Chapter 457: Overlapping Patterns
"Hey… what exactly were you talking about with Jiraiya just now?"
After leaving the hot spring, the four of them headed back toward their rooms. Unable to hold it in any longer, Kenta finally asked the question.
It wasn't just him—Kakashi and Obito were also staring at Kei with obvious curiosity.
Every single word of the conversation had made sense to them individually.
But put together?
They hadn't understood a thing.
It was such a strange, uncomfortable feeling that none of them quite knew how to process it.
"It's nothing. Get some rest," Kei replied, shaking his head. There was no way he was going to explain that.
To be honest, even Kei hadn't expected Jiraiya to catch on so quickly.
He'd already phrased things as subtly as possible, yet that old pervert had understood immediately.
That alone was enough to confirm—without a doubt—that Jiraiya really was exactly what people said he was.
Back when Kei had read the original story, he'd assumed Jiraiya was mostly just all talk.
Now?
That clearly wasn't the case.
Kei rubbed his chin, a wicked thought crossing his mind.
That old pervert probably lives up to the saying—still going strong in all the wrong ways…
He shook his head and quickly forced those thoughts away. Even he felt a bit disgusted.
Still, teasing Jiraiya like that was enough. If he hadn't grossed him out earlier, Kei had plenty more lines he could've used.
For example—
The green, shaded path you admire so much is already packed with traffic…
Kei shuddered.
Yeah, no. That was enough.
He decisively buried those thoughts and walked back toward his room.
Before entering, he subtly made a hand sign toward Obito, who gave a faint nod in return.
Inside his room, Kei hung a "Do Not Disturb" sign on the door.
Only late into the night did he quietly get up and slip out, heading toward Obito's room.
Obito hadn't slept—clearly waiting after receiving Kei's signal.
The moment Kei entered, Obito immediately set up a soundproof barrier. It seemed Orochimaru's earlier eavesdropping had left a lasting impression.
"So, what's going on this late?" Obito asked, already dressed. "Who are we going after?"
Kei raised an eyebrow. "Why do you assume I'm here to cause trouble? And if I were, would I show up in sleepwear?"
Obito paused. "…Fair point. Then what's the plan?"
"We're going into your space," Kei said without hesitation. "What I'm about to do might get… intense. I don't want anyone noticing."
Obito looked confused but didn't question further.
He closed one eye, and the other transformed into a Mangekyō Sharingan. The pattern slowly spun, distorting the surrounding space.
Within moments, spiraling ripples swallowed them both.
They vanished.
---
Kei glanced around the dim, empty expanse of the Kamui dimension and shook his head.
Obito had access to such a broken ability, yet he'd never bothered to organize this place at all.
Maybe it was too difficult.
Or maybe… his heart still hadn't moved on.
After all, Rin's death—and everything he'd done since—wasn't something easily forgotten.
Still, Kei thought, he's on the right path now.
If Obito continued proving himself, even passing Minato's judgment might not be impossible.
As for Rin…
Kei briefly considered revealing some of his plans—about Nagato, or even the possibility of revival techniques.
But in the end, he dismissed the idea.
Some cards were better kept hidden.
---
"Alright, enough silence," Obito said, snapping Kei out of his thoughts. "What are we actually here for?"
"I'm going to try something important," Kei replied calmly. "You might want to keep your distance. It could get dangerous."
Obito blinked. "Dangerous?"
"I want to push my Susanoo further."
"…Susanoo?" Obito's voice was filled with envy. "That's the Uchiha clan's forbidden power. Too bad I—"
"You don't want your other eye back from Kakashi, right?" Kei cut in. "Either way, don't worry. Susanoo doesn't strictly require both eyes."
Obito frowned. "I know. Doesn't your ability somehow reduce the cost or enhance it?"
"No," Kei said flatly. "My abilities have nothing to do with Susanoo."
As he spoke, dark chakra surged around his body.
It quickly formed into a skeletal ribcage, wrapping around his torso. A massive bone arm extended outward.
Obito's eyes widened in shock.
Because Kei's eyes—
were completely normal.
No Sharingan. No Mangekyō.
Just darkness.
"You… how is that possible?" Obito stammered.
Kei dismissed the construct with a flicker of chakra.
"Nothing is impossible," he said calmly. "Everyone's different. But every Uchiha has their own 'guardian.'"
"Find it—and you'll understand."
For Kei, discovering that inner power hadn't been particularly difficult.
Others, however, seemed to rely on brute force—waiting until their strength reached a certain threshold before awakening it naturally.
