Ren raised his hand. Two Rinnegan hovered quietly above his palm.
"I don't like waiting for the enemy to finish setting everything up before fighting back."
"If Black Zetsu wants to use Madara to advance its plan, I'll give it the chance."
"The moment it shows itself, I'll grab the hand it reaches out and drag it from the dark."
Jian Zhen's lips moved, but in the end, he said nothing more.
The words were blunt and domineering.
But he had to admit Ren was right.
As long as Black Zetsu lived, Madara and Obito's plans would never truly end.
Even if the Uchiha subdued Madara once or twice, there was no guarantee Black Zetsu wouldn't manipulate someone else next time.
Not far away, Itachi Uchiha stood in midair, supported by an invisible force of will.
Nagato was bound beside him by the Hand of the Heavens. He could move neither his arms nor his legs.
At those words, Nagato lowered his head.
So that was it.
Ren had never been after only the Akatsuki Organization.
Nor was he after Madara alone.
Madara, Obito, Nagato, even the turmoil engulfing the entire Shinobi World—they were all means for Ren to draw out Black Zetsu.
Itachi looked away.
He finally understood why Ren had not simply destroyed Madara Uchiha's Impure World Reincarnation body, and why he had spared Nagato after taking his Rinnegan.
Ren had never wanted a simple victory.
He wanted to tear out the root of the calamity that had plagued the Shinobi World for a thousand years.
Nagato kept his head bowed as blood dripped from his empty eye sockets.
Ren had just exposed Madara's scheme.
Now he had revealed that Black Zetsu was the one lurking even deeper behind it all.
Everything Nagato had held up as an