Black Zetsu was completely lost.
He had no idea what to do anymore.
The moment an Ōtsutsuki appeared, a treacherous thought even flashed through his mind.
"Maybe... it's actually safer for Mother to stay sealed?"
At least while she was sealed, she was safe.
But the problem was, his very existence—the mission of his birth—was to bring Mother back. If he did nothing now, wouldn't that be a betrayal of his purpose?
Besides, after all these years of effort, he had finally glimpsed the light at the end of the tunnel.
Even if Uchiha Madara had chosen an idiot like Obito as his successor, at the very least, things had been steadily progressing.
To give up now—his heart simply couldn't accept it.
"Hey, Blacky, what are you even doing right now?"
Black Zetsu was lost in confusion, but White Zetsu was far from content. Standing out in the blazing sun wasn't comfortable in the slightest.
"And what's been going on with you lately? You've been acting all gloomy and preoccupied."
"Shut up. You wouldn't understand."
White Zetsu's interruption left Black Zetsu irritated.
"My troubles are far beyond the comprehension of an idiot like you."
"Hey, not all idiots are the same, you know. Take Obito—he's an idiot too, but he's always sulking. I'm also an idiot, but I'm cheerful every day. Heehee!"
"…"
Black Zetsu felt his intelligence had just been personally insulted. Was he seriously arguing that idiots just come in different flavors of stupid?
"C'mon, tell me! Who knows, maybe I could actually help you figure something out."
White Zetsu sounded utterly confident, enough to make Black Zetsu want to roll his eyes.
"If I had to rely on you for help, then we'd really be doomed."
"Oh."
White Zetsu nodded solemnly. But then, to his surprise, Black Zetsu suddenly spoke again.
"You'll never understand my confusion. Everything I've done—every move I've made—was all for a single goal. And now, I'm starting to realize… things might be even worse than before."
"…"
White Zetsu blinked. Didn't you just say relying on me would spell doom?
"Do you know what that feels like?" Black Zetsu sighed deeply.
He felt completely stifled. The news that Uchiha Obito had been brought back had nearly driven him to despair.
If he didn't vent some of this frustration, he felt like he might fall apart completely.
"That feeling of working so hard for so long, only to end up with nothing—it's terrifying."
"Mhm, I get it. It's like how no matter what I do, I can never take a proper dump. I've never experienced the joy of pooping, so yeah, I totally understand you."
White Zetsu nodded with the utmost seriousness.
That statement nearly pushed Black Zetsu to strangle the fool on the spot. But in the end, he just sighed again.
"It's not the same. We might be up against an enemy beyond imagination, and all our preparations might not be enough to face it."
"You'll never understand just how terrifying they truly are—or the power they wield. With people like that around, we…"
"Wait, they? Isn't it just one guy?"
White Zetsu tilted his head, puzzled, and scratched his chin.
"Oh! I get it! Like cockroaches, right? If you see one, there's bound to be a whole nest?"
"Idiot! Even dealing with one of them is nearly impossible!"
Black Zetsu could no longer hold it in—he was seriously considering strangling this bastard beside him.
He was already close to total despair. Maybe he should just give in and go full 'I'm tired, let it all burn' and take these bastards down with him?
"Hey, hey, hey, don't get mad, don't get mad! You're even scarier than Obito!"
White Zetsu immediately sensed the killing intent radiating off Black Zetsu, but still grinned as he spoke.
"So what if there's just one of him? We've got numbers! More people fighting fewer—why should we be scared?"
"Fool. In front of a true powerhouse, numbers are meaningless."
"Then… why don't we try making someone like that ourselves?"
"Idiot! You think someone like that can just be replicated?!"
Black Zetsu roared in frustration—but then, something in his mind clicked.
His mother—and her kin—were indeed unique, their power unfathomable.
But… that didn't necessarily mean there was no way to get close.
Take Uchiha Madara and Senju Hashirama, for instance. Their strength didn't quite measure up to the Ōtsutsuki, but that didn't mean they were helpless.
"Besides, that pawn Madara… If everything had gone according to plan, he would've been powerful enough—not far off from that 'good big brother' of mine."
Roughly speaking, anyway…
"Power like that should still be enough to cause serious trouble."
Black Zetsu realized—maybe it really was too soon to give up. After everything he'd invested, how could he just abandon it now?
Maybe there was still room to struggle… Maybe he could run more simulations… Maybe—there was still more he could do?
"Hey, hey, hey! Looks like you're back on track, Blacky!"
White Zetsu immediately noticed the shift in Black Zetsu's expression and beamed at him.
"See? I told you! Talk to me, and maybe I can help. Sure, I'm an idiot—but not a useless idiot!"
"…True. You may be an idiot, but you're occasionally useful."
Black Zetsu nodded almost unconsciously—then shook his head again.
"But this isn't something I can rush. Nothing about it is simple."
Reviving Uchiha Madara wasn't a trivial task, and finding someone else to take his place wouldn't be easy either.
Especially if he had to sacrifice White Zetsu units in the process—it could bring more complications. He needed to think it through thoroughly.
'But Mother… I will do everything I can for you.'
Raising his head, he looked toward the sky once more—except this time, his eyes weren't clouded with confusion.
'…Still, this Ōtsutsuki Genshiki—why does something feel off about him?'
'Ōtsutsuki Genshiki… Kitagawa Gen…'
'Why do all the troublesome guys these days have 'Gen' in their name?'
