"Damn it! They are escaping!" The Uchiha clan members grit their teeth.
"Shall we give a chase?" Ekizo turns to Madara for further instructions.
"There is no need!" Madara shakes his head.
"Let's first head to the branch family headquarters to learn more about the situation. There is more to the matter than we initially thought." Madara shakes his head with some thought.
The group reunites with the members of the reinforcement party. But the reinforcement party maintains a certain distance from Madara. They politely greet him but don't start any further conversation.
Hmm…
Madara has a knowing look on his face, but the expression of other members of the Konoha party turns ugly.
'Damn traitors!' They mumble while looking at the other party with displeasure.
The reinforcement party also shares this sentiment and, for a moment, the atmosphere of the valley turns cold.
Tatsuzo has a stiff expression on his face. He is clueless and helpless to remedy this awkward situation.
Madara ignores their petty behaviour and looks around with a frown. He turns to the Tatsuzo and asks.
"Where is that Kunoichi who helped me earlier?"
"Erm… Madara-sama, are you talking about Lady Kasumi?" An apologetic smile appears on Tatsuzo's face.
"Lady Kasumi was in a hurry. So she left as soon as the enemy retreated. I am very sorry for her behaviour. Please let me apologize on her behalf." Tatsuzo bows his head. A drop of sweat trickles down his forehead. He has yet to recover from the earlier display of power by Madara.
"It's fine!" Madara shakes his head in acknowledgement.
"I just wanted to thank her for timely intervention. But never mind, there will be more opportunities later."
The rest of the group recovers quickly and gathers beside him. There aren't any casualties among the Uchiha group, only some minor injuries.
"What should we do about these bodies?" With the absence of Lady Kasumi, the members of the reinforcement turn to Tatsuzo for further instruction.
"Bring them back and thoroughly search their belongings. Perhaps we might find some clues about their identities!" Tatsuzo instructs his subordinates and turns to Madara to apologize.
"I once again apologize for Lady Kasumi's abrupt action."
"I don't mind such a small matter." Madara shakes his head.
After hearing Tatsuzo's account of Kasumi's personality, Madara's curiosity about Kasumi increases even further.
Even though both of them grew up in the same clan, Madara has no recollection of Kasumi. He spent most of his childhood training and battling in war. Most of his free time would be spent either growing strong, training with his siblings, or bantering with Hashirama.
Madara recounts some memories and shakes his head.
After settling the matter with the rest of the members, Tatsuzo leads Madara and his group towards the nearby village.
"Madara-sama, we will head towards the Valley of Sakura blossom to rest for the night. Tomorrow, we will head towards the branch family settlement. We also have to search for Lady Kasumi. She often has the habit of sneaking out for one reason or another."
Madara glances at the haggard appearance of the surrounding shinobis and nods.
"Very well!"
Soon, the group arrives in the small village. The Uchiha members quickly enter the village and head towards an inn.
After settling down the Konoha group, Tatsuzo quickly heads out to send a messenger eagle to the branch family headquarters.
Meanwhile, Madara and his subordinates head out to the nearby bathhouse to soak themselves and relieve their exhaustion from the long journey.
"It's so relaxing!"
While in the bath, Madara closes his eyes and rejuvenates the exhaustion of his body.
Hmm…
'The chakra signature emitted by those eyes felt familiar, but I don't seem to have a recollection of such a jutsu. There is no doubt those eyes possess a powerful visual prowess, especially the genjutsu and the mental manipulation.'
The image of those large blue eyes with two concentric rings keeps appearing in Madara's mind.
While thinking of this matter, Madara exits the bath and changes his clothes. He wears a blue, long-sleeved shirt and white pants with a black haori.
Madara heads out of the bathhouse and strolls the streets of the small village to freshen up his mind.
'Such a lively scene!'
Madara glances at the surroundings and recalls the appearance of the Konoha village.
'That bath was so refreshing! Looks like I have to propose to Hashirama to create a bigger and better bathhouse when I return to the village.'
BAM…
While Madara is lost in his thoughts, he bumps into someone.
Ah…
A startled female voice snaps him out of his thoughts.
He lowers his head and notices a woman with a small bag and an Uchiwa fan.
The woman is beautiful, fair-skinned with long, straight black hair with a tint of blue on the edges. Her shoulder-length hairs hang loosely on her back. At the front, the hairs part into bangs and frame her cheeks and black enchanting eyes. A five-petal Sakura flower acts as an ornament for her long, silky hairs.
The small beauty mole under her right eye adds another layer of charm to her already pretty face.
Both Madara and the woman are stunned at each other's sight. The woman almost drops the Mochi bag in her hand, but Madara subconsciously catches it.
"You… you…"
The woman recovers quickly with slight annoyance and anger appear on her face.
"Can't you look ahead and walk properly?"
She swiftly grabs the mochi bag, pushes Madara aside and dashes into the crowd, disappearing from Madara's vision within seconds.
'Oh!'
Madara raises an eyebrow in surprise.
'I can't sense her presence. She hides quite well.'
Madara's curiosity piques even further.
'This woman… there is no doubt about it! She is the Kunoichi from before. Hmm… does this mean she is the Kasumi Uchiha, the daughter of the Kisaku Uchiha?'
Madara continues his stroll throughout the village, enjoying the subtle moment of peace.
'Isn't this the kind of peaceful environment that Hashirama and I fought for? However, the reality of this peaceful atmosphere is very different.' He recalls Tatsuzo's words about the threat of the Land of the Earth to this small country.
'Konoha must have a similar peaceful and prosperous environment with no strings attached. I will ensure there is no threat or danger to the peace of the village.' Madara's expression turns sharp.
A few minutes later,
Madara returns to the inn and meets with the rest of his subordinates.
"Did any of you notice something suspicious?" Madara asks them.
The group glances at each other and shakes their head.
Only, Makato has a slightly different expression.
"Umm… Madara-sama, I didn't notice anything suspicious. But I did find something odd."
Hmm…
Makato's words draw everyone's curiosity.
"Oh!"
"What did you notice?" Madara asks with interest.
"It's about the reinforcement group!" Makato explains.
"This group of people seems abnormal. Their behaviour… hmm… how should I describe it? It might seem normal in a common person's perspective, but I felt like there was something more." Makato answers after some hesitation.
"I felt that too!" Ekizo also nods in affirmation.
"Hmm… I noticed that too, but I am not very familiar with them. So, I paid no attention to them. What oddity did you notice?" Madara nods and asks him to continue.
"Hmm… that's right! I seem to notice it, too." Another member nods.
Almost every member of his group nods in agreement.
"So, I tailed this group after they departed from the inn, and I overheard a crucial piece of information." Makato continues.
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