Black Zetsu, getting cocky?

Back at the starting point, Black Zetsu still guards this place.

Sensing Tōka's approaching presence, a Pitcher Plant immediately emerged from the stone wall.

"It seems the mission is complete." Black Zetsu sensed a dangerous aura, one that he hadn't detected from Tōka before.

"Yes, we're going back." Tōka nodded slightly, acknowledging Black Zetsu's statement.

"But it's only a half-finished product, tsk... what a pity." Black Zetsu seemed to have something to say but hesitated before uttering a sentence that shocked Sasori and Kakuzu.

This is still only a semi-finished product?

If it were a finished product, wouldn't that be...?

The two swallowed hard, staring dumbfounded at Tōka's retreating figure.

Although Tōka never made a move on the moon, the two could still sense the terrifying power of those eyes.

The stronger a person is, the clearer they can feel the gap between themselves and the Tenseigan.

The Tenseigan is specifically divided into two types!

The first type is formed by the fusion of a large number of Byakugan, and it is a perpetual motion machine that will not perish even after a long time and can increase enormous energy— the Golden Wheel Tenseigan.

The second type is evolved from the fusion of the chakra of the Ōtsutsuki Clan and the Byakugan of the Hyuga Clan, and it will disappear.

Dong Ge's eyes are formed by the fusion of the enormous Byakugan power with the awakened Kaguya bloodline, and belong neither to the first type of Tenseigan nor the second type.

The reason Black Zetsu said it was only a half-finished product was a secret known only to Black Zetsu and Tōka.

"If you don't leave now, we'll leave you behind!" Tōka and Black Zetsu's figures had already disappeared outside the cave, but their voices drifted back from afar.

Sasori and Kakuzu only came to their senses at this moment; they really wanted to witness the power of the Tenseigan.

Pain's Rinnegan is already so powerful it's beyond words. What kind of abilities does the Tenseigan, being of the same level, possess?

With the same question in mind, the two quickly followed.

In the abandoned underground plaza of the Land of Grass.

Tōka stood before the enormous Stone Tablet, her Ice Blue eyes fixed intently on the Stone Tablet on it.

"So this is all I can see after all..." Tōka's pupils One Flash, the Ice Blue in his eyes faded, and he returned to his original inky black.

The "half-finished product" that Black Zetsu mentioned is because Tōka still cannot see all the runes clearly. The following is about the history of the Ōtsutsuki Clan.

The comprehensible text above recounts everything that happened a thousand years ago, as well as Tōka's abilities and Kaguya's Sage Body.

"The finished eye..." Tōka's mind started racing. The only way for the Eternal Tenseigan to evolve again was through that...

The timing is not right; taking forceful action would disrupt the plan.

Tōka was unwilling to let history deviate from its general direction; his greatest asset was his thorough understanding of history.

It's good to wait a bit; the Eternal Tenseigan is enough as a transitional eye.

"Let's go, we've still gotten a lot of useful information." Tōka said to the empty basement, though he had already sensed Black Zetsu hiding in the shadows.

Upon hearing this, Black Zetsu alarmed. It seemed that Tōka's perception had become even stronger!

Black Zetsu is Black Zetsu after all; his face, as black as ink, makes it impossible to tell how thick it is. He emerged from the ground with a smile on his face.

"Hey, Tōka, what did you see?" Black Zetsu could alter the Stone Tablet left by the Six Paths, but he couldn't see the Stone Tablet that Kaguya had carved.

Because only the true successor of the Ōtsutsuki Clan can decipher the Stone Tablet that Kaguya inscribed.

Tōka tilted his head and glanced at Black Zetsu. The air seemed to freeze for a moment, and his calm gaze exerted unparalleled pressure.

"It's even more stressful than Nagato's Rinnegan!" Black Zetsu thought to himself, but then he realized that Nagato's eyes didn't belong to him.

Therefore, Nagato was unable to unleash the true power of the Rinnegan, yet even so Nagato was already so powerful that he was awe-inspiring.

As for Tōka...

Black Zetsu n't know if he had done the right thing this time.

Back in the abandoned palace, Pure White snowflakes drifted down from the sky, carried in by a cold current through the cracks in the collapse.

"The snow should have stopped by now, right?" Tōka reached out and caught a falling snowflake, her gaze fixed on the white snow, but her pupils were not focused on her palm.

"It's time to stop." Black Zetsu stared blankly at the sky.

The snow this winter is unusually long...

Sudden!

Both of them were taken aback. This strange feeling? Nagato's Demonic Illusion: Phantom Lantern?

The Akatsuki Organization members remained Budong and released Thought Wave converted from chakra.

Pain, acting as the commander, receives these waves, amplifies Thought Wave, and then manifests the illusions on the fingers of the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path.

