Chapter Text
Madara died. His masterplan had spectacularly failed, the Juubi had been extracted from his body, he was alone and betrayed, lying on the ground on the verge of death, cold like ice. Hashirama was kneeling next to him, talking but Madara wasn’t listening, was answering almost mechanically to his estranged friend’s words. He honestly couldn’t tell what he had answered.
He was still so full of anger. Where had he gone wrong ? Why had he failed ? It was unfair ! He had just wanted to bring justice and peace to the world ! Where had he gonr wrong ?!
Madara died. The last thinkg he saw was Hashirama’s face and he didn’t know how he felt about that. Anger or relief, he didn’t know really. He just knew it was over, he was dying, and the others would have to keep going. He wished them a lot of pleasure. He just hoped he would be allowed to see Izuna in the Pure Land.
Madara died. But he didn’t wake up in the Pure Land. No. Madara died and he fell. He fell for what felt an eternity, in complete darkness, weightless yet heavier than anything in the world. He fell for a fraction of second, for a century. He fell through veils, he fell through oceans, he fell through galaxies.
He died and he fell.
He fell.
He fell.
He fell.
And then he crashlanded into a hard surface and he lost consciousness.
************
Madara opened his eyes with a grunt, and he understood instantly that something was very wrong.
First, he wasn’t feeling his chakra anymore. It was not the feeling of too much not enough, of grasping at straws that indicated a chakra binding seal. There was just… nothing. Madara started hyperventilating.
Second, he was naked and strapped on a metallic table, cold and hard under his body. This made Madara’s panic skyrocket. He started trashing and shrieking. Foreign voices shouted and something moved right next to the Uchiha’s head. And then a sharp prickling pain exploded in his shoulder. And he lost consciousness.
Again.
************
When he woke up again, he was still naked and restrained. But at least this time, he was sitting. There was something stuck on his temples and odd contraptions all around him, beeping and buzzing. There was an odd taste in his mouth and he was feeling groggy as fuck. Whatever he had been dosed with was probably strong enough to knock a horse out.
Madara screwed his eyes shut and opened them slowly, inhaling deeply. He looked around and to his great surprise, he came face to face with a carbon copy of himself. He gasped.
This carbon copy of himself seemed a bit younger than Madara currently was, a mid twenties to Madara’s late thirties. His long dark hair was kept up in an utilitarian braided bun. He was wearing an odd black skin-tight jumpsuit with a high collar and was looking at Madara with his head tilted on the side. There was something in his dark gaze that made Madara uneasy. So he reacted like any shinobi would have.
« Who the fuck are you ? » he blurted.
Other-Madara’s lips spread in a threatening smile. He approached and bent forward, setting his hands on Madara’s naked thighs, who shuddered in disgust.
« That’s my line, foreigner, » other-Madara purred like a cat who got the canary, « after all, you are the one who appeared in the hold of my ship and the tests we realized said you have the same DNA as me. You have to admit that it’s odd, don’t you, foreigner ? »
Madara frowned. Other-Madara straightened up and started pacing in front of the bound Uchiha.
« I can’t begin to understand how you ended up here, » he pondered out loud, « what is it ? An hyperspace jump that failed ? Honestly I doubt it. After all, we have the only pilot able to push a ship into an hyperspace jump. »
There was an obvious pride in his eyes when he said that, but also a hint of twisted possessiveness that didn’t settle well with Madara. He opened his mouth but other-Madara cut him.
« Maybe an infiltration that failed, then, » he kept going, tapping his index against his lower lip, « a clone of myself made with DNA scavenged on a previous battlefield, sent here to undermine us. Or to steal our prized pilots. »
He turned toward Madara and produced a long steel blade, a little bit like a wakizashi, the metal had an odd blue color. He set the pint under Madara’s chin, forcing him to lift his head.
« So tell me foreigner, » he asked, voice filled with contempt, « why are you here ? Who sent you ? The Hagoromo ? The Hyuga ? »
And there went Madara’s short fuse.
« Listen, you brat ! » he snarled, « I am not a clone and I work for no one ! I don’t even know what half of the words you use mean ! Hyperspace jump ? DNA ? Never heard of that ! »
He pulled on his restraints to straighten up a little and the beeping sounds around him intensified. Other-Madara was looking quite surprised by his reaction.
