"Lord Madara..."
Uchiha Setsuna, whose body had been half-blown apart by Feng Bai, gazed tearfully at Uchiha Madara, who sat upon his massive throne.
At this moment, Madara had severed his connection with the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path. To Setsuna, he appeared like a withered piece of deadwood—both decayed and fragile.
Even so, Madara clung to his final breath, determined to deliver his last instructions to Setsuna.
Looking at Setsuna before him, half his body now covered by Hashirama cells, Uchiha Madara felt deeply satisfied.
He hadn't expected that Setsuna, facing death at such an age, would awaken the Mangekyō Sharingan through the humiliation of defeat and stimulation from the Hashirama cells.
This gave him sufficient leverage to restrain Uchiha Yowan's development.
"You did well. Not bringing you with me back then was indeed my oversight."
Uchiha Madara's face remained expressionless, but his tone had softened considerably.
"I failed to meet your expectations, allowing that evil Tobirama to gain the upper hand!"
Seeing Madara humble himself so, Uchiha Setsuna could no longer contain himself. Ignoring his wounds' agony, he crawled on hands and knees to Madara's feet: "Lord Madara, only you—only you can save the Uchiha Clan!"
Watching Setsuna clutch his leg and refuse to let go, Uchiha Madara's face flashed with momentary disdain.
Save the Uchiha Clan?
Unfortunately, he now felt nothing for the clan that had once abandoned him.
Leading them in battle years ago had been solely for his brother Izuna.
His vision encompassed the entire shinobi world, not merely one clan.
However—
Sensing his life force nearly depleted, Madara leaned forward and placed his withered right hand on Setsuna's shoulder.
"My time grows short. There are several things you must remember."
Forcing Setsuna to meet his gaze, Uchiha Madara delivered his final words: "Black Zetsu is my will. If Uchiha Yowan and Nagato deviate from my plan, seek it out and have it help you control them."
"Though it lacks intelligence, Black Zetsu is loyal to me. Remember—never allow the Rinnegan to fall into others' hands."
Having said this, Madara could muster no more strength. His arm trembled as he withdrew it, gasping heavily:
"Huff... huff... huff... Go now—fulfill my will. I await the day you awaken me..."
Without waiting for Setsuna's response, Madara slowly closed his eyes.
In his final moments, a familiar figure appeared before him.
"Hashirama..."
...
"Black Zetsu."
Watching Madara die before his eyes, Setsuna had no time to mourn. Now Black Zetsu emerged, in an exceptionally foul mood.
It had been hiding underground all this time, hoping to witness Madara's death firsthand and finally vent its anger. Instead, it found itself enraged once again.
Even in his dying moments, Madara hadn't forgotten to call it brainless!
You're the brainless one, your whole family is brainless, you and your friend Hashirama are both brainless!
Despite harboring such resentment, Black Zetsu maintained its expressionless facade, dutifully playing the role of Madara's will.
"Where is Yowan?"
Setsuna looked Black Zetsu up and down, inwardly marveling that Madara's will was such an ugly thing, but aloud asked about Yowan's whereabouts.
"He said he wanted to tour the shinobi world to better plan his next moves."
Black Zetsu's tone remained flat, concealing its fury well.
"Hmph, what's there to see in the shinobi world?"
Scoffing at Yowan's notion, Setsuna knelt beside Madara's corpse, struggling to maintain composure despite his pain.
"What of Nagato?"
"Same as always."
"I see..." Resting his head against Madara's throne, Setsuna now resembled a young child.
Yowan's situation had given him inspiration. If he could transform a loyal Konoha dog into Madara's proxy through such methods, surely he could make Nagato, who believed in love and peace, know true despair.
"Stay by Yowan's side for now and monitor his actions. As for Nagato, once I've healed, I'll find a way to make contact."
Setsuna issued orders to Black Zetsu without hesitation.
"Understood."
Black Zetsu nodded, glancing up at Madara's corpse.
Though it desperately wanted to desecrate the body to vent its anger, clearly Setsuna wouldn't permit such a thing.
Moreover, many White Zetsu remained in the cave—if they reported back to Setsuna, that would be troublesome indeed.
With this in mind, Black Zetsu decisively sank underground to carry out Setsuna's instructions.
...
Amegakure Village.
"Nagato, there you are."
Unable to find Nagato at dinnertime, Konan searched all the way up the stairs to the rooftop, finally discovering him by the railing.
"Oh, Konan. What is it?"
Letting raindrops fall freely on his face, Nagato turned his head, lips pressed thin, managing only a strained smile in response.
"What are you thinking about? Is it what Feng Bai said?"
Seeing Nagato's expression, Konan, who had lived with him for years, immediately recognized his dejection. She stepped out from the sheltered area and joined him.
Faced with Konan's inquiry, Nagato opened his mouth uncertainly. Under her gaze, he slowly nodded.
Feng Bai's words had been too shocking—even after all this time, Nagato couldn't let them go.
His eyes weren't the shinobi world's gift as Jiraiya-sensei had claimed, but the deliberate machination of some shadowy mastermind.
And all because he possessed Uzumaki bloodline.
"I'm just a tool—"
Nagato raised his voice, wanting to vent his frustration, but felt Konan suddenly grip his right hand tightly.
He immediately understood and stopped himself in time.
Right—he was likely being monitored by the mastermind. Venting would only bring unnecessary trouble to his companions.
"It's alright. Not everything he said is necessarily true."
Not knowing how else to console Nagato, Konan could only say this, hoping to lift his spirits:
"Look, isn't our most important task realizing our beautiful vision?"
She pointed to the streets below, which were far more prosperous than during Feng Bai's last visit. Thanks to loans provided by Konoha, Yahiko and the others had successfully developed the Akatsuki-controlled territory.
Dilapidated buildings had been renovated, Akatsuki members now carried Konoha-standard ninja tools, and previously scarce supplies like explosive tags, ninja blades, and armor were now well-stocked. Compared to Hanzō's territory, the Akatsuki's domain brimmed with fresh vitality.
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