Naruto, my father's name is Uchiha Madara.

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She gazed at him tenderly, as if patiently waiting for a frightened little animal to lower its guard.

After a while, she spoke softly, breaking the silence: "Your wound is deep, and there is some strange chakra inside causing damage. I can only do simple treatment."

"Don't move around too much, just rest."

Her tone was so natural, as if she were concerned about any injured homeless person.

"...Why...did you save me?"

Dou finally managed to squeeze out a sentence from his dry throat, his voice terribly hoarse: "I...I look like this...aren't you scared?"

He deliberately showed off his arms covered in white scales, with twisted joints, and his unusual snake-like features.

He hoped to see fear and disgust in her eyes, even just a hint of it.

That might allow him to rebuild his emotional defenses and rediscover the cold-blooded "Yakushi Kabuto".

However, Nono simply tilted her head slightly, a hint of doubt on her face, which then softened into a deeper tenderness.

She even reached out and gently brushed away the hair stuck to his forehead with sweat, her movements natural and gentle, without the slightest hesitation or disgust.

"Afraid? Why should I be afraid?"

Her words, like warm spring water, flowed gently into Dou's frozen heart: "You are hurt and need help."

"As for appearance... everyone is unique."

"And I always feel... you look very sad."

"sad……"

These two words were like a needle, unexpectedly piercing the softest part of my heart.

He abruptly turned his head away, not daring to look into her eyes again, afraid that he would completely collapse under that pure tenderness.

Ignoring his evasiveness, Nonou continued in her calm tone, "Speaking of which, you were talking in your sleep while you were unconscious, and you seemed to be in a lot of pain... Were you calling for 'Director'? Were you also a member of the orphanage before?"

Kabuto's body trembled violently again. Was he calling her name unconsciously, even in his unconscious state?

Seeing his intense reaction, Nonou seemed thoughtful, then, as if remembering something, she clapped her hands lightly: "Ah, speaking of which."

"Although I don't remember anything from before, sometimes fragments or names suddenly flash through my mind..."

She paused, her eyes darting around, as if trying to recall something.

"For example... the name 'Dou'."

She looked at Dou, her eyes searching: "It's strange, isn't it? I don't remember it, but I always feel that it's a name that's... very important to me."

"It sounds like a child's name... a child I miss dearly, but I can't find..."

boom--! ! !

It was like a thunderclap exploding in my mind!

Kabuto suddenly turned around and stared at Nono in disbelief.

She...she remembers the name "Dou"?!

Is there still a lingering attachment to this name in her subconscious?

But... but the look in her eyes was only of unfamiliarity!

"that……"

Kabuto's voice trembled with excitement: "Why don't you remember?!"

Nonou tried hard to recall: "I can't remember the details. I only remember that when I woke up, Naruto saved me. He said I had lost too much blood, so I had amnesia. Later, I only learned my name after returning to Konoha and meeting my friends..."

Naruto? Naruto Uzumaki saved her?

That's impossible! Naruto was probably only a few years old back then, how could that be...?

But thinking about it carefully, so what if the dean has memories?

Back then, during the process of passing photos between Danzo and the abbot, he secretly switched his own childhood photo with his own!

So, it wasn't that Nono didn't recognize him back then, but rather that the "Kabuto" she saw was actually a completely different person!

She couldn't recognize the child she truly cared about because she saw the wrong photo!

Because of Danzo's conspiracy, because of a tampered image, I almost killed the only person in the world who truly cared about me?!

"Ho...ho..."

Dou let out a series of painful gasps, like a broken bellows.

His hand, which had been gripping Nono's wrist, slipped limply away, and he collapsed onto the bed, feeling as if his bones had been removed.

His shoulders heaved violently, but not a single tear came out; only a suppressed sob, like the mournful cry of a wild beast, escaped his throat.

If only... I hadn't run away back then.

If... I hadn't listened to Danzo's nonsense.

But how can there be a medicine for regret in this world?

"What's wrong? Is your wound hurting again?"

Nonou was startled by his sudden breakdown and quickly stepped forward to support his shoulder with concern.

Although she didn't remember him, her instinctive tenderness and care remained unchanged.

She gently patted his back, as if comforting a child having a nightmare: "It's okay, it's okay, it's all over... things will get better..."

Her voice was soft and gentle, yet it was like a faint but resilient light that pierced through the deep darkness and despair in Dou's heart.

The children were also frightened, and they watched timidly from a distance, not daring to approach.

Dou felt the gentle, warm pats on his shoulder and heard those familiar, heartbreakingly tender words.

The high wall built in my heart by hatred, prejudice and madness is crumbling at a visible speed.

He looked up, his eyes blurred with tears, at Nono.

At this moment, she was no longer someone he needed to seek revenge on or beg for forgiveness from.

She is simply Pharmacist Nonou, an orphanage director who has lost her memory but still retains her kind heart.

In her subconscious, she still remembered a child named "Dou".

This realization is like a precious spark.

In his desolate inner world, a faint hope called "redemption" was rekindled.

He may never be able to tell her the truth: the "child" she cared about was the hideous monster standing before her.

He may never be able to earn her forgiveness in his memory.

But... to see her again, to know she's still alive, to know she's still gentle, to know that there's still a corner in her heart reserved for "Kabuto"...

Perhaps this is the greatest mercy that fate has shown to this sinner.

He slowly and with great difficulty tugged at the corners of his mouth.

He gave a twisted smile that looked more like a grimace, and whispered to the worried Nono:

"No...it's nothing...it's just...I had a...terrible...nightmare..."

Now, the nightmare... it's time to wake up.

Chapter 478 The Final Battlefield!

Deep underground, within the seal.

The heavy, cold diamond chains, like giant, living pythons, coiled layer upon layer around a body that could not move.

The sealing light on the surface of the chains completely suppressed and stripped away all the chakra and mobility contained within them.

However, the consciousness deep within this completely imprisoned Edo Tensei body was not completely extinguished.

Madara Uchiha slowly "opened" his Eye of Consciousness.

He felt the powerlessness and constraint of this body, and even at the level of consciousness, his Rinnegan remained absolutely calm and indifferent.

This level of sealing is not enough to completely annihilate Madara Uchiha.

As long as consciousness remains and the obsession persists, there is always a possibility of turning things around.

Time loses its meaning in this absolutely confined space.

I don't know how much time passed; perhaps it was a moment, perhaps it was eternity.

A faint, chilling fluctuation, completely out of place with the surrounding sealed chakra, silently probed in.

It was a viscous, black liquid that seemed to be made of pure shadow.

Like a living slime, it slowly wriggled and approached the chained Ban.

"Master Madara..."

A hoarse, deep voice, seemingly resounding directly into one's consciousness, rang out, carrying undisguised respect and concern: "Are you... alright?"

Ban's fluctuations in consciousness were not at all unexpected.

Just by hearing that unique voice and that strange way of making his entrance, he knew who it was.

The extension of his will, the most loyal executor and witness of his plan.

"Has everyone left?"

Ban asked a question.

"The main force of the coalition has withdrawn, and the troops responsible for guarding the perimeter are also on the outskirts."

"After confirming that the seal was stable, Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha have left the Fourth Division battlefield and are currently heading to the area where the Five Kage are located."

Black Zetsu's voice was like a whisper as he reported the situation in detail.

"Yeah...that's good."

A barely perceptible fluctuation flashed through Ban's consciousness.

Naruto and Sasuke have left, which means the biggest variable is temporarily gone.

"Now, let's break this seal first."