Despite standing at the very center of an enormous storm, Shingetsu grew uncharacteristically quiet. Kazuko's death had dealt her a heavy blow.
The guilt and regret of watching someone she knew fall into a bottomless abyss, powerless to stop it, left her deeply distressed. Even after burying Kazuko, Shingetsu could not escape that shadow. Guilt and regret kept hammering at her heart.
In that sense, Black Zetsu had not achieved his entire objective, but he had accomplished at least part of it.
Yet Shingetsu had not sunk into darkness as he wished, blinded by extreme emotions. After all, questioning the world before questioning themselves was standard practice for the Uchiha Clan.
Shingetsu felt more and more that the shinobi world was dark and hopeless beyond saving. To salvage it, she would have to burn the entire rotten, reeking old order to the ground!
While all of Konoha plunged into a frenzy of war preparations, Shingetsu spent her days pondering Kazuko's last words. She could feel it: an earth-shattering secret lay hidden within them.
Aside from the three ancient animal sages of the Three Great Sage Lands, only the Ōtsutsuki Clan should have monsters capable of surviving a thousand years in the shinobi world. Could the monster behind the Fire Temple be Black Zetsu?
That seemed the most likely answer, yet Shingetsu sensed something was wrong. Black Zetsu was nothing but a useless puddle of black sludge. If he really had the ability to make people worship him for a thousand years, surely he would have rescued his mother long ago!
But if it was not Black Zetsu, which other Ōtsutsuki remained in the shinobi world?
Unable to recall anything, Shingetsu finally gave up thinking about it. She decided to raze the Fire Temple first.
Once she had dug up all