In stark contrast—
The body lying on the ground suddenly opened its eyes.
"…Revived?"
Madara Uchiha paused briefly, then slowly rose to his feet. He muttered to himself in a low voice:
"So… the plan succeeded after all. It seems it's time for me to rule the shinobi world once again."
But—
The moment his gaze fell upon Nagato's mangled corpse, Madara's brow furrowed sharply. A faint but unmistakable sense of unease crept into his heart.
Something was wrong.
According to his plan, he was only meant to be revived after all nine tailed beasts had been collected. Only then would Black Zetsu and White Zetsu bring him back.
Yet Nagato's corpse lay there, eyes wide, clearly filled with unwillingness—as though he had been forced to use the Outer Path: Samsara of Heavenly Life.
"Madara-sama…"
At that moment, Black Zetsu emerged from Nagato's body and bowed respectfully.
Madara's eyes turned cold.
"What happened?" he demanded.
"I arranged everything before my death. So tell me—have you completed the collection of the tailed beasts?"
The instant those words left his mouth—
Black Zetsu, White Zetsu, and Uchiha Obito all stiffened.
Silence followed.
One by one, they lowered their heads.
"How many have you collected?" Madara asked again, arms crossed, his voice calm—but dangerous.
"With your strength, capturing five or six tailed beasts should have been trivial. With the Akatsuki's support, even all nine should've been within reach."
"We…"
The three exchanged glances, each seeing helplessness reflected in the others' eyes.
Could they really say it?
That they hadn't captured even one?
If they did, Madara might explode on the spot.
"Speak."
Madara's patience finally snapped. His tone was flat, but the pressure behind it was overwhelming.
"Madara-sama…"
Knowing there was no way to hide it, White Zetsu spoke cautiously:
"Up to now… we haven't captured a single tailed beast."
Boom—
A terrifying wave of chakra erupted from Madara's body.
The sheer pressure forced Obito, Black Zetsu, and White Zetsu to their knees, their breathing instantly labored.
Rage.
Pure, unrestrained rage.
Madara Uchiha—once the unrivaled peak of the shinobi world—had long mastered emotional control. His heart should have been unmoved even if the heavens collapsed.
And yet—
At this moment, he was furious.
Before his death, he had prepared everything perfectly.
Even a fool could have followed his plan and succeeded.
And yet these people—
"…Useless."
Not a single tailed beast.
That meant the plan was still at the starting line.
Infuriating.
"What exactly happened?" Madara demanded coldly.
"Did you treat my words as a joke? How did Nagato die? What became of the Akatsuki?"
"We wouldn't dare!"
"We followed your plan exactly!"
"Even if we had ten times the courage, we wouldn't disobey you!"
Under Madara's overwhelming presence, Obito, Black Zetsu, and White Zetsu were genuinely terrified.
Madara's eyes flickered.
"Hmph. If you won't explain—then I'll see for myself."
Whoosh!
In an instant, Madara appeared beside White Zetsu. Before White Zetsu could react, Madara seized his head.
"…?!"
The next second—
Madara forcefully read White Zetsu's memories.
And then—
For the first time in decades, shock appeared in Madara Uchiha's eyes.
The calm surface of his mind shattered as waves of disbelief surged through him.
So much had happened.
The Third Great Ninja War had ended with Konoha victorious—something Madara had already anticipated.
After that, everything had proceeded according to his design…
Until one night.
The Uchiha Massacre Night.
That was where everything derailed.
An anomaly appeared.
An Uchiha he had not chosen.
Uchiha Ren.
This man had single-handedly annihilated the Konoha leadership led by the Third Hokage, crushed the Four Great Villages' allied forces, seized the Three-Tails, Five-Tails, and Eight-Tails—
And then, in an utterly absurd turn of events, defeated Edo Tensei Hashirama Senju.
After that—
Ren ascended the throne as the Fifth Hokage, earning the title:
God of the Shinobi World.
He cast aside the Will of Fire.
Destroyed the Akatsuki.
And even annexed the Hidden Rain Village.
For a moment—
Madara was genuinely shaken.
An Uchiha… this dominant?
Not only had he raised the clan from ruin, he had seized the Hokage position outright.
Even Madara himself hadn't been this ruthless back then.
More importantly—
Ren had defeated Edo Hashirama.
That alone was absurd.
Madara fell silent.
Then, slowly, a bitter smile formed.
"So… the one I didn't choose…"
Back then, when selecting a successor, both Obito and Ren had caught his attention.
But Ren was too cautious—rarely leaving Konoha, joining the Military Police Force, never giving Madara an opening.
So Madara chose Obito instead.
And now—
The man he passed over had become a god.
As for Obito…
Madara didn't even bother commenting.
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