Family !

— "Hello, child," said an elderly voice.

Madara instantly opened his eyes upon hearing the voice. He had not heard this person, let alone perceived this being. Therefore, he could only be a dangerous person. No one in the world was capable of approaching him in this way without him realising it. And yet... in front of him, less than two meters away, was this individual looking at him.

It only took Madara a moment to realize that the being in front of him was extremely powerful, surely more powerful than himself. He wore a white kimono with Magatama around his neck, evoking the tomoes of his Sharingan. In his right hand he held a uniquely shaped staff and six black balls floated behind him. But what impressed Madara the most was the man's eyes : Rinnegan !

The Rinnegan was a legend that hardly anyone had heard of, and more importantly, no one could testify to it in his lifetime. Madara had been able to learn a little about it when he used his Mangekyo Sharingan to decipher the Uchiha clan's plates. But without this ability, he would have been like the vast majority : ignorant of the existence of this type of eye power.

And this man in front of him had two Rinnegan staring at him.

— "Who are you ?" Madara asked as he stood up in an instant, ready to fight for his life.

Yet the man gave off no chakra, no particular intent, much less murderous intent. But his sixth sense told him that he was far more powerful than his long time rival : Hashirama Senju.

— "I have been given many names, many of which have been forgotten... even dismissed as myth and legend," the old man began cryptically.

— "Get to the point, ancestor," Madara added, almost activating his own Dôjutsu.

— "I am known as the Hermit of the Six Paths, or the Sage of the Six Paths, or the Rikudô Sennin," the old man replied as Madara's eyes widened in realization of who was before him. "But I was named Hagoromo Ôtsutsuki."

Time seemed to stand still for Madara, he stared the hermit in the eyes and there was no doubt that he was telling the truth : he was who he said he was. He remembered the stories he had been told as a child, the legend of a being who created the world in his own image, shaped the moon with his own thought, ruled the human race for his entire life before disappearing.

— "Impossible...," Madara whispered in shock.

— "Nothing is impossible, my child," said the old hermit, who saw in Madara a reflection of his former son, Indra Ôtsutsuki.

— "Why do you call me my child ?" Madara asked, not knowing what this being was doing here.

— "Because all humans are in some way my children... but you more than the others Madara," the old hermit answered with a very thin smile.

— "What do you mean ?"

Nevertheless, the old man did not answer. At least not right away, he seemed to be thinking about what his next words would be.

— "Don't blame Sakura," Hagoromo finally said after a moment of silence. "I know you feel betrayed for what she did, but don't hold it against her."

— "It's you isn't it !" Madara thought as he heard this request. If he was asking her that then she had been sent by this being. "Why did you send her to manipulate me !? What do you want from me !?"

Madara was frankly getting annoyed, he was tired of being in the dark, of being in the unknown and especially of being manipulated by so many people. He was used to being in control, not the other way around.

— "I sent her into the past to guide you my child, not to manipulate you. And what I desire is the same as what you desire most within yourself : peace," the old hermit explained before pausing for a moment and looking up at the blue sky. Then he returned his eyes to the Uchiha who was tense at the words of the enigmatic individual in front of him. Hagoromo then added : "True peace... where the cycle of hatred will finally disappear from this world."

— "How do you know she did it for that purpose ?" Madara asked suspiciously.

— "I am rarely wrong in my choices my child, and while Sakura may have hated you at first, what she just confessed to you is something that is sincere," the hermit reassured. "Just as she wishes to bring peace, now she wishes to bring it by being by your side and not by guiding you."

— "So I was not mistaken about her feelings towards me when she saved me from certain death. But then : what are the reasons for her hatred towards me ?" Asked the dark-haired man, wanting to understand how the young woman could have gone from hatred to other equally opposite feelings.

— "Only she can answer you, my child," he replied calmly, leaving Madara without answers once again. Madara was not discouraged and continued to question himself after this individual's first explanation.

— "In that case, why her ? Why me ?"

— "Come with me," the hermit said, turning his back on the Uchiha and walking slowly across the meadow. It would have been a perfect opportunity to stab him in the back, but Madara didn't do it. Besides, as strange as it may seem, he began to follow this being who was compared to a God. "Ever since the world began, war and the cycle of hatred have been ever present. For as long as human beings have existed, war and violence have existed. Then one day, a person ate a fruit that gave him the powers of a God. That person was none other than my mother."

