Konoha: The thirty-year-old Uchiha lacks motivation.

Chapter 562: Suspected Early Information on Black Zetsu Taming Madara Uchiha

"This Hunter Knight's Sword looks mediocre at best, yet they dare to charge such a high price. Really..."

Standing behind Madara Uchiha, Black Zetsu, sporting Hashirama Senju's face, fixed his gaze on Kakuzu, who was locked in fierce combat, a hint of disdain flashing in his eyes.

"shut up."

Madara Uchiha interrupted coldly, maintaining his arrogant posture with his arms crossed, his eyes, emitting a faint red glow, glancing lightly at Black Zetsu behind him.

"He is a formidable opponent."

The two had a record of fighting during the Knights War. In that battle, Kakuzu's all-out effort left a deep impression on Madara Uchiha, and his tenacious spirit earned him Madara's approval.

"That being said, he may lose."

Black Zetsu seemed used to Madara Uchiha interrupting him at will, and didn't bother with it. Instead, he generously spread his hands and raised his chin, gesturing for Madara to check on Kakuzu's situation.

On the battlefield, just as Black Zetsu had predicted, Kakuzu quickly found himself at a disadvantage after only a few rounds of fighting.

Although he possesses the Earth Grudge Fear technique, which allows him to maximize his physical strength and thus withstand more tailed beast chakra,

However, compared to Hashirama Senju's clones, his physique was still considerably inferior.

Boom! ——

"Hmm"

Barely managing to block the fake Seven-Tailed Knight's attack with his sword, Kakuzu felt a surge of brutal force coursing through his arms, and his heart sank slightly.

"Kakuzu, this guy's tough."

While diligently channeling Tailed Beast chakra into Kakuzu, Jumei, inside the Tailed Beast Card, warily observed the enemy before him.

"I know, but we've already received the deposit. If we give up now, it won't be as simple as not getting the final payment."

Kakuzu, gritting his teeth and fighting the imposter knight, was truly reluctant to give up the high reward promised by his employer.

Given the current unfavorable economic climate, how could Kakuzu easily give up on such a lucrative mission?

"Let's give it our all!"

If this dragged on, defeat was highly probable. Kakuzu steeled himself, abruptly sidestepping the black-gold Reawakening Sword blocking his path, using the opportunity to retreat several steps and create distance between himself and his enemy.

"My divine beast, please."

Kakuzu gripped his broad, heavy sword tightly with both hands, assuming a stance ready to unleash a powerful swing.

Seeing this, Chongming didn't say anything more, but poured his chakra into the weapon held by Kakuzu, and a dazzling light flashed instantly.

The weapon in his hand split the concentrated power of the tailed beast into five, transforming them into five highly destructive elemental chakras. Five different colored lights intertwined and swirled on the blade, quickly reaching the firing threshold.

"A perfect flush!"

Seeing that the time was ripe, Kakuzu twisted his wrist, and the heavily fortified Heavy Awakening Sword swung forward, unleashing a five-colored beam of chakra that poured towards the imposter knight not far away.

Clearly sensing the terrifying destructive power contained within the beam of light, the imposter knight immediately bent his knees, preparing to dodge this fatal blow. However, as soon as he bent over, he was surprised to find that he could not move.

There are still people!

The imposter knight frowned, but the current situation didn't allow him much time to think.

"Break it!"

A dense surge of chakra burst forth from his body as he attempted to break free from the inexplicable confinement within his body using this brutal method. However, the result left him utterly disappointed.

Unable to move, he had no choice but to raise his greatsword and face the impending attack head-on.

"Boom—!"

"Hmph hmph hmph."

Seeing the imposter knight being swallowed by the pillar of light, Black Zetsu, who had just pulled a stunt, practically grinned from ear to ear.

Hashirama Senju's clones are very useful; they can enhance his abilities to the maximum extent.

Madara Uchiha, who was standing in front of him, turned his head and glanced at him with considerable curiosity.

Hot moms in Harbin wouldn't use such methods.

That muscle-bound guy is always straightforward and will use his wooden dummy elbow to strike you at the slightest provocation.

"Erzhuzi, stop using such despicable methods in the future."

Madara Uchiha curled his lip; he despised such sneak attacks from behind the scenes the most.

"understood."

Black Zetsu, making no attempt to conceal his actions, nodded obediently. During their time together, he had essentially figured out Madara Uchiha's temperament. As long as Madara didn't argue, the two got along quite well.

"This guy is much stronger than before."

Satisfied with Black Zetsu's compliant attitude, Madara Uchiha turned his head and looked at the panting Kakuzu, his eyes full of admiration.

