Not long ago, in a dark corner not far from the valley where Shimura Danzō and Hanzo of the Salamander were battling.
A masked Uchiha Obito and Zetsu hid within the shadows, silently observing the situation unfold.
(Note: This opening line continues context from the previous scene.)
Both Obito and Zetsu possessed extraordinary mobility.
Obito wielded a space–time ninjutsu—his Mangekyō Sharingan technique, Kamui—while Zetsu could ignore terrain entirely with the Mayfly Technique (Kagerō no Jutsu).
Because of this, their movement speed far exceeded that of ordinary shinobi.
Before long, they caught up with Yahiko and Konan, who were fleeing.
Ahead of Yahiko and Konan, space suddenly distorted atop a hill. A spiral ripple appeared in midair—
and Uchiha Obito emerged from the vortex.
Moments later, Zetsu's figure rose silently from the ground.
Before Obito could speak, Black Zetsu spoke first.
"I asked the nearby White Zetsu. Nagato isn't anywhere in this area."
"So… what do we do?"
Obito frowned.
"A Shadow Clone can transmit its memories back to the original body."
"So the last information Nagato will receive is that Yahiko and Konan were being hunted by Root shinobi."
"If Yahiko and Konan die here, the blame can easily be pushed onto Shimura Danzō."
"And even if Hanzo had no intention of harming them, Nagato will still grow suspicious of him."
"It won't be as perfect as originally planned…"
"But it will still allow Nagato to begin seeing the darkness of this world."
After only a moment of consideration—
Obito decided to kill Yahiko and Konan.
Black Zetsu hesitated slightly.
"But if Nagato finds out that we killed them, he would rather die than help us complete our plan."
"His personal will might not matter much…"
"But if he becomes determined to oppose us, he could still cause considerable trouble."
"The risk is too great."
For thousands of years, Black Zetsu had plotted tirelessly to rescue Kaguya Ōtsutsuki from her seal within the moon.
He knew better than anyone that even the smallest detail could influence events far into the future.
Because of this, he didn't want unnecessary complications that might jeopardize the plan.
Obito's eyes flickered.
After a brief silence, he spoke.
"Then we simply make sure he never finds out it was us."
"We'll disguise ourselves as Root shinobi."
"Konan can live—she can return to report to Nagato."
"But Yahiko must die."
"That boy's influence on Nagato is far too strong."
From his previous encounters with Nagato, Obito had realized something.
Trying to persuade Nagato with words alone was almost impossible—
especially while Yahiko was still alive.
Yahiko and Konan were Nagato's closest companions.
Nagato always considered their feelings before making any decision.
Konan was manageable.
She tended to follow the lead of both Yahiko and Nagato rather than asserting her own ideas.
Letting her live would not matter much.
But Yahiko was different.
Not only did he possess strong convictions of his own—
he also deeply influenced Nagato's will.
If Obito wanted to change Nagato's path—
Yahiko had to be removed first.
There was another reason as well.
Sometimes, when Obito looked at Yahiko—
he faintly saw his own reflection.
That was something Obito could not accept.
Black Zetsu said nothing more.
Instead, he looked deeply at Obito.
After spending some time observing him, Black Zetsu had realized something.
Although Obito had accepted Madara Uchiha's plan, he still had his own ambitions.
Perhaps Obito had never truly intended to revive Madara.
Perhaps—
he intended to carry out the Eye of the Moon Plan himself.
Black Zetsu did not expose Obito's thoughts.
After all, Madara himself was merely another piece on the board.
As long as Obito continued moving toward the Eye of the Moon Plan, that was enough.
If Obito failed—
Black Zetsu could always revive Madara as a backup.
Besides, Obito currently seemed to be in a rebellious phase, full of defiance.
To avoid disrupting the larger plan, Black Zetsu decided it was best to simply go along with him.
Obito acted immediately.
He reached out toward a White Zetsu standing beside Black Zetsu.
Half of Obito's body had been reconstructed using Hashirama Cells, giving it certain plant-like traits.
Because of this, White Zetsu could easily merge with his body, almost like wearing clothing.
The White Zetsu offered no resistance.
Following Obito's hand, it crawled onto his body and fused with him.
"Impersonation Technique."
Obito's body twisted and warped.
Moments later, he had transformed into a masked Root shinobi.
Unlike ordinary Transformation Techniques, the Impersonation Technique worked by absorbing a target's chakra and reproducing it perfectly.
Even someone extremely familiar with the person—or a skilled sensory-type shinobi—would not be able to detect the disguise.
During the Fourth Great Ninja War in the original timeline, White Zetsu clones had infiltrated the Allied Shinobi Forces using this ability.
After absorbing chakra from their victims, they disguised themselves and slaughtered shinobi from within, throwing the alliance into chaos.
In the end, it was only Naruto Uzumaki's Nine-Tails Chakra Mode, with its ability to sense malicious intent, that exposed them.
Under normal circumstances—
no one could see through White Zetsu's Impersonation Technique.
"I'm going."
After briefly informing Black Zetsu, Obito dashed toward Yahiko and Konan.
He made no effort to hide his presence.
Before long, Yahiko and Konan spotted him approaching.
"Be careful! It's a Root shinobi!"
Seeing Obito's attire, Yahiko suspected nothing.
He immediately pulled Konan to a halt.
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"
Without hesitation, Obito unleashed a massive fireball—over ten meters in diameter—toward the two of them.
"So strong!"
"Water Release: Wild Water Wave!"
Shock flashed through Yahiko's eyes as he used his most practiced Water Release technique with all his strength.
In elemental interactions, Water Release counters Fire Release.
But Yahiko's technique was completely overwhelmed by Obito's Great Fireball infused with powerful Fire Release chakra nature transformation.
Compared to Nagato—who possessed Uzumaki bloodline vitality and the Rinnegan—
and Konan—who had developed the unique Paper Release technique—
Yahiko's talent could only be considered average.
Under Jiraiya's guidance, Yahiko had trained from an ordinary civilian with no foundation to an elite chūnin in just a few years.
That alone was already the result of tremendous effort.
In the original timeline, if Nagato had not turned Yahiko's body into the Deva Path of Pain, Yahiko would likely have reached only jōnin-level strength at most.
Meanwhile, Obito had already awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan.
Under Madara Uchiha's personal guidance, he had mastered numerous ninjutsu and secret techniques.
His strength had already reached Kage-level.
Against Yahiko and Konan in their current state—
he had overwhelming superiority.
The massive Great Fireball quickly evaporated Yahiko's Water Release.
Although it shrank slightly, it continued rushing toward the two of them.
"Watch out! Dodge!"
Yahiko shouted.
He and Konan leapt in opposite directions.
And that—
was exactly what Obito wanted.
If Yahiko and Konan had stayed together, Obito might accidentally kill Konan as well.
"Fire Release: Fire Dragon Flame Bullet!"
After separating them, Obito unleashed another B-rank Fire Release technique toward Yahiko.
Blazing flames surged forward from the front, left, and right, sealing off Yahiko's escape routes.
The relentless barrage of ninjutsu left Yahiko overwhelmed.
His eyes widened as he watched the flames closing in.
Am I… going to die?
◇ BONUS & SUPPORT ◇
◇ 1 bonus chapter for every 10 reviews — drop a comment!
◇ 1 bonus chapter for every 100 Power Stones.
◇ Read 70 chapters ahead on P@treon → patreon.com/Sagamaster789