Chapter 264: Heartbroken for the Future of the Uchiha Clan

"Creak~"

As the tightly shut door was pushed open, Uchiha Madara, who had been waiting anxiously outside, felt his already suspended heart instantly rise to his throat. Watching Uchiha Miao emerge from the room wearing a white lab coat and a surgical mask, he asked cautiously,

"Elder Miao, how is Father's condition?"

"Sigh~, Clan Leader, I have tried my best, but the old Clan Leader is of advanced age and his injuries are in a vital area. Go in and see him one last time, then prepare for the funeral arrangements."

Letting out a deep sigh, Uchiha Miao stepped aside to clear a path, his tone filled with profound regret as he spoke to the Uchiha Madara before him.

"Impossible! That's impossible!"

Even at this very moment, Uchiha Madara could not believe that his invincible father would leave him so easily. Suppressing the grief in his heart, Uchiha Madara stepped into the sickroom.

Upon entering, he was met with a pungent smell of medicine. On the only hospital bed in the room, Uchiha Tajima lay peacefully. The bloodstains on his body had been cleaned, but upon closer inspection, one could still smell the scent of blood mixed in with the disinfectant.

"Cough, cough, cough... is that you, Madara?"

Perhaps the sound of footsteps upon entering was too loud, waking the dying Uchiha Tajima. Hearing a weak voice, the numb Uchiha Madara was jolted back to reality.

"Father, I am here."

Uchiha Madara's black eyes instantly filled with deep sorrow. He walked quickly to his father's bedside, looking at the man who had once stood tall and unyielding, now lying weakly on the bed with a pale face devoid of any vitality. He reached out with trembling hands to do something, but could only stop helplessly in mid-air.

"Where is Izuna?"

"My brother is still on his way. Father, please hold on; he will be here soon."

Sensing the life force within his father nearing exhaustion, Uchiha Madara gritted his teeth, his hatred for a certain white-haired man reaching its peak. Just as he was at a loss for how to face his departing father, Uchiha Tajima, lying on the sickbed, took a difficult breath and spoke,

"Madara, you must understand that my failure was not without reason."

"Father, please, do not speak anymore."

"No, all of this stems from my loss of sight. Otherwise, how could I have been defeated by that brat?"

Struggling to prop himself up, Uchiha Tajima removed his reading glasses. With a pair of dim, lusterless eyes, he stared fixedly at the stunned Uchiha Madara and continued,

"Your situation is no better than mine. If this continues, you will sooner or later die at the hands of those two brothers. When that happens, the Uchiha clan will vanish into the long river of history in the Land of Fire."

"And you will be the sinner of the Uchiha."

"Father, I..."

Faced with Uchiha Tajima's deathbed rebuke, Uchiha Madara wanted to retort, but looking at his dying father, he ultimately chose to accept it in silence.

"I am dying, but I am not reconciled."

Trembling, he reached out a hand and placed it on the shoulder of the silent Uchiha Madara. Uchiha Tajima used all his remaining strength to speak slowly,

"Madara, I hope you will take my eyes and lead the Uchiha clan to stand at the pinnacle of the Land of Fire."

"Father, are you suggesting...?"

With the answer vaguely forming in his heart, Uchiha Madara looked in shock at his father's resolute gaze and asked hesitantly.

"That's right. Transplant my Mangekyo and achieve the Eternal eyes that will never lose their light!"

The hand on Uchiha Madara's shoulder pressed down slightly, and the words he spoke carried an air that brooked no refusal.

"I cannot..."

Uchiha Madara was about to refuse, but was stopped by a single look from Uchiha Tajima.

"Madara, the Eternal eyes are the ultimate power of our clan. Once you possess them, your strength will grow by leaps and bounds. At that time, that brat from the Senju clan will certainly be no match for you."

"But..."

Though Uchiha Madara still harbored some reservations, the look of resistance on his face softened significantly.

"Cough, cough, cough... my time is running out. Besides this matter, there is one more thing..."

Uchiha Tajima suddenly coughed up blood, which sprayed out and stained the white sheets bright red, just like the Sharingan of the Uchiha clan.

He reached out a trembling hand to wipe the blood from the corner of his mouth. Looking at the conflicted Uchiha Madara, his final words carried a hint of pleading,

"Remember to give your cousin a raise and let him work in the dungeon until he retires~"

"Very well, Father, I promise you."

Watching Uchiha Tajima, who was taking in more air than he was letting out, Uchiha Madara closed his eyes as if he had made a great decision. He slowly opened his slightly reddened eyes and nodded to the father he respected most.

"Good, good, good. Then I can leave in peace..."

Since Uchiha Madara had agreed and the goal had been achieved, Uchiha Gin stopped dragging out the scene. Facing his grieving cousin, he tilted his head, the hand resting on the other's shoulder slowly dropped, and his entire body fell silent.

"Father!"

Having lost a loved one again after many years, Uchiha Madara instantly burst into tears. He opened his mouth wide, but due to overwhelming grief, he could not make a sound.

"Old Clan Leader~"

Uchiha Miao, who had been watching the play from the sidelines, saw that the time was ripe and stepped in to join. The usually cold, eighty-year-old man now had tears in his eyes as he looked at the lifeless Uchiha Tajima, his voice trembling slightly.

"Clan Leader, please accept my condolences. Did the old Clan Leader have any unfulfilled wishes?"

