Fumori masaki still doesn't have a definite time for when to completely turn against the Daimyo. This matter indeed needs careful consideration. If it's too early, it might not achieve the desired goal. If it's too late, other unforeseen circumstances might arise, causing additional trouble.
Fumori masaki was not entirely in favor of Shimura Danzo resolving Tobi as quickly as possible. Although it was just his intuition, he believed that Tobi wouldn't be so easy to deal with. However, this wasn't the main reason. The real reason was that attacking so early would definitely not allow them to seize the Daimyo's power. This mistake alone wasn't enough for the Daimyo to lose his authority.
Therefore, the timing would certainly be pushed back. As for what kind of timing to choose, Fumori masaki would have to observe the situation. The only thing to ensure was that their side was the proactive one. If the other party made the first move, the people remaining in the capital would be in great danger.
Of course, all of this was predicated on Shimura Danzo's deductions being true and that he could indeed obtain evidence. Fumori masaki attached great importance to this matter. Although the Aerial Combat Unit was responsible for the mission and was instructed to pay attention to collecting evidence at the scene, he would also send the Anbu to assist.
Minato Namikaze learned the basic situation of the mission from Fumori masaki and nodded slightly, saying, "Alright. I'll go back and discuss this with everyone. When will the official order be issued?"
"Soon, it should be issued tomorrow or the day after. You all need to be prepared by then," Fumori masaki said.
"Yes, we won't let you down, Sensei Kazama," Minato Namikaze said solemnly.
"Good, perform well." Fumori masaki smiled and patted Minato Namikaze's shoulder. "Alright, head to the training grounds. The others must be getting impatient."
Minato Namikaze bid farewell to Fumori masaki and immediately rushed towards the training grounds. After watching Minato Namikaze's figure depart, Fumori masaki also dispelled his shadow clone and vanished from the spot.
Meanwhile, Fumori masaki, who was in the Hokage's office, immediately received the shadow clone's memories. He quietly savored them for a moment, surprised by Minato Namikaze's current growth. He truly was an excellent young man.
"Sensei Kazama, what's wrong?" Kakashi Hatake, who was reporting his work to Fumori masaki, paused slightly when he saw Fumori masaki's actions and couldn't help but ask.
"Just a routine mission. Your junior disciple is growing so fast now," Fumori masaki smiled.
Kakashi Hatake immediately understood that Minato Namikaze's training had ended. He knew that his sensei's shadow clone was accompanying Minato Namikaze in training. Naturally, Kakashi Hatake was quite concerned about this newly initiated junior disciple. Moreover, he wasn't someone unrelated; he was said to be good friends with Kushina.
"It's because Sensei has a keen eye and found such a good talent," Kakashi Hatake said. He knew from Hattori Heizo that it was Fumori masaki who first asked Hattori Heizo to pay attention to Minato Namikaze. In other words, Fumori masaki had noticed Minato Namikaze's talent early on, and the intention to take him as a student was probably a later decision.
"Well, no matter what, he should become an important member of the ninja village in the future. No matter what positions you all reach, you must cooperate well. If you have anything to say, you can talk it out and discuss solutions, understand?" Fumori masaki said.
"Yes." Kakashi Hatake understood what Fumori masaki was referring to. As a Hokage's student, he would be qualified to compete for the position of Hokage in the future. It wasn't about having innate privileges or anything; it was just that studying under the Hokage generally meant having strong abilities and a strong network. Whether it was achievements, capabilities, or background, it was all justifiable, at least enough to secure a Hokage candidate position.
Although Kakashi Hatake himself had no such ambitions yet, many people around him already regarded him as the Hokage's successor. After all, among Fumori masaki's three students, Hattori Heizo served in the Anbu for many years, his achievements were unknown, and people had little impression of him. Tsunade was not renowned for her combat prowess—although Tsunade's strength was also very formidable, and there would be no major problems for her to serve as Hokage. Therefore, in everyone's eyes, the powerful and good-natured Kakashi Hatake was very suitable to become Hokage.
But Kakashi Hatake himself was very hesitant. He wasn't sure if he was truly suitable to be Hokage. He had studied under Fumori masaki for a long time and greatly admired Fumori masaki's decisions and foresight in the daily management of the ninja village. However, this also made him doubt if he could achieve the same.
Kakashi Hatake had some involvement in administrative matters, and his level was decent, but whether it met the requirements of a Hokage was uncertain.
However, Sensei Kazama was still very young, and his physical condition was much better than others his age. He could at least remain in the Hokage position for another twenty years. Kakashi Hatake felt that he could slowly learn in the future and then decide whether to compete for the Hokage position.
