Heshu jolted.
He frowned. "Who's there?"
Black Zetsu seeped out from beneath the stone slab. Its inky body clung to the surface.
"Black Zetsu?"
Heshu's brow furrowed deeper. "What are you doing here?"
Before Zetsu could answer, Heshu pressed on. "What did you mean by what you just said?"
Zetsu selectively ignored the first question. "My meaning was clear. The Rabbit Goddess, Kaguya-hime, truly exists."
Heshu's breath hitched. He stared at Zetsu, disbelief sharp in his eyes. "Do you know what you're saying? Do you have proof?"
Kaguya-hime, the Sage of Six Paths—these were legends. Myths. Who would believe they were real?
"I know exactly what I'm saying," Zetsu's voice was a low, eerie whisper in the confined space. "Kaguya-hime not only existed… she still lives."
"You're Madara's will," Heshu scoffed. "And you expect me to believe you?"
"Who said I was Madara's will?" Zetsu countered.
The question made Heshu's eyes widen. "What do you mean?"
"I heard everything you said. Your thoughts align with mine." Zetsu's voice grew urgent. "Kaguya-hime is the creator of this shinobi world, the progenitor of all chakra. Under her reign, the world knew peace. But her own son sealed her away! That act birthed the chaos, the endless wars that fester to this day!"
Zetsu was practically vibrating with suppressed rage. Heshu half-expected the next words to be 'That bastard Hagoromo deserves to die!'
"Why are you so… emotional?" Heshu's flat tone was a bucket of cold water.
Zetsu reeled itself in. It had held this fury, this secret, for too long. The outburst was a slip. But it wasn't worried. Heshu wouldn't talk. Zetsu held evidence of Heshu's own dissatisfaction with Madara and Obito. And in Madara's eyes, Zetsu was far more trustworthy than Heshu.
"You asked how I know all this?" Zetsu's form oozed to the top of the Uchiha stone slab, features twisting. "Because I am Kaguya-hime's child. I am the manifestation of her will!"
Its voice rose to a sharp pitch.
Heshu: "…"
Honestly, he'd always thought Zetsu was… unworthy.
"Then why claim to be Madara Uchiha's will?" Heshu asked.
Zetsu cooled. "My goal is to free Mother. To return this world to her rightful rule."
Heshu nodded calmly. "Speak plainly. I don't follow."
"…"
Zetsu paused.
"Mother is sealed within the moon. Only the God Tree and the Infinite Tsukuyomi can break that seal."
"Gather the Tailed Beasts. Cultivate the Ten-Tails. Hagoromo's chakra will act as the key."
"Mother will descend once more."
For the next while, Zetsu laid it all out. The history of a thousand years. The precise conditions for Kaguya's resurrection. It left no room for misunderstanding.
"So. You deceived Madara Uchiha and Obito Uchiha. You're using them to fulfill your own conditions," Heshu summarized.
"…"
Zetsu replied, "It is also their wish."
"…"
Heshu just looked at it. Old fox, he thought. Trying to play me? He knew Zetsu's nature all too well.
"You are correct."
Heshu broke the long silence.
Zetsu's eyes gleamed.
"Even if Madara creates his 'ideal world', protecting that newborn world is the crucial question. Kaguya-hime… is indeed the best answer." Heshu nodded, then his tone shifted. "But. You deceived Madara and Obito. How can I be sure you aren't deceiving me? What if you're just using my desire to free Kaguya to fulfill some private scheme of your own? What then?"
Heshu watched it, his gaze sharp with suspicion.
In all its long centuries, Zetsu had never had its devotion to Mother questioned.
"…"
It thought. It truly didn't have an answer.
"What do you suggest?" Zetsu threw the question back.
Heshu stroked his chin and sighed, the picture of helplessness. "I don't know. Regarding Kaguya-hime… aside from you, I have no one else I can trust."
The words struck Zetsu right in its lonely, ancient core. All these years, holding the secret alone, plotting for Mother… hadn't it also felt the weight? The isolation?
"Set your mind at ease." Zetsu's voice softened, tinged with the weariness of ages. "After scheming for so many years, why would I lie to you now?"
Ding! Affection level of target [Black Zetsu] has reached 70!
"True." Heshu nodded, his expression turning earnest. "Then tell me all the conditions for breaking Kaguya-hime's seal. In detail. I'll make the preparations. Relying on Obito alone won't be enough."
Ding! Affection level of target [Black Zetsu] has reached 80!
Zetsu regarded him solemnly. "When Mother descends, this world will be as you wish it."
Heshu smiled. "I hope so."
The alliance was sealed.
There, before the stone slab, Zetsu and Heshu dissected the shinobi world's history. Zetsu held nothing back—every crucial piece of intel, every secret it had hoarded for millennia. They shared a goal now. No need for reservations. The more Heshu knew, the better their partnership would function.
