Madara had no advantage over Aoba, but he wasn't afraid either. His original goal was to seize the Rinnegan, so he had prepared quite a few trump cards.
However, upon arriving, he realized that the Rinnegan wasn't important anymore, because his dear old friend had somehow been resurrected.
After an intense battle with his best friend, although he didn't gain anything tangible, Madara was thoroughly exhilarated. Now, it was time to get down to serious business.
First, he wanted to know why Hashirama had been resurrected. Initially, he thought it was due to the Rinne Tensei Jutsu, but after fighting Hashirama, he realized that wasn't the case.
Hashirama's body was not the perfect Sage Body he once had, which meant he wasn't revived by the Rinne Tensei.
However, he also wasn't an Edo Tensei corpse, which left Madara puzzled.
"I'm sorry, but the resurrection of the First Hokage is one of Konoha's highest-level secrets. I cannot disclose it directly."
"Is that so? Kid, I don't know how you did it, but you messed up. Knowing Hashirama as well as I do, no matter how much of a fool he is, he would never side with an idiot like Obito.
"Tell me what actually happened. Why did he betray Konoha? That is more ridiculous to me than his resurrection itself."
"That is an even more complicated issue. In fact, I can answer both of your questions, but the real question is, what can you offer me in return, Madara?"
Madara wasn't angered by Aoba's response. He understood perfectly well that there was no such thing as a free lunch, if he wanted something, he had to pay a price.
"What do you want?"
"Tailed beasts." Aoba did not hesitate and directly stated his demand.
"Kid, do you even know what you're saying?"
"Of course I do. But let me clarify, I don't need the complete tailed beasts, only a portion of their origin chakra. It won't be pleasant for them, but it won't kill them either."
"Origin chakra?"
Madara's expression subtly shifted as he scrutinized Aoba from head to toe.
"I see… You've already successfully merged with a portion of a tailed beast. Haha… Kid, are you trying to fuse the chakra of all nine tailed beasts within your body and turn yourself into a new version of the Gedo Statue?"
Aoba neither confirmed nor denied it. He simply waited in silence.
Madara didn't hesitate for long before nodding in agreement.
"Fine. I will give you a portion of the tailed beast origin chakra that I have. But I need to add a question of my own."
"Go ahead."
"Black Zetsu. I noticed that in order to capture it, you even abandoned the Rinnegan, which was almost within your grasp. So, you know what it really is, don't you?"
Aoba's expression turned somewhat complicated. Madara immediately noticed his reaction.
"Of course, I know it's not my creation. Ever since you first warned me, I was sure of that. But I still haven't been able to figure out what exactly it is.
"I know everything about myself, I am not a conventional lifeform in the usual sense. So, what is Black Zetsu, really?"
Aoba hesitated for a moment, debating whether to tell Madara the truth. However, considering that Konoha had already lost Hashirama, he ultimately decided to reveal something real.
At this point, the situation had deviated entirely from the original storyline. Even though Aoba had grown to his current level, he still felt as though he was treading on thin ice.
Looking at the entire ninja world, he and Konoha had the power to suppress all opposition. But he knew that was still not enough, he needed more allies.
"Black Zetsu's identity is extremely complex. To put it simply… it is the younger brother of the Sage of Six Paths."
"!!!!!!"
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Currently on Chapter 339 - Soul Transfer