"Game? Bet?"
Madara Uchiha laughed as if he had heard something amusing, then gradually grew serious as he stared at Byakuya, "What kind of game and bet are you talking about? Tell me."
Byakuya spoke calmly, "My bet is simple. I wager that even if you complete Infinite Tsukuyomi, you will not achieve the deepest wish in your heart. I am also very curious why the former Shura, who once dominated the shinobi world, would believe in such an illusory Eye of the Moon Plan."
Byakuya's words didn't have much impact on Madara.
The Ninja Allied Forces and Obito's group regarded this as normal psychological warfare, a common tactic in shinobi battles to affect the opponent's performance.
But for Black Zetsu, this had an entirely different meaning.
As the originator of the Eye of the Moon Plan, Black Zetsu knew well that Infinite Tsukuyomi was a jutsu for resurrecting his mother, incapable of fulfilling Madara's ideal of making everyone happy.
Could Byakuya really know something?
But then Black Zetsu dismissed his concerns.
He nearly forgot that at their first encounter, he told Byakuya that Infinite Tsukuyomi was a fraud, and Byakuya never intended to actually initiate it, but instead planned to use the power of the Ten-Tails to unify the shinobi world.
Byakuya's disguise over the years had been so perfect that Black Zetsu almost forgot their original agreement.
After hearing Byakuya's words, Madara scoffed, "You doubt the Eye of the Moon Plan? Even if it has false parts, what does it have to do with you? I, Madara Uchiha, do not need to explain myself to anyone. Instead of jabbering, why not think about how to defeat me?"
Seeing Madara refuse to listen, Byakuya sighed lightly and said, "Since you won't listen to my advice, the Allied Forces will have no choice but to face you in battle. But we have too many ninjas under our command. If we exhaust them in war, it would be a huge loss for the entire shinobi world."
Madara asked with interest, "What do you plan to do?"
Byakuya cleared his throat and continued, "Have you heard of the Chūnin Exams, Madara Uchiha? I intend to hold a competition here, with each side sending ninja to fight on a stage. Whichever side's ninja emerges victorious will be considered the winner.
If the Allied Forces lose, I will hand over all the jinchūriki. If you lose, please return to the Pure Land and stop interfering in the shinobi world. This way, we avoid a devastating internal war and still achieve our respective goals."
Byakuya's words caused an uproar across the wasteland, from the Five Kage to ordinary Chūnin, everyone discussed heatedly.
Fourth Raikage angrily said, "What is that Byakuya guy trying to do? This is a shinobi war, not a Chūnin exam. Having us fight like exam candidates is humiliating."
"And if we lose, we have to hand over Killer Bee, Naruto, and the others!"
Ōnoki frowned, thinking carefully before explaining, "Raikage, don't be so impulsive. Haven't you noticed that Byakuya is stalling for time, waiting for his true body to return? Besides, if we really fought, who knows how many would die."
After Ōnoki's explanation, the Fourth Raikage's expression softened, but he still looked resentful. As the Fourth Raikage, he had never encountered such humiliation.
Tsunade stepped in to comfort him, "Raikage, you don't understand Byakuya well enough. Even if we really lose, Byakuya definitely won't hand over Naruto and the others. Knowing his ruthlessness, he'll handle Killer Bee and Naruto himself…"
Tsunade's words seemed to have little effect; the Fourth Raikage's face only darkened.
However, he knew his role; he was the Raikage of the Hidden Cloud and had to live up to that position.
Among the crowd, after hearing Byakuya, Might Guy looked at Kakashi, "Kakashi, are you going to participate in the tournament? I think Byakuya's idea is quite good. It can minimize casualties on our side."
Kakashi frowned and fixed his gaze on Byakuya and Tobi.
If the war could be resolved peacefully, that would be best. But he knew there were many tangled connections between Byakuya and Madara.
If the tournament really began, all previous shinobi wars would become a joke.
What did Byakuya and Madara really treat war as? A game to toy with, gambling with lives and the future of the shinobi world?
And what role did Obito play in all this?
Thinking of this, Kakashi glanced at the masked man, his gaze sharp and focused.
Following Kakashi's line of sight, Might Guy also looked at the masked man and asked puzzled, "Kakashi, do you know who that masked man really is? You seem to know him."
Kakashi was silent for a few seconds before nodding, "I have some suspicions about his identity, but that person is already dead, and I can't figure out why he became the masked man."
Might Guy scratched his head, not quite understanding Kakashi but didn't ask further.
They were eternal friends and rivals. Kakashi not telling him about the masked man's true identity was probably due to timing; all he needed was to firmly stand by Kakashi's side.
Sensing their gaze, Obito glanced toward them briefly then looked away, pretending nothing was wrong but feeling somewhat uneasy inside.
Could they have noticed something?
It made him feel better to remember that one of his Kamui eyes was still with Kakashi. At such close range, the Sharingan would inevitably resonate.
As for Might Guy, he was just a hot-blooded fool, not worth worrying about.
Turning his attention to Byakuya and Madara not far away, those were his real concerns.
Madara was his nominal superior, and they both aimed to realize the Eye of the Moon Plan. But since Byakuya and Madara started negotiating behind his back, deciding to hold a tournament during the shinobi war was probably part of their secret plans.
Was it just to divert the Five Great Shinobi Nations' attention and secretly revive the Ten-Tails? Was all that really necessary?
While observing Byakuya and Madara, Itachi Uchiha silently watched the masked man too.
After all these years together, he had some vague suspicions about the masked man's identity. He had once suspected the masked man was Madara, but the real Madara stood before him now and revealed the Eye of the Moon Plan inscribed on the stone monument.
