Chapter 133: The Uzumaki Shrine

After Byakuya left, Obito couldn't suppress his emotions any longer and turned to Black Zetsu.

"Black Zetsu, I truly cannot stand Byakuya. When will he ever respect his elders? I'm supposed to be the executor of the Eye of the Moon Plan, so why does he constantly overshadow me?"

Black Zetsu glanced at Obito with a blank expression, internally mocking this brat.

'Obito, the only reason Madara chose you was because you have the Mangekyō Sharingan. But I chose Byakuya because he has the ability to gather all of the tailed beasts.'

'Right now, the Akatsuki's strength isn't significant enough to justify collecting the Nine-Tails prematurely. It's better to slowly weaken the Five Great Shinobi Villages, waiting for the right moment to strike. That way, we can collect all nine tailed beasts in a short time and revive the Ten-Tails.'

However, Black Zetsu had no intention of stopping Obito's plan against Konoha. Unlike the already crippled Kirigakure, Konoha had many ninjas stronger than Obito. The likelihood of success was slim. Rather than let Obito suffer a larger defeat later on, it would be better for him to experience some hardship in his next operation and become the true executor of the Eye of the Moon Plan.

Noticing that Black Zetsu hadn't responded, a flash of displeasure appeared in Obito's eyes. It used to be just Byakuya ignoring him, but now even Madara's will seemed to have infected Black Zetsu with this attitude. Was this so-called Black Zetsu really Madara's will?

Obito's suspicion of Black Zetsu only lasted a moment.

Madara, when he was alive, enjoyed watching projections of the Akatsuki, especially scenes of Byakuya training Nagato. Maybe Byakuya was a backup successor chosen by Madara. Unfortunately, Byakuya wasn't an Uchiha.

No matter how exceptional Byakuya was, as long as he wasn't an Uchiha, he could never see the true reality of the world. In this aspect, Byakuya would never surpass him.

---

After parting ways with Black Zetsu and Obito, Byakuya hurried toward the Uzumaki Shrine.

As a descendant of the Uzumaki clan, visiting Konoha without paying respects at the Uzumaki Shrine would have been inappropriate.

On his way, Byakuya passed by the Naka Shrine. It seemed like a meeting was taking place inside. The Uchiha clan members were probably discussing how to become Hokage or perhaps debating the Amegakure delegation.

Byakuya had little interest in the clan's meetings or testing his Sharingan's perceptive abilities. After a quick glance, he quickened his pace.

However, his attention was caught by two figures training in a nearby clearing—Shisui Uchiha and Itachi Uchiha. These two Uchihas, like Obito, were geniuses capable of awakening the Mangekyō Sharingan.

They were practicing shuriken-throwing, a highly challenging technique. After cutting the ropes holding down mechanisms, hundreds of kunai were fired simultaneously. The two danced like butterflies in the dark, effortlessly dodging every kunai.

Seeing this, Byakuya had to admit that the Uchiha's talent was remarkable. Shisui, despite being in his early teens, already had the strength of a jōnin, and Itachi, not far behind, had almost reached the level of a chūnin. As for Obito, his development was even more absurd—his Kamui Sharingan had taken him from a top-tier ninja to Kage level.

But, like Obito, these two Uchihas, though extraordinarily gifted, also had their own psychological issues.

Shisui's problem was his naivety. He was an anomaly among the Uchiha, wanting the higher-ups and the Uchiha to coexist peacefully. He sought to be a bridge between the village and the leadership, but was instead distrusted by both sides.

Even after awakening the Kotoamatsukami, a Mangekyō Sharingan ability that could change the entire situation, his naivety led him to expose it, arousing Konoha's suspicion. After his eye was taken, Shisui chose to jump off a cliff to avoid further conflict, inadvertently causing Itachi to spiral into darkness and thus, begin the clan's demise.

As for Itachi, he was an extremely complex figure. From the age of four, when he witnessed death for the first time, Itachi spent his life chasing after an illusory dream. Yet, in reality, he was nothing more than a puppet, never truly living for himself.

That said, Itachi's life wasn't entirely without contribution.

In the plan to eliminate the Uchiha clan within Konoha, Itachi undoubtedly made an indelible contribution. Even the reincarnated Second Hokage would feel inferior upon learning of Itachi's deeds.

After memorizing Itachi's chakra signature, Byakuya did not linger at the scene for long and quickly left. Tonight, besides meeting with Black Zetsu, he had another important matter to attend to, which was related to the upcoming Nine-Tails night.

At this moment, the keen-sensed Shisui looked in the direction where Byakuya had been and activated his Body Flicker Technique. After arriving at the small forest, Shisui found no trace of anyone, which caused him to frown.

Just now, he clearly sensed a gaze in this direction, but he could not find the observer. Could it have been his imagination?

Thinking this, Shisui activated his Sharingan to search for any subtle clues in the surroundings.

With the Sharingan's heightened perception, Shisui discovered traces on a tree trunk indicating that someone had stepped there, confirming that his earlier senses had not been mistaken.

Itachi walked over, asking in puzzlement, "Shisui, was someone here just now?"

Shisui nodded, his expression serious, "Someone was indeed here, but they have already left. However, I don't believe they had any malicious intent, otherwise, we would have already been attacked."

As one of the strongest in the clan, Shisui was confident in his abilities. If there was a ninja that even he couldn't track, the person would have to be at least on the level of the clan leader or an elite ninja. But who could have been watching them? Was it a jonin from the clan? Or someone else from the village?

At this point, Shisui suddenly recalled seeing Byakuya a few days ago and began to speculate.

Could it have been Byakuya who passed by just now?

Shisui was suspicious but, without concrete evidence, he had no choice but to temporarily set aside the matter of being watched.

"Itachi, let's continue training."

Itachi nodded lightly. He had great trust in Shisui. If Shisui said there was no problem, then there was nothing to worry about.

However, Itachi was actually more curious about another matter: Shisui, as one of the clan's elite jonin, why wasn't he attending the clan meeting and instead was here practicing throwing techniques with him?

As if guessing Itachi's thoughts, Shisui sighed quietly in his heart. It wasn't that he didn't want to attend the meeting, but that the content of the meetings was simply too dull. Rather than wasting time there, it was better to focus on training Itachi.

Itachi was the son of the clan leader Fugaku, and if everything went as expected, he would likely be the next clan leader. As long as Itachi could rise to a position of power in the village, the Uchiha clan would be able to fully integrate into Konoha.

On the other side, after passing through the Uchiha district, Byakuya arrived at the Uzumaki Shrine.

Due to the late hour, the shrine was mostly deserted, with only a few scattered ninjas present.

Easily infiltrating the Uzumaki Shrine, Byakuya's gaze fell upon the masks displayed within the shrine's hall. Each mask was grotesque, and under the dim light of night, they emitted a disturbing and ominous aura.

These masks were the very reason Byakuya had come here—they were artifacts of the Uzumaki clan. When worn, they allowed the user to cast the Dead Demon Consuming Seal, summoning the Shinigami of the ninja world.

Byakuya planned to make some preparations in the Uzumaki Shrine in advance.

On one hand, it was to plant spies in Konoha. On the other hand, it was to prepare adequately for the upcoming Nine-Tails night.