Black Zetsu's Discouragement

Obito Uchiha and Black and White Zetsu) arrived at another base.

At this time, apart from a few left behind to monitor the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path, many White Zetsu clone had already returned.

Obito Uchiha looked at Black Zetsu and said firmly, "Black Zetsu, it's definitely Mangekyō Sharingan Dōjutsu. I'm being followed."

Black Zetsu nodded. During this time, they had not left the Land of Land of Hot Water base, but they were still attacked.

There's only one possibility: their location was discovered as soon as they moved to the Land of Hot Water.

"It must be Yichen. He discovered we were in the Land of Hot Water a long time ago, but he didn't take action. He passed the message on to the other ninja villages."

"The reason there were so many days in between is definitely because he was subtly leaking information to other ninja villages."

Obito Uchiha unusually sharp-witted, and the intelligence he analyzed was basically consistent with the facts.

Black Zetsu nodded and said, "Obito, don't worry too much. The Mangekyō Sharingan has its limits."

"So much time has passed, even the Mangekyō Sharingan probably can't pinpoint your whereabouts now. Let's summon the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path first."

Speaking of the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path, Black Zetsu was in a terrible mood. He had been secretly plotting for a thousand years, and finally saw a glimmer of hope.

I have the Rinnegan, and the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path has been summoned from the moon.

Just when I was getting closer and closer to success, I inexplicably exposed myself.

Black Zetsu glanced at Obito Uchiha and breathed a slight sigh of relief.

Fortunately, there's this fool standing in front of them. The Five Great Ninja Villages probably only know that there's an Uchiha causing trouble in the dark, and they probably don't realize that they themselves are the real masterminds.

Obito Uchiha had no idea what Black Zetsu was thinking. He calmed himself down, bit his finger, and began to communicate with the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path, preparing to cast Summoning Jutsu.

But then, he froze, and after a moment, he said in an incredulous tone, "Black Zetsu, it seems the connection between me and the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path is broken."

Black Zetsu was startled and immediately said, "Impossible! Your access was granted by Lord Madara. Lord Madara waited so many years for a descendant who had awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan. How could those guys who don't Sharingan possibly sever your connection with the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path?"

"Could it be that Nagato summoned the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path with his Rinnegan? That's impossible. I've mentioned it to Nagato many times, and he's always refused."

"Could it be Kakashi? Did he use your Sharingan to steal control of the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path?"

Black Zetsu remembered seeing Kakashi in the Land of Hot Water, but ninjas like Kakashi weren't very effective against the colossal Demonic Statue of the Outer Path at this stage.

So there was nothing particularly outstanding about this performance.

Obito Uchiha eyes, looked at Black Zetsu with displeasure, and said coldly, "Black Zetsu, are you hiding something from me?"

"How come I didn't know that Kakashi's Sharingan could seize control of the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path?"

Realizing his slip of the tongue, Black Zetsu quickly explained, "I was just guessing. Lord Madara must have used your Sharingan to successfully transfer control of the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path to you."

"If you weren't also a member of the Uchiha Clan and hadn't happened to awaken the Mangekyō Sharingan, you wouldn't be able to control the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path."

"Kakashi has your other eye. If he knew the method, he might be able to control the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path even when you're not around."

Seeing that Obito Uchiha was about to say something, Black Zetsu immediately interjected, "However, that's unlikely. Kakashi doesn't have Uchiha blood."

"I suspect the Fourth Raikage and the others used some special method to temporarily sever your connection with the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path."

To prevent Obito Uchiha guesses, Black Zetsu's mind raced as he began searching for reasons.

Fortunately, his thousand years of time had not been wasted, and he quickly guessed the method Tsunade used.

"It's Sealing Jutsu of the Uzumaki Clan, capable of severing the contract between a ninja and his Summoning Beast. Minato Namikaze used it on you during the Nine-Tails' Rampage."

"He successfully severed your connection with the Nine-Tails."

Obito Uchiha's thinking was indeed swayed by Black Zetsu. He recalled the night of the attack on Konoha, and it seemed to be true.

Minato Namikaze gave up a rare opportunity to attack him, choosing instead to first break the contract between him and Nine-Tails.

Obito Uchiha glanced at Black Zetsu and asked, "Do you have any ideas?"

Black Zetsu said, "We need to investigate first. This was probably done by Konoha ninja, since only Konoha has the seal to break the contract. Let's see what the Hokage and the others did."

Just then, a White Zetsu clone suddenly poked its head out from underground and said, "Obito, the Fourth Raikage wants to make a deal with us. He wants to exchange the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path for the Two-Tails Jinchuriki."

