"Because Black Zetsu was created hastily by Kaguya Ōtsutsuki, he doesn't possess the same immense power as his two brothers. What he does possess, however, is a lifespan that is almost infinite."
"For thousands of years, Black Zetsu has been scheming in the shadows, leaving behind numerous arrangements throughout the world."
"Finally, several decades ago, one of those preparations bore fruit—guiding Madara Uchiha to awaken the Rinnegan."
"To better carry out his plan, Black Zetsu appeared under the identity of Madara's will, further manipulating both Madara… and you."
Ren paused and looked directly at Obito.
"So the so-called Eye of the Moon Plan was never guidance left behind by the Sage of Six Paths."
"It was nothing more than a carefully crafted deception."
Obito remained silent.
His emotions were extremely complicated, and he didn't even know what expression to show Ren.
Pain?
Yes—when he realized that the plan he once believed to be humanity's last hope was nothing more than a joke, the pain in his heart was undeniable.
But what Obito couldn't quite accept was that beneath that pain…
He also felt a strange sense of relief.
Seeing this, Ren knew the timing was right and continued speaking.
"Honestly, considering your intelligence, I can understand why you became disappointed with the world and eventually walked down an extreme path."
"..."
Obito's expression darkened.
"Do you really have to keep mocking me with that 'Uchiha Fool Number Two' nonsense?"
"I'm not stupid. I just wasn't interested in useless knowledge."
Obito felt rather helpless.
Back when the 'Wisdom' evaluation was conducted, most of the tests consisted of theoretical knowledge.
Since he had never paid attention during theory classes, of course his scores were poor.
How could memorized academic knowledge determine someone's intelligence?
"You don't understand," Ren said, shaking his head seriously.
"That's exactly the problem."
"If you had actually paid attention in class, you would've realized that the world isn't as terrible as you imagine."
"Even though this world is full of conflict, it has always been progressing."
"In fact, compared to the past, the world has already become much better."
Obito frowned.
"What do you mean by that?"
Ren didn't keep him guessing.
"From a historical perspective, this world can roughly be divided into four eras:
the Ancient Erathe Early Civilization Erathe Warring States Periodand the modern era of hidden villages."
"In the Ancient Era, humans barely survived. They lacked clothing, food was scarce, and every day was a life-and-death struggle against wild beasts."
"People lived like animals, eating raw flesh and drinking blood."
"In the Early Civilization Era, which includes the time of Kaguya Ōtsutsuki, humanity had already learned agriculture, weaving, construction, and basic infrastructure."
"People's survival needs were somewhat guaranteed—they no longer had to constantly fight beasts just to live."
"Then came the Warring States Period."
"At that time, people were already striving for better lives. Conflicts arose because they sought greater benefits and resources."
"Although wars were frequent, this actually meant living standards had improved again."
"After all, if people were still starving, who would have the strength to pursue wealth or power?"
"Later, with the establishment of the One Country, One Village System, conflicts became centralized, larger in scale, and evolved into massive wars."
"Of course, life remained difficult for those living in war zones."
"But in powerful nations like the Land of Fire, Land of Lightning, and Land of Earth, people's lives were relatively stable."
"That in itself is a kind of progress."
Obito fell into thought.
Seeing that, Ren added:
"Of course, that's only a macro-level analysis."
"I'm not saying the suffering you saw doesn't exist."
"The lower classes of this world are still living in hardship."
"But the reason isn't simply war."
"It's the conflict between social classes."
"And that's where your thinking went wrong."
"Peace alone does not guarantee that everyone in the world will live a happy life."
"If you truly want to change the world and free everyone from suffering…"
"Ending war alone will never be enough."
A flash of realization appeared in Obito's eyes.
During his travels through the shinobi world, he had witnessed plenty of suffering.
Even in the wealthy Land of Fire or the fertile Land of Rivers, many ordinary civilians still lived harsh lives.
At the time, Obito had assumed endless wars were the sole cause.
But now, after hearing Ren's explanation, he realized that might not be entirely true.
Whether during war or peace, the lowest classes always struggled.
Yet there were also people whose lives remained luxurious no matter the era.
Was this what people called social hierarchy?
Obito looked at Ren seriously.
"Then what about your idea?"
"If you understand things this clearly, you must have already found a way to change the world."
Ren answered confidently.
"Of course."
"I've examined almost every possible method for changing the world—and the outcomes they lead to."
"And eventually, I discovered the most correct path."
Obito's eyes lit up.
"What path?"
Ren spoke a single word.
"Unification."
"Unification?!"
"Yes—unification."
Ren nodded and explained further.
"But I'm not talking about merely unifying territory."
"We must unify understanding, standpoints, and social structure."
"First, we must acknowledge a basic truth."
"As long as humans exist, conflict will always exist."
"Wherever people gather, there will be interests."
"And where interests exist, there will be disputes, schemes, hostility, and struggle."
"Once humanity began producing surplus value, the problem of resource distribution appeared."
"And the balance of human hearts was broken."
"Every person has different experiences, different ways of thinking, and different perspectives."
"That's why people have different demands from society—and why conflicts arise."
"So the best we can do is minimize conflict as much as possible."
"And unification is the most effective method for doing so."
"Think about the clans of Konoha."
"During the Warring States Period, those clans fought to the death."
"But once they all became citizens of Konohagakure, conflicts still existed—yet they no longer reached the level of annihilating each other."
"The same principle applies."
"If we treat each hidden village the way Konoha treats its clans…"
"Then by unifying the shinobi world—unifying understanding and standpoints—the scale of conflict will naturally shrink."
Ren's eyes sharpened slightly.
"And that…"
"Is only the first step."
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