Actually, Obito was still surprised. Black Zetsu and Hiruko actually got together.
But once he thought of the Chimera Technique, he felt it made sense.
Hiruko, who possessed multiple Kekkei Genkai, wasn't exactly a small player.
Though his brain was a bit off.
"I originally planned to make him a replacement for Nagato, but unfortunately, he didn't take the bait. Right now, he's just a fairly useful tool."
"I didn't expect him to have such strong self-control, able to resist the temptation of the Rinnegan."
"I think he's just brainless."
When it came to this, Black Zetsu got a bit angry.
This was the Rinnegan, damn it.
The Rinnegan, known as the Sage's eye.
An eye that others desire but can't have, yet Hiruko still looks down on it.
"What about his strength? Someone you're interested in must have some decent power, right?"
"His strength is about average, just enough to barely be part of the Akatsuki's core members. Anyway, he's just a tool, so having a bit of self-defense ability is enough."
Obito guessed that Hiruko hadn't reached the strength shown in the light screen video yet; otherwise, Black Zetsu wouldn't have said this.
Based on the video, Hiruko definitely had the strength to be part of the Akatsuki's core.
The power of that Chimera Technique — there were few in the Ninja World who could withstand it.
But all of that didn't concern Obito.
His main goal was still to gain Black Zetsu's trust, and then find the location of White Zetsu's hiding place.
He couldn't be bothered with unnecessary matters.
"In order to avoid arousing suspicion from the people of Konoha, I need to head back now."
"You're leaving so soon?"
Looking at Obito, Black Zetsu asked with some doubt, "By the way, how did you get out? Would they really let you leave the village?"
"They obviously don't trust me, but I used the excuse of atoning for my sins, saying I needed to do missions and earn money to bring back those I killed. You know how hypocritical the people in Konoha are—once I said that, they had no reason to stop me from leaving."
Upon hearing this reason, Black Zetsu smiled with amusement, "I didn't expect you to be quite clever."
Black Zetsu: What an idiot, you're walking right into my trap.
Behind the mask, Obito chuckled and replied, "I've always been clever."
Obito: How about Madara's will? He's just a fool, tricked by me at every turn.
"After returning to Konoha, without revealing yourself, find out where the Rinnegan is placed."
"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing."
Since the five great ninja villages attacked the Akatsuki organization a while back, the ninja world had returned to its usual peace.
Obito had been making trips back and forth between Konoha and Zetsu.
To continue gaining Zetsu's trust, he occasionally fed some trivial information about Konoha that didn't matter much.
Black Zetsu, while somewhat satisfied with him, also felt some dissatisfaction.
This kind of scrap information holds no value for it.
But Obito already had a reason prepared for this.
With just one sentence, "I haven't earned their trust yet," Obito could shut Black Zetsu up.
Thinking from Black Zetsu's perspective, when facing Obito, a traitor, it wouldn't restore trust in him so quickly. It would definitely take some time to test him.
So, Obito continued doing missions and making money in Konoha while slowly earning Zetsu's trust.
Days passed like this, until a few days before the upcoming light screen video, Kakashi found the Fifth Hokage, Jiraiya.
"Hokage-sama, I feel that Hiruko has activated the puppet curse."
"Oh? It seems Hiruko has made good progress with Zetsu's help."
Obito had already told Jiraiya and the others about Hiruko's situation.
They had originally planned to wait until after watching this light screen video to find an opportunity to deal with Hiruko, but unexpectedly, this guy activated the puppet curse on his own.
Well, there's no time like the present, so they decided to deal with Hiruko right away.
"Should we give Hiruko a chance?"
During the pre-departure meeting, Minato raised a question.
It was a question Jiraiya had been pondering as well.
As a friend from his youth, Jiraiya didn't want Hiruko to walk down the wrong path. If he could be persuaded, Jiraiya still hoped to bring him back to Konoha.
But, based on his understanding of Hiruko, he knew that Hiruko wouldn't easily return to Konoha.
At the very least, he wanted Konoha to see his value, and only after Konoha's repeated invitations, temptations, and emotional appeals would he reluctantly return.
Did Konoha lack Hiruko's combat or research abilities?
To be honest, they didn't.
So, Konoha would never follow Hiruko's script.
Moreover, Hiruko's desire to merge Kakashi's Mangekyō Sharingan was unrealistic.
Whether it was Jiraiya or anyone else, they wouldn't let him succeed.
Thinking of this, Jiraiya waved his hand and said, "First, kill him once to make him see the current situation. After we return, we can bring him back with Edo Tensei and discuss the issue of returning to Konoha."
"Alright, I have no problem with that."
For the sake of caution, this time, the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, leads the team, consisting of Tsunade, Orochimaru, Sakumo Hatake, and Kakashi controlled by a puppet jutsu.
With this lineup, they could take on a nation-destroying battle.
Using it to deal with Hiruko was almost an appropriate match for his multiple Kekkei Genkai.
"I never thought Jiraiya would agree to let me join the mission. I'm really touched."
Orochimaru smiled with satisfaction, walking behind Kakashi.
It seemed he was quite pleased with Jiraiya allowing him to participate in the mission.
"You should know that idiot's personality. As long as you don't do anything that harms the village like you did in the past, he won't restrict your freedom," Tsunade replied.
Orochimaru nodded.
As for understanding Jiraiya, besides himself, Tsunade would be the next one who knew him best.
The three of them had grown up together, and after becoming ninjas, they worked in the same squad for many years. They were extremely familiar with each other.
"By the way, how are things between you and Jiraiya?"
"What do you mean by 'how'?"
"If you're going to put it that way, I'll go back and introduce a girlfriend to Jiraiya."
"Damn you, you filthy snake. When did you become such a gossiping old lady?"
Tsunade looked at Orochimaru with disdain, unwilling to answer the question.
But Orochimaru wasn't backing down. "So, what's really going on?"
Annoyed by his persistence, Tsunade helplessly replied, "It's like this. That guy has the heart but no courage. If he just confessed to me once, I would've accepted him, but he keeps pretending to be clueless in front of me and refuses to take that step. What an idiot."
Watching Tsunade swing her arms, striking at the air, Orochimaru nodded in agreement.
"Yeah, he's an idiot, but you're not any better. Both of you are over a hundred years old and still so childish."
"You half-human, half-snake, neither man nor woman freak, what's it to you?"
"I don't care about you, I just hope you won't regret it later."
"Regret what? I won't be the one to take that first step."
"Tch, sluts are always so dramatic."
"What did you say, you smelly snake? Come here and die!"
"You think I'm gonna stand still and let you hit me? You must be crazy."
"Sakumo-senpai, help me catch Orochimaru, we're having snake stew tonight."
"Damn, Tsunade, you can't play fair without calling for backup."
"I'm a woman, what do you expect? I can't play fair."
Watching the two bicker, Sakumo couldn't help but sigh, "These two really have a good relationship."
*********
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