Naruto Anime/Manga (Manga Spoilers Not Tagged) [WSJ]

[X-SOLDIER]

Naruto & Bee

Interestingly enough, the Biju Bomb is shown to be super stable, even to the point that Naruto can push it to smash through the 36 barriers. That means that can't really be stopped from going anywhere, so they shouldn't be able to be contained. I'm also wondering how stable Naruto's Rasen-Bijubomb is. That being said, the prospect of them travelling together is super dangerous. They'll get some good combat experience, and help out the Allied forces now that (almost) all the pieces are really on the table. I think that they'll have to split up if things go badly at any point, which leaves Bee to the fate of eventually getting captured.


Zetsu

It's interesting to finally see how Black Zetsu uses his white half to communicate over long distances, but using the First Hokage's DNA. I can't wait to see how his Black half fights though. I thought it was especially interesting that Madara doesn't really have any stake in the Daimyos. Quite a bit different than what I was thinking earlier. I'm glad that they noted that the Shinobi can't afford to lose them, so there's next to nothing that they can do to avoid getting tied up in this battle. With Genma, Chojuro, Raido, and the Mizukage this is bound to be an intersting fight.



Shinobi Forces

Dan got sealed before his Jutsu was able to be activated, which was interesting. I'm still half expecting that we'll see the barrier get broken, and him get loose. Pretty funny about TenTen getting close to killed by the Banana Fan. I'm wondering if, and very much hoping that we'll still get to see the fate of the Hyuuga conflict to some meaningful degree, and that it's not just going to be glossed over. However, with the latest conflict of Gedo Mazo popping up, I'm not sure that they'll have time to talk much, like before.


Tobi/Madara

Finally seeing Tobi/Madara on the battlefield is good because, as Kakuzu said just before his arrival, they're just getting started.

Everything up until now has just been Kabuto's pawns, and the White Zetsu army. Keep in mind that 50% of this wasn't even in his original war plan, and he was also planning on having less powerful Zetsu. I'm assuming that the remaining sealing Sage's Treasures will be worthless, because of his name anomaly, which means that he won't be easily contained or stopped. Overall, this makes the Gold & Silver Brothers' power look like little kids playing Shinobi.

Gedo Mazo was originally shown in Chapter 447. When the dragons erupt from it, it slaughters Hanzo's forces en masse with basically no effort. Keep in mind that this is long before it even had the power of any of the Biju sealed within it. Now that Gedo Mazo has 1-7 Tails sealed in it, it's an enormous threat that could wipe out any of the Allied Forces that doesn't get the hell out of there fast.

The fact that chakra rods erupt from the user's back to control it however, is a risk that I really don't think that Madara would be willing to take personally. Thus he mentions needing to steal a "substitute" first, before he heads out. This makes me think that he's referring to what he mentioned back in Chapter 450, about needing a new pawn to sync with Gedo Mazo.

Essentially, this leaves two possibilities. One: he's going to capture a new pawn during battle, either through commanding one of the the Resurrected Shinobi, or by manipulating someone with his Doujutsu. Two: This isn't really Tobi/Madara, but some kind of clone.



X

 

[Dark and Divine]

Zetsu

It's interesting to finally see how Black Zetsu uses his white half to communicate over long distances, but using the First hokage's DNA. I can't wait to see how his Black half fights though.

I'm also very interested in this. I always had the impression that Black Zetsu would be a different beast altogether than White Zetsu. Don't know why, but I wouldn't be surprised if Blazk Zetsu has some kind of overpowered, unknown Jutsu.

One thing I found interesting was that, during Itachi and Sasuke's fight, Black Zetsu seemed to have a lot of knowledge of both brothers' techniques, including Susano'o. I got the impression that Black Zetsu is a complete independent entity from White Zetsu and probably is around as much time as Madara.

He also seems to talk to Madara in a way more akeen to an advisor of sorts than of a minion.

That, said, Gedo Mazo!? Awsome stuff.

I really have to update myself with both the manga and the anime.

 

[X-SOLDIER]

Ok, time for some theories on Tobi/Madara & White/Black Zetsu again.


