The Land of Fire.
Obito carried Cardo, who was trapped in a genjutsu, all the way across the country.
Finally, he arrived at the familiar cave where he and Black Zetsu had previously split their loot.
"Ugh, I'm so tired!" Obito groaned, tossing Cardo's body onto the cave floor without ceremony.
He hadn't expected Cardo to be so heavy. Carrying him all the way from the Land of Lightning to the Land of Fire had been no easy task. If not for the strength granted by Hashirama's cells, Obito doubted he could have made it in a single sprint.
Thud.
Cardo's large frame hit the stone floor with a dull sound, unmoving.
Obito glanced at Cardo's burly form and mumbled, "How the hell did this guy get so jacked? What does he eat, cement?"
He rubbed his aching shoulders. A part of him was genuinely curious. Cardo's physique might even rival that of the Raikage.
"Actually… is he stronger than the Third Raikage?" Obito muttered. He'd heard legends of the man—how the Third Raikage had once fought tens of thousands of enemy ninjas for three days straight before finally collapsing. It was a feat few could rival.
But Obito quickly shook off the thought.
"Obito-kun! Don't worry about his build—count the money! I think this might be our biggest haul yet!" Black Zetsu's eyes sparkled as he rubbed his hands together excitedly.
The words snapped Obito back to reality. Right, the money.
With a grin, he activated his Mangekyō Sharingan, opening the Kamui dimension and summoning their spoils.
Bundles upon bundles of cash poured from thin air, thudding heavily onto the ground. As more and more appeared, the pile grew into a mountain, taking up two-thirds of the cave's space.
By the time Obito deactivated his eye, he was gasping for breath. His Mangekyō throbbed painfully, and blood trickled from the corner of his eye.
But he didn't care.
He was too mesmerized by the mountain of wealth in front of him. His mouth hung open, and saliva practically dripped from his lips.
"Holy crap... How much is this?" Black Zetsu whispered, stunned. He had expected a windfall, but this was beyond anything he'd imagined.
The two of them threw themselves into the pile of money like children into a leaf pile and began counting.
Day turned into night. Night turned into day. Hours bled into each other as they toiled through the mountain of cash.
Finally, after a day and night of labor, they reached the final tally.
"F-Five... five point eight billion…" Black Zetsu stammered, his voice trembling.
Obito's breathing quickened. "Five billion... eight hundred million… Five! Billion! Eight hundred! Million!"
They stared at each other in disbelief.
Their raid on Konoha had netted them only about 3 billion. But Cloud Village—somehow, the notoriously reckless Cloud Shinobi—had yielded nearly 6 billion. What kind of secret economy were they running?
"Do these guys even spend money? Where did they get this much?" Obito wondered aloud.
Black Zetsu could only shake his head. But regardless of the source, one thing was certain: all this money now belonged to them.
The two sat dazed, oxygen-deprived from the sheer excitement, minds overloaded by the immensity of their gain.
After what felt like an eternity, Black Zetsu finally stirred. "Obito-kun, let's split the loot," he said, his voice still shaky.
Obito nodded. "I get half… that's two point nine billion…" he muttered, activating his Mangekyō again and absorbing his share into the Kamui space.
Black Zetsu watched with envy. If only he had such a convenient space to store his own share.
But he didn't.
So instead, he entrusted his portion to his loyal White Zetsu—creations of the sacred tree, whose loyalty to him was absolute. Without them, he wouldn't dare leave his money unguarded.
Just as Obito finished sealing the last bundle, he grimaced and clutched his eye.
"Damn, I overused it again…"
Black Zetsu nodded, understanding. "Yeah, we should rest."
Obito agreed. "Let's take a three-day break. Meet back here after that." With that, he slung the unconscious Cardo over his shoulder and disappeared from the cave.
As the dust settled, Black Zetsu turned back to look at his mountain of cash.
"Heh… two point nine billion," he chuckled.
Adding that to the 2.6 billion he had already accumulated, his total funds now stood at 5.5 billion.
He was more than a quarter of the way to the goal—forty billion.
"Mother… soon… I'll finally have enough to bring you back!" Black Zetsu whispered. Tears welled in his eyes and rolled down his cheeks.
More than a thousand years. After all this time, his dream was finally within reach.
But there was no time to cry. The money needed to be secured.
"Ah Fei! Come out and move the money!" he shouted.
No response.
He waited.
"Ah Fei!" he called again, louder this time.
Silence.
The cave remained still.
"…That idiot," he muttered. "Is he studying poop again?"
Annoyed, Black Zetsu tried summoning the other White Zetsu.
Still nothing.
Now he was starting to worry.
"Don't tell me... are they all dead?"
Panic gripped him. He immediately sank underground and began tunneling toward his secret base.
His heart pounded in his chest. His mind spun through worst-case scenarios. What if someone had discovered the location? What if thieves had attacked while he was away?
What if… the White Zetsu were killed trying to defend the money?
"No… no… this can't be happening…"
He burst through the earth into the secret base—
Only to find it completely empty.
Nothing. No Zetsu. No bodies. No cash.
Just… silence.
He froze.
His vision blurred. His hands reached up and clawed at his head.
"AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!" he screamed, collapsing to his knees.
"Where… where is my money?!" he howled, tears gushing down his face.
"My money! Where did all my money go?!"
His cries echoed through the empty cavern.
And at that moment, for the first time, Black Zetsu truly understood what it meant to be robbed.
-