This storm of controversy was, for the time being, brought to a close.
On the surface, the incident was officially attributed to covert meddling by the Kumo-nin. The Third Hokage dispatched envoys to Kumogakure to formally question the Fourth Raikage on whether the Kumo intended to provoke yet another Great Ninja War. Admittedly, there was no small amount of intimidation baked into that statement.
But if it really came to blows—
The Third Hokage truly was not afraid.
In the original course of history, Kumogakure had dared to turn the tables and extort Konoha after their failed attempt to abduct the Hyūga clan's heiress, Hyūga Hinata. They demanded that Konoha hand over Hyūga Hiashi, claiming he had killed a Kumo envoy, and even succeeded in forcing the Third Hokage to back down, ultimately sacrificing Hiashi's younger brother, Hyūga Hizashi.
The root cause of that humiliation lay here:
Konoha had just suffered the Nine-Tails calamity. The Fourth Hokage was dead. Orochimaru, one of the Sannin, had defected. Tsunade was crippled by hemophobia and unable to fight. Jiraiya was the only one left, yet he was wandering the world due to the Great Toad Sage's prophecy from Mount Myōboku. The Nine-Tails' jinchūriki was still nothing more than a child.
The Uchiha clan, too, had become deeply estranged from the village because of the Nine-Tails incident.
It could be said that Konoha's combat strength at the time was dangerously hollow, held together only by a group of aging veterans like the Third Hokage, while simultaneously burdened by the Uchiha clan as an internal instability that could erupt at any moment.
By comparison,
The Fourth Raikage of Kumogakure was in his prime, and both the Two-Tails and Eight-Tails jinchūriki were at the height of their fighting capability.
If war had broken out with Kumogakure then…
Konoha's odds of victory would have been slim indeed.
Thus,
Lowering their head in the face of Kumo's extortion had been a choice dictated by circumstance.
But now, things were different.
Konoha had just emerged victorious from the Third Great Ninja War. Although widespread war-weariness among the populace made it politically difficult to initiate another conflict, that did not mean Konoha could no longer fight. Tsunade might be sidelined by hemophobia, but Orochimaru and Jiraiya were both fully capable of taking the field at any moment.
Beyond that,
There was Minato, a dazzling new star.
And the Nine-Tails' jinchūriki was currently in peak condition.
So now,
The Third Hokage genuinely was not afraid that an overly arrogant attitude from the envoys might spark a war with Kumogakure. At worst, they would simply fight another one and properly teach those barbarians from Kumogakure a lesson in how to conduct themselves.
What was more,
This time, Kumogakure had not only provoked Konoha.
Kirigakure had been played viciously as well.
Mizushiro, one of the newly selected Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, had turned out to be a Kumo spy!
That was a resounding slap across Kirigakure's face.
If the Kumo really dared to bare its fangs at Konoha, then they could simply join forces with the Kiri and give Kumogakure a thorough beating.
---
Deep underground in a forest in the northeastern reaches of the Land of Fire.
Uchiha Hatoha returned to the subterranean base where he had stayed for several months. Carrying with him a chill and bitter cold, he followed Asu's guidance and barged straight into the vast, empty chamber where Uchiha Madara resided.
There, he saw the old man seated upon a stone chair, a figure who gave the unmistakable impression that his life was nearing its end.
"...Madara,"
Hatoha spoke without the slightest hesitation as he stopped before the stone chair, staring directly at the old man.
"You say you want to change this world that's overflowing with despair. How, exactly, are you going to do it?"
"What happened?"
Uchiha Madara lifted his head, looking at the young man seething with hostility before him.
"Didn't you go with Asu to rescue your younger brother?"
"Spare me the nonsense. Tell me—how exactly do you plan to change this world? You saved me because you wanted me to be your pawn, didn't you? Fine. I can tell you clearly right now: being your pawn is no problem at all. As long as it can destroy this utterly rotten, despair-filled world… forget being your pawn. Even if you want me to die, I won't hesitate for a second!"
Uchiha Hatoha roared hoarsely, his voice shaking with fury.
"...I'm sorry,"
Uchiha Madara said softly.
"I told you not to feed me that fake, hypocritical garbage! Do you even know Tsuruha? What are you apologizing for? Don't put on that disgusting act in front of me!"
Hatoha grew ever more enraged, screaming at the old man before him.
"We are all Uchiha!"
Uchiha Madara suddenly raised his head, glaring fiercely at Hatoha.
"Just like you, brat—you, me, and your brother, we are all Uchiha! Is there anything wrong with feeling sorrow when you hear that a younger clansman has died? And do you really think you're the only one who has a brother? The only one who's experienced the pain of losing someone close to them?"
From that withered, mummy-like body burst forth an overwhelming force.
A lion-like roar echoed through the vast chamber.
For a moment,
Hatoha was completely stunned. He stared blankly at the enraged Madara, and the fire raging in his chest gradually died down on its own.
"...I'm sorry. I… let my grief get the better of me."
After a long silence,
Hatoha lowered his head.
"I understand your sorrow and your anger," Uchiha Madara said, looking at the bowed young man as his voice returned to its hoarse, low timbre. "Because I've been through the same thing. To be precise, the despair I've experienced time and time again surpasses yours."
Hatoha's lips twitched as if he wanted to argue back.
But then he remembered that the man before him claimed to be Uchiha Madara.
If that were true…
Then compared to this old man, his own experiences really did amount to very little.
"Please tell me,"
Hatoha suppressed all stray thoughts and asked sincerely,
"What must be done to change this rotten world?"
He knew that the old man before him might not harbor any goodwill toward him, even if he seemed like a man of genuine emotion. Anything was possible, after all. But Hatoha didn't care what sinister intentions or conspiracies this self-proclaimed Uchiha Madara might have.
Just as he had said before,
As long as this utterly rotten old world could be destroyed—
He didn't care whether he himself was merely a pawn to be discarded once used.
"Have you ever been to the secret chamber beneath the Naka Shrine?" Uchiha Madara began slowly. "There is a stone tablet passed down through generations of our Uchiha clan. Upon it is recorded…"
And so, step by step, he recounted to Hatoha the origins and formulation of the Eye of the Moon Plan.
"Infinite Tsukuyomi… eternal peace within an illusion?"
After listening to Madara's explanation,
Hatoha narrowed his eyes.
To be honest,
He didn't think this plan was particularly impressive.
Peace within an illusion felt far too ethereal and fragile to him, like a soap bubble—beautiful to look at, yet liable to burst at the slightest touch. But then again… what he sought was not to create some wondrous new world, but simply to destroy this unbearably rotten old one.
And so,
The Eye of the Moon Plan was quite good.
After all, the prerequisite for creating a new world is the destruction of the old one.