« I am Uchiha Madara ! » Madara snarled, « fiftiest Head of the Uchiha Clan and founder of Konoha ! And I take orders from no one ! »
In retrospect, maybe this hadn’t been his best idea, provocating someone who was clearly aggressive and had a weapon, while he was bound and naked, had no chakra and no idea what the fuck was actually going on. But Madara had never been really good to keep a clear head when he was under duress, prefering to rush forward the enemy and see what would happen. Usually, there was also a lot of fire and screaming involved.
Other-Madara frowned, threw a glance toward the contraptions surrounding Madara. He then sighed and lowered his blade, sheathing it. He crossed his arms on his chest and tilted his head on the side.
« How did you end up here ? » he asked.
« Hell if I know, » Madara groaned, « I was fighting an army, I died and when I woke up I was here. It’s all I know. »
Other-Madara scrunched his nose and snorted.
« Either you are telling the truth, » he said, « or whoever sent you here did a wonderful job brainwashing you. »
Madara scowled, offended the other could suggest that. Other-Madara exhaled and uncrossed his arms, setting his arms on his hips.
« I don’t think you’ve been brainwashed, » he said, « if only because none of our enemies would ever think about that knd of strategy. And I don’t think any of them have the technology to clone people. »
He tilted his head on the side.
« I will talk about this with my father, » he said, « to decide what to do with you. »
Madara rolled his eyes.
« Can’t decide anything without Tajima’s opinion, daddy boy ? » he taunted.
Other-Madara’s reaction surprised him. He tensed and his face scrunched in fury. The wakizashi was unsheathed in a blink and back under Madara’s chin.
« How do you know that name ? » other-Madara growled.
« Because it’s my father’s name ? » Madara replied, nonplussed, « you know, our father ? To me and Izuna. Or what, do you have anot… urk ! »
The wakizashi was pushed closer and the skin of Madara’s throat broke, a rivulet of blood dripping down his chest.
« How do you know that name ? » other-Madara snarled, voice steely.
Now Madara was entirely sure of it, something was deeply wrong here.
« Izuna ? He’s my goddamned brother ! You don’t know your own brother’s name ?! »
Other-Madara stayed silent for a long minute, before throwing a glance toward the beeping contraptions. He then smiled and sheathed the wakizashi again.
« Stay here, » he ordered before leaving. The door slid open and then close and Madara was left alone in semi-darkness.
He blinked. And then he started testing his bonds. They were solid and made in a material Madara didn’t know. No matter how much he twisted and pulled, they didn’t yield. Madara snarled but after a long moment squirming, he had to admit that he was stuck and well stuck. With a groan, he fell back on his seat.
The door opened again and the light, white and impersonnal, blinded the Uchiha. Other-Madara entered, followed by an older man in his mid fifties. He was of normal height, with large shoulders and calloused hands, and he had a sharp face with slanted dark eyes and salt and pepper hair kept up in a sharp top knot. Madara could see the similarities between the two men so he guessed this man was other-Madara’s father.
But this man was not Tajima and Madara had never seen this dude in his life.
Other-Madara’s father was wearing the same jumpsuit as his son, and the same blade. He gave a thoughtful onceover to Madara, who felt the hair on his nape rise in disgust.
« So this is your doppelganger, son, » the man said, « impressive. He really looks like you. »
He examined Madara as if the Uchiha was a piece of meat. And that made the man tense in warning. He was completely aware of his powerlessness, bound, naked, with absolutely no idea of where he was or how he had gotten there, at the entire mercy of these two men. And he had the fleeting impression that their intentions were questionnable at best.
« Who are you ? » he growled, « and what do you want with me ? »
He knew antagonizing them was probably not the best idea in the world, but it was stronger than him.
« Well, » the man said, « I am Takahiro Uchiha, the Head of the Uchiha Clan and the commander of this ship. »
Now Madara was sure that something was wrong. He had never heard of an Uchiha called Takahiro, and especially not a Head. His own mother was named Takahime, but that was the closest name he could think about in his parents’s generation.
