The roaring sounds faded, and dust swirled and rose in the wind, lingering for a long time.
A cold moon hung high, and rubble and wreckage littered the ground.
Watanabe Ichiro stood atop the ruins of the cliff face.
He held two warm, bloody eyeballs in his hand, then flipped his palm and stowed them into the System Inventory.
There were no more storage containers left, so he would just keep them like this for now.
Uchiha Kagami's Mangekyo skill-Netherworld-had exceptionally broad applications, and this haul was truly an unexpected pleasant surprise.
Watanabe Ichiro's smile had just surfaced when it vanished in an instant.
The long-awaited scene of giant mechs beating the crap out of each other had not happened after all.
An "ora ora ora" pitted against a "muda muda muda"-the romance of a man...
The moment Susanoo tore through the Netherworld, Uchiha Kagami suffered backlash from his own Mangekyo skill, bleeding from his eyes and instantly losing the ability to fight Watanabe Ichiro.
His comprehension of the Mangekyo had not yet reached the point where he could freely manifest Susanoo, and the scene Watanabe Ichiro had envisioned did not materialize.
Moreover, as the Netherworld shattered, the rock wall space it had covered returned.
Spatial fluctuations appeared, and stones emerged successively in the space where the two stood; the rocks inside Susanoo were shaken into fine powder by chakra and drifted down.
If a human body were to collide with these rock walls, it would be instantly ground into a meat paste.
Fortunately, Watanabe Ichiro reacted quickly, using Susanoo to fish Uchiha Kagami out; otherwise, he wouldn't even have left an intact corpse.
Faced with Uchiha Kagami, who was clutching his eyes and had lost all ability to resist, Watanabe Ichiro didn't waste words, stepping close to give his neck a rightward twist-his cervical vertebrae snapped, ending his life.
He took the Mangekyo to keep as a spare, and stowed the lifeless body into the Impure World Reincarnation material pile inside the System Inventory.
This guy was actually pretty decent; although his brain was a bit rigid and his temper a bit rash, his character was all right.
Once matters were concluded, he could resurrect him and let him reunite with his wife.
The crimson giant vanished, and the externalized chakra slowly dissipated.
Watanabe Ichiro looked listlessly over the ruins below, confirming that no one was spying.
He glanced again at Black Zetsu's marker on the system interface; it was still some distance away.
Fine, there were no second witnesses present, so the subsequent script could be played out however he liked.
His crimson Sharingan slowly retracted, and his vision grew slightly blurry. Watanabe Ichiro couldn't help rubbing his eyes.
The Mangekyo produced by the system was quite useful, but its flaw was that it couldn't automatically replenish pupil power; every time he used it, his pupil power decreased.
There was a sudden warmth on the right side of his waist, and a faint sensation of being summoned arose deep in his heart.
It was the portable Reverse Flying Thunder God Technique patch.
There were only four people in total who possessed this patch: Tobirama Senju, himself, and the deceased Madara Uchiha and Hashirama Senju.
Without a doubt, Tobirama Senju was attempting to teleport him back in reverse.
Ironically, ever since this technique was developed, it had never been successfully used, as everyone who was called upon refused to respond for various reasons.
This time was no exception.
Watanabe Ichiro reached behind him and took out a dagger with a very low appearance rate from his ninja pouch. True Damage Infusion activated, and pitch-black darkness spread up the blade, making it incomparably sharp.
He carved several gaps into his body, forging wounds caused by Uchiha Kagami's Mangekyo skill, and cut off the jutsu patch along with flesh and blood.
Black Zetsu was a bit too cowardly and probably wouldn't dare face him at full strength, so he still needed to put on a disguise.
The sounds stopped.
Black Zetsu hid on a rock, poking its head out and hesitating for a moment before finally creeping closer.
The commotion had been too big; it needed to gather intelligence before the people from Konoha came to investigate, otherwise it would be hard to show its face once a crowd gathered.
Along the way there were only shattered stones and broken trees. A dilapidated rock wall appeared in its field of vision, and a figure covered in blood gradually came into view.
Breathing! Alive! Great!
Black Zetsu's mind settled completely, its form gradually transforming into a humanoid shape on the ground, but the step it wanted to step forward abruptly halted.
It remembered that the Black Zetsu that had suddenly appeared and vanished earlier had used its exact human appearance.
After thinking about it, it morphed back into the mud-like puddle it had been upon their first meeting.
Hn, it was better not to use a human appearance recently; it easily led to misunderstandings, and it wasn't as strong at fighting as that "Black Zetsu"-getting beaten up wouldn't be worth it.
It was best to avoid causing this misunderstanding altogether.
The moment it appeared, Watanabe Ichiro raised his head alertly. The action of bandaging his wounds paused, and he spoke hesitantly.
"It's you?"
"Kid, I told you we'd meet again."
Black Zetsu spoke sinisterly, its tone familiar.
"Was that you at the meeting earlier? The chakra signature is very similar."
"That wasn't me, I... I don't like killing, I've always loved peace..."
Cold sweat instantly broke out on Black Zetsu's face, and it began spouting nonsense, trying to find a way to change the subject.
Fortunately, its face was pitch black, so no difference could be seen on the surface.
"Peace... a thing like that..."
Watanabe Ichiro leaned against the ruined rock wall, sitting in a pool of his own spilled blood.
Clutching the wound on his abdomen, he looked up at the moon and raised his right hand.
The glistening moonlight reflected off the bloodstains on his palm, casting an eerie chill.
A mocking smile involuntarily surfaced on his face, his lips parting slightly.
"Will peace really arrive?"
"I used to think that an era where people don't attack each other is an era of peace."
"I used to think Konoha was already the perfect answer."
"But whether it was that time back in the clan or Uchiha Kagami this time... the heaviest wounds on my body have never come from enemies, but from my own blood and kin."
"Ha, how funny."
Hearing his dejected remarks, Black Zetsu's heart stirred!
"Kid, it seems you've already gained some insight into the pain and despair I spoke of earlier?"
It confirmed cautiously.
"'When you experience the endless pain and despair in this world, we will meet again...'"
"You came to find me-haven't you already figured out the answer?"
Watanabe Ichiro stared back at it, his gaze holding the exhaustion and bewilderment that Black Zetsu knew so well.
Yes! This was it!
That helpless resignation toward the unchangeable trivialities of the world, that physical and mental exhaustion and weariness!
That look in his eyes like a lost lamb hoping for someone else's guidance, yearning for someone to lead it onto the right path!
That was right! Uchiha Ichiro's heart was shaken!
This was a good opportunity to propagate the Infinite Tsukuyomi plan!
As long as it guided him a little, it could definitely persuade him to become a pawn for saving its mother!
For a long time, Black Zetsu felt a rare sense of relief, its mud-like body trembling.
The feeling of a plan going smoothly felt like a lifetime ago.
Madara Uchiha had died, the Tailed Beasts had run off, and Uchiha Ichiro had almost kicked the bucket...
Lately, everything had been going against it, but fortunately, its plan was finally making progress.
It cleared its throat, its tone laced with temptation.
"Have you ever heard of the Infinite Tsukuyomi?"
Before you continue