Amegakure, on an empty main street.
Orochimaru walked along at a leisurely pace while the rain fell nonstop, and the mud beneath his feet grew deeper and deeper.
Konan followed behind him and couldn't help asking, "Why didn't you kill me?"
"Because Link's technique connects to the Pure Land," Orochimaru explained candidly—he was someone who hated lying. "If you died, this place's information might end up exposed. Even Jiraiya and the others weren't killed outright."
[Jiraiya-sensei?!]
Konan's pupils shrank. She asked, "You all…no, what exactly are you trying to do?"
"Who knows?" Orochimaru answered, sounding casual. "Maybe I just want to see what shape Konoha's gust of wind can blow the windmill into."
Konan didn't quite understand what he meant.
Orochimaru, apparently not intending to explain, stopped at the entrance to a tall building that used to be Akatsuki's central base. He glanced at the frog that had somehow appeared nearby and said, "If you want to run away now, feel free to do it anytime."
"Madara won't care about your existence."
That monster treated everyone with extreme contempt—like a human regarding ants. He might pay brief attention if faced with a strong foe, but after overwhelming his opponent, he wouldn't bother to see whether the 'ant' survived.
At this point, it seemed no one in the world could stand against him anymore.
Even Might Guy, who opened the Seventh Gate of the Eight Inner Gates, couldn't defeat him. That left only the Eighth Gate—but unfortunately…
When he opened the Seventh Gate, his battle failed to finish off Madara's Edo Tensei body. He entered a brief period of exhaustion, and then Zetsu invaded his body and drove in a black rod, leaving him unable to move.
Had he gone all the way to the Eighth Gate, maybe he would have had a chance against Madara.
But Madara's Edo Tensei body plus Zetsu…
And apparently, Zetsu's two halves are different. White Zetsu—pretty useless in combat—turned out unexpectedly handy as a sacrifice. Black Zetsu is extremely mysterious and doesn't seem to be just "Madara's will," as it claims.
Various thoughts churned in Orochimaru's mind, but his expression remained calm as he entered the building and arrived at the dim room where Pain's bodies had once been kept.
Kakashi Hatake of Konoha, Might Guy, and Jiraiya-sensei…
Konan looked at the three of them lying on the beds. Three empty spots lay beside those beds, and her heart tightened.
So even all six of Pain's Paths weren't enough?
"They've all been destroyed," Orochimaru shared the intel he knew. "Nagato was using Madara's eyes."
Even Yahiko's body…?
A pang of sadness rose in Konan's heart.
"You're talking too much," came a voice from the shadows. Zetsu emerged, the black side watching this seemingly defected yet untrustworthy man with a scrutinizing gaze.
Honestly, it didn't really matter if intel was leaked, because the plan was on the verge of collapse anyway.
Orochimaru smiled. "Oh, really? You, the 'jailer,' actually let one of your prisoners escape." As he spoke, he summoned a frenzy of serpents, which devoured Jiraiya's body.
Bang! A puff of white smoke appeared.
Black Zetsu didn't seem to care. It silently watched Orochimaru while slowly sinking into the ground.
It thought to itself, Controlling someone like one of the Sannin is far harder than killing them. But if you do kill them, once they're in the Pure Land, Link might just summon them back to the living…
As expected, that kid is the key issue—but what a shame.
Ever since Tobirama Senju had been summoned back, Zetsu hadn't found a chance to get near Link or spy on him. It had rarely visited the Land of Waves' base, either. Whether it was Tobirama or Karin of the Uzumaki Clan, both possessed powerful sensory abilities, and combined with Link's strange intel-gathering jutsu, even the slightest slip would be enough to expose Zetsu's presence.
Since even Tobirama was summoned, then the First Hokage must also have returned to this world—after all, that brat's jutsu could bring the deceased back at their peak condition, effectively a high-end version of Edo Tensei.
Madara's abilities were severely constrained by his Edo Tensei body. If he were to charge into Konoha and run into Hashirama, there was a real chance he'd be sealed. Meanwhile, Zetsu couldn't reveal itself too soon.
That's why, when Zetsu ran into the three Konoha ninja who were tracking Orochimaru, it quickly ambushed their biggest threat, Might Guy, successfully capturing all three. Exploiting that window, White Zetsu was sent out to hunt down the fleeing Uchiha Obito and Nagato.
