Kakashi really had fallen.
And not in a poetic way.
Flat.
Clean.
Instant shutdown.
When he had faced Orochimaru, he froze from killing intent.
But this?
This wasn't killing intent.
This was existence suppression.
Kakashi Wakes Up
He slowly opened his eyes.
A strange ceiling.
"…Not Konoha Hospital."
As the permanently low-HP, permanently low-chakra Copy Ninja, Kakashi knew hospital ceilings intimately.
This wasn't one of them.
He heard something.
Flip.
Flip.
The sound of pages turning.
He forced his neck to move—
And saw Uchiha Kai sitting near a window.
Reading.
Icha Icha Paradise. Volume 3.
Kakashi's book.
"…!"
That alone was bad enough.
But what truly destroyed him—
Behind Uchiha Kai stood a tall man in red armor.
Long black hair.
Purple ripple-pattern eyes.
Peak form.
Not elderly.
Not dying.
Not restrained.
Madara Uchiha.
Just standing there.
Like a guardian deity.
Uchiha Kai even tilted the book slightly—
As if offering Madara a look.
Madara glanced once.
Then shook his head.
No interest.
Uchiha Kai continued reading.
Kakashi nearly blacked out again.
The Realization
So that's what happened.
He hadn't collapsed randomly.
He had locked eyes with Peak Madara.
Not an "old ghost."
Not an illusion.
Not chakra residue.
Peak form.
And those eyes—
If Kakashi remembered correctly—
They were the Rinnegan.
The Sage of Six Paths' eyes.
No documented successor in a thousand years.
And here—
Standing casually behind a genin.
Kakashi made a strategic decision.
Close his eyes.
Pretend to be asleep.
Dignity salvage attempt.
Meanwhile — The Uchiha Chat
The livestream was active.
Everyone saw the book title.
Everyone saw the content.
It was…
Intense.
[Uchiha Fugaku]: …So this is what Kakashi carries on missions?
[Old Madara]: …
Pause.
[Old Madara]: It's not bad.
Silence.
Apparently, ancient warlords had low resistance to romance fiction.
[Uchiha Izuna]: Tobirama's disciples' disciples turned out like this?
[Shunshin Shisui]: To be fair… rest periods are…
[Uchiha Izuna]: He brings it on missions.
Shisui had no counterargument.
Peak Madara Analysis
[Old Madara]: That puppet isn't me.
[Old Madara]: No connection. No resonance.
[Old Madara]: It has no interest in the book.
[Old Madara]: Pure tool.
Fugaku nodded.
[Uchiha Fugaku]: But judging by Kakashi's reaction—
[Uchiha Fugaku]: That pressure exceeds current Kage level.
Old Madara didn't respond immediately.
Because he knew.
He couldn't defeat that version either.
He was old.
Fading.
But that peak form—
That was the form he wanted upon revival.
Meaning—
Watching Uchiha Kai was like previewing his future resurrection stats.
And that thought?
Excited him.
His fighting spirit quietly reignited.
Izuna blinked.
Why was his brother suddenly motivated?
System Notification
Then—
A new prompt appeared.
[Ding!]
[Due to low member count, inviting one Kage-level individual related to the Uchiha.]
Candidates:
Ōnoki — Tsuchikage (related to Madara)
Yagura Karatachi — Mizukage (related to Madara)
Rin Nohara — (related to Madara)
Silence.
[Uchiha Fugaku]: …Why are they all connected to Ancestor-sama?
A long pause.
[Old Madara]: …
Another pause.
[Old Madara]: …Ah.
Yes.
He remembered now.
Those were all—
People he had, in one way or another—
Absolutely ruined.
Izuna slowly turned toward him in the chat.
[Uchiha Izuna]: …Aniki?
Old Madara did not elaborate.
Because explaining that list would require a very long confession.
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