« As for what I want, well, » he chuckled, « my son is a great warrior, you see, which is a good thing, especially in that war we are in. But it also means he has a lot of enemies, a lot of people who want to kill him. »
Oh, how Madara understood whoever wanted to kill that arrogant little brat. But he was starting to understand what this Takahiro wanted and he didn’t like it one bit. However, he might not have much of a choice.
« So you understand that he needs a bodyguard, a shadow, » Takahiro continued, « and honestly, what better shadow than a man who looks exactly like him ? I’m sure you agree with me, foreigner. »
Madara rather thought they wanted to put a target on his head so the brat wouldn’t end up dead. Shame really.
« With a body and scars like yours, I have no doubt you know how to fight, don’t you, foreigner ? » he chuckled, « so, what do you think about becoming my son’s shadow ? »
Madara gritted his teeth and threw a sharp glance at the smug brat. Amaterasu’s tits, he didn’t think he had ever looked so arrogant.
« And if I refuse ? » he growled.
Takahiro snorted.
« If you refuse, I’ll throw you off my ship, straight into deep space, to choke and freeze to death, » he answered with a cruel smirk.
Madara bit his tongue. He had no idea what the threat actually meant, but he had no doubt Takahiro would put it to execution.
« So, » other-Madara chuckled (and damn Madara really wanted to cave his face in), « what do you answer ? Honestly, most would see this offer as an honor. »
The Uchiha bit back a snarl. Unfortunately, he didn’t have much of a choice.
« Fine, » he sighed, « I accept your offer. »
Takahiro smirked.
« Perfect ! You made the right choice. However, we can’t have two Madara on this ship, the crewmen wouldn’t know who to adress. We’ll call you Buchi from now on. »
Madara gritted his teeth so hard he felt like his jaws were going to break.
« Whatever you want, » he growled, « just get me out of these chains. »
************
They had opened his shackles, had given him clothes – a pair of large black pants, worn leather boots and a black tunic – and a cabin. Other-Madara showed him around, obviously very proud. However, Madara didn’t really pay attention to the other’s rambling, too busy having a deep existential crisis as he realized he had somehow landed in fucking space, in a fucking spaceship !
He had had a panic attack and had locked himself into his cabin till he had somehow managed to calm himself. And to realize his situation really wasn’t brilliant.
Alone, with no chakra (because even days after it hadn’t reappeared, so Madara had to admit it was probably just… gone, which had terrified him, making him feel horribly crippled), in a fucking spaceship, in fucking space, at the mercy of an apparently evil (?) version of himself. What had he done to the Sage to deserve that ?
(Surely, his attempted invasion of the world didn’t deserve such a fate, right?)
At least, the other people on this (goddamn) spaceship didn’t seem to have chakra as far as Madara could tell. Which was good. Even without chakra, Madara was deadly. Not as much as with his chakra, but still way more than the average civilian. However, all the people in this ship seemed to have been trained for war.
Once he had calmed himself down, he explored the ship. From what other-Madara had told him, the ship was a mix of organic and inorganic material. It had a brain and a nervous system. These pilots other-Madara liked to boast about – as if they were fucking possessions – just had to connect themselves to the ship’s brain to direct it. The Uchiha had troubles imagining how it was possible, but hey…
The ship in itself was huge, almost huge enough to contain the entirety of Madara’s Konoha. And it was just floating around in space. To Madara it was honestly mindblowing. There were places where he wasn’t allowed to go. The pilots’ quarters, for starters. From what Madara had gathered, only Takahiro and other-Madara were allowed in there.
(This had made Madara tick. Where were Tajima and Izuna ? Something was definitively fishy.)
Another place was intriguing him, a place at the bottom of the ship, from where an odd smell was coming. A smell of musk and sweat. A part of himself really wanted to know what was down there. And another part was terrified of it. He had a really bad feeling about everything.
The next two months passed without any notable events. He familiarized himself with the ship – the Susanoo – and followed other-Madara around like a shadow. The man often passed hours on end in the pilots’ quarters and Madara would give his right hand to know what was happening in there.
Okay, maybe not his right hand, but he would cut his hair to know what was happening here.
Days passed, uneventful, and the more they passed, the more Madara wanted to strangle his counterpart. The brat was a despicable asshole, an ungrateful fucker. Madara could see with how much contempt he was treating the other crewmates, except those who were part of his inner circle (all older men from his father’s generation). As if they were less than him. And Madara didn’t understand.