It's truly astonishing that an ordinary ninja born in the countryside, without any bloodline limit, could wield the power of the Knight System to such an extent.

"pity."

However, this level of attack cannot kill Hasi Hot Mom's clone.

"Huff, huff."

After exhausting all his power and unleashing his ultimate technique, Kakuzu, panting heavily, could only lean on his greatsword to avoid collapsing to the ground.

Chongming was busy using the tailed beast's chakra to repair his injured meridians. Feeling the warm chakra slowly flowing through his parched meridians, he mustered a little strength and raised his head to search for the wreckage of his target ahead.

"The employer didn't say they wouldn't accept fragments."

His employer demanded to see him alive or dead, but now that the other party has been hit by his full-power finishing move, he probably won't even get a complete corpse.

"Be careful!"

Just as Kakuzu was looking around, Chongming, who was repairing his body, suddenly sensed a strong sense of malice. Startled, it cried out in alarm.

"what?"

Kakuzu blinked in confusion upon hearing this.

The next second, a figure with black wings burst from the ground, its greatsword slicing right through Kakuzu's body.

"Pfft!"

The heavy armor vanished as particles of light, and Kakuzu, bleeding profusely, fell backward, a gruesome wound now visible on his chest.

"How is that possible?"

Lying on the ground, Kakuzu couldn't understand how the other party had managed to evade the divine beast's senses.

"It's scale powder."

As if sensing Kakuzu's confusion, Chongming explained in a deep voice,

Because the enemy used its power, Chongming overlooked the unique ability he possessed.

"Scale powder?"

Kakuzu was taken aback by what he heard, but he quickly noticed the golden powder floating around him; it was this powder that had numbed Chongming's senses.

"I'm sorry, Xiaoyi, Grandpa may have to go back on his word."

Looking at the massive black and gold sword pressed against his chest, Kakuzu gave a bitter smile. His backpack still contained a birthday present he had prepared for his grandson.

It now seems that from now on, he will be unable to attend his grandson's birthday celebrations.

"Kakuzu, don't give up!"

Chongming frantically jumped around inside the Tailed Beast Card. Having partnered with Kakuzu for so many years, it would be a lie to say he had no feelings for him; he couldn't bear to watch his partner die a horrible death.

"boom!"

As Chongming unleashed his power, crimson tailed beast chakra burst forth from his body. The fake knight raised an eyebrow at this sight.

"sucker Punch."

As if prepared for this situation, the imposter knight suddenly attacked the moment a tail materialized behind Kakuzu.

Several thick wooden branches sprouted from the ground under his control, quickly binding Kakuzu tightly.

Without the Knight System's defense, Wood Release is the best way to deal with Tailed Beasts.

"I don't know how you got rid of the spores last time, but you won't be so lucky this time."

The imposter knight simply raised one hand, and a seed exuding a putrid aura appeared in his palm.

"Last time it was the heart, this time let's get a head transplant."

After glancing at Kakuzu, who was on the verge of death from being drained of Wood Release, the fake knight raised the spore and pressed it towards the other's head.

"snort!"

Kakuzu's defeat was not unexpected by Madara Uchiha. Having learned of Jigen's plan from Black Zetsu, he certainly could not allow his opponent to obtain the power of the Tailed Beasts.

Whoosh-!

He lowered his arms from his chest, bent his knees slightly, and with a sudden burst of power from his legs, he vanished from the spot like a bolt of lightning.

On the other side, in Kakuzu's vision, the gray spores were getting closer and closer to him. Unable to break free from the Wood Release bindings, he had no choice but to resign himself to closing his eyes and quietly waiting for death to come.

"Thump!"

At that critical moment, a red figure flashed past with a whooshing sound. The imposter knight felt a sharp pain in his waist and, before he could even turn around to check, was sent flying backward at the speed of light, crashing heavily onto the open ground dozens of meters away.

"Who are you."

Exhausted, Kakuzu stared wide-eyed in horror. Wasn't this guy supposed to be missing and his fate unknown?

"Uchiha Madara!?"

Do you want to dance too?

With a flying kick, Madara Uchiha sent the imposter knight flying. He landed gracefully, assuming a forward-leaning lunge stance, his face radiating an evil and arrogant charm.

"Pat-pat~ Pat-pat~"

The imposter knight, scrambling to his feet from the open ground, sized up his attacker. Thanks to Hashirama Senju's physique, the injuries he had just sustained had already healed.

"Target number two has been located."

Soon, he found information on Uchiha Madara in the database, which was the second collectible that Jigen had specifically marked to be captured alive.

As for Number One, it's naturally that stinky woman who caused him to become paralyzed.

