The corner of Gen Takuya's mouth lifted.
He didn't doubt that Nagato would still end up cooperating with Uchiha Obito in the future—but now that this had happened, smoothing things over between them would be far harder.
Just imagining it made him want to laugh.
He tossed the kunai in his hand once, then spoke in that deliberately ambiguous voice.
"So that jutsu you used to slip past my kunai just now… that was a space-time ninjutsu, wasn't it? Rare stuff."
His tone turned almost casual, like he was bargaining at a market stall.
"If you're willing to teach me, I can even agree to collect one less 'special creature.'"
"Impossible," Obito said flatly. "That's not a technique you can learn."
Gen Takuya already knew that.
This was just him polishing the ridiculous persona he'd thrown together on the spot.
"Then that's a shame." He tilted his head slightly. "So—you're here to stop me from obtaining that odd creature called the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path?"
"That's not something you're allowed to lay eyes on," Obito snorted.
"Try me." Gen Takuya's eyes narrowed behind his mask. "Don't think you can block me just because you know a space-time technique."
His words were sharp, but inside, he was wary to the bone.
Kamui wasn't something you countered with bravado.
Even Water Release: Revolving Water Blades couldn't stay active forever. And worse—he still hadn't reached the level where Lightning Release could be used to boost his reaction speed in combat.
If he had that…
Dealing with Obito would be far easier, even without extra trump cards.
On the other side, Nagato listened to their exchange and couldn't help glancing at Obito again.
Space-time ninjutsu…
Now it made sense.
No wonder the Rinnegan had failed to detect him—twice—until Obito chose to appear.
He hadn't been hiding nearby.
He'd been hiding somewhere else entirely.
Inside space-time.
Nagato's expression turned strange.
Why did it feel like Obito's target was also the Demonic Statue?
Nagato hadn't even planned to summon it before all of this happened.
So how did these two know?
If Gen Takuya had been watching from the shadows and reacted in the moment, that was one thing.
But Obito had approached them long before today.
Which meant…
Had this been planned?
Nagato's wariness toward Obito deepened. While the two masked men faced off, Konan quietly fed him soldier pills, forcing chakra back into his battered body.
Gen Takuya's hand slipped into his pouch. He flicked a shuriken at Obito—and formed a one-handed seal.
"Ninja Art: Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
The few spinning blades split into countless copies, scattering like a sky full of falling stars as they screamed toward Obito.
"Useless," Obito said.
He didn't dodge.
The shuriken passed straight through him and slammed into the Demonic Statue behind him with metallic clanging.
"Tch. Annoying space-time ninjutsu," Gen Takuya clicked his tongue.
He knew Kamui couldn't be maintained forever.
But the problem wasn't Obito's stamina—it was his own rhythm.
Gen Takuya couldn't produce a continuous, gapless assault.
Not like Konan's later ocean of paper bombs.
Even Shuriken Shadow Clone had intervals. Obito could always pick the right moment to solidify.
And Gen Takuya couldn't tell whether Obito was tangible or not at any given instant.
So that famous weakness—Kamui's time limit—might as well not exist to him right now.
"Your attacks can't touch me," Obito said, voice calm, almost mocking. "Still not giving up?"
Just like Gen Takuya had no clean solution for Obito…
Obito found Gen Takuya troublesome as well.
To use Kamui, he needed physical contact—and that spinning water-blade defense wouldn't give him the opening.
As for other techniques to put Gen Takuya down…
Obito didn't have many.
He'd only recently recovered. Before this, he'd been a chunin—worse, a dead-last chunin. Even if he'd patched some gaps recently, he couldn't suddenly fill his entire arsenal overnight.
For the first time, Obito felt a bitter regret.
He should never have separated from White Zetsu so soon.
If he still had that support—if he could rely on Wood Release at key moments—he wouldn't be this passive, even if he still couldn't kill Gen Takuya.
But he couldn't call White Zetsu out now.
Obito was already exposed.
White Zetsu and Black Zetsu needed to stay hidden—especially in front of Nagato.
"Do you really think your space-time ninjutsu can last forever?" Gen Takuya asked. "Your chakra can't be that cheap."
"Who knows?" Obito replied lightly.
He sat down atop the Demonic Statue, looking down as if watching an insect struggle.
Gen Takuya clicked his tongue again.
"I don't believe space-time ninjutsu comes at such a bargain."
If physical attacks didn't work, then he'd switch to ninjutsu.
"Water Release: Wild Water Wave!"
"Earth Release: Rock Collapse!"
"Lightning Release: Ground Flow!"
One after another, jutsu erupted from Gen Takuya's hands.
Water surged.
Stone shattered.
Lightning crawled across the ground.
And every single attack—
Passed through Obito.
Completely useless.
It was the kind of hopelessness that could grind down even a strong will.
Meanwhile, Obito occasionally tossed out Fire Release like a cat playing with prey—only for Gen Takuya to evade with ease.
But there was a difference.
Obito's attacks forced Gen Takuya to move.
Gen Takuya's attacks didn't even make Obito shift his feet.
Who held the advantage was obvious.
Konan stared, shocked.
The masked man who'd trapped her so casually couldn't land a single hit on this other masked man.
Even knowing it was space-time ninjutsu…
Watching it still felt suffocating.
He'll give up, she thought.
If Gen Takuya continued like this, his chakra would drain dry—and Obito would strike the instant the opening appeared.
Obito was thinking the same thing.
He was consuming Gen Takuya's chakra on purpose, occasionally needling him with words, provoking him into wasting more ninjutsu.
And Gen Takuya…
Said nothing.
He just kept firing.
"An idiot," Obito thought coldly.
Maybe that also explained why Gen Takuya had released Konan so easily—he really was foolish.
Then Gen Takuya's chakra surged again, flaring strongly.
Obito's eye narrowed.
He still has that much?
But even so-
"This should be the last of it," Obito calculated. "Even a jonin would be at the end of the road by now."
Inside the Kamui space, Obito's body tensed like a drawn bowstring.
The moment Gen Takuya's chakra hit the bottom-
Obito would kill him.
Gen Takuya's hands flashed through seals.
"Wind Release: Vacuum Serial Waves!"
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