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"How's the situation?"
"Elder Genji, our forces are advancing. However... the Mizukage's resistance is exceptionally fierce."
Inside one of the towering spires of Kirigakure, Elder Genji stood in silence, his gaze fixed on the distant horizon. Behind him, Mei Terumi spoke softly, her voice laced with tension as she reported the developments.
This battle was meant to shape the future of the Hidden Mist. Yet seeing how it had devolved into such brutal chaos, Genji's heart ached with heaviness.
Still, he quickly composed himself. How could there be true reform without bloodshed?
"There's something else, elder. Some of the men are beginning to question things."
Just as Genji was lost in thought, Mei spoke up again, her voice even lower this time.
"They're worried... that they'll be seen as traitors to the village. You know how we..."
"Hmph. Tell them this—those who lose are the rebels. Those who win bring about revolution."
Elder Genji didn't wait for her to finish. His voice cut across hers, firm and unyielding.
"Besides, we must place our trust in Ao, and in the Byakugan. He would never deceive us."
"Yes. I understand. I'll see to it that your words are passed down."
"Good."
Elder Genji finally nodded at her response. Yet before he could say anything more, the ground beneath them suddenly trembled violently.
A deafening roar followed, shaking the entire village. Smoke and dust rose like a tidal wave, and within that haze and thick mist, a massive, looming figure began to take shape.
"What... is that..."
Both Elder Genji and Mei Terumi froze, their eyes wide with disbelief. A terrible premonition gripped their hearts. Something had clearly spiraled out of control.
Then, from deep within the swirling fog, the beast let out a heart-wrenching roar that echoed through the entire Hidden Mist.
"No way…"
Elsewhere, Uchiha Obito was sent crashing into the ground by the force of a Rasengan.
The impact shattered the earth beneath him, hurling chunks of stone in every direction. Amidst the dust and debris, the Rasengan's brilliant white light still pulsed like a sunburst.
His mind, however, had gone blank. For some reason, he felt as though he had lived this moment once before.
Back then... wasn't it Namikaze Minato who had defeated him in exactly the same way? Now, the scene was repeating itself.
He couldn't understand it. Why was he once again brought down by the Flying Thunder God Technique?
And that kid—when did he learn to use the Flying Thunder God technique?
Obito's mind was buzzing with unanswered questions, his thoughts spinning in disarray. But what struck him the hardest... was that boy's parting words.
"Who would choose illusion over reality?"
That sentence pierced straight into his heart. For a brief moment, Obito's expression twisted, his resolve shaken. Doubt crept in—was he wrong all along?
"Illusion... reality…"
The words echoed in Obito's mind, again and again. But before long, he grew tired of chasing the thought.
Whether illusion or reality, did it even matter anymore?
From his perspective, he stood far above the world, looking down on it all with cold clarity.
In his eyes, humans were bound by their desires. And that... that was the root of everything wrong in this world.
Only the Eye of the Moon Plan could bring salvation. Only by freeing every soul from the chains of their own desire could peace ever be achieved.
Only then... would Rin's tragedy never be repeated. Only then... could she truly be saved.
Not that he had the luxury of dwelling on such thoughts any longer.
Because Kitagawa Gen was already charging at him once more, his White Fang short blade gleaming as it cleaved through the air.
"Defeated…?"
Meanwhile, on the other side, the battle between Kakashi and Kisame had begun to slow.
Kisame's expression was somewhat strange. Though he remained locked in combat with Kakashi, his eyes kept darting toward the other side of the battlefield in the distance.
That bizarre space-time ninjutsu was completely beyond his understanding, but there was one thing he had seen clearly.
"That brat... used the Flying Thunder God Technique? And he actually landed a successful sneak attack?"
For just a fleeting moment, Kisame began to question everything, including his own decisions. Was this guy really as reliable as he had thought?
"Gen…"
From where they stood, both Kakashi and Jiraiya had noticed what had happened.
Their gazes burned with a quiet excitement but at the same time a hint of wistfulness crept into their expressions.
Obito had been the one who brought down the Fourth Hokage, and yet now the Fourth had left behind a legacy that could challenge him and perhaps even overturn everything.
"This is our chance."
But just then, a sudden realization flashed through Jiraiya's mind, and his gaze immediately snapped to the Fourth Mizukage.
Something was off.
That man's movements were stiff, and his attacks lacked their previous precision and fluidity.
"Obito's injury… is the genjutsu beginning to loosen? If that's the case, then now's the time to break the hold on this guy."
Jiraiya made his decision in an instant. This mysterious organization was far too dangerous to ignore. Even though Kirigakure and Konoha were currently at odds, the fact that their own Mizukage had been reduced to such a pawn was an unforgivable humiliation.
Surely, once this was over, the Hidden Mist would move against the organization as well. In that case, he might as well lend them a hand now. That too would be a way to help Konoha.
