This proves Obito could not yet use Susanoo. No wonder many viewers thought Obito's power was weaker than Itachi's.
The crowd was right.
Obito lunged. He drove kunai into Susano'o and then seven or eight explosive tags detonated around them.
Susanoo retreated. Shigeo dove into the blast. The three attackers were gone. They had used space–time transfer and vanished.
Shigeo looked down at the talisman he'd pulled from the large scroll and shook his head. He'd made that seal specifically for Obito. Too bad it was never used. If they had stayed, he wouldn't have needed Susano'o.
…
In a secret cavern an ancient figure leaned on a stone chair. Behind him the great Outer Path demon statue wore a savage leer. Tubes and conduits fed into his body.
Zetsu appeared and whispered in his ear.
He shuddered. His gaze hardened. A thin blood-red light flickered in his eyes. "He has Sharingan? I thought he was blind."
"He has Sharingan, Mangekyō state, and he used Susanoo," Black Zetsu said again.
Hearing that, Madara rose. He scanned the cave. Fingers clenched. Seven bijū gathered in one body and Sharingan as well. No wonder Orochimaru wanted that body at any cost.
"If he won't see the truth, force him to feel suffering. Make him taste the world's pain. To make someone accept our idea you must let him empathize," Madara said, eyes dark. He coughed.
Zetsu nodded. "The Five Great Ninja Villages are still searching. Konoha is most anxious. Let's push him into a precipice. Once trapped, joining Akatsuki will be hard to refuse."
"Go." Madara waved weakly and sank back to his seat.
…
In Wuwang Castle Shigeo looked at the ruin and sighed. He went to the east shelter. Many civilians hid there. The lord Wuyouhua and her daughter were among them.
"You're back!" Wu Qianling rushed up, grabbed his finger and checked him. "Are you hurt? Strange men looked for you. Leave now. Don't linger."
She tried to push him out. Shigeo gripped her hand. "My fault. I should have weighed the consequences."
He had thought saving Wuwang Castle closed the matter. He had not expected word of seven bijū inside him to draw the whole shinobi world's attention. They could not find him, so they struck the castle.
This time it was Akatsuki. Next time it might be someone else. Though the Five Villages swore not to harm Wuwang civilians, Shigeo understood their methods. If they cannot act openly, they will act in secret.
The sky-ninja were weakened and suffered heavy losses. The remaining forces were no match.
He should have foreseen this.
"This place is not safe. We must leave."
Cities can be rebuilt. Staying meant certain death.
Shigeo left the shelter without asking. Their prior advice had been poor. His clone once asked where to place the floating Wuwang Castle. They told the clone to return it to the old site. The clone left the city there. That made it an easy target.
Shigeo appeared below the city. He split five Mokuton (Wood Release) clones of himself. He entered Sennin Mode (Sage Mode). He fused bijū chakra and with all his strength uprooted the entire Wuwang Castle.
He carried the huge city away across the southern sea.
When they landed the citizens poured out. The island was uninhabited. No one would find them here.
"Where is this?" the lord Wuyouhua asked, supported by attendants.
"A place no one can find," Shigeo said, smiling. He produced the ten treasure chests Wu Qianling once gave him from the scroll and set them before Wuyouhua. "Lady, the originals returned. Use these funds to rebuild. Convert warships to merchant ships. Supplies are sparse, but the land is broad. Work hard and you can start anew."
Wuyouhua's eyes brimmed. She looked at the people sheltering on the rocks, then at Shigeo, and suddenly knelt. Ten thousand citizens followed.
"Hyūga Shigeo, please be the leader of our Sky Country!" she cried, prostrate on the ground.
Shigeo hurried forward and helped her up. She resisted, legs bent, head bowed as if she would never rise. "Please lead us. I'll yield Wuwang Castle. I'll be your servant."
Wu Mang, grievously wounded after resisting the six Akatsuki, knelt amid the crowd, pain forgotten, hope on his face.
All eyes burned into Shigeo like hot irons.
He looked at them and sighed. "You put me in a tough spot. I'm still young. I wanted another few years of wandering."
"It's not age. You proved yourself. We need you. Lead us," Wuyouhua pleaded again.
Shigeo sat on a nearby rock. He wanted to leave. But he feared Akatsuki's reprisals. This place was hidden but not inaccessible. If Akatsuki used every means, they could find it.
They want a war? Fine. He would endure it to the end.
(End of Chapter)
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