Malphegor
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HSU: Ch. 81
🕑 Added 2024-12-18 18:54:14 +0000 UTCBlack Zetsu was, without a doubt, a chatterbox.
Masashi truly believed this. And here I thought Uchiha elders could talk. This guy puts them all to shame.
For the first time in his life, despite clearly being the one "picking apart" someone else, it felt like he was the one being picked apart. The other party seemed to still have so much more to say, like they could go on for another chapter.
"Indra was a misunderstood genius. His father's expectations weighed heavily upon him," Black Zetsu gestured dramatically. "The burden of being the firstborn..."
This reads like bad fiction, Masashi thought, fighting to keep his expression neutral.
Listening to it was putting him to sleep.
In Black Zetsu's version, Indra was a deeply loving individual who couldn't gain his father's approval. Then, his scheming younger brother took advantage of the situation, winning their father's favor and securing the position of successor.
The whole thing played out like a palace drama. Indra was the clueless, naive protagonist. Honestly, any random palace drama from Earth had a more compelling plot than this.
Barely managing to sit through the whole reincarnation story, Masashi quickly interjected, cutting through Black Zetsu's theatrical retelling.
"So… Madara is the reincarnation of this ancestor?" Let's get to the useful information. Come on!
"Of the chakra," Black Zetsu corrected. Even though he was interrupted, he didn't seem upset. If anything, he enjoyed the conversation so much he didn't care. "The ancestor's chakra altered Madara's chakra, while also strengthening itself to prepare for the next reincarnation."
Given his behavior over the last thousand years, engaging in a discussion like this was almost unheard of.
But, bizarrely enough, he felt a sense of "equality" when speaking to Masashi. Though Masashi didn't trust Black Zetsu, he still treated him as a sentient being with his own emotions and will, rather than a humanoid tool or a mere product of ninjutsu. Nor did Masashi see him as something inferior.
This was a treatment Black Zetsu had never received from any of the "Indras" throughout history.
At best, previous "Indras" regarded him as a pitiful entity coveting the power of the Uchiha clan, using him with an air of mutual exploitation, often coupled with condescension and ridicule.
Madara was somewhat better, thanks to changes in the narrative, but he still saw Black Zetsu as a subordinate. His eyes always held that familiar Uchiha pride when giving orders.
Obito added a layer of deep suspicion to this dynamic, treating Black Zetsu like an annoying tag-along.
As for Indra himself, perhaps due to lack of experience as the first incarnation, he nearly said outright, "I can tell with one glance you're not human." The disgust in his eyes had never quite faded from Black Zetsu's memory.
Regardless, the relationship had always been one of inequality, forcing him to adopt a subservient attitude just to communicate with his "pawns."
But he was the child of Kaguya!
No matter what others thought, this was how Black Zetsu saw himself.
He had never considered himself inferior to anyone. In his view, he was the most superior existence on this earth.
For the first time in a long while, he was having fun. He even cherished the feeling of chatting with Masashi. The way he listened, analyzed, questioned—it was refreshingly different.
Maybe… I should plead with Mother to keep him around… The garden would still need tending, and being alone could be dull.
While Black Zetsu's thoughts wandered, Masashi was digesting its words.
From a surface-level perspective, it sounded a bit like brewing tea.
The reincarnated chakra was the tea leaves, and the chakra of the reincarnated body was the hot water.
Except, the chakras of Indra and Asura were like unendingly reusable tea leaves. Not only reusable, but capable of producing more tea leaves.
What the heck!? This was like raising a colony of parasites! No wonder the Uchiha's power keeps growing generation after generation.
The Ōtsutsuki family was a mess; not a single decent person among them.
And they say the Uchiha have issues.
"I think I get it now." He nodded. "So, to put it simply, White Zetsu, as a body cultivated from the cells of the First Hokage, possesses the qualities of Asura's chakra, correct?"
He turned to look at Black Zetsu, only to find—
The guy dozed off!?
I didn't fall asleep during your rambling, did I!?
"Were you fighting ghosts last night or something?" He waved a hand in front of Black Zetsu. "Why are you dozing off?"
"Ah… apologies, I was just thinking about something," Black Zetsu apologized unusually earnestly. "But I was listening carefully; you're absolutely correct."
"Then I have one more question." Masashi, seeing Black Zetsu in a good mood, decided not to mind his slacking and continued. "After the First Hokage's death, Asura's chakra reincarnates. Does his body still retain the qualities of Asura's chakra?"