He kept wondering again and again, where was the difference between him and that other Madara ? What was the turning point that had made other-Madara like that ? Madara didn’t think he had ever been so obnoxious with his own clanmates. He hadn’t even been that obnoxious with the White Demon, and that was saying something since Tobirama Senju was probably the person he hated the most in his life.
Really, what had happened ? Was it due to the fact Izuna didn’t seem to be in this ship ?
(Where was this other-Madara’s brother?)
Days passed, uneventful. Until one day…
************
An alarm started blaring in the whole ship, waking Madara up with a start. Swearing profusely, he put on his clothes and exited his cabin, running. Other-Madara stormed out of his own cabin, looking murderous. He threw a wakizashi into Madara’s hands without a word.
« Hey, what the fuck is going on ? » Madara asked.
« Fucking Hagoromo have been hounding us for a week now and they decided to try to board us. »
He snarled, baring his teeth, eyes shining with fury.
« These fuckers have been trying to steal our pilots for years now ! But enoug is enough ! We’re about to give them a lesson they won’t forget ! »
Madara gritted his teeth. He barely understood what was going on. But he knew he had to follow other-Madara as closely as possible. If the little shit got himself killed, Madara had no doubt Takahiro would see him killed or worse. So he ran after the brat to the hold of the ship, where hundreds of Uchiha were putting on armors and casks – which seemed made of glass and honestly what was the point of that ? He put on the armor and the cask, wrenching his hair into an approximative braid to get them out of the way. He secured the wakizashi in the small of his back.
They boarded into what was looking like a train wagon. When the door closed, Madara, with a shiver of fear, saw the wall at the extremity of the hold opened with an ominous creaking sound. And the terrifyingly empty immensity of space was bared to his eyes and his breath caught in his throat.
And before he could understand what the fuck was going on, the wagon was propelled straight into the hungry darkness at neckbreaking speed. Only Madara’s training and century-long experience of life and death situations allowed him to stay upright and not scream like a terrified little girl.
But when he looked through the wagon’s window, he was suddenly faced with the Susanoo in all its majesty. His voice caught in his voice.
The ship was looking more like a living creature than a simple machine. It was almost three miles long, for a mile large and a mile and a half high. It was looking like an odd mix between a worm and a reptile, covered in a rough shell and surrounded by a translucent screen made of blue octogons. Along the flanks of the... ship ? Creature ? There were a series of translucent bubbles that were looking either like windows or like eyes. Flashes of metal were visible under the shell.
The sight was majestuous and yet terrifying unlike anything Madara had seen before. He stayed a long moment just looking at the Susanoo, almost forgetting they were heading into battle.
Then, other-Madara roughly elbowed him in the ribs to force him to concentrate on the present. Snarling under his breath, he turned on his heels and saw the Hagoromo ship. It was smaller than the Susanoo and Madara found it… almost hideous when compared to the Susanoo.
The two ships came into contact, their respective translucent screens crashing into each others, creating lightning bolts in their wake. And then, a ray of pure light crossed the space between the two ships and the screen surrounding the Hagoromo ship exploded, before the ray of light continued and crashed into the Hagoromo ship’s flank, causing a large breach into the hull.
And suddenly, the wagon they were n, and the others around it, accelerated to engulf in the breach. Madara almost ended up heels over head. They boarded the Hagoromo ship, the gate of the wagon opened with a sharp clank. And then it was battle. It was something Madara knew intimately, so he dove head first into it. The wakizashi he had been given wasn’t worth his gunbai, but it was a good blade and it did a good job.
Madara cut through the crowd of Hagoromo, following other-Madara like a shadow. It would be just his luck if the brat got himself killed. The Uchiha didn’t know how long the battle lasted, but at one moment, he found himself separated from other-Madara. Spearing a Hagoromo through the head with his wakizashi, Madara looked around and saw the brat had gotten himself cornered by a group of enemies. And while the brat was clearly holding his own, Madara could see he was in difficulty. And more enemies were approaching.
Madara saw red. He refused to see his own life threatened by the fact his charge was an idiot.
