Originally, someone like Kiyohara—a small fry—would never have even registered on Madara's radar.
But times were different now.His body was nearing its limit. He no longer had the luxury of time.
He needed to quickly confirm the successor to the Eye of the Moon Plan,so he could unplug himself in peace—
And sleep…Until his grand resurrection as the world's savior.
"Hashirama… I'll prove it.I will make it… to the other shore."
Madara whispered into the empty darkness of the cave.
His hand instinctively reached for his chest—
That was where a piece of Hashirama's flesh was implanted.It was this very tissue that allowed him to awaken the Rinnegan, and make all his plans possible.
Meanwhile, Kiyohara was pretending to be focused on sensing distant chakra…
His rogue self's soul floated back, looking grim.
"What's wrong?"Kiyohara tensed.Don't scare him like that.Were they already surrounded by Iwagakure troops?
Was it still too late to write a will?
"We're near the site where Rin is captured.Obito is almost there," the rogue Kiyohara said.
They had unknowingly reached the edge of Kannabi Bridge.The area was now dangerously undermanned.
Clearly, Minato had reached the frontlines and was wreaking havoc,forcing Iwa to divert forces from this region.
"I see," Kiyohara nodded slowly.
He understood what his future self was implying.
If Obito arrived, Kakashi would soon follow, after his internal struggle.
Kakashi's left eye would be slashed here.Obito would be crushed by a falling boulder.
This… would be the closest Madara had ever come to observing them directly.
Even if he didn't see anything concrete, Kiyohara felt it—
White Zetsu was nearby.
The Mayfly Technique let Zetsu meld seamlessly with the earth—undetectable.
"I don't have a bloodline.I'm not Madara's type. At best, I'm a minor inconvenience.Or maybe a convenient scapegoat for Obito's descent into darkness."
Kiyohara thought quietly.
Madara had planned for Rin to be made a Jinchūriki,forcing her and Kakashi to kill each other—pushing Obito into despair and darkness.
He didn't anticipate Rin choosing suicide.
But that only served to push Obito over the edge.
"Good thing I picked a fight with Obito before we left.Maybe that'll keep me off the sacrifice list…"
Kiyohara mused.
If Rin and Kakashi died and Obito still didn't snap,Madara might just slaughter everyone close to Obito until he broke.
Kiyohara wasn't eager to become part of that process.
"'Revive, my love!'Yeah, let's not."
Obito hadn't even tried to revive his own grandma.He just wanted to use Infinite Tsukuyomi to become Hokage in fantasy world Rin's arms.
The ultimate love-brain.
"If things get ugly, you'd better possess me,"Kiyohara told his future self.
He was putting a contingency in place.
Iwa's jōnin Daishi had stealth abilities.There was no guarantee Kiyohara could react in time.
"You don't have to go at all,"his rogue self replied.
They could just wait it out and avoid altering canon.
"If I stay behind, who knows what butterfly effect will result?The bridge must be destroyed. I need that merit."
Once he got promoted to chūnin,he could inherit the rest of rogue Kiyohara's talents.
And then—mastery over Wind and Lightning Release would skyrocket.
When two versions of Kiyohara combine, it's not 1 + 1 = 2.It's chemistry.Something explosive.
"Alright then. I'll step in when it matters,"Rogue Kiyohara agreed.
He too wanted his younger self to succeed.
"How strong can you go in proxy mode?"Kiyohara asked.
He'd seen his rogue self take over before—but how far could he really push things?
Even with jōnin-level technique, Kiyohara's body was only chūnin-class.
"Don't worry. I can unlock your full physical potential."
The rogue self explained:
The human body is powerful—but limited by built-in safety locks.
As another consciousness, he could override those limits and go full throttle.
"So… basically like the Eight Gates?"Kiyohara caught on.
Exactly.
Eight Gates lifted the brain's natural limiters to unleash 100% physical output—at the cost of damage.
"So if I learned it, you could force it open?"
"In theory.If I know how to do it, you don't have to.But I don't."
Kiyohara's rogue self shrugged.
It was basically a forbidden technique.
Even Orochimaru never studied it—he had no interest in body training.Only immortality and bloodline possession.
"Alright," Kiyohara nodded.
He was ready now.
Those jōnin inside?He could handle them.
Worst case, he'd just scream:
"FUTURE ME, HELP!!"
He turned to Kurenai and Genma.
"We're heading in. Stay quiet."
Having a full three-person squad made things much safer.
Elsewhere…
"Kakashi! Obito!"
Rin's voice rang out.
Their arrival disrupted the Genjutsu trapping her—it weakened momentarily.
"I'll take care of them.You keep the Genjutsu up,"said Hibikō.
Daishi nodded and vanished into the shadows.
"Damn, gone again…"Kakashi's face darkened.
That guy's stealth was unreal.
"Just a couple of kids,"Daishi murmured.
Silently, he circled behind them—kunai in hand.
"Kakashi!!"Rin cried out, panicked.
At that moment—a roar echoed from outside the cave.
"Wind Style: Great Breakthrough!"
A gale surged in,dust and wind whipping across the space—
And outlined a human figure coated in soil.
Daishi's invisible form was revealed.
Kiyohara has arrived!