Inside the toad's palace, the deal was made.
And to pay the agreed-upon reward, the Great Toad Sage fell asleep again.
He never intended to get something for nothing from the start.
Although in his prophecy, he saw the danger to Mount Myōboku and foresaw salvation in Konoha Village, it wasn't until he truly met Orochimaru that he understood the reason.
Prophecies aren't that magical; the future is a superposition of countless possibilities. Any butterfly flapping its wings can change it. How could a little toad grasp it all?
Ultimately, it's up to the toad to act.
If he dared to trick Orochimaru into being a big spender today, who knows if this guy would hold back his effort in a few days.
However, spying on the Otsutsuki clan is no easy task, not to mention the time limit. He can only try his best now to satisfy Orochimaru.
"This old guy really has something to him."
In the center of the great hall, Orochimaru looked at the sleeping Great Toad Sage with a smile.
As of today, he had met all the Great Sages from the three sacred lands. Among them, the Great Toad Sage was undoubtedly the wisest.
No wonder he could guide the fate of the ninja world a thousand years ago and cause Kaguya and her son to turn against each other.
Not to mention this prophetic ability…
Orochimaru stared at the old toad on the throne, a flicker of strange light in his eyes.
He himself was a Sage, but the natural world was vast and boundless. He could use a little bit of energy, but he couldn't even begin to do what the Great Toad Sage did, almost completely merging with it.
If he didn't need the Genie Lamp to maintain his consciousness, he could perform 'Sun Breathing' on his own and wouldn't have to bother collecting terrestrial energy.
"Lord Orochimaru, there are still a few days until the crisis. Why don't you rest for a while…"
Hearing the Great Toad Sage's assessment of Orochimaru, Sage Fukasaku became a bit more reserved in his attitude towards Orochimaru. "Please follow me."
"No rush, I'd like to visit Mount Myōboku first."
Orochimaru smiled, his words carrying a double meaning, "Who knows if I'll have this chance in the future."
…
Two days later, Konoha Village.
Deep beneath the ground, a thousand meters down, Black Zetsu began to ascend.
After repeated probing these past few days, he finally confirmed one thing: Orochimaru was no longer in Konoha Village.
Perhaps it was an accident with the teleportation array he was experimenting with, or for some other reason… this was a rare opening.
A moment later, Black Zetsu arrived at his destination—the Naka Shrine.
This was the Uchiha Clan's secret gathering place. A few years ago, when relations with the village were strained, it was frequently used as a meeting room. But now, it was only occasionally used during ancestor worship, and normally, no one came here.
In the basement, Black Zetsu looked at the stone tablet written by the Sage of Six Paths, a sinister smile on his face.
Methods don't have to be new. Since it worked so well on Uchiha Madara before, it was worth trying again this time.
A faint ethereal light appeared on his palm. The content, which had been previously changed, changed again. Before long, it became the same speech that Obito had given. The protagonists shifted from Senju and Uchiha to Uzumaki and Uchiha. And the Eye of the Moon plan went from bringing the whole world to eternal slumber to obtaining the power of the Sage of Six Paths.
It was like serving dishes according to what people liked, prescribing medicine for the ailment.
"Heh heh…"
With a chuckle, Black Zetsu's lips curled into a mocking smile, quite pleased with his creation.
These mortals think too highly of themselves, always believing they are the protagonists of the world. But they live and die in a day, like ants. If placed on a chessboard, they might not even be worth a fraction of their value.
"New savior, please succeed…"
His low voice contained deep longing and malice, twisting human ideals and playing with their desires.
Black Zetsu didn't linger, his body sinking back into the ground.
And after who knows how long, a new guest arrived in the basement of the Naka Shrine.
The spiritual body of the old Blue, seeing the altered content on the stone tablet, sighed deeply. "So that's how it is…"
…
Meanwhile, in Mount Myōboku.
Orochimaru, who was in the middle of training, received information from the Sage of Six Paths. He casually broke the summoning contract with the viper and looked at the document with a strange expression. "Black Zetsu, that guy really knows how to play."
After learning the current content of the stone tablet, he confirmed his previous guess and roughly understood how Obito and Black Zetsu had managed to relax Nagato's guard.
Using the same trick twice, it's really…
"Honestly, if you and the Sage of Six Paths weren't interfering, this plan would have had some feasibility. After all, the Sage of Six Paths hadn't appeared for a thousand years, and you weren't in Konoha at the time…"
The Genie Lamp tilted its head and chuckled, "Suppose Nagato sneaked into Konoha while you were away and saw this 'true content' with the power of the Rinnegan… Heh heh, it's hard to say he wouldn't have walked down Uchiha Madara's path."
"After all, regardless of anything else, obtaining the power of the Sage of Six Paths and activating the 'Eye of the Moon' could at least solve your current problem."
"Indeed." Orochimaru nodded slightly, a hint of luck on his face. "Borrowing the crisis in Mount Myōboku this time to have the Sage of Six Paths help protect the village was the right move."
He didn't fear any battle, but he was not proficient in genjutsu. He only knew a little.
Having the Rinnegan could grant immunity to the genjutsu of the 'Eye of the Moon,' but Orochimaru wasn't sure if he could do it himself and didn't want to risk testing it.
However, with the Sage of Six Paths watching now, that possibility was gone.
As for how the Sage of Six Paths, who had watched the ninja world's war for a thousand years, now discovered that it wasn't just his two sons' fault, but also had dirt thrown on him by his brother… how his expression would be, and whether he would still have the mood to stay out of it…
Orochimaru had no intention of dwelling on who was right or wrong. He just hoped the other party would clean up the dirt on his backside and not let the stench leak out.
Otherwise, when it came time for him to act, he certainly wouldn't hold back.
"The Sage of Six Paths is too slow in his actions. If you were in Konoha, maybe you could have dealt with Black Zetsu…"
The Genie Lamp floated in the air, its mouth twitching, "Like this, flying over slowly after the other party has left… He really looks like an old man."
"After all, when I asked him to act before, he was reluctant, perhaps never thinking this would involve him."
Orochimaru smiled, "I used to like this attitude of his because it gave me maximum freedom, but now I feel he's not efficient."
With a change in position, one's view of the same person doing the same thing can change drastically.
"Indeed, I think the matter of Black Zetsu will likely fall to you to handle in the end."
The Genie Lamp thought for a moment and suddenly chuckled, "Do you think the old Six Paths will still not act, and instead send Nagato a dream…?"