Zombie Sage in Naruto

Chapter 55 I, Black Zetsu, will carry out Lord Kaedeji's will to the very end! (Two chapters combined)

The Uchiha clan's bloodline limit has a very peculiar characteristic: single-eye eye techniques cannot be activated after losing an eye, but double-eye eye techniques, such as Susanoo, can be used briefly even after losing both eyes, as long as the eye power is strong enough.

However, to date, only Madara Uchiha has upgraded both of his eyes to the Rinnegan, achieving an epic-level enhancement of his eye power. Only he can activate Susanoo even without his eyes.

As for the three-tomoe Sharingan that Madara is currently using... Kaede Tsukasa knows very well that this thing is purely for ensuring vision, and losing it will not affect Madara's power.

But he knew he couldn't say it directly.

"You surprise me by knowing about Susanoo. This technique has been lost in the ninja world today," Madara said.

"I have indeed heard of the Uchiha clan's strongest eye technique. Your identity is already suspicious, and your appearance before me makes you even more suspicious."

Kaede Tsukasa said, "At this age, with this ominous eye power, you can activate Susanoo with the three-tomoe Sharingan. You must be... Uchiha Madara. But you should have died long ago. I didn't expect you to still be alive. If this news were to spread, it would cause a sensation in the ninja world. All the major ninja villages would rather stop fighting than not join forces to find and kill you."

White Zetsu laughed loudly: "Hahahaha, you were seen through in an instant! Lord Madara, you've concealed your identity for so many years, and this is how you make your first move."

Madara wasn't angry at all. He had nothing to be angry about with the flawed version of Hashirama he had created. Every time he saw White Zetsu, he was reminded of that brainless idiot Hashirama.

"Your space-time ninjutsu is very interesting. It seems to be about communicating with a corpse, but theoretically it is impossible. At the same time, you would be casting the spell to switch positions, which means you would lose the other person's coordinates the moment you switch. But you did achieve space-time transfer."

It is theoretically impossible for both parties to simultaneously use psychic abilities on each other.

There must be something he hasn't figured out yet, which is also the core secret of this space-time ninjutsu.

"If you don't understand it the first time, just try it a few more times."

Ribs reappeared on Madara's body, and the giant skeletal arm suddenly grabbed out, but after several attempts, it always missed. Kaede Tsukasa could always teleport quickly.

If viewed from an ordinary person's perspective, one would see that Kaede Tsukasa's figure was like a virtual image with a poor network connection, flickering multiple times in more than a dozen locations.

Madara stopped because he was certain that conventional methods wouldn't work on Kaede Tsukasa, and he still hadn't figured out the secret behind the technique.

Even if all the zombies were killed and the coordinates of Kaedeji's relocation location were destroyed, Kaedeji could still move to a more distant location. He must have also placed corpses in other places.

"Your techniques are all very special. Each of your accompanying ninjutsu techniques can be considered an S-rank forbidden technique."

Madara's gaze lingered on the numerous zombies on the ground. Many of these zombies, whose brains were well-preserved, were still "alive" even though their bodies were shattered into many pieces. Those with hands could even cooperate with Kaede Tsukasa to perform the Void Realm Technique.

This unique space-time ninjutsu certainly caught Madara's attention.

“I can’t kill you, and your abilities are somewhat useful to me. It’s extraordinary that a black flower like you could grow in this ugly and filthy world. I will tell you some things about this world, and you can make a decision after you hear them.”

Madara spoke slowly, but his tone left no room for Kaede Tsukasa to refuse: "If you still decide not to cooperate with me after listening to me, I will not stop you."

"It's not like I had no other choice. I could have killed you right here, even if you really were the legendary one."

Kaede Tsukasa chuckled: "It started when that white guy threw that weird thing at me."

Immediately, a white lump of flesh bulged up on his body.

"How is this possible? How could you detect my spore technique?" The newly grown White Zetsu was extremely shocked. "But don't worry, it won't hurt you. It's just to make it easier to transfer you to our base."

