Plans for Cooperation
"So… Ah Huo," Zetsu asked with a crooked smile, "what exactly are your plans?"
His tone was cooperative, but his gaze was sharp.
Curious.
Very curious.
Uchiha Yi smiled faintly.
"Right now, I need you to release a piece of information to the entire shinobi world."
He paused slightly.
"Every nation. Every village."
"Including Konoha."
Zetsu's expression shifted subtly.
Yi continued calmly:
"Within three days, I want everyone in the ninja world to know this."
"Can you do it?"
Zetsu tilted his head.
No hostility. No suspicion.
Only intrigue.
This cooperation was already progressing more smoothly than expected.
Uchiha Yi reached into his cloak and tossed a sealed scroll toward him.
"I"
Zetsu caught it instinctively.
Before he could speak, Yi interrupted calmly.
"If it's going to the entire world… you should read it first."
His tone was relaxed.
Completely unconcerned.
That confidence alone made the scroll heavier.
Zetsu's curiosity spiked instantly.
He opened it.
Behind the shadows, Obito Uchiha watched silently, hidden within warped space.
He wanted to see the contents too.
But revealing himself would expose that he had been eavesdropping.
So he stayed still.
Listening.
Waiting.
Not far away, two figures stood in the rain.
Pain and Konan.
Unnoticed.
During recent operations, Yi had developed a strange mentor–student dynamic with them.
Not quite allies.
Not quite strangers.
Something in between.
Because of that…
Their feelings toward him had become complicated.
And now, watching him approach Zetsu and Obito's territory
It didn't sit well.
But they had no justification to interfere.
So they simply observed from afar.
Silently.
"Hehehe…"
A sinister laugh escaped Zetsu's throat.
"It's interesting."
"Very interesting."
He rolled the scroll closed slowly.
"Leave this to me."
"Within three days… the entire world will know."
His eyes gleamed.
He had already understood Yi's intention.
Based on their earlier discussion about destroying Konoha
This move was brilliant.
A ripple that would become a tidal wave.
"Then I'll leave it to you," Yi said simply.
No hesitation.
No follow-up.
He turned and walked away.
Zetsu's intelligence network especially the White Zetsu spread across the world made him the perfect messenger.
No one else could accomplish this faster.
This partnership hadn't been impulsive.
It was calculated.
Uchiha Yi had considered other options.
Like Orochimaru.
But after deeper thought… he abandoned the idea.
Orochimaru was too unpredictable.
Too layered.
Too ambiguous in his feelings toward Konoha.
Sometimes enemy.
Sometimes observer.
Sometimes nostalgic patriot.
Trusting him would be gambling with a loaded blade.
Even the Fourth Kazekage incident proved that.
Working with Orochimaru meant accepting betrayal as a possibility.
Unacceptable.
Obito was worse.
His entire will revolved around Rin.
An unstable ideology driven by grief.
If someone invoked bonds… memories… hope…
He could flip.
Uchiha Yi had seen enough history to know that.
Entrusting a world-level plan to someone so emotionally volatile?
Suicide.
Pain and Konan were also uncertain.
Their convictions were strong but rigid.
Too easy to collapse under the right emotional trigger.
Their story had already proven that.
But Black Zetsu?
Different.
No emotional volatility.
No moral hesitation.
No loyalty beyond purpose.
More importantly
Their goals aligned.
Zetsu needed chaos.
Yi would create it.
There was no reason for refusal.
Only mutual benefit.
If he could truly secure Zetsu's intelligence network…
Then eliminating Konoha's old power structure would become far easier.
Otherwise, acting blindly would be impossible.
Because the truth was simple.
Uchiha Yi lacked intelligence.
Not power.
Information.
Take Konoha's old guard alone.
The faction surrounding the Third Hokage.
He knew the key figures:
Hiruzen Sarutobi.
Asuma.
Konohamaru.
From the Shimura line only Danzo.
From the Utatane line Koharu.
From the Mitokado line Homura.
And beyond those names?
Nothing.
No clan scale.
No hidden elites.
No shadow forces.
Trying to destroy an entire political bloc without intelligence?
A joke.
Even if those people stood in front of him, he might not recognize them.
And yet he had once declared he would destroy them.
Without intelligence, those bold words would eventually turn hollow.
That was unacceptable.
So until he had enough information
He would not alert the enemy prematurely.
Rash action was beneath him.
Patience created inevitability.
The chaos in the Land of Water had already delayed him enough.
But it wasn't too late.
Months had passed.
Did they think he had forgotten?
Now, with the Three-Tails' death disrupting Akatsuki's original timeline, the organization had shifted into a dormant phase.
Mercenary operations.
Low visibility.
Fragmented movement.
For most Akatsuki members, missions meant income.
There was even a saying in the shinobi world:
A ninja without missions is a starving ninja.
But that logic didn't apply to Yi.
Money?
Irrelevant.
If he needed funds, he could squeeze warlords like Gato dry.
Or exploit feudal daimyō politics.
Wealth was the easiest resource to acquire.
Time was far more valuable.
And now
He had time.
Time to sharpen the blade slowly.
As for power…
His recent gains were significant.
From Obito, he had acquired two forbidden techniques:
Izanagi.
Transcription Seal.
He had wanted Izanami.
But Obito refused.
And for good reason.
Izanami was the natural counter to Izanagi.
Giving it away would be like handing over a noose.
Even Obito wouldn't make that mistake.
Still, Izanagi alone was priceless.
With the additional Sharingan he possessed, he now held multiple resurrection contingencies.
Each use a rewrite of fate.
Not a technique.
A privilege.
His understanding of those forbidden jutsu was still shallow.
Time was required for mastery.
But another evolution had already occurred.
By devouring the cellular vitality contained within White Zetsu remains using his devouring flame technique, Yi had completed a crude but effective assimilation.
The result?
His chakra had surged dramatically.
Cells more active.
Regeneration faster.
Chakra production multiplied.
His reserves were now approaching the level of high-end chakra monsters like Kisame.
And yet
He hadn't reached saturation.
That surprised even him.
"Still not full…" he murmured.
That meant one thing.
His potential ceiling was far higher than expected.
Which also meant
He would need more White Zetsu remains.
Three days passed in a blink.
And exactly as promised
The world shook.
With Black Zetsu's silent network spreading whispers through underground channels, rogue ninjas, spies, and black markets
The message detonated across the shinobi world.
It spread like wildfire.
Every village heard it.
Every intelligence division confirmed it.
Every leader froze.
Because the target of the storm
Was Konohagakure.
And the declaration was unmistakable.
War was coming.
The entire ninja world turned its gaze toward the Hidden Leaf.
And beneath that attention
Many villages began to stir.
Restless.
Calculating.
Waiting for the first crack in the strongest village of the Five Great Nations.
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