The Land of Birds, the secret hideout of Uchiha Madara... or more accurately, the domain of Uchiha Obito and Black Zetsu.
Aside from those two, a third person was present in the hideout today.
It was none other than Uchiha Itachi, the man currently notorious throughout the shinobi world as the heinous "Clan Killer."
After systematically annihilating the Uchiha clan, Itachi had secretly accepted a deep-cover mission from Konoha. His assignment was to infiltrate and investigate the mysterious, shrouded individual who went around claiming to be Uchiha Madara.
The two had collaborated on the night of the genocide. Without this "Uchiha Madara" assisting him, Itachi alone could never have wiped out the entire clan so rapidly, even with the poison he had slipped into their rations beforehand.
Obito and Black Zetsu were well aware that Itachi's intentions weren't pure. His alignment was highly suspect; there was an eighty to ninety percent chance that the boy was a double agent for Konoha.
But they didn't care. To put it bluntly, they were desperate for manpower.
Over the years, Diarmuid's Yorozuya had grown steadily and efficiently, expanding its influence through structured development. In stark contrast, Black Zetsu had spent the last decade dragging the unfortunate Obito along, barely making any real progress. Most of his time had been wasted coddling and rectifying the mistakes of this unreliable, prone-to-blundering brat.
Now, they finally had a premier powerhouse offering his services. Even if this ally came with severe baggage and questionable loyalty, his raw combat strength was undeniable, his genius was peerless, and he was a true scion of the Uchiha bloodline. They had no choice but to use him!
"The Eye of the Moon Plan?"
Itachi stood calmly before Black Zetsu and Obito, a faint flicker of astonishment crossing his otherwise stoic features.
He had come to this hideout fully intending to pry into their long-term agenda. Yet, to his absolute disbelief, before he could even begin his subtle reconnaissance, Black Zetsu and this self-proclaimed Madara had taken the initiative to lay out their grand design.
It was absurdly straightforward.
Of course, Itachi was no fool; he had no intention of blindly accepting whatever they told him. But since they were eager to talk, he was more than willing to listen. Even if it turned out to be an elaborate fabrication, it would still yield valuable insights and clues into their psychological profiles.
And... what if it actually turned out to be true?
"Precisely. The Eye of the Moon Plan," Obito said, nodding beneath the spiral contours of his mask.
Pausing for a brief moment, he preempted Itachi's response and continued, "As of today, you can officially be considered one of our core comrades. To demonstrate our absolute sincerity, it is only fitting that we share the full scope of this plan with you. I firmly believe that given your tragic experiences, you possess the unique capacity to understand my vision. You may still harbor alternative motives and lingering loyalties right now, but I hope the sheer majesty of this plan will inspire you to join us wholeheartedly. Consider this my gesture of good faith."
The moment he finished speaking, Itachi's gaze locked onto the single eye visible beneath the mask. He replied in a cool, level voice, "Good faith? If you truly wish to demonstrate sincerity, the proper course of action would be to remove that mask and show me your real face before lecturing me on this plan... Hiding your features while operating from the shadows hardly qualifies as good faith, does it?"
Obito fell silent, his single eye staring intently at Itachi.
Itachi didn't show a hint of intimidation. He immediately pressed further, "Furthermore, regarding your claim of being Uchiha Madara, forgive my bluntness, but I have not believed it for a single second."
It wasn't just Itachi who doubted him; practically no one in the upper echelons of Konoha bought the story either.
This was especially true for Hiruzen, the Third Hokage. As a veteran who had survived the foundational era of the village, Hiruzen had personally witnessed the cataclysmic, world-altering might of the real Madara and Hashirama. He understood precisely what caliber of entity Madara truly was.
On the night of the Nine-Tails' attack, the masked individual claiming to be Madara had fought a desperate, back-and-forth battle against Minato, the Fourth Hokage. In the end, Minato had completely outmaneuvered the intruder, soundly defeating him in their tactical exchange.
