"Whoosh!"
After a few seconds of silence, Uchiha Shin's flattened body swelled up like an inflating balloon.
Plankton snapped back to life, his eyes wide with astonishment as he stared at the two unfamiliar men he had never seen before.
Even Madara was quite shocked at this moment.
It was precisely because of him that he could see the true value of the ability Chen had just displayed.
Reversing the time in a region and reversing the time of a specific individual are two completely different things.
Imagine if Chen designated himself as an individual who could reverse time, then all the damage he suffered in battle could be repaired by reversing time!
This means that... it's virtually impossible to actually kill him in battle!
For Prydek Uchiha, it was a completely different experience.
He clearly remembered being killed, yet he inexplicably came back to life.
The long-haired young man's eyes told him that this was no place to linger! "Whoosh!" Suddenly, his eyes flashed with intense vortexes, and he tried to slip away while the other man was off guard!
Plankton's thinking was completely correct, but unfortunately, he was facing a monster who could turn back time...
At this moment, Chen acted like a playful child, adjusting the rate of the reverse flow of time in the Yu Mu Tuo Liu to synchronize with the rotation rate of the Plankton's space-time ninjutsu.
"Whoosh!" The vortex outside his eyes spun for a full minute, but Plankton still failed to suck himself in!
Plankton changed his mind halfway through and tried to stop the vortex, but he couldn't stop it at all!
Chen stared at him and asked, "Is it fun?"
Plankton was drenched in sweat, but could only force a laugh and say, "Heh, heh heh... Good, fun, really fun!"
Chen said seriously, "Tell me your composition, and I might consider giving you a quick death."
Plankton said with regret, "Actually, I don't even know what I'm made of! I'm the product of a failed clone of Shin Uchiha! Because I was contaminated with Hashirama Senju's cells, I stubbornly survived in this form! Besides, only I can use the true power of this Mangekyou Sharingan!"
"These eyes not only retain the ability to manipulate marked objects, but can also teleport objects between marks, including myself! It's a space-time eye technique called—[Cloth Blade Reversal]!"
"Contaminated with Hashirama cells? Just what I suspected... Also, this eye technique is called Cloth Blade Reversal of Fate, right? Fine, I'll give you a quick death!"
"Snap!" The instant the flow of Yu Mu Tuo was interrupted, Chen's two fingers swiftly reached in and, with lightning speed, plucked out the boss's eyeball, and then... stomped him flat again!
As for the Hashirama cells... Chen has dealt with them long ago in his nearly twenty years of activities and has a long-term plan for them.
Therefore, he really didn't care about the meager sums that Boss Pryde had.
He looked at the eye he was holding in his hand.
The Chen Stream, due to the existence of the Stream Time Zone, inherently possesses the ability of spacetime.
There is no need for any unnecessary embellishment.
He never intended to possess those eyes.
The Edo Tensei enhanced by this Mitsuha can also be transplanted with Sharingan, and after transplantation, it will become homogenized with the Edo Tensei, so it can regenerate even if it is destroyed.
Chen solemnly handed the eye to Madara, saying, "You probably don't care about the ingredients of this eye, but it's really useful, so please accept it."
Madara Uchiha possessed an invincible and powerful eye technique and combat ability, but he did not have the ability to manipulate space and time.
This eye, which contains the power of [cloth knife and life-saving technique], can just make up for his only weakness.
One should not accept a reward without merit. From Madara's current perspective, accepting this eye would mean "joining the party" and becoming what Chen calls a "like-minded comrade-in-arms".
However, he still has unresolved issues in his heart.
So, unmoved by the hand held out in mid-air, he asked in return, "Give me a reason to accept this eye."
Chen held his hand in mid-air, motionless, and smiled as he said, "Does the answer to the previous question count?"
"Then why did you choose me? You should know that I was the one who once pushed the ninja world into the abyss, right?"
That was precisely the knot in Madara's heart, and the answer he desperately wanted to know after witnessing today's battle and verifying the 'future reality' that Chen had mentioned!
Madara lowered his gaze: "Tell me, tell me!"
Chen said in a simple yet profound tone: "In the life we have experienced so far, we have tasted the bitterness of loss and regret. That is why we know better than those who have never taken a detour whatsoever what the right path is!"
"I grant your wish so that you can truly throw it to the other side; and please grant me your wish so that I can protect those people and things that are so precious to me!"
Chen's words were like a gentle breeze, stirring up waves in Madara's heart and reminding him of the sound of a pebble skimming across the lake in his childhood.
It turns out that there is someone in this world who understands me better than Hashirama, and that person is a junior Uchiha I've never met before...
He knew that I had not initiated the Eye of the Moon Project for my own selfish desires.
He knew that I had never truly reached the other side in my entire life, which was my sore spot. He knew that the regret in my heart that I had not been able to let go of with my death was that I had been toiling away for most of my life because of a false dream!
He knew that I had accepted Hashirama's path before I died, but I refused to admit defeat even in the face of death!
He knew that I longed more than anyone else to truly end the war curse of this ninja world!
But it was only that he 'knew'... Knowing is a kind of cognition, proving that the man standing in front of me, who called himself Uchiha Chen, had a pair of eyes that could see through people's hearts.
Cognition does not equate to honesty, much less to sincerity!
This is a lesson I learned that is more painful than bloodshed!
Under Chen's astonished gaze, Madara suddenly stepped forward, grabbed his collar, and pressed his scarred face against the flesh-and-blood face!
Those eyes of the Six Paths of Reincarnation seemed to pierce through the soul, revealing the loyalty, treachery, good, and evil within!
Madness filled Madara's eyes, and his hoarse voice rang out: "Chen, I was deceived once before, wasting most of my life! I have no more time to waste! So, promise me, don't lie to me, okay?"
Chen was intimidated by the dense, yet calm, aura surrounding Madara!
He underestimated the pain in Madara's heart, and... the enlightenment that came with that pain!
"Alright! I promise you! On matters that determine the future of the ninja world, I will absolutely not lie to you!"
Madara said, enunciating each word clearly, "Alright! Then I promise you! As long as you stay on the right path, even if I, Madara, am shattered to pieces, I will ferry you to the other side!"
As soon as he finished speaking, he swiftly snatched the eye from Chen's hand, lifted his robe, and pressed the Mangekyou Sharingan, which was the source of the 'Cloth Blade Reversal of Fate', into the 'right eye' of Hashirama's face on his chest!
"Is this alright?"
Chen put down his hand and said, "I hope you will take good care of me."
Madara said, "Alright, stop with the formalities, they sound really awkward. Just start calling me 'Uncle Madara' like your husband does!"
"Uncle Madara, please guide me from now on!"
"Mm." Madara nodded in agreement, glancing at the watch on Chen's wrist.
7:58 PM.
He remembered that Chen returned home at 8 p.m. sharp last night.
"Go back, Chen. Don't keep Hikari waiting at the door. Also, tell me your [plan] at dinner!"