Chapter 111: Could He Be an Ōtsutsuki from the Moon?
"Hey, Blacky, what's with you again?"
Night had fallen over the Land of Rain, and as always, relentless rain poured from the sky.
Black Zetsu stood alone in the downpour, staring blankly at the sky, lost in thought.
His behavior was starting to irritate White Zetsu. After all, they shared the same body—if Black Zetsu started acting weird, it affected him too.
"And seriously, why have you been so obsessed with staring at the sky lately? There's nothing up there."
"…Can you shut up for a second?"
Black Zetsu sighed wearily, still gazing at the heavens.
"You don't get it. Sometimes I wish I had an empty head like you or Uchiha Obito. It'd be easier—fewer things to worry about."
"Huh? Obito has an empty head? No way."
White Zetsu blinked in confusion.
"Oh! Wait—you're saying Obito and I are both idiots, right?"
"At least you're self-aware."
"But seriously, why would you want to be an idiot?"
"…"
Black Zetsu didn't answer. He was too preoccupied.
The energy that had just erupted from the moon… if he wasn't mistaken, it felt like the chakra of his "dear second brother," Ōtsutsuki Hamura.
Even though he'd hidden himself within the Shinobi World and manipulated the descendants of Ōtsutsuki Hagoromo, that didn't mean he'd forgotten where Hamura had gone—to the moon.
Fortunately, the Rinnegan allowed him to bypass the moon's defenses entirely and summon his mother directly, which had saved him a lot of trouble.
But now… a sudden surge of power like this—it had thrown all his calculations off.
The world was beginning to feel unfamiliar. First, that brat Kitagawa Gen had made him question everything. That strange, vaguely familiar chakra… it had unsettled him deeply.
And now? A surge of chakra nearly identical to Hamura's?
At this rate…
"Don't tell me… more of Mother's clan are about to show up?"
Black Zetsu shivered. He didn't dare dwell on the thought.
"Forget it. We have more important things to do."
He shook his head, refocusing.
Who knew what was going on up there? All he could do now was stay alert. Victory was within reach—just a few more pieces needed to fall into place.
Even if all of Hamura's descendants descended from the moon, he wasn't afraid.
"Danzo's letter to Hanzo has already been intercepted. We'll forge a response in Hanzo's handwriting and send it back."
"Oh? What should we write?"
White Zetsu tilted his head in curiosity.
"Lure him out? That could work. Obito does want him dead."
"…"
If he dies, who'll take the blame?!
Black Zetsu sighed in frustration. Dealing with an idiot every day was exhausting—but sadly, he'd gotten used to it.
"No need to kill him yet. Keep him dangling—we might need him later. Besides, using him to deal with Orochimaru serves Obito's goals perfectly."
Someone had to take the hit. Might as well be Orochimaru—he was a traitor anyway, no guilt there.
"Oh, and I remember… didn't someone from the Hidden Cloud start snooping around too? Depending on how things go, we could guide them into a little trap. Let them 'join the fun.'"
Suddenly remembering this detail, Black Zetsu added it casually.
He wasn't surprised the Cloud was digging around. Last time Nagato acted, the Fourth Raikage had been watching closely.
And then there was that shameless brat Kitagawa again—pinning the attempted assassination of the Raikage on them. Honestly, if anyone wanted the Raikage dead, it was probably Konoha!
Framing them so effortlessly… no wonder Obito was pissed.
"That brat really has a bit of the Second Hokage in him—cunning and shameless!"
"But I guess we should thank Tobirama. Without him, Madara's path wouldn't have been this smooth."
Black Zetsu thought to himself. But mid-thought, he suddenly paused. His eyes once again drifted toward the moon.
His expression grew more and more disturbed. Then a wild idea took root in his mind.
"Ever since Kitagawa Gen appeared, all kinds of chaos have erupted…"
"His chakra is so strange. Then this burst of energy from the moon, and those white sage eyes in his Sage Mode…"
"…Don't tell me…"
"Could he be connected to the Moon's Ōtsutsuki?!"
---
Meanwhile, in Konoha – Root Base
Danzo sat quietly in his usual seat, calmly reviewing intelligence reports from across the Shinobi World.
Outwardly, he seemed composed. But internally, he was anything but.
He still hadn't received a reply from Hanzo the Salamander.
He didn't dare enter the Land of Rain himself. He remembered all too clearly the carnage he'd witnessed before. If someone like Hanzo had to go into hiding, what chance did he have?
"And that guy's eyes…"
Danzo couldn't forget them—that red-haired brat, with eyes that looked like tree rings, like rippling water—Rinnegan.
He knew those eyes were extraordinary, and naturally, he had ideas about them.
Even if he couldn't act now… what about later?
"But where are they, exactly? Jiraiya's intel says they're scattered all over… That's not ideal for me."
Shimura Danzō sat with a deep frown, doing his best to stay calm. He knew that opportunities like this were rare—he had to seize it while he could.
"And what exactly is their goal? Based on information from Kitagawa Gen and Takigakure, Uchiha Obito is hunting Tailed Beasts. Is there a deeper connection here?"