Tōka and Black Zetsu did not become official members of Akatsuki.

However, due to a lack of manpower, they currently only have Nagato, Konan, Sasori, Kakuzu, and the substitutes Haku and Pakura from the Ice and Fire Duo.

Therefore, Tōka and Black Zetsu each possess a ring that is only available to official members of Akatsuki.

Nagato, as the leader, was Rogue Ninja from Amegakure. His main ability was the Rinnegan, and his codename was Zero.

Konan, a member of the Amegakure, Rogue Ninja whose main ability Paper Dance, and her codename is White.

Sasori of the Red Sands, a member of the village, Rogue Ninja from Sunagakure. His main ability Puppet Technique, and his codename was Jade.

Kakuzu, as the head of finances, is a Rogue Ninja from Takigakure. His main ability is the Earth Grudge Fear, and his codename is North.

Pakura, a substitute member, is Rogue Ninja from Sunagakure. Her main ability is the Scorch Release bloodline limit, and her codename is Gen.

Yuki Haku, a substitute member, is from the Land of Water. Her main ability is Ice Release Bloodline Limit, and her codename is Sora.

Jue, an intelligence operative, whose nationality is unknown, possesses the ability of Yang Release and is codenamed Nan.

Tōka, a substitute member and a ninja from Konoha, possesses the main ability of Kekkei Mōra and is codenamed Zhu.

After their strength increases Ice and Fire Duo will become official members, while Tōka and Jue will hand over their rings and disappear completely into the background once the Akatsuki Organization has recruited enough members.

Beside the abandoned palace, there is a side hall that has not yet completely collapsed, which can provide shelter from the wind and rain.

"Let's do it here." Tōka raised his hand to brush the dust off a fallen rock in the hall, then bent down and sat down, releasing his chakra.

Black Zetsu sat down to the side, releasing his chakra.

The illusions of the two appeared on the fingers of the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path, while the other positions were occupied by Zero, White, Vermilion, Profound, Void, South, North, and Jade.

Only San and Qing's seats were empty.

"So slow!" Scorpion hated waiting the most and grumbled impatiently.

Tōka turned his head and looked around, and found that he and Black Zetsu were the last to arrive, so Scorpion's words were naturally referring to the two of them.

Everyone knew Scorpion's personality, so Tōka didn't pay attention to his words. He shifted his gaze from everyone else and finally landed on Deva Path.

Deva Path everyone had arrived, Tiandao slowly opened his eyes. The captivating patterns in his pupils were as unsettling as ever.

"Let's get down to business." A cold voice rang out, and the atmosphere in the room became tense.

Scorpion and Kakuzu glanced at Tōka silently, but they couldn't see the slightest change in those dark eyes.

The Deva Path spoke to itself, oblivious to the expressions on the two people's faces.

"We've received news that the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki is pregnant, and the Jinchūriki is at their weakest during childbirth."

As soon as he finished speaking, Deva Path's gaze lingered briefly on everyone's faces, carefully observing the reactions of the Six People besides Konan.

Pakura was slightly surprised; Bai's mind was clearly not on that.

As for the other four guys, they all had expressionless faces, as if they had heard something very ordinary.

Finally, the Deva Path spoke again.

"We still have ten months to prepare. This mission is just a trial to seize the Nine-Tails; we won't force it."

"The Nine-Tails, the strongest of the Tailed Beast, is truly terrifying!" Black Zetsu chuckled.

"What a boring mission!" Kakuzu wondered to himself where to find high-bounty rogue Rogue Ninja after the Demonic Illusion: Phantom Lantern was dispelled.

Scorpion remained calm and quiet to the side, while Pakura and Bai looked slightly nervous.

As for Konan? Her gaze remained fixed on Tōka. Even in an illusion, she could sense that something about Tōka seemed different.

"The four selected candidates are: Tōka, Kakuzu, Pakura, and Shiro."

"The intelligence was provided by Jue. Do you have any other questions?"

The cold gaze of the Deva Path swept over the four of them, forcing Kakuzu to swallow back the words he was about to say. He was still planning to make a lot of money!

To think they'd assign him such a troublesome task...

Kakuzu glanced furtively at Tōka, who had remained silent, and suddenly realized that this mission might be quite interesting.

Will I have a chance to see those Ice Blue eyes this time?

Sasori and Kakuzu worked together remarkably well on the mission to the moon, neither of them informing Pain, their nominal leader.

Although neither of them were talkative, their reasons for not revealing the mission were different.

Sasori did so to repay Tōka for giving him Hanzo's corpse, while Kakuzu harbored his own secret plans.

After a moment of silence, seeing that everyone remained silent, the Deva Path raised its hand and waved.

"Disperse!"

The Demonic Illusion: Phantom Lantern was dispelled, and everyone's illusions vanished one after another.

