Watching Jiraiya and Nagato stare blankly, the Nine-Tails let out a heartless chuckle.
"Such fools!"
"Orochimaru, I just realized, a ninja's strength might not be directly related to their intellect."
"Take Jiraiya here, or that fool Hashirama Senju."
"They're both like idiots, yet their power far surpasses ordinary ninjas."
Orochimaru tapped the table, waking the two from their stupor, and shot a glance at the Nine-Tails.
"Kurama, mind your impact. Lord First is Tsunade's grandfather."
"It's hard for me to pretend I didn't hear that!"
The Nine-Tails scoffed, its tail swaying back and forth.
"Hmph, what of it!"
"That girl hasn't explicitly said she's committed to you..."
Orochimaru glared at it irritably, eliciting a sly chuckle from the Nine-Tails.
"Heh heh..."
"Just joking!"
Jiraiya looked at Orochimaru with a dazed expression, the feeling of his lifelong ninja way being denied filling his eyes with confusion.
"So, under the guise of nurturing a child of prophecy, I've actually been helping Madara Uchiha cultivate his successor?"
"Orochimaru, tell me, why is this happening?"
"Is my ninja way..."
"Truly nothing more than a joke?"
Orochimaru saw the pain within Jiraiya's lost gaze and felt a pang of compassion.
This man, burdened with a fate he shouldn't have to bear, had a truly tragic life in his memories. Powerless against the darkness of the village, he never confessed his love for Tsunade, and in the end, even his death was caused by the disciple he personally trained. Fate had played a cruel joke on this free-spirited man; he could have lived a happier life.
After silently observing Jiraiya's pained expression for a moment, Orochimaru hardened his heart and nodded slightly.
Jiraiya's eyes glazed over, his spirit and vitality visibly draining away.
"Yes!"
"Not only is your ninja way a joke, but most people in the ninja world are a joke in the face of this millennium-long conspiracy."
"Jiraiya..."
Orochimaru called out his name and shook his head slightly.
"After you hear what I have to say next, I believe you'll rediscover your own ninja way."
"Instead of living under someone else's control like you are now."
Jiraiya looked up, a flicker of hope in his eyes.
"Kurama, what I'm about to say next concerns you."
"If you have questions, ask them after I'm done. Don't interrupt me mid-way."
"I won't bring this up again until the threat of Madara Uchiha is dealt with."
The Nine-Tails shed its flippant demeanor and nodded seriously.
"This matter goes back to when the Sage of Six Paths sealed the ancestor of chakra."
"A thousand years ago, the Ōtsutsuki clan descended upon the ninja world."
"Two members of the Ōtsutsuki clan planted the Divine Tree on the ninja world's ley lines, and by plundering the ninja world's energy, they bore the Chakra Fruit that could further enhance the Ōtsutsuki clan's power."
...
"Kaguya Ōtsutsuki, the guardian of the Ōtsutsuki clan, to avoid becoming nourishment for the Divine Tree, ambushed Isshiki Ōtsutsuki, the executor..."
"The ninja world thus became Kaguya Ōtsutsuki's nursery..."
...
"With the blessings of the people of the ninja world, Kaguya Ōtsutsuki gave birth to two sons, Hagoromo Ōtsutsuki and Hamura Ōtsutsuki..."
"After giving birth and significantly depleting her strength, Kaguya Ōtsutsuki, deeming herself unable to withstand the attack from the main Ōtsutsuki family, ignored her sons' objections and the damage to the ninja world's environment caused by the chakra fruit's accelerated growth."
"She forcibly extracted energy from the ninja world's ley lines and consumed the Chakra Fruit borne by the Divine Tree..."
...
"The Divine Tree, having lost its power, transformed into the rampaging Ten-Tails, unleashing a world-ending catastrophe upon the ninja world."
...
"The brothers Hagoromo and Hamura Ōtsutsuki jointly sealed Kaguya Ōtsutsuki into the moon, and later founded the Ninja Sect, dispersing the Ten-Tails' chakra to create the nine Tailed Beasts..."
"They pacified the lands of the ninja world, leaving a sliver of hope for its inhabitants, and thus, Hagoromo Ōtsutsuki was revered by the ninja world of that era as the Sage of Six Paths."
The Nine-Tails listened dumbfounded, wanting to interrupt Orochimaru's narrative several times, but remembering his earlier request, it patiently continued to listen.
"However, the Sage of Six Paths did not anticipate that at the very moment Kaguya Ōtsutsuki was sealed, she used her will to condense an entirely new life, and began plotting in the shadows for her return to the ninja world."
"She incited discord between the brothers Ashura and Indra, and even death did not quell their conflict..."
"Their chakras, under the Sage of Six Paths' watch, reincarnated across the world in the ninja world."
"Until the most recent reincarnation, Kaguya Ōtsutsuki's third son, Black Zetsu, finally saw hope for her rescue."
"Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha..."
"Black Zetsu altered the stone tablet left by the Sage of Six Paths to Indra, leading Madara Uchiha, who had awakened the Mangekyo, down a path towards a false peace."
"He gathered all the Tailed Beasts, revived the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path summoned from the moon with his Rinnegan, and became the Ten-Tails Jinchuriki."
"Then, he unleashed an ultimate genjutsu called the Infinite Tsukuyomi upon the entire ninja world."
A mocking smile, it was unclear who it was directed at, played on Orochimaru's lips.
"But Madara Uchiha could never have imagined that the genjutsu he believed would bring ultimate peace to the ninja world was, in fact, intended to break the seal of the Six Paths – Chibaku Tensei – and release Kaguya Ōtsutsuki, imprisoned within the moon."
Seeing the shocked expression on Jiraiya's face and Nagato's appearance as if listening to a fairy tale, Orochimaru chuckled softly.
"Heh..."
"Does this feel like a mythical story?"
Jiraiya and Nagato nodded blankly.
The Nine-Tails smacked its lips, looking troubled.
"Orochimaru, if what you're saying is true, then Nagato here, was Madara Uchiha's successor groomed to capture the Tailed Beasts for his plan to release that Infinite Tsukuyomi?"
Orochimaru nodded gently.
"Indeed!"
"Though Madara Uchiha is powerful, he could not escape the limitations of age like any ordinary ninja."
"He was too old. For his plan to proceed smoothly, he needed to find a pawn whose body could withstand the backlash of the Rinnegan but who could not escape his control."
The Nine-Tails pondered for a moment with a serious expression, then slowly shook its head and asked with some confusion:
"By the time Nagato grows up, Madara Uchiha will likely be long dead. How could he be so sure that Nagato would follow his plan?"
Orochimaru replied with a cold laugh:
"Isn't there Black Zetsu?"
"First, let him witness his parents being killed by Konoha ninjas with his own eyes, fill him with hatred for Konoha, and then guide him to find a Konoha ninja, even a ninja who is the disciple of a Konoha Hokage, as his teacher..."
"Then find ways to deepen his hatred for Konoha, for example..."
"Find someone to impersonate Konoha ninjas and kill Yahiko or Konan in front of him, or..."
"Kill everyone he's ever been associated with..."
The Nine-Tails shivered and stared at Orochimaru with wide eyes.
"A person who has experienced immense suffering, lost everything, yet possesses the power of the Rinnegan, a near-godlike ability in the ninja world..."
"If Black Zetsu appears at this moment and tells him there's a way to eradicate all suffering in the ninja world, do you think Nagato would have any other choice?"
The moment Orochimaru posed his final question, silence descended upon the room.