Saving the Uchiha clan starts with becoming the clan leader.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Within the Land of Fire,

In a secret chamber deep underground,

"All nine tailed beasts have fallen into Konoha's hands. Are we still going to wait?" In the dim candlelight, the orange-red swirling mask on Obito Uchiha's face was illuminated, and beneath the mask, a single scarlet eye contained a deep and sharp killing intent.

"That's right, just wait patiently."

"Ban, you..."

Uchiha gritted his teeth, looking rather rustic.

Wait, wait, wait... how long do we have to wait? If we keep waiting, will they still have a chance if Uchiha Munegen becomes the Ten-Tails Jinchuriki? It's hateful that I'm no match for Uchiha Munegen. Even after becoming an Edo Tensei, I'm still controlled by Uchiha Madara... I have no ability to act on my own except for muttering to myself.

"Don't worry, Zetsu has already made progress on the information regarding the Gedo Mazo." Glancing at Obito Uchiha, who was about to explode with anger, Madara Uchiha delivered the latest information: "Sōgen Uchiha has moved the Gedo Mazo out of Konoha. Zetsu has determined the approximate location of the Gedo Mazo and sent White Zetsu to investigate. Accurate news will arrive soon."

"They moved the Gedo Mazo from Konoha?"

Obito Uchiha was initially delighted, but then a hint of suspicion appeared on his face. "Madara, are you sure this isn't a trap set by Mugen Uchiha? Konoha Village has many layers of barriers, making it difficult even for White Zetsu to enter or leave. Why would they move the Gedo Mazo outside Konoha Village? It feels like a trap aimed at us."

"That's right, that's what I think too."

Uchiha shoji nodded. "While I can find many reasons to reasonably explain Uchiha Sogen's actions, ... those are all just self-deception. It's impossible for Uchiha Sogen to remove the Gedo Mazo from Konoha without setting a trap, but—"

"So what if it's a trap?"

Obito Uchiha paused upon hearing this, as if he had realized something.

"Even if we know there's a trap set by Uchiha Munen here, we can't just ignore it. We have to go. No matter what lies ahead, the Eye of the Moon Plan must be carried out by us personally before we can feel at ease."

Uchiha Madara finished speaking.

This left Obito Uchiha speechless. What he said... was absolutely right! Even knowing it was a trap, they had no choice but to grit their teeth and go for it. Otherwise, could they just sit and watch Mugen Uchiha successfully become the Ten-Tails' Jinchūriki? By then, it would be too late.

"But there's no need to worry too much. Zetsu will find out the information... and here he is, isn't he?" Uchiha Madara's gaze shifted, and he looked up at the rocky dome above, where Zetsu, a pitcher plant with a yin-yang face, appeared. "Zetsu, what have you found?"

"The Demonic Statue of the Heretic has been found."

Jue delivered some good news.

Where?

"It's located deep underground in the forest northeast of the Valley of the End. There's a fairly tight barrier around it, but it's still weaker than Konoha Village's defenses. I personally infiltrated it and saw the Gedo Mazo, which has already... opened three eyes."

"A three-eyed tailed beast, one-third of which has been sealed away."

Madara Uchiha took a deep breath.

This news... added even more pressure to his shoulders. He forced himself to remain calm and continued to ask, "Zetsu, have you found out why Uchiha Munegen moved the Gedo Mazo outside Konoha? Is he planning to set a trap for us?"

"I overheard a bit of news, but I can't confirm its authenticity."

After hesitating for a few seconds, Zetsu slowly said, "I overheard two members of the Uchiha clan talking. They said that the Sixth Hokage was worried that sealing the Tailed Beasts inside Konoha would cause a disaster and didn't want the village to bear such a huge risk. So he chose to seal the Tailed Beasts outside the village to create the strongest weapon of war. It seems that Uchiha Sogen didn't reveal the Eye of the Moon Plan and instead used Nagato's theory."

"The most powerful weapon of war?"

Madara Uchiha frowned slightly. This information... is a bit tricky!

I have no idea what kind of tricks Uchiha Munen is up to.

"Do you think that was a trap set for us?" Obito Uchiha interjected at this moment.

"Well... it's about half and half!" Zetsu said vaguely. "To be honest, a trap in the ordinary sense wouldn't mean anything to you and Madara. They couldn't possibly be expecting you to fall into a pit, could they?"

