Chapter 39: I Understand Psychos, But I'm Not One!
"What a truly loathsome place..."
Atop a high tree in the mountains of Konoha, Uchiha Obito's figure quietly emerged.
He looked down over the entirety of Konoha, his voice sounding exceptionally cold.
"As I thought, this kind of fake world is the most meaningless existence!"
"So, in order to break this false world and better create a new one..."
At that moment, Black Zetsu appeared beside Obito, bringing along his 'cat scratching post' (White Zetsu).
However, Black Zetsu's gaze held a faint trace of worry, and he couldn't help but whisper a reminder.
"We need to ensure nothing goes wrong; the intelligence on that Mysterious Person is what matters most."
"Exactly, exactly. That guy is too terrifying."
White Zetsu nodded along from the side, a strange smile appearing on his face.
"But Obito, why did you insist on coming here personally the moment you heard Kakashi's name..."
"Shut up!"
Before White Zetsu could finish, Obito glared over with overflowing Killing Intent, causing White Zetsu to shudder instantly.
"What a scary look in your eyes. You wouldn't actually kill me, would you, Obito?"
"Humph. Someone who can't protect those they're supposed to protect will always be trash!"
Obito snorted coldly; he couldn't be bothered to deal with White Zetsu and spoke to himself instead.
"I know what I'm doing, and I have other purposes for coming here personally."
"Other purposes?"
Black Zetsu was stunned for a moment before reacting.
"You mean, Uchiha Itachi?"
"Correct."
Obito nodded and spoke indifferently.
"Back then, I killed his teammates and unexpectedly found that he had awakened the Sharingan. That's why I spared his life. After observing him for so long, it's time to see the results."
"Him, eh? He seems to be just like you—Awakening with Two Tomoe right away."
White Zetsu blinked and giggled from the side.
"But why is he the top of the Ninja Academy while you were the dead last?"
"..."
Obito's fist tightened; he really wanted to strangle this bastard right now!
Fortunately, Black Zetsu noticed Obito's anger and immediately smoothed things over.
"It really is time to see the results, especially since I heard Uchiha Shisui committed suicide. That must be a huge blow to him. Perhaps..."
"Yes, perhaps he might already possess the Mangekyo."
Obito took a deep breath, suppressing his internal irritation before nodding.
"Also, I'm curious about one thing."
"Uchiha Shisui's suicide?"
Black Zetsu likely knew what Obito meant; he stroked his chin and said in a deep voice.
"We indeed need to look into it. There might even be some unexpected surprises."
Although Uchiha psychos came in all varieties, for a perfectly fine person to choose suicide was somewhat baffling.
Who knows if there were other factors involved; if found, it might help them in the future!
"Then it's settled. Let's act separately."
Obito didn't want to waste more words, and his figure slowly began to distort.
In fact, for him, there was one most important thing!
He truly hadn't expected Kakashi to be caught up in the business involving Orochimaru and that Mysterious Person.
But it was precisely Kakashi who made him realize that it had been quite a while since he last came to see Rin...
"Ah, why did he leave?"
White Zetsu watched the disappearing Obito and couldn't help but count on his fingers.
"Stealing Anbu data, investigating Uchiha Shisui, and observing Uchiha Itachi... what hard work."
"Less talk. Just do what we're supposed to do."
Black Zetsu glared at his other half, but he couldn't help but glance around.
He had a constant feeling as if he were being watched!
But before he could speak, White Zetsu couldn't help himself again.
"Hey, Blacky, why do you think that Uchiha Shisui committed suicide?"
"How should I know?"
"Eh? I remember you saying you understood the Uchiha very well?"
"?"
"You said you could see what an Uchiha was thinking at a single glance!"
"..."
"And told me not to tell Obito."
"..."
"So, why did he kill himself?"
"..."
Black Zetsu was almost driven to laughter by these words!
He understood this bunch of Uchiha psychos, but he wasn't one of them...
...
"You bastard, you woke me up early in the morning just to buy a book that kids aren't allowed to buy?"
"Please, I'm a Ninja, and I'll pay you extra."
"No means no. You're a minor..."
"Double. Selling or not? If not, I'll find someone else..."
"Thank you for your patronage!"
"..."
In the early morning, the door of a Konoha bookstore was gently pushed open.
Hyuga Makoto poked his head out to look left and right before adjusting his clothes and slowly walking out.
His expression was somewhat awkward; he really hadn't known that the crappy book 'icha icha paradise' wasn't sold to minors!
"If I'd known, I would've had Shisui buy it for me..."
Hyuga Makoto couldn't help but rub the bridge of his nose; unfortunately, Shisui had already left the village last night.
Konoha did have a defensive barrier, but as an Anbu, Hyuga Makoto naturally possessed the jutsu to pass through it.
Moreover, with his Tenseigan, he could see the blind spots of the barrier.
Shisui had gone out to help him purchase equipment and would also take some missions on the black market along the way to subsidize their funds.
He just hadn't expected that he would run into such a situation himself!
"Forget it, I'll find an opportunity to get it back from Jiraiya later..."
Hyuga Makoto shook his head and headed directly toward the Konoha Cemetery.
He had gone to buy 'icha icha paradise' early in the morning specifically for Kakashi, since he had seen Uchiha Obito enter Konoha yesterday!
However, he didn't find it strange, as that guy had been observing Uchiha Itachi all along.
Now that he had caught him, he naturally needed to manipulate things properly.
"As long as the operation is handled correctly, then..."
His main quest progress would surely take a giant leap forward!
As for Uchiha Itachi and Uchiha Obito, these two 'Paragons of Filial Piety,' he truly had no good feelings toward them.
So, when it came to setting these two up, he had absolutely no psychological burden!
"It's a pity Uchiha Obito has already left, otherwise I could have caught him on the spot, but..."
Having Uchiha Obito hiding near the Uchiha Clan Grounds seemed like it would have an even better effect!
While lost in thought, he entered the cemetery and saw Kakashi's figure from a distance.
"Captain Kakashi, as expected, you are here."
"Makoto?"
Kakashi was also quite surprised to see Hyuga Makoto; he couldn't help but scratch his white hair and ask.
"Why did you come here? Is there another mission?"
"Not at all. Just a small token of appreciation; thank you for taking care of me during this time, Captain."
Hyuga Makoto smiled, walked slowly to Kakashi's side, and handed over the bag.
"I used to see the Captain come here often, so I couldn't help but come by today."
"A book?"
Kakashi looked completely puzzled but took it anyway.
"Thanks, but you said you used to see me often?"
"Yes, I saw you by chance when I was practicing with my Byakugan as a child."
Hyuga Makoto nodded; he really wasn't lying, he truly had seen him!
Though, at the time, he had wanted more to see if he could spot Uchiha Obito...
"I also heard some rumors about the Captain back then, which left me a bit confused."
Hyuga Makoto smiled and placed a bouquet of flowers he had prepared long ago onto the Memorial Stone before continuing.
"So I tried to understand what happened to them. Although it was just bits and pieces, I came to understand a few things."
"You..."
Kakashi's gaze was fixed on the Memorial Stone, but he couldn't help but ask curiously.
"What did you understand?"
"It was all of you who made me understand..."
Hyuga Makoto also looked at the Memorial Stone and said softly.
"Comrades are the things most worth cherishing..."
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