"Anyone who didn't know better might think you'd gone to the pleasure district in Tanzaku Quarters to get close to some female confidante. Who would imagine you're actually dressing up as a woman yourself to please someone of the same sex?"
Uchiha Madara inhaled the faint fragrance lingering in the air, his mind flashing back to that incredibly strong, exceptionally wicked, silver-haired villain.
The silver-haired, red-eyed Senju Princess, Tsukuyo, was an immensely ambitious young woman. From the very beginning, she had scorned the conflicts between ninja clans.
Her goal wasn't merely to unite the clans; her ambitions were vast. She aimed not only to unify the ninja clans but also the entire Land of Fire, and ultimately, the whole ninja world.
Such a grand ambition made Uchiha Madara's blood boil with excitement, yet he remained clear-headed. He knew such dominance couldn't possibly be achieved overnight.
But Tsukuyo was just too monstrously talented, and Madara couldn't help but want to believe in her.
That was why Uchiha Madara still associated with Tsukuyo.
However...
Seeing Uchiha Yuki before him acting more and more like a woman, Madara felt he absolutely had to stop things from progressing further.
"You said back then that he helped you, but your mother still died. You wanted me to help you contact him simply to repay the kindness, return the medicine, and be done with it," Uchiha Madara's voice was low, growing angrier the more he thought about it.
He was, after all, a person of flesh and blood. He cherished his bond with Hashirama, and like Hashirama, he held onto naive dreams.
Uchiha Yuki's plight had stirred pity in the young Madara.
Madara had secret dealings with Tsukuyo; she had even saved his and Izuna's lives countless times. Although Tsukuyo, that ambitious bean sprout, had a terrible personality and could always infuriate people, she had indeed shown him great kindness.
Therefore, Madara believed that repaying kindness was a good quality. He didn't think there was anything wrong with it, so he helped Uchiha Yuki.
But Madara had never, ever imagined things would turn out like this.
Is this how one repays kindness?
Offering oneself should depend on gender, shouldn't it?
This was already perverted!
"I can understand your grateful heart, but... for him to make you repay kindness in this manner is simply too much!" Uchiha Madara lamented bitterly. "Starting today, don't accept his invitations anymore. I will go and make things clear with Tsukuyo."
Madara thought about how the person before him was a young man in his prime, yet he was forced to dress up like an expert cross-dresser and even go on dates with another man while pretending to be a girl.
How utterly improper!
What kind of nonsense was this?!
It fundamentally challenged Uchiha Madara's worldview.
If word of this got out, the Uchiha clan would lose all face, becoming a laughingstock in the ninja world – the kind people would mock for years.
Just imagining that scenario was unacceptable to Uchiha Madara.
However, Uchiha Yuki silently stared at the young clan leader before him.
Uchiha Yuki spoke softly, "I apologize, Lord Madara, for disappointing you, but... I promise I will never do anything to betray the Uchiha clan. However, regarding the matter you just mentioned, I regret that I cannot comply."
At that moment, Senju Wakama's smiling face flashed through Uchiha Yuki's mind, along with his words: "Why don't you just fake your death and come to the Senju clan? As long as Wakama and I are here, no one will dare bully you."
Initially, Uchiha Yuki had hesitated.
But now...
Uchiha Yuki understood. As time went on, his relationship with Senju Wakama would inevitably be discovered by the clan.
Remaining in the Uchiha clan was indeed dangerous.
But would going to the Senju clan be any less dangerous?
Both options carried risks...
But within the Senju clan, there was Senju Wakama. Within the Uchiha clan's grounds, there were only narrow inner rooms, dark walls, and cold air.
"What did you say?" Madara's face was filled with disbelief, his Sharingan activating involuntarily.
At the same instant.
In the darkness, Uchiha Yuki's eyes turned from pitch black to blood red, and within the red, a single tomoe materialized, quickly followed by a second tomoe.
Madara's eyes widened, "You..."
At this moment, Uchiha Madara recalled the process of awakening his own Sharingan. Ignorant as he was, he had been tightly embraced by that utterly deranged monster, Tsukuyo.
That bean sprout, hard as stone, had nearly crushed the life out of him.
Experiencing such agony, believing he had been betrayed and was on the verge of death, his Sharingan had awakened amidst the extreme emotional turmoil.
He vividly remembered the wicked smile that appeared on Tsukuyo's pretty face back then, as she said, "Ah, a Sharingan, common as cabbages," and "Since you've awakened your eyes, we're still good friends then."
Uchiha Madara abruptly stood up, his expression deadly serious. "Your eyes have evolved."
"Yes." Uchiha Yuki took two steps back, expecting to clash with Madara and perhaps use the opportunity to feign death and leave the Uchiha clan for good.
Unexpectedly, upon seeing his eyes, Madara restrained his imposing aura.
"Did they evolve because of him?" Although phrased as a question, Madara's tone was certain.
"Yes," Uchiha Yuki admitted.
"As expected..." Uchiha Madara grumbled irritably, "That pair of vile siblings, both so utterly unscrupulous!"
Madara had clearly misunderstood. He assumed Senju Wakama had forced Uchiha Yuki to wear women's clothing specifically to push Yuki's Sharingan to evolve.
Madara constructed his own narrative, believing Yuki's forced cross-dressing was the trigger for awakening the eyes.
But the reality was vastly different from Madara's imagination.
Uchiha Yuki said in a low voice, "Lord Madara, I am fine now..."
Madara pondered for a moment before speaking, "But couldn't you... not dress up as a woman?"
"I can't..." Uchiha Yuki lowered his head.
Silence filled the air.
Finally, Uchiha Madara sighed, "I understand..."
Everyone is stimulated in different ways. Madara decided to ask Tsukuyo privately later. While he appreciated the siblings' efforts in helping them awaken their eyes, he had to ask if they could please stop insulting his clansmen.
What Madara didn't know was that as he spoke these words, Uchiha Yuki wore a strange expression.
What did Madara understand?
Uchiha Yuki wondered inwardly but said nothing. As long as Madara didn't pursue the matter further, the outcome was what he desired.
(Scene change)
Deep within the Hyuga Clan Main Family's inner residence.
Hyuga Bai had intended to return to his own quarters quickly but was stopped halfway by Hyuga Miyu's attendants.
These attendants were all from the Hyuga Branch Family. They possessed the Byakugan and were ninjas themselves. Besides serving Hyuga Miyu's daily needs, they also bore the responsibility of monitoring her.
This was a defensive measure implemented by the clan head, Hyuga Toshihiro, after the entire clan had been incapacitated previously.
Although Hyuga Bai felt this measure was utterly useless...
If Tsukuyo were to invade again, they would still be powerless.
Having personally experienced Tsukuyo's power and terror, Hyuga Bai knew this Princess clearly didn't want to annihilate their clan; otherwise, they wouldn't have survived.
Complying with Hyuga Miyu's request, Hyuga Bai went to the inner courtyard to meet her.
He had expected Hyuga Miyu to ask about his experiences visiting the Senju clan.
What Hyuga Bai didn't expect was for Hyuga Miyu to set out a tea set and casually ask him to prepare tea for her.
Prepare tea?
Why?