— "Your mother ?" Madara repeated incredulously, stepping over a root in his path.

— "I will not speak her name... but with her powers she did set up a kingdom where all living beings lived in peace. However, circumstances made my brother and I depose her and I was the one who ruled this land. Except I didn't have her omnipotence," the Rikudô explained, leaving out a lot of information that Madara didn't need to know : for his own safety and for the future of the world. "I had two sons, Indra and Asura. One inherited the Sharingan and the other my physical power. They were two opposites, one believed that peace would be achieved through love and the other through strength.

As he finished this tirade, the Rikudô turned his face slightly towards Madara.

— "I feel like you're describing Hashirama and myself," the Uchiha couldn't help but say as he looked at the Rinnegan man.

— "That's about right," the old hermit admitted before walking around a huge oak tree. "When my sons were old enough to succeed me, and mine no longer allowed me to carry the burden, I gave the responsibility to Asura. Unfortunately, there followed a war between my two sons for power. One became the leader of the Uchiha clan and the other of the Senju clan."

Madara now knew the origin of this endless war between his clan and the Senju clan, it was probably centuries in the past.

— "By some chance that I cannot explain myself, the essence of my two children are always reincarnated to war and perpetuate the cycle of hatred, but with the intention of bringing peace," the hermit continued before being interrupted.

— "Are Hashirama and I the reincarnations of your two sons ?" Madara asked intuitively.

This made the hermit smile as he recognized his eldest son's intelligence and quick thinking through Madara.

— "Exactly, and before Sakura went back in time to change things, it was once again the reincarnation of Asura that won... and in the future, my sons will be reincarnated once again to perpetuate the cycle of hatred... over and over again," the old hermit said wearily.

— "If you sent Sakura back into the past, it was to stop the cycle of hatred... but what's the point ? You yourself say we're doomed to kill each other over and over again until the end of time," Madara asked and stopped walking. They had just reached another clearing on the edge of the mountain. The horizon was most magnificent and lost in an infinity of white snow.

— "The child of prophecy was designated three times in the reincarnation of my son Asura and not once in that of my son Indra. As the world teeters on the brink of destruction in Sakura's time, I think perhaps this child of prophecy resides in you, my child," Hagoromo explained, staring into Madara's eyes.

After all, for all these centuries, the world had been ruled only by war because the world had always been too soft. No one had really had the guts to impose a lasting peace.

— "Why didn't you intervene in our fight between Hashirama and myself, then ? If you are able to defy the notions of time, why not use that power to impose your peace ? Our peace ?" Madara asked.

— "Because I'm just an arbiter, I won't participate anymore, I've lived my life and it's not my place to tell the world what to do," the hermit explained, looking at the horizon.

— "You are a bit hypocritical in what you say, old man. You say you don't want to tell the world what to do, but you influence the world in the direction that suits you," the dark-haired man remarked sarcastically.

— "Seeing several centuries of war, death and cycles of hatred make you realise that you are never better served than by yourself... so what's wrong with blowing an idea here and there ?" Asked the Rikudô Sennin.

— "Hn !" Madara could not help but say, understanding the old man's point of view. There was no harm in guiding someone if it was for their own good. The world needed to be shown the way, a child needed guidance, a shinobi needed to be led. In conclusion, everyone needs to be shown the way on the path of life.

— "Usually I don't interfere, but today was an exception to the rule, just like when I made Sakura sacrifice her entire world for a chance to bring peace," the Rikudô continued, trying to soften Madara's heart. He wanted him to understand that this young woman had made the decision to never see her loved ones again, her entire world and her time for a small chance to succeed. "But today, I did it for a completely different reason my child..."

— "What was that ?" Madara asked with her arms crossed.

— "Let's just say that some people... particularly wanted to talk to you," the old man explained with an enigmatic smile as three small voices shouted from the forest.

— "Oni-san !"

Those voices ! No way ! He couldn't believe it, so much so that his heart missed a beat as he immediately turned his head towards them. It was absolutely impossible and yet everything was right in front of him. Madara wondered for a moment if he was in an illusion, but a burst of chakra in his brain confirmed that what he was seeing was indeed there.