"Fire Release: Flame Bullet!"
Seizing the opportunity while the Fourth Mizukage's body was still frozen, Jiraiya unleashed a powerful wave of flames without delay.
"Ahhh!"
The Mizukage made no effort to dodge. The scorching flames engulfed his body in an instant, but just as the fire flared around him, a surge of tailed beast chakra exploded forth from his skin like a storm.
"Tailed Beast Transformation…?"
Jiraiya raised an eyebrow, watching closely. This wasn't necessarily a good thing, but it wasn't entirely bad either. The sudden release of tailed beast chakra meant that the Mizukage himself was starting to shake off the genjutsu's influence.
However—
It also meant he would be far more difficult to deal with from this point on.
As the Fourth Mizukage roared and charged at him with blazing fury, Jiraiya felt a bead of sweat form on his brow. He had no choice but to steel himself and meet the attack head-on.
Zzzzzhhh— !
While Jiraiya grappled with the rampaging Mizukage, Uchiha Obito took advantage of the opening and slipped once more into the Kamui space.
But the moment he emerged, that flash of purple lightning was already at his back. The White Fang blade glinted coldly as it cut through the air, narrowly missing him.
His expression turned an ugly shade of green.
"Damn you, Namikaze Minato. Damn that Flying Thunder God..."
He had never forgotten what Namikaze Minato had once done to him. But Minato was dead now, and Obito had never believed anyone else could truly master the Flying Thunder God technique. That was why he had never bothered to erase Minato's lingering sealing marks.
And yet now, this weirdo not only managed to learn the Flying Thunder God technique, but could even use Minato's old markings? It was absurd. It threw him completely off balance.
"You're really tough, huh?"
Kitagawa Gen showed no disappointment when his strike missed. He simply launched into another attack, his voice calm but sharp, every syllable laced with challenge. With the Flying Thunder God's mark under his control, the rhythm of the battle was his to dictate.
Moreover, there was no guarantee the mark would remain usable next time. He had to make the most of it while he could.
"You took a hit from a Rasengan and survived. And you're using Wood Release too. Who the hell taught you that?"
"..."
Uchiha Obito had no desire to speak. He simply locked his gaze onto Kitagawa Gen, his eyes narrowing dangerously as if sparks could leap from them at any moment.
"And why are you blaming everyone else for being late when you're the one who showed up late?"
"You don't seriously want to wipe out the entire world, do you? Is that the only way to make sure no one fights anymore?"
"You really believe in an illusion that much? Or… do you have something else in mind?"
Gen's words kept coming, rapid and unrelenting, just like the strikes of his blade. Each one pierced straight into Obito's heart, cutting deeper than steel. He wasn't just talking to pass time—he was peeling back the layers of Obito's resolve with each question.
Obito understood perfectly well what Gen was doing. This guy was clearly trying to provoke him, baiting him into a reckless move that would leave him exposed. But damn it, it was working. The kid was seriously infuriating.
"This damn brat…"
Obito gritted his teeth and forced himself to swallow his fury. The earlier Rasengan hadn't shattered his arm, but it had torn open the entire length of his back.
If not for the Zetsu cells that made up half of his body, he'd already be dead by now.
What he needed to do now was get out of this cursed place as soon as possible. The problem was that Kisame was still stuck here too. He had just recruited him, and if he bailed now, it would look downright pathetic.
"Hm?"
But at that moment, Obito's attention was pulled away. His eyes flicked toward the other end of the battlefield, where the chakra of the Three-Tails was growing more and more intense around the Fourth Mizukage.
Jiraiya hadn't stopped pressing forward either, launching a relentless assault. It didn't take a genius to figure out what he was trying to do—he wanted to disrupt the genjutsu from the outside and free the Mizukage from his control.
"So you want to break the illusion?"
Obito clenched his jaw, his frustration flaring. But then a different thought occurred to him. Perhaps he could use this to his advantage.
His Sharingan spun rapidly, glowing ominously. At that moment, the chakra of the Three-Tails erupted into a wild frenzy.
"Then allow me to help you."
"…What?"
In that instant, the expression of every shinobi in the underground base shifted. Their faces grew tense, and Jiraiya in particular widened his eyes in alarm.
A deafening roar echoed through the chamber!
The Fourth Mizukage let out a bestial scream as his body began to swell and twist, losing all semblance of human control.
In mere seconds, he had ballooned into a grotesque form, and the very foundation of the underground base started to crack and crumble beneath the pressure.
"This is bad…"
Everyone's faces turned grim. The situation had suddenly spiraled out of control. But at that exact moment, Kitagawa Gen's brow twitched ever so slightly.
[Side Mission Completed]
[Cut through the darkness of the Shinobi World and soar across the realm of space]
[Reward Obtained: Chakra of the Three-Tails]
"…"
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[IMAGE]
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[Chapter End's]
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