Chapter 240 — Schemes
Lately, Imai Kenta had grown unusually silent.
To be precise, ever since that raid on Orochimaru's laboratory with Uchiha Kei—ever since he obtained that list—he hadn't been the same.
The contents of that list had shaken him to his very core.
Konoha's First Hokage… treated so disgracefully, denied peace even in death!
Kenta hadn't told his family. He feared what would happen if he did—what chaos might erupt.
The elders of his clan still clung tightly to the honor of the Senju name. He could imagine too well what they'd do if they learned the truth.
And the outcome? Bloody suppression, without question.
Even with the Third Hokage retired, the Fourth's authority was weak—little more than a shadow beneath Sarutobi's looming presence. Kei had been blunt about it, and Kenta kept his silence.
But even now, with Minato seated as Hokage, the Senju had gained nothing. Not a single scrap of benefit.
If his kin flew into a frenzy now, the price would be their annihilation.
So Kenta brooded. What path should he take? Should he deepen his cooperation with Kei?
Their partnership had been born of necessity, a product of overlapping interests rather than trust. Kenta knew Kei's reasons for drawing him into the Police Force, and he had played his role obediently.
But obedience no longer satisfied him.
Kei had proven himself—his cunning, his power. He had toppled mountains and brought Minato to the Hokage's chair. Yet Minato looked more puppet than leader, a token figure placed to offer hope while Sarutobi still pulled the strings.
Kenta wanted more. He wanted in on the real game—where Sarutobi's faction could be broken, perhaps even destroyed.
But he understood: value must be proven. Barging in with demands would only reduce him to another pawn under Kei's command.
That, he would not accept.
He had once thought Kei reckless, flaunting himself in the open, even willing to be seen as a "puppet." But now… now he understood.
Remaining in the shadows had its merits. But when your weight grew too great, silence became weakness. Without a voice, power crumbled.
"This must change."
Kenta was not a man driven by lofty ideals. Yet this time, he resolved to act.
Though raised under Senju doctrine, he bore no deep hatred for the Uchiha. Sarutobi's regime had already crushed the Senju into irrelevance—scattered their clans, dismantled their name. Resentment against the Uchiha was nothing compared to that.
The true Will of Fire? In him, a flicker still lived.
Konoha had been founded through Senju and Uchiha cooperation, bound by the support of other clans. That truth could not be denied.
But his elders? The ones who had lived through Hashirama's and Tobirama's eras? Their hatred for the Uchiha ran bone-deep. Especially Senju Shōma, the current patriarch—the one who held what little influence remained.
"If I'm to move forward, I need to speak with Kei," Kenta thought grimly. "I just hope his price isn't too steep."
The Senju were no longer the Senju. They were little more than common shinobi now, kept together only by Shōma's will. If Kei's demands were too great, they would have no bargaining power, no leverage against Sarutobi's faction.
Yet this was an opportunity. Perhaps their last.
Kenta sighed. If handled well, this could thrust the Senju back into relevance. It wasn't his dream—but it was the dream of his kin. He bore their burden. He had no right to look away.
His expression hardened.
"First, I'll learn what Kei wants. If the terms are fair, I'll bring it before Shōma. After all… if our clans once stood side by side to found Konoha, why can't we again?"
Indeed, once, Uchiha and Senju had fought, bled, and finally built together. Hashirama himself had wanted Madara as Hokage, though the vote fell short.
Why not now?
Though Kenta no longer bore the Senju name—having inherited his stepfather's instead—the legacy of his blood burned quietly within him.
Enough thinking. Enough hesitation.
He would prepare. Tomorrow, when Kei returned to the Police Force, he would act.
Kei had been absent for days, buried in experiments with Ayaka Hyūga. A desperate gamble, perhaps—but Ayaka's Byakugan made her a uniquely valuable partner.
Kenta might not match her skill in the laboratory, but in other fields? He was no less valuable. If Kei sought allies, then Kenta intended to prove himself worth more than a token "common-born" shinobi.
His ambition had crystallized: he wanted partnership—on Ayaka's level.
---
Meanwhile, in a cavern cloaked in shadow…
"Obito, are you certain about this?"
Black Zetsu's voice was low, edged with unease. "When the time comes, Konoha's defenses will be on high alert. Slipping in won't be easy. And don't forget—Uchiha Kei is there. He's the head of the Police Force now."
It wasn't fear of Obito's death that made Zetsu wary. No—Obito's Kamui, coupled with Hashirama's cells, made him nearly untouchable.
But even so… against Kei, things could grow unpredictable.
In Obito's eyes, Kamui was an invincible power.
No one in this world could resist such a miraculous jutsu—unless they too possessed the Mangekyō Sharingan.
And Black Zetsu agreed.
The only one he considered troublesome was that man—Uchiha Kei.
As for the rest? Even the so-called "Fastest Shinobi Alive," Namikaze Minato, hardly mattered.
"Don't worry," Obito said quietly, his voice calm but edged with malice.
"No one knows Konoha's defenses better than me. As long as I time it right, once the Nine-Tails is unleashed… the village will fall."
Then, with a cold glint in his eye, he added:
"And as for Uchiha Kei—hmph. If he dares to show himself, I'll make sure to give him my full attention."
Obito's expression hardened, a shadow crossing his face.
He had never forgotten the humiliation of being beaten back by Kei, fleeing in disgrace.
That fight had carved a deep scar into his pride.
But things were different now. Years had passed, and in that time, he had learned much.
Say what you will of Black Zetsu, but as a teacher, his knowledge was unparalleled. With centuries of experience, he had drilled countless lessons into Obito.
Even if Obito was still only a "second-rate" talent in Zetsu's eyes, he had been armed with dangerous tools and forbidden knowledge.
And with those trump cards, Obito now longed for another clash with Kei—this time to erase his shame.
He had also come to understand the fatal flaw of the Mangekyō Sharingan: overuse led to blindness.
How long had Kei wielded his eyes? What powers did he truly command? Obito didn't know.
But he was certain of one thing—Kei's Mangekyō was far from new.
The way he fought, the sharpness of his insight, the way he had dissected Obito's Kamui after only a few encounters… that wasn't something a novice could do.
Obito remembered vividly: Kei had started awkwardly, even clumsy. But in moments, his movements had sharpened to a deadly edge, cutting away all of Obito's counters.
Such mastery could only belong to someone deeply versed in their ocular powers.
"Do as you like," Black Zetsu muttered, shaking his head. "But be careful. That man is a snake—an insidious, venomous serpent. His reputation in Konoha may be sterling, but you and I both know the truth of what lies behind those eyes."
"Yes," Obito growled, his teeth clenched. "A serpent. Cold-blooded. If he shows himself, I'll crush him—and I'll see just how much longer his eyes can last."
Black Zetsu studied him in silence, then said nothing more.
In truth, he doubted Kei's vision would endure much longer. And if this operation left him blinded? All the better.
Zetsu hated Kei with a venom of his own.
That night, that fire—Kei had burned Madara's lair to ash.
In Zetsu's eyes, Uchiha Kei was even more foolish than Obito.
But far more dangerous.