Chapter 196: The Time Has Come for the Truth

Chapter 196: The Time Has Come for the Truth

"It seems the Will of Fire hasn't completely brainwashed everyone."

Perched on the high walls of Konoha, Hagoromo Gengetsu, with one leg dangling over the edge, watched the changing expressions of the villagers below, smiling.

"It's not so easy to take advantage of me."

Next, he would let Jiraiya, Tsunade, and the others think hard about how to explain the situation with the Uchiha clan to the villagers and calm the rare internal unrest within the village.

The once illustrious founders of Konoha, the Senju clan, now only had Tsunade left, with no trace of the others. The Uchiha clan had been annihilated, and the few survivors who were left had abandoned Konoha without a second thought.

To say there were no problems within the village would be unbelievable.

"Furthermore, now that Itachi's matter is resolved, it's time to tell Sasuke the truth about the Uchiha massacre to prevent others with ulterior motives from stirring up trouble."

After one last glance at the "lively" Konoha villagers, Hagoromo Gengetsu disappeared like a wisp of willow fluff in the wind.

Soon after, in a deserted corner of a Konoha alley, Uchiha Obito and Zetsu emerged from the ground.

"It's truly surprising that someone as formidable as Itachi still met his end here," White Zetsu remarked in astonishment.

Black Zetsu, now reattached to White Zetsu's body, responded calmly, "Uchiha Itachi was terminally ill, his strength had waned. Facing the likes of Sasuke, who was trained by Hagoromo Gengetsu, and other Uchiha members, it's not surprising he was defeated."

"That makes sense. But..." White Zetsu turned to Uchiha Obito, puzzled, "Madara-sama, wasn't Sasuke supposed to be the only surviving Uchiha from Konoha? How are there so many now?"

Uchiha Obito's expression twitched. He was equally baffled.

Looking back, it seemed that the older members of the Uchiha clan had been more cunning than he had thought, employing the trick of hiding their true numbers.

Who said that the battle-crazed Uchiha couldn't be sly?

"Three pairs of Mangekyō Sharingan... Madara, have you thought about how to deal with them?" Black Zetsu asked, its eyes gleaming as it looked at Uchiha Obito.

Uchiha Obito's face darkened beneath his spiraled mask.

Having just dealt with Uchiha Itachi, now he had to contend with three more Mangekyō Sharingan users, not to mention the unknown abilities of their eyes.

Uchiha Obito felt immense pressure.

The only consolation was that, unlike him, they hadn't transplanted Hashirama's cells and wouldn't be able to use their Mangekyō abilities without risking blindness. However, if Sasuke managed to fuse Itachi's eyes and awaken the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan, it would be a different story.

Fortunately, those who knew the complete truth of the Uchiha massacre—Hiruzen Sarutobi, Danzo Shimura, and Itachi Uchiha—were all dead. The remaining two elders of Konoha only had a vague understanding and couldn't fully explain things to Sasuke.

Now, only he, who had directly participated in the massacre, knew the entire truth.

Uchiha Obito felt confident that by revealing part of the truth, he could persuade Sasuke to direct his hatred towards Konoha.

If he could further ignite conflicts between Hagoromo Gengetsu's forces and Konoha, or even the Five Great Nations, leading to a large-scale war, it would be ideal.

Thinking of this, Uchiha Obito said calmly, "The Uchiha and the Mangekyō Sharingan aren't our concern. Akatsuki's mission remains the collection of the Tailed Beasts, nothing more. Of course, if we can secretly fuel the current tensions in the ninja world, making them too preoccupied to notice Akatsuki's activities, all the better."

Uchiha Obito no longer wanted to use Pain to flatten Konoha and start a Fourth Great Ninja War openly. Letting Hagoromo Gengetsu draw the attention of the ninja world while Akatsuki continued to collect the Tailed Beasts in secret was a better plan.

Black Zetsu, hearing Obito's strategy, nodded inwardly. Though some unexpected events had occurred, Obito's response was appropriate. The key remained the capture of the Tailed Beasts, aligning with its own plans.

For now, there was nothing more it needed to do. It would leave Hagoromo Gengetsu as a backup and let Obito continue with his mission.

Black Zetsu fell silent.

At this moment, Uchiha Obito turned to White Zetsu and asked, "Where is Uzumaki Naruto?"

For the Akatsuki, the other Tailed Beasts had already been tracked down. The problem lay with the Eight-Tails and Nine-Tails.

The Eight-Tails' Jinchuriki was formidable, being the Raikage's brother and highly regarded within the Hidden Cloud Village. Capturing him would require either Pain or Obito himself.

As for the Nine-Tails, the most special and powerful of the Tailed Beasts, Naruto Uzumaki's absence during the day's events puzzled Obito, prompting him to inquire of White Zetsu.

"Apparently, he's gone somewhere to train secretly," White Zetsu reported.

"Secret training?" Obito frowned slightly.

White Zetsu nodded, then seemed to recall something, chuckling, "But we've found a substitute for the Nine-Tails: a young boy with a large amount of the Nine-Tails' chakra sealed within him."

"The Nine-Tails' chakra? A young boy?" Obito's eyes lit up.

"If necessary, we could use him as a temporary replacement..."

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Having successfully avenged themselves and now free from Konoha, the Uchiha clan moved swiftly through the forest, feeling a newfound sense of freedom.

Hagoromo Gengetsu caught up with them.

The Uchiha members, seeing him, straightened and greeted him respectfully, "Lord Hagoromo!"

Hagoromo Gengetsu nodded and ordered, "Head to the abandoned Uchiha base three kilometers away for a brief rest."

"Yes!" The Uchiha members responded, immediately changing direction.

Having just fought a major battle, the Uchiha members, despite their enhanced eye powers, were low on stamina and chakra. A rest was necessary for the long journey ahead.

To avoid complications, Hagoromo Gengetsu planned to reveal the truth there.

Not long after, the group crossed dense forests to reach an old, moss-covered, pyramid-like base.

At its peak, the Uchiha clan had multiple secret bases throughout the Land of Fire, and this was one of them.

It was also the place where Sasuke and Itachi had their final showdown in the original story.

Hagoromo Gengetsu gestured for Sasuke to join him. Curious, Sasuke followed him to the rooftop of the base.

Standing before a wall adorned with the Uchiha fan emblem, Hagoromo Gengetsu gazed out over the vast forest and said:

"Itachi is dead. It's time you learned the truth about the Uchiha massacre."

"The truth... about the massacre?" Sasuke was slightly taken aback but not entirely surprised. "Konoha was involved, right?"

Clearly, Sasuke had suspected as much.

Hagoromo Gengetsu looked at him:

"Yes, but not entirely."