Madara Uchiha knew he couldn't kill the imposter knight with a single kick, so he turned around and smashed the wooden branches binding Kakuzu with a single slap.

"You're still alive after all."

As Kakuzu staggered to the ground, his eyes were filled with complex emotions as he looked at his savior. He never imagined that he would be rescued by Madara Uchiha one day.

"Nothing can kill me except time."

Madara Uchiha smiled arrogantly, his gaze falling on the driver at Kakuzu's waist, a complex feeling rising in his heart.

I wonder if that white-haired girl bullied the Nine-Tailed Fox.

Just as the two were reminiscing, Black Zetsu arrived late, landing beside them. Kakuzu was slightly startled to see yet another person, but upon seeing the newcomer's appearance, he was utterly horrified.

"You are... Hashirama Senju?"

Kakuzu asked uncertainly, sensing that the Senju Hashirama in front of him was acting suspiciously.

"Hunter Knight Sword, now that your mission has failed, don't forget to transfer the compensation to my account."

Black Zetsu sensed the skepticism in Kakuzu's words and unceremoniously pulled out a contract from behind him. When he posted the commission on the black market, he had specifically bought a "Timely Guarantee" so that he would receive a large sum of compensation if the commission was not completed on time.

"you!"

Upon seeing the familiar contract, Kakuzu realized that the man before him, Hashirama Senju, was actually his employer.

He was on the verge of tears. If he had known he would have to pay compensation, he would have preferred to have been killed by the fake knight.

Driven by the power of money, Kakuzu forced himself to sit up despite his weakness and once again took out the Seven-Tails Card, preparing to transform.

"The mission isn't over yet, I can still fight!"

"No, Kakuzu, your body is already pineapple-like."

Seeing this, Chongming quickly tried to dissuade him, saying that there were still enemy parasitic scales on the wound on Jiaozu's chest, and if it was not dealt with quickly, there would be endless trouble.

"We can talk about that later. We finally found them this time, and we absolutely can't let them escape again."

Glancing at the noisy pair, Madara Uchiha frowned slightly, then turned his gaze to the imposter knight who was currently refining his power.

"Where exactly is your stronghold?"

As he asked the questions, he kept his eyes fixed on the other person, afraid that the imposter knight might suddenly run away.

Before this, Madara Uchiha, who was traveling with Black Zetsu, had already encountered an imposter knight once. Unfortunately, just as he was preparing to use torture to extract information, the imposter escaped using a strange method.

This time, Madara Uchiha will definitely not let his opponent escape again.

"."

How could a clone with only a simple mind possibly answer such a question? Right now, all he wants is to defeat Uchiha Madara and offer him to his master.

Looking at the clone radiating an inexplicable fighting spirit, Madara Uchiha frowned slightly. The last clone he encountered was in the same situation; they were impossible to communicate with effectively.

"In that case, I'll just have to pry open your heads and find it yourselves."

Madara Uchiha smirked, slowly drawing a scroll from behind him. He formed a release hand seal with one hand, and thick white smoke rose into the air.

"boom!"

A dull thud echoed as the heavy earth trembled. The two men, locked in a heated argument over commission compensation, turned sharply, their eyes instantly drawn to the massive spiked hammer before Madara Uchiha.

"What kind of ninja tool is this?"

Kakuzu swallowed hard; he could clearly sense the explosive power emanating from this heavy weapon.

"He actually brought out this; it seems he wants to end the battle quickly."

Black Zetsu looked thoughtful; he recognized the weapon and knew the wonders of this ninja tool.

"Erzhuzi!"

"receive."

Upon hearing Madara Uchiha suddenly call out his new name, Black Zetsu immediately gave an OK sign and quickly retreated, seemingly abandoning his teammates and running away, all while Kakuzu looked on in bewilderment.

"What are you doing? Why don't you join him and beat the bastard to a pulp?"

Kakuzu asked, utterly puzzled, "What's the point of talking about chivalry with someone like this?"

"I almost forgot, you're a teammate now too."

Upon hearing this, Black Zetsu turned around, looked at Kakuzu who was still standing there, slapped his forehead, quickly grabbed Kakuzu's shoulder, and tried to pull him away without saying a word.

"My request isn't finished yet!"

The strength of the Hashirama Senju clone was no joke; Kakuzu, who hadn't even transformed yet, didn't even have a chance to struggle before being forcibly dragged away by Black Zetsu.

After creating some distance, Black Zetsu saw Madara Uchiha's body swell up in the distance and finally breathed a sigh of relief. He then turned his gaze to Kakuzu, whom he was holding in his hand.

"Stop nagging. Your presence will only hinder his performance. If you say another word, I will request double compensation and file a complaint against your poor service attitude."

(End of this chapter)