Qingye's gaze swept back and forth between two points on the map. He was really starting to lose it.
That strange Konoha ninja from before had definitely been a White Zetsu in disguise!
The three of them had planned their ambush and concealed themselves. That might have fooled the Iwagakure Ninja at the mountaintop outpost, but it definitely wouldn't have fooled White Zetsu!
So, for some unknown reason, Uchiha Madara had sent White Zetsu disguised as a Konoha ninja to lure the Iwagakure Ninja over and force the three of them to reveal themselves!
And what's more!
Gari arriving early might have been White Zetsu's doing too!
The White Zetsu disguised as a Konoha ninja had blown himself up, while another White Zetsu had been nearby. That one had left after the battle ended!
But where had it gone?
As Qingye remembered it, the elderly Uchiha Madara lived in a place called the "Graveyard of Mountains."
Although he didn't know exactly where the Graveyard of Mountains was, it shouldn't be in the Land of Grass. It had to be in some other country in the Shinobi World!
Which meant!
The other White Zetsu had probably left in the direction of where Uchiha Madara was now!
Uchiha Madara had already made it to the Iwagakure battlefield!
Considering the cave on that line, Qingye could almost pinpoint Uchiha Madara's location!
"...Phew!"
After letting out a long breath, Qingye took out a red permanent marker and circled the cave on the map. "Remember, this is a forbidden zone. Don't go anywhere near it!"
"...What do you mean, a forbidden zone?" Hyuga Himon asked, completely confused.
"There's something terrifying inside! Just do as I say."
Yūhi Kurenai and Hyuga Himon could only nod.
"There's no need to worry too much. Maybe I'm just overthinking it." Qingye tried to reassure them.
Judging by the current state of the war, Konoha couldn't possibly push into the Land of Grass. They wouldn't be passing through a place like that again.
But why had Uchiha Madara set his sights on him?
Could it be that he'd become a backup candidate for the Moon Eye Plan?
Yikes!
It wasn't impossible!
Based on his talent in the past, he'd been about on par with Uchiha Tekka and Uchiha Inabi... He probably wouldn't have caught Uchiha Madara's eye.
But his strength had improved too quickly lately!
Maybe Uchiha Madara had pulled his résumé out of the trash and taken another look!
Qingye couldn't help shaking his head.
Having the advantage of knowing the plot was a good thing, but it had also made him too quick to assume.
He'd automatically thought Uchiha Madara would only target Uchiha Obito, never considering that he might be targeted too.
When had that old geezer started keeping tabs on him? White Zetsu had been lurking right beside him and he hadn't even noticed. That was downright terrifying!
"Kannabi Bridge..."
Shaking his head, he set Uchiha Madara aside for now.
If he wasn't mistaken, Uchiha Madara's current location was probably where Uchiha Obito would later be crushed by a boulder.
And that place was at least dozens of miles from Kannabi Bridge!
How could it be so far away?
Wait, that actually made sense!
Qingye thought back to the original story. Not long after Minato Namikaze and Team Kakashi had split up, Nohara Rin was captured by an Iwagakure jōnin.
After that, the two of them had gone to rescue Nohara Rin, one after the other. They hadn't even gone to blow up the bridge!
After a fierce battle, Obito and Kakashi had ended up one dead and one injured, killing the two opposing jōnin. Then, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—an unknown number of Iwagakure Ninja had suddenly appeared.
Kakashi had fought until he passed out, and Minato Namikaze had arrived to save the day.
There hadn't been any bridge demolition at all!
Or, at least, Kannabi Bridge hadn't been destroyed during the mission Uchiha Obito took part in.
"That explains it." Qingye slowly nodded.
But if the first attempt to blow up the bridge had been abandoned halfway through, why had Konoha ultimately won the war?
How important was the bridge demolition mission, anyway?
It couldn't have been just an excuse to send a jōnin squad of Kakashi, Obito, and Rin behind enemy lines to draw aggro and farm enemies, easing the pressure on the main battlefield, could it?
And blowing up the bridge had just been a side objective?
Great if they managed it, but no big deal if they didn't?
"Whatever. I'll stop thinking about it."
It wasn't their team that was going to blow up the bridge, anyway!
Qingye felt his ninja tool pouch. Inside was a scroll containing the sealed body of Gari, the Explosion Release ninja.
Although plenty of unexpected twists had come up, at least he'd accomplished his original goal. He'd soon have those fifty million ryō in hand.
Next, Qingye and Yūhi Kurenai got their stories straight and left the task report to the others. Qingye planned to go to the Underground Bounty Brokerage and help Gari complete his body donation.
Land of Grass.
Inside a temporary underground base.
Uchiha Madara kept his eyes closed, his vision connected by special means to White Zetsu scattered across the Shinobi World.
Uchiha Shisui, on the Kumogakure battlefield, had awakened his Sharingan at just ten years old. He was powerful and was considered the Uchiha Clan's most outstanding young prodigy.
Uchiha Tekka, on the Sunagakure battlefield, was twelve and had a One-Tomoe Sharingan. His strength was mediocre, and his talent was ordinary.
Uchiha Inabi, on the Sunagakure battlefield, was sixteen and had a Three-Tomoe Sharingan. His strength was passable, and his talent was ordinary too.
Uchiha Fugaku, on the Sunagakure battlefield, was thirty-one. His talent was decent, but he was too old, and he seemed to have already awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan.
Uchiha Obito had just returned to Konoha. He was twelve and hadn't awakened his Sharingan yet, but...
As Madara watched, White Zetsu A came running back, making a fuss. "Lord Madara, I'm back! That Explosion Release ninja, Gari, was completely useless. He couldn't even hold up Uchiha Qingye!"
Uchiha Madara opened his eyes and frowned slightly, taking in the information White Zetsu A had brought back.
"...Explosive Tags?"
After watching the entire battle, Uchiha Madara shook his head. "Never mind. It was only an experiment on a whim."
"By the way, Lord Madara, why did you have Gari go there early to hold up Uchiha Qingye?" White Zetsu A scratched his head.
If other Iwagakure Ninja had arrived, Uchiha Qingye might have died there.
Having spent decades as a lonely old man, Uchiha Madara didn't mind explaining a few things to the dim-witted White Zetsu. He gave a soft snort and said:
"You don't understand the Uchiha. Members of the Uchiha Clan need extreme emotional stimulation to awaken the Mangekyō Sharingan."
"And the kind of emotional stimulation they need differs from one person to another."
"As for Uchiha Qingye, based on my observations over the past two years, he probably needs to be pushed to the brink of death—to feel danger and tension—for his Sharingan to evolve."
"So, if I create a situation dangerous enough, I might be able to push him into awakening the Mangekyō Sharingan."
A pity. Even with all those Explosive Tags, that Explosion Release ninja, Gari, had still let him down.
"Oh, I see." White Zetsu A nodded, not understanding a thing. "Then what should we do about Uchiha Qingye now, Lord Madara?"
"He was just a move on the board. Forget about him." Uchiha Madara couldn't care less.
No one understood the Sharingan better than him!
Uchiha Obito hadn't awakened his Sharingan yet, but Madara was certain that the boy's talent in that regard even surpassed Uchiha Shisui's!
As for Uchiha Qingye, he was, at best, a little more talented than Uchiha Tekka and the others. He still couldn't compare to Uchiha Shisui.
For now, he needed to focus his attention on Obito first.
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