Chapter 187: Black Zetsu: Obito, Stop Resisting
The atmosphere was heavy. Senju Hashirama did not turn around, instead speaking in a low voice, "I am truly sorry for disrupting your summit."
"This is an issue between my brother, myself, and Madara. We will take care of this problem."
After saying this, he turned to Senju Tobirama and gave a slight nod.
"Tobirama, let's go."
Standing beside him, Senju Tobirama heard these words and raised no objections. He leaned forward slightly, shifting his weight to the balls of his feet, ready to sprint forward at a moment's notice.
The unspoken understanding between the two brothers required no further words.
In the next instant, Hashirama and Tobirama vanished from the town walls simultaneously.
After they left, the area fell silent for a moment. The Kage breathed a collective sigh of relief.
Though their individual reactions varied, everyone felt a profound sense of gratitude in that moment.
At the very least, someone was still willing to face Uchiha Taiga head-on.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the battlefield.
Uchiha Madara moved swiftly, soon arriving at a hidden valley behind the town.
The valley was highly concealed, surrounded by several small hills with a very narrow entrance. Unless one knew it was there, it would be impossible to find.
The area was overgrown with dense trees, their interlacing branches and leaves completely blocking out the sky.
Sunlight filtered through the gaps in the canopy, casting dappled shadows on the ground.
The previous battle had not affected this place, as it was far enough from the battlefield.
Madara landed in front of a large tree, his feet touching the soft soil without making much noise.
Opposite him, a figure stepped out from behind a thick trunk.
It was Orochimaru.
He looked at Madara and licked his lips, his tongue slowly tracing across them as a meaningful smile formed on his face.
"You're here."
Madara looked at him and nodded.
"Hn."
His gaze shifted away from Orochimaru, sweeping over the surrounding trees before returning.
"Where is Uchiha Obito?"
Orochimaru chuckled but didn't answer. He simply stepped aside, revealing the space behind him.
Madara didn't wait for a response. He reached into his robes and pulled out the small jar. Glancing at the tiny black humanoid figure inside, he tightened his grip and squeezed hard.
*Crack!*
The jar shattered.
Glass shards slipped through his fingers, clinking crisply against the ground. The small black figure tumbled out and landed on the dirt.
The moment it hit the ground, its body rapidly expanded, spreading out like a drop of ink in water.
The black shadow rose from the earth, writhing a few times before drifting toward Madara.
The dark entity attached itself to Madara's body, creeping up from his feet inch by inch. Like a black snake coiling around its prey, it spread across his form.
Madara stood there, motionless.
"Get off."
His voice was quiet, but freezing cold.
The black mass paused on his body, then began to retreat, finally sliding off his foot and onto the ground.
Black Zetsu detached from Madara and landed to the side, taking the form of a short, shadowy figure.
It stood on the ground, only reaching Madara's waist. It had no real face—only a pair of hollow eyes and a split mouth that let out a low, sinister chuckle.
"It has been a long time, Lord Madara."
It spoke those few words and then fell silent, standing there like a lump of dark shadow.
On the other side, space began to distort. It was as if an invisible hand had torn a rift in the fabric of reality, expanding from a single line into a swirling vortex. A figure stepped out from within.
The man wore a black cloak adorned with red clouds. An orange spiral mask covered his face, revealing only his right eye.
Uchiha Obito.
After he stepped out of the distorted space, the vortex behind him slowly closed until it vanished entirely, as if it had never been there.
Obito didn't look at Orochimaru; his gaze fell directly on Madara.
His right eye narrowed slightly behind the mask. Then, his gaze shifted from Madara to Orochimaru.
"Where is the item I requested?"
His voice was deep and steady, devoid of any emotion.
Orochimaru grinned, lightly licking his lips as his tongue slowly traced across them. He then reached into his robes and pulled out a small bottle.
It was a transparent glass bottle, and inside, an eyeball was clearly visible.
