chapter 111 part 3
Tsukasa Kaede subtly shifted his body. The Clone behind him had already opened its Sharingan, staring intently at Madara.
Two Sharingan directly confronting Madara would at least allow Tsukasa Kaede to sustain his resistance against Genjutsu for a longer period. Failing that, he could always activate Izanagi at any moment to allow Tsukasa Kaede to leave calmly, without needing to resort to the true contingency he had prepared for Genjutsu for so long.
Witnessing such a peculiar body structure firsthand, Madara couldn't help but observe it closely. He confirmed once again that Tsukasa Kaede was truly a genius, possessing boundless imagination and insane drive. He had actually integrated a Hashirama Clone into his body and even transplanted a Sharingan into it!
"One day, you might even cultivate the Rinnegan. As long as you grasp the intel on the Power of All Creation, it's possible."
Madara said coldly, "You can't defeat me, and I can't defeat you. So, let's make a deal, just like when we first collaborated. You help me look after Obito, allowing him to grow up alive, and I will impart the intel on the Power of All Creation to you. Only then can you fully realize the potential of this new body."
From birth until now, Madara couldn't recall ever being so passive in his life. And it had to happen precisely when he was at his weakest and most infirm, on the verge of exhausting his life and facing death, rendering him helpless against Tsukasa Kaede! "I thought you'd ask me to use the Living Corpse Reincarnation Jutsu to restore your Life Force and extend your lifespan," Tsukasa Kaede said coldly.
"You won't extend my life, I'm well aware of that," Madara said.
Through their words, the two grudgingly reached a consensus.
"I will tell you everything about the Wood Golem Jutsu and the Mangekyo Sharingan. Once you possess both of these powers, you may be able to obtain the Rinnegan," Madara said.
Tsukasa Kaede's expression remained neutral. Madara had once again hidden a trick, not revealing information about the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan. But even if he had, it would be useless; even Madara himself didn't know that to obtain the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan, one needed Indra's Chakra plus a blood relative's Mangekyo Sharingan.
In other words, only Indra's Reincarnation could obtain the Eternal Mangekyo. Others, no matter how close their bloodline, no matter how many eye exchanges they performed, could not obtain the Eternal Mangekyo.
To put it bluntly, if simply swapping eyes with a blood relative could upgrade a Mangekyo to an Eternal Mangekyo, then brothers could just swap eyes with each other. That way, they could easily obtain two pairs of Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan, with no need for one to sacrifice themselves for the other.
The reality was that only Madara and Sasuke obtained the Eternal Mangekyo, the so-called "Straight Tomoe" eyes!
Others simply didn't have the qualifications to upgrade. Without Indra's Chakra, eye swapping was useless; they would still have ordinary Mangekyo Sharingan, eventually leading to blindness from overuse.
"Madara, sometimes, I really don't know what to say about you."
"Then don't say anything. The plan we both agree on must move forward. It's the only way to save this cruel world. Both Obito and Nagato will become your assistants."
Madara looked at Sasori of the Red Sand. "Now, get rid of the insignificant ones. Leave the Jinchuriki, but kill this one."
Sasori of the Red Sand remained expressionless, making no move.
As expected, Tsukasa Kaede didn't disappoint him. "Sasori is a force I can rely on. Don't worry about him leaking secrets."
"Have it your way. Until Obito grows up, you're the leader." Madara couldn't be bothered anymore, already fed up. "I'm going to the Hidden Leaf Village. There are some things I need to tell Obito as soon as possible. I'll meet you later."
His figure re-merged with the earth.
Sasori of the Red Sand said, "So you've been collaborating with such a dangerous individual all these years. I could even understand if you were teaming up to destroy the world, but your goal is actually to save it? Am I insane, or are you?"
"Don't worry about saving the world. It's just one of the major tasks on the path to immortality, not the entire agenda. Even if this world is truly saved, there will surely be a day when it collapses again. Perhaps then, we'll need to save it once more," Tsukasa Kaede said.
