Black Zetsu's Despair

At the same time, deep in the western mountains of the Land of Fire.

Black Zetsu emerged from the earth and landed at the cave entrance.

After delivering Rin to the designated location, he had immediately rushed back because he could not shake a bad feeling.

He followed the hidden passage inward, passing through rock layers, water veins, and the sealed gate.

Then he stopped at the entrance.

The stone chair was empty.

Not a single White Zetsu remained.

The Demonic Statue of the Outer Path was still standing there, but the old man who had sat beneath its shadow was gone.

Black Zetsu remained half-emerged from the rock, frozen in place for a full three minutes.

"Madara-sama, the plan at Kannabi Bridge..."

He spoke out of habit.

Only an empty echo answered him.

Black Zetsu fully crawled out of the ground, his yellow eyes blinking repeatedly in the darkness.

No one sat in the stone chair.

That old man who could barely breathe and relied entirely on the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path to stay alive had vanished.

"White Zetsu? Tobi?"

Black Zetsu called out.

There were none of those noisy voices, nor was there that white idiot who constantly asked what taking a dump felt like.

Black Zetsu's body turned into a puddle of black sludge and swiftly slithered toward the stone chair.

"...Where did Madara go?"

Black Zetsu's mind began racing wildly.

Had Konoha's ninjas broken in?

Impossible. The barrier was completely intact.

Had Madara pulled out his tubes and gone for a walk?

What kind of thousand-year joke was that?!

Without the statue's tubes, that bag of old bones would breathe his last before he could even reach the cave entrance!

He turned toward the corner.

"Where's the Third Mizukage?! Why is that controlled Kage