Originally, a small fry like Kiyohara couldn't catch his eye.
But now was a critical time. His physical condition didn't allow him any more time to consider alternatives.
He had to confirm the executor of the "Eye of the Moon Plan" as soon as possible. Only then could he safely pull the plug.
Sleep peacefully, until his resurrection, appearing as the savior.
"Hashirama, I will prove everything. I can reach... the other shore."
Madara spoke slowly to the empty, pitch-black cave.
He subconsciously touched his chest.
There lay a part of Hashirama's flesh and blood. It was thanks to this that he was able to awaken the Rinnegan and develop so many plans.
...
Just as Kiyohara was pretending to sense the distance, the rogue ninja Kiyohara's spirit body floated back.
His expression was rather grave.
"What's wrong?"
Kiyohara quickly asked.
Don't scare him.
Were they already surrounded by Iwagakure forces?
Was there still time to write his will?
"Rin's capture location is just ahead. Obito is almost there."
The rogue ninja Kiyohara said.
Before they knew it, they'd already arrived near the Kannabi Bridge.
This place had become the most vulnerable area.
It was foreseeable that Minato had already reached the frontlines, causing major problems for the Iwagakure forces.
So a portion of Iwagakure ninjas from nearby had been transferred there, which led to the troop shortage phenomenon here.
"I see."
Kiyohara nodded slightly.
He understood what the rogue ninja Kiyohara's words implied.
If Obito had arrived, then after some internal struggle, Kakashi would also come rushing over.
Kakashi's left eye would be slashed blind here, and Obito would also have half his body crushed by a boulder.
This must be the closest Madara had come to observing this place.
He hadn't detected a single sign of danger, yet Kiyohara couldn't shake the feeling that White Zetsu was hidden somewhere close.
White Zetsu possessed the Mayfly Technique, allowing him to freely merge into the earth. It was practically impossible to guard against.
"I don't have any kekkei genkai, so I shouldn't attract Madara's interest. At most, he'll see me as a potential hindrance to the plan, or perhaps a catalyst for Obito's corruption."
Kiyohara thought to himself.
Madara had planned for Rin to have a Tailed Beast implanted in her, forcing her into a life-or-death struggle with Kakashi, wanting Obito to taste ultimate despair and thus trigger the darkness in his heart.
He just hadn't expected Rin to choose suicide, though that triggered the darkness in Obito's heart even better.
"Good thing I got into a fight with Obito before we left. Hope he doesn't choose me as a sacrifice target."
Kiyohara thought quietly.
If Obito didn't turn evil even after Kakashi and Rin died, he suspected Madara would make everyone around Obito die in front of him until he turned evil and achieved the goal.
He definitely didn't want Obito saying something like, "Revive, my beloved," to him.
Besides, Obito hadn't even considered reviving his own grandmother when she died.
His mind had been fixed entirely on becoming Hokage in the Infinite Tsukuyomi world and living an exciting new life with Rin.
The ultimate lovestruck brain, that's all it was.
"They won't be simple to deal with later. At the critical moment, remember to possess me."
Kiyohara said.
He'd pulled together a layer of insurance for himself.
The Iwagakure jonin Taiseki possessed invisibility abilities. He might not be able to react in time.
"You could also not go."
The rogue ninja Kiyohara said.
Another option was for Kiyohara to stay put and wait for things to end.
"If I don't go, who knows what kind of butterfly effect will occur. The bridge must be destroyed. That's the only way my achievements will be enough."
Kiyohara said.
The rogue ninja Kiyohara's spirit body clearly didn't have much time left.
Who knew when the next Legacy Scroll would arrive, or what version of Kiyohara it would be?
What if a future version even weaker than his current self arrived, like "Ordinary Person Kiyohara" or "Chef Kiyohara"? That would be like completely wasting an opportunity to grow stronger.
He needed to quickly earn achievements and get promoted to chunin rank to obtain the rogue ninja Kiyohara's remaining talents.
Then Kiyohara would learn Wind Release and Lightning Release techniques much faster.
One person plus one person, the stacking of talents was quite terrifying.
It wasn't just 1+1=2. It could very well trigger a chemical reaction, making the effect even better.
"Alright, I'll help you at the critical moment."
The rogue ninja Kiyohara nodded.
He also wanted his past self to fulfill the legacy wishes, so he was willing to help the current Kiyohara.
"So how much can you perform at maximum when you take over?"
Kiyohara asked curiously.
The rogue ninja Kiyohara had possessed him a few times before, but he still wasn't clear on exactly how much strength the rogue ninja Kiyohara could display.
Even with jonin-level technique, his hardware was only at the chunin level.
"No problem. I can unleash your body's full potential."
The rogue ninja Kiyohara began explaining to Kiyohara.
The human body's strength was actually very powerful, but for self-protection, the body automatically set limits.
But the rogue ninja Kiyohara was essentially another force that could directly ignore these limits and max out the power output.
"So it's basically like the Eight Gates?"
Kiyohara understood the meaning in the rogue ninja Kiyohara's words.
The Eight Gates actually worked on the same principle.
It could remove the brain's restrictions to achieve the goal of displaying 100% of the body's capabilities, overloading and consuming the body's potential to boost strength.
"Doesn't that mean if I learned the Eight Gates, you could forcibly activate it too?"
Kiyohara asked.
"Theoretically yes. It doesn't matter if you know it or not. As long as I know it, I can use it. But I don't know the Eight Gates."
The rogue ninja Kiyohara said.
The Eight Gates, in a sense, was also a forbidden technique.
Plus, this technique rarely leaked out. Only the Land of the Sky leader Shinnō had learned some of the Eight Gates.
Having mixed with Orochimaru, he naturally had no channels to access this technique.
Orochimaru had absolutely no interest in taijutsu. He was single-mindedly focused on swapping into containers with Kekkei Genkai abilities to achieve immortality.
"Cool."
Kiyohara nodded.
Now he had confidence.
The people inside were all just jonin anyway.
Worst case scenario, he'd shout out "Future me, save me!"
"Let's head over now. Try not to make any noise."
Kiyohara turned to Kurenai and Genma.
This time they had three people providing support together. The safety factor had already increased significantly.
...
"Kakashi, Obito!"
Rin looked at Obito and Kakashi who'd come to rescue her.
Because the two had interrupted, the genjutsu covering her temporarily failed.
"I'll leave these two brats to you. I'll continue applying the genjutsu."
Kakkō said to Taiseki.
Taiseki nodded slightly, his form continuing to hide in the shadows.
"Damn it, he disappeared again."
Both Kakashi and Obito's faces were heavy.
This guy's ability was too unfair.
"They're just two brats."
Taiseki shook his head.
He drew his kunai. His movements made no sound as he circled behind Obito and Kakashi.
"Kakashi!"
Rin shouted in worry.
Just then, a loud sound came from outside the cave.
"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"
A fierce wind blew in. The dust it kicked up stuck to Taiseki's body, outlining his form.
Kiyohara has arrived!