Chapter 269: Konan’s Bag of Rice

Madara reminisced about an old, long-buried memory, muttering to himself.

"The principle behind awakening the Sharingan lies in extreme emotional fluctuations, which stimulate the brain to produce a special kind of chakra. This chakra then acts on the optic nerves, altering the state of the eyes."

"If I remember correctly, those fluctuations originate in the frontal lobe, transmitting to the cortical areas on either side of the calcarine fissure in the occipital lobe..."

Back in the day, the Uchiha clan had conducted extensive research on the mechanism of eye awakening in preparation for war.

The clan's leaders had envisioned a future where every Uchiha member could awaken their Sharingan.

If that dream became reality, the Uchiha would be invincible, unstoppable by any force.

However, that grand vision remained just that—a vision.

Because the human brain was simply too fragile.

Pushing it too far could easily lead to self-destruction.

After sacrificing over a hundred test subjects, the experiment was forcibly shut down and classified as top-secret.

But now, Madara was ready to test it on himself, using a shortcut to awaken his eyes!

"My chakra control is precise down to the finest detail, and my body has long surpassed human limits..."

"On top of that, I have Yin-Yang Release to safeguard myself. There shouldn't be any issues."

Madara, fearless as always, had no intention of backing down.

(Tch, what a joke. I'm Madara. Of course, I'm not scared.)

He carefully manipulated his chakra, threading it into the network of blood vessels in his brain. Then, without hesitation, he stabbed straight into his frontal lobe.

"Pfft."

In the next moment, a surge of peculiar chakra spilled from his frontal lobe.

It traveled along his optic nerves, rushing toward his right eye.

"It's working."

A smirk tugged at Madara's lips.

His dark eyes were tainted with a crimson hue, and with the familiar activation sound, a single tomoe emerged.

"Again!"

He increased the thickness of the chakra strands in his brain and struck his frontal lobe once more.

"Ding!"

With another activation sound, the second tomoe appeared!

Then came the third!

Within just a few breaths, Madara had transformed his previously unremarkable right eye into a fully developed three-tomoe Sharingan!

He had effortlessly accomplished what most Uchiha spent their entire lives chasing after.

And yet—

Madara didn't feel satisfied.

Instead, his brows furrowed deeply.

"This is my limit. My chakra pathways are already overloaded just from reaching three tomoe..."

"But this level of chakra stimulation isn't nearly enough to awaken the Mangekyō Sharingan."

Soon, however, his expression relaxed.

"Hah. If this method won't work, then I'll just try something else."

[Let me think... Got it!]

Why not use the power of the Ten-Tails to weave a completely realistic illusion?

He could alter his consciousness, modify his perception, and temporarily erase his memories leading up to that event...

Then, by reliving that moment as his past self, he would once again face his most desperate, agonizing experience!

"As long as I pre-set the technique and suppress the Ten-Tails' power before activation, this should work..."

Madara muttered under his breath, his eyes gleaming with eager anticipation.

(Everyone else is cheating. Why should I play fair? I'm Madara! Time to cheat my way to the top!)

...

Inside Konan's house.

Yahiko gawked at Nagato in shock.

"What?! Obito is about to become Hokage?!"

Nagato, exasperated, shoved Yahiko's face away.

"If you have something to say, say it to him, not me. Why are you looking at me like that?"

Yahiko scratched his head and let out a hearty laugh.

"Can you blame me? Those eyes of yours always grab my attention."

"Yahiko!!"

Nagato raised a hand and yanked him toward himself with Banshō Ten'in, messing up Yahiko's hair into a spiky disaster.

"Nagato!!"

Not one to be outdone, Yahiko roared back, opening his mouth and unleashing a Water Release: Wild Water Wave, splashing Nagato's face completely.

"Yahiko!"

"Nagato!"

Konan rolled her eyes and unceremoniously shoved the two aside.

Turning to Obito, she sighed.

"Obito, you spend every day with these two fools. Can you even begin to imagine my suffering?"

Obito nodded solemnly.

"I think I understand. The weight of your bag... I feel it now."

Yahiko and Nagato exchanged glances, both scoffing and turning away.

"Tch."

"Anyway, Obito..."

Konan suddenly remembered something and looked at Obito curiously.

"Didn't you say you had two pieces of good news? What's the other one?"

Yahiko also turned his attention to Obito, while Nagato merely smiled knowingly.

Seeing Konan's eager and nosy expression, Obito decided to just say it outright.

"I'm getting married soon."

Yahiko: !!!

Konan: !!!

(Damn it! Obito got ahead of us!)

That was the shared thought in both their minds.

As they stared at him with envy, jealousy, and resentment, Obito smirked triumphantly.

"... you guys aren't getting any younger. Shouldn't you start thinking about settling down?"

"If this were my village, you'd both be considered old single people by now."

Yahiko stole a quick glance at Konan before straightening up and speaking righteously.

"The world of shinobi is still unstable. How could I have time for romance?"

Konan rolled her eyes so hard she nearly knocked herself over.

"Fine. Stay single, then. Nagato and I will get married first. Right, Nagato?"

Nagato smiled slightly and nodded.

"Indeed, indeed. I don't plan to be as stubborn as Yahiko."

Yahiko immediately lunged at Nagato, locking an arm around his neck and pulling him into a chokehold.

"NAGATO, YOU TRAITOR—!"

Meanwhile, Konan rubbed her hands together, eyes gleaming as she turned back to Obito.

"Obito, since you're here, how about a few rounds tonight?"

Obito hesitated, looking somewhat conflicted.

"The leader of the village, the secretary, and the future Hokage of Konoha... all gathering at night to gamble? That... doesn't seem appropriate, does it?"

For a brief moment, everyone fell silent, lost in nostalgia.

(Yeah... we've all grown up. We can't just goof around like before...)

But then—

A mischievous grin spread across Obito's face.

"Unless... you let me shuffle the deck tonight."

[Otherwise, I'm going back to Konoha to play poker with Rin.]

And just like that, the four of them had a fantastic night together.

...

The Next Day.

Yawning, Obito trudged back to Konoha.

After an all-night battle, even Hashirama cells had their limits.

"If Itachi isn't out on a mission, he should be in the ANBU headquarters around this time..."

With that thought in mind, he headed toward ANBU.

Just as he arrived at the entrance—

A teenage boy stepped out.

He had light gray hair, round glasses, and an air of maturity beyond his years.

Upon seeing Obito, the boy immediately bowed respectfully.

"Obito-senpai, it's an honor to meet you."

(Ah, it's little Jackie Chan...)

As Obito pondered for a moment, the boy remained bent at the waist, not straightening up.

Seeing this, Obito gestured for him to rise, curiosity flashing in his eyes.

"You're Yakushi Kabuto, right? Itachi mentioned you wanted to meet me?"

Kabuto adjusted his glasses and nodded.

"Yes, Obito-senpai."

Obito clicked his tongue, then pointed to a nearby grove.

"No time like the present. Let's have a chat over there."

"To be honest, I'm really curious—why do you hold me in such high regard?"

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Pls Drop some Power Stones

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