Now that even Jiraiya—who'd been captured—had managed to escape, the stalling game was up.
Izanagi—that jutsu is really…
Black Zetsu recalled a recent mistake and felt a slight emotional ripple. Madara's curse mark was powerful but was nothing compared to the foulness of Izanagi, which could turn unfavorable outcomes into illusions and favorable ones into reality. By sacrificing a single Sharingan, Obito had rid himself of both the curse mark and Zetsu's control with Nagato's help, then fled with Kamui.
Between Mangekyo Sharingan: Kamui's mobility and a stash of spare Sharingan eyes for Izanagi, if all he wanted was to flee, no one could stop him. It was the first time Zetsu had seen a human with such a sickening skill combination.
Fortunately, Madara also obtained one of Kakashi Hatake's Mangekyo eyes, giving him Kamui as well. Since the two eyes' Kamui space was connected, Obito could no longer teleport around so freely. Still, hunting him and Nagato down was difficult. Their last known location was near the Land of Fire's borders.
At this point, exposure or Jiraiya's escape hardly mattered. The person Zetsu had chosen to revive its mother had ended up in a dead end anyway. Even if Madara got resurrected with the Rinne Tensei Technique, without the Ten-Tails, he couldn't reach that realm of power or unify everything to unseal its mother. It would all be meaningless.
Besides, even if Madara were resurrected, whether he could defeat a full-powered Hashirama and that brat Link together was still questionable. No matter how strong the Rinnegan was, Link's bizarre jutsu posed a huge threat. One would need Truth-Seeking Orbs—capable of negating all ninjutsu—to win decisively. Otherwise, just imagine Hashirama being supported by that kid—how could anyone under that level hope to prevail?
Maybe this plan is doomed to fail again. I should consider discarding Madara and picking someone else—like this generation's Indra reincarnation, Sasuke Uchiha…
Black Zetsu wasn't angry. A few more decades, victory or defeat—it had watched humanity for so long that it could wait for the next opportunity. As long as it didn't expose itself, there'd be no problem.
…
Konoha Village, Training Ground Seven.
"Madara… Zetsu?"
Hashirama Senju, having just been summoned via Edo Tensei, had scolded his younger brother a few times, greeted Tsuna with a smile, and started talking about how the dead shouldn't meddle in the world of the living—when suddenly, from a kid's mouth, he heard a bizarre story:
Something about a being called "Zetsu" who had reanimated Madara, who was trying to gather the Tailed Beasts for some unknown purpose. It all sounded like a major conspiracy.
"Wait." Hashirama stroked his chin thoughtfully. "Your voice does sound familiar…"
He smacked his palm in realization. "You're that brat who claimed to be me earlier!"
"...Huh?" x4
Tsunade, the Third Hokage, and the two advisors all looked puzzled. At this point, they had no clue what had happened to the Pure Land.
"Hahahaha!" Hashirama scratched the back of his head and laughed heartily. "Young folks these days really do have lively imaginations."
"Brother," Tobirama said, pulling the conversation back on track. "You said the mastermind is someone named Zetsu, and Madara's been reanimated too. Are we certain this intel is real?"
He looked serious. If Madara truly was back, then they couldn't simply let his brother's soul pass on; they needed to handle Madara first. Tobirama knew better than anyone just how strong that man was.
Without wasting words, Link took out several photographs he'd snapped just moments before using his "Hermit Purple"–like technique.
In the first photo, a bird's-eye view showed large portions of Amegakure's iron architecture collapsed after some fierce battle.
The second was a side shot of Jiraiya, Kakashi, and Might Guy lying in a row, while Orochimaru—smiling, one arm folded—stood beside them.
The third was a low-angle shot showing Edo Tensei Madara standing atop a tall point in Amegakure. His Rinnegan's circular pattern and the distinct Edo Tensei traits were clearly visible.
The fourth photo was a front view of Madara gripping his war fan, partially shrouded in darkness by Black Zetsu—the latter showing only one face on its body.
The fifth photo was taken from behind: someone in a black cloak with red clouds carrying another thin, long-haired man (in the same kind of cloak and collapsed in a wheelchair) as they dashed through a forest.
