Chapter 77: The Inheritor and the Dream
"Any news on Lord Madara, Zetsu?" Nagato asked, his voice echoing in the cavernous top of the Rain tower.
A full month had passed since Obito's disappearance was first noted. In all that time, there had been no sign, no whisper, no ripple of his chakra. He had vanished as completely as a stone dropped into a bottomless sea. Nagato, though still holding a thread of hope, was now largely convinced. The legendary Uchiha Madara was gone.
Black Zetsu, controlling the bizarre form, shook its head slowly. "None. It appears Madara did, indeed, meet with an accident."
Nagato was silent for a long moment, the patter of rain against the windows the only sound. Finally, he sighed, a weary exhalation. "To think a being of such power… could die so silently. It defies belief."
"The world is unpredictable. No one knows if tomorrow or disaster arrives first," Black Zetsu replied, its tone unnervingly calm.
"He must have been ambushed during his recovery," Nagato reasoned, his Rinnegan sharpening. "At full strength, with his space-time ninjutsu… no one in the world could have touched him without a sound."
He turned his gaze fully on Zetsu. "You are ancient and knowledgeable. Are you aware of any ninjutsu… capable of a silent kill?"
Black Zetsu pretended to ponder. "Very few. And the ones that exist… are primarily associated with Konoha."
"Oh? Such as?"
"The Spiritual Transformation Technique," Black Zetsu stated, its yellow eye fixed on Nagato. "An S-rank forbidden art. It allows the user to detach their spirit, which can then travel at the speed of thought, possess a target, and annihilate their consciousness from within. While not a space-time jutsu, its speed is functionally absolute over any perceivable distance. The spirit can also sense marked targets from vast ranges and transmit intelligence."
Nagato's brow furrowed. "You believe Lord Madara was killed by a Konoha shinobi using this technique, who then relayed his location for the body to be retrieved?"
"It is a distinct possibility," Black Zetsu nodded. They were not with Obito every moment. The scenario was plausible.
"It sounds… terrifying. In some ways, more insidious than the Flying Thunder God," Nagato murmured, a new layer of caution settling over him. If this technique could claim Madara, it could target him. The power granted by Hashirama's cells was immense, but he was acutely aware he was not yet Madara's equal.
"It has its counters," Black Zetsu offered, seeing the concern. It could not let Nagato, its new key piece, die to something so preventable.
"Counters? Such as?" Nagato's interest was immediate and intense.
"Your Rinnegan. And specific barrier ninjutsu."
"My Rinnegan?" Nagato's mind raced, then clicked. "The power of the Naraka Path?"
"Precisely," Black Zetsu affirmed. "The King of Hell's power is a natural counter to a disembodied spirit. With the Rinnegan, you need not fear the Spiritual Transformation Technique."
A weight lifted from Nagato's shoulders. He exhaled softly.
"As for the defensive barriers," Black Zetsu continued, "I will teach them to you. To protect not only yourself, but those around you." The spirit's speed meant it could strike even in his presence.
"Thank you," Nagato said, the gratitude genuine.
"Do not thank me. I am the inheritor of Madara's will. Assisting you is my purpose," Black Zetsu intoned, laying the groundwork for the next phase of its manipulation.
"Lord Madara…" Nagato's voice hardened with resolve. "I will avenge him."
This 'Madara'… Black Zetsu thought with internal irony, he played his part well enough to earn this loyalty. Aloud, it adopted a tone of somber approval. "Madara… he did not misjudge you. He foresaw the possibility of his demise. His final instruction was that if he fell, I was to entrust his legacy… to you."
Nagato was visibly moved. This level of posthumous trust, from a figure of such stature, was profound. It resonated with the loyalty he held for Yahiko, Konan, and Jiraiya.
"What… what legacy does Lord Madara wish to entrust?" Nagato asked, his posture straightening with solemn duty.
"His knowledge. The true purpose of the Gedo Statue. And his ultimate dream… the Infinite Tsukuyomi."
"The true purpose of the Gedo Statue?" Nagato's curiosity was piqued. "Is there more to it? And this dream… the Infinite Tsukuyomi. What is it?"
Black Zetsu's smile was thin, teacherly. "Let us begin with the statue." Its voice dropped, becoming conspiratorial. "You know its origin—the husk of the God Tree. It will resurrect as the Ten-Tails only when it reclaims the chakra of the nine beasts. But its purpose is not mere bombardment with Tailed Beast Balls."
It leaned closer. "The correct method is to use the Six Paths Ten-Tails Coffin Seal. To become its jinchuriki. To merge with the Ten-Tails, ascend as a true Sage, and wield the power of the Sage of Six Paths himself."
Nagato's breath caught. "The Ten-Tails Jinchuriki… A Sage… The Sage of Six Paths was…"
"The first Ten-Tails Jinchuriki," Black Zetsu finished, its voice dripping with gravitas. "It was the Ten-Tails that granted him power akin to a god. Imagine… possessing that power. Making the world feel pain would not be a struggle. It would be an effortless act of will."
Nagato's Rinnegan gleamed. The logic was seductive. With the power of a god, his vision of peace-through-shared-suffering could be imposed, realized. "And the Infinite Tsukuyomi?"
"That is the ultimate genjutsu. A moon-eye plan that will cast the entire world into a dream. Within that dream, each person will live in a perfect world crafted from their own deepest desires. No conflict. No pain. Only happiness. This… is the only path to true, lasting peace."
Nagato's expression grew distant, captivated by the sheer, apocalyptic beauty of the concept. A world where everyone was happy in their own personal heaven… It addressed the root of all conflict: divergent desires.
Black Zetsu pressed its advantage, seeing Nagato's enthrallment. "You have seen it, have you not? The reality of this world is a hopeless hell. The Infinite Tsukuyomi… is the method to transform that hell into a universal heaven."
For a long moment, Nagato was silent, lost in the grand, terrible vision. Then, a shadow crossed his face. He sighed, a sound of profound, weary sadness. "It is… a beautiful dream. I admit it. But an illusion… is still an illusion. However perfect, it is a fabrication. A dream must end. And when it does… what remains but the same, unchanged hell?"
His Rinnegan eyes met Zetsu's singular yellow one, holding a tragic clarity. "It is a surrender. An admission that reality cannot be saved, only escaped. I… am not yet ready to make that admission."
(End of Chapter)
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