Shinigami in the Ninja World

Unfortunately, this tactic proved effective.

But once a few key people took a stand, others became hesitant to get involved in this mess.

In Konoha, after Kakashi was removed from his position, the Inuzuka, Sarutobi, and Aburame clans all refused to step up and take over leadership.

Powerful ninjas like Might Guy and Jiraiya virtually vanished.

In the end, they had no choice but to elevate Ibiki Morino.

A similar situation unfolded in the Land of Earth.

The Daimyo dismissed Onoki and tried to replace him with Kitsuchi, but Kitsuchi refused. Then they turned to Kurotsuchi, who also refused.

Only then did the Daimyo realize that this was a family matter—they had likely been in cahoots from the start.

Despite widespread non-cooperation, they managed to muster an army of over forty thousand.

In the Land of Iron, the Daimyo of the Land of Fire was pleased with the numbers. "As expected, those uncontrollable tools are the minority."

"Over forty thousand!"

"With such a powerful force at our disposal, we can surely deal with that little Naruto Uzumaki."

A Konoha ninja standing behind him hesitated, wanting to speak but sensing that this wasn't the right moment.

The Daimyo of the Land of Lightning shook his head, his tone serious. "We can't be so optimistic."

"I've been reviewing the reports from Cloud Village over the past few days."

"It seems..."

"That Naruto Uzumaki has a power that can prevent weaker opponents from even fighting."

The Daimyo of the Land of Fire, now more composed, remained calm. "I'm aware of that."

"Therefore..."

"I've already made preparations."

"Come out and meet them, Obito."

At the conference table, space distorted, a whirlpool formed, and a man with severe facial scars appeared.

"Good day, Daimyos," he greeted in a hoarse voice. "As long as I have your support, Naruto Uzumaki won't be so difficult to handle."

The Daimyo of the Land of Fire smirked in satisfaction. "This man's abilities are quite remarkable."

"He is one of my most trusted operatives."

The Daimyo of the Land of Lightning cautiously asked, "What kind of support do you need?"

"Cells from powerful bodies," Obito Uchiha replied bluntly. "The cells of the strongest ninjas from your villages' histories."

"With these materials..."

"I can even bring dead ninjas back from the afterlife to continue serving you."

The Daimyos' eyes lit up with interest.

"Using the dead to serve us?" The Daimyo of the Land of Wind was intrigued.

Unlike the other countries, the Land of Wind was barren, lacking not only in material resources but also in ninja talent.

They didn't have many capable ninjas...

"Gaara" was the only one who could truly represent them.

However, he was uncooperative.

If they had this kind of power...

At least the Land of Wind wouldn't be in such an embarrassing position.

"Just their bodies?" The Daimyo of the Land of Lightning nodded. "That's quite a cheap request."

Obito Uchiha grinned.

After the meeting, in a residence within the Land of Iron, Obito returned, and a figure emerged from the shadows, smiling. "So, you really managed to convince the Five Great Nations. Obito-kun, your abilities are truly formidable."

Obito Uchiha squinted at him. "I've kept my promise."

"Now..."

"It's your turn to demonstrate your abilities, Kabuto."

The man with the glasses, Kabuto, nodded with a smile. "Of course."

"But you know, Edo Tensei requires 'live sacrifices.'"

"Have you prepared those, Obito-kun?"

Obito didn't respond, merely gesturing with his hand.

The two entered the room.

Obito formed a seal and summoned a corpse and a scroll.

"The cells of the person to be revived are in here," he said. "I hope your technique works."

Kabuto tilted his head. "Obito-kun."

"If you didn't trust me, why did you seek me out in the first place?"

"Don't worry."

"Even though Orochimaru-sama abandoned his research on this technique after encountering Naruto Uzumaki, I never gave up."

Obito snorted but said nothing.

He had heard of the Edo Tensei technique before but had never paid much attention to it.

However, circumstances had changed.

With the Rinnegan in Naruto Uzumaki's possession, Obito had lost any chance of using the Rinne Tensei to revive Madara Uchiha.

And...

With this obstacle in place, he couldn't think of any other way to deal with Naruto Uzumaki besides uniting the Five Great Nations.

He had no choice but to rely on Edo Tensei.

And to place his hopes on reviving Madara...

Once Kabuto was ready, he formed a series of hand seals.

"Edo Tensei!"

The seal activated, consuming the body on the ground.

Moments later, the soul being summoned took over the body.

The features slowly transformed.

"This is..." Kabuto stared at the eyes, astonished.

