Chapter 627: Why Is Nagato "Zero"?
"Yeah. Why?"
After Naruto was reminded of this, he realized it as well.
Why was that?
Could this Hero's Water have some unknown side effect?
He and Obito had just drunk it. Didn't that mean they were going to…
"Because this Hero's Water is ultimately produced by the Sage of Six Paths. Those whose chakra is absorbed by the Sage of Six Paths will turn into 'oh-ho' shinobi. Do you really think that voluntarily drinking it and gaining chakra from it won't have any effect?"
"Think about it carefully. Why did Uzumaki Karin want us to drink Hero's Water before sacrificing us?"
"Because once we drink the Hero's Water, we won't resist the Sage of Six Paths' Stick anymore. The moment we see it later, we'll obediently become sacrifices!"
"Now do you understand why I immediately brought you into the Kamui space?"
"If we had been even a little slower, we would have been in danger."
"They could take out that sacred relic at any moment. It would become the final straw that breaks us!"
Obito clenched his fists, his face filled with gritted-teeth fury.
"What?! Something that can distort a person's will? Why does that sound a little like the legendary Kotoamatsukami?"
After hearing Obito's description, Naruto couldn't help shuddering.
As Dark Naruto, he completely possessed the power of the Nine-Tails and the special constitution of the Uzumaki clan, yet he was still too weak.
Facing such a bizarre and twisted ninja world, he was just a tiny little Naruto.
Pitiful, weak, and helpless.
"…"
Obito's mouth twitched when he heard Naruto mention Kotoamatsukami.
There was another inconsistency.
Naruto didn't know much about the Uchiha Clan Massacre, but Obito knew it very well.
According to his memories, Uchiha Shisui of this world had never revealed the ability of his Mangekyō to anyone.
Some people had even wondered whether Uchiha Shisui, like Uchiha Madara, had a fourth ability that simply involved returning to the basics.
Yet Dark Naruto had casually blurted out the name Kotoamatsukami.
Clearly, this was another piece of information from the real world.
"Naruto, there's actually something you've been hiding from me, isn't there?"
Obito suddenly spoke.
"W-What? Me? Hiding something? Hiding what?"
Naruto froze for a moment, and his expression became somewhat awkward.
Because Dark Naruto's first reaction was that he really was hiding something.
Of course, he wasn't talking about the fact that his original self came from the real ninja world.
That matter was irrelevant. Unless Naruto also discovered that Obito was the Obito from the real ninja world, he wouldn't realize that was what Obito was talking about.
Otherwise, he would naturally think of something else.
"Since Uzumaki Karin didn't rely on Hero's Water, then what exactly did she rely on to take control of Kusagakure?"
"I didn't know at first, but now I understand."
"I found the answer from you and Nagato."
Obito sighed with emotion.
"…Nagato? Could he have…"
Those words from Naruto directly exposed the fact that he really was hiding something.
But to him, whether he was exposed or not no longer mattered. Since Obito had already figured it out, there was no point hiding it anymore.
"Yes. When Nagato first used the Summoning Technique, what he summoned wasn't the Gedo Statue. It was the Stick of the Sage of Six Paths hidden within Kusagakure!"
"The powers of Asura and Indra eventually gave rise to the power of the Sage of Six Paths—the Rinnegan."
"And the Rinnegan was originally only connected to the Gedo Statue."
"But who would have thought that, thousands of years ago, part of the Sage of Six Paths' remains had actually been left behind in this world?"
"So what Nagato summoned the first time was this!"
"Nagato was almost drained dry. It was precisely because he possessed the bloodline of the Uzumaki clan that he managed to withstand the first wave of the attack and successfully release the Summoning Technique."
"But after that battle, Nagato became a half 'oh-ho' shinobi. That's why he became a Bond-type shinobi, and why his title was Zero."
"And I guess Nagato probably felt that since the Sage of Six Paths gave him a pair of eyes, he should give the Sage of Six Paths one eye in return."
"I always thought it was strange. With Nagato's strength and his position in Akatsuki, he was Zero. So who exactly was One?"
"I thought about it for a long time and was horrified to discover that the only person qualified to be One was myself."
"Either that, or Nagato was doing the same thing as Minato-sensei, having Konan… But that's impossible. Konan isn't a Jinchūriki, and paper-made Stick can't exactly get wet whenever it wants."
"Only now do I understand. Nagato is Zero because the One he has always longed for in his heart is actually the Sage of Six Paths!"
"Now it all makes sense. It all makes sense."
Obito revealed what had happened to Nagato, causing Naruto to suddenly understand.
No wonder Obito had noticed something strange.
Earlier, when he had increased his chakra, he really had used Reaper Kiss to drain Gaara dry. But in reality, that had been done to conceal his true method.
"Uncle Obito, I'm sorry. I wasn't deliberately trying to hide it from you. It's just that you can never be too careful when dealing with others. The Uzumaki clan was wiped out precisely because of things like this."
"Even my original self doesn't know about this. He only happened to catch a glimpse of the record out of the corner of his eye while secretly reading the Forbidden Scroll. He forgot about it a long time ago. I'm the only one who still remembers."
"The Uzumaki clan has a special constitution, and sometimes, people can even awaken some unique physical traits."
"For example, Uzumaki Karin outside. I had already realized that she most likely possesses one of those constitutions."
"She only needs to bite someone to increase her chakra."
"In other words, she really doesn't need to drink the Hero's Water with its side effects. She only needs to use the Hero's Water as fertilizer, treat the people of Kusagakure like crops, fertilize them and strengthen their power, and then devour them."
"No matter how great the Sage of Six Paths' influence is, at most, it can only last to this point."
"Once Uzumaki Karin devours the people of Kusagakure, there won't be any more side effects."
Naruto chose to come clean.
Just as he had said, he had hidden this because the Uzumaki clan had been wiped out precisely because there were so many terrifying constitutions of this type among them.
So unless absolutely necessary, he truly didn't want to reveal it.
But if he kept hiding it now, uncle Obito would start developing suspicions and resentment toward him. It was better to tell him.
Besides, uncle Obito was a really good person.
"Naruto, in that case, I have an idea. Listen to it and tell me what you think…"
When Obito said this, Naruto immediately leaned over attentively.
However, Obito didn't actually have any idea.
Or rather, his idea was simply to screw Naruto over.
Taking advantage of Naruto leaning closer and letting his attention shift, Obito suddenly straightened up in alarm.
"Bad! Isshiki is here! Naruto, get out of here!!!"
Kamui!
Space twisted violently, and Naruto was transported out.
The scene was incredibly touching.
It was just like when the redeemed Obito from the original story, while inside the Kamui space and facing Madara's attack, used the last of his strength to transfer Sakura out while he himself was captured by Madara.
And that was exactly the effect Obito wanted.
After being tricked by Obito, Naruto would still think that he had been saved by his life-saving favor.
(End of this chapter)