This White Zetsu was left behind by Obito Uchiha to monitor the Fourth Raikage and others during their retreat.

Black Zetsu thought for a moment upon hearing this and said, "Obito, let's switch. Without the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path, even if we capture the Two-Tails, it's useless."

"Furthermore, without the Rinnegan, we cannot extract the Tailed Beast and seal the Two-Tails into the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path."

Upon hearing this, Obito Uchiha said, "Demonic Statue of the Outer Path if we let Nagato summon the Gedo Mazo directly using the Rinnegan? Could the Uzumaki Clan's Sealing Jutsu stop him?"

Black Zetsu said with absolute certainty, "We can't stop them."

How could it possibly stop them? The Rinnegan was able to bring the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path down from the moon; how could a mere seal from the Uzumaki Clan possibly prevent it?

Although Nagato's mastery of the Rinnegan certainly couldn't compare to Madara Uchiha's, the Uzumaki Clan's sealing techniques were still far inferior to those of the Sage of Six Paths' brothers.

Obito Uchiha asked, "Can you persuade Nagato to summon the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path?"

Black Zetsu shook his head and said, "I'm afraid that won't work. Nagato doesn't trust us."

"He never trusted us from the beginning. Last time, when Konoha and Sunagakure joined forces against Akatsuki Organization, we withheld information to make Nagato falter in the battle against the Five Great Ninja Villages and ultimately side with us. That's why Nagato doesn't even want to see me now."

"The clones I send out will be killed instantly; he doesn't want to listen to me at all. His newly rebuilt Dark Akatsuki already has its own Intelligence Department."

Obito Uchiha somewhat agitated and said, "Nagato's strength is increasing, and his compatibility with the Rinnegan is also getting higher and higher. He's already out of control."

"Didn't Ban leave behind any means to deal with this situation?"

Black Zetsu shook his head and said, "We can only change Nagato's mindset and get Nagato to work for us willingly."

Obito Uchiha said impatiently, "But Nagato only listens to Yahiko. Even if his ideas differ from Yahiko's now, he doesn't trust us."

"Let's take this opportunity to frame Nagato for the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path incident, and get the Five Great Ninja Villages —no, the Three Great Ninja Villages —to cause trouble for Akatsuki." Black Zetsu came up with a perfect solution.

Obito Uchiha asked, "Do you have any specific plans?"

Black Zetsu took out a ring and said, "This is my identification token in Akatsuki Organization. Have White Zetsu take this ring to see the three Kage."

"Whether it's Konoha or Sunagakure, they've all seen this ring. We don't need to deliberately show anything; they'll figure it out themselves."

"Furthermore, the Kumogakure has Perfect Jinchuriki, so they would naturally know the relationship between the Rinnegan and the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path."

Combining these two factors, the Three Great Ninja Villages will definitely link the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path with Akatsuki.

Obito Uchiha and said, "I understand."

Black Zetsu tentatively asked, "So, are you planning to exchange with the Fourth Raikage?"

Obito Uchiha sneered, "Change? Of course we should change."

The Land of Hot Water Cloud Spring Mountain Cloud Spring Mountain, has now been demolished, leaving only a deep pit and the enormous Demonic Statue of the Outer Path within it.

The Fourth Raikage had already returned from Kumogakure, Rasa immediately stepped forward and asked, "Raikage, did you capture the Tsuchikage?"

Before leaving, the Raikage told them why he was going back. Rasa was looking forward to it. If Yichen died in Kumogakure, then Iwa ninja's dominant position would naturally be unstable.

As the culprit who killed Yichen, the Cloud ninja will inevitably face a full-scale attack from the Iwa ninja.

As the battle between the two sides began, the opportunity for the Sunagakure arrived.

Unfortunately, judging from the Raikage's less-than-pleasant expression, Rasa knew that the chances were slim.

It's possible that Cloud ninja not only failed to capture Yichen, but also suffered a loss.

Well, that's not bad either. The Cloud ninja have a greater hatred for the Iwa ninja, so if a conflict breaks out with the Iwa ninja, the Cloud ninja can be at the forefront.

The Fourth Raikage didn't keep him in suspense; he stated directly, "No, I mobilized the entire village to besiege him alone, and even set up an internal Defense Barrier to restrict his movements."

"In the end, he still managed to break through the encirclement and escape. Our Kumogakure is now in ruins, and the casualties have been devastating."

