Emiya Shihara…
Do you regret your naïve foolishness?
In this world, there were very few people Kurozetsu ever communicated with. The one it spoke to the most was Emiya Shihara.
It mocked Emiya Shihara.
That thought had long rooted itself in Kurozetsu's mind.
Kurozetsu had always seen Emiya Shihara as just another chess piece. And yet, right on the cusp of a major breakthrough in its grand plan, that piece had turned its back on it. Cast aside. The bitterness of betrayal—Kurozetsu found it surprisingly hard to swallow.
It had seen the crystal coffin kept by the Senju clan more than once.
The last time had been two years ago, when it had stealthily crept into Tobirama Senju's secret chamber, standing arrogantly before the crystalline sarcophagus, sneering at Emiya Shihara's childish delusions.
And now—
Emiya Shihara had truly come back to life.
Kurozetsu actually had the chance to mock him face to face once more.
More than that—there was now a chance to reuse this pawn. A piece that, more than any other, could bring its plan to fruition.
Yet even in this moment of seeming fortune, Kurozetsu didn't dare indulge in momentary satisfaction. It had to weigh its options carefully.
Because now, it had another piece.
Uchiha Madara.
A new, untested piece.
That piece was moving step by step, following the script laid out for him. Even if it had only taken its first step, even if the future was still uncertain, Kurozetsu already had a comprehensive strategy in place for how to make use of Madara.
As for Emiya Shihara…
Shihara was a proven model.
Back then, Kurozetsu hadn't needed to do much—hardly any guidance at all—yet Emiya Shihara had single-handedly dismantled the Shinobi Order for the sake of advancing human medicine through his own radical research.
Of course…
That era was… different.
And now, Kurozetsu had no idea what kind of state Shihara was in after his resurrection.
There were no longer the remains of the Sage of Six Paths for him to study. Only the reincarnations of Asura and Indra's chakra remained…
Then again—
Perhaps that wasn't such a problem.
Emiya Shihara's true strength had never been raw power.
What made him truly formidable was his genius-level intellect, and the human experimentation techniques he developed in pursuit of advancing medical science.
Kurozetsu had seen firsthand the miracles Shihara had wrought using the Sage's corpse. With the theories Kurozetsu itself had once shared, could someone like Shihara really fail to replicate the experiment that created the Rinnegan?
The only real problem was…
Would Emiya Shihara still trust it?
Kurozetsu had lived for over a thousand years—Shihara had to know it wasn't some ordinary being.
…Eh.
Maybe he would.
As long as it spun a convincing tale.
Something like claiming to be the Will of the God Tree—that story wasn't much different from the truth about Kaguya's will…
To be honest?
Did it even matter? Shihara knew about Kaguya.
Most people in that era did. They revered her as the Rabbit Goddess, the one who served the Divine Tree.
Back then, when Kurozetsu deceived Emiya Shihara, it had told him that chakra wasn't a power meant for ordinary humans. Only those chosen by the Goddess should wield it—or else the world would fall into chaos.
And who was worthy of wielding it?
Naturally, only the Goddess worshiped by mankind—Ōtsutsuki Kaguya—could decide that.
…Wait.
Did I really say all that?
Kurozetsu tried hard to recall every conversation it had with Shihara. It seemed… it really had mentioned resurrecting Kaguya. Because Shihara had gained power from the remnants of the God Tree, and had truly believed in the Rabbit Goddess…
It had said too much back then!
A wave of unease stirred in Kurozetsu's core—an emotion it was not meant to feel. It was recalling, with increasing dread, all the things it might have let slip to Emiya Shihara.
Fortunately, the real secrets—its own true identity, and the specific method to resurrect Kaguya—had been kept hidden.
After all, Kaguya's resurrection required a vessel—a human sacrifice. That part had to remain buried, no matter what.
Good…
At least that secret was safe.
But ironically, it was because that final step had never been revealed that the plan, so close to completion, had veered off course and failed.
Still…
The idea of resurrecting Kaguya had already been planted in Shihara's mind.
"…."
If Kurozetsu could sweat, it would have.
Such thoughts were unbecoming of a being like it.
