The information brought by the Anbu was shocking.
The Konoha ninjas had already stretched their imaginations as far as possible, thinking of scenarios like Black Zetsu colluding to lure Akihara Kagura into executing an evil plan...
In the end, this Anbu ninja informed them that Akihara Kagura was the mastermind behind these conspiracies. The Anbu ninja didn't even hide his fear when he mentioned it.
"No…impossible…"
Yamanaka Ino of Team 10 trembled with fear and cautiously asked, "Everyone in the village says that Lord Kagura is the strongest ninja in the village, and he has always been protecting it. How could he possibly…"
"Ino!"
Nara Shikamaru glanced at his companion, feeling uneasy himself: "The way these big figures think is often beyond our comprehension and imagination…"
"Crunch, crunch…"
Akimichi Choji continued munching on his chips, pondering one question: "If it's all true… crunch, crunch… Naruto would be very upset, wouldn't he?"
"…"
Nara Shikamaru fell silent immediately.
Because he and Choji had been good friends with Uzumaki Naruto since their school days, and they knew that Uzumaki Naruto had always been cared for by Akihara Kagura, like an older brother…
Now…
How would Uzumaki Naruto be feeling?
Team 7.
Everyone was somewhat silent.
Haruno Sakura looked at Uzumaki Naruto, whose suppressed expression seemed ready to erupt at any moment, and couldn't help but feel a bit nervous: "Naruto, are you… okay?"
"Of course."
Uzumaki Naruto was startled, then gave Haruno Sakura a sunny smile: "We don't know anything for sure yet! At the very least, we need to find out the truth!"
"Indeed."
Hatake Kakashi took a deep breath and slowly nodded. At least he didn't have to worry about Naruto's reaction, but regarding Uchiha Sasuke…
Whether it was the truth about the Uchiha clan's massacre, briefly mentioned by Uchiha Obito and Uchiha Madara, or the defection of the Root leader Akihara Kagura, both could have a significant impact on Uchiha Sasuke's life.
However…
Uchiha Sasuke's expression remained unchanged, making it impossible to tell what he was thinking, though his tightly gripped ninja sword revealed his inner turmoil.
Compared to the others…
Uchiha Obito was undoubtedly the most agitated!
"Answer me!"
Uchiha Obito continued to stare intently at Akihara Kagura, his gaze also sweeping over Black Zetsu and Uchiha Madara beside him, roaring in a hoarse voice, "What's going on! Tell me! Why did you stop the Eye of the Moon Plan?"
"Because the Eye of the Moon Plan could never bring peace."
Uchiha Madara glanced coldly at Uchiha Obito and continued in a cold voice, "That was Black Zetsu's plan to dominate the ninja world…"
"Isn't it your will?"
Uchiha Obito tactlessly hit the nail on the head.
"!!!"
Uchiha Madara felt a murderous urge.
"Of course not."
Akihara Kagura spread his hands and smiled nonchalantly: "Black Zetsu's identity is quite distinguished. It is the will of the Sage of the Six Paths…"
"I am the will of Kaguya!"
Black Zetsu immediately retorted, disliking the identity recorded on the bark: "That's a slander by the Sage of the Six Paths. I am the will born from Kaguya!"
"In any case, Black Zetsu and the Sage of the Six Paths are from the same era."
Akihara Kagura promptly corrected Black Zetsu, saying, "Originally, Black Zetsu intended to use you and Madara to implement the Eye of the Moon Plan, revive the Ten Tails, and use Infinite Tsukuyomi to pull everyone into a dream, thereby achieving eternal peace…"
"Isn't that good?"
Uchiha Obito frowned.
"Hmph…"
Uchiha Madara snorted disdainfully, "Then their chakra would be drained in the Infinite Tsukuyomi, and everyone would turn into those fools like White Zetsu!"
"!!!"
Uchiha Obito's eyes twitched, and his mind immediately recalled the White Zetsus who were always curious about what it felt like to defecate!
This...
Is this the consequence of the Infinite Tsukuyomi?
"So..."
Uchiha Obito finally had to face a reality. His pupils gradually dilated, even showing a trace of blood: "The Infinite Tsukuyomi... is fake?"
This matter...
It concerns his ideals...
All along, he had been fighting for this, even disregarding his past and future. He had long believed that he had no future!
