591. Lost Memories
Blood splatters from Madara's back.
Bleugh…
Madara coughs out a mouthful of blood from the lethal damage to his heart. The black blade pierces through his heart. Black veins extend from the blade and spreads across his heart, negating his regeneration. The Rinne-Sharingan on his forehead flickers rapidly.
Swoosh…
The space in front of Madara distorts to reveal Izuna. Izuna is holding the hilt of the black blade while the tip is plunged into Madara's heart.
Shua…
A hexagonal eye opens on the hilt of the blade. Several sealing Fuinjutsu runes crawl out of the blade and slowly seal Madara's chakra.
"I… I can't move!"
Madara attempt to infuse chakra, but it dissipates upon contact with the strange sealing runes.
Swish… swish…
Izuna makes a series of strange one-hand signs.
'Om Mani Padme Hum,'
'Om Ami Dewa Hrih,'
'Om Muni Muni Mahamuni Shakyamuniye Svaha Om,'
…. ….
…. ….
…. ….
He chants a long Sanskrit Buddhist incantation.
"Mafuba: All Evil Sealing Technique,"
The Sanskrit letters turn into strange sealing curses and brandish themselves on Madara's body.
Izuna continues to make the strange seals while chanting the Sanskrit shlokas.
'This technique would be much easier if I had my Reigan. Too bad… I can only cast it manually.'
He pushes the blade deeper into Madara's body.
'The black dagger in his hand, Kogarasumaru is a very powerful sealing artifact of the Tentai Yōkai clan modeled after the traits of the Sin Eyes. If Lord Ōkuninushi learns about the heist of his treasure vault, he will skin me alive and make me into a toilet roll!'
Just this thought alone sends a shiver down his spine.
'I can't move!' Madara's eyes flicker rapidly, however, his body is unable to act.
'Black Zetsu, help me!' Madara sends a telepathic message to Zetsu.
Izuna's eyes narrow as he senses the frantic emotions of the Black Zetsu. He has long noticed the modifications of Madara's body by Zetsu.
'Initially, I was planning to let Zetsu summon Kaguya. However, the palpitation in my heart grew stronger as the time passed by.'
Izuna thrusts the blade deeper while infusing his energy into it. The blade glows with a brilliant blue light and hastens the sealing process.
'I have managed to survive so long, thanks to my instincts. This time is no different! So, I will seal Grandpa for good. However, parting on such terms will leave a bitter taste in my mouth. I have to at least reveal my lineage and fulfill Grandma's last wish.'
"Didn't you ask me before, who am I exactly?"
Izuna removes his cloak and cancels the concealment blurring his features. He raises his head and glances into Madara's eyes.
"This face!"
Suddenly, a distant face from past flash past Madara's mind. The face overlaps with Izuna.
"I-Izuna!" Madara slowly mumbles. A drop of tear leaks from his right eye.
"Yes, I am Izuna Uchiha! The son of Akira and Aiko Uchiha and the grandson of Kasumi Uchiha and…"
Izuna pauses and glances at Madara to see his facial expression.
Disbelief appears on Madara's former cold and aloof face.
"K-Kasumi!?" For the first time, Madara stutters as he recalls the meaning of that name.
Some distant memories that were buried deep within his mind's surface. The figure of a fair-skinned woman with long, straight black hair and black eyes appears in Madara's mind.
Madara's face trembles.
"Impossible! That's impossible!" He gathers enough strength to scream these words.
"…and Madara Uchiha!" Izuna completes the sentence.
"Yes, I am your grandson, grandfather!"
Izuna glances deep into Madara's eyes with sadness.
He had long-awaited for his reunion with this legendary grandfather of his. However, he didn't expect their reunion to end up in their farewell!
"That's impossible!" Even Black Zetsu, who was silent the entire time, shrieks in disbelief.
"No, it's not impossible! I am the living proof of grandfather's bloodline."
Izuna pricks his finger and draws out a drop of blood.
