In the cave of the Akatsuki.
Pain, standing atop the Gedo Statue, looked down at Uchiha Itachi as he walked in and said in a deep voice, "Uchiha Itachi, you were brought in by Tobi. You should know Tobi's true identity, right?"
Pain did not hide the truth from Uchiha Itachi, or rather, he didn't care about Itachi's thoughts, because in the face of true strength, there's no need for tricks.
Uchiha Itachi's expression remained unchanged, but his mind was already in turmoil. Based on his earlier conversation with Konan, he had already guessed what Pain was going to say.
The mysterious masked man had always claimed to be Uchiha Madara, but now it seemed Pain and Konan had found some evidence and discovered that the masked man was actually Uchiha Obito!
"He deceived me, claiming to be Uchiha Madara."
Pain looked at Uchiha Itachi and continued in a deep voice, "In reality, his true identity is Uchiha Obito, a spy sent by Konoha's Shimura Danzo..."
"..."
Uchiha Itachi fell into silence upon hearing this.
The various experiences of the past surfaced in front of Uchiha Itachi, and he began to reverse analyze Uchiha Obito's true identity based on what Pain had said.
When he first met the mysterious masked man, the masked man killed his teammate and led him to awaken the Sharingan;
Later, when Uchiha Itachi grew up, the masked man was willing to work with him to wipe out the entire Uchiha Clan and guide him to join the Akatsuki.
The mysterious masked man, knowing full well he was the Third Hokage's spy, still revealed his plans to him and was willing to continue cooperating with him.
In every step of Uchiha Itachi's encounters with the mysterious masked man's actions, one could sense a strong dark style, which is somewhat reminiscent of Shimura Danzo's handiwork!
Who else besides Shimura Danzo would want to obliterate the Uchiha Clan?
After his reverse analysis, Uchiha Itachi couldn't help but feel greatly alarmed!
If they could truly confirm that the mysterious masked man wasn't Uchiha Madara, but indeed Uchiha Obito, then he was almost certainly a subordinate of Danzo!
Because Uchiha Obito had a good reputation in Konoha, aside from having a grandmother, he had no other relatives and wasn't particularly noticeable;
Obito couldn't possibly perform so many dark deeds of his own volition; he could only be controlled and manipulated by Danzo!
It made perfect sense.
There weren't many ninjas from the Uchiha Clan in the Anbu; Uchiha Shisui and Uchiha Itachi were both assigned to Danzo's forces, so having another ninja named Uchiha Obito under Danzo was hardly unusual.
Uchiha Itachi frowned slightly, realizing that every step he took was part of Shimura Danzo's plan, and Danzo was indeed a persistent specter.
"Uchiha Obito is Danzo's spy."
Pain conjured a Yin Yang Release Black Rod in his hand, staring at the young man below: "Uchiha Itachi, what is your true identity? Having killed all the Uchiha clansmen in Konoha, are you also a spy?"
Uchiha Itachi looked up at Pain, gently shook his head, and said, "I only wanted to find a place to live. He claimed to be Uchiha Madara and deceived me...
Now that I know he's a spy sent by Konoha to monitor me, I'll kill him next time."
Uchiha Itachi didn't reveal the truth that he collaborated with Uchiha Obito to annihilate the Uchiha Clan.
If he did, it could clear Obito's name of suspicion, but it could also drag himself down.
At present, Uchiha Itachi didn't want to be used by Danzo or put himself in danger!
As for Uchiha Obito, the next time they meet, Uchiha Itachi will definitely find a way to deal with him, as he cannot tolerate being watched by Danzo any longer!
"Very well."
Pain nodded, looking toward Konan and said, "Konan, the next step is to probe Zetsu for its true identity. If any problems arise, kill it immediately!"
Zetsu was a member of the Akatsuki's intelligence team.
Because Zetsu had provided a lot of intelligence for the Akatsuki, Pain didn't want to kill Zetsu outright but intended to attempt uncovering its identity to determine if it was a spy or a person deceived by Uchiha Obito.
When Zetsu got the news, both Black Zetsu and White Zetsu were somewhat puzzled; they couldn't understand how Obito's identity was exposed.
Moreover, why label Obito as Danzo's spy?
It's because Uchiha Obito first contacted Yahiko back then, only to be rejected by him. Soon after, Yahiko was killed by Shimura Danzo and Hanzo of the Salamander...
Judging by the timing and motives, it indeed seemed reasonable.
After a simple deduction by Konan and Pain, if Zetsu hadn't been aware of the truth, even they might have believed it!
White Zetsu's emotions were somewhat melancholy: "Although it's just Nagato and Konan's speculation, it seems well-founded, and if we argue, it may arouse Nagato's suspicion..."
"Hmm."
Black Zetsu remained calm, pondering on how to rectify the situation: "In any case, stabilize Nagato and Konan to ensure they don't suspect the plan to collect the Tailed Beasts."
"Should we go to Obito to discuss countermeasures?"
White Zetsu questioned quietly: "Just now, Obito returned to our secret base and had a White Zetsu clone help him reimplant a Three Tomoe Sharingan..."
"What happened?"
Black Zetsu asked in some confusion: "Did he use Izanagi? Did someone manage to force Obito, who has the Space-Time Mangekyo Sharingan, to use Izanagi?"
"It was Uehara Naraku."
White Zetsu's half-face was filled with inexplicable confusion: "Obito's explanation was that he was too careless and got ambushed by Uehara Naraku's Paper Bomb, forcing him to use Izanagi to escape... and now he's eager to meet us."
"..."
Black Zetsu wasn't in a good mood either.
Didn't Uchiha Obito say he was going to control Uehara Naraku? But he ended up being outsmarted by that twelve-year-old kid?
Indeed, except for Uchiha Madara, the other Uchihas are all useless!
Zetsu's secret base.
This place was once Uchiha Madara's hiding spot in his twilight years, and a few White Zetsu were residing here to guard it.
With the help of a White Zetsu clone, Uchiha Obito transplanted a Three Tomoe Sharingan, having already removed the mask from his face.
From today onwards, he had no need to flaunt Madara's identity.
Zetsu emerged from the ground.
Black Zetsu looked at him wickedly and said, "Obito, because you wouldn't heed our advice back then, Nagato now believes you're Danzo's spy."
White Zetsu softly complained, "And this matter has implicated us. To regain Nagato's trust, we need to put in the effort to help him gather intelligence on Hanzo of the Salamander."
"Is there no way to salvage this?"
Uchiha Obito frowned deeply; this news was kind of bad for him, as not being able to oversee the Akatsuki's actions in real time would be unfavorable for him.
"There is currently no way."
Black Zetsu shook its head, saying solemnly: "Nagato has already identified your identity. We can only wait for his anger to dissipate in the future to slowly clear your suspicion."
White Zetsu offered its suggestion softly: "We must find a way to quickly plant new personnel within the Akatsuki to prevent losing control of its operations...and to monitor Uchiha Itachi who hasn't joined Akatsuki for long."
"That's not an issue."
Uchiha Obito released a relieved smile, saying, "Taking advantage of Uehara's inattention, I've been secretly communicating with Kisame. He still believes in the Eye of the Moon Plan and will continue to act as my spy within Akatsuki, helping me monitor Uchiha Itachi."