"I understand. Don't worry about the Nine-Tails. I'll handle the extraction when the time comes," Heshu laid out the plan. "Obito can manage the other beasts."
Zetsu agreed.
"If anything changes, come find me immediately," Heshu instructed.
"Agreed."
Ding! Affection level of target [Black Zetsu] has reached 85!
A final glance passed between them. Then, two figures vanished from the secret chamber.
On the street, Heshu looked up at the sky.
"It's late. Might as well go home."
He turned and walked away from the Hokage Building.
"Host, does Black Zetsu really believe you?" System asked. Its data logs flagged Zetsu as a profoundly treacherous entity.
"Hard to say," Heshu replied.
"Then why did it tell you everything?"
"Simple logic," Heshu chuckled. "What does it matter if I know all this?"
"W-What do you mean?"
"I mean, who would believe me? No one. They'd think I'd lost my mind. Besides, in Madara Uchiha's eyes, who is more trustworthy? Me, or the manifestation of his own will? It's obvious. As for Obito… he's replaceable at any time."
"So, telling me all this carries zero risk for Zetsu. And it gains a powerful ally. A win-win."
"But… it does indicate a preliminary level of trust. The rest depends on my actions."
Helping to gather the Tailed Beasts? That was already part of Heshu's original plan anyway. The real test would come during the Fourth War—his actions toward Madara Uchiha, and his choices at the critical moment.
"So… what did the Host gain?" System ventured cautiously.
Heshu laughed aloud. "I gained a great deal."
The path to the moon.
Insights into the Three Great Sage Regions.
All of it was vital intelligence.
The moment he stepped through his door, Heshu saw Naruto—who should have been at school.
"?"
He looked to Hanzō.
Hanzō was wiping Naruto's face with a towel. "He got into a fight at school."
"Huh?"
That shouldn't be right. Heshu frowned. "With whom?"
Naruto grinned, a bright, unrepentant thing. "Sasuke!"
Heshu: "…"
He shot Hanzō a look that screamed Are you serious?
A fight between Naruto and Sasuke wasn't a fight. It was foreplay.
"Is… is big sis angry?" Naruto asked, worry creeping in at Heshu's silence.
"No." Heshu shook his head. He ruffled Naruto's wild hair. "Just… don't fight with Sasuke anymore."
Naruto's eyes went round. "Why?"
Heshu sighed softly. "Because you'll regret it later."
Sasuke was already avoiding Naruto more and more. At this rate… things were not looking good. A wave of melancholy washed over Heshu.
Naruto scratched his head and turned to Hanzō. "What did big sis mean?"
Hanzō smothered Naruto's face with the towel. "Don't listen to grown-up talk."
"?"
Heshu, halfway to his room, paused. What is Hanzō thinking about all day?
Come to think of it… he hadn't seen the Third Hokage dropping by lately. He'd ask at the office tomorrow.
The next day.
Nara Sōsai had the answer.
"Oh, the Third? He, along with Councilors Koharu and Homura, have gone on a… business trip." Sōsai didn't even look up from his paperwork.
"Wait, wait, wait." Heshu couldn't process it. "Say that again?"
"A business trip." Sōsai clarified, tone perfectly flat. "The Third went to the Land of Water. Said the beautiful women there were… ah, I mean, that the business market was very promising. Councilor Koharu went to the Land of Wind. Councilor Homura to the Land of Lightning."
Heshu pressed his lips together.
Alright then.
His thinking was outdated. The Third and his generation were the true pioneers, riding the crest of the new era.
As for Danzō… Heshu didn't even need to ask. Danzō was probably crisscrossing every nation, building his own commercial empire.
Time passed.
Just before winter's first chill truly set in, Nara Sōsai led Heshu to meet a man he never expected to see again.
In the dense forest outside Konoha's walls—the very place where Heshu had once let Orochimaru go—he now stood face-to-face with the Sannin's return.
"Heshu. No—I should address you as Hokage-sama now." Orochimaru had shed the Akatsuki cloak. He wore loose, flowing robes that somehow managed to look both elegant and provocative.
"Orochimaru?" Heshu feigned surprise, though Sōsai's efficiency hadn't shocked him.
"Was it not you who required my… services?" Orochimaru's voice was a silky purr, matching his new attire.
Heshu resisted the urge to roll his eyes.
"This village needs you, Orochimaru. We face an enemy of unprecedented strength. We need your power." Heshu's tone was utterly sincere. "You won't have to involve yourself in the fighting. Focus solely on your research. I may have one… direction of inquiry for you. The rest of the time, your studies are your own."
Orochimaru let out a soft, derisive laugh.
"Is that so?"
His golden eyes locked onto Heshu's.
"Then hand over Itachi Uchiha to me first."
Heshu: "…"
Snake Uncle, must you be like this?
Nara Sōsai, unable to withstand the sheer audacity radiating from the conversation, offered a hasty bow and retreated from the verbal battlefield, ignoring Heshu's silent plea for backup.
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