Three months later, Kazuyama walked through a bustling town in the Land of Fire with Pakura on his arm. Dressed casually, the two laughed and chatted as they strolled along, eating and drinking as they pleased.
"So you really fooled all those ANBU?"
"They're still stuck outside the courtyard, huh?"
Pakura giggled behind her hand, and Kazuyama nodded with complete indifference.
"They think they can keep tabs on me? Please—they clearly have no idea who the true master of stealth is."
"ANBU? I spotted them the first day. Tsk. I really need to give Lord Hokage some feedback."
"They call themselves ANBU, but if you can't even stay hidden in the shadows, what kind of ANBU are you?"
Finishing the last bite of his meatball, Kazuyama casually transformed the bamboo skewer into crystal, then crushed it into dust—no littering on his watch.
"But we should probably head back."
"It's been three months. The Iwagakure front has quieted down, only Kirigakure's still acting up."
"I'm guessing once the village's main forces move into the Land of Hot Water, it won't take long."
"At that point, the Third Shinobi World War will be behind us."
Over the past three months, Kazuyama had left the village multiple times. As far as he was concerned, ANBU surveillance was a joke.
With a shadow clone and a quick jump via Flying Thunder God, there wasn't a chance they'd find his real location—even if they stared until their eyes bled.
"So... what about your sensei?"
"Don't even mention him. He's completely abandoned his human body—heading straight down a path of no return."
Kazuyama shook his head, more exasperated than anything. Maybe deep down he still clung to the idea that as long as Orochimaru was still human, he wasn't truly Orochimaru.
If he doesn't spit snakes, doesn't spit swords, and doesn't have snakes spitting him—can you even call him Orochimaru?
To get Orochimaru to become the version he knew, Kazuyama had fully supported everything his sensei pursued.
Right now, Orochimaru was already walking the path of Living Corpse Reincarnation. Sure, it was still early days, but Kazuyama believed that with enough time, the Orochimaru he remembered would eventually return.
"Is that really okay though? I heard Lord Jiraiya's been chasing after him nonstop."
"Even Lady Tsunade's activated some of her old contacts to find him."
Kazuyama had never expected Tsunade to stay in the village. Instead of leaving, she'd thrown herself into medical research and even managed to suppress her hemophobia.
She was now the head of Konoha's medical academy.
Even Hiruzen couldn't order her around anymore.
"Let them do what they want. That's their business. Even if Jiraiya finds my sensei, what then?"
"He's not beating him. And even if he could, my sensei's not coming back."
"You've got no idea what Turtle Island looks like now."
"All those massive animals? They're his minions now. Helping him run experiments day in and day out. Tsk tsk."
"You know the first thing that bastard sensei says to me every time he sees me?"
Pakura burst out laughing and mimicked mockingly, "Quick, we're out of blood. Let me draw a few more vials!"
Kazuyama sighed and held out his arm.
"Look, it's still full of needle marks."
"Man, it's terrifying."
These days, people with Kekkei Genkai weren't all that rare—but with the war ongoing, every village's battle strength was right out in the open.
That was the same reason Orochimaru had turned to the black market to buy the corpses of Kekkei Genkai users back then—all for research.
...
Meanwhile, in the Land of Hot Water—
"No! No!"
"Akaashi!"
"You bastards!"
"Aaagh!!"
The colossal Demonic Statue of the Outer Path descended like a demonic god, crushing every Konoha ninja around it.
Even the Jōnin were no match.
No matter how hard they fought, they were like ants beneath its feet.
And at the heart of the pile of corpses—Akaashi lay among them.
"That settles Nagato. From here on out, he'll be the blade in my hand."
"Black Zetsu, I've got to say—you really are rotten to the core."
"Still, I went through all that trouble dragging someone from miles away, even sealed the Three-Tails inside him."
"But now, the Three-Tails will need time to revive again."
Two figures stood watching the scene unfold, chatting casually.
It was none other than Muren Uchiha and Zetsu, the ones pulling strings from the shadows.
"No matter. We've got time. As long as Nagato is brought into our plan, it'll all be worth it."
"The Demonic Statue of the Outer Path has already awakened... hmhmhm..."
The cold, gloomy voice carried a trace of twisted satisfaction.
"Alright, take him back to Kirigakure."
"That statue's way too conspicuous. Are your eyes up to the task?"
Though Muren's dōjutsu—Kyori Mushi—was powerful, the target was the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path. Even Zetsu had his doubts.
But Muren snorted with disdain.
"Hmph. Who do you think you're talking to?"
He stepped onto the battlefield, grabbed Nagato with one hand, and placed the other on the statue.
His dōjutsu flared. In an instant, both Nagato and the Demonic Statue began to shift. Muren's eyes turned blood-red as veins bulged at the corners, his aura growing increasingly oppressive.
"What, it's just a big stone statue!"
"Watch me move it!"
"Thousand-Mile Step!"
Harnessing the full power of his Mangekyō Sharingan, Muren forcibly relocated both Nagato and the Demonic Statue.
But the toll was immediate—his stamina and chakra drained at a terrifying rate.
"That's enough. You've burned through nearly all your eye power."
"We're already far from the Land of Hot Water. It's fine now."
Black Zetsu's voice sounded at last. Muren released the technique, collapsing to his knees as he clutched his eyes.
It hurt—overusing the Mangekyō Sharingan always did.
Even with Hashirama's cells suppressing the backlash, the side effects were still brutal.
"Hahaha, I told you I could do it."
"A stupid rock statue? You think I couldn't move it?"
Zetsu simply shook his head in exasperation.
Nagato had fallen unconscious. Without his chakra sustaining it, the Demonic Statue dissolved into a puff of white smoke, vanishing before their eyes.
"Nagato... this world is full of mistakes."
"Let's fix it together."
"Your power, combined with mine—we'll cleanse everything."
Muren clapped a hand on Nagato's shoulder, extending the offer once more.
Zetsu just sighed and shook his head again. The road ahead was long and full of setbacks.
Still, with Nagato's hatred for the Konoha shinobi now firmly planted, things would be much easier from here.
If nothing else, deception was Black Zetsu's specialty.