"Hokage-sama."
Mabo glanced at Samui, hesitated briefly, then knelt respectfully.
Within the ranks of Konoha shinobi, she was considered among the most intelligent, so she understood the situation well.
"Stand up."
Natsume was quite satisfied with her attitude.
She didn't make a scene and needed minimal handling from him.
"Yes."
Mabo fully embraced her role as a subordinate.
"From now on, you'll follow Samui and act as my secretary."
Natsume gestured toward the beautiful blonde woman beside him.
"Yes."
Mabo felt slightly surprised.
While the position of secretary wasn't particularly high-ranking, it granted access to many of Konoha's secrets.
In other words, Natsume had no qualms about her being a spy.
And for good reason.
Even if she uncovered any secrets, would Kumogakure dare to start a war?
They wouldn't.
No amount of scheming or subterfuge could withstand absolute power.
Being a secretary wasn't bad either.
Mabo had initially thought she might end up as some kind of weapon.
"Once Yugito Nii wakes up, have her show you both around Konoha."
Natsume thought for a moment before adding, "She's in the room over there."
Mabo paused briefly before replying, "Understood."
She walked toward the room.
With her intelligence, she'd already somewhat anticipated this.
Opening the door, she immediately saw the sleeping Yugito Nii.
Soon after, Samui entered too.
The room was small, but spacious enough for several people.
Natsume had considered sending them to the secretary's office, but that would inevitably spark gossip.
As Hokage, he needed to maintain his image.
Besides, spreading such rumors wasn't appropriate either.
After they returned to their room, Natsume left the Hokage Office.
Konoha's high-security prison—also known simply as the prison.
Natsume hadn't made any changes here.
Since Obito Uchiha's capture, he had remained locked inside.
To prevent accidents, Natsume had ordered someone to remove his Mangekyo Sharingan eye.
Now, Obito Uchiha only had an ordinary eye left.
He sat in his cell, confused by the situation.
Because no one interrogated him, no one came to visit—not even removing his mask.
This showed overwhelming disdain.
But he could do nothing but accept it helplessly.
Black Zetsu had vanished without a trace.
And the Kaguya Ōtsutsuki he'd encountered earlier terrified him.
What intrigued him most now was one question—who was she, really?
Why did even his Kamui become useless against her?
Even when facing Nagato with the Rinnegan, he had never felt so disheveled before.
Just then, footsteps echoed through the corridor.
Obito Uchiha instantly widened his eyes.
It was Kakashi Hatake.
His former teammate.
Why him?
Could it be that Natsume already knew his true identity?
That didn't make sense.
Obito Uchiha fell silent in an instant.
Given the choice, he definitely wouldn't want to meet under these circumstances.
He'd imagined revealing everything to Kakashi before he created the new world.
"Heard anything about you claiming to be Madara Uchiha?"
Kakashi Hatake opened the cell door, stared at him, and prepared to begin the interrogation.
Obito Uchiha seemed dazed.
"Not talking?"
Kakashi gave a soft snort and said, "You don't have the luxury of silence under these circumstances."
As a former Anbu member, he was naturally ruthless when dealing with enemies. He was also skilled in various forms of interrogation. Not to mention, he possessed the Sharingan.
"What? You're going to torture me?"
Obito Uchiha looked at him.
"You…"
Kakashi's expression changed instantly. That voice sounded hauntingly familiar.
A chilling premonition gripped him.
Obito pulled off his mask himself. By now, escape was impossible—this meeting was inevitable.
"Obito?!"
Kakashi dropped to his knees, trembling as he shouted the name of the person before him.
"…"
Obito remained silent. Meeting like this felt like social death.
"You're actually still alive?"
Kakashi's face lit up with the joy of reuniting after a long separation.
In Kakashi's mind, Obito had died in that war, just like Rin Nohara. Their status as fallen comrades was equal. Rin was only considered alive through Impure World Reincarnation.
Now Obito was alive too—wait a minute.
Kakashi's smile froze. If what Natsume said was true, then was this really the best friend he knew?
"The Nine-Tails Incident…was it you?"
Kakashi took a deep breath and asked.
"It was me."
Obito admitted, "I killed Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki too."
"…"
Kakashi's pupils shrank in shock. He collapsed onto the floor, staring at him. The previous joy vanished entirely.
Unthinkable, yet undeniable.
"Why?"
Kakashi's voice suddenly rose, "He was your teacher!"
"Teacher?" Obito seemed provoked. "He was the Fourth Hokage—the fastest shinobi in the world—but always one step too slow! Why wasn't he fast enough? If it hadn't been for him, would Rin have died?"
"What does the teacher have to do with this?"
Chapter Not Finished Yet!!!
Even now, Kakashi defended Minato, saying, "Back then, the teacher was restrained by others. If he could have, he'd never have placed us in danger."
"Hahaha, you all have excuses!" Obito's throat moved as he screamed hoarsely, "Even you killing Rin had a reason. This world is beyond saving, so I'll destroy it and create a new one!"
Kakashi stared at him in shock.
His closest friend was completely unrecognizable. So foreign that it terrified him.
"Creating a new world isn't possible."
Kakashi grabbed his collar and demanded, "Have you lost your mind?"
"I'm not crazy!"
Obito Uchiha shoved him aside and said, "Once we've gathered all nine Tailed Beasts, we'll be able to summon the Ten-Tails. I will become the Ten-Tails' Jinchūriki and cast the Infinite Tsukuyomi over the entire world. Then, a new world will be born."
Kakashi finally understood why the Akatsuki had been after the jinchuriki.
But what exactly was the Infinite Tsukuyomi?
He knew of the Tsukuyomi—it was a genjutsu technique of Itachi Uchiha's Mangekyō Sharingan.
This was the information that Natsume had shown them before.
Since they needed to prepare for confrontations with Akatsuki members, the Hokage's bodyguard team had studied it in advance.
"In this new world, Rin will be reborn, and we can stay together forever."
When Obito finished speaking, his voice softened considerably.
Kakashi caught a glimpse of who he once was.
"Reborn?"
Kakashi looked at him and said, "There's no ninjutsu in this world that can bring people back to life, nor any technique that can create a new world."
"There is!"
Obito Uchiha glared at him, his eyes burning with rage. "Within Infinite Tsukuyomi, I am the master—I can create everything! Do you even understand? You don't know anything about the ultimate genjutsu!"
The wild look in Obito's eyes made Kakashi step back twice.
He simply couldn't comprehend how the once cheerful and bright boy had turned into someone like this.
"You're one of the Uchiha—you know genjutsu isn't real. It can never become true."
Kakashi took a deep breath and said.
"It can be real!"
Obito Uchiha roared furiously.
...
Kakashi fell silent.
Now, he could roughly understand Obito's logic.
Because he believed he could create a new world and revive everyone, Obito had begun his massacre.
But really, did Infinite Tsukuyomi truly have such power?
Kakashi wasn't convinced.
And even if they could be brought back through genjutsu—would they really be the same people?
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