Mountain Prison—a dark, subterranean cavern.
The silence was total, broken only by the echoing drip-drip of water.
Sunlight never reached these depths, and the air was thick with a damp chill that seeped into one's bones.
After navigating a labyrinth of passages, the path reached the deepest sector, where the space widened into a regular, artificially excavated chamber.
In the center sat a strange throne, occupied by an old man on the very precipice of death.
Several long, white tubes were connected to his back, extending toward a thick, root-like mass in the distance.
This "Root" sprouted many branches from which dozens of human-shaped bundles hung; these were the desiccated mummies of people sucked dry of their essence.
In the open space before the old man, a completely black shadow slowly rose from the floor.
"What is the result, Black Zetsu?"
Despite his withered frame, the old man's voice was full of vigor, betraying no sign of his impending end.
"Everything went according to your design, Lord Madara," the creature known as Black Zetsu replied in a low rasp.
"However, the final evolution was cut short by Tsunade. Otherwise, it would have certainly become a Mangekyo Sharingan."
"Hmph. He still has someone he cares about, after all."
The old man sneered, the movement tugging at his stiff facial muscles.
His white hair swayed slightly, revealing the Sharingan embedded within his eye sockets.
No one in the world would have imagined that Uchiha Madara, who supposedly died long ago at the Valley of the End, was clinging to life in this inconspicuous cave.
Seeing that Madara was not overly concerned with this temporary setback, Black Zetsu began to report on its operations in Konoha the previous night.
When Black Zetsu had first discovered a nine-year-old Uchiha genius in the village who had awakened the two-tomoe Sharingan, it had been ecstatic.
As Indra's reincarnation, Uchiha Madara's days were numbered.
The creature urgently needed a Plan B to collect the Tailed Beasts and carry out the Infinite Tsukuyomi after the old man's passing.
Finding a "chosen one" with such rich emotions and deep bonds felt like a windfall from the heavens.
As long as everything Uchiha Naraku cared about was destroyed—making him despair of the world—a perfect tool would be forged.
What made the creature even happier was that before it could even act, Konoha had dealt its own blow.
The village had forced Naraku, who already felt little belonging, to awaken the three-tomoe Sharingan and contract the terminal bloodline sickness.
But Black Zetsu soon realized that as long as Sakumo and Kakashi Hatake were around, Naraku would never truly hate the world.
Without that hatred, he would never execute the Infinite Tsukuyomi.
Therefore, those two had to die—and it had to look like Konoha's doing.
Then the boy would have nothing left to hold onto... or so it thought.
"Does that man, Danzo Shimura, read minds?" Black Zetsu wondered.
"Otherwise, how could he do exactly what I was planning?"
Black Zetsu had been bewildered.
It hadn't even exerted itself yet, and Konoha had already sabotaged its own people.
It was almost too considerate.
After days of lurking, on an ordinary dusk, Konoha finally pushed Sakumo Hatake to his limit.
Just as he was about to seek death, Black Zetsu celebrated for all of two seconds before Naraku knocked the man out with a powerful genjutsu.
Then, the boy had decided to storm Root himself.
"Is Sakumo Hatake really that useless, to fall so easily?"
The creature couldn't allow its precious Plan B to be jeopardized.
Black Zetsu had rushed to dispel the Kyoka Suigetsu affecting the man, only to realize Sakumo wasn't weak—the genjutsu was simply incomprehensible.
Sakumo's chakra was suppressed so tightly that no matter how hard the creature tried, it couldn't budge the seal.
In the end, it had to consume a massive amount of its own chakra just to break through.
Though the loss was significant, watching Sakumo rush into Root to slaughter everyone filled Black Zetsu with cold glee.
If the man didn't die from this, Black Zetsu promised it would write its own name backward.
"...Danzo Shimura, you useless fool! How could a hundred and eighty men be completely wiped out?!"
Black Zetsu had to risk exposure by intervening, using a contingency it had prepared to trip Sakumo up at a critical moment.
Finally, the White Fang was at a disadvantage.
It had intended for Danzo to finish the job, but the man was so incompetent he turned a winning hand into a mutual defeat.
Left with no choice, the creature found an opportunity to possess Danzo.
Now, as long as Sakumo was killed, the plan would succeed... or so it seemed.
Cough!
Danzo, controlled by Black Zetsu, had just raised his sword when he was kicked away by the arriving Naraku.
Immediately after, a blade plunged into his chest, shattering several internal organs.
"Oh, for heaven's sake..."
The creature sighed. This was the precious Plan B; it wouldn't stoop to his level.
Just in case, it decided to keep Danzo Shimura alive; the man was too useful to let die.
As long as a man like that was around, the great plan could never fail.
After leaving Danzo's body, Black Zetsu continued its frantic work on the front lines.
It found a White Zetsu to disguise as an Anbu, possessed it, and beat Hiruzen Sarutobi to the punch by announcing a false order to "hunt down Sakumo."
With so many Anbu and Naraku in an exhausted state, surely Sakumo would die this time.
"I am truly fed up! How are all these Anbu so weak? Are they slacking off? Are they just pretending to obey?"
Black Zetsu was going insane.
Finally, it saw Naraku reach the hospital, only to find Tsunade paralyzed by her hemophobia.
The creature thought the situation was finally stable.
Then Naraku cast a genjutsu, and suddenly Tsunade was perfectly fine!
"Why is this brat's talent so monstrous?!"
Black Zetsu screamed silently.
Fortunately, it seemed that even Tsunade's intervention might not be enough to save the man.
Now, surely, the Mangekyo would awaken.
Black Zetsu rubbed its hands in anticipation from the shadows, watching the tomoe in Naraku's eyes spin and begin to shift into a new pattern.
"What in the world is that filthy thing?!"
Black Zetsu watched with a hanging jaw as sealing runes spread across Naraku's face.
Tsunade's Shadow Clone arrived to reinforce the seal, successfully interrupting the evolution of the Sharingan.
Even worse, Sakumo Hatake's life had been saved.
Listening to the steady beeping of the heart monitor, Black Zetsu felt like the world was mocking it.
Everything had gone wrong.
Time returned to the present.
Black Zetsu diligently played the role of the loyal subordinate.
"Lord Madara, Tsunade has not yet reapplied the seal on Uchiha Naraku. During this window, we still have a chance."
Madara narrowed his eyes, contemplating how to force Naraku to awaken those eyes.
Sakumo had been rescued but remained unconscious.
Even if he died later, the shock might no longer be enough.
It would be better to target Kakashi Hatake—either kill him or force him to betray Naraku.
As the "will" split from Madara, Black Zetsu seemed to read his thoughts and spoke up.
"Lord Madara, if we use Kakashi Hatake..."
After hearing Black Zetsu's idea, Madara couldn't help but admire the insidious nature of his own "consciousness."
He thought to himself, Could I really be this despicable?
But since it was all for the Infinite Tsukuyomi, he nodded.
"I leave it to you."
"Yes, Lord Madara."