"Elder Miao, I leave it to you to transplant my father's eyes to me."

Hearing Uchiha Miao's unintentional remark, Uchiha Madara pulled himself out of his grief. With a cold gaze, he looked at the old man and spoke.

"As you command!"

This is exactly what I was waiting for~

Because of Uchiha Madara's cooperation, the Mangekyo transplant surgery ended very quickly. Once his cousin, whose eyes were wrapped in white cloth, was wheeled out of the sickroom, Uchiha Gin, who had been playing dead for a long time, slowly opened his eyes. He stretched his stiff body, and the smile on the corner of his mouth could not be suppressed even by ten wooden clones.

"Gin, the surgery went very smoothly. After the anesthesia wears off, the Clan Leader's eyes will be ready for normal use."

Uchiha Miao, who had just removed his gloves, walked in and said to the smiling Uchiha Tajima.

"Phew~ that wasn't easy, but this will only fool my cousin for a while."

Waving his hand to dispel the transformation technique, Uchiha Gin jumped off the hospital bed and reminded his partner in crime,

"Are you so certain that after the Clan Leader obtains the Eternal eyes, he will still be no match for that Senju Hashirama?"

As the Uchiha clan's leading researcher, Uchiha Miao understood the power of the Eternal eyes best. The mere fact that they could use ocular techniques without side effects made them the ceiling of combat power in the ninja world, not to mention the terrifying boost they provided to the Susanoo.

"Wood Style."

Uchiha Gin shook his head and softly spat out these two words.

"That secret technique of the Senju? Although it is strong, I don't think it will be a match for the Clan Leader."

"No one understands Wood Style better than I do!"

As one of the only two Wood Style users in the current ninja world, Uchiha Gin could clearly perceive the massive Wood Style power within Senju Hashirama. He was indeed a natural Sage Body; he usually held back when fighting his cousin, fearing he might accidentally hammer his best friend to death.

"For some unknown reason, Senju Hashirama has been holding back, but this time, with my cousin gaining the Eternal eyes, that guy should be forced to get serious. Just you wait and see~"

"Just because of that secret technique of yours for building houses?"

Uchiha Miao had never thought much of Wood Style. The reason was that he knew Uchiha Gin used Wood Style to build houses; how could such a low-brow secret technique be compared to the noble Kekkei Genkai of the Uchiha clan?

"Alright, alright. How is the task I entrusted to you coming along?"

Uchiha Gin did not blame this old man for his narrow-mindedness; after all, Uchiha Miao had never witnessed the divine power of Wood Style on the battlefield, so his disdain was understandable. He skipped the topic and asked about the task he had commissioned.

"The steel ships you wanted have been designed. They are currently being tested, and if all goes well, they can be mass-produced this year."

Recalling the task he had been entrusted with, Uchiha Miao frowned. Even now, he could not figure out what Uchiha Gin was up to. Why insist on going out to sea when he could stay comfortably in the Land of Fire?

"That's good. Elder Miao, the future destiny of the Uchiha clan rests entirely on your shoulders."

Hearing that the task he had entrusted had made great progress, Uchiha Gin immediately breathed a sigh of relief. The escape route he had painstakingly managed for the Uchiha clan for many years was finally going to be put to use.

Just as the two were having a heated discussion about the ship design, a familiar figure arrived late.

"Big Brother! Big Brother! What happened to Father?"

Uchiha Izuna's handsome face was full of anxiety after his long journey. Having just returned to the camp and hearing the tragic news of his father's passing, the sudden turn of events left him with reddened eyes and trembling limbs. After a brief inquiry, he rushed toward the sickroom without stopping.

"Uh... my little cousin is here~"

Hearing Uchiha Izuna's shouts from inside the room, Uchiha Gin, sensing the situation, quickly performed hand seals to create a Wood Clone. He commanded it to use the transformation technique to disguise itself as the lifeless Uchiha Tajima and lie back on the blood-stained bed, while he and Uchiha Miao stood by the bedside with their heads bowed in mourning.

"Big Cousin! Father is..."

Rushing into the sickroom in a panic, Uchiha Izuna did not expect to meet Uchiha Gin here. Just as he was about to greet him, he saw his cousin's sorrowful expression and his heart tightened. Then, he saw his father lying on the sickbed without any signs of life, and tears immediately welled up in his eyes, his limbs showing signs of weakness.

"Wuu wuu wuu~ Father, how did you end up lying on a board in the blink of an eye?"

Uchiha Izuna slid to his knees, reaching Uchiha Tajima's bedside in an instant. He hugged the body and began to wail, his thick snot and tears smearing all over the Wood Clone's face, making Uchiha Gin feel a sense of relief that he wasn't the one playing the corpse.

"Cough, cough, cough... little cousin, please accept my condolences."

Unable to watch any longer, Uchiha Gin reached out and patted the sobbing Uchiha Izuna, trying to comfort him.

"It's all my fault. If I hadn't failed to hold back that white-haired man, Father wouldn't have sacrificed himself."

Having learned the cause of his father's death, Uchiha Izuna fell into deep self-reproach. He clenched his fists tightly, the visible veins pulsing on the back of his fair hands.

If he had been able to hold back or defeat the detestable Senju Tobirama, his father, who had already begun to enjoy his later years, would not have left them.

"Sigh~ it is not you who is wrong, but this world."

(End of chapter)