Tobi couldn't help but chuckle softly.
So in the end, the logic was all the same. The world didn't have only one person like Nagato who bore the weight of the world on his shoulders.
No wonder that back when he went to Kirigakure and took control of Yagura, the village had already become even darker than it was now.
Even most of the bloodline clans had perished… Though he didn't want to admit it, whenever those at the top lost their humanity, the first to fall were always the ones at the bottom.
And only when the lowest tier could no longer hold up the weight, would the whole building finally collapse.
That terrifying era was filled everywhere with this man, Genji's, shadow.
To destroy a person, must you first drive them mad?
It seemed that every village had someone like Danzo. Someone who used darkness to protect the village through darker means.
But compared to Danzo, who never understood his own place, Genji had always hidden in the shadows.
And his plan… had almost succeeded.
At that time, in Kirigakure, the great clans were wiped out, the Third Mizukage was dead, those parasites that sucked the blood of the village were all cleared away.
Though the village itself suffered severe damage, if nothing went wrong, it was only a matter of time before recovery came.
Only, even the wisest man makes one mistake.
Genji probably never imagined that the Third Mizukage, by sealing the Three-Tails inside a Konoha Chunin, would bring such disaster to Kirigakure afterward.
During the era of the Fourth Mizukage, even a steadfast shinobi like Kisame had lost himself through repeated betrayal, beginning to doubt whether the world itself was even real.
Thinking of this, Tobi sighed.
"Victory gained through darkness may only plunge Kirigakure into a deeper abyss."
"In the past, you had no choice. But now, we're here."
Genji looked at him calmly and said, "So, what do you plan to do?"
Tobi turned his gaze toward Yagura, his tone leisurely, with a trace of hidden meaning, "First, overthrow the Third Mizukage's rule. If you think your strength isn't enough, what if I gave you the Three-Tails?"
Genji and Yagura were both shocked.
Yagura's face changed.
"You know the Three-Tails' whereabouts? We've sent out countless people and searched for so long, yet found no trace at all. Where did you get your information?"
Tobi spread his hands, "Where I got the information doesn't matter. What matters is, kid, don't you want to become the Three-Tails' jinchuriki? I can make that wish come true for you."
Yagura's expression turned sour, "Watch your words. I might be older than you, I'm not the 'kid' you think I am."
Tobi said lightly, almost teasingly, "If I say you're a kid, then you're a kid. In my eyes, you'll always be one."
Yagura was thoroughly annoyed. He hated when people made fun of his baby face the most.
He really wanted to walk right up, tear off that mask, and punch the face beneath it.
But the masked man before him had such strange and sinister genjutsu that even the Elder was wary of him, so Yagura had no choice but to suppress his impulse.
He asked instead, "So, the Three-Tails… is in Akatsuki's hands?"
Tobi shook his head, "No. But if you want, I can take you to it, and seal it inside you."
He paused for a moment, then added, "I have only one condition: after you become the perfect Three-Tails jinchuriki, you must immediately start the coup. When you've taken the seat of Fourth Mizukage, there'll be another deal I want to discuss. One that can bring peace."
At that, Genji caught on to the hidden meaning in Tobi's words, "As far as I know, even if you find a tailed beast, controlling it is extremely difficult."
"And even if you manage to control it, whether you can successfully seal it depends on the ninja's constitution."
"And to become a perfect jinchuriki, that requires a long process of adjustment and synchronization."
"Where does your confidence come from, to make Yagura a perfect jinchuriki in one step?"
Tobi's tone remained calm, "All the problems you mentioned, control, sealing, synchronization, are based on the assumption that the tailed beast refuses to cooperate."
"Why make it so complicated? Maybe… if you just change your way of thinking, and befriend the tailed beast, everything will work out naturally."
Yagura was stunned, "B-befriend… a tailed beast? How could it be that simple?"
Tobi looked at Yagura, "Kid, I've already seen your future. As long as you treat the Three-Tails kindly, it'll be willing to follow you."
Yagura snorted, "Boastful words. Everything you're saying might just be wishful thinking. I don't believe it, unless you bring the Three-Tails before my eyes right now."
Tobi chuckled with interest, "The Three-Tails is enormous, not so easy to bring here. But you can come with me."
Yagura's eyes were full of suspicion, "You want me to go with you? Who knows where you'll take me, or what scheme you're hiding?"
Tobi said faintly, "If I really wanted to scheme against you, would I have bothered saying so much?"
Yagura couldn't help but remember that eerie feeling from before. When he and the Elder had subconsciously ignored the man's presence entirely. The memory sent chills down his spine.
Still, he couldn't believe anyone could be that powerful.
Maybe this man just had very strong genjutsu but severe activation limits, or maybe his body was fragile, and a single hit could break him.
But ninja battles were fights of information.
With no intel, he couldn't say for sure he had any advantage at all.
At that moment, Genji spoke, "Perhaps… it's worth trusting once. Yagura, without standing at a certain height, without experiencing similar things, you can't sense the vastness of another's vision. But… I can."
"A man with vision like his, I don't think he'd bother scheming against you."
Yagura froze, "Elder, you really trust this man?"
Genji smiled faintly, "I wouldn't call it trust, more like a hunch. Every granted power comes with a price. It's just a matter of whether you're willing to gamble. If your gamble is right, the price you pay will be almost nothing."
Tobi shook his head and corrected him, "There's no such thing in this world as something that comes with no price. One of my friends once proposed an interesting theory, he called it the debt compensation mechanism. The more I think about it, the more I believe it's real."
"Perhaps the price you owe was already paid long ago. Everything I'm doing now, is just compensation."
Genji paused.
He felt the masked man's words carried another layer of meaning. He closed his eyes for a moment, thinking deeply.
Then he opened them again, "Since you don't wish to explain further, asking would be pointless."
"Let's talk results then. If you can truly make Yagura a perfect Three-Tails jinchuriki, I'll agree to one of your conditions."
Tobi said, "In that case, no need to delay. I'll take him there right now."
Then he stepped forward, placing a hand on Yagura's shoulder.
"Don't resist."
Though Yagura felt uneasy, he trusted Genji.
He asked, "What are you going to do? Knock me out, take me there, and wake me when we arrive at the Three-Tails' location?"
Tobi shook his head, "No need for such trouble."
And as he spoke, he raised his hand and brushed it over both their bodies. In an instant, the two of them were wiped away from reality itself.
Genji watched the scene, astonishment flickering in his eyes. He muttered to himself, "This man… not only possesses extraordinarily advanced genjutsu, but also equally advanced space-time ninjutsu?"
"He's not Madara… yet he's even more mysterious than Madara. Who is he?"
"In a way, it's as if he's already begun to see himself as a god. Only a god could stand so high… and speak those kinds of words…"
"Akatsuki… truly terrifying."
[T/N: It SEEMS my 2nd Account has been suspended 😞. I can't operate it anymore. But, if you search, you can see it still there. Novels are all there. I have made another account("Ambi_Guy") for now and will shift the novels as soon as possible. It may take 1-2 days, so I ask your all understanding. I have also sent an email to WebNovel and asked regarding the situation. As soon as I get an update, I will let you all know. Have a great read~ 👍😄👍]
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