When Tōka opened her eyes again, she found herself back in the abandoned ruins. She stretched her stiff neck and stood up.

"What does Nagato mean by this?" Black Zetsu asked, frowning. The plan to capture the Nine-Tails was deliberately leaked to Konan by Tōka.

The purpose was to divert Konan and Nagato's attention.

At this moment, Nagato sent Tōka to Konoha, along with two substitute members.

Pakura's strength is quite good; she faces no pressure against Jonin, and can even Elite Jonin.

As for Haku, his strength is somewhat lacking. At only seven years old, Haku is more than capable of dealing with Genin and can even fight against Chunin.

Going further up...

"Who told him to be the BOSS?" Tōka squinted, thinking that Nagato's idea was actually quite good.

As Deva Path said, this mission was merely a test of Konoha's strength; whether it succeeded or not was not important.

If we could actually capture the Nine-Tails, that would be the best outcome.

Even if it doesn't succeed in the end, there won't be any loss.

Of the four, apart from Shiro being a bit weak, the other three were quite strong, so Nagato wasn't worried about them.

Even in the worst-case scenario, where Tōka, Kakuzu, Pakura, and Haku all die in Konoha, Nagato wouldn't be sad at all.

For the sake of peace, necessary sacrifices must be made!

The lost combat power can be replenished from other places; Rogue Ninja will eventually come back!

In short, Nagato is gambling with the lives of Tōka and the other three!

"It seems we need to hurry up and find suitable members." Black Zetsu pondered for a moment, his eyes changing slightly, as if he had figured out Nagato's plan.

Hmph, what an arrogant brat! He thinks having the Rinnegan makes him a true god? We're not even sure who's using whom yet!

Black Zetsu glanced at the composed Tōka, a cold smile creeping across his face, while simultaneously offering a moment of silent sympathy for the pitiful Nagato.

What happens if a chess piece becomes useless?

The thought flashed through his mind, and Black Zetsu recalled an incident that had occurred several years ago.

When Tōka first met Nagato, she immediately refused to become a formal member of Akatsuki.

Thinking back to this moment, Black Zetsu couldn't help but secretly give a thumbs up.

If he were merely a substitute, he could participate in Akatsuki's activities without being overly restricted by Nagato.

While they may seem like mere substitutes with no real status, they actually enjoy greater freedom and convenience.

Hiding behind the scenes and controlling everything—that's the best choice!

"The plan for the Land of Wind has been postponed. Perhaps after the success of the trip to Konoha, we won't need to go to the Land of Wind anymore." At this moment, Tōka's voice rang out, interrupting Black Zetsu's thoughts.

Right now, there's only one person in Konoha who deserves Tōka's attention!

Tōka didn't care about this plan. After awakening the Eternal Tenseigan, he was very confident in his strength.

At that time, we can just take care of Bai a little.

"The Land of Wind plan has been postponed? I understand." Black Zetsu nodded slightly, then used the Mayfly Technique to sink into the earth.

Before long, Black Zetsu's aura faded into the depths of the Woods, leaving only Tōka in the empty, desolate ruins.

Tōka rested her chin on her hand, leaning against the Broken Cliff, letting the swirling snowflakes fall on her shoulder.

He was thinking...

After awakening the Eternal Tenseigan, Tōka's perception became extremely sharp, unlike before when he was only exceptionally sensitive to Black Zetsu's aura.

This time, he sensed Hagoromo's presence.

"Chakra remaining in the Mortal World?" Tōka narrowed his eyes and pursed his lips, his dark eyes flashing with wisdom.

Hagoromo is indeed dead, but his chakra continues to circulate in the world, silently protecting the ninja world.

Tōka has to admit, he really admires this guy.

Unfortunately...

From any perspective, Hagoromo and Tōka, who are related by blood, will never become friends!

"Six Paths is a shrewd man; finding his chakra left in the world won't be easy!" Tōka sighed, stretched, and stood up.

Moreover, chakra, such a mysterious thing, doesn't seem to be so easy to deal with.

Sealing Technique might work, but Tōka's Sealing Technique...

One word—scum!

There's still enough time; the Six Paths' chakra awaits the time when the Eternal Tenseigan evolves once more...

"Let's not think about things that far ahead for now. What we need to focus on right now is our trip to Konoha." Tōka shook his head, putting aside all the messy things about the Six Paths.

Konoha is the strongest of the Five Great Nations, and Minato, during his time as the Fourth Hokage, was at the height of his power.

If things go wrong, I might end up in Konoha's Konoha Torture and Interrogation Force!

Unbeknownst to him, Dong Ge had been standing there for a very long time, as Pure White snowflakes drifted down from the dark blue sky.

The frost piled up on Tōka's coat, covering his entire body in a layer of white frost...