(Obito POV)

The dimly lit cavern smelled of damp earth, the air cold and unwelcoming. Shadows danced on the walls, cast by the flickering flames of a lone torch. I stared into the darkness, lost in thought.

Zetsu emerged from the shadows, his split face twisted into a scowl. His footsteps echoed on the stone floor as he walked toward me. The firelight glinted off my orange mask as I watched him approach.

"Obito, you need to start attending those meetings yourself," Zetsu said, clearly annoyed. "I can't stand playing the role of Mizukage any longer, especially after that banquet. I'm just glad I managed to slip away when the Kages were too focused on Minato."

I'd rather not remember that humiliating day.

I stayed still, my gaze fixed beyond the cavern walls. "I'm not going to any meetings," I said flatly. "I'm still healing." I gestured to my chest, where Kushina's lariat had left a brutal mark. "And besides, I need this time to plan."

Minato and Kushina have both become very strong, far more than I could've predicted. It's making me regret not attacking when that brat was born.

I manipulated the Daimyos and the Kages to make them attack Minato during the brat's birthday celebration, but it was too late.

Zetsu raised an eyebrow, curious. "Plan? What are you planning? Minato, Kushina, and even that kid Naruto now... they're all stronger than we thought. What are you going to do?"

Right, there's that brat to consider as well. He was someone I didn't even factor in. Six hundred shinobi killed in seconds, and at just five years old. I'm afraid not even the Sage of the Six Paths was that strong at his age.

He's made me very curious. I wonder what abilities he is hiding. I'll get those for myself one day.

I narrowed my eye slightly, a hint of a smile beneath the mask. "If we can't kill them, we'll give them so many problems they won't have time to focus on anything else. I'll trap Minato in a civil war."

Zetsu's eyes widened, intrigued. "A civil war? How do you plan to do that?"

I leaned forward slightly. "Konoha is strong, but it's also fragile. The new generation has taken power, but they don't truly have it. The old leaders still hold on to authority. We just need to find the right pressure points and apply enough force to make them fear the new generation."

Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

Hiruzen, Danzo, and the two other insignificant elders...if Minato tries to act against what they think is right, their opinions regarding him will change. And that will be the spark that burns Konoha.

Zetsu nodded slowly. "And what about Naruto? He's a real threat."

I chuckled. "That kid... I have no immediate plans for him. I don't even know what he did that day. All Black Zetsu saw was a big black ball and the next moment they were all dead. I'll need to take him down myself, but I don't have a way to find where he is."

The brat is really my most significant headache. Using Zetsu to monitor him is out of the question; I need something else. I will have to find suitable people to do that.

"Yeah, I don't know if that kid is traumatized or just too smart. If he had only returned to the village, we could have targeted him easily. But nobody knows where he is."

Perhaps rather than the strength he displayed, his intelligence will be the thing I have a hard time dealing with. His intelligence is known far and wide, after all. Beating Shikaku, the Nara Clan's leader, known for his intelligence, at Shogi at the age of three is a feat no one can replicate.

I got up, feeling determined. "Well, his time will come one day. Anyway, I need you to do something for me right now."

I should focus on sowing the seeds of discord in Konoha first. But, I guess contacting a few people to keep an eye on him won't waste too much time.

"And what is that?" Zetsu asked.

"I need you to search for the family members of the assassins Naruto killed. I have something special planned for them and for Konoha."

They should have picked up a thing or two from their assassin relative. Even if they haven't, a little bit of training from my side will make them capable enough to do what I want.

Zetsu's curiosity deepened. "Special? What do you have in mind?"

My gaze turned steely. "Isn't it obvious? Revenge."

The elders may change their opinions of Minato and may try to have their way. Minato, politically, doesn't hold much power, so, if I want to achieve the results I want, Minato must get the support of the clan heads.

I know how Konoha's sensing barrier works, and since it cannot detect me at all as I was a part of it previously, I can simply teleport each of the family members near the desired location.

"Consider it done. I'll start searching immediately," Zetsu replied.

Kumo is under Minato's scrutiny at the moment. He doesn't trust Kumo at all. From what I've gathered from my spies, Naruto has declared he won't be returning to the village. I don't think Minato and Kushina will take that well.

But they are still holding back, as they value the elders' opinions and don't really have the support to do what they promised against the Raikage.

The elders don't want another war. Though they mostly speak the words of the Fire Daimyo, who doesn't want to see the destruction of Kumo as it would make the games he plays with the other Daimyos less fun. Bunch of useless pigs, those Daimyos. But they fit perfectly into my game.

I wonder how they will react when they find out all of their children, the heirs to their clans, disappear from the village all at once.

And what if Kumo is found to be responsible?

The elders, who don't want war, will clash with the clan heads and Minato, who are eager for Kumo's blood. And there are all the other villages, keeping silent, waiting to see how Konoha will respond to Kumo so they can act accordingly.

Civil war.

And if things progress well, the Fourth Great Ninja War.

The next few years are going to be very interesting.