even mildly amused.
"You know, I should be more upset," he said, folding his arms. "But grooming one of our own is still better than what your descendants end up doing to my clan."
Tobirama flinched slightly. That line cut deeper than Madara could know.
And perhaps that was the point.
Kai stepped forward before the air could thicken again.
"Tobirama," he said, "you don't have to like it. You don't even have to agree with it. But you need your village to grow stronger. Kagami has potential—and Madara has the knowledge."
"I don't trust him to guide Kagami," Tobirama shot back instantly. "I've worked for years to shape Kagami into a shinobi loyal to the village, not to his bloodline. I won't let Madara corrupt that."
"Hmph," Madara scoffed. "As if I care to train your little brainwashed brat."
Still, Kai noted a flicker in Madara's eyes—curiosity. Recognition.
He may not like Tobirama's methods, but Madara could tell that Kagami was something rare: an Uchiha who had awakened the three-tomoe Sharingan at a young age, without falling into the clan's usual traps of vengeance and pride.
He was a potential legacy.
And Madara, beneath all his fury and cynicism, respected legacy.
Kai let out a sigh.
"You're both impossible. So here's a compromise."
He turned to Madara. "You write down several of your advanced Fire Release techniques—on a scroll. Tobirama will pass them to Kagami himself. That way, there's no direct contact."
Tobirama blinked. Then nodded slowly. "That's… acceptable."
Madara arched a brow. "Tch. You think I don't see the irony? You're asking me to rebuild the arsenal I once took."
Tobirama raised an eyebrow. "You took more than that when you left."
Madara didn't deny it.
Back then, when he'd left Konoha to pursue the Rinnegan and lay the foundation for the Moon's Eye Plan, he hadn't left empty-handed.
He had siphoned off a vast amount of the Uchiha clan's resources—gold, chakra scrolls, sealing tools, and, perhaps most critically, a trove of high-level clan-exclusive techniques.
He hadn't done it out of pettiness. He'd needed them to construct a hidden base, to sustain his experiments with Hashirama's cells, and to create the artificial growth chambers for the Gedo Statue.
It was a calculated move—and it came at a cost.
In this world, the Uchiha clan that remained in Konoha grew weaker over time. By the time of the Uchiha Massacre, most had no access to even mid-tier Fire Release jutsu, let alone elite techniques.
Madara frowned, then nodded.
"…Fine."
He sat cross-legged, drew ink and parchment from Kai's storage scroll, and began to write.
Over the next thirty minutes, Madara carefully transcribed more than a dozen advanced Fire Release techniques—many of them clan secrets known only to him.
Katon: Gōka Mekkyaku – a sea of fire that could turn entire landscapes into ash.
Katon: Gōka Messhitsu – focused destruction with armor-melting heat.
Katon: Ryūen Hōka no Jutsu – the Dragon Flame Song Technique, which once released, auto-tracked its target with near-perfect accuracy.
Kai watched, impressed by the precision of Madara's brushwork. These weren't just combat instructions—they were masterworks of shinobi philosophy: timing, chakra flow, mental focus, everything woven into the lines of each kanji.
Madara wasn't just writing jutsu.
He was handing down a legacy.
And whether he admitted it or not, part of him wanted Kagami to learn it.
Even Tobirama couldn't deny the scroll's value when it was finally handed over.
"This will make a difference," he muttered, rolling it up with care.
Then added, quieter: "Let's hope Kagami is strong enough to handle it."
Without further delay, Kai and Madara took their leave.
Tobirama, already flipping through the techniques again, felt a strange satisfaction. Using Madara's own knowledge to strengthen a loyal Uchiha under his command?
It was almost poetic.
He called for Kagami and Danzo immediately.
There was no time to waste—the plans to strike Iwagakure were in motion.
Meanwhile, Kai and Madara hovered in limbo between missions.
They hadn't yet left World No. 2, and Kai glanced at the sky, calculating the remaining time.
"There's still a few minutes left. Want to meet yourself at this point in time?"
Madara raised an eyebrow. "So I'm alive here?"
"You faked your death during the final clash with Hashirama. You're now hiding somewhere, working on unlocking the Rinnegan."
Madara paused.
"…No," he said finally. "Not now."
He wasn't scared. Not even slightly.
But there was no point.
Meeting himself might introduce instability. Besides, until the full truth of Infinite Tsukuyomi was confirmed, there were too many questions and not enough answers.
Kai shrugged. "Fair enough."
"You heading back?" Madara asked.
"Actually, no. There's another future I want to check."
Madara's eyes narrowed, intrigued. "Oh?"
Kai smirked and activated [World Teleport].
In a swirl of chakra and light, they vanished from the skies above Konohagakure.
[Naruto World No. 4]
Time-Space Node: Fourth Hokage EraYear: Konoha Year 51Unification Progress: 33%
Kai and Madara reappeared just outside the perimeter of the Hidden Leaf Village.
This world felt colder. Heavier.
The chakra in the air was tighter. More strained.
"Konoha… fifty years from the founding," Madara noted, scanning the skyline. "It's grown a lot."
"This is the age of the Fourth Hokage," Kai said. "Minato Namikaze."
"Hmph. Flashy blonde brat?"
"That one."
Madara gave a dark chuckle. "You brought me here to test his mettle?"
"Not quite. I need you to help me confirm something—and maybe give Minato a little pressure."
Madara turned toward him, arms crossed. "What kind of help?"
Kai's voice lowered. "I need you to summon the Nine-Tails."
Madara blinked. "You want me to summon the Kyūbi?"
"Not for a battle. Just for a presence."
"In this world, the Kyūbi is sealed. But we want it to feel you. React to your chakra. Spread that fear."
"Fear?"
Kai nodded. "Minato may be confident now, but when the Nine-Tails starts acting up—howling that Madara is alive again—he'll understand the threat is real. It'll shift his entire perspective."
Madara tilted his head.
"You know I never contracted a summoning beast, right?"
"I do."
"In the first year of Konoha, you hadn't caught the Kyūbi yet. But in this world, the Madara who's now dead did. And chakra… leaves traces."
Kai stepped closer.
"You share the same blood, the same spiritual frequency. Try the Summoning Technique. If the bond lingers, the Kyūbi will come."
Madara closed his eyes.
"…Even if it doesn't work?"
"We try again. But if it does…" Kai said, voice quiet and sharp, "we set the Fourth Hokage's nerves on fire."
Madara cracked his knuckles. "Sounds fun."
He stepped forward, wove the necessary hand signs, then slammed his palm into the earth.
"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"