After some time on the road, the two of them left the town and entered the deep mountains.
"Madara, c-could you give up on the 'Eye of the Moon' plan?"
Supported by his closest friend, some of the drunken haze on Senju Hashirama's face faded, and with the courage from the alcohol, he finally spoke his true feelings.
"This plan is too extreme. C-couldn't we choose another way?"
"I can help you realize your dream, just like when you agreed to help me establish Konoha back then…"
He wanted to persuade his closest friend to turn back from the wrong path, not to persist in delusion.
The wrong path would only drag Madara deeper and deeper, until he became the enemy of the entire shinobi world.
As Madara's closest friend, Hashirama naturally didn't want such a thing to happen.
Unfortunately, all these years, no matter how much he tried to persuade him, Madara never listened.
The more he said, the less successful he was—and instead, it only angered Madara.
In the end, the matter was left unsettled.
If it weren't for the alcohol, he wouldn't have dared to bring it up again at all.
Because Madara, when angry, was truly terrifying…
Uchiha Madara turned his head, expressionless, staring at the drunken Hashirama, a flash of impatience passing through his eyes.
After a moment of silence, he spoke coldly.
"Hashirama, I've said it before—don't try to persuade me to change my dream."
"Everyone has their own life. The world will never bend to your will. By trying to interfere with someone else's choice, you'll only achieve the opposite result."
"Madara…" Pain flashed across Hashirama's face. "But I can't just stand by and watch you walk into the abyss without doing anything."
"Abyss?" Madara's eyes flickered. He looked up at the round moon in the night sky and countered,
"Before the plan has even succeeded, how can you be so sure it's an abyss?"
...
He turned back to his friend, a trace of madness in his gaze.
"Do you know, Hashirama? This shinobi world is already rotten. Only I can bring true peace to it!"
Perhaps the alcohol loosened his restraint, making him lose his usual composure.
"A world of peace will never have war again, nor will tragedies like Izuna's ever happen!"
"You say the world of illusion is bad, but reality is filled only with greed, killing, and pain—especially for those civilians who live in constant misery every single day."
Over the years, Madara and Hashirama had traveled across the shinobi world, witnessing the suffering of countless small nations' civilians.
The painful expressions of those displaced by war, who lost their parents, their children, their families, were still vivid before their eyes.
"Hashirama, by founding a village, you've only given a good life to the civilians inside it. But have you ever thought about the lives of the other civilians across the shinobi world?"
"Your so-called peace is narrow and selfish. But my peace is for the entire shinobi world—everyone will be able to live happily in the world of illusion for the rest of their lives!"
Hashirama's heart trembled at his words, disbelief flashing across his face as he subconsciously stepped back half a step.
"Madara, y-your thinking is wrong…"
He wanted to argue back, but for a moment, he couldn't find the words.
Madara was completely drunk—under normal circumstances, he would never explain this much to Hashirama.
"Hashirama, you must understand—only I can achieve true peace!"
"And you? You're nothing more than a failed Hokage who created the shinobi village system. You have no reason at all to stop me!"
Madara reached out and pressed both hands onto Hashirama's shoulders, speaking slowly.
"I don't expect you to join my plan. But I do expect you not to stand in the way of my dream."
His voice suddenly turned icy, murderous intent surging without restraint.
"Otherwise… I'll kill you with my own hands!"
For the sake of their past friendship, he allowed Hashirama to stay by his side.
But Hashirama not only refused to help him achieve the 'Eye of the Moon' plan, he even kept urging him to abandon it.
If it had been anyone else, he would have killed them the first time they tried to persuade him.
But that didn't mean he could tolerate Hashirama nagging forever—patience has its limits.
If Hashirama continued to refuse to listen, then he could only let Hashirama die.
Their deep friendship had already ended back at the Valley of the End.
If Hashirama could kill his closest friend for the sake of the village, then he too could kill Hashirama for the sake of his dream!
In the face of ideals, friendship was worthless!
For the sake of their past, Madara hadn't yet struck him down—instead, he had even tried to ease his illness, just to let Hashirama live long enough to see the day he achieved peace.
But if Hashirama kept trying to stop him from carrying out the 'Eye of the Moon' plan, then he wouldn't hesitate anymore.
Looking into Madara's scarlet Sharingan, Senju Hashirama knew his friend wasn't joking.
If he continued to oppose Madara's dream, Madara really would kill him…
"I understand, Madara." Hashirama forced a smile. "I'll stay by your side until the day you bring peace to the shinobi world!"
With his current body, he was lucky to even be alive—he had no strength left to stop Madara's plan by force.
But Hashirama also didn't want to leave Madara just like this. All he could do was stay by his side and watch how he intended to achieve peace.
"You'd better." The crimson faded from Madara's eyes, and after sobering up with chakra, his face returned to its usual calm.
"Don't worry, Madara!" Hashirama said with determination. "Even if I don't approve of your plan, I'll stay by your side until the day it comes true."
At these words, a faint, nearly imperceptible smile curved Madara's lips.
"Since that's the case, then I'll let you stay with me."
"Hahaha, come on, let's head back and rest!"
The two of them walked side by side toward their hidden cave, chatting along the way about their past adventures.
From the shadows, Black Zetsu revealed a satisfied smile.
"Hehehe, my plan really is flawless!"
It had secretly altered the Uchiha stone tablet just to make Uchiha Madara persist in the 'Eye of the Moon' plan.
Before, it had worried that Senju Hashirama's existence might affect the plan, but after hearing what Madara just said, it knew everything was secure.
Madara already believed in the Infinite Tsukuyomi beyond doubt, bringing them one step closer to freeing its mother.
It was certain that before long, its mother would finally break free and return to the shinobi world.
"Mother, just wait a little longer. I'll rescue you very soon!"
As Black Zetsu looked up at the round moon in the night sky, tears welled faintly at the corners of its eyes.
After scheming for a thousand years, this was the closest chance to saving its mother.
...
Elsewhere, Uchiha Madara and Senju Hashirama arrived not far from their cave.
"Wait, there's someone inside!" Madara noticed the flickering firelight from within the cave, his face turning grim.
Who would have thought that just leaving for a meal would get their home stolen?
"Madara, let's go in and see!" Hashirama lowered his voice, careful not to alert whoever was inside.
Who would've expected people to show up even in this remote wilderness? It looked like they'd need to change their hiding place again in a few days.