No matter who became Hokage, the others could willingly assist in managing the ninja village. This was Fumori masaki's hope. He didn't want his students to end up in a confrontational situation like Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzo Shimura in the original timeline because of the Hokage position.
Kakashi Hatake himself could guarantee that if someone else became Hokage, he would definitely cooperate well with them. They were all from the same school, all people they knew. What was there to be jealous of? According to Sensei Kazama's judgment, the person chosen would definitely be the most suitable to become Hokage; there was nothing to be dissatisfied with.
He also knew that Hattori Heizo and Tsunade were not highly power-hungry individuals. If they became Hokage, they would naturally take on the responsibilities of a Hokage. If they didn't, they wouldn't feel there was any problem.
As for Minato Namikaze, although Kakashi Hatake hadn't been his fellow disciple for too long, unlike Tsunade and Hattori Heizo who knew each other inside out, he felt that Minato Namikaze was also a person of excellent character and should not pose any problems. Moreover, Minato Namikaze was chosen by Sensei, who surely took his character into consideration.
"Continue your report," Fumori masaki nodded slightly to Kakashi Hatake.
Kakashi Hatake's main responsibility currently was some missions in the capital. He had volunteered for this, as performing missions in this area would likely provide more news about Asuna. Moreover, if any trouble arose, he could carry out relevant missions immediately to help Asuna.
Fumori masaki was well aware of Kakashi Hatake's thoughts and was very pleased. He allowed Kakashi Hatake to take charge, which to some extent was also a form of training for Hokage's work. A Hokage doesn't necessarily need to know everything or understand all the operational details, but they must be knowledgeable, able to choose the right people to handle tasks, or not be deceived by their subordinates.
Just as Kakashi Hatake was reporting his work to Fumori masaki, a person quietly left the capital. He was familiar with the capital's defenses and, relying on his own skills, easily avoided everyone's sight, then arrived at a forest not far from the capital.
If anyone from the Daimyo's mansion saw him, they would surely recognize him. This was the Daimyo's favored minister, the mysterious man named Tobi, the captain of the Twelve Guardian Ninja. Currently, no one else knew that this person's true identity was one of those who had supposedly "died" in the ambush on Uchiha Kagami—Uchiha Kureha.
In fact, this person wasn't even the real Uchiha Kureha. Although the body was Uchiha Kureha's, a strange soul resided within it. However, in his own perception, he was Uchiha Kureha.
Uchiha Kureha waited for a while, then saw a slight bulge in front of him, and immediately a black-robed figure emerged. It was covered in a black robe, and its interior was also pitch black, with only two yellow dots seemingly proving they were its eyes.
"Long time no see, Lord Kureha," Black Zetsu said.
"Ah, it's really been a long time since I heard that name. In the Daimyo's mansion, everyone calls me Tobi," Uchiha Kureha rubbed his head and took off his mask. The face behind the mask appeared somewhat pale, and his eyes were blood-red Sharingan.
"Your stealth technique is still impeccable. Even now, I didn't sense your presence before you emerged," Uchiha Kureha looked at Black Zetsu and said.
"That's just my only skill; my other abilities are insignificant," Black Zetsu stared at Uchiha Kureha, feeling Uchiha Kureha's aura become even more profound. For some reason, having lived for thousands of years, it felt a hint of dread towards such an Uchiha Kureha, a feeling it hadn't experienced even when facing Uchiha Madara.
The soul within Uchiha Kureha was personally found by Black Zetsu. At that time, it was merely placed into Uchiha Kureha's body to test it out. However, the strangeness of this life from the Underworld was beyond Black Zetsu's comprehension, as Black Zetsu had never been to the world of the Underworld.
Over the years, Uchiha Kureha secretly supported the Jashin faith and had Black Zetsu help manage it. In addition to passing on his specially made secret medicine to those people, he also modified their sacrificial methods, developing a special jutsu. All offerings dedicated to Jashin, their souls would go to Uchiha Kureha.
Black Zetsu led the Jashin cultists, developing the faith while having them hunt down powerful individuals on wanted lists for sacrifices. These were all things Uchiha Kureha needed. Uchiha Kureha's special ability was to absorb human souls and convert them into his own chakra.
Even the well-informed Black Zetsu had never seen such a dark art before. The souls plundered by Uchiha Kureha would likely never find peace, unable even to reach the Pure Land.
And now, Uchiha Kureha's aura had clearly grown stronger. Given time, he might even reach the same level as Uchiha Madara. If he continued to hunt like this, he might become even stronger.
Although Black Zetsu somewhat suspected there might be an upper limit to this power increase, like when Uchiha Kureha's power increase hit a bottleneck at the end of the Second Great Ninja War, he now seemed to have found a way to break through it.
"How are things on your end?" Uchiha Kureha asked.