More images followed: various angles of eight different Jinchūriki, a calm lake, and a huge full moon overhead.
"My technique can take spirit photographs based on what I'm focusing on," Link explained. "I found out that Jiraiya and the others are being held in Amegakure. Madara captured them, Orochimaru was involved, and the real mastermind behind it all is Zetsu from Akatsuki. They're hunting two people, and their ultimate goal is to gather all nine Tailed Beasts."
He wanted to say more, but unfortunately, just like how he couldn't photograph the Sage of Six Paths, he also couldn't capture Kaguya Ōtsutsuki. Even thinking about Black Zetsu's endgame just yielded an image of the moon. People who knew the story might see the moon and the Tailed Beast plan and guess the truth, but for anyone else, the real aim was still impossible to discern. After all, who would suspect the actual final boss wasn't Akatsuki, the masked man, or Uchiha Madara, but Kaguya suddenly popping up in the end?
He was certain the Sage of Six Paths' mother was sealed within the moon. He knew the ones being chased were Uchiha Obito and Nagato. He also knew Madara wanted the Rinnegan and Rinne Rebirth to come back fully. But explaining all of that—especially how he'd gotten that information—was complicated. Blaming it all on "my jutsu" would only further alienate him from the village now that he'd become so valuable and closely tied to them.
Anyway, even if Konoha didn't know the ultimate truth, stopping Madara's resurrection and preventing him from obtaining the Rinnegan and capturing the Tailed Beasts would avert the threat of Kaguya. After learning that Madara was working alongside Orochimaru and Black Zetsu, Link's alarm bells had been ringing nonstop, and he couldn't rest until this was dealt with.
"Spirit photography that gathers intel based on your thoughts?" Tobirama's eyes seemed to gleam.
The newly formed Konoha "F4" (the Third Hokage, the two advisors, and Tsunade) wore equally peculiar expressions. They could all imagine how powerful that would be in wartime.
"This is definitely a jutsu that should never have been created," Hashirama said, looking at photos of his old friend with a nostalgic expression, before glancing at his brother.
"Brother…" Tobirama shot him a look, signaling to choose your words carefully.
Hashirama didn't care. "If that's how it is, then you just said you can summon me back with another jutsu, correct?"
Link gave a vigorous nod.
"Tobirama, be ready to fly!" Hashirama shouted sternly.
Tobirama waved his short arms. "Brother, what are you talking about?"
"Hahahaha!" Hashirama, used to his younger brother's support, called out reflexively, only to remember Tobirama was now a little kid. He let out a silly laugh and said, "Seeing you like this really brings me back, Tobirama."
As he spoke, he gestured at the height difference, carefree and beaming.
"Oh, really?" Tobirama replied, appearing casual on the surface. Inwardly, though, he was already plotting how to implement his "plan" once his brother was re-summoned as the "younger one."
"Hmm. It's a bit unsettling, sure—but Sarutobi, you've certainly grown old."
Hashirama's gaze swept over the F4 as he spoke rather rudely. "In any case, once I'm summoned again, let's head out right away."
"Got it!" Tsunade answered enthusiastically.
"First Hokage-sama!" the two advisors exclaimed in protest. They felt that charging in blindly without gathering more intel—especially with Link's abilities on hand—was too reckless. If a fight broke out and it became known that Konoha could freely use the dead, every other village would target them immediately.
They were stopped by the Third Hokage—no, Hiruzen Sarutobi—who wore a grim expression. "Madara has already been revived. This is truly dire. If not for my body…" He glanced at Link. At that moment, he wished more than anything to have a strong, healthy body to take part in the battle.
As for the risk of exposing their power over the dead, Hashirama's strength alone made that less of a concern.
Tobirama, arms crossed, said, "We'll make it a quick battle. If even Madara is just a pawn, this is going to be troublesome."
And those eyes in the photos…they seem to be the legendary Rinnegan. Still, Tobirama didn't believe that even the Rinnegan would let Madara surpass his elder brother. Not only was Madara's Edo Tensei body restricted, but Tobirama also had the utmost faith in Hashirama's power.
With those thoughts, he released the Edo Tensei.
~~~
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