Three little brunettes in their nine or ten year olds were running towards him with smiles on their faces, while a little further away his brother Izuna was approaching, followed by his mother Yumi Uchiha and his father Tajima Uchiha. Seeing the six of them again had the same effect as the pain he felt the day he unlocked his Mangekyo Sharingan. Seeing them in front of him, he felt distraught as he realized that he was indeed alone in his life. And that this state had lasted for far too long.

There was so much he wanted to tell them before they died, so much he wanted to hear from them. But his thoughts were cut off when he felt three pairs of arms around his legs and waist : his brothers were holding him tightly.

Madara was slightly speechless and at the same time transfixed by what he was seeing. The emotion was intense and he had to fight to contain his tears. Then a small smile appeared on his lips. Not the usual smile, a smile he'd hardly ever had in his life, the kind you reserve for your immediate family.

Madara placed his hands on his brothers' hair. They were real, though he knew that was physically impossible. But in this moment, the important thing was that they were indeed in front of him.

— "We missed you Oni-san !" Exclaimed one of the three who had his head buried in Madara's clothes.

— "You too," Madara couldn't help but say, realizing that he was enjoying this hug from his younger brothers very much. When he was younger, he remembered that he had never really had the opportunity to hug them like this, except for Izuna. Indeed, that was the time when he had little time for such things : everything was training and war. Love had no place in this environment.

— "Say Oni-san... when are you coming home with us ?" Another child asked with a small look on his face.

It was a most innocent question and Madara felt his heart clench as he heard it, forcing him to wonder if after life the spirit stopped growing or if it remained as it was when he died. Going home ? The Uchiha knew what this place meant, but his time had not yet come to join his younger brothers. He still had so much to do in this world.

— "When I finish what I have to do," Madara replied, thinking of his main goal : peace !

— "When is that ?" The young boy continued before being interrupted by another family member.

— "Come on boys, give our brother some air," said Izuna who was now facing his older brother. The three little boys let go of Madara before returning to their mother and father.

The two shinobi virtuosos looked at each other for a long time, neither one knowing what to say. On the one hand, there was nothing to say and at the same time so much to talk about. Then, after this suspended time, the most natural action to take came : the two brothers embraced each other in a brotherly hug ! And in this embrace there was love, longing, regret, sorrow and pain.

— "Don't regret my death brother !" Izuna said after a moment.

He did not need to hear his elder say a word against him. They were brothers, they had been very close, so Izuna knew exactly what was bothering Madara. He couldn't help but regret not being able to save him from death. Just like he regretted not being able to save his mother or make his father proud.

— "I wish you were here," Madara replied, breaking away from the embrace.

Izuna placed her hand on her brother's shoulder with a big smile.

— "I know brother... but one of us has to look out for Mother," Izuna reassured him humorously. He had always been like this with Madara, doing everything to make him smile and reassure him that everything would be alright.

— "Hai, you always knew how to take care of Mother," Madara admitted, regretting that he hadn't had the opportunity to have more of those moments with his mother.

— "Don't worry brother, she's proud of you," Izuna reassured him before his face slowly became more serious. It was rare to see this man with this expression on his face when he was just with his family.

— "Brother ?" Madara asked, she could tell Izuna had something on her mind.

— "Just a favor brother," Izuna finally said as she looked into his elder's eyes.

— "Do it," Madara replied, willing to do anything to fulfill his brother's last wish.

— "Tobirama..."

At the mention of this simple name, Madara's eyes immediately narrowed. He understood by this simple name what his brother was asking of him. No need for more words : Madara was sure of himself. He had wanted to do this for so long that he would take great joy in gutting his brother Izuna's murderer.

— "It will be done !" Madara replied, receiving a nod from his brother before he took one step back... and then two to make way for a beautiful woman in her forties : his mother.

What to do ? What to say ? Madara had no idea. After all, he hadn't been trained in how to deal with her feelings. Luckily she made the first move and hugged him with the love of a mother for her son.

There were no words, no specific gestures... just an embrace between a mother and son during which everything was passed from one to the other. Comfort, support, protection, gratitude and above all love. Both had their eyes closed : they were enjoying the moment. Had he been a teenager, Madara would have loathed this embrace... but he was now almost thirty and he finally understood the meaning and importance of such an act.

He felt so much love in this gesture that it was disturbing. He realized that no matter what children might do in their lives, mothers would always love them with the unique love that binds a mother to her child.

Yumi pulled away slightly from her son who was now a man before looking into his eyes. She had a radiant smile and tears in her eyes. She placed her hand on her son's cheek.

