Black Zetsu was utterly bewildered.
And following his confusion came a sense of shock.
Because, in his view, everything in the ninja world was clearly his doing.
The hatred between Indra and Asura, the wars between the Uchiha and Senju clans—all of it had been orchestrated by him. He was the mastermind behind it all!
Although he held disdain for his two "great brothers," those two bastards had sealed his mother away.
But still, everything that had happened was his doing!
It was him!
All of it had been his efforts to free his mother, and now it seemed as though his "great brothers" were taking credit for it?
"Are you out of your mind?"
Madara Uchiha's face was filled with disbelief. He couldn't understand whether Tobirama Senju had lost his mind.
What was even more bizarre was that Hashirama Senju remained unusually calm, as if he tacitly agreed with his "devious and shameless younger brother's" words.
This left Madara utterly perplexed, and he couldn't help but wonder if there was some hidden truth behind it all.
Meanwhile, Naruto, Sasuke, and Minato Namikaze were equally confused. They truly had no idea about these matters.
At most, they had heard Kitagawa Minamoto mention how the Sage of Six Paths favored the Uchiha ancestors, but beyond that, they were completely in the dark.
Now, hearing this explosive revelation, they couldn't help but look at Tobirama Senju with peculiar expressions.
"Hmph, that's why I said you're a hopeless fool. You have no understanding of the Sage of Six Paths' intentions."
Tobirama snorted disdainfully, mocking Madara without hesitation. He was thoroughly enjoying himself!
He had always disliked Madara, and now that he had this opportunity to ridicule him, he wouldn't let it slip by.
Of course, he also wanted to cover up Kitagawa Minamoto's narrative about the Sage of Six Paths favoring Indra, which he found unacceptable!
"Unbelievable. You're actually this clueless. After everything that's happened, you still don't understand the Sage of Six Paths' true intentions?"
"Hmph, what exactly are you trying to say?"
Madara was visibly irritated, but he couldn't think of a rebuttal at the moment. Tobirama, however, didn't let up, his face full of mockery.
"Let me ask you this: if the Sage of Six Paths wanted to prevent a thousand years of war, could he not have done so?"
"Prevent it? The conflict between Indra and Asura?"
"Exactly. I don't know the source of the war, but to stop it, with the Sage of Six Paths' immense power, would it really be difficult?"
"Would it be difficult..."
Madara froze. He realized that if the Sage of Six Paths truly wanted to stop it, it probably wouldn't have been hard.
After all, the Sage of Six Paths had defeated an Ōtsutsuki alongside his brother. Madara had experienced firsthand how powerful the Ōtsutsuki were.
Defeating such a terrifying foe was proof enough of the Sage's strength!
But then came the question—why didn't he stop it all?
"Hiss..."
Not just Madara, but Black Zetsu also sensed something was amiss.
He had always believed his "great brother" felt guilty due to the "Ninshu Choice," which was why he hadn't intervened.
After all, Black Zetsu had been the one pulling the strings behind the scenes. But upon closer reflection, if his brother truly wanted to stop it, there should've been no issue!
"But why didn't he do so? Could there really be some hidden truth behind this?"
Black Zetsu was starting to panic. For a thousand years, his plans had gone off without a hitch, making him gradually lower his guard.
But now, looking back, he found it all unbelievable. Was there something else at play?
"Are you saying this is the result the Sage of Six Paths wanted?"
Madara furrowed his brow tightly, still somewhat skeptical.
"Hashirama, do you believe this nonsense too?"
"Madara, it's not about what I want to believe, but..."
Hashirama was reluctant to "slander" the Sage of Six Paths, but after all he had witnessed, he couldn't help but believe it.
Glancing at his younger brother, whose eagerness was palpable, Hashirama decisively chose to speak up. He couldn't let Tobirama go off the rails!
"The truth is as it is. And his actions were fundamentally for the survival of the ninja world."
"For the ninja world? Allowing brothers to turn against each other? Allowing a thousand years of war?"
Madara's face was filled with disbelief, but Hashirama nodded seriously.
"That's right. Though it's hard to believe, that's the reality. Let me ask you, who do you think is the ninja world's greatest enemy right now?"
"The ninja world's greatest enemy..."
Madara raised an eyebrow, suddenly realizing something.
"Ōtsutsuki Momoshiki?"
"Not just Ōtsutsuki Momoshiki. Don't forget how many Ōtsutsuki have come to the ninja world over the years. But yes, he is the most terrifying."
"Hmph, that so-called 'Ascension Stairway' is indeed cold-hearted and ruthless. So, according to you..."
"Exactly. The Sage of Six Paths orchestrated this thousand-year war precisely for this moment!"
Hashirama took a deep breath, speaking with utmost seriousness.
"The thousand-year war was likely meant to continuously train the ninja world—refining chakra usage, battle techniques, and..."
"Willpower!"
Madara seemed to understand now. He clenched his fist and murmured softly.
"Ordinary people, upon seeing ninjas, almost never have the courage to challenge them. The gap is too vast. And when we face the Ōtsutsuki, it's much the same. But..."
"This thousand-year war has taught us ninjas not to fear powerful enemies!"
Hashirama naturally picked up the thread of conversation, sighing as he continued.
