Konoha Notes.

Chapter 557 The Broken Master and Servants

Chapter 557 The Broken Master and Servants

When Zetsu found Uchiha Madara in the Land of Rivers, he was standing under a group of rock pillars carved out by the wind.

"Jigen has entered Konoha."

Zetsu emerged from underground and excitedly told Madara about it.

"understood."

Ban simply replied with these three words.

Black Zetsu awaited Madara's questioning or orders. Then, seizing the opportunity, it proposed seizing Konoha's Divine Tree, in accordance with Orochimaru's plan.

But Ban didn't ask anything.

The shadows of the rock pillars glided slowly across the wasteland as the clouds moved. The wind howled in gusts, then suddenly stopped.

The silence of the wilderness returned, leaving only the faint sound of sand rolling on the ground.

Black Zetsu finally couldn't hold back any longer.

"This is the opportunity you've been waiting for, Lord Madara. All of Konoha's defenses have been held back by Jigen."

Madara finally looked at him, his Rinnegan shimmering with emotion: "Who told you that, Zetsu?"

Black Zetsu choked; that line wasn't in its prepared script.

This man is becoming increasingly unpredictable.

Bai Jue, however, didn't think that much of it, and his tone remained as nonchalantly enthusiastic as ever: "Isn't this the goal Lord Madara aimed to achieve when he killed the demons and eliminated Shennong and the others?"

"Let's eliminate all external variables first, and then wait for Konoha and Jigen to start fighting."

"Now that the two sides have collided on their own, it's better than expected, so you don't need to continue—"

"You mean," Madara interrupted White Zetsu's rambling, speaking softly, "that I'm weaker than them?"

"That's not what I meant either—" White Zetsu raised his hand in a gesture of surrender, then covered his mouth with his hand and muttered to Black Zetsu, "No matter what I say, I'll be disliked. Madara-sama is really hard to deal with."

"It's a perfectly reasonable proposal."

With a mocking expression, Ban said, "Not only are they failures, but now they don't even know how to flatter their master?"

"I relayed what I knew truthfully," White Zetsu complained, wriggling his body like a snake. "Humans are such troublesome creatures, with such volatile emotions. Even when receiving a report, I have to guess what they're thinking."

"As expected, beings like us are a bit more advanced, aren't we? At least we won't be swayed by just a few words—"

Black Zetsu used this brief moment of banter to quickly gather its thoughts. Madara's patience was worse than it had anticipated; it had to be even more careful.

"Will you choose to take action against Cixian?"

"He is indeed a more worthy target."

Ban agreed, raising his hand slightly.

Caught off guard, a chakra rod pierced through White Zetsu's chest, passing through half of Black Zetsu's body as well, pinning them both in place.

Bai Jue looked at the black rod on his chest, not understanding why.

"Lord Madara, I really am going to die. This body is going to break down."

"Then let's switch bodies," Madara said casually. "Aren't your consciousnesses interconnected? Just find a spare one to connect to."

"Or are you saying you can't even do something this simple?"

"Seriously, can you not be so willful?" White Zetsu's voice began to waver. "No salary, and we always have to work overtime."

"My body will be at your mercy and used as an experimental subject by Orochimaru and the others."

"From a purely rational perspective, this is going too far—"

Ban sneered, "Did you think I created you intending to treat you like a human being?"

The white Zetsu's body quickly breathed its last, and the black Zetsu remained attached to it, motionless: "Why, Lord Madara?"

"I've been resurrected, and I don't need you outside anymore," Madara said calmly. "Why don't you come back, Black Zetsu?"

"This is an even longer period of silence."

Madara's decision to attack it at this time was something Black Zetsu had never expected.

Even though the situation is still so chaotic, its perception capabilities and intelligence network still have value.

Madara should have continued to be patient, at least until the Ten-Tails is resurrected.

No matter what you say now, you can't perfectly prove your identity.

A brief, desperate struggle might control Madara for a moment, but Madara's control over chakra after his resurrection far surpasses that of his former self, leaving Madara with no chance of victory.

Most importantly, we must not let Madara suspect the Gedo Mazo.

As long as the golem remains under Madara's control, and as long as Madara still believes he is the master of destiny, there is still room for things to turn around.

Black Zetsu slowly said, "Because I am no longer just you, Lord Madara."

Ban frowned slightly. "Oh? Where did I go?"

Black Zetsu weaves a true lie.

"You are not the only one who leaves behind their own ideas, hoping that the world will develop according to their vision."

