So this was the legend made flesh—Uchiha Madara.
The body looked ready to crumble under a stiff breeze; any fresh genin might think they could finish him. But deep in the murk of those eyes, now and then, a tyrant's will flashed—I once bent the shinobi world.
Sogetsu's gaze was cool as a winter pond. A corner of his mouth hooked; he flicked a glance at Black Zetsu behind him. "This is your 'Madara'? Hah. An old man one breath from the Pure Land. I must be insane for trusting you."
Cold intent spread, sheeting the chamber in frost.
"Are you playing me?" His tomoe glimmered; anger pressed the air thin. "This is the one who'll 'grant' me Mangekyō?"
"Wait—calm down!" Black Zetsu actually sounded rattled. "No deception. He isUchiha Madara. He fought the First at the Valley of the End—survived, but took grievous wounds. Years pass. Bodies fail."
Sogetsu kept the blade of killing intent out. Barely. "Fine. One chance. Prove he's Madara—and that he can give me Mangekyō—or I erase you both."
The threat felt like a knife at the nape; Black Zetsu's core went cold. It turned, pleading, "Madara-dono… a demonstration?"
"Proof?" Madara's voice was dry gravel. "Very well."
Blood-red pupils bloomed; three tomoe spun.
As if suppressed by a deeper tide, Sogetsu's own tomoe dimmed in answer. He stared, caught—no, measuring—the gravity in that gaze. "Such pupil force… there's terror in those eyes."
Don't pounce, Black Zetsu thought grimly, watching Sogetsu's hungry look. But the youth only watched—and smiled.
Madara coughed lightly, lids easing down. Even he wasn't used to being ogled like a treasure trove. "What you saw is a remnant—not a complete Mangekyō."
Cue line. Take it, Sogetsu smoothed the greed from his face. "Not complete—meaning?"
"Literal." Madara rested against the stone. "I wagered my eyes on the future."
Sogetsu almost broke character. Of course you did. Aloud: "Legend says you died at the Valley. Explain."
"I used a forbidden ocular art—Izanagi." His gaze weighed the boy. "An Uchiha ultimate technique: for the price of blindness, make illusion reality for a fleeting time. I used it to fool Hashirama and live."
Black Zetsu added smoothly, "You can verify Izanagi in the clan's sealed scrolls."
Sogetsu brushed fringe from his brow, smile knife-thin. "Whether you are Madara doesn't matter."
A flick of approval warmed Madara's tone. "Exactly. What matters is whether I can give you power."
"Correct."
"To awaken Mangekyō, you must endure great pain," Madara said. "Witness the death of one you hold dear… drown your mind in grief… only then does the eye open."
He paused. "Can you do it? Kill what you cherish. Face despair."
"Great pain, unbearable grief, is it?" Sogetsu mused—then shrugged lightly. "That's all? Surprisingly simple. Any other conditions?"
"???"
Madara almost lost his composure. "You did hear me: witness the death of kin or dearest friend. Suffer extreme psychic agony. Not 'stab a random passer-by.'"
"I heard." Sogetsu pushed his glasses, wearing that familiar, infuriating smile. He recited, airy as a grocery list: "Kill the one I value. Break my spirit. Awaken Mangekyō. So I'm asking—anything else?"
Silence gathered like snow.
At length Madara exhaled. "No. Only that."
"Good." Sogetsu's smile brightened a shade. "Give me a moment."
He rolled his shoulders as if loosening muscles before a jog.
"—I'll just go awaken a Mangekyō."
◇ BONUS & SUPPORT ◇
◇ 1 bonus chapter for every 10 reviews — drop a comment!
◇ 1 bonus chapter for every 100 Power Stones.
◇ Read 60 chapters ahead on P@treon → patreon.com/StrawHatStudios