Before the Gedo Statue, now with seven and a half eyes open and emanating an overwhelming aura even while sealed with chains, Gensou handed Sasuke a scroll.
"Naruto's body is inside. It's up to you to handle it."
Sasuke's hand trembled slightly as he took the scroll.
Gensou offered no further explanation, and Sasuke asked no questions. After bowing respectfully, Sasuke turned and left.
Watching Sasuke's retreating figure, Gensou's expression remained calm.
There was no need to mention that it was the Great Toad Sage who had killed Naruto.
Sasuke, while obstinate when it came to Itachi, was otherwise a rational person.
To extract the Tailed Beast from his body, Naruto had to be alive.
For Naruto to have died, the cause could not have been suicide—his personality wouldn't allow it. Nor could it have been an accident at Gensou's hands, given Naruto's extraordinary resilience.
It was someone else's doing.
Who it was no longer mattered.
With Gensou present at the scene, that person's fate had been sealed.
Gensou turned his focus back to the Gedo Statue.
Sasuke, though not explicitly declared his student, was widely regarded as such. Given Sasuke's bond with Naruto and Gensou's neutral opinion of Naruto, he had brought Naruto's body back not to desecrate it but to offer a final resolution.
He had no interest in what might unfold between the living Sasuke and the deceased Naruto.
Turning his attention to the Gedo Statue, Gensou evaluated the changes.
Compared to their first meeting, the statue—now housing seven and a half Tailed Beasts—was exponentially stronger in both power and presence.
Yet, to Gensou, it still failed to stir any emotion.
"Only the Two-Tails remains," Gensou murmured, his eyes narrowing as they fixed on the statue's single unopened eye.
Obito... the Great Toad Sage...
One had taken the Two-Tails' Jinchuriki, while the other had slain the Nine-Tails' host.
Both had disrupted his plans for a perfect Ten-Tails.
Had everything gone according to plan, the Gedo Statue would now have absorbed all nine Tailed Beasts, allowing him to become the complete Ten-Tails' Jinchuriki. He could have activated the Rinne Sharingan and cast Infinite Tsukuyomi before the shinobi world had time to react.
But now...
Even with the Two-Tails reclaimed, the lack of half of the Nine-Tails' chakra meant Gensou would have to rely on the power of the God Tree. Whether by letting the tree blossom on its own or absorbing its energy to awaken the Rinne Sharingan, as Madara had done, it would take time.
Additionally, there was one critical location he needed to visit to fully utilize the God Tree's power—the very site where the Ōtsutsuki clan had planted the original God Tree millennia ago.
Gensou reflected on the events of the original timeline.
By rights, Obito, having gathered the chakra of the Tailed Beasts, including a fragment from the Eight-Tails and Nine-Tails, could have retreated to a secluded area, become the incomplete Ten-Tails' Jinchuriki, and summoned the God Tree to cast Infinite Tsukuyomi.
The entire process would've taken only fifteen minutes—too short for the Allied Shinobi Forces to react.
Why had Obito chosen instead to confront them directly?
It wasn't until Gensou acquired the Gedo Statue and began enacting the Moon Eye Plan himself that he understood.
In the absence of complete Ten-Tails' power, neither Gensou, Obito, nor Madara could awaken the Rinne Sharingan without the true God Tree's power.
The so-called power of the God Tree referred not only to the Ten-Tails transformed from it but also to the original tree itself.
While Kaguya had consumed its chakra fruit and the tree had transformed into the Ten-Tails, its roots remained intertwined across the planet.
Obito had released the Ten-Tails to reconnect it with the God Tree's roots at the site of its original planting.
This connection allowed the tree to blossom far faster than it would have otherwise.
Without this power, even with all the Tailed Beasts gathered, the process would have taken days.
To avoid a prolonged battle, Gensou, too, would need to visit the God Tree's remains after reclaiming the Two-Tails.
"Obito..."
Gensou retrieved a container holding Obito's Mangekyō Sharingan.
"If you want to come, then come."
Rain poured from the heavens, soaking the masked figure of Obito, who gazed silently upward.
"Obito," Black Zetsu emerged from the ground nearby.
"Good news. Hagoromo Gensou has agreed to meet you at the Gedo Statue."
Obito's head dropped slightly, his eyes flashing with determination.
"Finally," he muttered.
Black Zetsu shared the sentiment, adding, "Indeed. I hear he's already captured the One-Tail, Eight-Tails, and Nine-Tails. His efficiency far surpasses ours."
After a millennium of scheming to birth the Rinnegan and reach this point, Black Zetsu felt the end was within grasp.
With Gensou holding eight Tailed Beasts—leaving only uncertainty about the Nine-Tails—Kaguya's resurrection had never been closer.
But now, caution was paramount.
Having endured countless failures over the centuries, Black Zetsu understood the importance of patience.
Thus, he was willing to indulge Obito one last time, using this meeting as an opportunity to test Gensou further.
Deep down, Zetsu hesitated.
Should he entrust the Moon Eye Plan to the capable yet enigmatic Gensou or to the more predictable Obito—or perhaps even Madara?
Everything hinged on the drama about to unfold.
(End of Chapter)
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