Kumogakure, at dusk.
The setting sun draped the peaceful village in a blood-red cloak.
A space-time vortex suddenly appeared. Standing atop Tianyun Mountain, Uchiha Obito looked down at the prosperous, tranquil Kumogakure.
A pitcher plant emerged from the ground, and Black Zetsu rasped, "Obito, you're five days late."
Obito glanced at Black Zetsu. "There was some urgent business in Kirigakure that needed handling, so I was delayed. Also, from now on, call me Uchiha Madara."
What urgent business needed handling?
It was nothing more than a pointless, bloody purge.
Uchiha Madara would never do such a thing.
Just a substitute, after all!
Black Zetsu grumbled inwardly for a while, then got down to business. "Madara, we've completed our mission. It's your turn to act."
"Then let's begin."
Obito's voice was cold. He stepped backward and vanished into the space-time vortex.
Black and White Zetsu followed close behind, closing up the pitcher plant and burrowing underground.
At a training ground in Kumogakure.
After training all day, Yozuki Rei (the Yozuki woman who appeared earlier; I've changed her gender) planted the long blade in his hand into the ground, picked up the water jug beside him, and gulped down its contents.
His crushing defeat in his earlier fight against Neji had haunted him for a long time. He had always prided himself on being a genius.
He had roughly doubled his daily training regimen.
"At least all that hard training these past few days hasn't been for nothing. Once I've mastered Black Lightning, I'll challenge him again."
After finishing the water in the jug, Yozuki Rei wiped the sweat from his forehead and prepared to continue training. Without warning, a space-time vortex appeared in front of him.
Yozuki Rei grew wary.
Then he saw a mysterious man wearing a one-eyed tiger-striped mask slowly emerge from the vortex.
Obito's sudden appearance made Yozuki Rei realize that he meant trouble.
The next instant, Yozuki Rei gripped his Chakra Blade with both hands, his face full of caution.
Obito studied Yozuki Rei with interest and said calmly, "Nice blade."
Yozuki Rei asked tentatively, "Who are you? Why are you here?"
As soon as the words left his mouth, Yozuki Rei struck at Obito with his Chakra Blade before he could answer.
A streak of black lightning appeared along the blade's gleaming edge.
Obito stood where he was, neither dodging nor flinching.
Whoosh!
With a sharp whistle as the blade cut through the air and the crackle of Black Lightning, the Chakra Blade in Yozuki Rei's hands struck Obito's neck at an impossible angle.
"..."
The blade swept through.
But the sensation traveling up the hilt made Yozuki Rei realize that his powerful strike hadn't hit his opponent at all.
It passed right through him. That wasn't his real body?
Yozuki Rei stared wide-eyed at Obito, who remained motionless where he stood.
After a brief moment of shock, he reacted quickly.
He pushed off the ground and leaped backward. While airborne, his eyes darted around, scanning his surroundings as he tried to locate the enemy's real body.
Whoosh!
A long chain shot out from Obito's sleeve, darting toward Yozuki Rei like a venomous snake with a mind of its own.
Only after hearing the chain whistle through the air did Yozuki Rei realize how strange the mysterious masked man was.
"Lightning Release: Lightning Ball!"
Swordsmanship won't hurt him. I'll try a ninjutsu.
As half his chakra vanished in an instant, a lightning ball formed in front of Yozuki Rei, reaching a full seven or eight meters in diameter.
The lightning ball wasn't azure or white. Black Lightning—the pinnacle of Lightning Release Chakra nature transformation—coursed through it, and its savage aura could be felt from more than ten meters away.
Besides testing Obito's abilities, Yozuki Rei had formed the giant lightning ball to alert the Patrol Team that an enemy had invaded.
Boom!
An explosion rang out.
A terrifying shock wave swept across half the training ground.
Yozuki Rei staggered backward, gasping for breath.
Soon, he saw Obito approaching unharmed, as though taking a leisurely stroll.
My swordsmanship and ninjutsu are both useless.
No wonder he's so calm.
He has absolute confidence in his own strength.
Yozuki Rei felt ice-cold all over.
Then he noticed a Three-Tomoe Sharingan spinning rapidly inside the single eyehole of Obito's mask.
The Sharingan?!
Just as he was about to close his eyes, Yozuki Rei realized he couldn't move.
Obito walked up to Yozuki Rei, his wild hair whipping in the wind. He drew the samurai sword at his waist and easily cut through Yozuki Rei's body.
The pain jolted Yozuki Rei out of the genjutsu and brought him back to his senses.
He planted his Chakra Blade in the ground and tried to stand, but the lower half of his body no longer obeyed him.
Is death coming for me?
How absurd.
I was just thinking about sparring with that kid.
Obito stopped in front of Yozuki Rei, interrupting his thoughts.
With effort, he twisted his neck and looked up at the Three-Tomoe Sharingan in Obito's right eye.
"The Sharingan... Are you an Uchiha?"
Obito stared at Yozuki Rei coldly. Perhaps the sight of the boy lying in a pool of blood reminded him of the past, so he decided to say a few more words.
"I used to be an Uchiha. Now I'm a dead man. The only reason I still exist is to bury this meaningless, false world."
Yozuki Rei was stunned by Obito's ravings.
He couldn't understand.
But he chose to believe him.
Because no one would lie to a dying man.
What a lunatic.
Maybe I can still do something.
Feeling his consciousness slowly fading, Yozuki Rei gripped his Chakra Blade and hurled it at Obito with all his strength.
Wrapped in Black Lightning, the Chakra Blade passed through Obito's body, flew out of the training ground, and sank deep into a tree so wide that two people could barely encircle it.
Seeing the blade buried in the tree, Yozuki Rei closed his eyes and breathed his last.
Obito reached into the Ninja Tool Pouch at Yozuki Rei's waist and rummaged around until he found a red gourd.
One of the Six Paths Ninja Tools: the Red Gourd.
Obito nodded with satisfaction, then sucked both the Red Gourd and Yozuki Rei's corpse into Kamui Space.
"Where's the Amber Purifying Pot?"
Of the five Six Paths Ninja Tools, the Seven Stars Sword, Golden Canopy Rope, and Banana Palm Fan were of little use.
The Amber Purifying Pot and the Red Gourd could store Tailed Beasts. They would be invaluable when the Akatsuki Organization began collecting them.
Black and White Zetsu emerged from the ground. Black Zetsu said, "The Amber Purifying Pot is in Hyuga Neji's hands."
"Hyuga Neji?"
Beneath his mask, Obito's expression stiffened slightly.
That name shouldn't have come up in Kumogakure.
White Zetsu chimed in cheerfully, "Madara, you've forgotten? Hyuga Neji is the Byakugan Cub the Konoha delegation abducted two years ago."
Obito thought for a moment and realized there had indeed been someone like that.
He hadn't paid much attention to the Hyuga clan. When White Zetsu had mentioned the intel back then, he'd quickly forgotten about it.
"Instead of being reduced to breeding stock, he was carefully raised by the Cloud ninja."
"The Fourth Raikage truly is a remarkable man."
Obito mused for a few seconds. Then the corner of his mouth curled into a sinister smile beneath his mask.
"Take me to that kid."
Black Zetsu spoke in a hoarse voice, offering a gentle warning like a father.
"Madara, the Red Gourd is the only Six Paths Ninja Tool we need."
"Yozuki Rei is nothing like Hyuga Neji. If you kill Neji, the Fourth Raikage will fly into a rage, and the consequences will be serious."
"Besides, the battle here has already alerted the Patrol Team."
"Even you can't kill Hyuga Neji."
"White Zetsu and I will clean up the scene. You should leave as soon as possible."
Before you continue