Qianyu received a message from Nara Hideyuki. Combining it with Hideyuki's speculations and considering the sloppy way things were handled, he had good reason to suspect someone had returned to the present from a state of temporal stasis. The one who had most likely returned was Uchiha Madara's younger brother, Uchiha Orima.
So the question was, where had this brother gone? Would Uchiha Madara make contact with him?
More importantly, how should Qianyu deal with this brother? Setting aside their distant relation for a moment, just considering the other's age… killing him outright would be too extreme.
In short, finding this brother was necessary.
Qianyu hoped Uchiha Orima wouldn't contact Madara. Better yet, that he wouldn't be poisoned by Madara's influence. The current Madara was almost completely corrupted; contact with him only brought misfortune.
But before launching any search, Qianyu spent another day in Konoha. This delay had nothing to do with the jinchūriki replacement. He was just further confirming the discerning power of his Yomotsu Hirasaka.
Sure enough, with this power, Qianyu could tell who was more skilled at using space-time ninjutsu.
Space-time ninjutsu wasn't some ultra-high-tier thing. Jutsu like the Flying Thunder God Technique were indeed beyond most shinobi, but Konoha actually had many ninja skilled in space-time techniques. Some were good at using storage scrolls for mass shuriken barrages, while others excelled at summoning jutsu, fighting alongside their summoned creatures.
These were all forms of space-time ninjutsu, just with more low-end, practical applications.
If Konoha had a delivery person specializing in scroll-based storage and transport, theoretically, given enough time, their proficiency in spatial ninjutsu could even surpass the Second Hokage's.
Qianyu also took the chance to peek at the Uchiha in Konoha. He found an infant with spatial talent surpassing even Minato Namikaze's. With this, he fully confirmed Yomotsu Hirasaka's application in this regard.
Qianyu's power had grown far more after taking Ōtsutsuki Urashiki's power than when he'd taken Ōtsutsuki Kinshiki's. Yet he felt nothing special about it. The first time was unfamiliar, the second was routine. Facing a repeat scenario, he was naturally calmer.
A son inheriting his father's eyes.
Years later, the Mangekyō Sharingan that Black Zetsu had taken finally reached Uchiha Orima's hands.
"Mangekyō Sharingan. A higher grade than your three-tomoe. More precisely… these are the Mangekyō Sharingan left by your father, Uchiha Tajima."
"These are…"
Before Orima could finish, the White Zetsu mount suddenly accelerated, drawing alongside him. It extended a hand, opening its palm to reveal a pair of Sharingan eyes.
"That's the theory, sure. But where would I find higher-grade eyes? Go to Konoha, where the current Uchiha are? If I had the ability—"
"An Uchiha's strength can be enhanced simply, brutally, conveniently, and efficiently by replacing their eyes with higher-grade ones. So don't worry too much about your power," Black Zetsu said.
Yet Black Zetsu responded. He'd just remembered something he'd been holding onto, something he'd never used. Now that the Rinnegan existed, there was no need to keep it anymore. He might as well give it to Uchiha Orima.
Orima seemed to be probing, but was really just making small talk. He had the standard Uchiha temperament; he couldn't develop schemes on Tobirama Senju's level in such a short time. Expecting him to have peerless strategy, thinking three steps ahead, was impossible.
"Assist? What kind of assistance can you provide? To be honest, I'm quite aware of my own strength. Far inferior to Izuna, let alone brother. With my current power, can I really complete the task he gave me? It seems difficult."
But soon, Orima would be proven wrong. He'd regret his carelessness—in a positive, constructive way.
Besides, Black Zetsu just looked sinister, not very combat-capable. For a shinobi, lacking combat power meant lacking any real threat. So Orima subconsciously dismissed Black Zetsu as small fry.
Orima understood what Black Zetsu meant and didn't doubt his identity. Just another type of clone technique. Nothing special.
"Something like that."
"Brother's consciousness sliver? Like a mental clone?"
"You've just arrived in this era. There may be many things you're unfamiliar with, so Madara sent us to assist you. As for my identity, think of me as a sliver of Madara's consciousness. I wouldn't dare call myself his clone, but to an extent, my thoughts are his thoughts."
Black Zetsu smiled.
Orima stopped, asking Zetsu with some confusion. Since these weird things were Madara's subordinates, he didn't feel particularly threatened.
"What are you things? Why are you following me?"
Black Zetsu and his White Zetsu "mount" didn't deliberately hide themselves. So Uchiha Orima, moving westward, soon noticed the black-and-white figure following him.
Black Zetsu cleaned up the remains, then hurried after Uchiha Orima.
Madara nodded. As the chakra in this body was exhausted, the "limited skin" of Uchiha Madara rapidly faded, revealing the base White Zetsu underneath. Unfortunately, after bearing the power of the Shapeshifting Technique, it was already completely dead.
"Heh. Understood, Madara. I'll… properly train him."
"This body won't hold on much longer. My true form cannot leave the cavern. Black Zetsu, Orima's matters are temporarily in your hands."
There was no way Orima would follow the path Madara laid out. That would be looking down on him too much.
Heh. One could say Madara, overly focused on his second brother, somewhat neglected his third. "Understand soon"? Orima had understood everything the moment he heard about the existence of the Rinnegan.
Madara shook his head. "In terms of talent and temperament, Orima is indeed inferior to Izuna. But he is still my brother. He'll understand everything soon enough."