Black Zetsu has a lot of experience, and although we know very little about his powers, he's likely been around for quite some time. As I mentioned in an older post, the very fact that Black Zetsu can merge with, and control the First Hokage's cells is very significant, (though I no longer believe that Madara has the other half of Black Zetsu fused with him, as I'd hypothesized before). He recognizes Uchiha techniques in detail when observing Sasuke & Itachi's fight, and he's also able to identify the 8 & 9 Tails' chakra as soon as it comes out from the barrier. In addition to that, "Tobi" was introduced to Akatsuki as his pupil. What's interesting is why he and Tobi/Madara have this relationship.



Black Zetsu & Madara both have an intimate knowledge of the Senju, Uchiha, and the overall war plan that's currently in place, which means that they've both worked together very closely for quite some time. They also both have slightly less serious/knowledgable alternate personalities: White Zetsu & Tobi. I very strongly believe that this is a side effect of how Senju DNA integration works, since it's unnaturally attached to a host body. In Zetsu's case, he needs to be able to operate independantly as a second persona who syncs perfectly, and identifies itself as Zetsu, even if they have independant personalities. Even Danzou's arm had a face on it, and I'm assuming that this side effect is what caused his limited control over the limb, and that is why he kept his arm sealed at all times. It also makes sense that this discovery is why Orochimaru started his cloning experiments for a more pure integration of Senju DNA, that ended up with Yamato, a pure Senju body that he could overtake, and likely eventually combine with the Sharingan. Whether or not Orochimaru was well informed enough to steal the plan from Madara, or it was a part of his own quest for all jutsu is unclear, though it's a possibility that this is why Kabuto still wants Sasuke and a Zetsu body.

We know that Madara has replaced at least his right limb with Senju material from the Senju Lotus when he loses it to Destruction Bugs in Chapter 475, and again fighting Konan in Chapter 510. It's also likely that he's replaced his left limb as well, because his left limb grows out little spine-like branches when he gets injured by Minato Namikaze. This Senju material he is integrated with would, like the others, grow its own persona. That is likely who "Tobi" is.

Itachi has said that Madara was (at the time), "a pathetic shell of his former self." After his defeat at the hands of the First Hokage, the only man he admired, he used the DNA he stole to create the Senju Lotus, which he used to restore himself from his injuries as well as gaining the ability to use Izanagi. It's very likely that Madara's need to constantly keep his Senju DNA in check would take a significant toll on him, thus why he very seldom makes any appearances, and was not present in Akatsuki entirely for a large period of time. This brings up the question of what he'd been doing during that time, and why he can emerge now, and the answer lies with Zetsu.

Zetsu is split directly down the middle. As far as I can tell, there's no section of his Black half that the White Senju half is able to overcome. What specific ability allows him to do this is a mystery still, but it's very likely that Madara does not possess the same capacity. That would mean that Madara would need help from Zetsu learning to control the Senju personality, and make it act the way he wants. This would explain why Tobi views Zetsu as his teacher, and is why the White Zetsu would always be referring to the "Tobi" persona and not Madara. Once the Tobi persona was under an acceptable degree of control, Madara joined Akatsuki as Tobi. He would be controlling himself using the Tobi persona, until it was reliable enough to be fully synced with Madara's own persona. This would also explain why Madara would wear a mask only showing the eye on his natural face, until it was fully under his control, and why he changed his mask to one with two eyes now, and is ready for full blown war.



X

 

[Obsidian Fire]

Hmm, Yamato really lucked out then. Not only does he have mokuton, but he hasn't gone crazy yet. In fact, if you go by is graduation date and chuunin promotion, he's a genius of the likes of the Sanin and Kakashi. No wonder Madara wants him.

This week also had a lot of funny lines.

"That's no fair... They teamed up... No one said they could do that..." And I thought ninja's were supposed to prepare for every situation.

"Oh my, things are getting tough out there! Can't they all calm down and talk things out?" Er, ninjas are probably the worst politicians in the world. It is funny to see how much the daimiyos don't know about ninja.

And Madara's here. This is going to be crazy. As a side note, we haven't seen the reincarnated Itachi yet. If he has his Mangekyou techniques... that's not going to be good. Could Madara be using him as a fail-safe if Sasuke comes around and tries to kill Madara?