Maybe that was why Obito had never unlocked his own Susanoo while alive.
Only after death—when his soul fully connected with that power—had he been able to pass it on.
Kei didn't elaborate further.
He simply pulled out a sealing scroll and unfurled it.
In an instant—
a powerful chakra flooded the Kamui dimension.
Obito's expression sharpened immediately.
"That chakra… is that a Tailed Beast?"
He would know—he had once controlled the Nine-Tails himself.
Kei nodded.
"Yeah."
"Eight-Tails chakra."
As he spoke, Kei released the seal.
With a burst of chakra, a massive tentacle emerged from the scroll.
It was enormous—thick, grotesque, and faintly unsettling to look at. Even more striking was the fact that, despite being sealed for so long, it still appeared highly active, almost as if it were alive.
But Kei knew better.
Sealing techniques couldn't truly preserve living organisms. Once sealed, anything alive would inevitably become inert upon release—no matter how powerful its vitality had once been.
Obito frowned slightly, watching in confusion.
Wasn't Kei trying to improve his Susanoo?
Then why was he bringing out Eight-Tails chakra?
Was there some connection between Susanoo and a Tailed Beast?
Obito knew that Susanoo could be layered over a Tailed Beast to amplify its destructive power—Black Zetsu had explained that in detail before.
But right now, there was no complete Tailed Beast here.
So what exactly was Kei planning?
---
The next moment, Obito froze.
Pitch-black chakra erupted around Kei's body.
A chilling, half-formed giant—his Susanoo—manifested instantly.
Without sparing Obito another glance, Kei moved.
With one hand forming a seal, he began extracting chakra from the tentacle.
Crimson energy surged out, flowing like a torrent and rapidly merging into the dark frame of his Susanoo.
Kei closed his eyes.
This wasn't his first time merging Tailed Beast chakra—he already had experience.
Carefully controlling the foreign energy, he soon felt a shift.
His Susanoo… was reacting.
It became more active.
Not as violently as when he had previously infused Kurama's chakra—but even so, it was a rare and valuable change.
Ever since reaching the fourth stage, his Susanoo had only grown larger and stronger.
Nothing else had changed.
The armor he remembered—the fully developed form—had never appeared.
That had always bothered him.
Not that he was in a rush.
But he needed to grow stronger.
Because one day—
he intended to go to the moon.
Years had passed, and Kei had no idea whether those who lived there were still alive.
But one thing he knew for certain—
without overwhelming strength, he wouldn't stand a chance against them.
Even if they didn't possess the terrifying Tenseigan bloodline—
they still had that colossal construct formed from countless Byakugan.
That alone was enough to keep him cautious.
As the Eight-Tails' chakra resonated with his Susanoo, something changed.
The energies intertwined, blending with the remnants of Tailed Beast chakra already within him.
And then—
Kei felt it.
A surge.
A deeper, more powerful force awakening inside him.
He slowly opened his eyes.
His vision felt… sharper.
Alive.
Even the blood in his veins seemed to accelerate, surging with renewed intensity.
He took a deep breath, steadying himself.
Then—
his Mangekyō Sharingan began to spin.
---
Boom!
A massive wave of chakra erupted from within him.
The half-formed Susanoo suddenly broke free from his control.
Chakra overflowed wildly.
Kei's body rose into the air, encased within a crystalline structure.
Inside his consciousness—
a towering Susanoo clad in black Tengu armor, with crimson eyes, stood before him.
It raised its fist.
And waited.
---
Kei's Mangekyō spun faster.
The faint overlapping shadow within his eyes—
the blurred second pattern—
became clearer.
Sharper.
It began aligning with his original Mangekyō design.
Layer upon layer—
until both patterns merged.
Fused.
Became one.
A completely new design was born.
---
At that instant—
his blood roared.
His body strengthened.
His chakra—
not just in quantity, but in quality—
underwent a radical transformation.
Kei slowly raised his right hand.
He clenched his fist—
and struck forward.
---
His fist met the giant's.
The moment they touched—
an overwhelming, frigid wave of chakra exploded outward, engulfing the entire Kamui dimension.
Obito didn't even have time to react.
He was blown away instantly by the sheer force of it.
That aura—
that overwhelming sense of destruction—
sent a chill down his spine.
---
The Susanoo grew.
Larger.
More complete.
Black Tengu armor began forming across its body.
And at its crown—
within the crystal—
stood a man.
Like a god.
Like a demon.
Unshaken.