"Okay, I understand."
In the Hokage's office, Sarutobi Hiruzen had just informed Senju Tobirama about what had happened.
Tobirama remained calm. He only gave a small nod to show he understood.
"If you're ready, head to the Fire City."
"Alright, teacher. I'll leave immediately."
Not long after Sarutobi Hiruzen left, Senju Tobirama finished reviewing the documents, left the office, and made his way to the laboratory.
The animal cloning experiments were nearly complete, and it was time to begin human cloning experiments.
He had already chosen the first person to be cloned—Nohara Rin.
As a ninja, Nohara Rin wasn't particularly strong, but she was the perfect candidate for the first cloning test.
After all, this had to be done step by step. Only after successfully cloning this "ordinary" ninja would Tobirama try to clone his older brother.
After all, dealing with Hashirama's cells was tricky, and Tobirama needed more experience in human cloning first.
Black Zetsu, who had been hiding in Konoha for a long time, sensed that no one was in the Hokage's office.
Without thinking, it knew that Tobirama must have gone into the building at the foot of the mountain.
As far as it knew, this was where Tobirama conducted his experiments.
It desperately wanted to go in and investigate, but the building was protected by the Four Violet Flames Formation 24/7, so there was no chance of getting in.
As for the entrance?
Tobirama could just use Flying Thunder God to teleport inside without even passing through the formation.
Aside from the lab, Black Zetsu also wanted to sneak into the Hokage's office.
But every time it considered entering, it felt an overwhelming sense of danger, as if it would die the moment it stepped in.
Without knowing the source of this danger, Black Zetsu decided it would never enter the Hokage's office.
At most, it would lurk outside the door, trying to sense what was happening inside.
However, this ability wasn't perfect.
For example, it had no idea what had happened inside the office at 8 o'clock the previous night.
It only saw many people entering the Hokage's office and sensed some of their emotions, but it couldn't grasp what was going on inside.
"It's been almost a month since I came to Konoha. It's time to go back and report to Madara."
"After all, I am just his will, and I must follow his orders."
Mountains' Graveyard.
Uchiha Madara sat quietly in his seat, just like always. The tube behind him occasionally moved, supplying him with life-sustaining substances.
"Black Zetsu, have you found any information?"
As soon as Black Zetsu returned, Madara knew. This was clearly planned by Black Zetsu; otherwise, even someone like Madara with the Rinnegan wouldn't easily find him.
"I found some strange places."
"Oh? Tell me about it."
Black Zetsu came closer to Madara and whispered, "I discovered that Senju Tobirama gathers some people in his office at 8 o'clock every two weeks. I don't know what he does there."
"Don't you know that, too?"
Madara was aware of Black Zetsu's lurking abilities. Even he didn't know what someone like Tobirama was doing in the office, which made him very curious.
"Yeah, I feel like if I go into that office, I might die."
"Is that so?"
"Yes."
Even though he was curious, Madara didn't want his capable assistant to die so soon.
"Did you find anything else besides this?"
"There is a laboratory belonging to Senju Tobirama. This laboratory is surrounded by the Four Violet Flames Formation 24/7. I think we would definitely get caught if we tried to sneak in."
"So you didn't go in?"
"Yes."
"Right. At this stage, we should focus on hiding. Everything must wait until we find my successor."
Thinking about the successor, Uchiha Madara asked again, "Have you found a suitable candidate in Uchiha?"
"Mr. Madara, as you said, a person should have a kind heart, love life, and preferably enjoy helping others. Is there really an Uchiha like that?"
Uchiha Madara understood that his conditions were quite strict.
But without this, it would be hard to provoke the other person into awakening their Mangekyō Sharingan.
As his successor, it was only reasonable for him to possess a pair of Mangekyō Sharingan.
"Take your time to look for one. I won't die that easily."
"By the way, Madara-sama, when I was in Konoha, I discovered that the Uchiha clan had gone through a purge, and many people died."
"A purge? Most likely it was that evil guy Tobirama. He has always hated the Uchiha clan. If Hashirama hadn't protected him, I would have killed him to avenge my brother Izuna. Humph, the Second Hokage? Ugh!"
"Madara-sama, do you think it was Tobirama Senju? But I heard that Uchiha Kagami was the one responsible."
Uchiha Madara: ???
"Zetsu."
"What's wrong, Madara-sama?"
"If you have something to say in the future, just say it directly. Don't leave me hanging."
"Yes, Madara-sama."
On Tobirama's side, Black Zetsu was reporting to Madara.
Black Zetsu from the Fifth Hokage time was also giving a work report.
However, the person Black Zetsu was reporting to was the masked man, Obito.
"Madara, the White Zetsu I sent to Konoha are missing. They haven't contacted me for a month."
"Have you found out why?"
"No."
After hearing Black Zetsu's answer, Obito fell into deep thought.
He knew that Pain had sent Black Zetsu to Konoha to investigate Danzo last month.
In his opinion, with White Zetsu involved, it shouldn't take long to sort things out.
Is there anyone in Konoha who can see through the spore technique?
Absolutely not.
But now it seemed his understanding was a bit too quick.
All he could say was that Konoha, being the village he was born in, still had some talented individuals.
"Zetsu, why don't you go to Konoha yourself?"
"Madara, I don't need to go. Can't I just find some information to trick Pain?"
Obito shook his head. "Pain's situation is just a side job. Your main task is to investigate White Zetsu and see if he was killed by people from Konoha or if he was captured. If he was killed, that's fine. If he was captured, you need to either find a way to save him or kill him to keep him quiet. I don't want the people from Konoha to learn about our plan, even part of it."
"Okay, I understand."
After that, Black Zetsu dove into the ground and disappeared.
"Rin, wait for me. I will soon create a world with you in it."
Looking at the sunset, Obito remembered every moment he spent with Rin.
As for the white-haired masked man, he ignored him completely.
Black Zetsu was very efficient. It only took five days to return to the base and find Obito.
"Obito, you won't believe what I saw in Konoha."
Normally, Black Zetsu wouldn't call Obito by his real name; it usually called him Madara. Now, it was using Obito's real name, so it must have seen something important in Konoha.
"Call me Madara. What did you see that surprised you so much?"
"I saw the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju."
Obito: ???
****
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