Hiruzen would have to be senile to believe that a warrior capable of being bested by Minato was the legendary Madara who had once challenged the entire world.
Consequently, although Obito continuously operated under the alias of Madara, the identity carried zero weight with his primary adversaries. Diarmuid didn't believe it, and Konoha openly dismissed it.
It was an incredibly frustrating predicament for Obito. In the original timeline, only the isolated Nagato, Konan, and Yahiko, who lacked broad historical context, had been naïve enough to take his claim at face value.
Yet, despite the widespread skepticism, Obito insisted on maintaining the charade. On one hand, he figured he could deceive the ignorant; after all, times had changed, and outside of Konoha's historical archives, the rest of the shinobi world might lack the historical literacy to see through the deception.
And historically, that assumption held water. In the original timeline, Kisame of Kirigakure had been completely taken in by the guise, believing the lie implicitly during their initial encounters.
On the other hand, Obito had his pride. He couldn't just discard his persona and switch to a different alias just because a few people doubted him. That would be deeply embarrassing.
Faced with Itachi's unyielding gaze, Obito felt a wave of helplessness wash over him. He cast a sideways glance toward Black Zetsu.
Black Zetsu processed the tactical dilemma for a brief moment before offering a subtle, approving nod from the shadows.
With a quiet internal sigh, Obito slowly raised his hands to the sides of his face, unlatching his mask and lowering it to expose his true features.
Having reached this juncture, Obito found himself letting go of his lingering anxieties. Realistically, even if his true identity leaked out and the world discovered he was Uchiha Obito, what real damage would it cause? It didn't seem to matter all that much. The only foreseeable complication was that Kakashi might catch wind of the rumors and drive himself into a frantic, agonizing frenzy trying to hunt him down. Beyond that, it offered no leverage over him.
In fact, there was a high probability that Konoha would actively help suppress the truth. After all, the village had spent years aggressively promoting Obito as a glorious, tragic war hero. If it suddenly came to light that their legendary martyr had transformed into the village's most vengeful, bloodthirsty nemesis, it would be a devastating, catastrophic blow to Konoha's public image.
To save face, the village leadership would likely fabricate a completely new cover identity for him, while vehemently insisting that the real Obito had perished at the Kannabi Bridge. They would never, under any circumstances, publicly acknowledge his true name.
As the mask came off, Itachi's eyes widened slightly in mild surprise. He murmured, "You are..."
A wave of profound nostalgia washed over Obito's face. Ah, so I've been recognized after all, he thought with a sense of melancholic pride. I suppose it was inevitable. A man as brilliant and magnificent as myself is like a firefly in the deep winter night—distinct, prominent, and impossible to ignore. Just look at this rugged, weathered stubble, these deep, brooding eyes...
Indulging in his own dramatic sentimentality, Obito let out a worldly sigh and said, "That is correct. I am—"
"Who exactly are you?" Itachi asked, cutting him off, his brow furrowed in genuine confusion.
Obito froze. ???
Are you telling me you don't recognize me?!
It's me! Konoha's glorious war hero!
Do you people in the Anbu not do your mandatory background readings? Does the Academy not teach my heroic exploits anymore? Did they fail to print my portrait in the history textbooks?!
For an elite operative who literally graduated from the top of the intelligence department, your information gathering is downright pathetic!
In truth, Itachi genuinely did not recognize the man standing before him, though a strange, faint sense of familiarity tugged at the edge of his consciousness. He felt as though he had seen this face somewhere before. It was precisely this inexplicable, lingering familiarity that had caused the flash of confusion across his features.
He felt that way because Obito's childhood photograph had indeed been included in Konoha's official curriculum. The textbooks made passing mention of the young martyr's sacrifice, even if it amounted to only a few brief paragraphs.
However, during his time at the Academy, Itachi had paid virtually zero attention to the standard history lectures. He was a peerless prodigy who had skipped multiple grades, testing out early purely on the strength of his practical combat abilities.
