If he couldn't figure this out, then his most powerful genjutsu would be practically useless!
"System, is there any way for my Kotoamatsukami to control Black Zetsu?"
"Advance to the Rinnegan, and then absorb Hashirama Senju's cells. That way, you'll be able to control people infused with Black Zetsu's cells. However, this still won't work on Black Zetsu himself. To fully seal him, the host must gather all nine Tailed Beasts and possess the Sage of Six Paths' power."
"Hashirama's cells, huh? Orochimaru's the one to find—he injected them into Danzo before, so he must have experience. As for the Rinnegan... I'll have to sneak into Amegakure and find Nagato."
Just as Kazama was preparing to head toward the Hidden Rain Village, Tsunade suddenly appeared.
"Lady Hokage!" Asuma, Shikamaru, and the others immediately bowed in respect.
"Have the enemies been dealt with?"
"They have. If it weren't for Kazama, we probably wouldn't have made it out alive," Asuma replied.
Tsunade turned toward Kazama with a proud smile and nodded.
"You all head back to Konoha. I need to speak with Kazama privately."
"Oh? What's the matter, Lady Tsunade? You gonna reward me in person?" Kazama joked with a grin once the others had left.
"Kazama… I need to ask a favor."
To his shock, Tsunade began to kneel down.
"Whoa, whoa, Lady Tsunade! You're the Hokage — you can't kneel to me! If there's something you need, just say it. As long as I can do it, I won't refuse."
While Kazama spoke respectfully, inside, he was bewildered. What could be so serious that Tsunade would go this far?
"It's like this," Tsunade began. "Jiraiya suspects Amegakure is the Akatsuki's base of operations, so he's infiltrated it alone. But if that's true, there's no way he can handle them by himself. I know how powerful you've become, Kazama, so I wanted to ask you to go after him. Help him. Please."
She knew Kazama had reached Kage-level strength, but his official rank was still genin.
An S-rank mission like this was something he had every right to refuse — even she couldn't force him. But if Kazama didn't go, Jiraiya's life might be in danger.
That's why she was willing to humble herself and beg.
"Oh, that's all?"
Kazama laughed inwardly.
"Sure, I'll do it."
"Really?!"
Tsunade was overjoyed at his quick response.
In truth, Kazama had already planned to head to Amegakure to extract Nagato's Rinnegan anyway. Now that Tsunade had come to him personally, this was the perfect excuse — and a great way to earn some credit.
"Kazama, don't worry. With your strength and your contributions to Konoha, the Sixth Hokage title will definitely be yours one day. I'll personally recommend you to the higher-ups."
A favor and a Hokage nomination in one go? Not bad at all.
Kazama beamed at the thought.
"Don't worry, Lady Tsunade. I'll bring Lord Jiraiya back safe and sound."
With that, Kazama disappeared in a flicker, using the Body Flicker Technique.
Meanwhile…
"Infiltration successful — way easier than I thought!" Jiraiya chuckled as he crawled out from the mouth of a summoning toad.
"You've been exposed, Lord Jiraiya!"
"...What?!"
Just as he'd landed in Amegakure, a voice suddenly echoed behind him.