The eye was submerged in some kind of liquid, swaying gently within the glass.
The eye was crimson, bearing a distinct pattern on its iris—a Three-Tomoe Sharingan.
Orochimaru held the bottle up to the sunlight. The eyeball inside gleamed with a red light.
He glanced at it, then lowered his gaze to look at Obito.
"I prepared it for you a long time ago."
With that, Orochimaru tossed the bottle toward Obito.
The bottle traced an arc through the air, glinting in the sunlight before Obito caught it.
Obito took the bottle and looked down at the eye inside.
His gaze lingered on it for a moment before he looked up at Orochimaru.
"Do you need me to perform the eye transplant surgery for you?"
Orochimaru asked, his tone casual, as if offering a minor favor.
"No need."
Obito's voice was stiff, clearly rejecting someone he didn't trust.
He removed the mask from his face. Beneath it, half of his face was intact, while the other half was heavily scarred and distorted.
On the intact side, a Sharingan rested in its socket, its three tomoe spinning.
On the scarred side, his left eye socket was completely empty.
Obito unscrewed the bottle, reached two fingers inside, and pinched the eyeball out.
Still slick with liquid, the eye slipped slightly between his fingers before he secured his grip and pressed it directly into his empty left socket.
Obito closed his eyes and covered his left eye with one hand. A faint green chakra glow emanated from his fingers.
Once inside the socket, the eye began to connect with the surrounding tissue under the influence of the medical chakra.
The process was incredibly fast, taking only a few breaths.
A few breaths later, he opened his eyes.
The Mangekyo Sharingan pattern in his left eye slowly rotated, perfectly matching the Mangekyo Sharingan in his right eye.
Orochimaru watched him and licked his lips.
"Retrieving your own eye... feels good, doesn't it?"
He was curious, asking as if checking on a patient post-surgery.
Obito scoffed coldly. He didn't answer Orochimaru's question, nor did he even spare him a glance. His gaze shifted away from Orochimaru and landed on Madara.
"In the upcoming battle, I will look for an opportunity to strike."
Madara looked at him, his gaze lingering on Obito's face for a moment before shifting to Black Zetsu on the ground.
"Let Black Zetsu go with you."
Obito glanced down at Black Zetsu, then looked back up.
"Alright."
He nodded.
Black Zetsu continued to grin. Without a word, it moved toward Obito. As it did, its body unfurled in the air like a sheet of black cloth, attaching itself to Obito's body.
Black Zetsu crept up from Obito's feet, eventually covering a portion of his body before settling on his shoulder.
Black Zetsu's head extended from Obito's shoulder, creating an inexplicably terrifying sight.
Obito flexed his fingers. He had done this before, so nothing felt out of place; everything seemed normal.
"What do you need me to do later?"
Obito asked.
"Let me be clear—in a head-on fight, I am no match for Uchiha Taiga."
Madara crossed his arms over his chest and looked at Obito, the corners of his mouth curling up into a smile.
His smile grew wider, shifting from a slight curl to a broad grin, revealing his teeth. There was something indescribably sinister in that smile.
"You don't need to do anything."
Obito looked at him, his right eye narrowing slightly.
"What do you mean?"
His voice carried a hint of wariness, as if he had caught the scent of something wrong.
Madara's smile became even more pronounced.
Looking at him, Obito suddenly felt a pang of foreboding.
The premonition surged up violently, like a bucket of ice water dumped over his head, chilling him to the bone.
His body moved instinctively, wanting to step back, to get away from this place and away from the Madara standing before him.
But he suddenly realized that his body couldn't move.
Obito's eyes widened in shock.
"Black Zetsu, what are you doing?!"
His voice was loud, echoing through the valley and startling the birds in the trees into flight.
Black Zetsu's head stretched out from his shoulder, its mouth leaning close to his ear.
"Hehehe, doing the right thing, of course. Obito, stop resisting. It's meaningless."
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