Naruto: Sasuke Uchiha Returns from Soul Society

"So that's how it is? It was so easily ruined by a brat?!"

"Forget it, Madara."

Hashirama Senju's soul also appeared, and he sighed as he looked at Madara's frenzied appearance.

"Our era has long since ended."

"Shut up, Hashirama!" Madara whirled around. "What do you know?! You have no idea how great my ideals are!"

"Infinite Tsukuyomi is the only way to save this world!"

"That brat, what does he know about peace?!"

"No, Madara, you're wrong."

Hashirama shook his head, his gaze clear. "That boy, though his methods were radical, had a different light in his eyes than yours."

"What nonsense!"

Ban wouldn't listen at all, and retorted with a cold laugh, "Humans are creatures that only repeat the same mistakes!"

"Only in my world of illusion can there be true eternity!"

"Ugh......"

Just as the two were arguing, an aged voice slowly echoed in this void.

"No matter how many years have passed, no matter how many cycles of reincarnation have occurred..."

"You two brothers have always been the same."

Madara and Hashirama's argument came to an abrupt end.

The two of them turned their heads at the same time, looking in the direction from which the sound came.

In the depths of the gray-white mist, an old man, sitting cross-legged and suspended in mid-air, holding a black tin staff, was quietly watching them.

His eyes are the same Rinnegan as Madara's.

Ban narrowed his eyes, a sudden jolt running through him.

"You are... the Sage of Six Paths?"

The old man, suspended in mid-air, nodded slightly, his expression calm and solemn: "My name is Hagoromo Otsutsuki, also known as the Sage of Six Paths who founded the Ninja Cult."

Upon receiving an affirmative answer, Ban's brows furrowed even more.

He glanced at Hashirama beside him, who also looked bewildered, and asked in a deep voice, "Did you bring us here?"

The Sage of Six Paths did not deny it: "If we hadn't done that, your souls might have been completely obliterated by that child."

"Hmph, mind your own business."

Ban snorted coldly. Although he spoke toughly, he knew in his heart that if it weren't for this power, he would probably have already been annihilated.

He looked directly at the Sage of Six Paths and asked the question that had been bothering him the most.

"Then what did you mean when you said that Hashirama and I are 'brothers'?"

The Sage of Six Paths did not answer immediately. He slowly raised his head and looked towards the void of the present world, in the direction of Sasuke.

"Time is running out. The Demonic Statue of the Outer Path is awakening, and Mother's aura is growing stronger."

The Sage of Six Paths withdrew his gaze, looked at the two people in front of him, and gently tapped the void with his staff.

"Let's make a long story short."

“You are not ordinary people. Your chakra contains the chakra of my two sons.”

"The eldest son, Indra, and the second son, Asura."

The Sage of Six Paths' gaze fell on Madara. "Madara, you are the reincarnation of Indra."

Then he looked at Hashirama, "And Hashirama, you are the reincarnation of Ashura."

"Reincarnation..."

Hashirama Senju scratched his head and looked at Madara with an innocent expression. "So, we were brothers in our past lives? No wonder I've felt a special connection with you since we were kids, Madara!"

"Shut up, who said we're brothers!"

Madara glanced at Hashirama speechlessly, then looked at the Sage of Six Paths, his eyes full of suspicion. "So? Is this the reason we've been fighting endlessly? Just because of that destiny between Indra and Ashura?"

"It's not just fate."

The Sage of Six Paths shook his head, his voice filled with a sense of vicissitude, "Indra pursues power, attempting to establish order through absolute force, while Ashura pursues love and bonds, trying to connect people's hearts through mutual understanding."

"These two diametrically opposed wills have collided continuously throughout history, and have continued to your generation."

“This is utterly boring.” Ban interrupted him dismissively. “Everything I do is out of my own will and has nothing to do with that Indra.”

"I pursue power in order to create a perfect world without war!"

At this point, Madara's eyes became fervent.

“Sage of Six Paths, since you are the founder of the Ninja Clan, you should know this better than anyone else.”

"This world is beyond saving. Only the Infinite Tsukuyomi, only that illusionary world where everyone can find happiness, is the true salvation!"