Once Orima was a good distance away, Black Zetsu, who had remained silent by Madara's side, finally spoke. "Madara… your brother's heart is still wavering."
The brothers' reunion was brief, and they parted again. Uchiha Orima received his new mission, seemingly accepting the reality of being in the "future."
Uchiha Orima of course said, "Yes, yes, yes." At this point, no matter what Madara said, Orima would agree. He was just humoring him. No need to take it seriously.
"Orima, don't lose your way. Once you find your direction, life must move forward firmly. This body of mine won't last much longer. The next time we brothers meet, it will be the time of my rebirth, the moment we rewrite the world."
In this atmosphere of brotherly unity, Madara gave more instructions, finally saying with deep satisfaction:
Madara was naturally overjoyed. He'd finally found a suitable proxy for his plans, one who couldn't possibly betray him.
A moment later, Orima opened his eyes. Speaking those words meant he'd accepted Madara's request.
"Brother… you're the only family I have left. Besides following your orders, my life has no other direction."
In that case, the first thing to do was…
As expected, unlike Uchiha Izuna, Uchiha Orima had never been on the same page as Madara.
If it could reverse life and death, why not use it now? Why bother talking about the future?
But in reality, Uchiha Orima didn't give a damn about Madara's bullshit "ideal." It was intangible, worthless. Right now, his mind was consumed by the sage eyes' power to reverse life and death.
"Of course."
Uchiha Orima slowly closed his eyes, seeming to calm his emotions, regain his reason, and think deeply before deciding whether to agree.
"I… need to think."
Madara's emotional appeal was clumsy, almost crude. But what could he do? Only a blood brother was worth such tactics, and he had nowhere else to practice.
"Perhaps there's a deeper meaning. Maybe Shichimi sent you to this era precisely so you could bring about this grand ideal."
"True. The Tailed Beasts are currently held by the great villages. In my current state, I can't seize them by force. I spent too much time awakening these sage eyes. That's exactly why, Orima, I need your help."
Orima was gullible, but not that gullible.
"Sounds… not easy."
"Yes, those nine Tailed Beasts. I have already obtained the eyes of the Sage of Six Paths. They are eyes that can create dreams, forge new worlds, and turn death into life. Once we gather the Tailed Beasts, we'll have the key to rewrite the future."
"Collect the Tailed Beasts? The ones called 'mobile natural disasters'?"
On the other hand, Madara's words felt too fantastical. Could it really be achieved?
On one hand, he thought if Shichimi and Izuna could be "revived," that would be wonderful. If it all came true, their earlier talk was just a prelude to a greater hope.
Uchiha Orima was stunned. He'd never heard of such a thing.
Things like, "I want to create a world where Rin exists."
He didn't mention any world destruction plan, of course. Madara had packaged his "ideal" and "plan" well, essentially wrapping it up in the same narrative that Uchiha Obito had come to believe.
Since his brother was, as expected, focused on this, Madara began describing his "ideal" according to his prepared lies.
Let's just say, a certain brand of "filial piety" was truly one of the shinobi world's core themes.
Madara had also glossed over their father's fate with a single sentence earlier.
On a side note, even at a moment like this, these shinobi showed their humorous side. Orima only asked about Shichimi and Izuna. He didn't ask about their biological father, Tajima.
Madara slowly nodded. Orima's expression twisted with pain.
Shichimi and Izuna were brilliant talents. How could they die like ordinary ninja? And Izuna's death had been so ugly.
"Shichimi and Izuna… they really died like that? In the chaos of war?"
Orima listened to Madara's story. He then asked only one question:
The core message was that while the Uchiha clan still existed, the current clan was almost entirely unrelated to them. The First Hokage's village system was a complete failure, leading to two great shinobi wars in just forty years. War still ruled the world.
Partly due to familial bonds, partly to win his brother to his side, Madara showed rare patience, detailing everything that had happened over the years to Uchiha Orima.
The once-dominant Uchiha Madara, whose hands had wielded blades, could now only hold a cane. That was indeed hard to accept.
In any case, when Madara, in his extremely aged state, met the young Uchiha Orima, the pitiful sight of their long-awaited reunion struck the younger brother's soft heart. It even weakened Orima's mama's-boy attribute by five percent, increasing his brother-complex attribute by three percent.
This wasn't really Qianyu's fault. Looked at the other way, if Madara's actions weren't faster, his considerations less thorough than Qianyu's, what right would he have to be the elder brother?
Because the importance differed, Madara acted preemptively, while Qianyu could only react.
But why hadn't Qianyu thought of this earlier? Simple. Their levels of concern were different. Or more bluntly, Uchiha Orima was Madara's blood brother, not Qianyu's.
Just as Qianyu was considering how to find Uchiha Orima, Madara, having prepared in advance, had already reunited with his brother. It wasn't hard to think of or execute—just posting a hidden sentry at the old Uchiha grounds.
…
Because at their core, they were the same kind of people.
Alright, enough of these abstract thoughts. The point was, the mama's boy still needed to be found. Especially a mama's boy who'd lost his mother—that could be terrifying. Uchiha Orima might not understand his elder brother Madara, but he'd definitely understand Black Zetsu's state of mind.
Or rather, it wasn't just the shinobi world he was drifting from…
With his current strength, theoretically, Qianyu should be having thoughts of "controlling the shinobi world." The stronger the ability, the crazier the ambitions. But Qianyu's mindset was the opposite. As his own power kept growing, he felt himself drifting further and further away from the shinobi world.
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