Chapter 298. That Was Before...
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Time shifts back a little.
That was some time ago.
After getting rich by working with Danzo-sensei, the White Zetsus didn't accept his invitation to continue cooperating. Instead, they chose to leave and return to the place where their dreams had begun.
But—
Now that they had money, what should they do next?
"I want to open a milk tea shop. That way, I won't have to go to Yuto Milk Tea anymore."
"I want to open a barbecue joint. That way, I won't have to eat at Yuto BBQ anymore."
"I want to open an internet café. That way, I won't have to go to Yuto Internet Café to get online."
"That's amazing!"
"What about you?"
"I just want free milk tea, free barbecue, and free internet. Thank you all! You've made my dream come true."
On that day—
The White Zetsus were dreaming big. On that day… another White Zetsu sprouted from the God Tree.
Then—
They realized something.
With so many of them, once the money was split evenly, there really wasn't much left.
But go back to earn more with Danzo-sensei?
No!
They hadn't forgotten the mission they carried. How could they lose themselves in the pursuit of money?
"One pair versus three!"
"Bomb it!"
"He has a three! Why are you bombing? Don't tell me you don't even have a higher card than a pair of threes?"
"I just like bombing, so what?!"
Three White Zetsus were arguing over poker, while another Scholar White Zetsu was still researching the message from that fateful battle in the Land of Wind—the one Suicide Bomber White Zetsu had sacrificed himself to deliver. Meanwhile, others were either browsing the web or reviewing what Danzo-sensei had taught them.
"This idiot! He's still trying to scam me? Uchiha Madara? Uchiha Madara clearly died right in front of us, come on! What a joke!"
One White Zetsu sneered and quickly typed something out.
It was as if years of study had turned him into a top-notch anti-fraud specialist.
No one could fool them now.
The chaotic scene…
Black Zetsu clutched his stomach in frustration.
The weapons his mom had created really were failures.
Not much power, and yet every one of them was just looking to mess around!
But what could he do now?
Sure, he was also Mom's child, but his own power was nothing special.
After all these years of scheming, he had finally tricked Madara into thinking he was his will incarnate. But just when he was born and hadn't even had time to guide Madara on executing the Infinite Tsukuyomi plan, the guy… was gone!
Now—
The Ninja World was overall at peace. Madara's spokesperson had fallen in love through online dating and no longer seemed like someone who would fall into darkness.
The Rinnegan was with Uzumaki Nagato.
He had no strength and no one to rely on…
Black Zetsu glanced at the noisy White Zetsus.
This bunch of idiots was only good for collecting intelligence—otherwise, they were useless!
They might as well go stir up trouble in other ninja villages like before. Maybe then they could still throw the ninja world into chaos.
Right now—
So damn annoying!
He had been thinking at the time—
The current Ninja World was far too unsafe. Maybe he should wait until all these idiots died off. Then he could return to the shadows like before, slowly manipulate the ninja world, find those who had fallen into darkness, reclaim the Rinnegan, gather the tailed beasts, rescue Mom, and rule the world.
After that, he and Mom could live happily ever after.
He'd waited this long.
He didn't mind waiting a few more years.
But—
Black Zetsu stared in speechless frustration at the group who, after getting rich, had completely lost their sense of purpose and now just messed around all day. And then there was that one guy… who did absolutely nothing but kept drawing weird, absurd stuff.
This team was a mess.
It's impossible to lead!
He sighed and, with a tone full of bitter disappointment, said, "Have you all forgotten our mission?"
As soon as the words fell—
The White Zetsus' eyes lit up. They all jumped up, the gloom instantly vanishing from their faces. They stared at Black Zetsu and shouted:
"Finally, the plan is starting!"
"Our hearts have been thirsting for a long time!"
"Overthrow this deceptive world and let Kaguya-sama lead us into a new era!"
"The Yuto Group charges way too much! Let's destroy it!"
"…"
Looking at the White Zetsus, suddenly fired up like they'd been injected with adrenaline from just one sentence—
Black Zetsu's forehead darkened with more lines.
Look at you all!
Out of the Five Kage, which one of them could you even beat?
And the tailed beasts?
Who's going to collect them?
Did I ever say you guys were going to change the world?!
When exactly… did these guys start getting so weird?
Too much self-awareness. And way too cocky!
"Shut up! Quiet!" Black Zetsu shouted with a dark expression, then swept his eyes over all the White Zetsus and said coldly, "Don't forget our current plan! First, we collect intelligence, accumulate operational funds, stir up war, guide others into darkness, and find a suitable replacement for Madara-sama—or revive him! Look at what you're all doing now!"
With a sigh, he pulled out a flyer from his cloak. "Go! Join this upcoming Ninja Grand Prix in Kumogakure! Bring back that 10 million for the organization!"
As soon as he finished speaking—
The White Zetsus, who had just been fired up to change the world, instantly deflated and muttered with disappointment, "Only 10 million?"
"That's right! That's right! That little money? We might as well go back to running pyramid schemes in another country!"
"Not worth it, not worth it!"
"Bastards! You bunch of idiots—back then you were shamelessly borrowing even ten ryo from me!"
"We're not who we used to be! We've never given up on Danzo-sensei's lessons!"
"Shut up! Look at what you did in the Land of Earth! We're only lucky someone else took the blame and suspicion didn't fall on us," Black Zetsu said coldly. "Otherwise, we'd be in real danger right now."
He should've used the real White Zetsu body to control them directly!
"Now get out there and make money! And hand over the profits you made from last time too! Idiots! Don't look at me like that! You remember how much you got scammed out of last time? That was my money!"
And so—
At Black Zetsu's command, 100,000 White Zetsus began preparing to participate in Kumogakure's Ninja Grand Prix.
Even though most of the money they earned had to be turned in, Black Zetsu still paid for their cars and gear.
After all, it was Black Zetsu who asked them to participate.
So in the days that followed, the White Zetsus studied car modification, designed their own vehicles, and trained in racing skills.
As long as one White Zetsu learned it, they all learned it!
Of course, a lot happened during that time...
For example, one White Zetsu placed an order online from Sunagakure for a custom set of equipment—and then messed up the delivery address...
Later—
The package was routed through a relay in Konoha, and then a terrifying green-glowing ninja delivered it to their cave entrance.
At that moment—
It was scary as hell!
They almost thought their operation had been exposed and they were about to be wiped out by Konoha!
Only later did they realize that the guy glowing green, veins bulging, dressed in a tight green bodysuit—was just a delivery man, and he even asked for a five-star rating.
That night, after signing for the package, another White Zetsu's corpse was added to the tree.
…
"Hurry up! Hurry up! If we don't win that 10 million, Black Zetsu's going to hang all of us on trees!"
"There aren't many cars ahead, but stay sharp!"
"Ever since we brought back money, Black Zetsu's been more irritable than ever!"
"It's like one of those useless, drunk loser husbands who complain that their wives don't earn enough, and then force them out to work!"
"Hmph! I can't even eat a hot meal at home anymore!"
All the White Zetsus grumbled as they hid underground.
Meanwhile—
The race was in progress.
Although the competition was fierce, with so many of their brothers around, they were still holding steady.
Even if they encountered danger, the Zetsus could retreat underground, carrying their cars to dodge threats. But winning the championship… that wasn't going to be so easy.
Just as one White Zetsu stepped into the fourth track and was about to assign others to sabotage cars from underneath—
Suddenly—
Boom!!!
A series of terrifying explosions rang out.
The White Zetsus froze. "That damn rich woman from Amegakure throwing explosive tags again?"
It's really hateful!
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