Furthermore, Obito's physical appearance had undergone drastic, violent changes over the years, marred extensively by severe facial scarring and artificial tissue reconstruction.
But the most defining factor blocking Itachi's deduction was a universally acknowledged historical fact: everyone in Konoha knew that Obito's left eye had been gifted to Kakashi. Kakashi paraded that Sharingan openly every single day, and Itachi, having worked closely with Kakashi in the Anbu, knew the exact lineage of that eye.
Yet here stood this man, with two perfectly functional, matching eyes. Naturally, Obito possessed a massive stockpile of surplus Sharingan to replace his missing eye, but Itachi's analytical mind simply didn't leap to the conclusion that this masked mastermind could be Kakashi's long-dead childhood companion.
Though he couldn't put a name to the face, Itachi immediately used his photographic memory to permanently etch every line, scar, and contour of the man's features into his mind.
This individual is dangerous, and he possesses absolute knowledge regarding the true architects behind the Uchiha downfall. If I ever manage to see Sasuke again in the future, I must implant a specialized transcription seal within his eyes... Yes, I will seal Amaterasu within Sasuke's vision, programming it to trigger automatically the precise millisecond he lays eyes on this face.
Unaware of the lethal countermeasure Itachi was already plotting against him, Obito merely felt a bizarre mixture of bruised ego and slight relief at not being recognized.
Quickly composing his emotions, Obito spoke coldly, "My specific identity is irrelevant to our current arrangement. You demanded a show of good faith, and I have provided it. Now, are you prepared to listen to our true objective?"
As he spoke, Obito smoothly raised the mask and fastened it back over his face.
Itachi had achieved a tangible breakthrough, he now possessed a precise visual profile of the enemy mastermind. Smoothly dialed back his aggressive posture, he offered a concise nod. "Very well. Proceed. Let us hear this grand design that you believe has the power to sway my conviction: the Eye of the Moon Plan."
"Excellent," Obito said. Stepping forward, he began to articulate the core tenets of his ideology.
"The Eye of the Moon Plan is a systematic restructuring of this wretched, irredeemable world. Within the framework of my grand design, a flawless reality will be forged, a world where every single living soul can finally attain absolute, everlasting happiness..." Obito spoke with profound, unshakeable earnestness. For a brief moment, a spark of absolute fanatical devotion flared within his single visible eye.
Itachi listened in total, unbroken silence.
Simultaneously, he used his honed perception to scrutinize Obito's micro-expressions, vocal inflections, and chakra fluctuations.
The longer he listened, and the more closely he analyzed the man's physical state, the more deeply surreal the situation became.
Good grief... this man isn't fabricating a story.
He actually believes every single word he is saying.
As a veteran of the Anbu, Itachi possessed an exceptional ability to read people and detect deception. He had initially assumed that this "Madara" would spin a web of elaborate lies and political propaganda designed to brainwash him into serving a standard hidden agenda.
Yet, the raw passion and absolute sincerity radiating from the man were undeniable.
This individual truly, genuinely desires to engineer a utopian paradise where 'everyone can achieve absolute happiness.'
Is he actually driven by pure, unadulterated altruism?
Shouldn't a rogue ninja of his caliber be plotting something standard, like world domination or the subjugation of the Five Great Shinobi Nations?
Suppressing the growing bewilderment in his chest, Itachi continued to listen patiently until Obito finally reached the core operational methodology of the plan.
At that moment, a look of profound, horrified clarity flashed across Itachi's mind.
Unbelievable. The plan is real, and he isn't lying about his goals... but the man is completely insane.
The entire foundation of the Eye of the Moon Plan is to forcibly drag the entire global population into a permanent, artificial dream world?
What a pathetic, monumental exercise in self-delusion.
After all this build-up, the vision itself is authentic, but the architect is a lunatic who belongs in an asylum! And his sickness runs incredibly deep!
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