Konoha Notes.

Chapter 552 The Sleep at the Bottom of the Abyss

Chapter 552 The Sleep at the Bottom of the Abyss

After the laughing Uchiha left, only Isobu remained, facing hundreds of wooden fists about to fall.

Having had most of its essence torn away, the Three-Tails looked up at the Buddha statue, which was many times larger than itself and resembled a divine tree, and even lost the desire to roar symbolically.

There's nothing left to breathe on, and I can't even breathe on it anymore.

And so, in the very end, the Three-Tails simply waited silently for the end.

However, the wooden fist did not land.

One by one, the massive wooden arms retracted, and the entire Buddha statue sank into the earth.

Only the relatively small wooden figure remained standing in the ripples.

The fire shadow on the wooden figure landed on the back of the Three-Tails.

Shuji placed his palm on it, and Isobu's size shrank again under his extraction, until he was only one person tall.

The weasel walked from the lakeside, its left eye tightly closed, its steps revealing a suppressed weakness.

"Do the rest need to be sent away, senior?"

He proposed the possibility of completely digesting the Three-Tails, which has no Jinchūriki.

Shuji said, "Take it with you. Even though this is the only part left, we can't guarantee we won't be targeted."

The Sixth Hokage stepped on the water.

"With your size, as long as you don't cause trouble, you can leave with us on the ship, Isobu."

Upon hearing this, Isobu's voice no longer came as a low growl: "You know my name, human."

"Your body, that thing—you are—the Six Realms—"

Shuji said, "I am not the person the Sage of Six Paths believes me to be, nor do I have the empathy to understand each and every one of them."

"As for who he has chosen, you can discuss it yourselves."

Shuji sensed that after gathering the chakra natures of the nine tailed beasts, the tree within him entered a brief period of dormancy.

not enough.

Far from enough.

To complete the transformation of the Bloodstain Network, an even greater amount of energy is required.

He only hoped that the amount of ore Obito could bring back would be enough to support his next step.

As for Uchiha Madara—

Madara's laughter didn't stop until it reached the Kamui dimension.

Madara looked at Obito, and the last trace of pleasure on his face completely disappeared.

"Obito, his progress far surpasses yours."

"Hashirama's successors have ultimately chosen my path."

Ban's eyes were shrouded in shadow.

"But when—"

This year? Or two years ago, when Tobirama Senju returned to Konoha?

Or even earlier?

Based on all the information he has known since his resurrection, the confirmation that Uchiha "Madara" is still alive should have been made in Konoha year 56.

If we take a more generous calculation, it would be the 55th year of Konoha.

However, Akatsuki's goal of collecting the Tailed Beasts was leaked, and Konoha began sending teams to investigate Akatsuki at least in the 57th year of Konoha's reign.

The fact that Konoha aimed to acquire all the Tailed Beasts was not fully revealed until at least year 59.

Ban squinted.

But if it started before he died—no, that's impossible.

If Konoha had already reached that level at that time, he couldn't have been completely unaware.

Shortly after his death, Obito triggered the Nine-Tails' rampage.

After that night, the relationship between Konoha and the Uchiha clan plummeted to its lowest point.

He had seen all the Mangekyou Sharingan users in the Uchiha clan, and none of them possessed the eye power to see through the secrets left behind by the Sage of Six Paths.

Even if such a thing existed, Konoha would not have believed it under those circumstances, and the Uchiha would not have entrusted their clan secrets to them.

When Madara stepped out of the Kamui dimension and returned to the base, Zetsu was already there.

The black half was attached to the white half, and there was nothing that could be called an expression.

Orochimaru was also there.

He did not participate in the battle, nor did he inquire about the results.

Ban knew that he had already learned this from Zetsu.

But the will that should have separated from itself became more closely intertwined with another person after its resurrection.

Madara simply said, "You already know."

"—Yes, Lord Madara." Black Zetsu's attitude remained unchanged.

White Zetsu said in his usual relaxed tone, "I never expected that those people from Konoha would have something like that."

"It doesn't look like the Ten-Tails—"

Black Zetsu said, "That is something between the Divine Tree and the Ten-Tails."

It couldn't help but make a judgment.

Orochimaru confirmed his previous conjecture through Black Zetsu's words; from his description, he had guessed that it was the result of Wood Release.

It is something that Konoha cultivated without the Gedo Mazo as a natural container.

"That's another golem, weaker," he analyzed. "Because it has incorporated more complete Tailed Beast chakra properties, it possesses some characteristics of the Divine Tree. But it lacks the corresponding power."

White Zetsu said, "Fortunately, Obito captured the complete Four-Tails a long time ago, otherwise we would have been doomed."

"Konoha already protected seven Jinchūriki, plus a portion of the Three-Tails' chakra that was stolen."

Orochimaru didn't respond to that.

He seemed to have suddenly thought of something interesting: "To create a body that can replace the Gedo Mazo, we need an extremely skilled Wood Release user."

"And that person, in the 54th year of Konoha, appeared as an Anbu member and confronted two Jinchuriki of Iwagakure head-on."

Ban chuckled softly: "In other words, it's all complete."

Black Zetsu said, "Those inferior items are different from the golems; they don't transform so easily."

"As long as now—"

"No." Madara sat down on the long stone bench, resting his chin on one hand. "We can no longer steal Jinchuriki."

He made a decision as soon as he opened his mouth.

Orochimaru nodded slightly: "Indeed. Konoha has now gathered the chakra of all the tailed beasts."

"Even knowing of the enemy's existence, this time, when faced with the possibility of losing their Jinchūriki, their attitude will only be more resolute than last time."

"Originally, when Madara attacked Konoha, Nagato might have switched sides again and intervened to stop Konoha from killing the Jinchuriki."

"But things are different now. He will make the same choice as Konoha."

They would kill the Jinchuriki directly, allowing the Tailed Beast to be reborn elsewhere, rather than relinquishing their chakra.

Or to be more straightforward, Konoha could use that tree to absorb all the Jinchūriki that might have been taken away.

Black Zetsu remained silent, knowing what this meant.

Do we have to wait hundreds of years? Or even thousands of years?

Human memory is always short, but as long as it remembers, there is still a chance.

Orochimaru looked at Madara Uchiha, who was sitting on a stone chair, with great interest.

"What else do you plan to do?"

Ban looked up at him: "What do you think?"

Orochimaru chuckled softly.

"The only thing we can do now is to seize the trees from Konoha. However, they should already be fully prepared."

Secondly, choose to wait.

"Once Konoha completes the tree that belongs to them, Shuji-kun will inevitably have to fight Jigen. At that time, your opportunity will naturally come."

"And before that war began, there was only one thing we needed to do."

"Let the world return to peace."