Uchiha Madara stood outside the medical tent without moving for a full day and night. He didn't eat. He didn't blink. He just waited, rooted to the mud like a broken statue.
When the flap finally opened, an Uchiha medical-nin stepped out. He froze the moment he saw Madara. The man's eyes were bloodshot, his chakra rippling in unstable waves. He looked like a blade drawn too far, trembling on the edge of snapping.
Madara's voice scraped out, raw.
"How is Izuna?"
The healer hesitated. That alone made Madara's breath hitch, then fracture.
"What happened to Izuna?!"
The medical-nin bowed his head, unable to meet Madara's eyes.
"Izuna-sama's heart was pierced… medical ninjutsu can't repair damage that deep. We… can only prolong his life for a short while."
"Get out."
The words weren't shouted. They were a cold, hollow echo that made every nerve in the healer's body lock. He staggered back and vanished.
Madara stared at the tent. His hand lifted, then dropped.
He was afraid.
Afraid of stepping inside.
Afraid of seeing the end of the brother who had followed him into every battle since childhood.
"Brother… come in."
Izuna's voice floated out, thin but steady.
Madara clenched his fist, pulled the flap aside, and entered.
Inside, Izuna lay surrounded by bottles of medicine and blood-stained bandages. His breathing was shallow, but his eyes were sharp, bright with the stubborn fire that carried the Uchiha name.
Madara's chest tightened painfully.
"Big brother," Izuna whispered, "take me home."
Madara swallowed. "Izuna, save your strength. We'll find a way—"
"When we were kids," Izuna continued, ignoring him, "we dreamed about growing up together… with Father, Mother, our little brother… all of us staying together."
He smiled faintly.
"I know now how childish that was. But if I can't keep that dream… then at least let me see our home one more time."
Madara's vision blurred.
"Izuna… you'll be fine. I'll—"
"Big brother," Izuna said softly, "please."
Silence stretched. Then Madara gathered the medicine bottles, lifted Izuna onto his back, and ran.
They moved across forests and old battlefields. With each passing mile, Izuna's breathing thinned. Yet his eyes only grew brighter, as if burning the last of his life to see the world more clearly.
By the time they reached the Uchiha compound, Izuna's strength was nearly gone.
Madara knelt beside him, unable to speak.
Izuna exhaled shakily.
"Brother… when I'm gone… take my eyes."
Madara stiffened.
"The stone tablets say it," Izuna murmured. "The eyes of a loved one awaken new power. If you take mine… you can protect the clan. You can live on."
Madara shook his head violently.
"No. The healers can—"
"Brother." Izuna's voice didn't rise, but it cut through him all the same.
"Death is normal in this era. If this is all I can do for you now… then let me do it."
Madara bowed his head, trembling.
Izuna waited.
Finally, Madara nodded.
The medical-nin worked quickly, hands steady despite the grief twisting his face. Izuna held on until the moment his eyes were transferred. Only then did his last breath escape him, a small smile resting on his lips.
Madara didn't scream.
He didn't rage.
He simply held his brother's body and cried silently, tears falling onto Izuna's cooling skin.
"I promise you," he whispered, voice cracking. "No matter what happens… I'll live on."
When he looked up again, his Sharingan spun wildly, the three tomoe warping, twisting, merging into the eternal form born from loss and love.
A power beyond Mangekyō awakened in him.
The Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan opened.