Chapter 140: Is That Your Line?
"What happened to him? Is he dead?"
Tobirama crossed his arms, frowning.
"Not sure," Shiromo shook his head.
Black Zetsu's original body has an extremely resilient vitality.
We're not talking about living for a thousand years or more; even if attacked, he could split apart and escape underground in seconds.
But just now, Black Zetsu said his 'consciousness' had been erased.
That's strange.
Like White Zetsu, Black Zetsu is a soulless construct.
If his consciousness is erased, it isn't the soul being attacked, it means the very essence of his body has undergone a change.
Shiromo considered the possibility: maybe Black Zetsu was putting on a show, like he did when fooling Uchiha Madara.
But then again… what would be the point of acting now?
Had he realized he couldn't revive Kaguya and wanted to prepare to switch to the original plan, performing a "fake death" ruse to disappear into the shadows?
Shiromo had already thought of another plan.
Even if that were the case, Black Zetsu should at least wait until he finished explaining before "dying."
Being interrupted like this, what now?
"Not sure, but that's easy. Uchiha Hikari, you go. Use Amaterasu and see if it can completely burn this thing."
Tobirama suggested directly: "Big brother, you use Wood Release to push it out of the ground, don't give it a chance to escape."
This suggestion was on par with the original story's Infinite Tsukuyomi scenario, after the Infinite Tsukuyomi, Tobirama wanted to use Impure World Reincarnation on Madara's lower body to see if he was alive.
Hashirama stopped him, saying Impure World Reincarnation required a sacrifice.
Tobirama's attitude was basically: isn't there already a sacrifice in the Infinite Tsukuyomi tree?
"Wait, he's supposed to be one of our allies! How can you just do this to him?"
Kushina was confused by Tobirama's suddenly aggressive command.
She had just been thinking how touching this mother-son relationship was, even if the son might not be fully human, and she wasn't even sure if he was a son or daughter.
The point was, it was moving.
And now Tobirama wanted to burn him alive?
"If Black Zetsu is already dead, then this is cremation. If he's not dead, it means he's plotting something, then we send him to his end."
Tobirama glanced at Kushina. Out of respect for the Uzumaki clan, he offered an explanation.
"No, Tobirama… he's here to revive Kaguya, right? Then doesn't that mean he might be a key to her revival…"
Hashirama raised his hand to stop him.
"Big brother!"
Tobirama sighed inwardly.
Big brother's intelligence always spikes at the most inconvenient moments.
Of course, he also recognized that Black Zetsu might be a key to reviving Kaguya.
But Black Zetsu might also be relying on them figuring that out to avoid having his body destroyed, achieving a fake-death escape.
Better to destroy him outright.
As for reviving Kaguya?
It's less about "revival" and more about unsealing, figure that out later.
But Big Brother, of course, had to state it outright.
"Big brother, step aside. Uchiha Hikari, aren't you going?"
Tobirama grew impatient. Why leave a potential threat alive when it could be eliminated?
"Not… you foolish old Senju, when did you get the illusion that you could command me?"
Uchiha Hikari rolled his eyes at Tobirama and shifted his gaze to Shiromo.
"No need."
Shiromo shook his head, signaling that Hikari didn't need to attack.
At the moment Tobirama said, "Step aside, big brother," Hashirama had moved in front of Black Zetsu, fully blocking him from Hikari's Amaterasu gaze.
It was then that the stiff, immobile Black Zetsu moved.
Shiromo, observing from the side, saw Black Zetsu raise a hand and touch Hashirama's back.
Was he attempting possession or control?
That didn't make sense. How could Black Zetsu possibly have the confidence to possess Hashirama?
Shiromo quickly checked the tombstone, looking into the future.
[Hagoromo? No… Asura's…]
?
Wait… is that 'your line', Black Zetsu?
Then, recalling all of Black Zetsu's expressions and actions from "after death"…
In 0.01 seconds, Shiromo made a decision.
Snap.
Shiromo appeared behind Black Zetsu, grabbed him by the head, yanked him from the ground, and locked his throat and mouth, completely restricting him.
"Ah?"
Uchiha Hikari's face showed surprise.
"You told me not to attack!"
Why did he suddenly attack on his own?
Meanwhile, the Senju brothers, in the middle of their argument, were drawn to Shiromo's sudden action.
"Shiromo, what are you doing?"
"Black Zetsu just tried to reach out and touch the First Hokage," Shiromo explained.
"I see… Well done! Didn't expect this guy to crack so quickly, showing his hand so fast!" Tobirama praised.
Then he looked at Hashirama: "Big brother, see? I told you there was something off! And you still didn't believe me?"
"…This…"
Hashirama frowned, glancing at the restrained Black Zetsu. He couldn't judge immediately.
"It might not actually be a conspiracy," Shiromo interjected, surprising Tobirama.
He continued: "Black Zetsu's consciousness dissipated, but his existence has only one goal: reviving Kaguya. That's his instinct."
"The powers of the reincarnations of Asura and Indra combine to obtain the Rinnegan, that's one of the conditions in his original plan. That's why he reached toward the First Hokage."
"Black Zetsu's situation can be understood as a full reset… his entire existence has been reformatted."
"His memory may still be accessible, but his personality has completely vanished."
"A new personality might emerge, or he might simply become a humanoid tool."
"Here's the deal, new Black Zetsu, listen carefully. Even though this revival of Kaguya failed, I already have a new plan."
"I'm telling everyone here and you the plan. From today onward, you must obey orders. Do you understand?"
Shiromo addressed the restrained Black Zetsu.
At first, Black Zetsu struggled a little, but soon went completely still again.
After hearing Shiromo, Black Zetsu blankly nodded.
Shiromo released him.
Black Zetsu stood there dazed, eyes scanning everyone present.
Then he lifted his gaze to the Gedō Mazō.
By now, the Gedō Mazō had stabilized, no longer twitching.
Shiromo thought: maybe the previous twitching of the Gedō Mazō was because Black Zetsu tried to summon someone's will, failed to revive them, and the Gedō Mazō rejected it?
If that's why Black Zetsu's consciousness disappeared, it makes sense.
"This failure, I think, has one critical reason: the difference between tailed-beast chakra and dragon-vein chakra."
"So I have an idea, convert this chakra into tailed-beast chakra."
Shiromo began to explain.
(End of this chapter)