"If we're talking about traps, they'll most likely gather a group of experts to launch an attack when we break in. I think Uchiha Munen moved the Gedo Mazo outside the village to transfer the risk and prevent Konoha from being destroyed by a fierce battle."

“That’s not wrong. Back then… when I was fighting Hashirama, that guy liked to run away to places where no one was around. Only when everyone was alone would he get serious and fight me.” Madara Uchiha pondered for a moment, then slowly nodded, agreeing with Zetsu’s statement. “Hmph, I never thought that someone in my Uchiha clan would be as soft-hearted as Hashirama.”

He didn't utter a sound.

He didn't think Uchiha Sogen and Senju Hashirama had anything in common besides their equally superb martial arts skills. Wasn't it inappropriate to describe Uchiha Sogen as soft-hearted? Even Senju Hashirama wasn't exactly a saint back then; he didn't earn the title of God of Shinobi because he was soft-hearted.

It can only be said that Madara Uchiha's image is viewed through a very heavy lens.

I actually think Hashirama Senju is too soft-hearted... Oh well, these are all trivial matters, no need to worry about them.

"Okay, next we'll push towards the Gedo Mazo, and wait until it opens all seven eyes before... never mind, let's go together! We'll wait not far from the Gedo Mazo, we can't miss the best opportunity."

Madara Uchiha, who was sitting cross-legged on the stone bed, stood up.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

To the northeast of the Valley of the End lies a deep and dense forest. It is said that this forest was created by the First Hokage using Wood Release techniques during his final battle with Madara Uchiha. The battle took them all the way to the Valley of the End, where they finally brought an end to their complex grudges and entanglements.

The authenticity of the legend of Zongxian is uncertain, and I'm too lazy to bother researching such matters.

The reason he chose the underground of this forest as the place to house the Gedo Mazo was because there was already an Orochimaru research base here, which could be expanded directly on the existing basis. At the same time, there were no people within a radius of fifty kilometers, so there was no need to worry about the fighting affecting ordinary people.

"I think doing this is still a bit risky."

Uchiha Shisui looked at the Gedo Mazo with deep concern.

After opening three eyes,

The aura of the Gedo Mazo has changed. The original sense of death and emptiness has disappeared, and one can faintly sense a bit of vitality in the Gedo Mazo. This withered monster is reviving.

"Then, shall I summon the Gedo Mazo back to Konoha? And confront Madara Uchiha in the village?"

Zongxian asked a question in return.

That one sentence shut Shisui up. To fight Uchiha Madara inside Konoha... was he planning to tear Konoha apart and completely rebuild it from scratch? Although the defenses here couldn't compare to the village's,... for the safety of everyone in the village, taking some risks seemed acceptable.

"...Will Madara Uchiha really come?"

Zhi Shui changed the subject.

"Definitely."

Zongxian nodded, looking at the Gedo Mazo with its three eyes open, and said with certainty, "Uchiha Madara and Uchiha Obito will definitely come when the Eight-Tails or Nine-Tails are sealed, or when the Nine-Tails has just been sealed."

This is an open strategy.

He knew that Madara Uchiha and Obito Uchiha, those two madmen, were obsessed with the Eye of the Moon Plan, and that they were both the kind of crazy people who would do anything to push the Eye of the Moon Plan forward. They would never watch him take control of the revived Divine Tree.

Then there's Black Zetsu, the mastermind behind everything. Even if Madara Uchiha and Obito Uchiha hesitated, Black Zetsu would still urge them to take the risk in order to revive Kaguya Otsutsuki.

Therefore,

Don't worry about whether they will come.

What he needed to consider was how to stall for time as much as possible, to buy time for Madara Uchiha or Obito Uchiha, and to create opportunities... In order not to catch Madara Uchiha and the others off guard, after sealing the One-Tailed Beast, Sogen chose to use the [Phantom Dragon Nine Seals] to seal the Two-Tailed Beast and the Three-Tailed Beast.

Instead of manipulating the Gedo Mazo to instantly extract the Tailed Beast.

"Sigh! The Divine Tree... the Eye of the Moon Project... how could this happen? I can't even understand this ninja world anymore, it feels like a dream!!!"

Previously, Sogen had only told the First and Second Hokage, two dead men, about the Divine Tree and the Eye of the Moon Plan. It wasn't until he began sealing the Tailed Beasts into the Gedo Mazo that Sogen explained the Divine Tree and the Eye of the Moon Plan to a handful of people, including Shisui and Arashiyama.

