Hidden base in the Land of Earth.
When Black Zetsu saw Uchiha Madara again, he could hardly believe his eyes.
The man who once ruled the ninja world, who had briefly regained his youth, now looked nothing like the powerful figure from his prime. His spine was still straight, his steps steady, but that thick, ink-black hair had turned as white as winter snow. The smooth, powerful skin had sagged and wrinkled deeply. Those Sharingan eyes still burned with terrifying intensity, but the exhaustion and the desperate urgency of a man running out of time were impossible to hide.
He knew the price of forcing his body young again and fighting that brutal battle was now eating him alive. His life force was flickering like a candle in the wind. He didn't have long.
"Lord Madara!"
Black Zetsu's voice shook. The plan wasn't complete yet. Madara couldn't die now.
Madara ignored the panic. He walked straight to the cave where Obito lay unconscious and locked his gaze on the boy. Half of Obito's body was still fused with White Zetsu tissue.
"I never expected Matsushita Taiichi to be that strong. I underestimated him before."
Madara's voice was hoarse and cold, laced with rare regret.
"Lord Madara, how is your body? What do we do now?"
Black Zetsu was genuinely anxious. One fight with Taiichi had aged Madara back to this state. If he'd known, he would have stayed behind himself to hold the man off.
Madara didn't answer. He just stared at Obito on the stone bed and murmured, "One more chance. I hope you make the right choice this time."
He stepped forward, placed his withered hand on Obito's forehead where White Zetsu covered it, and activated his Sharingan. Three tomoe spun violently as his ocular power slammed straight into Obito's mind.
Mental world.
This place was no longer the cold cave. It was the forest clearing in the Land of Grass where Rin had died.
Trees lay fallen. Corpses littered the ground. In the center of the clearing, Obito knelt, cradling Rin's cold body.
His spirit was trapped here, endlessly replaying the moment of her death, drowning in regret and agony.
Then a foreign presence invaded the space. Madara's figure appeared like a god descending, standing not far from Obito.
"Uchiha Obito."
Madara's voice echoed through the mental world, carrying strange power that cut through Obito's numbness.
"Look at what this world has given you!"
With those words, part of the world shifted. Instead of the bloody battlefield, it showed a clean hospital room in Konoha.
Rin lay quietly on a bed, pale but alive. Her chest rose and fell gently. She was breathing.
The image was so real, so full of life. It clashed violently with Obito's memory of the kunai punching through her chest and blood soaking everything.
"Rin!"
Obito's dead eyes widened. Shock, wild joy, confusion, and pain crashed through him all at once. He reached out instinctively toward the image.
"She's alive."
Madara's cold voice stated the warm fact, shattering the dead space inside Obito.
"The brat named Matsushita Taiichi pulled her back from death's door with methods no one expected. But Obito—"
Madara's voice suddenly rose, dripping with seductive power.
"What does that change? Look at this world! War, hatred, schemes, betrayal—it's everywhere!
Kakashi couldn't save her. Minato couldn't protect her. Konoha couldn't shelter her.
She survived today by luck. What about tomorrow? The day after?
In this rotten world full of pain and despair, how can you guarantee she won't suffer again? How can you guarantee she won't die in front of you again—maybe even by your own hand—for some ridiculous reason?"
Madara's words cut like knives into the softest part of Obito's heart.
The image shifted again, showing different ways Rin could die, including Obito himself killing her.
The joy of learning she was alive was being twisted into terror—the terror of losing her again in this cursed world.
Obito's body shook violently. His eyes flickered between hope and the abyss of despair.
He wanted to go back. He wanted to see her with his own eyes. He wanted to stay by her side.
His lips trembled. Finally, he forced the words out.
"I want to return to Konoha!"
Disappointment flashed in Madara's Sharingan, followed by cold resolve. He saw exactly where Obito's heart was leaning—and how important Rin still was to him.
"It seems you've chosen the path of repeating pain."
Madara's voice turned emotionless.
"Then let me cut away your last weakness. You don't need those useless bonds. All you need to remember is despair… and rebirth!"
"No—what are you doing?!"
Obito tried to back away in terror. His Sharingan spun into the Mangekyo, but this was a mental world built from ocular power. Here, strength was decided purely by the power of the eyes.
Obito might have the Mangekyo, but his ocular power was nowhere near Madara's three tomoe.
Madara's ocular power erupted to its peak.
The entire mental world shook, collapsed, and twisted violently.
A tsunami of power flooded straight into the core of Obito's consciousness.
The extreme despair from Rin's near-death was amplified and twisted endlessly.
The images of Rin being saved, Kakashi staying with her, Minato's concern—those fragments of reality and fragile hope—were ripped apart, overwritten, and replaced.
In their place was a deeply implanted belief: this world was a complete hell. Only the Infinite Tsukuyomi could save it.
Only the Eye of the Moon plan could create a perfect world where Rin would never be hurt again.
And carrying out that plan was the only meaning of Uchiha Obito's existence.
For it, he could destroy anything that stood in the way.
Back in the real cave, Obito's body on the stone bed arched violently. He let out a silent, agonized scream before finally going still.
