Kuro's Selective Narrative

After the knocking sound ended, a long silence fell over the entire space.

"So that's how it is."

"Although I had long suspected the true identity of that 'Ban,' hearing the definitive answer from you, Koko, still gave me quite a shock."

Hearing Koko's confident reply, Minato didn't show any signs of collapse or anger. He simply sighed as expected and gave a bitter smile.

He looked at Kou, his voice very soft, as if talking to himself, or as if asking a question from afar to someone who wasn't there:

"Obito, why did he become like that...?"

"Hmph, who knows?"

Kou pursed his lips and said irritably:

"He probably lost his mind completely after witnessing Rin's death, and then he was completely fooled by that old bastard Uchiha Madara."

They believed his twisted logic that "the entire Ninja World is fake," and now he wants to drag everyone into some kind of Genjutsu Ninja World to dream their dreams!

"Witnessed Rin's death? Uchiha Madara? The world of dreams?"

Minato quickly absorbed the vast amount of information contained in Koto's rant, his shock and seriousness deepening with each new keyword.

"Knock, what on earth is going on—"

"What on earth is going on?!"

Kushina's high-pitched voice abruptly interrupted Minato before he could finish speaking.

She held her head in her hands, her red hair disheveled and messy, pacing back and forth in front of Kotsuka and Minato.

"Obito isn't actually dead? And he's the Masked Man ambushed us and released the Nine-Tails? How is that possible?!"

Kushina abruptly stopped, gripping Koko's shoulders tightly with both hands, and asked again incredulously:

"Knock, are you serious? Didn't Obito die in the Battle of Kannabi Bridge? How could he still be alive, and in that state?"

Obito is so kind, how could he possibly be that dangerous Masked Man? This, this..."

"Calm down a bit, Kushina."

Minato gently placed his broad, calloused hand on his wife's trembling hand, and slowly, gently but irresistibly pried open Kushina's hands that were tightly gripping his shoulder, gathering them into his palm.

He lowered his head and gave his wife a reassuring smile:

"Since Kou can say this with such certainty, there must be a reason for it."

If we have any questions, we can wait until he finishes speaking before asking, right?

With Minato's gentle words of comfort, Kushina's mind, which had been almost overwhelmed by this explosive information, gradually calmed down.

She slowly released her grip on Kou's shoulder, retreated to Minato's side, and didn't say another word.

But those tightly furrowed brows and those eyes full of doubt and disbelief remained fixed on Kou, unblinking.

Kou looked at Kushina, who was struggling to accept this reality, with some sympathy, and sighed heavily in his heart.

"Uchiha Obito, you're such a... beast!!"

Kou suppressed his urge to immediately rush back to Mist Village and deliver a "Magatsuhi God" to Obito, and recounted the entire process of Obito's descent into darkness in the calmest possible tone.

From the Battle of Kannabi Bridge, when everyone thought Obito had perished, to Uchiha Madara, who had been secretly watching him, rescuing him, and then Madara using the First Hokage's Hashirama Cells to fill his broken body and pull him back from the brink of death.

Later, under Madara's meticulous planning, Obito witnessed Rin's death and, along with Kakashi, awakened his Mangekyō Sharingan.

Madara took this opportunity to instill in him the truth about the Infinite Tsukuyomi, telling him that the Ninja World had always been a false cage filled with betrayal, despair, and futile struggles.

The only way to end all of this is to drag all living beings in the entire Ninja World into that eternal dream!

Obito embraced Madara's ideology and, before Madara's death, inherited his "legacy" under Madara's Genjutsu training, greatly enhancing his strength. He then began to roam the Ninja World under the name Madara...

Koko recounted how she "accidentally" met Obito after leaving Konoha, how she recognized him at a glance based on her "intuition," and how she had to join the Akatsuki to protect herself, becoming Obito's "helper."

He also mentioned that he inherited Uchiha Madara's legacy from Obito and has made a qualitative leap in strength over the years.

But at that time, he was still unable to compete with Mangekyō Sharingan Obito.

It wasn't until recently, when he heard the news that Obito and Itachi had joined forces to slaughter the entire Uchiha clan, that he awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan amidst immense grief, gaining the strength to protect himself.

(A certain Uchiha cub who witnessed all of this but only activated one Tomo: I suspect you're targeting me.)

As he spoke, he observed the reactions of the two men, a meaningful glint flashing in his eyes.

When he was telling Minato and Kushina about these things, he deliberately omitted the fact that he and Obito had jointly manipulated the Fourth Mizukage in Mist Village and secretly controlled the entire Mist Village government through a two-party rivalry.

He also concealed the various experiences he had after awakening the Mangekyō Sharingan.

Let's leave aside those matters concerning myself for now.

Regarding whether or not to confess to the Minato couple at this moment that Mist Village is actually controlled by him and Obito together, Kōji still harbored some deep doubts in his heart.

The alliance agreement that Mist Village and Konoha are about to reach, and the Odd Jobs Agency network that will subsequently spread throughout the entire Ninja World.

This entire plan is related to my important future plans.

If Konoha were to find out at this point that the "Shiina Sora" who had been negotiating an alliance with them face-to-face these past few days was actually himself, then he would probably find it very difficult to leave Konoha easily.

More importantly, once they learn that the mastermind behind Akatsuki is the current Mizukage, it will definitely have a significant impact on their decision regarding the alliance between Konoha and Mist Village.

Moreover, once too many people know about his and Obito's true identities in Mist Village, Obito will definitely become suspicious of him.

In the past, this wouldn't have mattered much; we could just run away!

Anyway, I've long since stopped wanting to live around Akatsuki and Obito.

If I had to point out any regrets, it would only be that I'm a little worried about everyone in Mist Village.

But the situation is completely different now.

Regarding the suspected second death of Uchiha Madara, before finding out whether Madara is still alive and whether he is still plotting something in secret, I must continue to stay in the Akatsuki and stay by Obito's side.

Therefore, considering various factors, Koko ultimately chose not to reveal everything to the Minato couple in front of him.

"When the time is right, I will explain it to you clearly."

After mentally sorting out these chaotic thoughts, he calmly observed Minato and Kushina's reactions...