There was no mention of Kaguya Otsutsuki.

But the Eye of the Moon project alone had already exhausted Shisui to the extreme, making him realize once again that his limit of endurance was so high. Also, unsurprisingly, Shisui didn't like the beautiful world of illusion at all. He even hated himself, the god who could modify the will of others.

He found the so-called Eye of the Moon plan by Madara Uchiha and Obito Uchiha even more unacceptable. Eternal peace sounds nice, but forcing all of humanity to enjoy this blessing in this way... Sorry, Shisui refused.

He longed for peace achieved through the efforts of everyone, not just this self-deceiving, false tranquility.

"By the way, Sogen, what about the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki...? It seems that Jiraiya-senpai is not very willing to let Naruto get rid of the Nine-Tails?" Shisui forced himself to cheer up. No matter how disappointed and frustrated he was, he could not change the situation he was facing. Rather than sighing and lamenting, he should try his best to stop Uchiha Madara's ambition.

"I have my own way of dealing with Jiraiya-senpai's matter."

Zongxian answered confidently.

Because all the tailed beasts need to be sealed, Naruto, the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, is an unavoidable figure. After learning that the Nine-Tails would soon need to be extracted from Naruto's body, Jiraiya did not express his joy that Naruto could get rid of the discriminated status of being the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki. Instead, he was deeply troubled.

They kept dragging their feet and didn't give Zongxian a definite answer.

In Zongxian's view,

Jiraiya's troubles were not complicated.

The reason for the hesitation was the series of contingency plans arranged by the Fourth Hokage before his death. If Naruto did not have the Nine-Tails, all the contingency plans left by the Fourth Hokage would be rendered useless, and even the act of sealing the Nine-Tails in his son would lose much of its meaning.

Therefore, Jiraiya hesitated to make a decision. As for Naruto himself... to be honest, he didn't care much about the Nine-Tails' gains or losses. What he cared about was Jiraiya's emotions and the legacy of his parents. For these reasons, he was also unable to make a decision on his own.

"Shisui, you don't need to worry about the Nine-Tails right now. Just continue to focus on sealing the Four-Tails, Five-Tails, and the other tailed beasts. I will handle the Nine-Tails matter," Zongxian said slowly and deliberately.

[Chapter 479 Impure World Reincarnation - Yellow Flash]

The sealing of the tailed beasts proceeded smoothly. The four-tailed beast, the five-tailed beast, the six-tailed beast... When the seven-tailed beast jinchūriki, Furu, recovered from his illness and returned to Konoha with a joyful expression, the extraction of the eight-tailed beast from the eight-tailed beast jinchūriki, Killer Bee, was also nearing its end. At this time, a shadow clone of Sogen returned to the village and found Jiraiya on the rooftop, who was using binoculars to observe the bathhouse.

The howling cold wind could not stop Jiraiya's pursuit of art!

That is,

The newly enacted laws in Konoha Village explicitly state that voyeurism is illegal.

"Jiraiya-senpai, please don't do such blatant bad things! It'll make things difficult for the police!"

"It's the Hokage!"

Jiraiya put down his binoculars, showing no remorse whatsoever as a criminal. Instead, he laughed and declared confidently, "I'm not doing anything illegal. I'm just gathering inspiration. To create something, you have to constantly broaden your horizons. You can't just work in isolation."

"Alright then!"

Zongxian shook his head helplessly, "But it's best not to let the police find out about your... field trip. The police aren't as easy to talk to as I am."

"Tch! What a hassle."

Jiraiya looked indignant.

"Okay, okay, I'll be careful... Zongxian-kun, you didn't come here just to talk about this, did you? What is it? Just say it! I still need to do some fieldwork! The wind on this rooftop is so strong my fingers are almost frozen."

"..."

Zongxian looked at Jiraiya, who was rubbing his fingers together, and was speechless for a moment. After a second of silence, he said, "It's about the same thing as before, which we talked about in my office last time."

As soon as the words left his mouth,

Jiraiya's entire demeanor underwent a dramatic change. His carefree and impetuous air vanished, replaced by a serious expression. His eyes narrowed slightly, sharp gaze fixed intently on Sogen, and he asked in a low voice:

"Is there really... no other way?"

"It is imperative, and it is already imminent."

Zongxian said frankly.