It had been too young and too foolish a millennium ago. It had exposed too much to Emiya Shihara. Luckily, Shihara had believed in the God Tree. Believed in the Rabbit Goddess. Believed it.
How naive it had been in those days…
To be so candid with a mere pawn!
Now, after a thousand years of patience, Kurozetsu found itself facing the same kind of regret humans often did in adulthood—embarrassment and self-recrimination over the recklessness of youth.
And now…
Did it even have a choice anymore?
No matter what Shihara thought…
No matter how many doubts he had about its true nature…
Kurozetsu—
Had no choice but to pick him again.
It had suddenly realized: Emiya Shihara simply knew too much. It had no option but to use him once more.
If he revealed the secrets of the ancient era—if he even hinted at Kurozetsu's existence—then Uchiha Madara, that promising new pawn, would become unusable.
Unless…
It went back into hiding. Forever.
But Shihara would surely share everything he knew about the old world with this one. And who could say how long Kurozetsu would have to wait for a new opportunity?
Actually… Emiya Shihara wasn't so bad.
As a pawn, he was quite remarkable.
Back when Kurozetsu had almost given up on the dream of resurrecting its mother, believing the plan had sunk into endless darkness—it was Emiya Shihara who appeared like a sudden burst of light, rekindling its hope.
"…Wait."
"Maybe I'm just overthinking it."
"I'll go check the crystal coffin first."
Kurozetsu's shadow slithered silently underground, gliding toward Tobirama Senju's hidden vault—a place it knew well.
Soon enough, it arrived.
When it beheld the shattered crystals strewn across the chamber floor—freshly broken, their edges clean and undisturbed by dust—it didn't need further confirmation.
The body once held in the crystal coffin…
Had vanished without a trace.
Emiya Shihara had truly been revived.
And it could guess exactly who had done it—Tobirama Senju.
That man…
He must've used the remains to bring Shihara back, hoping to save the gravely wounded Hashirama Senju!
Kurozetsu recalled the battle between Hashirama and Madara. The devastating wounds Hashirama had suffered. And it understood Tobirama's desperation.
That man—
Had made the right call.
If there was anyone in the shinobi world's thousand-year history who could save Hashirama from such injuries—
Other than the Sage of Six Paths—
It could only be Emiya Shihara.
"…No, wait…"
"Something's not right here…"
"Shihara… helping heal Hashirama?"
A chilling thought wormed its way into Kurozetsu's mind.
Hashirama was the reincarnation of Asura's chakra…
He had ended the wars, ended the chaos of the Warring States Era. He had, at the very least, created a semblance of peace in the shinobi world.
If Shihara was as sharp as ever—
He'd surely feel that Asura's chakra dwelled in Hashirama.
If he chose to help him…
…Wait.
Could that idiot—
Could Emiya Shihara still believe in Asura's foolish ideals?
The idea made Kurozetsu break out in a cold sweat—if it had sweat glands, that is.
It couldn't sit still anymore. It dove faster and deeper underground.
Right now—
It was frantic.
If Shihara still believed in Asura, who knew how many secrets he'd spill to the shinobi of this era?
It had to find him.
It had to know what he was thinking.
If he hadn't revealed too much yet, there might still be time to bring him back into the fold!
As for silencing Shihara…?
That thought flashed briefly through Kurozetsu's mind—and vanished just as quickly.
Even if it wanted to manipulate things from the shadows—pit Shihara against this era's shinobi…
How much strength did Shihara still have, post-resurrection?
He might not have the Rinnegan, but his base power was already formidable. If he started broadcasting all of Kurozetsu's secrets in his usual, unrestrained way…
No, it didn't want that.
Compared to the unstable, still-developing pawn that was Uchiha Madara, Emiya Shihara was tried and true—a once-nearly-successful piece.
The simplest path.
After all was said and done, no matter how many thoughts passed through Kurozetsu's mind—
There was only one that remained.
It had to convince Emiya Shihara…
To stand by its side.
Shihara—an endgame-level character with all the raid strategies memorized, capable of crashing the game at any moment…
Madara—still a tutorial-level noob with default gear…
That was the choice Kurozetsu faced.