Swish… swish…
He makes a series of hand signs and uses the Uzumaki clan's blood inheritance technique, which is also the shinobi version of the DNA test in front of the group.
Madara and Zetsu easily recognized the technique, since it was quite famous during the Warring Era.
Thump…
Madara feels a strong sense of resonance with the blood as soon as Izuna finishes the techniques.
"How is this possible? Kasumi… she… she…"
Madara's clenched fists loosen up and a hollow, defeated expression appears on his face.
All of his long-dead emotions suddenly surface and another drop of blood tear trickles down from his left eye.
'My heart died the day Kasumi left me! All that was left was a…'
Tears overflows from Madara's eyes.
"As further proof…"
Izuna takes out a piece of a white torn scarf. There is a red bloodstain on the scarf. The scarf floats in front of Madara, held by Izuna's chakra.
Madara amasses his remaining strength and extends his fingers to touch the scarf.
WHAM…
Suddenly, a wave of chakra triggers from the bloodstain on the scarf. A five-petal Sakura blossom pattern, Mangekyo Sharingan, manifest from the blood. Madara subconsciously raises his defense for a potential attack. However, a gentle voice soothes him down.
"DEAR!"
Madara lowers his guard and lets the genjutsu trap him.
A woman in a traditional kimono with Sakura petal embroidery and a real five petal Sakura as an ornament in her hairs is standing with her back on his side. She holds a blue Uchiwa fan with Sakura petal design in her right hand and a bag of Sakura mochi in her other hand.
"Where am I?"
Madara glances at his surroundings.
Several Sakura blossoms blooms around him, reminding him of his first encounter with Kasumi in the Valley of Sakura Blossom. Madara lowers his head and notices the change in his attire.
He is wearing a blue, long-sleeved shirt and white pants with a black haori.
"Kasumi!"
He sub-consciously utters this name. The woman turns around to reveal her face.
A fair-skinned woman with long, straight black hairs stands in front of Madara. Her long black hairs parts into bangs and frame her cheeks and black eyes. There is a small beauty mole under her right eye.
Madara extends his fingers to touch her face, but the woman disappears in a plume of pink particles.
"I remember now. Kasumi's father was a part of the Conservative faction that parted from the Uchiha clan after the decision to sign a peace treaty with the Senju clan.
He and a majority of the conservative faction moved to a distant valley in the Land of Flowers. However, a few years later, this faction was attacked by a group of mysterious intruders, and thus his faction requested for our help."
Suddenly, Madara's surrounding changes and the next memory of him fighting a fierce battle appears in his memory.
Swish…
A hidden blade pierces through the thigh of an Uchiha clan member.
"Makoto!" Madara exclaim in agony.
"Madara-sama, please leave me behind. I will be a burden if you carry me along."
Makoto picks a blade and gets ready to confront the enemy.
"Madara-sama, I will help you buy some time to escape!"
"Madara-sama, even if the enemy is close and there is no hope; we can't abandon our friends and allow our enemies to harm our fellow clansman." Kasumi extends her hand and uses a healing technique on Makoto's wound.
Madara also stretches his arm to grab Kasumi's hand, but the hand dissipates into black particles.
"Madara-sama, please save my brother!" A heavily wounded Kasumi pleads to Madara.
Drip… Drip…
Blood trickles from Madara's forehead as he slices the neck of another masked intruder.
"Don't worry, I will save you and your family."
Slash…
A blood flower explodes, changing the scenery.
"Madara-sama, there is no need to carry me alongside you!" A frail voice echoes from Madara's back.
"Didn't you say earlier that I can't leave a fellow clan member behind to survive? Now I am just following those words."
Madara ignores her words and continues to move forward.
"These are… these are my memories!"
Suddenly, Madara remembers his forgotten past.
"But… but… are they really my memories or are they a fabrication?"
Doubts appear in Madara's mind.
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A/N:- I would very much love to know all of your feedback on the chapters so far. Also, I have a few ideas to write a side story of Madara and Kasumi. But I am not sure if people want it or not. I will leave that decision to you all.