"What a boring trick. I have plenty of ways to get rid of you." With a thought, Kaede Tsukasa launched a massive viral invasion, causing White Zetsu to scream in agony. Moreover, he could easily transfer White Zetsu with him at any time.

Even Kage-level powerhouses, unaware of White Zetsu's abilities, are caught off guard and fall victim to its attacks. Aside from Sage Mode, no other sensory ability can detect the spores planted by White Zetsu. But Kaede Tsukasa is different; his body is covered in viruses.

Madara remained calm: "Is that so? He also has special sensory abilities. It's been a long time since Hashirama has been able to consistently surprise me. Although I am extremely weak, he is not so easy to deal with. Before we continue, let's have a serious talk. Perhaps we are on the same path."

Kaede Tsukasa pondered for a moment. He probably couldn't do anything to Madara right now. Even if he could defeat Madara now, as long as Madara was willing to swallow his pride and wear Tobi's armor, his combat power would instantly skyrocket. He could unleash Susanoo and hack and slash wildly, which would be enough to give Kaede Tsukasa a hard time.

Moreover, Madara does have something he needs, such as a copy of Hashirama Senju.

Soon after, Kaede Tsukasa and Madara disappeared, and the remaining White Zetsu took away all the White Zetsu corpses.

When Jiraiya finally arrived, he only saw a scene of utter devastation.

And, the remaining, fragmented zombies.

"Damn it, I'm too late? But what was that fighting all about? Who was fighting whom here? And what's with these guys on the ground? They seem to have lost their self-awareness and are only driven by instinct. I can't tell which village's ninjas they are for now."

Jiraiya was also uneasy. He didn't want any unexpected factors to occur, as this would affect his teaching of Nagato.

They also didn't want Nagato to have his Rinnegan discovered before he had the ability to protect himself.

……

The land of iron, a mountain cemetery.

"Is this your base? It's surprisingly rudimentary, completely lacking any experimental equipment or valuable ninja tools." Kaedeji feigned surprise.

Madara said, "I do have an Uchiha fan. If you don't mind being bothered by the Uchiha clan, I can give it to you."

Kaede Tsukasa looked at Madara: "I heard that Uchiha Madara possesses the legendary Mangekyou Sharingan, so why do you only have a three-tomoe Sharingan? You can't use a Susanoo-like eye technique with a regular three-tomoe Sharingan, can you?"

"My eyes were blinded in the battle with Hashirama back then. Everything has its limits. Having this three-tomoe Sharingan is enough for me."

Ban slowly sat down, leaning on his sickle.

"Tell me about your situation. I have a plan that will involve your forbidden technique for transferring life force. If necessary, I will need you to use this technique on me."

Madara began to recount the ugliness and incurability of this world, and his attempt to cultivate a successor to form an organization specifically to collect the nine tailed beasts, revive the Ten-Tails, and activate the Infinite Tsukuyomi.

Throughout the process, he concealed a great deal of crucial information about the Rinnegan, such as that the Rinnegan was his eye, that one must have the Rinnegan to control the Ten-Tails, and that one must have both the Rinnegan and the Ten-Tails to activate the Infinite Tsukuyomi. He didn't say any of these things.

He intends to pass on these most crucial secrets to his chosen successor.

"That Madara guy is treating me as Nagato's substitute... My rank is still below Nagato's." Kaede Tsukasa was fully aware of Madara's lies.

Because if he refuses, Madara can still use genjutsu on him—Kaede suspected that Madara had already secretly used genjutsu on him, but it wasn't the right time to actually need him, so there was no need to force him now.

If Obito was able to maintain long-term control over the Fourth Mizukage and massacre the Hidden Mist Village in order to take revenge on the Hidden Mist Village, there's no reason why Madara Uchiha couldn't control him for a long time.

Fortunately, Kaede Tsukasa also has ways to deal with illusions. The zombies scattered throughout the Land of Fire are the key for him to break free from illusions.