Since the moment Uchiha Obito witnessed Nohara Rin's death with his own eyes, he only believed in the dream of the Infinite Tsukuyomi. He never dared to imagine that the Infinite Tsukuyomi could be fake!
If there was no Infinite Tsukuyomi...
If there was no Rin...
What meaning would he have left in this world?
"I don't believe it!"
Uchiha Obito's face twisted with rage, and he pressed his palm tightly against his head: "I don't believe the Infinite Tsukuyomi is fake! I will create a world with Rin!"
Uchiha Obito...
He seemed to have truly gone completely mad!
His eyes flashed as he looked in Uzumaki Naruto's direction, suddenly rushing towards Uzumaki Naruto, reaching out to grab him!
"Is this guy crazy?"
Uchiha Sasuke immediately blocked Uchiha Obito's path, swinging his sword to stop Obito, the blade slicing through Obito's body!
"Obito!"
Hatake Kakashi also rushed over quickly!
Only his Mangekyo Sharingan could stop Uchiha Obito, and only he wanted to stop the crazed Obito!
"Kakashi!"
Might Guy immediately followed.
The three of them instantly surrounded Uchiha Obito!
However, Obito's body instantly turned intangible, dashing towards Uzumaki Naruto, with the three of them closely pursuing him!
"Is Obito crazy?"
Akihara Kagura glanced at Uchiha Obito and said with some curiosity: "It's just that the Infinite Tsukuyomi is fake..."
"Perhaps his life's hope has been shattered..."
Black Zetsu shook his head, seemingly quite emotional about this matter: "Back then, it was Madara who manipulated Mist Village to implant the Three-Tails in Nohara Rin's body, framing Hatake Kakashi and forcing him to kill Nohara Rin, pushing Obito into the fantasy that the Infinite Tsukuyomi could save the ninja world. Now, this fantasy has also been shattered..."
"!!!"
Uchiha Madara's eyes flashed!
This bastard actually pushed the blame onto him!
Black Zetsu saying this at this time was obviously to make Uchiha Obito resent him, trying to create trouble for him!
Black Zetsu...
This bastard!
Once he betrayed him, he truly became a big problem!
Black Zetsu's words reached Hatake Kakashi and Uchiha Obito's ears. Both of their expressions changed simultaneously, and they looked at Uchiha Madara!
"!!!"
Hatake Kakashi immediately turned his head.
For a long time, Hatake Kakashi had been immersed in the pain of personally killing Nohara Rin, always hating the blood on his own hands...
But...
It turned out to be someone else's conspiracy!
Rin's death...
Was it really Uchiha Madara's conspiracy?
"You killed Rin!"
In an instant, Uchiha Obito identified the culprit!
Because Uchiha Obito knew more information than Hatake Kakashi; he knew that Uchiha Madara had once controlled the Mizukage of Mist Village, and he was certain that all of this was done by Uchiha Madara!
If in the past, Uchiha Obito had once pinned his hopes on the Eye of the Moon Plan and could turn a blind eye to all of this, now he only wanted to kill Uchiha Madara!
Uchiha Obito's figure flipped again, rushing towards Uchiha Madara, but before he could take a few steps, he suddenly fell to the ground. Uchiha Madara had raised his finger, controlling Uchiha Obito in place!
"Madara!"
Uchiha Obito glared angrily at Uchiha Madara.
"If I didn't want to use you as a pawn, I wouldn't have wanted to kill that little girl…"
Uchiha Madara was completely indifferent to his mistake. He let out a cold snort and threatened Uchiha Obito: "Obito, you have always been just a pawn to me. Now, with just a slight move of my finger, your heart will explode..."
"Ahhhhh!"
Uchiha Obito's body convulsed in agony!
His shoulders suddenly sprouted pitch-black Yin-Yang Release rods. These rods flowed with Yin-Yang chakra, firmly controlling Uchiha Obito's body!
This pain of being controlled by an enemy...
For Uchiha Obito, it was worse than death!
Even entering his intangibility state could not change the situation, because the Yin-Yang Release curse mark implanted in his body was a control measure long prepared by Uchiha Madara!
Uchiha Obito lay on the ground in pain. Forcing himself to rise, he looked in the direction of Hatake Kakashi and through gritted teeth, shouted a name!
"Kakashi! Kill him!"
Uchiha Obito clenched his teeth and said harshly: "Hurry and kill me, take my eye, and use Kamui's power to kill Uchiha Madara!"
"..."
