"Lord Madara..."
In the instant that half of his body was blown apart by the Kazashiro, he looked at Madara Uchiha was sitting in a huge chair, with tears in his eyes.
At this moment, Madara had severed his connection with the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path, and his entire being gave Setsuna the feeling of a withered, rotten piece of wood, both decayed and fragile.
Even so, Madara clung to his last breath, just to give Setsuna his final instructions.
Seeing Setsuna's body half-covered by Hashirama Cells, Madara Uchiha was very satisfied.
He never imagined that at this age, on the verge of death, he would awaken the Mangekyō Sharingan due to the humiliation of defeat and the stimulation of Hashirama Cells.
In this way, he would have enough backup plans to limit the development of Uchiha Yaowan.
"You did well. It was indeed my mistake not to take you with me back then."
Madara Uchiha remained expressionless, but his tone softened considerably.
"I have failed to live up to your expectations, allowing the evil Tobirama to gain the upper hand!"
Seeing Madara's humility, Uchiha Setsuna could no longer bear it. Ignoring the pain from his wounds, he crawled to Madara's side, pleading, "Lord Madara, only you, only you can save the Uchiha Clan!"
As he watched the man cling to his leg, refusing to let go, a sneer flashed across Madara Uchiha's face.
Save the Uchiha Clan?
Unfortunately, he now has no feelings for the family that once abandoned him.
He led them into battle back then only for his younger brother Izuna.
His magnanimity extends to the entire Shinobi World, not just to a single clan.
But--
Sensing that his life force was dwindling, Madara bowed forward and placed his withered right hand on the other person's shoulder.
"My time is running out, there are a few things you must remember."
Forcing the other person to look into his eyes, Madara Uchiha told him his last words, "Black Zetsu is my will. If Uchiha Yaowan and Nagato deviate from my plan, go find it and make it cooperate with you to control them."
"Although he lacks intelligence, Black Zetsu is loyal to me. Remember, never let the Rinnegan fall into the wrong hands."
Having said all that, Ban had no strength left. He shakily withdrew his arm, panting heavily.
"Huff... huff... huff... Go, go forth, go and fulfill my will, I await the day you awaken me..."
After saying this, Madara, without waiting for a reply from Setsuna, slowly closed his eyes.
Finally, a familiar figure appeared before his eyes.
"Hashirama..."
"Black Zetsu."
Watching Madara die right before his eyes, with no time to mourn him, Black Zetsu, who was in a very bad mood, took the stage.
He had been hiding underground, hoping to witness Madara's death firsthand, thinking he could finally vent his anger. But instead, he was red-hot again.
Even on his deathbed, Madara didn't forget to say that he had no brains!
You're the one who has no brains, your whole family has no brains, Hashirama have any brains!
Even with so many grievances in his heart, Black Zetsu still had to put on a blank expression on the surface and dutifully play the role of Madara's will.
Where is Yaowan?
He glanced at Black Zetsu from head to toe, inwardly marveling at how ugly Madara's will was, but aloud he asked about Yaowan's whereabouts.
He said he wanted to go to the Shinobi World to see how he could plan his next move.
Black Zetsu spoke calmly, concealing his anger well.
"Hmph, what's so interesting about the Shinobi World?"
She scoffed at Yaowan's idea, and because of her injuries, she knelt beside Ban's corpse, trying to remain calm.
"How is Nagato doing?"
"As always."
"Is that so..." Leaning her head against Madara's chair, Setsuna's behavior at this moment was like that of a young child.
The events at Yaowan gave him some inspiration. If he could make a loyal dog of Konoha become Madara's proxy in this way, he could surely make Nagato believed in love and peace, know pain and utter despair.
"You stay by Yaowan's side and monitor his actions. I'll try to make contact with Nagato once I've recovered from my injuries."
In an instant, he issued an order to Black Zetsu without any hesitation.
"Understood."
Black Zetsu nodded and looked up at Madara's corpse.
Although she really wanted to vent her anger by taking the other person's corpse, it was clear that Setsuna wouldn't give her that chance.
Besides, there are many White Zetsu in the cave, and it would be bad if Setsuna told on them.
With that in mind, Black Zetsu decisively dived underground and began to act according to Setsuna's instructions.
Amegakure.
"Nagato, you're here."
When it was time to eat Konan couldn't find Nagato anywhere. She searched all the way up the stairs to the rooftop and finally spotted him by the Nagato.
"Oh, it's Konan. What's wrong?"
Letting the raindrops fall on her face, Nagato, pursed her lips, and finally forced a smile in response.
"What are you thinking about? Did Kazashiro say that?"
Seeing Nagato's expression, Konan, who had lived with him for many years, naturally noticed Nagato's low spirits. She stepped out from where the rain couldn't reach her and went to Nagato's side.
Faced with Konan's question, Nagato opened his mouth, unsure of what to say, and slowly nodded under Konan's gaze.
The other party's statement was so shocking that even after a long time, Nagato could not get over it.
Contrary to what Jiraiya- sensei said, his eyes were not a gift from the Shinobi World, but rather a deliberate act by a mastermind to achieve their scheme.
The reason was simply because he possessed the bloodline of the Uzumaki Clan.
"I'm just a worker--"
Nagato raised his voice, wanting to vent his dissatisfaction, but felt his right hand being suddenly gripped by Konan.
He immediately understood and stopped speaking.
Yes, I might be being monitored by someone behind the scenes, and venting would only cause unnecessary trouble for my friends.
"It's okay, what he says isn't necessarily all true."
Not knowing how to comfort Nagato, Konan could only say this to cheer Nagato up:
"Look, isn't our more important task now to realize the beautiful vision in our hearts?"
Pointing to the streets below, which were much more prosperous than when Kazashiro last visited, Yahiko and the others successfully enabled the Akatsuki Organization -controlled area to develop well thanks to the loans provided by Konoha.
The dilapidated buildings were renovated, and the Akatsuki Organization members' ninja tools were replaced with Konoha's standard ninja tools. Exploding Tag, Ninja Blade, armor, and other items that were previously scarce were now in stock. Compared to Hanzo's territory, the area where the Akatsuki Organization was located was full of fresh vitality.