The Eye of the Moon Plan was destined to fail. Even without Kaguya's interference, there was a whole queue of Otsutsuki waiting to make their move. It was impossible for Madara to control the Ninja World indefinitely.
"Sasori, you'll have to work hard during this time. I've found a few hideouts; you might need to set them up simply. You can choose one to conduct your Human Puppet research," Tsukasa Kaede said.
Sasori of the Red Sand nodded. "That's exactly what I intended. Even a dangerous individual like Madara is still alive. Although he seems like a short-lived individual, completely unqualified to compare with us, it still involves the Rinnegan... The Senju Clan's Wood Release and the Uchiha Clan's Sharingan are the keys to obtaining the Rinnegan? Is that how the Rinnegan is acquired?"
At this moment, Bunpuku murmured, "Shukaku's emotions are highly agitated. It mentioned the Sage of Kaedex Paths, but Lord Tsukasa Kaede already seems to possess that Intel."
"Bunpuku, if you weren't a Jinchuriki, you'd definitely be a remarkable individual, capable of influencing many people... Wood Release: Wood Clone Technique!"
A Wood Clone grew out of Tsukasa Kaede's body. Although it was a Clone, the amount of Chakra it contained was unimaginably vast, certainly far exceeding Tsukasa Kaede's capabilities before his Impure World Reincarnation.
"I'll arrange a Clone to keep an eye on you, and with the help of so many Zombies, if you make any unusual moves, my Clone will immediately take care of you."
Tsukasa Kaede spoke calmly. He felt it was time to learn a powerful Barrier Ninjutsu. If not the Four Red Yang Formation, then at least he should get his hands on the Four Violet Flames Formation first. That way, he could create four Wood Clones to set up this Barrier Ninjutsu.
Of course, he also planned to obtain the Uchiha Flame Formation, a Barrier Ninjutsu that could be activated by a single person, from Madara later.
Bunpuku said nothing, merely sitting in place and silently chanting scriptures.
"Old man, he's gone! Quickly, seize the chance to resist! It's just a Wood Clone, it definitely isn't our match!" the One-Tail urged Bunpuku.
Bunpuku said, "He has Space-Time Ninjutsu; he can return at any time. It's useless. Moreover, considering the unique nature of a physical clone like a Wood Clone, taking down such a powerful individual would also require considerable effort."
Neither he nor the One-Tail could use Space-Time Ninjutsu, nor did they possess mastery in high-speed Taijutsu. They had no chance at all.
Bunpuku had grasped too much information, and the latest Intel received after communicating with the One-Tail drastically challenged his understanding.
The One-Tail was part of the Ten-Tails? The Sage of Kaedex Paths was the Ten-Tails Jinchuriki? The Senju Clan and Uchiha Clan were both descendants of the Sage of Kaedex Paths, so combining their powers was the only way to awaken the Rinnegan? The amount of information was simply overwhelming.
Tsukasa Kaede's main body left. He was considering whether to seek out Nagato first.
Hidden Sand Village's frantic actions, sending ninja out everywhere to search madly for something, though desperately hidden, still revealed clues, immediately catching the attention of Hidden Leaf Village.
"What? The One-Tail is missing, and there are also large forests at the battle site, just like the situation in the Land of Rain back then? Don't tell me..."
The Land of Wind couldn't possibly be undertaking afforestation now. That clumsy excuse had been used by Hanzo. If Hidden Sand Village's people tried to use it again, no one would believe them.
"Orochimaru, how much do you know about this? And where is Tsukasa Kaede?!"
The Third Hokage cornered Orochimaru directly in his lab, pressing him for Tsukasa Kaede's whereabouts: "You used Impure World Reincarnation to control Tsukasa Kaede and arbitrarily went to the Land of Rain to attack the Rinnegan wielder. Are you trying to become a Rogue Ninja?!"
(end of chapter)