 

[X-SOLDIER]

Hmm, Yamato really lucked out then. Not only does he have mokuton, but he hasn't gone crazy yet. In fact, if you go by is graduation date and chuunin promotion, he's a genius of the likes of the Sanin and Kakashi. No wonder Madara wants him.

Yamato is different. Unlike Madara/Zetsu/Danzo his Senju DNA isn't unnaturally attached. HE's already lucky to have been the only ONE of 60 clones that Orochimaru made, and I'm assuming that the body's rejection of the Senju persona during development is why. He wouldn't go mad, just because he survived, and has been living with those powers since birth.

And Madara's here. This is going to be crazy. As a side note, we haven't seen the reincarnated Itachi yet. If he has his Mangekyou techniques... that's not going to be good. Could Madara be using him as a fail-safe if Sasuke comes around and tries to kill Madara?

Itach, Pain, & the Jinchuriki have yet to emerge. The first two have quite a significant pasrt to play, I believe.


X

 

[Obsidian Fire]

Weird off-the-wall question:

Does anyone know what the actual Japanese term is for the nine-tailed fox in the manga? I've always thought it was Kyuubi no Kitsune because that's how I've always seen translated, but I don't think I've ever heard that term used in the anime. Instead, I've heard them use Kyuubi no Yokou. Just wondering which one is actually used.

 

[Alex Strife]

Kyūbi no Yōko, as far as I'm aware. The japanese term would be "九尾の妖狐".

 

[Obsidian Fire]

^^ Thanks! I wonder why the english fanon changed it.

I usually don't post up fan fiction for this, but every now and then I find good stuff. The following are short one-shots about... oh just read them; they're hilarious and very short.

Spoiler: ANBU duty (clicky-clikcky)

It was midnight. Darkness encompassed the world. The Moon wasn't shining today and the stars were obscured by heavy clouds. The forest was silent, wolves hiding in their dens, the crickets took vacation tonight, only a lone owl hooted in the distance.

Two figures were making their way through the trees slowly. They came to a stop on a completely unremarkable spot. A ray of starlight found its way through the layers of clouds and shined on the white porcelain mask one of the figures was wearing.

"Here," he said.

"Finally," his comrade sighed in relief. Although it couldn't be seen in the dark, he was wearing a mask too.

"Yes," the first man confirmed, "so place it here so we can move to the next location."

"Already? Why the hurry? I thought we had whole night for it," the second man complained.

"Quit your whining, Guinea-pig," the first one scowled, even if nobody could see. "Once you joined the ANBU, you do whatever you're told."

"I didn't sign up for this," Guinea-pig muttered unloading his burden. "And why must I have such a stupid codename?"

"Because the cool ones were already taken."

"No kidding, Hamster." He placed his precious cargo on the assigned spot.

"Here, finished."

"Perfect. We can move to the next one." They jumped to the treetops and were on their way.

"Why do we have to do this," Guinea-pig asked after a while.

"Because Gnat got promoted and Flea is on medical leave," Hamster answered.

"No, I meant, why does anybody have to do it? Isn't it carrying timber to the forest?"

"The young today," Hamster rolled his eyes behind his mask. "Let me explain. If you are unexpectedly attacked and cannot block whatever is flying at you, what do you do?"

"Kawarimi, of course," Guinea-pig answered like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Of course," Hamster sighed. "And what do you exchange yourself with?"

"A log."

"A log," the older man nodded. "Always a log. And what if there weren't any neatly-cut human-sized logs around?"

"But there is always one," the younger man argued.

"Yes. And just how do convenient neatly-cut human-sized logs appear in the middle of a primeval forest?"

Guinea-pig was silent for a moment. "They grow there?"

"Of course not, you moron! And now pick up the logs, there are fifteen more locations we have to place them tonight! Or do you want some poor shinobi end up ambushed without anything to exchange himself with?"

End

Spoiler: Anbu Training Mission (click-click)

Uzumaki Naruto, now 16, had reached the rank of Jounin the year before. He'd finally qualified for Anbu which, unfortunately meant more training. Luckily, Anbu Training Missions were higher than D-ranks.

