In the eyes of the entire ninja world, Uchiha Madara had been dead for decades.
He had perished in battle against the First Hokage, Senju Hashirama, in a clash so violent that it shook the foundations of history itself.
That battle had reshaped the land.
The terrain was torn apart, mountains collapsed, rivers rerouted—and in the end, the legendary Valley of the End was born.
Even now, statues of Hashirama and Madara stood there, gazing at one another across the ravine, eternal symbols of that decisive conflict.
To this day, no one doubted the truth of Madara's death.
No one—
Except Aosui.
He knew better.
That battle had never been a true end.
It had been a carefully orchestrated deception.
Madara had used the opportunity to obtain Hashirama's cells, awaken the Rinnegan, fake his death, and withdraw from the world entirely—slipping into the shadows to quietly prepare the Eye of the Moon Plan.
Nagato's Rinnegan…
Was living proof of that plan.
"I was careless…"
Asosui deflected another Rain ninja's attack, a flicker of regret flashing through his mind.
He had believed that his team was too insignificant to draw Madara's attention.
Too early.
Too small.
Too irrelevant.
But Madara had never played by conventional rules.
Wasn't his chosen successor supposed to be Uchiha Obito?
Then why intervene now?
Although he had no concrete proof, Aosui was absolutely certain of one thing—
Uchiha Madara was behind this.
The Rain ninjas' abnormal behavior, their suicidal aggression, their refusal to negotiate—it all reeked of manipulation.
Madara had once controlled the entire Hidden Mist Village from the shadows.
Compared to that, what was the Hidden Rain Village?
Even Hanzō the Salamander, hailed as a "Demigod," was nothing more than a pawn in Madara's eyes.
To Madara, every ninja other than Hashirama was insignificant.
That was simply the kind of man he was.
But regret accomplished nothing.
If Madara truly stood behind this, then the Rain ninjas' mission was clear—
Kill them at all costs.
And why?
Aosui's gaze flicked briefly toward Mikoto.
The answer was obvious.
The goal was to push Uchiha Mikoto into awakening the Mangekyō Sharingan.
After all, Madara's interest could only lie with the Uchiha.
Not him.
Not Minato.
Not the genin.
Mikoto.
While defending against incoming attacks, Aosui spoke quickly.
"Mikoto, they aren't trying to drive us away," he said in a low voice.
"They're trying to kill us. If this drags on, Tomoki and Ayame will be targeted."
Among the five, Mukai Tomoki and Sasaki Ayame were genuine genin.
In a battle of this scale, they were glaring weaknesses—targets that could be exploited at any moment.
Mikoto hesitated only briefly.
Then she clenched her teeth.
"If they insist on bloodshed," she said coldly, "then there's no reason for us to hold back any longer."
Konoha valued peace—
But peace was not the same as submission.
Once the squad leader gave the order, Aosui immediately stopped restraining himself.
With his current strength, even a Rain Village jōnin posed no real threat to him—let alone chūnin and genin.
His movements became sharp and decisive.
In mere moments, every Rain ninja attacking him fell.
At the same time, the Rain jōnin facing Mikoto froze in place, eyes dull.
Genjutsu.
Jōnin from small villages often had inflated ranks.
In the Five Great Shinobi Nations, such individuals would barely qualify as tokubetsu jōnin.
Against Mikoto's activated Sharingan, he stood no chance.
She defeated him instantly.
However, she deliberately refrained from killing him.
"We'll interrogate him after we deal with the rest," she said.
Aosui nodded.
Minato was already finishing off his opponents, and the two of them immediately moved to support Tomoki and Ayame.
The result was swift.
Within a handful of breaths, every Rain ninja lay dead—
All except the captured jōnin.
"Are you two alright?" Aosui asked.
"We're fine," Tomoki and Ayame replied quickly.
Thanks to their recent training, they had held their ground against Rain genin and avoided injury.
Mikoto turned her attention to the restrained jōnin.
With the Sharingan, interrogation was almost effortless.
Soon, she extracted the truth.
"They received direct orders," Mikoto said grimly.
"A man named Sōnosuke commanded them to kill us at all costs."
"Sōnosuke?" Aosui frowned.
The name meant nothing to him.
Aside from Hanzō, he knew no other notable figures in Amegakure.
"He's a high-ranking member of the radical faction within the Rain Village," Mikoto explained.
That was enough.
Aosui understood immediately.
This Sōnosuke was nothing more than a scapegoat—a convenient face for Madara's manipulation.
"Should we kill him?" Aosui asked, glancing at the captive jōnin.
"No," Mikoto replied firmly.
"He's evidence. Konoha will need leverage during negotiations."
With proof, Konoha could claim the moral high ground.
But before she could say another word—
A sharp whistle cut through the rain.
A kunai flashed past.
The jōnin's throat was pierced instantly.
Dead.
"Who's there?!"
Everyone snapped into defensive positions.
Yet—
There was nothing.
No chakra fluctuation.
No movement.
No presence.
If the kunai hadn't been embedded in the corpse, they might have believed it was an illusion.
The silence was suffocating.
Five pairs of eyes scanned the surroundings—
And found nothing.
If the target had been them instead of the jōnin…
They would already be dead.
Aosui's heart sank.
There was no doubt now.
White Zetsu.
Only White Zetsu, with the Mayfly Technique, could kill someone directly in front of five ninja without leaving the slightest trace.
This was a cleanup.
A silencing of witnesses.
Madara's hand had reached into the open.
"We need to leave immediately," Aosui said without hesitation.
Mikoto nodded.
But fate offered them no escape.
Figures emerged silently on the surrounding ridges.
Dozens of Rain ninja.
Encircling them.
And at the center—
A tall figure clad in distinctive gear, a respirator mask covering his face.
Hanzō of the Salamander.
The so-called Demigod.
In an era without gods, he stood at the pinnacle of the ninja world.
His presence alone crushed the air.
Mukai Tomoki and Sasaki Ayame froze in terror.
Even Minato felt his breath hitch.
Only Aosui and Mikoto managed to remain composed.
Aosui gripped his blade, eyes fixed on Hanzō without a shred of fear.
If he unleashed everything—
If he ignored consequences—
Even Hanzō would fall.
But that wasn't the real danger.
The real danger was that Madara and Black Zetsu were watching.
Mikoto stepped forward, her voice steady.
"Lord Hanzō," she said clearly,
"Are your Rain ninja attempting to provoke another war with Konoha by attacking us?"
The rain continued to fall.
And the conspiracy—
Finally stepped into the light.
Advance Chapters avilable on patreon (Obito_uchiha)