As long as the Ten-Tails can be revived, its power can be used to project the Infinite Tsukuyomi across the entire shinobi world, using the moon as a medium, so that everyone will live their entire lives in a beautiful dream.
Itachi Uchiha naturally sneered at Madara Uchiha's claim.
His own genjutsu, Tsukuyomi, could achieve a similar effect to the Infinite Tsukuyomi, allowing ordinary shinobi to spend their entire lives trapped in an illusion. But such an illusion was meaningless.
Being lost in a beautiful illusion would only cause the development of the shinobi world to stagnate.
This was no different from killing everyone in the shinobi world to stop the wars, the only difference being one was instantaneous death, the other was slow, lingering death.
Although he did not agree with Madara's ideology, Itachi did not immediately flee either.
Instead, he stayed close to Madara and the Masked Man, gathering as much information as possible and planning to deliver a heavy blow to them at a critical moment.
Unfortunately, as time passed and more information was gathered, he increasingly realized that the organization behind the Masked Man was an opponent that would be extremely difficult to defeat.
His Totsuka Blade might be able to seal the Edo Tensei (Reanimation) state of Madara Uchiha, but it was absolutely insufficient against the other enemies.
Moreover, he vaguely sensed that behind Madara was an even more terrifying mastermind lurking in the shadows.
Under these circumstances, he could only continue to lie low.
After some discussion, everyone's attention returned to Byakuya and Madara Uchiha. Changing the war into a competition was a proposal that only Madara could decide.
Under everyone's gaze, Madara's lips curved into a smile as he loudly declared, "Deciding the fate of the Jinchuriki through a competition, you are bold, but I do not dislike this decision. Let these so-called Five Kage entertain us fully."
From Madara's words, it seemed he never regarded anyone besides Byakuya as a worthy opponent.
Even knowing this, the Allied Shinobi Forces dared not express their anger; they understood Madara truly had the right to look down on everything.
If Byakuya had also reached such a level, this shinobi world war would be nothing but a one-sided massacre.
At this moment, Madara seemed to remember something and said to Byakuya, "Since this is a competition, naturally, there must be a competition arena. Let us both create the battlefield."
With that, Madara soared into the sky and projected his Susanoo.
Unlike previous times, this Susanoo was over a hundred meters tall.
Then, Susanoo drew its sword and fiercely slashed toward the distant mountain range.
In an instant, a crescent-shaped sword energy formed and cut many mountain peaks in half. When the mountain peaks collapsed, kicking up endless dust, their mirror-smooth surfaces naturally formed a giant arena.
This spectacle was seen by the Five Kage and all the shinobi present. To them, Madara's way of creating the arena was nothing short of miraculous craftsmanship.
They finally understood why the shinobi world had maintained peace during the era when Madara and Senju Hashirama were still active.
Against such an enemy, they simply had no chance of winning. Even if they were lucky enough to wound Madara, it would be like a mayfly trying to shake a tree.
Madara, if he wished, could slaughter the Allied Shinobi Forces at any time.
"The arena is too high; how can it be without bridges?"
Byakuya flashed through the mountains and then used Wood Release to create giant vines, building bridges connecting the mountains, along with spectator stands and resting houses on top.
Byakuya's effort restored much of the Allied Shinobi Forces' morale. Meanwhile, Obito's mood was complicated.
He had previously thought he was no match for Byakuya's real body, but now that Byakuya here was only a wooden clone, he felt he couldn't even defeat this clone.
How was he supposed to strike Byakuya next?
Obito fell into deep thought, feeling that he might never find such an opportunity again.
---
Once the arena was completed, it was time to register participants.
Elite Jonin from each village began to announce their participation, and soon the registration area was packed.
Seeing this, the Five Kage smiled confidently.
In terms of numbers, the Allied Shinobi Forces clearly had the advantage.
The Jonin elite of the Five Great Shinobi Villages were the backbone of their forces.
Unless they had been excluded by the Kage, few elites would betray their villages.
Even if Madara's side had some powerful opponents, the Allied Forces could delay long enough for Byakuya and the Jinchuriki to return. However, these were the worst-case scenarios. The Allied Shinobi Forces simply could not lose.
Seeing their side at a numerical disadvantage, Itachi Uchiha and Kisame approached Obito.
They asked, "Masked Man, looking at the numbers, we are at a disadvantage. Are we really going to lose to the Allied Shinobi Forces?"
Obito did not immediately answer, deliberately building suspense.
"Hmph, with our power, winning this competition is easy. Are you two lacking confidence in yourselves?"
Itachi fell silent, considering whether to launch a sneak attack on the Masked Man. The Masked Man possessed space-time abilities and was clearly a user of Edo Tensei.
If they could force Obito to lift the Edo Tensei, the war would come to an immediate end. However, the problem was that they only had one chance to strike.
Just as Itachi hesitated, Obito smiled and said, "Don't worry, we have many more people than the Allied Forces. Do you think the organization has only been collecting tailed beasts all these years?"
"What do you mean by that?" Itachi felt a surge of unease.
Obito didn't explain further but looked at White Zetsu, signaling him to unleash all the trump cards prepared beforehand.
Soon, White Zetsu walked to the center of White Zetsu's army, formed hand seals.
Many White Zetsu immediately dispelled their transformation jutsu and reverted to the appearances of elite Jonin who had died on the battlefield over the past decades in the Five Great Shinobi Villages.
Seeing this group of Edo Tensei shinobi, every Allied shinobi was utterly shocked.