Tsunade somewhat taken aback upon hearing this, and immediately stated, "Raikage, since Kumogakure has been attacked, the previously mentioned compensation will be waived. Raikage, please rebuild the village first. We are allies now, so this is just a small token of Konoha's goodwill."

Rasa felt as uncomfortable as if he had swallowed a fly after hearing Tsunade's words, but Konoha had already stepped forward, he could only grit his teeth and follow suit.

Tsunade continued, "Raikage, you, Killer B, Darui all participated? And you even mobilized the ninja army?"

The Fourth Raikage nodded, knowing what Rasa and Tsunade were thinking, and said, "The Tsuchikage has extraordinary sensory abilities. He can perceive our entire village; he can sense all our attacks in advance."

"The Tsuchikage's Yin Release skills are very high; in terms of Yin Release alone, he's probably at the Kage Level. That's why he can focus on multiple things at once, and with his sensory abilities, all sneak attacks are ineffective against him."

"The Tsuchikage's Chakra Control is unparalleled in my life, perhaps even surpassing that of the Hokage. This extraordinary Chakra Control not only results in fast Hand Seals, but also, combined with his exceptional mental strength, his Hand Seal-less Porcelain Release allows him to attack multiple targets simultaneously."

"The Tsuchikage has Sage Mode Sage Mode, which enhances the Five-Attribute Ninjutsu and amplifies the Porcelain Release Kekkei Genkai. Combined, he can single-handedly take on an entire ninja army."

"The Tsuchikage is also very skilled in Sealing Jutsu. His Sealing Jutsu can be combined with the Porcelain Release Kekkei Genkai, allowing him to easily and completely seal enemies from a distance. These are truly Sealing Jutsu that can be used in actual combat."

"In addition to the Storm Release Kekkei Genkai that everyone knows about, and a blue Kekkei Tōta, he also knows the Flame Release Kekkei Genkai. The Flame Release Kekkei Genkai is extremely effective in breaking through defenses, seals, and barriers."

"He also possesses a Gravity Ninjutsu without a hand seal, capable of repelling all attacks. The limits of this Gravity Ninjutsu haven't yet been determined."

After speaking, the Fourth Raikage considerately gave Tsunade, Rasa, and the others ample time to analyze the situation.

After a while, seeing everyone frowning and starting to discuss in hushed tones, the Fourth Raikage continued, "Besides waging a war of attrition, we can't think of any other way."

As he spoke, he looked at Shikaku Nara, but said to Tsunade, "Hokage, I wonder if Konoha has any specific plans in place?"

In his Obito Uchiha, Shikaku Nara found Kamui's weakness almost instantly.

Therefore, the Fourth Raikage held Shikaku Nara in exceptional high regard.

Rasa also looked at Shikaku Nara. As someone who had actually fought against Obito Uchiha, he admired Shikaku Nara even more.

Although he himself, who was directly involved, failed to notice the flaw in time, Shikaku Nara, who was only watching from a distance, quickly found the flaw and even came up with a solution.

Seeing Tsunade nodded to Shikaku Nara.

Shikaku Nara bowed to the three and said, "Lord Hokage, Lord Kazekage, Lord Raikage. The Tsuchikage's abilities are numerous and varied, seemingly very well-rounded, but also have obvious shortcomings."

"His abilities are all ranged, including the Light-Weight Rock Technique, a Flying Ninjutsu. All of the Tsuchikage's unique abilities revolve around ranged attacks."

"The Tsuchikage's close-combat ability has always been his weakness. To defeat the Tsuchikage, we must close the distance with him."

"First, we need to restrict the Tsuchikage's activity space, just like the Lord Raikage. A large-scale internal Defense Barrier would be good. If that's not possible, we can lure the Tsuchikage into some confined battlefields, such as underground spaces or canyons."

"Secondly, within this limited space, use Ninjutsu that can fill the space, such as Earth Release, Water Release, or Golden Sand or Iron Sand."

"If we can fill the already cramped space, turn ranged combat into close combat, and then have a close combat expert like Lord Raikage fight, we still have a chance of winning."

Upon hearing this, the Fourth Raikage inwardly praised his expertise, while also regretting not having thought of it earlier.

Didn't Kisame Hoshigaki from Kirigakure do the same thing? He used a massive Water Release to completely alter the terrain and limit my speed.

Although Kumogakure doesn't have as many Earth Release and Water Release ninjas as Iwagakure and Kirigakure, it can still divide the village in two and gradually reduce Yichen's living space.

As long as Yichen's hiding space is continuously reduced, Yichen will be finished sooner or later.

Unfortunately, there's no going back.