"Especially when our homeland is threatened, the faith forged through a thousand years of bloodshed runs deep. Our will becomes even firmer, and we fight with greater desperation!"
"Enemies may be terrifying, but if we lack the courage to confront them, the will to fight..."
Madara took a deep breath, his gaze growing distant.
"Then this world doesn't even need to struggle. It would've been doomed long ago!"
With just a few sentences, everyone present fell into silence.
Tobirama was somewhat displeased, as his opportunity to taunt Madara had slipped away!
Meanwhile, Sasuke, Naruto, and Minato seemed unable to process what they'd just heard. They had never imagined the Sage of Six Paths could be like this.
It seemed almost too terrifying.
The legends they had always heard portrayed the Sage of Six Paths as someone who "pitied all living beings," who exhausted himself for the ninja world, who passed down chakra, and so on.
But now it seemed...
"Although he still 'pitied all living beings' and sought a path of survival for the ninja world, his methods were quite different!"
Minato couldn't help but rub his temples. Under the rhetoric of Hashirama and Madara, the image of the Sage of Six Paths had transformed.
This Sage's actions could hardly be described as virtuous—they were more like a litany of sins!
Allowing the ninja world to fight and kill for thousands of years, sacrificing countless lives to build a future?
How cold-blooded and merciless! How icy and cruel!
"Hiss... This is the true Sage of Six Paths?"
Sasuke and Naruto finally grasped the implications, exchanging glances, but unable to utter a word.
"This was Hagoromo's purpose?!"
Black Zetsu was truly shaken. If all this was true, then what had he been doing all this time?
"Have I actually been helping Hagoromo?!"
Reflecting on all these years, he had diligently worked to free his mother by instigating conflict between the descendants of Indra and Asura.
He had continuously amplified their hatred, pushed them into endless battles, and extended this conflict for a millennium.
And the result?
Turning around, everything he had done had been aiding his "great brother"?
And not just any brother, but the one he despised most—the one who had sealed away his mother?
This outcome was truly unacceptable to Black Zetsu. Surely things weren't supposed to be this way!
"Could it be that he knew I was here all along, and was merely using me to plunge the entire ninja world into chaos to achieve his goals?"
At this thought, Black Zetsu's fists clenched tightly.
Reflecting on his "great brother's" machinations, another thought occurred to him.
Perhaps even the "Infinite Tsukuyomi" he had created was permitted by his "great brother"!
"Hiss! Was he planning to use Mother to deal with those Ōtsutsuki?"
Black Zetsu drew a sharp breath. The thought was abrupt, but upon reflection, it made perfect sense.
Though the ninja world had been trained, its combat power continuously enhanced, and even produced terrifying individuals like Kitagawa Minamoto, when it came to dealing with the Ōtsutsuki, perhaps only another Ōtsutsuki could succeed. And so, his mother...
"What a ruthless calculation. You truly don't want Mother to survive!"
Imagining the scene of Ōtsutsuki Momoshiki "killing indiscriminately," and the cold-blooded "Ascension Stairway," Black Zetsu gritted his teeth.
"Dream on! I will protect my mother at all costs. I will..."
"Not let you, you cold-blooded creature, succeed!"
"I will never let Mother leave her seal! Never!"
Black Zetsu silently shouted, while Madara seemed to have regained his composure.
"If all this is true..."
Carefully contemplating everything the Sage of Six Paths had done, even Madara couldn't help but sigh.
"Then the Sage of Six Paths was truly extreme!"
"Extreme" was the only word Madara could think of, but he had to acknowledge one thing.
When it came down to it, individual lives were insignificant compared to the survival of the entire ninja world!
Following this logic, the thousand-year war was inevitable, and Hashirama's establishment of ninja villages, which expanded the scale of warfare, was also inevitable.
Because all of it was meant to train the ninja world, for its future!
Yet this also filled him with resentment, as the peace he longed for seemed increasingly elusive.
"But that's not quite right. Once those Ōtsutsuki are dealt with, everything has a chance, especially the Infinite Tsukuyomi..."
With this thought, Madara suddenly raised his head, gazing at the five figures before him.
In his eyes, there was something subtly different.
"Since this is what the Sage of Six Paths wanted, I'll fulfill his wishes. But before that..."
"I want to see if you're worthy!"
As his words fell, his massive Susanoo launched its attack.
"You lunatic. I knew you'd do this."
Tobirama spoke with disdain, seemingly having anticipated this. Hashirama had also expected it.
After all, both Madara and he had been waiting for this battle for a long time...
Meanwhile, as the six "Hokage" began their battle outside Konoha, Kitagawa Minamoto silently appeared in the sky.
With his eyes tightly closed, he had been quietly sensing his surroundings. The next moment, his eyes snapped open.
"Quite skillful. In the past, I might not have had a way to deal with this, but now..."
His eyes radiated brilliant light, and in his vision, space had transformed into a transparent passage.
A series of nodes appeared before him, and beyond these strange and complex junctions lay a deeply hidden space!
Within this space, a beast crouched on the ground, its massive Rinnegan eye revealing its identity.
"Finally found you, Ōtsutsuki Isshiki's Ten-Tails..."
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