Hidden in the shadows, Black Zetsu trembled with fear.

Did the Fifth Hokage find out something...? Will Madara's plan fail...? Nagato probably hasn't realized any of this yet, um, not yet...

Black Zetsu comforted himself, realizing that he had waited far too long, thousands of years, before finally seeing a glimmer of hope to revive his mother.

Black Zetsu is the third son born when Kaguya Otsutsuki was sealed away. His eldest and second sons were the brothers of the Sage of Six Paths, who sealed Kaguya Otsutsuki away.

Black Zetsu was born from the will of Kaguya Otsutsuki, and his life's mission is to break Kaguya's seal and help her break free.

But that requires the Divine Tree and the Infinite Tsukuyomi released by the Rinnegan.

Before Madara Uchiha appeared, the Rinnegan had never appeared in the ninja world after the deaths of Indra and Ashura, the two sons of the Sage of Six Paths.

Madara awakened the Mangekyou Sharingan on his own, and later fused with his brother's Mangekyou Sharingan to awaken the Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan. In the final battle, he bit off Hashirama's flesh and blood—although Madara was defeated by Hashirama once again in that battle—and with the power of Hashirama's flesh and blood, Madara successfully awakened the Rinnegan.

After thousands of years, only now does Black Zetsu see hope in breaking the seal of his mother, Kaguya.

This explains why Madara was deceived and Obito was fooled. Madara always believed that Black Zetsu was a product of his will, so naturally he didn't reject the Infinite Tsukuyomi plan.

The Rinnegan in Nagato's eye socket is Madara's eye. Because Madara was too old and about to die, in addition to training Obito as his successor, Madara needed someone to nurture his Rinnegan and keep it active, and Nagato was the right person for that.

Just in case, I need to tell Obito... But how can Cao Ya be so powerful? Even Nagato couldn't beat him... That power is somewhat like Sage Mode...

Black Zetsu was full of doubts and couldn't figure out whether Cao Ya's power was a celestial technique or a physical technique.

Or perhaps both?

Black Zetsu infiltrated underground and disappeared from the vicinity. Obito couldn't defeat Nagato, so naturally he couldn't defeat Cao Ya. However, they could still stir up trouble and cause some problems in the shadows, affecting the ninja world.

Black Zetsu is the best at this.

Over the course of a thousand years, he had done this kind of thing countless times. Compared to him, Obito was simply an incredibly naive novice.

However, Black Zetsu needs Obito's power; Black Zetsu himself doesn't have much strength.

Cao Ya glanced around discreetly. He had sensed Black Zetsu's presence earlier, but hadn't revealed it.

There's no need to kill Black Zetsu now, otherwise where would we find Obito?

Obito's Mangekyou Sharingan is Kamui, a space-time ability, which is quite troublesome.

Therefore, Cao Ya decided to have Obito and Black Zetsu come to him on their own initiative.

The words I just said served two purposes: first, to remind Nagato that the Rinnegan is not the power of the Uzumaki, so that he should think carefully about why he has a pair of Rinnegan; second, to remind Black Zetsu to go find Obito, then spy on him, the Hokage, figure out his weaknesses, and devise a scheme.

Of course, if Cao Ya realized that Black Zetsu and Obito were both present, he would take action immediately.

Cao Ya glanced at Nagato, who was still deep in thought, and said calmly:

"No matter where those eyes came from, they are your eyes now. Use them well. If anyone tries to gouge out your eyes, kill them on the spot."

Nagato suddenly realized, "Yes, it doesn't matter how I got these eyes. Whether I was born with them or had them surgically transplanted, it doesn't matter. All I need to do is make good use of the power of these eyes and fight for that goal. That's all."

However, Nagato still felt somewhat wary.

He looked at Cao Ya and thanked him:

"Thank you for reminding me."

Cao Ya waved his hand, looked at the black sphere several miles away, and said:

"Nagato, can you release the Raikage and those two Jinchūriki?"

Nagato was somewhat surprised and asked:

"Why?"

Xiao Nan also said in surprise:

"The Hidden Cloud Village came to attack Konoha. Let them die, why save them?"

Cao Ya solemnly explained the significance of the Raikage to his subsequent plans. If the Land of Lightning were conquered, and if the Raikage surrendered and was willing to continue leading the Land of Lightning, then the hearts of the people in the Land of Lightning could be stabilized, and Cao Ya would be able to ruthlessly purge those old nobles.

Otherwise, if the Land of Lightning were to rebel, far too many people would die.

Cao Ya doesn't care about the dead, but if it can be avoided, why go on a killing spree?

Nagato said with shame:

"Alas, after Yahiko's death, I can't compare to you in this respect."

Xiao Nan reminisced:

"If Yahiko were still alive, he would definitely become your best friend."

Cao Ya smiled:

"Maybe."

He also added:

"If the Raikage doesn't know what's good for him, then kill him on the spot."

Nagato nodded:

"good."

Subsequently, Nagato recalled the Six Paths of Pain. Cao Ya was quite careful when he made his move, and did not actually destroy the six puppets, especially the Hell Path, which was responsible for maintenance.

Nagato released the Chibaku Tensei technique, and the Fourth Raikage A, along with the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki Killer Bee and the Two-Tails Jinchuriki, fell from the wooden doll into the shattered forest, their faces pale, greedily breathing in the fresh air.

I almost... I almost suffocated...

Raikage sensed something, suddenly stood up, but felt dizzy and almost fell again.

Killer Bee and Yugito didn't rush to stand up; they just sat on the ground.

Since we've already lost the fight and almost lost everyone, and now that we've been rescued, no matter what the reason, we can't fight back against the newcomers. Let's see who comes first.

However, they were still taken aback when they saw Cao Ya, the two people beside him, and Pain.

"The Fifth Hokage, was that your subordinate?" The Raikage's face was grim. He led his army to attack Konoha, but ended up being almost killed by Konoha instead.

Cao Ya shook his head and said:

"My friends and allies are not my subordinates."

After a brief introduction, he announced in a calm tone:

"Raikage, Kumogakure has been defeated."

Raikage muttered in a low voice:

"I know you came here to humiliate me?"

If Cao Ya and those unknown powerhouses were to turn around and attack the main force of the Hidden Cloud Village, the Hidden Cloud Village would probably be doomed.

For such a powerful individual, taking on ten thousand enemies single-handedly is an accomplishment.

Cao Ya smiled and waved his hand, saying:

"Of course not. The daimyo and nobles of the Land of Lightning can easily issue an order and you'll be fighting to the death. If it weren't for me, you would really be dead. Don't you have any opinions on that?"

Lei Ying paused for a moment, then suddenly understood, and exclaimed in astonishment:

"You want me to help you?"

Cao Ya corrected:

"It's not about helping me, it's about helping yourself."

He paused for a moment, then calmly said:

"If you agree, the Land of Lightning will cease to exist, but the Hidden Cloud Village will continue to exist. You will remain the Raikage, and you will be the leader of the Land of Lightning from now on."

Upon hearing this, Raikage's expression changed slightly.