— "You've grown into a beautiful man, Madara," Yumi whispered to his son as she detailed Madara's face from every angle. After all, she had died when he was in his late teens and hadn't been able to enjoy watching her son grow into a man.

Madara placed his own hand on his mother's which was resting on his cheek and he enjoyed the touch.

— "I'm sorry mother," Madara apologized, still regretting his mother's death.

— "I told you before, Madara, never regret anything," Yumi said with a smile still on her face. "Don't regret the dead... rather pity the living who have to live in this world filled with hate."

— "I know, mother..."

— "And Madara... I want you to know that I'm extremely proud of the man you've become," the brunette began, stroking her son's cheek with her thumb. "And I know that you are in good hands."

— "How so ?" Madara asked, not seeing what his mother was getting at.

— "Sakura... you have my approval, she's a wonderful woman and I know she'll make a perfect wife for you son," Yumi explained with a bright smile as she took both of her son's hands in hers. "My role as a mother is now complete... my son has found a woman he loves and I know she will make you happy."

Madara didn't know how to respond to his mother's admission. A woman he loved ? He was still too torn by the feeling of betrayal in his heart. She had dared to lie to him with impunity for almost eight months, and he couldn't ignore that so easily. And this despite the new elements in his possession about Sakura's previous actions against him.

But on the other hand, Madara had to admit that if the matriarch of the Uchiha clan gave her blessing it meant a lot, especially in the Sengoku era. Such maternal approval was priceless when it came to a wife. However, the dark-haired man didn't answer anything and enjoyed seeing his mother so happy.

After a moment, he felt his mother put something in the palm of his hand. Madara then looked down at the object and it made him slowly open his mouth and widen his eyes. What his mother was giving him was not only of great sentimental value but also traditional.

— "Mother... are you sure ?" Madara asked as his gaze shifted from his mother to the object in his hand.

— "I've never been more serious, son," Yumi replied as she closed the dark-haired man's hand, her wedding ring in it.

Indeed, it was a tradition in the Uchiha family for the matriarch to give her son her wedding ring when he found his future wife : the one who would in turn take on the role and responsibilities that came with that position.

The woman stood on her tiptoes to place a soft kiss on her child's cheek one last time.

— "I love you Madara," Yumi said before stepping back slowly.

— "I love you too mother," Madara whispered as he watched his mother join his brothers as his father walked up.

Seeing the man in front of him his eyes immediately narrowed. He showed an implacable look towards the man who had raised him and made him the man he was today. He knew he was far more powerful than his father, but strangely enough he was apprehensive about what his father would say. Like all children, Madara, despite his adulthood, still cared a great deal about what his parents thought of him and especially how his father felt about him.

Tajima Uchiha stood for a good minute facing his son with a closed face without saying anything. He seemed to be putting him to the test one last time, even though everything was already clear to him. The former clan leader held out his right arm towards Madara, his hand open as he looked on in surprise. This simple gesture meant so much, especially to Madara. Never had his father shown pride in his children, never had he complimented them. So to see his father extend his hand as an equal disturbed the older boy.

However, Madara in turn reached out to shake his father's hand. Their handshake was brief but firm, neither too muscular nor too soft. Through this gesture alone many silent things were exchanged between the two men.

— "I am proud of you my son," Tajima finally said and nothing more was needed for this man. With this sentence he had just done his best. Indeed, for a man of his ilk, showing his feelings was forbidden, so telling his son that he was proud of him was a huge speech.

Hearing this one sentence from his father made Madara feel extremely good inside : he had his brother's forgiveness, his mother's approval, and his father's pride.

Tajima let go of his hand before stepping back to return to his family. The time for this meeting had come to an end as the members of the Uchiha clan slowly began to disappear. The three little brown boys waved, her brother and mother smiled delicately, and her father nodded approvingly. Then his family disappeared in the wind...

Madara remained in this position for quite some time, looking out into the forest at the spot where his family had been just moments before. Had all this really happened or was it a trick of the Rikudô Sennin ?

— "Was it real ?" Madara asked uncertainly, though his heart was relieved by this exchange.

— "Who knows."