Hatake Kakashi's eyes narrowed.
Hatake Kakashi flipped his kunai, catching it in his hand.
"Kakashi-senpai!"
An ANBU ninja blocked Hatake Kakashi, speaking in a deep voice: "Uchiha Madara is not our enemy yet. The real enemy is the former Hokage's assistant! Lady Hokage's stance is to join forces with Uchiha Madara against Akihara Kagura!"
"..."
Hatake Kakashi's fervent heart suddenly went cold.
He had now seen the real culprit behind Nohara Rin's death, yet the ANBU was telling him that Uchiha Madara was a potential ally of Konoha, and that his friend Akihara Kagura was the enemy?
What kind of world was this?
He knew who his enemy was, but he couldn't take revenge on them!
His former comrade lay there!
Now, that comrade lay on the ground in pain, unable to struggle, only able to painfully shout for him to take his eye and use Kamui's power to avenge Rin!
Hatake Kakashi was very aware of Kamui's ability.
Uchiha Obito's other eye had a unique ability, with the simple power to become intangible to evade attacks, it had the potential to avenge Uchiha Madara...
"Kakashi-senpai, please follow Lady Hokage's orders!"
The ANBU ninja was afraid of Hatake Kakashi acting impulsively, hoping this senior would follow the Hokage's orders and not recklessly make more enemies.
"I understand..."
Hatake Kakashi gritted his teeth, his eyes narrowed, and the blade of the kunai in his hand sliced his palm. Blood flowed down his palm, but he forced himself to calm down!
"Kakashi..."
Might Guy walked over to Hatake Kakashi uneasily, placing a hand on Kakashi's shoulder, as if to comfort him.
"Kakashi-senpai..."
Yamato approached and gently persuaded Hatake Kakashi: "Don't forget, Uchiha Obito is also an enemy of the village. He caused the deaths of the Fourth Hokage and his wife..."
"..."
Sarutobi Asuma sighed.
"Obito..."
Hatake Kakashi tightly grasped his kunai, looking at Uchiha Obito lying on the ground, pleading and in pain, his heart ached.
He couldn't protect Rin...
Could he not even avenge her?
"At least..."
"Bring Obito over first."
Hatake Kakashi spoke in a low voice as if he couldn't feel the pain: "Obito is a rogue ninja of Konoha anyway. We need to take him back for punishment..."
"Understood."
The ANBU ninja could only nod.
He seemed to know Hatake Kakashi's past, and softly said: "Kakashi-senpai, please stay calm. You are not Uchiha Madara's opponent. Do not make a pointless sacrifice..."
"I know..."
Hatake Kakashi walked step by step towards Uchiha Obito, reaching out to lift his friend's body, intending to hand him over to his student Haruno Sakura for some medical treatment.
However…
Uchiha Obito suddenly grabbed Hatake Kakashi's shoulder, gritting his teeth as he spoke, "Take my eye and avenge Rin for me!"
"First, let's treat your wounds..." Hatake Kakashi looked at the black rod on Uchiha Obito's shoulder.
"I should have died a long time ago!"
Uchiha Obito's hand involuntarily dropped, but he still tightly grasped Hatake Kakashi's arm. "Uchiha Madara controls my heart; I can't attack him. Take my eye and avenge me!"
"The village's orders forbid any action against Uchiha Madara..."
Hatake Kakashi spoke in a low voice, as if it took all his strength, "If Kagura really did something... Konoha... needs Uchiha Madara's power..."
"Kagura!"
Uzumaki Naruto finally broke the oppressive silence, looking at Akihara Kagura and asking a question that many present were concerned about, "What exactly did you do? Why do they say you betrayed us? What is going on?"
"I only want to bring true peace to the ninja world."
Akihara Kagura smiled and explained his plan, "Black Zetsu and I intend to use a relatively gentle method to collect the Tailed Beasts and revive the Ten-Tails, using the Ten-Tails to kill all the ninjas in the ninja world, and then recreate a new ninja world..."
"..."
Everyone's heart suddenly chilled.
Such a method... can it still be called gentle?
Hatake Kakashi's hand comforted Uchiha Obito while he frowned at Akihara Kagura, "This doesn't quite seem like your style..."
"Kakashi."
Akihara Kagura glanced at Hatake Kakashi, his smile suddenly becoming radiant, "Do you really know the true me?"
"!!!"
