In the dark underground cave,
With a complicated expression, Obito opened the coffin where Uchiha Madara's body had been stored. Inside lay a specially preserved corpse that looked more like a man peacefully asleep than someone long dead.
From a personal emotional standpoint, Obito did not want to resurrect Uchiha Madara. He would much rather let him sleep forever.
The reason was simple.
If Madara had been able to manipulate Uchiha Itachi into awakening the Mangekyō Sharingan, then there was no reason he could not have manipulated Obito as well. The situation in Kirigakure during the reign of the Fourth Mizukage was almost identical to when Obito himself had controlled the Fourth Mizukage.
It could be said that even the awakening of his Mangekyō Sharingan—and even Rin's death—had been orchestrated by Uchiha Madara.
However, what truly filled him with despair was not Uchiha Madara, the mastermind behind the scenes, but this absurd world itself—a living hell filled with killing and betrayal.
Suppressing the turmoil in his heart, Obito looked at Black Zetsu beside him and extended his hand.
"Give me the Impure World Reincarnation technique. I'll revive Uchiha Madara immediately."
Black Zetsu glanced at Obito before handing over the Impure World Reincarnation technique.
After receiving it, Obito casually skimmed through the contents, then formed hand seals and slapped his palm onto the ground, creating a complicated summoning array.
Immediately afterward, a White Zetsu body transformed into sheets of paper and flew toward Uchiha Madara's corpse.
A short while later, Uchiha Madara, who had been "sleeping" for many years, slowly opened his eyes.
The first people he saw were Black Zetsu and Obito, and he immediately asked:
"Black Zetsu, Obito, how is the Eye of the Moon Plan progressing?"
Obito and Black Zetsu remained silent.
Only then did Madara notice something wrong with his body, causing him to frown.
"Impure World Reincarnation?"
"I don't need this kind of resurrection. Didn't you have Nagato use Samsara of Heavenly Life Technique?"
Black Zetsu lowered his head and said:
"There have been some changes to the plan. We could only revive you temporarily."
Madara dusted off his clothes, stood up, and said:
"Oh? What happened?"
"Could it be that you can't even control little Nagato? I'm very disappointed."
Obito's expression shifted slightly before he said:
"Madara, Nagato's strength has long surpassed that of the current Five Kage."
"By creating the Six Paths of Pain to share the burden, he has mastered nearly all of the Rinnegan's abilities."
"And besides Nagato, we've encountered even stronger enemies whose strength exceeded our expectations."
"Stronger enemies?"
Madara's interest was immediately piqued.
As the former leader of the Uchiha Clan, what he desired most was a worthy battle.
Yet in his era, only Hashirama Senju had qualified as an opponent.
"Let's hear it."
Obito glanced at Madara and snorted.
"It's a ninja named Uzumaki Naruto."
"He completely controls the Nine-Tails as a perfect Jinchūriki and is immune to most genjutsu."
"A perfect Nine-Tails Jinchūriki... Heh."
"He's not a bad opponent."
Madara's fighting spirit rose instantly.
However, after carefully examining his body, he frowned again.
This body could only exert a fraction of the strength he possessed in his prime.
Against such an opponent, victory was not guaranteed.
After thinking for a moment, Madara turned toward Black Zetsu and said:
"We can discuss capturing the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki later."
"First, tell me about the major events that have taken place in the ninja world over the years."
Black Zetsu nodded and began recounting the major events of the past decade.
When Madara heard about the Nine-Tails Attack, he glanced at Obito in the distance, his gaze becoming noticeably colder.
After his death, Obito had actually returned to attack Konoha and had indirectly caused the deaths of both a Hokage and a Jinchūriki.
From that perspective, his few months of educating Obito had clearly been effective.
Obito had indeed become a loyal supporter of the Eye of the Moon Plan.
Then came the story of the Uchiha Clan Massacre and how Itachi had been manipulated into awakening his Mangekyō Sharingan.
Madara grew even more wary of Obito.
The boy seemed to have sensed the truth behind the old arrangements and had already developed thoughts of rebellion.
Otherwise, there would not have been command seals hidden inside Madara's reincarnated body.
As time passed, Black Zetsu continued speaking about the founding of Uzushio Village, the Rain Village's invasion of the Land of Grass, and eventually the Chūnin Exams that had taken place not long ago.
Madara showed little interest in most of the people mentioned.
The one exception was Naruto Uzumaki, the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki.
At only thirteen or fourteen years old, Naruto had become a perfect Jinchūriki capable of subduing the Nine-Tails.
His strength had even surpassed Nagato, who possessed the Rinnegan.
Such rapid growth reminded Madara of Hashirama.
Hashirama had been the same kind of monster.
Within just a few years, he had risen from an ordinary ninja to the pinnacle of the shinobi world.
Although Madara had managed to keep pace with Hashirama, he had ultimately needed external power like the Nine-Tails just to force a draw.
Could this boy named Naruto be Hashirama's reincarnation?
Madara found himself wondering exactly that.
Still, he now possessed the power of the Rinnegan.
Even the original Hashirama would be no match for him.
After pondering for a moment, Madara folded his arms across his chest and walked toward Obito.
Staring at the unmasked Obito, he asked calmly:
"Obito, what are your plans moving forward?"
Obito raised his head and looked directly at Madara.
Clearly, Madara had already discovered the command seal hidden within his body.
The corners of Obito's mouth slowly curled upward.
So what if I placed a command seal inside your heart?
Your leash is still in my hands...
However, Madara's question reminded Obito that he had not actually decided what to do after Madara's resurrection.
Should they head to Konoha and eliminate the troublesome Nine-Tails Jinchūriki first before beginning the Tailed Beast collection?
Or should they go to Amegakure first, deal with Nagato's rebellion, reclaim the Rinnegan, and then proceed with the Tailed Beast collection plan?
After thinking for a while, Obito looked at Madara and Black Zetsu and said:
"Before implementing the Eye of the Moon Plan, we need to deal with the traitors within the organization."
"First, we kill Nagato."
"Then we collect the remaining Tailed Beasts."
"Finally, we deal with the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki and complete the Eye of the Moon Plan."
Obito's idea was simple—deal with the easy targets before the difficult ones.
After all, the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki had Kakashi by his side.
They needed to strengthen themselves first before confronting the strongest Jinchūriki.
Nagato, however, was different.
Obito already possessed an overwhelming advantage against him.
And with Uchiha Madara joining the battle, their chances of defeating Nagato and the Six Paths of Pain would increase dramatically.
Madara nodded slightly.
Obito's plan happened to align perfectly with his own intentions.
Although his current body could use Rinnegan abilities, it was still not a true Rinnegan.
Only the genuine Rinnegan could control the Ten-Tails, cause the God Tree to bloom, and cast the Infinite Tsukuyomi upon the world.
Therefore, he first needed to seize control of Nagato and force him to use Samsara of Heavenly Life Technique, allowing Madara to be truly resurrected.
For the sake of the Eye of the Moon Plan, enduring a few temporary grievances and obeying Obito's orders for now was entirely acceptable.
As for how to control Nagato...
Madara turned toward Black Zetsu at his side, and the two exchanged meaningful glances.
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