When all traces of the past were wiped away,
what appeared next felt completely out of place.
Senju Yukika sat calmly beside Madara, poured himself a full glass of sake, and then handed another cup to Madara.
"If you're feeling depressed enough... have a drink."
Naturally, Madara was frustrated.
No—he felt deeply wronged.
How long had he waited for this day?
This was supposed to be the final trade-off.
The Rinnegan.
He had poured immense effort into awakening it... only to find out this kid had it too.
No wonder Yukika said the Infinite Tsukuyomi didn't matter anymore.
People already had the Rinnegan!
He could collect the Tailed Beasts to initiate Infinite Tsukuyomi if he wanted to.
But they just didn't want to.
So what meaning did Madara's dream even hold anymore?
He was stuck.
Nothing compared to Senju Yukika.
Coming face to face today, Madara was shocked.
He even began to question what he'd been doing all these years.
"Your power… where did it come from?"
Taking the offered cup with a sense of grievance, Madara looked up at Yukika's eyes.
Right now, he wasn't thinking about attacking.
Only those whose strength matched his own deserved to speak with him as equals.
"You guess," Yukika replied, blinking playfully.
He wasn't the least bit affected by Madara's heavy presence.
Frustrated? Wronged?
What did that have to do with him?
You ask, and I have to answer?
Like Naruto during the Fourth Great Ninja War—suddenly inflated with confidence after entering Nine-Tails Chakra Mode—thinking he could shoulder everything.
That kind of person is honestly annoying.
Especially when Naruto returned from seeing the Five Kage's casualties and frantically demanded answers about their fate.
It was like a desperate older brother who broke the rules but was powerless to fix anything.
You ask. Do I have to answer?
Yukika shook his head and took a sip of his drink.
Madara could now clearly see the immense gap between them.
But he still wouldn't give up on the Infinite Tsukuyomi.
That dream of peace was the only thing that kept him going.
Everyone from the old era had fallen.
There was nothing left in the world Madara clung to—except the path toward peace.
"So," Yukika said suddenly, after a long silence, "after everything I've said, you still want to cast the Infinite Tsukuyomi?"
"I still believe it's the only way to bring peace to the world."
Madara was a textbook example of someone who never turns back until he hits the wall—hard.
Even at the very end of the original story, he was the only one who never got what he wanted.
Peace?
Hashirama had already proven that founding the Hidden Villages was a mistake.
Even after failing, Madara kept thinking about new paths.
He just ran out of time.
No comforting words for future generations could appease him.
He only ever had Sasuke as a disciple, and that disciple had already bowed to the way of the shinobi.
There would never again be a warrior capable of discovering the true path to peace.
Only those content with the status quo, believing protecting a village was enough.
That was probably Madara's mindset back then.
"Keep trying forever," Madara muttered, eyes narrowing with renewed fighting spirit.
"Even if my strength doesn't match yours right now, I'll still do it."
He said it with conviction, but confusion still flickered in his eyes.
This kid had the Rinnegan.
Even if Madara found a way to resurrect himself with his own eyes, Senju Yukika could do the same.
Plus, he was young.
He could live much longer.
Too many uncertainties.
Even if Yukika summoned the Gedo Statue and used it to wipe out humanity, Madara might not be able to stop him.
The path forward was filled with thorns.
Still, he wanted to continue.
What confused Madara the most was Yukika's attitude.
If Yukika wanted to stop him, why didn't he just kill him now?
What was he planning?
Yukika clearly hadn't extinguished Madara's ambitions.
If anything, he admired Madara's strength.
He even jokingly considered giving Madara the Senju surname.
"Sa—exist for my sake."
"When you fail."
Yukika patted Madara's shoulder, a strange smile curling his lips as he placed a hand on the ground.
Poof!
A puff of smoke exploded—and the upright Nine-Tails and the Two-Tails holding a spicy snack appeared, both looking confused.
Madara was stunned.
"Use them. Just remember to return them when you're done."
Exhaling, Yukika stood up and dusted off his clothes.
Of course, he hadn't died after being struck by the Gedo Statue.
He had long since become accustomed to the comforts of his loyal maid.
No way he'd let her die.
He had many ways of extracting Tailed Beasts while keeping his wood clone alive.
For example, the Book of Reincarnation he stole from Chiyo—just the lowest level of technique.
Yukika's complete Asura chakra gave his wooden puppet immense vitality.
She could survive without issue, even if they were separated for a time.
And Yukika was definitely not going to pull off her Two-Tails.
Why?
Because natural, unfiltered cat ears only reached their full potential through the Two-Tails jinchūriki.
After saying all this, Yukika calmly turned and left.