Hatake Kakashi was somewhat shocked. He recalled what Uchiha Obito had mentioned, "Did you really..."
"Yes..."
Akihara Kagura nodded and continued, "At that time, I exposed Uchiha Obito's identity, gained your trust, joined the Akatsuki, and gradually stole the Akatsuki's war weapon plans..."
"Very clever."
"The Akatsuki's plan coincided with mine."
"Of course."
"The Akatsuki's plan is almost laughable..."
Akihara Kagura seemed somewhat mocking, slowly shaking his head, "Some want to use the Ten-Tails to intimidate the ninja world into peace... Some want to use the Ten-Tails to create a dream world... These inferior methods are hard to watch."
"Since we have the power to destroy the ninja world..."
Akihara Kagura spread his arms, a proud expression on his face, "Why not try destroying this world and creating a new one?"
"How could you..."
Uzumaki Naruto looked at Akihara Kagura in disbelief, as if seeing him for the first time, "Kagura, how could you have such thoughts!"
"Maybe because I'm too tired?"
Akihara Kagura shrugged indifferently, "I've always yearned for war, but found my methods of ending wars somewhat boring... Even when I was in Konoha, wars of various sizes continued in different parts of the ninja world..."
"Trying to quell these wars is tedious and dull..."
"It just so happens that I found a solution to completely end wars. I also learned how to kill all ninjas and how to create new ninjas..."
"In that case..."
"Why not just get rid of all ninjas…"
Akihara Kagura stretched out his palm, brushed his long hair from his forehead, and revealed a slightly crazed smile: "Let me first destroy this world to have some fun, then try to create a new era of peaceful ninjas..."
"But this isn't peace!"
Uzumaki Naruto stared in disbelief at the smiling Akihara Kagura, his fist slowly clenching: "This is... slaughter..."
"Peace requires bloodshed to be achieved."
Akihara Kagura was indifferent to Naruto's words: "This is a principle even children understand. If you don't get it, there's no need for me to explain further..."
"It's a pity..."
Akihara Kagura shook his head and sighed softly: "Right now, few are willing to sacrifice for the new era of peace. Some even think I'm daydreaming..."
At this point, Akihara Kagura glanced at Black Zetsu beside him: "Among so many people, only Black Zetsu is willing to support my idea. Truly, he lives up to the will left by the legendary Sage of Six Paths..."
"..."
Everyone's gaze turned to Black Zetsu.
Being watched by so many people, Black Zetsu felt somewhat uncomfortable.
Moreover...
Black Zetsu wanted to refute.
First, it was not the will of the Sage of Six Paths.
Second, it didn't really support Akihara Kagura's ideas...
Third, it felt somewhat confused, as if it were being blamed for something it didn't do...
"Alright."
Akihara Kagura clapped his hands, his gaze falling on Hyuga Hinata and Hyuga Neji: "Now, let me do something important! Before my plan starts, I want to know a secret about the Hyuga clan..."
"A secret of the Hyuga clan...?"
Hyuga Hinata looked at Akihara Kagura in surprise.
Hyuga Neji's eyes narrowed. A secret of the Hyuga clan that Akihara Kagura wanted to know was something Neji also desired to uncover!
Akihara Kagura took out a wooden stick the size of a toothpick and spoke slowly: "This contains a secret about the Hyuga clan..."
"With just a little external force, the stick will crack, destroying the information inside. Only the Byakugan of the Hyuga clan can perceive the information within..."
"Now..."
"I need someone to help me read the information inside."
"Of course."
"I also need another person to verify its authenticity."
Akihara Kagura looked at Hyuga Hinata and Hyuga Neji, speaking slowly: "Coincidentally, there are two Hyuga clan ninjas here. Are you willing to help?"
"Let me do it first!"
Hyuga Hinata stepped forward proactively.
After all, since it concerned the Hyuga clan's secret, Hinata was very interested.
Just as the other Anbu ninjas wanted to intervene, Akihara Kagura raised his hand, and vines emerged from the ground, preventing them from approaching!
However...
Uchiha Madara remained indifferent.
Because Uchiha Madara also wanted to know the Hyuga clan's secret.
Akihara Kagura handed the wooden stick to Hyuga Hinata, speaking gently: "If the information read by the two Hyuga ninjas doesn't match, I'll have to ask both of you to die here..."
"!!!"
Hyuga Hinata was startled!
"..."
