"Lord Madara, that Hatake Sakumo sensory abilities are a bit tricky. We only realized he had the Sharingan when he was talking to Uchiha Kagami."
In other words, even we didn't know he carried a hereditary disease.
Plus, the White Zetsus couldn't possibly monitor the entirety of Konoha. Their main focus had always been within the Uchiha district.
The Uchiha clan didn't have a proper sensory barrier around their territory.
The Sharingan gave the Uchiha overwhelming confidence. They feared no ambushes, so even the barriers within the compound were offensive in nature—mainly the powerful Uchiha Fire Formation.
While that barrier technically had some sensory capabilities, its true purpose was offense. Any intruder bold enough to step into the Uchiha district would be met with unrelenting flames.
Of course, if there was a traitor from within the Uchiha, well… that's a different story.
Kaien obediently submitted to the medical exam without a fuss.
That's exactly what he wanted—if he was going to be a villain, he might as well get a few perks, right?
A proper descent into darkness should come with at least a tenfold power boost!
If he was going to go full dark side, then yeah, he deserved a buff or two!
Kaien silently grumbled about Uchiha Madara in his heart.
But Madara wasn't exactly stingy.
He'd only awakened the Rinnegan a few months ago, and using this kid as a test subject to train his ocular powers wasn't a bad idea at all.
Complex patterns spun rapidly in Madara's Mangekyō Sharingan before they transformed into concentric rings—the signature ripple pattern of the Rinnegan.
With barely a twitch, the overwhelming power of the Six Paths began to condense in his hand. Using the Preta Path, Madara channeled chakra into Kaien's body.
After all, if the Preta Path could absorb chakra, it could just as easily transfer it.
Even just a trace of the Six Paths power leaking through Madara's fingers was enough to make Kaien feel like he was about to burst.
His body was invaded by unfamiliar chakra. At first, his internal defenses flared up—but once his body recognized that this foreign energy was beneficial, his cells devoured it greedily.
Kaien's face flushed bright red.
"E-enough, Lord Madara... I-I can't take it anymore…"
His voice trembled, almost soft and pleading.
Sure, it was good stuff—but too much of anything would kill you!
So this was the power of the Six Paths? It was utterly overwhelming.
Even without looking at his [status screen], Kaien could feel the surge in vitality. Where he'd once felt weak and drained, now he felt like he had endless stamina.
Maybe it was just an illusion—a temporary rush—but it was undeniably real to him.
[Current Status: Due to receiving Six Paths power, vitality is being slowly nourished.]
Madara, seeing Kaien's status, calmly stopped the chakra flow.
Kaien looked up, eyes practically sparkling with admiration.
Madara knew then that he'd succeeded—the boy was now his loyal pawn.
"Kaien. That's your name, right?"
"Yes, Lord Madara."
"From this day on, how about becoming my successor? I'll show you the truth of this world."
"C-can I really? Do I even have the right to be trained by someone like you?"
"Of course. After all, I chose you."
Despite his age, Madara's voice carried an undeniable aura, as if he were the only one qualified to shape the world.
Kaien reached out and clasped the old warrior's calloused hand, the warmth of it seeping into his palm. In that moment, his ambition surged.
He didn't know how he'd ended up on this ship of fools—but this thigh was thick, and the benefits were real. He was going to cling to it for dear life.
...
Even after being escorted home by a White Zetsu, Kaien still felt like the whole thing had been a fever dream.
Out of nowhere, the final boss himself had appeared and declared Kaien to be his heir.
So Madara had been planning to choose a successor this early on?
Then again, Nagato must already be a few years old by now. Madara hadn't passed the Rinnegan to him yet, but it couldn't be more than a year or two away.
Based on the current intel, Konoha was already having skirmishes with both Kumogakure and Kirigakure. The Second Great Ninja War was likely just around the corner.
Nagato's parents would die in that war.
Since Kushina was already in Konoha, that meant Nagato's parents were likely still living in Amegakure... just waiting for their tragic fate.
When the war ended and Hanzō the Salamander named the Sannin, the cycle would continue.
Jiraiya would stay behind to teach Nagato, believing him to be the Child of Prophecy. Tsunade would lose both her lover and brother. Orochimaru, shaken by the death of his students, would begin his pursuit of immortality.
All of this... would be set in motion by Madara ordering Black Zetsu to stir up chaos.
But what did any of that have to do with Kaien?
Rather than stressing over the butterfly effect, it made more sense to focus on curing his own bloodline disease. The power Madara gave him wasn't nearly enough to fully heal it.
This wasn't a surface-level injury that could be patched up with a bit of chakra. It was a curse rooted deep in his bloodline.
...
As things stood, Kaien was just a weakling. Anyone worth their salt could crush him with a single hand.
He didn't have the luxury to worry about other people's destinies. At most, he could nudge things slightly when the opportunity arose.
As for Nagato's tragic future and lifelong role as the face of anti-Madara resistance?
Now that Kaien was one of the beneficiaries, he had no reason to disrupt it. Even if he wanted to, he didn't have the power. Madara might be old, but he was still the strongest in the ninja world.
The only life Kaien genuinely wanted to save was Nawaki's. That guy had been like a senior apprentice brother to him, and had even given Kaien a decent chunk of [affection]. He was worth the effort—within reason.
Their training sessions together had mostly involved Kaien dodging explosive tags.
To keep his little sheep from getting roasted, Kaien had actually put in some effort.
Hopefully all that groundwork would pay off.
Maybe Nawaki really was just an innocent dumbass who got blown up because he was too pure-hearted.
The naive clarity in his eyes was no different from Kaien's own carefully crafted act.
Kaien sighed.
Raising his hand, he glanced at the dark, ominous bracelet on his wrist.
Only then did he fully accept that his encounter with Madara hadn't been a dream.
The [Binding Bracelet], as its name implied, prevented him from revealing anything about Madara. A product of Yin-Yang Release, it ensured Kaien couldn't spill the beans.
But instead of despair, Kaien found himself feeling strangely fired up.
Since things had turned out this way... why not go all in?
Time to become the mastermind behind the scenes—and max out [affection] from every resource that could benefit him!
With that thought, Kaien summoned his personal black cat and curled up on his enormous bed, blissfully falling asleep, already dreaming of power.
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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