The Uchiha compound was quiet in the early morning haze. Crimson banners fluttered gently in the wind, but the tension among its walls was like iron drawn tight. Si Feng sat atop the old shrine roof, cross-legged, eyes closed.
Two beasts now slumbered inside him. Shukaku, bitter and prideful. Matatabi, wrathful and cunning. Their chakra had begun to mingle within his soul — unstable, potent, and endlessly hungry.
He needed more than control.
He needed evolution.
The Serpent's Proposal
"You'll tear yourself apart if you keep absorbing Bijuu chakra without reinforcement," the voice said, amused, slick with poison.
Si Feng opened his eyes. Orochimaru stood before him in the courtyard, calm as a whispering snake. His gaze studied the young Uchiha like a puzzle with too many missing pieces.
"You've come uninvited," Si Feng said coldly.
"I come bearing… opportunity," Orochimaru replied. "I've observed your rise. The clan is yours. The beasts, yours. But even your body has limits. Unless—"
Si Feng cut him off. "Senju cells."
Orochimaru grinned. "Ah, you are clever. Yes. The Hashirama strain. Cultivated, stabilized — with my improvements. With it, your body can house dozens of tailed beasts without collapse. And perhaps… unlock even greater dojutsu."
He tossed a sealed scroll onto the stone floor.
"What's the price?" Si Feng asked.
"No price," Orochimaru said, licking his lips. "Consider it an investment. I want to see what becomes of you. Besides, I have other… experiments to tend to. The Sanin are not as united as we once were."
Fractures Among Legends
Far from the Uchiha compound, the atmosphere within Konoha's walls was splintering.
Tsunade stood alone before the Hokage's Tower, a faded letter in hand. The names of comrades fallen in the Second War bled into the parchment.
She had seen too many die.
Too many she couldn't save.
And now, with word of the Uchiha clan's rebellion and the capture of another tailed beast, Tsunade no longer recognized the village she'd once fought to protect.
"I'm done," she said to Jiraiya, who had found her there.
"You're abandoning the Leaf?" he asked, surprised but not shocked.
"I'm leaving before the village abandons itself," she replied.
She gave him a brief nod — no goodbye — and walked away.
That same day, Jiraiya found Minato Namikaze training alone, hurling kunai at a log with mechanical precision.
"Come with me," Jiraiya said. "Tsunade's gone. Orochimaru's… somewhere. I need a new student."
Minato looked up, confused. "Why me?"
"Because you're not like them," Jiraiya replied. "You don't chase power to crush others. You chase it to protect. I can work with that."
Minato hesitated. Then he nodded.
The Demands of Thunder
The next day, a formal summit was held within the Hokage's war council chamber. Every major clan head sat in rows — Hyuuga, Aburame, Nara, Akimichi — and the Uchiha had refused to attend. At the front sat Sarutobi, flanked by Danzo and two ANBU captains.
"The Raikage has sent word," Sarutobi began, holding up a scroll bound in blue lightning wax. "He demands the return of Matatabi, the Two-Tails. Or he will consider it an act of war."
Whispers erupted. Some demanded negotiation. Others called for war preparations.
But Danzo stood, voice sharp. "We seize control of the Uchiha compound. Detain Si Feng. Extract the beast."
"That is not an option," said Shikaku Nara, calmly. "We're not prepared for civil war."
"Then we give him up?" Danzo spat.
From the shadows, a quiet cough interrupted.
Homura Mitokado stepped forward. "The truth is simple. Si Feng controls two Tailed Beasts. He commands the entire Uchiha clan. Even the Anbu would fall if we moved on him without overwhelming force."
"I warned you," Danzo snarled, glaring at Sarutobi. "I warned you what they would become."
Sarutobi's hand trembled slightly, then clenched the table. "You've done enough, Danzo. You are hereby suspended from all Root activity and stripped of advisory authority. Leave."
Gasps rang out. Danzo's face darkened like a storm.
"You'll regret this," he hissed, then stormed out.
Transformation
That night, in a secret chamber beneath the Uchiha shrine, Si Feng lay shirtless on a cold stone altar. Orochimaru's seal scroll lay open beside him, chakra needles and genetic samples gleaming under torchlight.
He had dismissed his guards.
This was something only he could endure.
He stabbed the first needle into his arm — and screamed.
The Hashirama cells surged into his bloodstream like wildfire. Chakra flooded every meridian, tearing at the seals that held the Bijuu in place. Shukaku shrieked inside his mind. Matatabi's flame lashed out.
He grit his teeth, activating his Mangekyō and forcing them down.
You will not break me. I am not a vessel. I am your master.
His body convulsed. Bones snapped and reformed. Muscle tore and rebuilt. For an entire night, Si Feng fought his own transformation.
By dawn, he rose — body steaming, eyes burning, stronger than ever.
The Senju blood flowed in his veins.
And with it… came potential.
The Storm That Comes
In the Hokage Tower, Sarutobi stared into the fire.
The clans were divided.
The Sannin had shattered.
The Uchiha were rising.
And now, the Raikage prepared for war.
He lit his pipe, and whispered to himself, "The Will of Fire may soon face its greatest test."
Far away, atop the Uchiha compound, Si Feng looked toward the horizon, where thunderclouds gathered over the Lightning Country.
His Mangekyō glowed.
He smiled.
"Come, Raikage. Let the gods tremble. I'll show them what an Uchiha can become."