While it might not be able to counter a Mangekyou Sharingan-exclusive eye technique of the level of Kotoamatsukami, it would at least provide some means of self-defense against other types of genjutsu. Madara didn't show any extra emotional fluctuations, or rather, he didn't care whether Kaedeji believed him or not. As long as he could ensure that Kaedeji could use the technique when he needed it, everything was fine.

"Your space-time ninjutsu is called the Sky Realm Technique, right? With the Sky Realm Technique and the Reincarnation Technique, if you're careful, you shouldn't have any problem keeping your life in this terrible world. I need someone like you who can survive to the maximum extent possible."

Madara said, "Then tell me the answer now. You, who have mastered the unique Corpse Escape Technique, are destined to walk the shadows and be rejected by those cowardly people, will you choose to join my plan and permanently change this hopeless world, or will you stand against me and become an enemy of my successor at some point in the future?"

"Two choices? I have a third option, which is to kill you right here. Don't be fooled by your bunch of white things helping you; they might not be able to stop me."

Without any hesitation, Kaede Tsukasa immediately used his Corpse Transformation Technique to erode Madara's body.

However, progress was not smooth. As an outstanding descendant of the Sage of Six Paths, Madara possessed an exceptionally powerful body. Even though he was old and frail, he still posed a great obstacle to Tsukasa Kaede.

More importantly, there's a bunch of White Zetsu helping them out.

Madara slowly said, "So that's how it is. Not only can you cast spells on corpses, but you can also turn living people directly into living corpses under your control... However, with your remaining life force, it seems that it is not enough to deal with me and so many of Hashirama's defective products together."

Kaede frowned. Indeed, this was the first time he had faced the reincarnation of Indra, and one who had been transplanted with Hashirama's flesh and blood. Forcibly turning him into a zombie was an incredibly difficult task, and the amount of chakra required was incalculable.

The better one's physical condition, the more cells one has, the stronger one's mental strength, the more determined one's willpower, and the more chakra one has, the more astonishing the amount of chakra that Kaede Tsukasa needs to consume.

Not to mention there's a bunch of White Zetsu that could burrow into Madara's body at any time, and Tobi is watching from the sidelines.

“It seems that turning you into my servant is harder than killing you outright,” Kaedeji said.

“Young people don’t always have to fight and kill. You can’t do anything to me, and I can hardly stop you from escaping. This is the basis of our cooperation.”

Madara stared indifferently at Kaedeji, his three-tomoe Sharingan slowly rotating: "Since that's the case, why don't we cooperate? I'll give you many White Zetsu as your subordinates to gather intelligence on the ninja world. You can assist me in advancing the Infinite Tsukuyomi plan."

"In the end, it all comes down to me transferring your life force. So, for a long time to come, you will be under my control because I can make you live forever in your current state."

Although Kaede Tsukasa believed he was capable of dealing with illusions that were not exclusive to the Mangekyou Sharingan, there was no need to take the risk. The moment he met White Zetsu and had to deal with Madara, he had already foreseen the current situation.

"Then I'll just join this plan for now. In the world of Infinite Tsukuyomi, I can use all kinds of corpses at will and become a respected person." Kaede Tsukasa glanced at the Gedo Mazo behind Uchiha Madara.

Madara doesn't have the Rinnegan, so he probably can't control this huge thing, and therefore can't use the soul-stealing technique.

"Is this your wish? It should be granted. Everyone should have their wishes fulfilled."

Madara said, "Then it seems you've made your decision. That's good. I've gained a new generation of helper on my journey."

"I can tell that you're hiding many things from me," Kaedeji said calmly.

“You are not my successor, so I cannot tell you everything. My successor must be a descendant of the Uchiha clan. Once the Mind Reflection Eye is activated, it will greatly aid the plan. I need someone to inherit my name, Uchiha Madara, and walk the ninja world once again,” Madara said expressionlessly.

"With my help, you can even live a long life, so why do you need to choose a successor?"

"There's no point in continuing to live on with such an aging body. I'd rather entrust all my skills and intelligence to someone I've chosen, so that he can carry out my will."