Which was why he was so excited when he burst into the Anbu compound's missions office.

"YO! Anbu Trainee Fox reporting in! So what's on the list today, Captain, huh huh huh? Combat training? Infiltration? Recon-"

"Calm down Fox. I'm giving you a new one today, an evasion training mission in conjunction with another team's search and retrieval training. It's B-rank with hazard pay, and you'll all be reporting in to a "contact" for the retrieval team's drop-off at the end of it."

"COOOOL!"

"WILL YOU SHUDDUP!"

"Sorry sir..."

There was a lot of muffled snickering from around the room. A lot of the more experienced Anbu were grinning openly.

"Anyway, that special henge of yours that affects the physical body instead of being just an illusion will be an asset to this. Normally you or your contact person puts up a genjutsu to affect the physical senses of the search/pursue/retrieval team. The disguise is essential. Think you can keep it up for long periods of time with a high level of strenuous activity?"

"No problem! So what's the mission parameters?"

"Okay trainee, your mission is the Fire Lord's Wife's Cat -"

"WHAAAAAAT!"

"Will you quit it with the yelling!"

"Whaddaya mean, I gotta hunt Tora again? I thought I was finished with the stupid D-ranks after I made Chunin?"

"You aren't hunting Tora, you are Tora."

"... Wait, what?" The other Anbu were howling with laughter at this point - it never got old, watching the newbies get "brought into the fold."

The Anbu captain snickered at his expression. "Kid, the real cat Tora died over 40 years ago, and was not nearly so difficult to capture by trained ninja - even genin - who could use chakra to increase their reflexes. And did you really think the Fire Lord's Wife would come down to Konoha in person practically every day? She stays up in the palace and lets us use her image for training our genin... and Anbu trainees. It's an A-rank secret known only to the Hokage and Anbu. So you'll be henging into Tora, running amok while the freshly graduated genin team chase you for up to 3 hours – if they haven't caught you by then or you haven't gotten tired or bored, you can let them capture you and end the mission at that point – and your "contact" henged as the Fire Lord's Wife plays their little act. Everyone goes home irritated out of their wits. A couple of these, and you can move up to being pursued by Chunins, Jounins, and Anbu, under different disguises. Every new Anbu Trainee starts with this for evasion and high-chase-sabotage training."

As Naruto stood there, jaw dropped, the captain turned to the rest of the room.
​

"Okay, who wants the accompanying C-rank contact/disguise "Fire Lord's Wife" mission...?"

END

Spoiler: Mission ranking guide for beginners (click)

Since there have been some confusion recently on the matter of ranking ninja missions, we have decided to publish this simple guide to explain the mission ratings and what to expect from which assignment. The official guidelines would disagree, but they are often misleading. The authors assure you, that this is the truth.

D-rank: D as in Dreadful. They are usually easy (unless catching Tora), but they present the danger of annoying you to death. Bring entertainment along (unless catching Tora, but that one is misranked).

C-rank: C stands for Complications. They are supposed to be easy, just nice paid vacations to other countries, sometimes with annoying tagalong/client, but they rarely go as planned. Prepare for anything from A-rank nukenin to Orochimaru's botched experiments.

B-rank: B means Boring. They are supposed to be harder than C-ranks, but they usually go just as planned. Even though injuries sometimes occur, it happens in a fairly predictable manner. And then you'll be bored lying in a hospital.

A-rank: Aaaaaaaaaah! What have I gotten myself into? Heavy bodily harm almost guaranteed. Avoid if possible.

S-rank: Suicide. Only a complete whacko with a death wish or an S-rank shinobi can volunteer on one of this. That those two categories often coincide is no coincidence.

Authors denounce any responsibility for any injuries or defections that happen as a result of reading this paper.

 

[X-SOLDIER]

So, Shikaku takes over command of the troops so that the Raikage & Hokage can go out to stop Naruto & Bee. Not really sure how that's going to work out, though it should be interesting.