"It's not an issue. His body had already acquired the qualities while he was alive. It just won't grow stronger anymore. Moreover…" Black Zetsu glanced at the idle White Zetsu wandering around. "After being diluted by White Zetsu, the chakra is perfectly balanced—safe without any side effects."
"Alright, I'm out of questions. When do we begin?"
"Don't you want to rest first?" Black Zetsu seemed reluctant to rush. "Since you're already here, why not stay a few more days? I only have knowledge; I can't directly make you stronger. It may take quite some time—it won't hurt to wait a bit."
"That's not an option." Masashi shook his head. "I'm not like Obito; I have an official position. I can't disappear for too long."
"Ah…" Black Zetsu sounded disappointed but understanding.
This was novel to him. When had he ever gone out of his way to consider a pawn's feelings? This first-time experience felt oddly pleasant.
I might as well look forward to Mother recognizing you, Masashi…
A White Zetsu shuffled over, flopping weakly at Masashi's feet.
"Feel its chakra, Masashi. I will assist you as well."
Black Zetsu's body distorted, flowing like liquid to envelop Masashi's form. The sensation was strange—not unpleasant, but alien, like being wrapped in living shadow.
So this is what Eddie felt when Venom first took over. At least this one's less interested in eating people.
In no time, his left side was completely covered by Black Zetsu.
Black Zetsu didn't attempt to seize control of this half of his body but could sense Masashi's extraordinary ocular power, which was astonishingly potent even by Uchiha standards.
This level of ocular power was already approaching the Mangekyō Sharingan.
"I need to borrow your hand next. Do you agree?" Such potential. Maybe Mother will be pleased...
"Go ahead."
The darkened hand plunged into White Zetsu's body.
Under Black Zetsu's guidance, White Zetsu's chakra flowed into Masashi like a steady stream, gathering within him like a river. The sensation was unlike anything he'd felt before—pure, raw chakra essence.
"Absorbing chakra is one of the abilities of a Sage," Black Zetsu explained. "White Zetsu also possesses this ability, derived from chakra itself."
"Chakra can do so many things," Masashi remarked, focusing on the sensation. "I've studied chakra for years but never grasped its essence."
"Most people only see chakra as a tool for combat and remain ignorant of its true nature," Black Zetsu said with disdain.
As a product of Yin-Yang Release, he was naturally closer to the essence of chakra than anyone else.
"Masashi, you're the first Uchiha I've met who's genuinely interested in the nature of chakra."
"Thanks. You're also the most talkative person I've met," Masashi finally said, "Not that I mean to criticize, but could you be quiet for a bit? Talking nonstop distracts me."
"Ah… sorry…" Black Zetsu reluctantly shut up.
He decided to teach a little more while he still could.
The revival of his mother was only a matter of time. He might as well savor these last moments of enjoyable conversation.
"So this is how chakra extraction works…" Masashi suddenly understood.
This was a technique he had wanted to learn during his first life but had failed to grasp due to the bizarre teaching methods of his instructor.
Even in his second life, despite trying everything, he couldn't master it. It was simply too abstract, like trying to catch smoke with bare hands.
However, with the help of Black Zetsu's abilities, it finally became clear to him. Through their shared control, he could feel every subtle movement.
The essence of absorbing chakra was about the interaction between chakras, not the use of physical or mental energy. Each strand had to be carefully untangled, controlled, and guided—like conducting an orchestra where every note had to be perfect.
This understanding was possible because Black Zetsu utilized his own chakra to demonstrate everything. His control was beyond anything Masashi had ever witnessed.
As a creation of Kaguya's Yin-Yang Release, Black Zetsu needed to rely on attaching himself to a host to exert power. His own strength wasn't formidable, nor could he train and become stronger. But in terms of chakra control, he was unparalleled on this earth.
He vividly showed Masashi the epitome of perfect chakra control, and application at every stage, expanding his horizons and reshaping his understanding of perfection.
At this level, it was beyond mastery—it was divine, representing the pinnacle of technique.
In Masashi's previous understanding, this capability was attainable only by those with advanced Sage powers. But Black Zetsu, using his chakra, disproved this: "Don't blame your body if you can't use chakra properly. The limitation isn't in your flesh, but in your understanding."
He completely relinquished control of half his body, letting Black Zetsu take over.
Even though he surrendered control, he didn't lose connection with his body. He could perceive everything happening with crystal clarity, feeling each subtle shift and flow of chakra through his system.
White Zetsu's chakra was powerful in quality. Aside from Indra's and Asura's chakra, it was among the strongest. Moreover, it possessed a corrosive property that could erode inferior chakras, eating through them like acid through paper.