Truth be told, Danzō was starting to suspect that their real objective was the Tailed Beasts.
But whether it was the attack on Konoha or the incident in Kirigakure, Obito always seemed to be using his Sharingan to control the Tailed Beasts and wreak havoc.
Takigakure had clearly been trying to ambush Jiraiya and his team—maybe Obito had tried to use a Tailed Beast again and was exposed by Kitagawa Gen.
"Idiots... With power like that, and they still don't know how to use it properly. Then again, maybe they've got something else planned..."
Danzō, as paranoid and calculating as ever, didn't let his own biases cloud his judgment. Most of this intel came from Hiruzen Sarutobi anyway, and his old mentor shared similar concerns.
The problem was: not enough information. With so little to go on, every decision felt like a gamble.
"Danzō-sama, a message has arrived."
While Danzō was brooding over scrolls and reports, Aburame Torune appeared at the door, kneeling on one knee to deliver his report.
"It's from the Land of Rain."
"Oh?!"
Danzō's eyes lit up. He immediately stood up, snatched the scroll from Torune, and gave his order.
"You're dismissed. Don't let anyone else in."
"Yes, sir."
Once Torune retreated, Danzō opened the scroll and carefully examined it.
The handwriting was different, but that didn't matter. The important thing was: the scroll included Hanzō's personal seal and the contents matched what Danzō already knew.
"So those people left the Land of Rain, and Hanzō took the chance to seal off the country and hide within Amegakure?"
"Coward. But... this aligns with what Jiraiya reported."
"He's been investigating them too? And tracked them possibly heading toward the Land of Wind?"
Danzō fell into silence. Hiruzen had also recently told him to investigate Orochimaru. Danzō had been wondering how to go about that, especially since he did have ties with Orochimaru...
But now, Hanzō had conveniently delivered information right into his hands?
"This will also let me test if this 'Hanzō' is the real deal."
"And give me time to figure out my next move…"
---
Meanwhile…
In Konoha's training field, Kitagawa Gen and Might Guy sat together, watching a young boy furiously training in the distance—a kid dressed similarly to Guy himself.
Kitagawa Gen watched the scene unfold, and it was obvious what was going on.
"Is this the newcomer you've taken under your wing, Guy-sensei?"
"Exactly!"
Guy nodded enthusiastically and gave Gen a big thumbs-up.
"This kid might not have your talent, but he's the very definition of 'slow and steady wins the race.' He's got a pure heart, and he's overflowing with youth!"
"Honestly, I see my younger self in him. We were both underdogs who refused to give up!"
"Hahaha! I believe he'll become an outstanding ninja one day!"
"That much, I agree with."
Gen nodded. Rock Lee would indeed grow into an excellent shinobi, faithfully inheriting Guy's will.
Though Lee's Eight Gates technique might never reach Guy's level, he was still someone to be reckoned with.
"Time flies. Hard to believe another batch of students is about to graduate."
"It's not that fast. You graduated around this time too, remember?"
Guy leaned against a tree, smiling fondly.
"I still remember you as a kid, always following me around, training hard every single day. It's burned into my memory."
"But you've really grown, Gen. You became a Chūnin last year, and now you're preparing for the Jōnin exam. You're truly something else."
"All earned through sweat and hard work!"
Gen snorted, though he quickly glanced around.
"Where are his two teammates? Haven't seen them."
"They're not here yet. It's not time to assemble."
Guy chuckled proudly.
"But my team isn't to be underestimated. One's a genius from the Hyūga clan, and the other's a kunoichi who's excellent with throwing weapons."
"Speaking of which, I heard Kakashi didn't take any new students this year. Guess you're running missions with him solo again."
"Doesn't bother me. I'm used to it."
Gen shrugged. Honestly, he had gotten accustomed to it—most of the missions they took were anything but ordinary.
If they added newbies to the mix, it'd only slow them down.
Besides, Kakashi had asked if Gen wanted to try mentoring some new genin, and Gen had turned it down. Only then had Kakashi dropped the idea.
Still, Gen had a sneaking suspicion that Kakashi never really wanted students anyway—he'd just let Gen take the blame for the refusal.
"Time really flies... With Lee and the others graduating now, in another year or so, Naruto will graduate too. When that happens…"
When that time came, the shinobi world would fall into chaos.
The Tailed Beasts and Jinchūriki would start making their appearances.
But for Gen, that would be a golden opportunity.
He wouldn't just sit around and wait for those events to unfold—he'd strike first, strike hard, and enjoy the thrill of being a max-level player wrecking noobs in the early game.
That moment would be the true test of his years of effort and sweat.
After all—
"In four or five years, Kaguya Ōtsutsuki and the others will start emerging. Even if she doesn't show up, the other Ōtsutsuki clan members will come looking for Earth within a decade."
"When that happens, I'll make sure they feel the full force of my fists."
With that thought, Kitagawa Gen clenched his fists tightly.
Just then, he spotted Kakashi walking toward him…