On the battlefront, Gedo Mazo manages to block some serious power from Chouji, Chouza, & Kitsuchi. Basically just devastates everything in sight. While we get little flashes to the other groups, it'd be nice to actually see glimpses of combat with Kakashi & Co, Kiba/Neji/Hinata, Gaara/Tsuchikage, etc. again. It's interesting that as a war, it's only really heading into its first night, but with the troop loss announcement (Alliance: 40,000 / 80,000 & Akatsuki: 50,000 / 100,000), I'm a little bit sad that we haven't seen any relateable tragedy yet. After Asuma & Jiraiya's deaths, and to a lesser extent, the Pain/Konoha Arc, the series had figured out how to make you feel the tragedy of the characters, but it still seems like it's a little too early on to fully appreciate the loss of half of the Shinobi population, especially when there aren't any relatable casualties of the war.

What's odd to me is how confident Madara is in his plan, that he just takes the artifacts and then leaves. While this essentially ensures that we'll see/encounter a form of Jubi, (though likely one who's weakened enough to fight with Naruto at some point), I'm surprised that he didn't wait things out at all. I also hadn't considered the fact that just one of Bee's Tentacles would ever come into play. I think it's curious that Madara is choosing to accellerate things now, especially since he was barely informed that Naruto & Bee just came out, and he could potentially have both Jinchuriki, instead of just little shards of Chakra. It's a really illogical time to take a shortcut, unless he's not confident in his ability to actually take down the 8- & 9-Tails on his own. Or if he knows that there's a catch, and he could seal the rest of their chakra while he's still a Jinchuriki.

I was quite amused by how Kabuto seems much more prepared for the situation and how he's mocking Madara's choice of actions. It's especially intersting, because he still has his trump card. I'm wondering how long we'll be playing things out in the night time, and if we'll get to see some combat again with the other ninja groups. I'm still holding out on anything really moving forwards until we see Nagato/Itachi/the Jinchuriki, and until Sasuke's got those damn bandages off.



X

 

[X-SOLDIER]

I like the fact that Naruto acutally GLOWS now in his Nine-Tails Mode. XD It's really interesting to see Kyubi so much smaller, and while he's still picking at Naruto like before, and it's SO excellent that Naruto's internal conflict about Sasuke is actually being brought out by Kyubi, because it's starting to tie everything together. For better or worse, it's a chapter that really makes it feel like Naruto is moving towards a conclusion.

It's cute to see the Chibi-Narutoverse that's usually only in the anime padding (like the bit with Hinata/Pain). Honestly, I'm just glad to see the finger poking Hinata actually make an early appearance in the manga. ^^;

Naruto & Sasuke's rivalry starts with the first time they make the 'Symbol of Combat' and they don't conclude that until much later, which makes a really interesting arc in their relationship. The 'Symbol of Harmony' is VERY significant, because it's the same one that Naruto & Sasuke made at the very end of their fight at the Valley of the End in Chapter 233. This means that, Sasuke & Naruto had completely resolved their personal conflict at the end of the original series. While Sasuke saw this as severing his bond of rivalry, it's something different for Naruto.

Last, but not least, Naruto really is stronger than Kyubi for the first time. He just waltzes in to the gate and slams him into place. While it's not Bee's level ot control, he's getting damn capable about keeping Kyubi in check, and his confidence is what is going to allow him to succeed at what he's trying to do. He understands Sasuke's never hated him, and he's really understanding Sasuke's entire (character) arc, which is key to saving his friend.



X

 

[Alex Strife]

Off to read, then!! (Lately I've been finding it hard to keep in check when chapters are coming out, for some strange reason, and also because I have a lot of work).

 

[X-SOLDIER]

(This is me gushing about Naruto in general)

Does it amaze anyone else that this is basically an ENTIRE CHAPTER devoted to explaining a single hand gesture seen on ONE PAGE that was THREE HUNDRED AND FIVE CHAPTERS AGO? I know there's more to it than that, but when you see it, you know there's a significance, but you don't know what, and then you forget about it. It's little backstory like this that provides deeper meaning to the older chapters that is one of my favorite elements in Naruto. It makes you think differently about all the character's own emotional perspectives when you go back to the old material. Rather than just being locked into the reader's perspective upon their point of view when first reading it, it opens up into the true narrative elements that caused it to take place that way and gives you a different perspective on how the events unfold.