...
Mount Myōboku
"Little Jiraiya, it's been a while since you last visited us here at Mount Myōboku."
Within Mount Myōboku, Jiraiya was walking with Fukasaku and Shima perched on his shoulders as they made their way toward the hall where the Great Toad Sage was enshrined.
Scratching his head, Jiraiya gave a sheepish smile.
"Things have been hectic lately, so I haven't had a chance to come. Now that I finally have some free time—and I've got a few questions that need answering—I figured…"
"Damn it, so you only show up when you need something, huh?"
Shima frowned at those words and gave Jiraiya a firm whack on the head.
"You little rascal, did you really forget all about us? Little Jiraiya, you—"
"Sorry, sorry! My bad, totally my bad!"
Jiraiya rubbed his head sheepishly, relieved when Fukasaku stepped in to smooth things over.
"So, what's this important matter, Little Jiraiya?"
"There's been a lot going on in the shinobi world lately, and…"
Jiraiya opened his mouth but found himself unsure how to explain it. In the end, he just let out a sigh and said, "And I think I've encountered one of my former students… the one who possessed the Rinnegan."
"…Hmm?"
That statement left both toad sages momentarily stunned.
"But didn't we investigate that for you back then?" Fukasaku asked. "The intel we got said they were all dead. What's going on?"
"I don't know either. But now… he might have become our enemy—and even the enemy of the entire shinobi world."
Jiraiya's face was full of bitterness. These weren't easy things for him to admit.
"Besides that, someone even more troublesome has emerged in the shinobi world. That's the main reason I came this time."
"Well… sounds like real trouble,"
Fukasaku and Shima both wore serious expressions.
"Let's pick up the pace—we're almost there."
Jiraiya gave a silent nod, saying nothing more. They accelerated, and before long, they arrived at the deepest part of the hall.
"Great Toad Sage."
Fukasaku leapt from Jiraiya's shoulder and spoke respectfully as he looked toward the massive toad reclining in front of them.
"Little Jiraiya has come."
"Oh? Little Jiraiya's here, is he?"
The Great Toad Sage squinted and smiled—but a moment later, his expression turned puzzled.
"Wait… who's Little Jiraiya again?"
"…"
Jiraiya was used to the old toad's forgetfulness by now and didn't even react.
"You really are senile!" Shima muttered under her breath as she also hopped down beside Fukasaku.
"It's Little Jiraiya—the boy who came to train with us all those years ago."
"Oh! I remember now."
The old toad finally seemed to come to his senses and chuckled.
"Getting old… my memory's not what it used to be."
Still smiling, he slowly turned his head toward Shima.
"So, Little Jiraiya, what brings you here this time? Have you come to ask about the Child of Prophecy?"
"…"
Jiraiya almost cracked, but still answered patiently.
"It's not about the Child of Prophecy—at least not exactly. There's trouble in the shinobi world. I did once believe I had found the Child of Prophecy—a boy with the eyes of the Sage of Six Paths. But now…"
"The eyes of the Sage of Six Paths, you say?"
The Great Toad Sage's eyes opened just a bit wider upon hearing that.
A thousand years ago, he had assisted the two brothers—the Sage of Six Paths and his sibling—in battling the calamity of the world: Ōtsutsuki Kaguya.
That battle had nearly torn the world apart. If they hadn't sealed Kaguya in the final moments, he couldn't even imagine what the world would be like now.
Those eyes had left a deep impression on him—but in his dreams… they hadn't looked like that at all.
"This situation… certainly seems troublesome."
The Great Toad Sage fell into a thoughtful silence for a moment before slowly shaking his head.
"However, this wasn't something I foresaw in my dreams. Perhaps there's been an error… or perhaps, this is a trial the true Child of Prophecy must face."
"A trial the true Child of Prophecy must undergo?"
Jiraiya fell silent.
He remembered the last prophecy the Great Toad Sage had given him: "A boy with sky-blue eyes, one who plays with the Tailed Beasts."
Could it be that Nagato was never the one—even if he hadn't died?
"Little Jiraiya, you must stay calm and believe in yourself. Perhaps… this is part of the test as well."
"A test…"
Jiraiya was at a loss for words, but in the end, he simply nodded.
His own student becoming the trial for another student… it was a bit too cruel for him to accept easily.
"I understand, Great Toad Sage."
He let out a helpless sigh, while the Great Toad Sage merely smiled, unconcerned.
"No need to worry, Little Jiraiya… So, what was it you came to ask me?"
"…."
Jiraiya felt a headache coming on, but fortunately, the conversation hadn't veered too far off course. He quickly continued.
"There's something else. A strange man has appeared in the shinobi world… He's collecting Tailed Beast chakra. That's also part of why I came."
"Tailed Beast chakra, huh."
The Great Toad Sage didn't seem particularly surprised. After all, the future he had foreseen did hint at something like that.
But Jiraiya remained visibly tense.
"That's right. He's already made a move and managed to obtain a portion of the Nine-Tails' chakra. What's more… his name is bizarre. I was hoping you might recognize it."
"Oh? A strange name? What does he call himself?"
"He claims to be… 'Ōtsutsuki Genshiki'."
Before Jiraiya even finished speaking, a vast wave of chakra suddenly swept through the entirety of Mount Myōboku.
In an instant, it was as if the whole sacred mountain trembled.
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