While Obito was taking a short nap,
he suddenly felt Black Zetsu returning from underground.
Having White Zetsu cells in his own body allowed him to sense such movements.
He couldn't help but wonder, 'Hadn't that guy just left to gather intelligence?'
Why was he back so soon?
And he had rushed straight to that particular place.
Has something happened?
He stood up and headed toward the secret chamber.
Black Zetsu had already arrived in a hidden room.
Before him stood a massive coffin.
He had crafted the coffin himself; inside lay the corpse of Uchiha Madara.
He reached out and pushed the lid open.
A withered old man lay inside.
It was indeed Uchiha Madara.
If not for the Hashirama cells within him, he likely would have withered away into nothing but bone.
After all, he was dead.
Black Zetsu breathed a sigh of relief.
'Since Madara's body is still here, it means he didn't fake his death.'
Then who was the one with the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan?
There were very few Uchiha capable of manifesting a Susanoo.
Not to mention a Perfect Susanoo.
In his memory, aside from Madara, perhaps only the Sage of Six Paths' son, Indra, could achieve such a feat.
This individual was a threat; someone with the Eternal Mangekyō would undoubtedly interfere with his plans.
Based on current events alone, the opponent had already seized a Tailed Beast necessary for his mother's resurrection.
He had to find a way to uncover the stranger's true identity.
Just then, Obito used Kamui to phase into the room.
Obito looked at Black Zetsu, who was standing by Madara's open coffin.
He was deeply confused.
Though he didn't trust Uchiha Madara, the man was dead.
There was no need to disturb his remains.
He couldn't help but ask.
"Black Zetsu, what are you doing?"
Black Zetsu saw no need to hide the truth, as Obito was the executor of the Eye of the Moon Plan.
"I overheard some major news in the Land of Lightning."
"Uchiha Madara attacked the Eight-Tails Jinchūriki, Killer B, and successfully abducted him."
"I suspected someone was impersonating Madara, yet this individual used incredibly powerful Fire Style and a Perfect Susanoo."
"So, I came back specifically to see if Madara was still alive."
Obito was shocked, his eyes wide with disbelief.
If Madara were to be resurrected, it wouldn't be good for him. That man had his own goals, which differed from Obito's.
He only wanted to create a world where Rin existed; he couldn't care less about so-called peace in the shinobi world.
He stepped quickly to the coffin to confirm Madara's status.
Inside lay the shriveled corpse—the aged form of Madara.
Indeed, it was him.
That meant someone was indeed impersonating Madara to collect the Tailed Beasts.
But how could they use such powerful Fire Style and the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan?
From the records Madara had left behind, Obito knew the requirements for the Eternal Mangekyō.
It required two siblings to both awaken the Mangekyō Sharingan, and then for their eyes to be fused together.
The conditions were extremely harsh.
In all of history, only Madara had ever achieved it.
He didn't believe anyone currently in the clan was capable of awakening the Eternal Mangekyō.
As far as he knew, even awakening a standard Mangekyō Sharingan was an incredible feat.
Among those people, none seemed to be siblings, making it impossible to awaken the Eternal Mangekyō.
Black Zetsu then asked.
"Madara, what should we do next?"
Obito had strictly insisted on being addressed as Madara.
Black Zetsu saw no reason to argue with him over something so trivial.
His current role was that of a creation left by Madara to assist Obito, so he didn't need to make the decisions.
Obito considered their next move.
'It's one thing for the guy to have the Eternal Mangekyō, but now he's collecting Tailed Beasts. Won't that ruin the Eye of the Moon Plan?'
'Will he prevent me from creating a world with Rin?'
Such a person deserved to die.
What was the motive behind collecting them? Was it simply to use them as weapons to increase combat power?
Or was there another purpose?
Everything was still a complete mystery.
He looked at Black Zetsu.
"Go inform Nagato. We must begin collecting the Tailed Beasts. We cannot let this Uchiha Madara impersonator beat us to it."
"Otherwise, our plan will be impossible to implement."
"Fine."
Black Zetsu agreed. Starting the collection of Tailed Beasts meant the plan to resurrect his mother was finally underway.
He felt a surge of excitement within him.
"However, what about the Eight-Tails he has already captured?"
Obito replied.
"Let him keep it for now. In fact, it's better if he collects a few more; then we can just take them all from him later."
"Good point. That will save us some effort."
Black Zetsu strongly agreed.
With the Akatsuki's overwhelming combat power, it was a sound strategy.
They not only had Nagato with the Rinnegan and the Gedo Mazo, but they could even summon the real Madara if absolutely necessary.
That fake Madara would be no match for the real one; otherwise, there would be no reason for him to hide his identity.
He then began to sink into the ground, heading toward the Rain Village to notify Nagato.
After Black Zetsu had gone,
Obito began cultivating White Zetsu.
This was one of his most vital trump cards.
It was a tedious process.
But to create a world where Rin existed, it was all worth it.
Elsewhere, the Cloud Village ninja Darui was leading several shinobi toward Konoha at high speed.
This was a mission entrusted to him by the Fourth Raikage.
They had to notify the Leaf Village to gather information on Uchiha Madara, since he had originally defected from there.
The other reason was to request reinforcements.
Such an opponent was not someone the Cloud Village could handle alone.
Facing him without help would likely result in a heavy price.
Uchiha Madara was a man whose name once struck terror into the entire shinobi world.
Traveling at full speed, they arrived at the main gate of the Leaf Village a few days later.
After notifying the guards, they were escorted into the village toward the Hokage building.
Upon entering and seeing the vibrant, peaceful atmosphere and the smiling faces of the villagers,
he felt a pang of envy.
Compared to this, the Cloud Village was much more desolate.
It was all because of the mistakes made in the previous war.
'If only I had stopped it back then.'
There was no way to change the past now.
They could only make do with what they had.
They absolutely could not provoke the Leaf Village again.
That would be nothing short of a death wish.