The slow evolution of the elements behind Naruto & Sasuke's conflict are really well done. They're both so contrally motivated, and often clouded by their own emotions that they don't actually connect with each other, but thier friendship really formed, because although they don't often consciously realize it, they're very much the same. With their paradigm shift, It's Naruto who after finally overcoming his emotions, and meeting Sasuke in battle realizes that they could have so easily been in each other's shoes that because he was saved, there's no part of him that believes that Sasuke can't be. With this latest development explaining the end of their personal rivalry being symbolically cut at the end of the first series, it's setting up for an amazing final confrontation between the two of them.

Despite all the other things I love about the series, this is building up brilliantly, and making it obvious why it's called "Naruto."


X

 

[Obsidian Fire]

This was an awesome chapter and it makes me wonder how long Kishimoto was planning all this. Seeing Kyuubi's opinion of Naruto is really interesting too. It's neat to see that he is indirectly helping Naruto figure out what he is going to do. What's freaky is that he points out that Naruto could become like Pain if he doesn't come up with a solution. What I want to see is some Madara/Kyuubi interaction. That would be fascinating.

 

[Alex Strife]

^ That's EXACTLY what I found myself thinking about. Was the gesture something planned? If it was, then hats off for this man. I pretty much enjoyed the chapter, and especially seeing Naruto looking badass. I know he usually is, in a sense, but he's not that much the kind of "dark-badass" character, and the page where he just looks at the Kyuubi, and it moves back... I loved that one. Shows that Naruto knows how to be "mean" when he wants to.

Kyuubi's strange, sometimes. If I didn't know better, I'd think he's just pissing Naruto off in order to motivate him. I mean, I know he's not, but sometimes it does seem that way, don't you agree?

To be honest, ever since the war began, I've thought that Naruto is indeed slowly moving towards its' end, but, as X-Soldier said it, the more it moves forward, the more clear it is.

Oh, and just because I want to say it: I want to see a proper "end" to the Hyuuga saga!!

 

[Obsidian Fire]

I just realized something. The statues of Hashirama and Madara at the Valley of the End are holding their fingers in the "combat" position (Intentional?). Now that is a fight that has been going on for a while.

Yeah, Kyuubi is confusing. Given that at least one of the bijuu isn't that bad, (Hachibi), I have to wonder exactly whose side he is on. I get the feeling he isn't on Madara's.

Naruto's "You need to learn to stop underestimating me!" line sums up his reaction to just about everyone in the entire manga. For some reason, I Kyuubi's expression when Naruto tells Kyuubi he is a gullible fool. Very nice turn around from how Naruto/Kyuubi interaction usually ends.

 

[X-SOLDIER]

I just realized something. The statues of Hashirama and Madara at the Valley of the End are holding their fingers in the "combat" position (Intentional?). Now that is a fight that has been going on for a while.

Yeah, Kyuubi is confusing. Given that at least one of the bijuu isn't that bad, (Hachibi), I have to wonder exactly whose side he is on. I get the feeling he isn't on Madara's.

Naruto's "You need to learn to stop underestimating me!" line sums up his reaction to just about everyone in the entire manga. For some reason, I Kyuubi's expression when Naruto tells Kyuubi he is a gullible fool. Very nice turn around from how Naruto/Kyuubi interaction usually ends.

That's almost certainly intentional now that you mention it, and it should make it all the more obvious that the symbolism is intentional.


X

 

[Alex Strife]

Hadn't thought about it, Obsidian!! It hould be intentional...

As for Kyuubi, I do believe he's on Madara's side, but one should wonder if Naruto will sort of make him switch sides, just as he's already done multiple times...

 

[Rumpelstiltskin]

I wouldn't actually think the kyuubi is in anyone's side. He obviously doesn't like to be controlled by anyone hence his constant struggle to take over Naruto so I can't imagine he would like the idea of being used up as a battery so that Madara can turn the moon into a giant mirror.