Hyuga Neji's emotions were complicated.
At this moment...
The fate of a member of the main family and a branch family was intertwined!
If Neji wanted to kill Hinata, he only needed to slightly misread the information, ensuring the main family member would accompany him to the afterlife!
"Kakashi!"
Might Guy held a pair of nunchaku in his hand and leaped to stand beside Hatake Kakashi, asking in a deep voice, "Should we stop them?"
"How can we stop them?"
Hatake Kakashi shook his head, doubting their ability to prevent Akihara Kagura from doing what he intended. Every Konoha ninja present knew how powerful Akihara Kagura was.
To stop Akihara Kagura...
At least the strength equivalent to the First Hokage would be needed...
Among those present, only Uchiha Madara could possibly do it, yet he stood still, making no move, allowing Akihara Kagura to threaten the Konoha ninjas.
"..."
Hyuga Hinata calmly accepted the wooden tag.
Hyuga Neji's ears were immediately sealed to prevent him from eavesdropping.
Hyuga Hinata was well aware that her cousin Hyuga Neji had always wanted to kill her. If he wanted to harm her, even a slight misstep in speech could lead to both of their deaths.
However...
If they both wanted to survive...
No matter what, the first person had to read out the true contents of the wooden tag.
"Byakugan, activate!"
Hyuga Hinata instantly activated her Byakugan, seeing through the surface of the wooden tag to the dense small characters inside, which she found somewhat strenuous to read...
However...
The content inside shocked her!
The wooden tag detailed the origins of the Hyuga clan, even origins that the clan itself could not find in any records. It recorded in detail who the ancestors of the Hyuga clan were and why the Hyuga clan appeared in the ninja world!
"In ancient times..."
"Kaguya Otsutsuki ruled the world..."
"Kaguya Otsutsuki's two sons, Hagoromo Otsutsuki and Hamura Otsutsuki...wanted to seize their mother's power for themselves...they joined forces...colluded with the Sage of Myoboku in the ninja world...and ultimately sealed Kaguya on the moon..."
As expected.
The beginning of the story was always about the Otsutsuki family.
However, compared to the Uchiha clan's stone tablet and the Senju clan's tree bark, the history recorded on the Hyuga clan's wooden tag seemed slightly different.
"This is history!"
Black Zetsu listened to the contents recorded on the wooden tag, feeling somewhat tearful and moved: "This is true history!"
Compared to the Senju clan's tree bark...
The history recorded on the Hyuga clan's wooden tag was much kinder!
Now...
It could finally prove its identity!
"This is true history!"
Black Zetsu proved what it said was true and could now prove its identity: "I am the will of Kaguya, born when Kaguya was sealed..."
However...
After Hyuga Hinata finished reading Kaguya Otsutsuki's story, she continued to read the following story about the brothers, Hagoromo Otsutsuki and Hamura Otsutsuki.
"To seize control of this world...the brothers engaged in an earth-shattering battle...ultimately...the elder brother, Hagoromo Otsutsuki...won this brotherly war..."
"..."
Black Zetsu frowned.
The history of the Hyuga clan seemed a bit strange!
However...
This seemed advantageous for itself!
Those brothers who sealed their mother deserved to die!
But...
The history of the Hyuga clan grew even stranger...
As Hyuga Hinata read the following history, a sense of horror arose in her heart: "To cover up the past...Hagoromo Otsutsuki used the Ten-Tails to kill everyone in the ninja world, recreating a new world and new ninjas..."
"!!!"
Everyone present was shocked!
They all instinctively looked at Akihara Kagura!
Because what Hagoromo Otsutsuki did was identical to what Akihara Kagura was doing, making some of the Konoha Anbu who had heard of Hagoromo Otsutsuki's name even more uneasy!
Because...
This person named Hagoromo Otsutsuki...
Had another identity recorded on the Senju clan's tree bark...
When Hyuga Hinata read about Hagoromo Otsutsuki's identity, her voice suddenly trembled: "The new generation of ninjas...called the creator, Hagoromo Otsutsuki...the Sage of Six Paths."
"..."
The ninjas present immediately fell silent.
"..."
Black Zetsu felt uneasy.
The history of the Hyuga clan seemed a bit wild as well!
~~~
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— Ending + Extra Chapters!
Read upto Chapter 348: End! + Extra Chapters of Sasuke's Rebirth where the world Akihara Kagura is not around. Thank you!