This property mirrored the way Asura's chakra influenced his reincarnations, though Asura's chakra operated gently and subtly, like water wearing away stone. In contrast, White Zetsu's chakra, as a heavily degraded version, was crude and aggressive, more like a hammer than a chisel.
Under Black Zetsu's expert manipulation and with Masashi's own high-quality chakra, White Zetsu's chakra was easily extracted, disassembled, and assimilated.
In a duel between shinobi, this would mean the other party couldn't even put up a fight.
Masashi seized this rare opportunity, meticulously memorizing every detail and greedily absorbing its "nourishment."
After a long time, the White Zetsu clone before him began losing vitality. As a clone, it had enhanced physical activity compared to normal humans, but its power ultimately came from a fragment of Hashirama's flesh.
After layers of control and dilution, the power of a single White Zetsu clone was limited.
Under Black Zetsu's divine-level manipulation, its chakra couldn't corrode Masashi; instead, it was utterly dominated, broken down and reformed like clay in a master's hands.
Eventually, the White Zetsu clone on the ground stopped moving, lifeless.
Black Zetsu also ceased his actions, reverting to liquid form and detaching from Masashi, reassembling into human shape.
Masashi raised his left hand, flexing it experimentally.
"How was it?" Black Zetsu asked.
"A fascinating experience," Masashi replied, looking at the immobile White Zetsu clone. He curiously poked it.
No response. Its body had stiffened.
"Is it dead?" Masashi frowned. "Am I turning into some sort of vampiric monster?"
"It's merely lost its activity temporarily. It'll recover unless its chakra is completely drained," Black Zetsu explained. "Think of it as deep hibernation."
"Good to know." Masashi gave Black Zetsu a thumbs-up. "You're incredible! Didn't Obito learn this from you?"
"I taught him how to better utilize his Mangekyō abilities," Black Zetsu chuckled. "He's different from you. His body is severely damaged, so he needs to manage the overly strong Yang chakra within him."
"That makes sense…" Masashi nodded in understanding.
No wonder he could control the Nine-Tails with just one glance while being on par with me otherwise. Luckily, my genjutsu might not be great, but my anti-genjutsu skills are solid.
"I'll teach you as well, but not now," Black Zetsu dangled the bait. "Your ocular power isn't strong enough yet."
"Didn't you say I couldn't awaken the Mangekyō Sharingan?" Masashi reminded him sharply. "Might as well teach me everything. Recently, I defeated the Eight-Tails' jinchūriki. Who knows when it'll respawn? I have no other ambitions—I just want a tailed beast as my summon."
"Hmm?!" Black Zetsu's eyes widened. "You killed the Eight-Tails?"
"The jinchūriki, not the beast itself," Masashi corrected. "I couldn't possibly kill the beast. If I could, would I need to reseal the Nine-Tails?"
"Then it doesn't matter," Black Zetsu said. Masashi is even more suitable as a pawn. His strength grows faster than expected. His Mangekyō might be amazing... but it will be hard to awaken it...
The current Akatsuki wasn't ready for openly collecting the tailed beasts. Secretly securing one was feasible, but large-scale hunting would backfire.
Nagato wasn't strong enough yet to fully wield the Rinnegan.
In that case, eliminating the jinchūriki was a better move.
Black Zetsu had been monitoring the jinchūriki for a while. The Eight-Tails' jinchūriki was formidable; if allowed to grow, he would become a major threat.
Masashi had to be made into a true pawn.
For that, his ocular and physical energy had to be elevated to Mangekyō Sharingan levels. Black Zetsu had all the "materials" needed.
This way, the stone tablet would convince him, as it did Madara, that the Eye of the Moon Plan was the only path to peace.
Masashi lacked the complexity of Madara's life story but genuinely desired peace. His Sharingan already reflected this truth.
Black Zetsu summoned a new White Zetsu clone, instructing it to carry away the immobilized one, then had another lie down in its place.
"One by one, until you reach your limit," he said to Masashi.
A queue of White Zetsu clones lined up, staring blankly at the Uchiha.
"This feels like a Frankenstein experiment…" Masashi muttered.
"Who's Frankenstein?" asked the White Zetsu clone lying down. "Hurry up, will you?"
Looking down at it, Masashi realized these clones had some consciousness. He had thought only the main body had independent will.
With a swift chop, he plunged his hand into its chest, attempting to replicate the sensations from Black Zetsu's earlier guidance.