"Not good. We've been targeted by the Konoha ninja village. Those guys were too impulsive last time, causing us to be exposed to the Konoha ninja village," Black Zetsu was referring to the Jashin cultists who attacked Fumori masaki and Uchiha Kagami at the time. Even now, it considered those guys idiots.
"Well, it was bound to happen sooner or later," Uchiha Kureha said indifferently. "Perhaps the Konoha ninja village is planning to wipe them out now."
"It's too late to move now. Konoha ninja village's Anbu should have their location pinned down," Black Zetsu said.
"It doesn't matter. Let the Konoha ninja village wipe them out. Their usefulness is pretty much over," Uchiha Kureha said indifferently. His original purpose in re-establishing the Jashin faith was to have them transfer the sacrificed souls to him to increase his power. Now, relying on this lukewarm sacrifice was no longer enough to boost his power. He needed to arrange something bigger.
"What are you planning to do next?" Black Zetsu asked.
"Next? Of course, to plunder more souls. To defeat those powerful ninjas in the Konoha ninja village, my current strength is not enough." Uchiha Kureha's eyes glowed with a bloody light. "I want to instigate a larger-scale battle. Only then can my strength increase again."
"You mean, provoke a war?" Black Zetsu was somewhat surprised.
"Yes." Uchiha Kureha nodded slightly. "No matter what kind of war it is, as long as a large number of lives die, it can help me. Of course, it must be those samurai I personally trained."
Black Zetsu pondered for a moment. From the Jashin cultists' behavior, it already suspected that Uchiha Kureha had certain methods to have the souls killed by others transferred to him. Perhaps that secret medicine was the key, or perhaps there were other things. Regardless, the chakra samurai cultivated by Uchiha Kureha were tools for him to collect souls.
Whether to start a war or not, Black Zetsu itself was indifferent. It never cared about human lives. It only cared about one thing: bringing the Rinnegan back into the world. Only the Rinnegan could control the Gedo Mazo, seize the Tailed Beast's chakra, revive the Ten-Tails, and ultimately fulfill its wish—to free its mother, Kaguya Otsutsuki, from her seal.
Black Zetsu then asked about the progress within the capital. In addition to sowing discord between the Daimyo and Konoha, Uchiha Kureha was also trying to incite Uchiha Ken. However, Uchiha Kureha stated that the guy was impervious to persuasion and extremely difficult to fool.
"Alas, times have changed," Black Zetsu sighed inwardly. If it were during the Warring States period, deceiving the Uchiha clan would not have been so troublesome. After all, the deeper the power of the Sharingan, the more arrogant one became.
"I'm getting a bit annoyed now. I don't want to talk anymore," Uchiha Kureha said at this point. When trying to persuade Uchiha Ken and Fujimura Yuuki, he couldn't gain their trust. Now, for some reason, Uchiha Kureha's temperament had become increasingly irritable, and he was already fed up with this matter.
"No, that won't do. If you don't gather the power of all creation and evolve the Rinnegan, you won't be able to achieve your goal," Black Zetsu was slightly startled.
"The important thing is just the Rinnegan, right? And what the Rinnegan needs is the power of Indra and Ashura. Those two are just mediums," Uchiha Kureha's tone seemed to have lost its reverence for Indra's reincarnation. In the past, he had regarded Uchiha Ken as Madara's reincarnation and respected him, but now it was no longer the case.
"What do you mean?" Black Zetsu had a bad premonition.
"As long as the powers of Indra and Ashura are concentrated, then why can't they be concentrated within me? With my current power, it's not impossible to use the Rinnegan freely," Uchiha Kureha slowly clenched his fist and said.
"This..." Black Zetsu was momentarily speechless. Theoretically, it was true. The key was to gather the powers of Indra and Ashura to summon Hagoromo's chakra. Only Hagoromo's chakra could stimulate the ocular nerves and evolve into the Rinnegan. However, the power of the Rinnegan was extremely strong, and not everyone could control it.
However, Uchiha Kureha's current power was indeed very strong. Because of the abnormality of his inner soul, it seemed that even his body had changed. Black Zetsu didn't know if Uchiha Kureha could withstand the power of the Rinnegan.
However, even if Black Zetsu felt it was not good, Uchiha Kureha probably wouldn't listen, because its position was merely that of an obedient subordinate. The real boss was Uchiha Kureha, and the boss didn't need to listen to the subordinate. Moreover, the current Uchiha Kureha seemed to be somewhat mentally unstable.
But if Uchiha Kureha could truly withstand the power of the Rinnegan, then it seemed easier to let Uchiha Kureha gather the powers of Indra and Ashura. After all, the current reincarnations were not easy to deceive. Even if Uchiha Kureha failed, they could always find someone else. The important thing was that the Rinnegan had appeared!