The persistent drizzle of the Rain Village continued to fall, washing over the towering steel pipes and stone buildings.
Uehara Naraku stood quietly in the rain, his expression calm. However, in his mind, he was communicating with the System.
"System, is there any new mission?"
[Side Mission: Discover the trails of the mysterious creature 'Zetsu'.]
[Reward: 100 Gold Coins.]
Uehara's eyes narrowed slightly. Zetsu?
He knew exactly who Zetsu was. Black and White Zetsu, the intelligence gatherer for the Akatsuki, and the manifestation of Kaguya Ōtsutsuki's will (in the case of Black Zetsu). If the System was issuing a mission to "discover" him, it meant Zetsu was nearby.
Uehara didn't panic. As a "Mastermind" in training, or rather, a disciple of the "God" of this village (Pain), he had to maintain his composure. He casually scanned his surroundings, his gaze sweeping across the grim landscape of Amegakure.
Suddenly, his eyes locked onto a strange plant-like silhouette merging with a tree trunk not far away. It was a pitcher plant... no, a flytrap-like extension, inside which a figure was concealed.
"Who is there?" Uehara shouted, his voice cutting through the sound of the rain. He channeled chakra into his hand, ready to strike.
The figure in the tree slowly emerged. It was a bizarre humanoid, half-black and half-white, encased in a large green venus flytrap-like structure.
"Oh? You discovered me?"
The voice was raspy and strange. The white half of the figure spoke with a playful, high-pitched tone, while the black half remained silent for a moment before speaking in a deeper, more serious voice.
"A keen sense of perception... for a child."
Uehara feigned ignorance, looking at the creature with a mix of curiosity and wariness. "You are... a monster?"
"I am not a monster," the White Zetsu replied cheerfully. "I am Zetsu. I'm a subordinate of Pain-sama, just like you!"
"Zetsu?" Uehara repeated the name, tilting his head slightly as if pondering it.
He looked at the green, leaf-like extensions surrounding Zetsu's head and the distinct black-and-white coloration.
"Your name is really well chosen," Uehara said with a straight face.
"Oh? Why do you say that?" White Zetsu asked, clearly interested in the compliment. It wasn't often people complimented them; usually, they were freaked out.
Uehara pointed at Zetsu's head. "Because you look just like an Aloe Vera. 'Zetsu' sounds a bit like 'Aloe' (in a conceptual sense of being a plant), doesn't it? It suits you perfectly."
The air seemed to freeze for a second.
[Side Mission Complete: Discover the trails of the mysterious creature 'Zetsu'.]
[Reward: 100 Gold Coins.]
Black Zetsu: "..."
White Zetsu: "..."
"Aloe Vera?" White Zetsu muttered. "Do I look like an Aloe Vera?"
"Yes," Uehara nodded affirmatively. "A talking Aloe Vera. Are you an experimental product of the village?"
Black Zetsu's yellow eye narrowed. This kid... Uehara Naraku. They had been observing him for a while. He was Konan's disciple, a talented orphan picked up by the organization. But his mouth was certainly annoying.
"We are not an experiment," Black Zetsu said coldly. "We are a member of the Akatsuki. We are here to observe your growth."
"Observe my growth?" Uehara dusted off his clothes. "Is that so? Konan-sensei didn't mention you. But since you are a member of the organization..."
Uehara suddenly moved. He didn't attack; instead, he opened his palm. A card materialized in his mind, but outwardly, he simply gathered blue chakra around him.
[New Side Mission Triggered: Defeat Zetsu.]
[Reward: Unknown.]
Uehara paused. Defeat Zetsu? That was impossible for him right now. Zetsu was slippery and specialized in survival. Killing him was nearly impossible, and even "defeating" him in a spar would be difficult given Zetsu's ability to merge with the earth (Mayfly).
However, the System didn't specify killing him. Just a "defeat." Maybe a small scuffle would count?
"Since you are observing me," Uehara smiled innocently, "Why don't we have a spar? I want to see how strong the other members of the organization are. If you are just a talking Aloe Vera, I might be disappointed."
"Hah! He wants to fight us!" White Zetsu laughed. "He calls us Aloe Vera again!"
Black Zetsu seemed annoyed. "Ignore him. We have intelligence to report to Pain."
"Don't run!" Uehara shouted, launching a simple wind style jutsu towards them. "Wind Release: Air Bullet!"
A blast of compressed air shot towards the tree.
Zetsu didn't even dodge. His body simply sank into the wood, merging seamlessly with the tree as the wind bullet shattered the bark where he had just been standing.
"Too slow," Zetsu's voice echoed from the ground.
Uehara frowned. Mayfly technique. It was annoying.
"I will report your disrespect to Pain," Black Zetsu's voice drifted away.
Uehara stood alone in the rain again.
[Mission Failed: Defeat Zetsu.]
"Tch. Ran away fast," Uehara muttered. He hadn't expected to win, but he wanted to test the waters.
However, a new notification popped up.
[Hidden Mission Complete: Mock Zetsu.]
[Reward: Earth Release: Hiding Like a Mole Technique (D-Rank).]
Uehara blinked. Mock Zetsu? Was calling him 'Aloe Vera' the trigger?
He looked at the reward. Hiding Like a Mole Technique. It was a low-level Earth Release jutsu that allowed the user to move underground. It was essentially a budget version of Zetsu's Mayfly technique.
"Not bad," Uehara smirked. "At least I got something out of the Aloe Vera."
He turned around and began walking back toward the tower where Konan was waiting. The path of a Mastermind was just beginning, and he had successfully made his first impression on the entity that thought it was manipulating the entire ninja world.
Little did Black Zetsu know, the one who would eventually uproot him was right here.