Madara thought of the stone tablet left by the Sage of Six Paths, and how he could decipher the true meaning of Infinite Tsukuyomi from it.

If he could gain inspiration for creating Black Zetsu from the stone tablet, then perhaps the will of the Sage of Six Paths himself remained in a corner of the world in a similar way.

"After leaving you, we encountered each other, we merged, and then, we were confused—"

The spotted creature glared at it disdainfully: "So, who are you now?"

Black Zetsu replied, "I don't know. I am you, and I am also Him."

"However, I know that the future of the world belongs to the Ten-Tails, and to the Ten-Tails' jinchūriki."

Black Zetsu awaits Madara's judgment. If Madara decides to kill, it can choose to play dead and leave.

The chakra rods were indeed somewhat useful to it, but in essence, they were still far inferior to the chakra itself.

What can truly trouble it is an attack at the level of Truth-Seeking Balls, not this black rod.

However, losing this identity will make future plans much more complicated.

Ban looked at Zetsu; he remembered clearly that he had indeed taken the action of splitting his will.

If Zetsu changed because he encountered other chakra of the same type, then the current situation makes sense.

Regardless of the changes, it has indeed been faithfully carrying out its plan to collect the tailed beasts and revive the Ten-Tails.

The black rod was pulled from Zetsu's body, and Madara said, "Now, it's just me, Uchiha Madara."

Black Zetsu should have replied, "Yes, Lord Madara."

Having resolved the issue of Black Zetsu's current identity, Madara formed hand seals and summoned the Edo Tensei coffin.

Two coffins rose up, and the lids slid open.

Obito Uchiha and Hashirama Senju opened their eyes at the same time.

Black Zetsu was about to go towards Obito when Madara gave him a cold glance.

Black Zetsu stopped moving. Its current identity was that of a suspected mixed will, and it no longer had the right to make decisions on its own.

Obito, feeling free from restraint, was preparing to unleash Kamui immediately.

"You'd better wait a bit, Obito," Madara said.

Hashirama emerged from the coffin. His gaze swept across the wasteland, over Zetsu's remains, and finally landed on Madara.

The First Hokage had a bad feeling.

"You—you've been resurrected, Madara."

"I've crossed the shore completely, Hashirama." Madara spread his arms, displaying the vibrant body, his voice filled with undisguised pleasure. "I don't need you anymore. You can leave."

"What do you want to do now?"

Obito never believed Madara's explanation.

His own eye technique, Hashirama Senju's power—even Madara Uchiha in his current state couldn't achieve that.

"Don't be arrogant, you fool." Madara gave him a proper look. "With my current eye power, your movements and subtle changes in space are becoming increasingly noticeable."

"As a power surpassing the Mangekyou Sharingan, do you think space-time techniques can hinder the Rinnegan?"

Obito didn't want to believe it, but he realized that Madara really didn't intend to continue controlling him.

Hashirama recovered from the shock of his resurrection. He glanced at Obito first, then looked back at Madara.

"Don't make things difficult for the juniors anymore, Madara."

"Now the Otsutsuki have reappeared, haven't they? That guy named Jigen."

Madara then smiled and said, "Yes, it has appeared, right here in Konoha."

Hashirama looked at Madara: "Since that's the case, you've made your decision, haven't you? We need to deal with that Otsutsuki first."

Ban leaned against a nearby rock pillar, his back against the rock surface, and looked up at the vast sky above the wasteland.

"Of course, in the end, whoever it is, I will deal with them."

Hashirama didn't say anything more. He turned around and nodded to Obito: "—Obito, right? Let's go."

Then he reached out his hand to Ban.

"Madara, once again—"

"don't want."

Hashirama was taken aback: "Why?"

Ban turned his head away.

"Don't push your luck, Hashirama. I only let you over there to see what that guy is like now. As for me—"

He paused for a moment, then chuckled softly.

"I have my own plans too. Ultimately, who I'll target is someone I have to decide based on what I see."

Black Zetsu then spoke up, reminding them, "If we don't hurry, it might be too late. Hashirama Senju, Obito."

Hashirama withdrew his hand, gave Madara a deep look, and nodded.

Obito walked behind Hashirama and brought him into the Kamui dimension.

Whether Madara's words are true or false, they will know once they go to Konoha.

In this process, he will break free from the shackles of the impure earth.

After the two disappeared, Madara raised his foot and crushed the remains of the White Zetsu on the ground.

The shattered tissues scattered across the arid wasteland, mingling with the dust blown by the wind between the rock pillars.

Then, he raised his head and leaped towards Konoha.