Chapter 277: Progress...

Third Parallel World, a Dark Cave.

"Plan to capture the One-Tail has failed."

From the ground emerged Zetsu, looking like a pitcher plant with one black side and one white side. The black half spoke:

"Sasori and Deidara ran into a mysterious enemy. Neither of them escaped, and even their bodies were completely destroyed."

Internally, Zetsu was more astonished than it expected; the fact that it couldn't even identify that mysterious enemy was deeply unsettling. This unexpected intruder had thrown their ongoing plan into disarray.

"We were already short one member without Orochimaru, and now we've lost two more," Kisame observed, pausing briefly. "Maybe we should wait for a better opportunity?"

Pain, who stood in the center, remained calm. "Sasori and Deidara failed. Itachi, Kisame, you two are the closest—head there immediately."

"The rest of you, proceed with the plan as scheduled."

They'd already begun capturing Tailed Beasts and had managed to seal two inside the Gedo Statue. There was no time to waste: they had to gather all the Tailed Beasts before the Five Great Nations could fully mobilize.

"Yes," the pair answered in unison.

Then Pain looked toward Zetsu. "Zetsu, your job is to find out who killed Sasori and Deidara."

"Alright." Zetsu sank back into the ground.

"That's all."

With a bang, everyone vanished almost simultaneously.

…

High above in the cave, an elderly Madara, bathed in sparse sunlight, had quietly listened to their conversation. A faint smile appeared on his face.

The chakra inside this Rinnegan feels very similar to mine, yet… not identical, he pondered. Since there was a difference, he knew better than to assume the "Madara" of this other world was exactly the same as himself.

Given how well he knew Zetsu, he realized immediately after killing Sasori and Deidara that Zetsu was lurking below. Following it to the cave, he listened to Akatsuki's meeting and instantly adjusted his own plan.

Originally, he'd thought to capture the third-world Nagato and Link, bring them back, die on purpose, and let Zetsu control Nagato so Nagato could resurrect him.

But history seemed to have diverged.

He learned a lot about the third world from Deidara's memories and also glimpsed recollections in the dimension-hopping Black Zetsu—like Kakuzu and Uchiha Itachi being killed already. Very strange indeed.

Most important of all: Where is Link?

Or maybe each world has its own twist?

Here, Nagato was already collecting Tailed Beasts. Currently, Akatsuki had sealed two inside the Gedo Statue. They weren't too far from accomplishing the Eye of the Moon Plan.

But Obito, as "Madara's" heir, had yet to follow the original script—collecting the Tailed Beasts, then using the Rinne Tensei to resurrect "Madara." Clearly, he had his own agenda. In the First World, he'd even betrayed Madara quite early on.

There was a 100% chance of conflict arising down the line.

And whether the Third World's Madara would be resurrected according to plan was also uncertain.

Having seen in Black Zetsu's memories how formidable Uchiha Obito could be—and seeing all these other changes—this sickly, aged Madara decided against seizing Nagato by force. He would wait for a better opportunity.

He'd been patient ever since fighting Hashirama to the death in the Valley of the End. Now, an entire multiverse was in front of him, so there was no need to rush. A bit more waiting was easy enough for him.

He would wait for the Eye of the Moon Plan to unfold and see if he could improve it somehow.

However, he couldn't ignore that First World Konoha. If they came chasing after him, that would be troublesome, so he needed to help Akatsuki speed up its Tailed Beast collection. The quicker they sealed all the beasts, the better.

First, I'll go to Konoha and check if Link is really there. Then I'll assume a different identity and assist them in collecting Tailed Beasts for the Gedo Statue. At that point…

Madara's body disappeared from view.

A few minutes later, Zetsu emerged at the same spot. The black half frowned.

I felt a familiar presence just now, but then again, maybe not… Was I imagining things?

White Zetsu chuckled. "Don't waste time. Soon, we can watch the battle between the One-Tail's Jinchuriki and the others. Don't you want to see that?"

The black half didn't respond. It let the white half, which it inhabited, sink back into the ground and hurry off toward Sunagakure.

…

Second Parallel World, Kannabi Bridge Outpost, in the laboratory

"Madara's still alive—he even captured Jiraiya?!" Senju Tobirama's voice rose sharply.

He paced back and forth on his little legs, visibly agitated. "No way; we have to do something!"

"Go chasing him into another world, or fortify the main world's defenses?" Link asked.

Tobirama sighed, stopped walking, and couldn't think of anything particularly constructive. Knowing Madara, he was sure the man had already left this world, heading elsewhere to seize any opening.

But Jiraiya was carrying three vials of Link's chakra plus a Funa-tsū scroll. With those, Madara could go anywhere he wanted. Still… could he really learn the Funa-tsū technique so quickly?

Tobirama was a bit skeptical. Without fully grasping the technique, just snatching the scroll and running to some other world would make returning difficult. Even with Link's chakra, no scroll meant no traveling… unless he'd gone to the main world?

"It's crazy that Madara's alive at this point." Tobirama scrunched up his small face, thinking for a while. Then he turned to Link. "Link, come help revive the First Hokage of this world. He should be able to retain most of his strength. Once this world's problems are settled, you can head home to check for signs of Madara—see if he's gone to our place."

"If it turns out he went somewhere else, we'll form a team to track him down."

Since his brother (Hashirama) trusted Link, Tobirama wasn't going to be the bad guy here. Better safe than sorry when dealing with Madara.

"Alright," Link agreed. Then he asked, "What about Jiraiya?"

Zetsu was dead set on playing hide-and-seek. Even a full-power Hashirama might have trouble capturing it; they might need someone at the Six Paths level. And even then, it might not be easy. The payoff wasn't worth the trouble, which was why Link had withdrawn.

"That guy…" Tobirama rarely looked so frustrated. "Have this world's Minato lead a team to search for him."

He paused, then added, "My brother and the First Hokage already wrapped up the Suna front, and this world's Minato has temporarily driven back Iwa invasion. Next on the list is Kirigakure, and then—"

"Make sure you grab the Three-Tails," Link cut in.

"I've already told my brother. By tonight, you'll have the Three-Tails." Tobirama shrugged it off as if it were no big deal—just like promising a child a new toy.

"Then I'm going to convene this world's Five Kage Summit." Tobirama's expression grew serious. Since it wasn't his own world, he was free to test some of Link's out-of-the-box ideas.

"No, scratch that—a Six Kage Summit," he corrected himself.

~~~

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