He rushed forward with a low growl, blade at the ready. He bodyslammed into one of the Hagoromo, beheaded another one. He pushed back two aggressors, eviscerated a third one and cut the arm of a fourth. Roaring his head off, feeling the familiar and beloved rush of adrenaline course through his veins, he caught the blade of an Hagoromo and started hacking through the enemies ranks with an absolute delight. He had missed that, missed the thrill of battle, missed the way his muscles ached and his heart against his ribs. It was a part of himself he would never be able to deny.
He killed so many Hagoromo his very sight seemed to terrify them. They fled, abbandonning their weapons. Madara snarled and was about to run after them when other-Madara grabbed his shoulder. Madara whirled toward him, teeth bared.
« We’re done here, » other-Madara said, a broad grin visible through his cask, « let’s go back to the ship ! »
Madara thought about refusing for a second. But he finally followed the brat back into the wagon. There were corpses strewn everywhere and blood was dripping into space. It was an otherworldly sight, as if a window to hell had opened. The gates of the different wagons closed with an echoing clank. And then the wagons dashed back to the Susanoo at neckbreacking speed. Madara looked back just as a huge explosion shook the Hagoromo ship, spreading inside the vessel, lighting the transparent bubbles along its flank in orange hues.
Madara briefly thought it wasn’t possible anybody in the ship had survived that. And it made him realize just how fragile all their lives were, suspended to that gigantic structure of metal and to the person piloting it. And then he heard other-Madara swear. He turned and saw what had gotten the brat’s attention.
Another ship was coming their way. It was still far away, but Madara had no doubt it would be here soon.
« Fucking Shimura vultures ! » other-Madara snarled.
He pressed a button on the side of his cask.
« Father ! As soon as we are back inside the ship, order an hyperspace jump ! » he exclaimed.
Barely a minute later, the wagons were back inside the Susanoo and the huge gate of the ship closed. And as soon as they started exiting the wagons, there was an echoing rattling sound, the ship shook and for a split second, Madara’s feet left the ground.
« What the fuck ?!! » he snapped.
« First hyperspace jump, Buchi ? » other-Madara chuckled, « don’t worry, you’ll get used to it. »
Madara waited for ten seconds to be sure it wouldn’t start again. They then took off their armors and their casks.
« You fought like a demon, Buchi, » other-Madara growled lowly.
He had an odd glint in his dark eyes and it made Madara tense. He wondered what his counterpart was thinking about and he braced himself for any possibilty. And other-Madara threw an arm on his shoulders, with a large grin.
« You saved my life today, Buchi, » he purred, « that deserves a reward. »
Madara frowned, especially when the other men around them let out greasy laugh and wolf-whistles.
« Come on, » other-Madara said, dragging Madara toward the corridor, « we should soon be out of the hyperspace jump. There is someone I want you to meet. »
« Who ? » Madara asked, following the brat.
« My favorite bitch, » other-Madara said lightly.
Madara’s brain short-circuited. For a second, he wondered if he had heard well. And then he felt bile rise in his throat, because he could imagine what the reward was and he was sure he wouldn’t like it one bit. The other Uchiha soldiers were following them, whistling and jeering. Madara was looking for a way to escape this situation but his brain stayed desperately empty.
And then the ship shook again with a low creacking sound.
« Ah, » other-Madara said cheerfully, « the hyperspace jump is finished. Perfect. »
It was only at this moment that Madara noticed they were right in front of the pilots’ quarters. He frowned, he didn’t understand what was going on and he had a really bad feeling. Other-Madara opened the door and entered. The others were vibrating in expectative, looking like rutting dogs.
« You’re very lucky, Buchi, » one of them said, venom and jealousy clear in his voice.
« True that. The boss only shares his precious Thunder God with the bravest of us, » another added, and his smile was not reaching his eyes.
Madara glared daggers at them. But then, the name Thunder God made him tick. Could it be… ?
A gasp, full of anguish, came from inside the pilots’ quarters, followed by other voices begging desperately. Madara gritted his teeth, he was sure he knew one of these voices, he just couldn’t place it at the moment.
And then other-Madara reappeared, dragging a scrawny teenager by the hair. And Madara felt like someone had just slapped him.
It was Tobirama Senju.