The man revived by Edo Tensei lifted his head, looking around. "Returning to the world in this way was not what I had hoped for."

"And..."

His gaze fell on Obito. "Explain the situation to me. Why have I been summoned using Tobirama Senju's technique?"

Kabuto chuckled softly.

No wonder Obito Uchiha had been so cautious...

It turned out the person he was trying to revive was the legendary Madara Uchiha.

"The plan encountered some unexpected setbacks," Obito said, his expression grave. "At first, everything was going smoothly."

"But in recent years, a formidable figure has appeared."

"He defeated Nagato and took the Rinnegan."

Madara's face remained calm. "A young upstart? Defeating Nagato... he must have some skill."

"But since you've reclaimed your eyes..."

Obito shook his head. "Even the Mangekyō Sharingan isn't a match for him."

"He's incredibly powerful."

"I've never seen a ninja like him before."

"Perhaps only the God of Ninja, Hashirama Senju, could rival him."

Madara narrowed his eyes. "Hashirama? To earn such praise from you..."

Obito continued. "I've already persuaded the Five Great Nations to unite their ninja villages in a campaign against him, but even with that, I have little confidence."

"I had no choice but to turn to Kabuto and use Edo Tensei."

He shook his head solemnly.

"The Five Great Nations united in a campaign?" Madara was somewhat surprised. "You actually managed to convince them."

Obito replied. "He aims to overthrow the ninja system."

"I see," Madara chuckled. "A man with ambition. Why not try to recruit him as an ally?"

Obito's face turned serious. "He..."

"He probably wants to kill me more than anyone else."

"I'm responsible for the deaths of his parents."

Madara frowned. "I see."

"What a pity."

"But from what you've said, he's still quite young?"

"He's only sixteen this year," Obito nodded. "But he's a person of extraordinary talent, ability, and potential."

"And he wields a power completely different from the ninja system."

"A power that controls souls."

Madara pondered. "That does sound rather incredible."

"But no matter how powerful he is, as long as we obtain the power of all nine Tailed Beasts and awaken the God Tree..."

Obito interrupted him. "He is the Jinchūriki of the Nine-Tails."

Madara froze.

This...

What kind of situation was this?

Now he had to face an exceptionally powerful ninja as an enemy?

"The Nine-Tails Jinchūriki, Naruto Uzumaki," Obito said, revealing the name. "If we want to achieve our plan, he's an obstacle we must overcome."

Madara fell silent.

It was bad enough that the plan had encountered setbacks...

It was bad enough that he had been summoned back using Tobirama's technique...

But now, such a monumental challenge had been thrown at him.

Obito turned away from Madara, looking at Kabuto. "I have a question."

Kabuto nodded solemnly.

"The Rinnegan is in Naruto Uzumaki's possession, so why does Madara still have the Rinnegan?" Obito stared at those spiral-patterned purple eyes.

Kabuto smiled. "Edo Tensei is a powerful technique."

"No matter how rare or unique the ability, as long as the revived person had it in life, it can be restored."

"Whether it's the Rinnegan..."

"Or the Sharingan."

Obito seemed to be deep in thought. "Then is it possible..."

Madara interrupted him. "Although I still possess the Rinnegan, it's not quite the same as the real thing."

"Don't get your hopes up; the Rinne Tensei technique won't work."

"But..."

He turned to Kabuto. "I never had the chance to study Tobirama's technique before."

"You said that the abilities a person had in life can be restored."

"Does that include Tailed Beast chakra?"

Kabuto paused, considering the question, then spoke softly. "That's a tricky question."

"I've never encountered this situation before."

"But..."

"Tailed Beast chakra is still chakra, right?"

"If the Rinnegan can be restored, then the power of the Tailed Beasts might be possible too."

"Are you planning to revive former Jinchūriki?"

Madara shook his head, his tone calm. "We need the Tailed Beasts' chakra. If the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki is too difficult to deal with, we'll just bypass him."

"Apart from the corpses of past Nine-Tails Jinchūriki..."

"I remember Cloud Village once obtained some of the Nine-Tails' chakra. That's another avenue."

"Obito, how are the Tailed Beasts' collections progressing?"

Obito lowered his head. "I've only captured the Six-Tails. The other Tailed Beasts are still out of reach."

Madara glared at him. "It's been almost twenty years since I died, hasn't it?"

"And this is all you've accomplished?"

"You've really been slacking, Obito."

Obito shook his head. "Everything was ready."

"But then Naruto Uzumaki emerged out of nowhere."

"And everything has been thrown into disarray."