 

[X-SOLDIER]

While Kyuubi recognizes Madara as an evil/talented individual, there's no way they are remotely alligned. Hell, Madara has to manipulate him with the Sharingan to get him to do what he wants, which is proof enough that they don't share any common goals, aside from destroying shit.

Right now, Naruto finally manages to have a conversation with Kyuubi. Not just the usual banter where one of them talks to gain an edge, and the other listens. They have a chat that basically ends with Naruto bitch slapping him with a Torii Gate, and saying, "Shut your whore mouth!"

This brings about an intersting point. In Chapters 399/401, Madara convinces Sasuke that Kyubi's attack on Konoha was a freak occurrance. This lie is a lot of what's allowing him to manipulate Sasuke's motivations. Chapter 501 is proof that this isn't true, and that Madara was directly responsible for the attack. Proving this to Sasuke comes down to Naruto's word vs. Madara's which isn't good enough.

However, in 308/309, we see that Sasuke's capable of entering Naruto's inner world. If Naruto & Kyubi are on equal grounds in this place, (unlike the first time Sasuke entered), there's a good possibility that Naruto would hold the advantage. If he can get Kyubi to tell Sasuke the truth, that might be just enough to turn him back on the right path, and pit him against Madara.


X

 

[Alex Strife]

I'm pretty sure Kyuubi would side with Madara, for his own goals, though. He's (It's?) the kind of being that is cunning enough to believe to be able to manipulate Madara.

 

[X-SOLDIER]

I'm pretty sure Kyuubi would side with Madara, for his own goals, though. He's (It's?) the kind of being that is cunning enough to believe to be able to manipulate Madara.

Given that Kyubi has previous experience with Madara, where he was being controlled by him almost effortlessly, I highly doubt that. If he can't control Naruto anymore, he doesn't have a snowball's chance in hell of controlling a Sharingan user, let alone THE Uchiha Madara.


X

 

[Alex Strife]

You've got a point there!

Now I'm going to raise a question. Is "Tobi" really Uchiha Madara? I wouldn't bet my life on it, yet, to be honest... I mean, I know he's said so, but there are some things that still seem fishy, to me.

 

[Obsidian Fire]

^^
X-SOLDIER has made several long posts about this.

I think his current theory is that Madara/Tobi have the same relationship that Black Zetsu/White Zetsu have. Only Madara has recently gotten complete control of himself.

 

[Rumpelstiltskin]

I really think that Madara IS Tobi, I mean the whole point of the introduction of Tobi was so that Madara could influence the battle without appearing like he was doing anything. When he attempts to finally show his face to sasuke he ends up being attacked by itachi's last act of protection.
Even when he finally absorbs nagato's rinnegan he is quick to cover his face with a new mask so that if he does use sasuke there wont be any involuntary tricks.

Only question I wanna know is now that Sasuke has Itachi's eyes, does this mean he too is immortal/will Itachi's jutsu work if Madara finally shows his face?

 

[X-SOLDIER]

^^
X-SOLDIER has made several long posts about this.

I think his current theory is that Madara/Tobi have the same relationship that Black Zetsu/White Zetsu have. Only Madara has recently gotten complete control of himself.

It was only 22 posts ago (click to read it)!

Essentially yes. It has to do with the interaction of his Uchiha half - Madara, and the persona of his Senju half - which is manifested as Tobi. This is the same relationship that Black Zetsu has with his Senju persona - White Zetsu. It's a side effect that arises from unnaturally grafting Senju DNA onto yourself, because the DNA begins to develop it's own persona.

Only question I wanna know is now that Sasuke has Itachi's eyes, does this mean he too is immortal/will Itachi's jutsu work if Madara finally shows his face?

To answer the Sasuke question, taking Itachi's eyes only granted him the eternal Mangekyo. Essentially that means that his vision won't deteriorate with use of his techniques. I don't think that grants him immortality, because I'm fairly certain that Madara is extending his lifespan another way.

I'm not sure if Itachi's justu will activate in that case now that he's swapped eyes, but I wouldn't be entirely surprised if the opportunity fades. We also have to remember that Naruto received a gift from Itachi that's still dormant. Whether or not this has to do with Sasuke's redemption, Madara's downfall or both is equally possible in my mind.


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