"That is the only thoroughfare recorded on the stone tablet you left for the Uchiha clan!"

Looking at Madara's confident expression, a trace of pity appeared in the Sage of Six Paths' eyes.

"Ban, you are really smart and have unparalleled initiative."

"But you're wrong on this very point."

"And it's completely wrong."

"What?" Madara's expression froze.

"What I left on the stone tablet is a teaching that urges the reincarnations of Indra to abandon their prejudices and guide their power through mutual trust."

The Sage of Six Paths said, enunciating each word clearly, "There is no record of Infinite Tsukuyomi there, nor is it said that dragging everyone into a dream is peace."

"Impossible!" Madara took a step forward and retorted sharply, "That's what I saw with my own eyes after I awakened the Rinnegan! It's the truth I spent decades deciphering! How could it be fake?!"

"Because it has been altered," the Sage of Six Paths said ruthlessly.

"Tampered with...?" Madara was stunned.

"In the shadows of this world, a dark will lurks."

The Sage of Six Paths explained, "It is a monster that exists to resurrect my mother."

"That is, the Black Zetsu you saw. He modified the contents of the stone tablet. He used the Uchiha clan's stone tablet to set up a deception that spanned a thousand years."

"The so-called Infinite Tsukuyomi is not a technique intended to bring happiness to humanity at all."

The Sage of Six Paths' voice turned stern, "That's a forbidden technique that turns all humans into living sacrifices, reclaims all their chakra, and uses it to revive the Divine Tree and my mother!"

"Once activated, all humans trapped in the dream will eventually become monsters like White Zetsu, and the world will be completely destroyed!"

"..."

These words exploded in Madara's mind.

He staggered back two steps, his confidence crumbling instantly, replaced by bewilderment and horror.

Black Zetsu?

Isn't that the embodiment of my own will? How could this be...?

"A sacrifice, to resurrect the Goddess of Rabbit..."

Ban muttered to himself, his mind a complete mess.

He recalled Black Zetsu's submissive appearance and how he had presumptuously "created" it.

So, I was the clown who got played the worst?

Madara suddenly raised his head, his eyes bloodshot, staring intently at the Sage of Six Paths. "What you're saying, is it all true?!"

"I have no reason to deceive the dead," the Sage of Six Paths replied calmly.

"Aaaaaahh ...

Ban let out a heart-wrenching roar.

Anger, shame, resentment... countless emotions exploded in his chest.

For this ideal, he abandoned his family and his best friends, eking out a living in darkness for decades, even using the entire ninja world as a pawn.

In the end, it turned out that it was all just a scam orchestrated by someone?!

"Black Zetsu... Black Zetsu!!!"

Madara gritted his teeth. If Black Zetsu were right in front of him, he would want to devour him alive.

"spot......"

Hashirama, standing to the side, felt a pang of pity seeing Madara's devastated state, but he knew this was not the time to offer comfort.

He turned to look at the Sage of Six Paths, his expression solemn.

"Sage, since the Infinite Tsukuyomi is a trap, then what Sasuke is doing now...?"

"This is precisely why I have gathered you here."

The Sage of Six Paths interrupted Hashirama, "Uchiha Sasuke is the reincarnation of Indra's chakra in this generation, but he is an exception."

"His power and will have exceeded my expectations. He is now forcibly reviving the Ten-Tails."

The Sage of Six Paths spoke with deep concern.

"Although he claimed he could find a way to suppress his mother's will, it was something that even Hamura and I together could hardly contend with."

“Once the Ten-Tails is fully revived, the mother’s will will awaken. At that time, the boy will be devoured, and the whole world will face its true end.”

The Sage of Six Paths slowly extended his hands, and two marks, one black and one white, appeared in his palms.

The left hand features a moon symbol representing yin energy, while the right hand features a sun symbol representing yang energy.

"For some special reason, I am unable to directly interfere with the present world."

"Therefore I entrust this power to you."

He looked at Madara and said, "Madara, although you have gone astray, you are also the only Indra reincarnation who can rival Sasuke."