Rasa followed behind the sentient piece of shadow as they navigated a maze of subterranean tunnels. The shadow had come for him as soon as Lin Feng had left for the capital of Wind country.

He had no idea where exactly they were since they had come here via a complicated sequence of summoning and reverse summoning seals. For all he knew, they might be under Suna.

No… not there… not with that man in charge. Very little escaped his sensation. It was only when he was away that the shadow, Zetsu it called itself, had contacted him which meant that it too feared his power.

As it should… that man wasn’t human.

He clenched his fist as he tried to drive away the negative thoughts.

The impression Lin Feng had left on him was too deep and had become a shadow on his heart. If he couldn’t overcome this fear, he would never be able to challenge or exceed him… then how would he accomplish his goal of becoming the strongest?

The tunnel widened suddenly into a huge square chamber. At the end, there was a gigantic lotus flower carved out of stone and atop it sat a grotesque humanoid statue.

It looked like the statue hadn’t been carved, rather a tree had naturally grown into that shape. It had ten eyes in two rows of five with the middle one in the bottom row larger than the rest. All of the eyes were shut.

It sat cross legged in a posture of supplication with its palms raised skywards. Shackles bound both its wrists and ankles together and a cylindrical gag closed off its mouth filled with jagged teeth.

A metallic collar with a pendant with the lettering ‘SEAL’ was affixed on its neck.

What was frightening was that even though it was clearly there, to his sensation, there was nothing but a void there… a bottomless abyss that sucked in any chakra he emitted to sense it.

In front of the lotus flower, connected to the statue by multiple pipe like appendages running from his back sat a withered old man. He too had his eyes closed.

Rasa felt an oppressive aura emanating from him even though in his chakra sensation, he was little more than an ordinary old man.

But would an ordinary man be found in such extraordinary circumstances?

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This told him the disparity in their level.

How many monsters and freaks were hidden in this world? And had they all decided to pop up simultaneously?

He felt dejected… his goal seemed further away than ever.

The old man opened his eyes and he involuntarily took a step back.

His eyes were a morbid violet with concentric circles around his pupils.

A dojutsu? None of the ones he had heard of matched with this particular set of eyes. But he could feel a primal oppression from them… it was as if he stood in the presence of his maker.

He shivered… what had he gotten himself into?

“I am Uchiha Madara.”

Four words.

Four shocking words that contained all too much information.

Four words that were enough to convince him that he was either making the biggest mistake in his life or on a fast track to reaching hitherto unimaginable heights.

No one knew what was spoken of in that chamber that day but when he left it, Rasa was a changed man and Madara was no more.

He clenched his fist, feeling the exuberant life force coursing through his veins. Both of his arms had been replaced by ones synthesized from Hashirama’s cells… more plant than human. They were a pasty white, contrasting with his sun and wind burnt skin from his life in the desert.

White vines emerged from his shoulders and crisscrossed over his torso forming a wooden armour and his eyes were violet with concentric circles surrounding his pupils.

Madara had passed on his Rinnegan to him on his deathbed… entrusting him with his final dream of a peaceful world.

Black Zetsu emerged from his shadow and crawled up his leg, merging into his right arm, dyeing it black and making his vine armour turn into a checkerboard of black and white.

It was fitting he supposed, to carry the last fragment of the legendary man’s will along as he went about working to realize his dreams.

A world of peace… a world where everyone could live a life they could only vainly aspire to in reality.

A world where everyone was born equal and where everyone had the power to write their own story.

A World of Infinite Dreams.

And to bring about such a world…

The Eye of the Moon Plan was to be set in motion.

The tailed-beasts had to be collected…

He clenched his fist and a violet wreath of chakra with silvery sparkles surrounded it…

Well, all the tailed-beasts except Chomei, the seven tails.

Madara had already had that one sealed within the Gedo Mazo, the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path.

And now, he had sealed it within himself. With the power of the Rinnegan, he had gained complete control over it by turning it into his Beast Path clone.

The power made him infatuated… what would it be like to have more of them?

Lin Feng had two and he was so strong…

Then, what about when he had six of them, completing his regiment of the six paths?

He couldn’t wait.

Black and white vines rose up from his armour, forming a closed helm that only displayed his eerie violet eyes.

Mortals were no longer qualified to gaze upon his visage…

He had ascended from their realm of mediocrity…

Now, he was a God.

He would need a new name.

A name signifying what he would bring to the world before he brought it salvation and peace…

Henceforth, he would be…

.

.

Pain.