I, who just wanted to be lazy, was forced to become the Hokage.

Chapter 378 The Eyes That Reflect the Soul!

"Obito...Obito?"

Hearing a call from the depths of his being, Obito Uchiha's consciousness, which had been shrouded in chaos and darkness, gradually began to awaken.

A head of dazzling short golden hair immediately caught Obito Uchiha's dark eyes.

The striking hair color and familiar face made Obito Uchiha, still somewhat dazed, lock onto his target instantly.

"Minato—teacher?"

Seeing that Obito Uchiha had regained consciousness and called out his name, Minato Namikaze breathed a sigh of relief.

He was not currently at Konoha Hospital or any other treatment facility, but rather at the Root Base.

To be precise.

It is the secret prison of the root base.

The "Birth of the Flower Tree World" released by Nara Rangsuke previously affected the entire Root Base, including the secret prison within the Root Base where certain special prisoners were held.

Obito Uchiha was secretly imprisoned here several days ago.

He was examined after his body was modified by White Zetsu, and interrogated about information about Madara Uchiha.

Obito Uchiha was also caught off guard by the pollen attack from the "Birth of the Flowering Tree World" and was knocked unconscious.

When Minato Namikaze used his chakra senses to investigate, he found his student unconscious in the prison.

Obito Uchiha's current situation is hardly good.

Beneath a head of messy, long black hair was a pale, emaciated face, and his extremely thin body was covered with ghastly white patches, as if a thin, mottled membrane had been placed over his skeleton.

Even without medical ninjutsu, Minato Namikaze could tell how bad Obito Uchiha's physical condition was.

Even without actively making the connection, Minato Namikaze could sense the inhumane torture that Obito Uchiha had endured.

Poor child...

Minato Namikaze, concerned that the methods of the Root ninjas might not be limited to the physical, tentatively called out to Obito Uchiha in a soft voice, wanting to see if the boy still possessed the ability to think independently and normally.

Seeing that Obito Uchiha had not only regained consciousness but also called out his name, Minato Namikaze breathed a sigh of relief.

The brain was not damaged, the memory seemed to be intact, and the Sharingan of the Uchiha clan was not destroyed...

It was a stroke of luck amidst misfortune.

"Obito".

Looking at the student in front of him, who seemed as if a gust of wind could blow him over, Minato Namikaze tried to soften his tone as much as possible.

"I've already informed the Third Hokage. I'll bring Rin over later so she can give you some initial treatment, and then... I'll take you to the village hospital for further treatment."

Minato Namikaze did indeed have a proper conversation with Hiruzen Sarutobi.

The village had been hiding information about Obito Uchiha from him all along, and now he was able to sense Obito Uchiha's chakra inside the Root base...

No matter how you look at it, Minato Namikaze didn't think Root would treat Obito Uchiha well.

Perhaps because he witnessed Danzo Shimura's death firsthand, Hiruzen Sarutobi was completely unable to muster any spirits.

After giving Minato Namikaze a few perfunctory replies, Hiruzen Sarutobi allowed him to remove Obito Uchiha from Root.

In a sense, Hiruzen Sarutobi's previous "deception" of Minato Namikaze was not a genuine deception, but rather the truth.

From Konoha's perspective, Obito Uchiha's unique experiences were indeed inextricably linked to the elusive Madara Uchiha.

Obito Uchiha was indeed being investigated and interrogated by Konoha.

They can interrogate Obito Uchiha. What complicated procedures are needed?

This guy disappeared from the battlefield of the Land of Hot Water, was "rescued" and taken to the Mountain Graveyard, and then was rescued by Nara Rinka...

During this process, although Obito Uchiha played the role of the "protagonist," he actually had no idea what was happening.

Basically, it just happened in the blink of an eye...

Aside from knowing that Madara Uchiha was alive and that Madara controlled a group of White Zetsu, Obito Uchiha knew absolutely nothing else.

Konoha was also unable to extract any useful information from Obito Uchiha.

Is Madara Uchiha still alive?

Konoha already knew.

Did Madara Uchiha have White Zetsu?

Konoha also has several White Zetsu corpses in its possession!

The real reason that led Root to keep Obito Uchiha was not the connection between Obito Uchiha and Madara Uchiha, but Obito Uchiha's special body after being modified by White Zetsu!

A long time ago, Konoha captured several White Zetsu.

Although they were all corpses, that did not prevent Konoha from studying them.

After some research, Konoha discovered that the cells of this creature called White Zetsu were very similar to those of plant cells, and did not resemble normal human cells.

Considering that White Zetsu can use Wood Release, and that Root has been secretly researching Wood Release all along...

Obito Uchiha, this "living White Zetsu experimental subject," was forcibly left in the Root base.

Both Shimura Danzo and Orochimaru secretly regarded Uchiha Obito as a breakthrough point in the research of Wood Release Kekkei Genkai.

Under these circumstances, it's easy to imagine the treatment Obito Uchiha received within the Root base.

As the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi naturally knew about this matter.

He had also considered whether or not to put Obito Uchiha back into Minato's team.

But after all, it concerns Wood Release...

Minato's team already has Kakashi Hatake, the Jinchūriki of the Three-Tails.

From Konoha's perspective, the issue of the Three-Tails Jinchuriki going berserk and out of control must be considered.

The Nine-Tailed Fox's rampage has not yet occurred.

The incident of Madara Uchiha controlling the Nine-Tails to attack Konoha is too far in the past.

"The Sharingan is enough to suppress the Tailed Beasts," which is information that Konoha has no control over.

However, the idea that "Wood Release can suppress Tailed Beasts" is a common understanding among the Konoha leadership!

Although Obito Uchiha possessed the identities of "Uchiha clan" and "Minato's team member".

But ultimately, he was just an ordinary Konoha Chunin.

Using Obito Uchiha as a living experiment, they developed Wood Release, further enhancing their control over the Three-Tails Jinchuriki, and eventually the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki, and even the Five-Tails Jinchuriki...

This is a very worthwhile deal no matter how you look at it!

What Hiruzen Sarutobi never expected was...

The Root organization and Orochimaru have made little progress in their research on Obito Uchiha.

Then.

Orochimaru was crippled.

Now even Danzo Shimura is dead.

As for the much-anticipated [Wood Release]...

Instead, it happened to Nara Rinka!

So what's the point of keeping Obito Uchiha around?

As the experimental subject, Obito Uchiha was completely unaware of the reasons behind Konoha's actions, and even his high-ranking Ken couldn't figure out the reason.

The straightforward Uchiha was known only for his bloodshed for Konoha and his contributions to the village, and then...

He was then used as an experimental subject by Konoha and subjected to insane torture.

During his time imprisoned in the secret cell at the Root base, Obito Uchiha longed more than once for someone to come and rescue him.

Whether it's the Third Hokage, Minato-sensei, or the head of the Fugaku clan...

Even that bastard Kakashi Hatake, Obito Uchiha had secretly fantasized about him.

Unfortunately, no one came.

All that remained was endless torment and experimentation.

Now, hearing what Minato Namikaze said...

Obito Uchiha felt no emotion whatsoever; all he felt was an overwhelming surge of resentment.

With his eyes closed, Kenji Uchiha's Sharingan quietly opened beneath his eyelids, the two tomoe subtly connecting to form a more complex and unique windmill shape.

"Teacher..."

Why are you only coming now?

(End of this chapter)