Madara slowly pulled his hand away from Obito's forehead. His face turned even paler. He coughed hard, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.
He looked at the now-calm Obito with no pity in his eyes.
"Let's go. Everything else can wait until he wakes up."
With that, he turned and walked out of the cave with unsteady steps. Black Zetsu followed closely behind, face unreadable.
They entered a larger cave. Madara found a stone chair and sat down. Even though he tried to keep his back straight, the exhaustion and decay were obvious to anyone who looked.
Black Zetsu stood silently beside him, waiting for Madara to recover his strength.
After a long silence, Madara spoke again, voice even weaker.
"Obito's mind has been rewritten. Later, remove one of his eyes. With both Mangekyo and the fused White Zetsu, his ocular power could easily break my control. One eye is safer."
Black Zetsu looked up sharply, eyes filled with disbelief. Those words sounded like final instructions.
Madara nodded calmly, as if he could read the thought.
"You're right. I'm dying soon.
The fight with Matsushita Taiichi already drained what was left of my strength. Rewriting Obito's Mangekyo just now used up the last of my life force.
But it doesn't matter anymore. All the groundwork is done. The rest depends on you and Obito."
Black Zetsu lowered his head deeply, face showing grief that didn't reach his eyes.
"I've already recorded everything I know about the Sharingan. Once Obito recovers, teach him how to use it."
Madara kept giving instructions, each one weaker than the last.
"Start synchronizing the plan with Nagato. Once Obito finishes learning what I left behind, let him contact Nagato."
"Matsushita Taiichi is a dangerous opponent. Avoid direct conflict with him in the early stages. You're not strong enough to threaten him yet."
"Once Nagato fully masters the Rinnegan's power, that's when the real plan begins."
Madara continued listing points until his voice faded into nothing.
When the last word left his lips, the man who had once dominated an entire era—the "Demon of the Ninja World"—finally drew his last breath.
For a long time, Black Zetsu just stood there, staring at the body that remained upright even in death. Then he let out a quiet sigh.
No matter how great your achievements or how grand your ambitions in life, everyone eventually faces old age and death. And after you're gone, none of it matters anymore.
At least—
Black Zetsu stepped forward and pulled out a sealing scroll. He carefully sealed Uchiha Madara's body inside. This corpse was the key to reviving him later in the plan.
For now, though, Uchiha Madara had finally left the stage of the ninja world.
The next day.
When Obito opened his eyes again, the last traces of the boy's confusion, pain, and struggle were gone from his pupils.
In their place was cold emptiness—and the fanatical determination to burn everything down for a "greater" goal.
He sat up. His fused body felt strange and powerful.
"Zetsu."
The hoarse voice came from Obito's mouth. Moments later, footsteps echoed from the cave entrance.
Black Zetsu walked in and looked at the now-standing Obito. A strange smile appeared on his face.
"You're finally awake, Obito."
Obito didn't respond to the greeting. He stood there, slowly testing his new body.
"Uchiha Madara. Is he dead?"
Black Zetsu paused, then quickly understood. Madara must have explained everything in the mental world before he died.
"Yes. Lord Madara passed away yesterday. According to his orders, I will follow your commands from now on and help you complete his final wish."
"Infinite Tsukuyomi—"
Obito murmured the words.
"Rin!"
He spoke her name again. This time there was no warmth—only twisted obsession and destructive madness.
"And this rotten world… it's waiting for me!"
"From today on, I am no longer Uchiha Obito. Obito is dead. From this moment forward, I am Uchiha—Madara!"
Obito's—no, Madara's—voice was filled with finality. It was a complete farewell to his past and the beginning of something new.
Black Zetsu only hesitated for a split second before responding.
"Yes, Lord Madara. You are Lord Madara."
The effects of the explosion at Kannabi Bridge had finally begun to show after nearly a week of building tension.
Supplies on the Iwa front—both combat materials and food—had suddenly run dangerously low.
The reserves in the main camp couldn't keep up with the fighting.
Especially recently, the Leaf forces on the western front, led by Minato, had launched a furious counterattack against Iwa.
In just three days of heavy fighting, the stock of explosive tags, kunai, and shuriken had dropped to critical levels.
Medical supplies were even worse. More intense battles meant more wounded, and everything was running out fast.
Iwa forward camp.
"Commander, we're even running low on food now. We're completely out of soldier pills. What do we do?"
Tōshijin looked at the staff officer who asked the question and seriously considered dragging him outside and executing him on the spot.
Morale was already shaky. The last thing they needed was someone openly talking about collapse.
Before he could respond, another staff officer spoke up.
"Commander, we should pull back our lines. We can't sustain this front anymore. If we keep this up, a full retreat is only a matter of time."
Murmurs of agreement spread through the tent. No one wanted to fight a war with no supplies.
Just as Tōshijin hesitated, a messenger ninja rushed in.
"Commander, a messenger from the village has arrived."
Tōshijin's eyes lit up. He needed orders from the village more than anything right now.
The messenger didn't wait to be announced. He strode straight into the tent.
Every gaze turned toward him.
Tōshijin called out the name.
"Huangtu!"