Normally one could not bring the dead back to life, but life had taught him that nothing was impossible. Sakura's time travel, the existence of the Rinnegan, the presence of the Rikudô Sennin, what was bringing the dead back to life compared to all that ? Besides, hadn't Tobirama himself developed a resurrection technique ? The Edo Tensei had indeed been created by that scum Senju. But today, this family meeting was nothing like that Jutsu. For Madara had some sort of proof that his family had been present before him : his mother's ring was still in the palm of his hand. The existence of this object alone proved that Madara had not been dreaming and that he had not been subjected to any illusion technique.

— "You explained why me... but I'd like to know why Sakura ?" Madara asked again, turning to the hermit.

— "Have you ever met anyone like Sakura in your life, child ?" Rikudô asked with a small smile.

The sage already knew the answer without the Uchiha having to answer. Indeed, Madara had to admit that he had never met a woman like that in his life.

— "No..."

— "Sakura is the most powerful and capable woman of her time. Just as you are the reincarnation of my son Indra, Sakura is one of the few people who can claim to come close to the power of my sons since the world began," Hagoromo confessed without going into detail. It wasn't his place to reveal the young woman's secrets after all.

Madara could only admit this truth : from what little he had seen of the young woman, she was an extraordinary woman in the field of shinobi arts.

— "I understand..."

— "And don't forget my child, behind every great man, there is a woman as competent as him, if not more. She often remains in the shadows, but sometimes she steps forward to the man's side when he loves her enough to let her be his equal," the Rikudô added, looking Madara in the eye. "Like my son Asura, I love my son Indra, and he unfortunately did not have the chance to discover what love was..."

— "Was this all premeditated ?" Madara questioned, still resenting the idea of being manipulated like a puppet and led in someone else's direction.

— "Interpret it the way you mean it, child," the hermit said before stepping towards the dark-haired man. "Hold out your right hand palm upwards please."

The clan leader who, even though he was suspicious of this individual, could not help but do as he was asked. He held out his right hand palm upwards before the Rikudô put his own hand on it palm against palm. The latter closed his eyes for a few seconds before finally opening them again.

He withdrew his hand and in Madara's palm was now a Fûinjutsu seal glowing slightly blue before turning completely black.

— "What did you do to me ?" Madara asked, even with his Sharingan activated he couldn't make out the seal on his hand.

— "What you and Sakura hope to accomplish is no small matter," the Rikudô began before turning around and heading into the forest slowly. "Let's just say that this seal will only activate under certain conditions."

Then the creator of the world slowly began to disappear in the same manner as the dark-haired man's parents had a few minutes before, leaving the Uchiha alone behind.

— "Oh, one more thing," the Rikudô added, raising his right hand and turning around in profile.

— "Yes ?"

— "Tell Sakura this : The celestial path of the six paths will open up thanks to the symbiosis of the two."

After this enigmatic sentence, the Rikudô disappeared in a breeze, leaving the leader of the Uchiha clan alone in his thoughts.

He finally had the answers to his questions. He was no longer completely in the dark : he now knew what the world expected of him. He didn't like the idea of having been manipulated like this, but he was willing to do anything to obtain this peace, it was ingrained in him! He then channeled chakra into his legs to return to the one who had changed his life : Sakura.

He jumped from tree to tree thinking about everything he had just experienced while clutching that ring in his left hand. After a few minutes he arrived back in front of the house. He could hear light sobbing coming from inside the house.

He walked with a sure step towards the window door which had been completely blown out by him. There were shards of glass all over the floor and every step he took made a cracking sound which stopped the sobbing. Entering through the door he found a standing Sakura with a kunai in one hand and a picture frame in the other. Her eyes were reddened and her cheeks were covered in tears. She seemed surprised to see him standing there.

Sure, she was surprised, but at the same time she was worried about what he would do with her. Would he try to kill her for daring to manipulate and lie to him ? That's why she didn't let her guard down with the kunai : ready to fight for her life if it came to that.

Madara continued to walk slowly towards Sakura, still thinking about his mother's words that went round and round in his mind. He had his mother's approval...

He stopped just in front of the young woman, his gaze locked before he reached out for her kunai. She made no move, allowing him to gently grasp the weapon before dropping it to the ground. Once this was done, he looked into the eyes of the young woman with pink hair.

No words were spoken.

Only their respective breaths could be slightly perceived. They stared at each other without moving any of their muscles. Then, after an eternity for Sakura, Madara took the first step and took her in his arms. He cradled Sakura's head against his chest before hugging her lovingly : he loved this woman.