At these words, the usually silent Black Zetsu opened his eyes wide. A strong sense of foreboding rose in him as he looked at Nagato.
"I was curious back then who could be called a 'monster' by Zetsu, but I had to set it aside due to my condition."
As Black Zetsu feared, Nagato continued, "Now that I can move again, I plan to see this so-called monster for myself. We will see if he is worthy of joining Akatsuki…"
"No!"
Before Nagato could finish, a hoarse voice interrupted him.
"No."
Obito Uchiha froze for a moment and turned his head to look at Zetsu beside him. No, more accurately, it should be Black Zetsu. Even he had not expected the usually silent Black Zetsu to speak up so suddenly.
"Reason," Nagato said calmly.
Under the questioning gazes of Obito and Nagato, Black Zetsu's liquid-like body rippled slightly. After a moment, it spoke in a serious tone, saying that the so-called monster was very strong, extremely strong, and that as the leader of Akatsuki, Nagato should not put himself in danger.
This explanation was unacceptable not only to Nagato but even to Obito. Now that Nagato could move freely, the power he could display was far beyond what Zetsu or even Pain could match. As long as that monster was still human, it was impossible for it to stand against someone who possessed the Rinnegan.
"That's enough, Zetsu. I am a god now. You are not thinking that some mortal could defeat me, are you?" Nagato clearly did not accept Black Zetsu's explanation either, but after a brief pause he turned to Obito and said that since Zetsu was so certain, then Madara should act together with him.
Hearing this, Obito Uchiha instinctively wanted to speak and refuse on behalf of Zetsu, but he saw Black Zetsu turn its body to look at him. The meaning was obvious, it wanted him to agree to Nagato's proposal. If it were possible, Black Zetsu would never allow Nagato to try to approach that suspected Outsider existence, even if that being was most likely no longer in the Land of Hot Water.
However, Black Zetsu also understood that continuing to block him would inevitably make Nagato suspicious. The two impulsive words just now had already made it regretful, because they were completely out of line with its usual taciturn nature. Since it could no longer stop this, the best choice was to let Obito go along and ensure that Nagato would not come into direct contact with it.
Obito did not know what Black Zetsu was thinking at this moment. In his understanding, Black Zetsu represented the will of Madara Uchiha. So when he saw the signal from Black Zetsu, his guard immediately went up, and his first thought was that the monster really was powerful, powerful enough that even Madara Uchiha was wary.
After a moment of silence, Obito Uchiha nodded and agreed to Nagato's suggestion. No matter what, the Rinnegan could not be allowed to slip away.
At the same time, inside Amegakure, Konan slowly opened her eyes. The person sitting in front of her, Yunchuan Hyuga, smiled and asked how it went, while Hanzo also looked at her with curiosity. Konan looked at the man before her, someone far more mysterious than "Madara," and a trace of shock and wariness flashed in her eyes before she nodded.
"Just like you said, Madara agreed."
Indeed, the final outcome was exactly as "Shadow" had predicted. Even Zetsu's reaction had been within his expectations, and "Madara" had actually cared about what Black Zetsu thought. This made Konan finally unable to hold back as she asked what he really wanted to do, while the silent Hanzo also raised his head.
At this moment, the two of them had already realized that everything now seemed to be guided by "Shadow." This was also the reason Konan felt shocked and wary. Yet strangely, she could not feel hostility toward "Shadow" the way she did toward "Madara."
She could not sense any clear purpose from him, nor could she feel him trying to use Akatsuki for anything. If Nagato had really been treated as a pawn since childhood, then the one who exposed the lies and revealed the truth had undoubtedly saved her, Nagato, and the future of Akatsuki. So what was it all for?
"Hm?" Yunchuan Hyuga raised his head and smiled in mild confusion, saying that he had already explained it, that they only needed to do whatever they wanted to do. He paused briefly and added that if Konan insisted on an answer, then he was merely clearing away pests and trimming branches while waiting to see what kind of flower would bloom.
That was all.
Konan stared at him blankly, able to hear nothing in his words but sincerity. Just do what we want to do, and only trimming branches while waiting to see the flowers. The words echoed in her mind, leaving her momentarily at a loss.
A notification rang out, declaring that his lies had been judged as empty talk, sweet words, affected deception, and killing with a borrowed knife. Hanzo, Nagato, and Konan experienced intense emotional fluctuations, reaching the level of deep belief, and he gained 2000 Reality Points. His Remaining Reality Points rose to 14254.
Hearing the prompt in his mind, Yunchuan Hyuga showed a calm smile beneath the shadows on his face. Of course he was not without desires, he simply did not need to speak them aloud like Obito did. Turning his own desires into theirs without them realizing it was his way.
Since "Madara" had already been drawn out, what came next was clear. Under the gazes of Hanzo and Konan, Yunchuan Hyuga slowly stood up and said with a smile that he would help Nagato tear off that man's mask. Before that, he said, he needed to make some preparations and asked if they could find him a room.
Hanzo stood as well and led him into his private chamber, then considerately withdrew. After Hanzo left, Yunchuan Hyuga sat down cross-legged, took out a White Zetsu sealed by a Sealing Technique from the Scroll, and then took out a bloody chunk of flesh. It was flesh taken from Tenzo.
He had always wondered why, despite possessing the Otsutsuki Bloodline, he could not awaken those Kekkei Genkai. It was probably not because he lacked mastery of earth and water nature transformations of Chakra. If that were enough, then it would not be only Hashirama Senju and Tenzo who could use Wood Release.
He could choose to directly devour or transplant like Hiruko or Obito, but in his view both methods had drawbacks. With the Otsutsuki Bloodline, he should have a better option. As his understanding deepened, he gradually realized that the life essence of the Otsutsuki Clan seemed to be fundamentally different from that of humans made of cells.
Why did the Otsutsuki Clan naturally possess so many abilities, was it because of the Otsutsuki Bloodline, and what exactly was the essence of that bloodline? He thought of the effect of the Wedge, of the divine techniques of the Otsutsuki Clan, and even of the meaning behind their name. Isshiki Otsutsuki, Kinshiki, Urashiki, Momoshiki.
If the Otsutsuki Bloodline he possessed was an initial formula, did he need to fill in other formulas to calculate different results? Why did Tenzo's Wood Release manifest as wood, while Hashirama's appeared as trees, and Obito Uchiha's became thorns? The manifestations differed, yet there seemed to be a shared core.