Obito stood in the middle of a flat mesa, at his feet was Yugito Nii, unconscious but not dead.
It had taken some infiltration, and some groundwork, but Yugito Nii and Killer B were both in the same area, outside of the Village, far away from any reinforcements.
And Yugito had managed to fire off a BIjuudama high into the air, so he could expect Killer B to come here quickly.
The pain in his body from forcibly absorbing most of the Nibi's Chakra was dampened by the sheer amount of anticipation, the Hachibi was the last one.
One and Nine were easy, the first he had gone for since they were, at the time, the weakest Jinchūriki, and fairly unprotected, due to the Kyuubi's Jinchūriki just walking around with a single Shinobi guarding him, the fact that Jiraiya of the Sannin was guarding him did not matter.
Suna had been recovering from their ill-fated attempt to invade Konoha, and they were in no condition to protect their Jinchūriki.
The Nanabi was in the same situation as the Kyuubi and Shukaku, badly defended.
The Rokubi and the Sanbi were free, although he still wasn't sure what happened to the Rokubi, he was not closer to figuring out why it seemingly was mindless.
And in the last few months, he had infiltrated both Iwagakure and Kumogakure, the Yonbi and the Gobi had not been heavily guarded, contrary to the other villages, it was not a question of capability, Iwa just genuinely disliked their Jinchūriki, enough that they didn't allow them inside the village unless it was an emergency.
What absolute fools, if Onoki had bothered with properly protecting his Jinchūriki, Obito might have actually struggled to steal the Chakra away.
But he didn't, and so Roshi and Han, were defeated easily.
The Hachibi was a bit different, Raikage A was famous for his love for his brother, but patience opened a great many doors.
And so, with his Mangekyō Sharingan in one eye, and a Rinnegan in the other, he watched the horizon for the inevitable arrival of the last piece he needed to bring back Rin.
And he did not need to wait long.
Killer B landed on top of the mesa, and the Hachibi Chakra surrounded him like a coat.
"Yo, yo, yo!" He called out. "Masked-Freak, you messed up! Octopops is here!"
Obito ignored the fool's babbling.
He raised his hand, pointing it directly at Killer B.
"Banshō Ten'in." He chanted simply, and immediately the Jinchūriki was yanked towards him, as if an invisible force was pulling him.
With practiced ease, Obito dodged the tentacle that shot at him, and grabbed Killer B by the collar.
"Shinra Tensei."
In an instant, Killer B was sent crashing into the stone ground below them, coughing up some blood from the impact.
***
An hour later, Obito stood victorious, a tired grin on his face.
In front of him was Killer B, unconscious, but he could feel the massive amount of Chakra leaking out of him.
Of course, he knew that wasn't the real Killer B, and that the Yugito that laid on the ground nearby was not the real Yugito Nii either.
He had seen the switch clearly, nothing could hide from his eyes.
B and Yugito would go back to Kumo, reporting everything they had witnessed, eventually it would come out that Iwa was also attacked, and both nations would look at the power bloc between Konoha, Suna, Kiri, The Order, and Taki, and assume that they were responsible.
There was a reason he did not hide his Sharingan, and it would not be long before tensions rose, the only thing preventing war right now was uncertainty.
And under all that chaos, Obito would finally finish his plan.
Both bodies burst into a cloud of smoke, revealing themselves to be two giant tentacles, both leaking Chakra at an alarming rate.
Obito pointed his hands out, and with a silent Banshō Ten'in, both floated towards him, and he sank into the ground, the faster he was back the better.
***
A COUPLE DAYS LATTER
"Black Zetsu, report." It was the first thing Obito asked after he finished shoving the Chakra inside the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path, it was almost lifelike now, it twitched and sometimes breathed, its eye rolled around in its socket, but remained closed.
He was so close.
"I found a viable source, we just need to make the connection." Black Zetsu said dutifully. "We should move the statue, we need to get closer to connect it with Wood Release."
Obito hummed in acknowledgement.