"Alright, alright, then you'd better choose a good successor. If the successor to the Infinite Tsukuyomi plan is too incompetent, it's better for me to take over and complete it myself."

Kaede Tsukasa said, "Do you need me to perform the Reincarnation Technique on you? You look very bad. After using Susanoo, I feel that you are in even worse condition."

Madara summoned White Zetsu: "There's no rush. I can hold on a little longer. Now, I'll teach you a secret technique for separating wills. With your talent for mastering multiple forbidden techniques, learning this one won't be difficult."

Separation of will?

"not interested."

“You can’t stay here permanently. I need an individual who can carry out your will. Don’t worry about me getting the information in your head. This is a technique for separating wills, not a technique for copying memories.”

Kaede Tsukasa pondered for a moment, seemingly understanding what it was for. After carefully studying the secret technique and considering various factors, he entered a state of cultivation.

Two more days passed, and Kaede Tsukasa summoned a large number of zombies to accelerate his training, thus gaining a preliminary grasp of this secret technique.

Throughout the entire process, Madara did not show any surprise. He remained as calm as a rock, never revealing any unnecessary emotional fluctuations. As someone who knew the Shadow Clone Technique, he was no stranger to this method of using external forces to accelerate cultivation.

It's just that the shadow clones have been replaced with zombies.

Ban raised his head and said, "As expected, you did not disappoint me. You can easily control many corpses and use various forbidden techniques with them. You must have separated your will to some extent to improve the speed at which you cultivate this secret technique."

Madara sensed that something was wrong with Kaedeji, and when he brought over the White Zetsu, he felt that Kaedeji was even more suspicious.

Yes, Madara no longer urgently needs the White Zetsu body to bear his will—with Tsukasa Kaede's Reanimation Jutsu, Madara's aging body can be well maintained, and at least restoring it to a good condition is not a problem at all.

Without the limitations of a physical body, Madara would have more room to maneuver in many things, and in the future, he would no longer need to rely on the Gedo Mazo to sustain his life.

Although it's troublesome that we can't forcibly control Kaedeji, and we can't obtain the Corpse Escape Technique, there will be plenty of opportunities in the future.

Ban had been silent for too long, and it was rare to see a strange and cunning junior who was of great use to him.

“The moment I extended my consciousness, the White Zetsu body already belonged to me and was completely beyond your control. Let me make this clear: from now on, I will be the primary controller of the White Zetsu body. No matter what orders I give, you can’t overturn them,” Kaede Tsukasa said.

"I don't care about these White Zetsu at all. They're just flawed copies of Hashirama. They're useless except for gathering intelligence. Take them if you like, as long as I can continue to use them to obtain information," Madara said indifferently, leaning on his scythe.

Kaede Tsukasa touched the White Zetsu's true form with a fist. He knew that Madara was definitely looking for his weakness, trying to place a cursed seal on his heart or something. At the same time, he would also tamper with the White Zetsu's true form in front of him, with a large number of viruses flooding in and engaging in a fierce tug-of-war with the incredibly active White Zetsu cells.

Ban's style of doing things is very distinctive. He can let the people he chooses carry out various actions, and he will even find ways to clean up the messes of his tools. But this person must do the most crucial thing at the most critical moment. He has no choice but to do it. He must ensure that he has strong control over the situation at that moment.

As Kaede Tsukasa took action, the right half of the White Zetsu's body began to change.

Finally, under Kaede Tsukasa's speechless gaze, it turned into an incredibly black ghost, almost like a piece of charcoal smeared on a White Zetsu.

As this thing took shape and stabilized, White Zetsu's body was split in two. The left half still belonged to White Zetsu himself, while the black right half was the will of Kaedejima, acting according to Kaedejima's commands.

When necessary, Black Zetsu can also attack the left half of White Zetsu and forcibly control that body.

“Since it exists in White Zetsu, let’s call it Black Zetsu,” Madara said casually.

Kaede Tsukasa: "..."

...Damn it, it really was you.

(End of this chapter)