"Which one?" He asked with interest, there had been multiple possibilities, they had spent long hours cataloguing all the ways they could get Chakra.
"The one in Rōran." Black Zetsu answered hesitantly, as if unsure how Obito would react to that particular piece of information.
"Rōran? Didn't you say it was an unlikely option, due to The Order being heavily active in that city?" He asked with a raised eyebrow. "What made you change your mind?"
"They are fools, they claim the Ryūmyaku is sacred ground, after the first ring of defenses, , there is nothing, and my long-term observation has shown me that no one ever enters the room with the source."
Obito stared at Black Zetsu for a few seconds, something about the whole situation didn't sit right with him, but if it meant he could finally see Rin again, then he would take any chance.
"How much time do you think it will take to make the connection?" He asked instead of voicing his doubts.
"I have identified a cave near the city but outside of any patrol routes, we could dig a tunnel within two weeks if we take it slow." Black Zetsu answered without hesitating. "And then maybe a week to drain the needed Chakra, once the Juubi reforms, the sealing should be fast."
Obito nodded in agreement.
The rest did not need to be said, after he became the Juubi Jinchūriki, then he just needed to absorb the remaining Tailed Beasts' Chakra that he didn't already have.
And then...
His Paradise would come.
***
A DAY LATER
Obito stared at the group of White Zetsus in front of him, all standing at attention and ready to obey his every order.
"Go on, you know the plan, if something unexpected happens, retreat and wait for further orders." He commanded.
And with those words, the Zetsus hugged, melting together into one giant mass, eventually, there was a giant centipede like creature, limbs haphazardly placed along its sides, it crawled towards the cave wall, digging into in with malformed limbs, once they got deep enough, wood would shoot out from their bodies, forming supports and reinforcing the structure of the cave.
Eventually, the goal was to dig directly into Rōran, under the Source of the Ryūmyaku, and create a link between the Statue and the source of power.
Neither he or Black Zetsu wanted to go directly to Rōran, so they were playing it safe, taking time to make sure nothing went wrong.
He didn't mind it, this close to his goal, he would take every precaution necessary.
***
"Yo." I said to Sara, after my knock, I had not met her as Ayumu yet, so I felt it was best to be polite. "Wanted to talk to ya for a bit."
Sara blinked at me in surprise, she had been sitting at her desk, working on something, before I arrived.
"I... ummm..." She stuttered out. "Hi?"
Jeez, meet one Saint and get reduced to a stammering mess.
"Yes, hello, how are you?" I said with some amusement. "Can I come in?"
Sara nodded slowly, standing up from her chair and bowing slightly.
"Saint Ayumu, I am grateful for your visit, it is an honor."
I waved my hand dismissively.
"Just call me Ayumu, don't really care about all that." I told her calmly. "I just wanted to warn you about something."
Sara's eyes narrowed slightly, no matter how much time had passed, her seriousness about the safety of Rōran remained the same.
"What is it?" She asked seriously.
"In a couple of weeks, someone will start draining the Ryūmyaku under your feet, they will take their time though, so if your people notice the Ryūmyaku weakening for a bit, just ignore it." I said simply. "Don't worry about the safety of Rōran, 3 Star-Eaters and being assigned here, in addition to Nue, and The Watcher will keep a personal eye on the situation."
There was silence after my words, Sara staring at me with slight realization.
"Was this the reason for the patrol change Lady Nue requested?" She asked, referring to when Zetsu infiltrated Rōran.
"Maaaybe." I said simply. "Anyways, don't worry about it, there is a lot going on in the background of this situation."
She looked at me skeptically.
"I will trust you, Ayumu." She said eventually. "As long as Rōran does not come into any danger."
I smiled at her lightly, my people were really loyal, huh?
"No worries about that, after the degree of devotion everyone in Rōran has shown to The Watcher, there is no other choice but to repay it with happiness and safety for all of you."
If I had my way, none would be hurt due to the little kerfuffle, and there were few things that could stop me from having it my way.