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"Don't be so hot-headed." Midorima waved his hand, smiling at Obito. "I really can't see any direct connection between whether Sasuke and I want to be in Akatsuki. Back then, didn't you also promise Itachi you'd help find Sasuke? What, are you going back on your word now?"
"I can't tell you're such a 'kind-hearted' person," Obito sneered.
"I am. After all, I usually do a lot of murder and robbery. When it doesn't conflict with my goals, reaching out to do a couple of good deeds helps balance out my karma. Haven't you heard that saying? Helping others is the foundation of happiness."
So far, Obito's mask only revealed one eye.
Theoretically, you can't activate Susano'o with just one Mangekyō Sharingan eye. But there are always exceptions, like Shisui, who activated Susano'o even after having one eye taken by Danzō.
But in reality, although Obito only has one Sharingan eye (the other is with Kakashi), he should still have three other Sharingan eyes—in the original work, Konan used six hundred billion explosive tags trying to kill Obito. Obito used "Izangi" to avoid that fatal attack, and his own Mangekyō Sharingan didn't completely close.
Therefore, it can be determined that Obito used a different Sharingan eye at that time—perhaps that eye was hidden behind his mask.
Whether that destroyed eye was a Mangekyō Sharingan or not, Midorima isn't sure. But with "Kamui," killing Obito would be highly difficult, just as it would be unrealistic for Obito to kill him.
He also has a Mangekyō Sharingan ability: Shunkan.
"Your words are pointless. Since you've done this, I can conclude you are not someone Akatsuki needs!"
Obito didn't agree with Midorima's words. Almost without hesitation, a Great Fireball Jutsu shot towards Midorima.
Midorima quickly formed hand seals, and a water dragon spewed from his mouth.
With the small river right beside them, the Water Dragon Jutsu was much more powerful.
After swallowing the Great Fireball, the water dragon continued its attack towards Obito.
Obito imitated Midorima's movements, also performing the "Water Dragon Jutsu," and a water dragon spewed from his mouth.
The two water dragons collided in mid-air, sending water droplets splashing down.
The two then began their first formal confrontation amidst the falling water.
Midorima understood very well that killing Obito at this point would be very difficult.
After experiencing the pain of Rin's death, when facing enemies, Obito was single-minded, not considering others' thoughts and showing no mercy. These factors allowed him to grow rapidly.
Shisui's strength was evident, even hailed as the strongest genius of the "Uchiha clan." After Obito assumed the identity of Uchiha Madara, his combat experience increased tremendously, and his attacks became sharper than Shisui's.
Judging from how Obito killed all the Kirigakure ninja present at Rin's death, his strength at that time was already formidable.
Although Midorima held "Shunkan," theoretically, as long as he could make contact with Obito's body, he could kill him. However, due to the existence of "Kamui," which could transfer his attacks to another dimension, and when Midorima got close, Obito could even use "Kamui" to suck Midorima into the other dimension.
This forced Midorima to be extremely cautious.
Obito was also constantly on guard against Midorima, using nimble footwork multiple times to dodge Midorima's attacks, then using genjutsu on him.
Midorima also possessed the Mangekyō Sharingan, allowing him to avoid being controlled by genjutsu. But even so, he made two mistakes in judgment, misreading the situation. While attacking Obito's clones, he included the bystander Kimimaro in his attack range.
"Hey, what are you doing?" Kimimaro dodged twice, putting distance between himself and Midorima/Obito, while complaining to Midorima.
"Sorry, this Uchiha Madara is a bit tricky," Midorima briefly explained, just as Obito closed in right before him.
"Why is my genjutsu ineffective against you?" Obito demanded angrily.
"You didn't actually think I'd be stupid enough to fall for your genjutsu, did you?" Midorima sneered. "I'm naturally talented, immune to genjutsu. Are you satisfied with that answer?"
"What kind of talent is that!?" Obito was furious.
'Does Midorima think I'm an idiot?'
"With so many Kekkei Genkai, why can't there be one that's immune to genjutsu? Have you done a statistical survey on Kekkei Genkai?" Midorima retorted.
"..."
Obito was speechless.
The world of Naruto has a vast and bizarre array of Kekkei Genkai. No Kekkei Genkai should be considered strange.
Seeing Obito fall silent, Midorima launched another attack. Obito finally began using his real skills, activating his Mangekyō Sharingan and simultaneously throwing two shuriken.
Kamui Shuriken!?
Midorima dared not block them and could only dodge.
The two shuriken hit a tree behind him, which instantly got sucked into the other dimension.
Kimimaro, hiding behind another tree, was startled, but more shuriken followed closely, attacking him again.
Having witnessed the tree's fate, Kimimaro was much more alert this time. He practically sprinted away, barely dodging Obito's consecutive attacks, while angrily shouting, "Stop targeting me! The person you're fighting is him!"
"Anyway, you won't live much longer. Dying for me shouldn't matter!" Midorima threw out a remark that drove Kimimaro crazy.
Just as he was about to retort, he saw Midorima had already appeared in front of Obito.
"Great Dragon Fire Technique!"
A massive fire dragon spewed from Midorima's mouth.
They were only one meter apart. At such a short distance, dodging the Great Dragon Fire Technique was extremely difficult.
But Obito's body suddenly blurred, entering an intangible state.
The fire dragon passed right through him, causing no direct harm.
Kamui!?
Midorima was inwardly shocked.
Simultaneously, Obito's body materialized again. A powerful suction force emanated from Obito's right eye, seemingly trying to pull Midorima in.
Midorima inwardly yelled in alarm. He immediately activated his Mangekyō Sharingan and used "Shunkan," instantly putting 200 meters between himself and Obito.
That was too close...
Fortunately, he had "Shunkan" to instantly create distance. Otherwise, he would have been sent straight to the other dimension.
Even a monster like Hidan could starve to death without food.
Midorima was certain his own vitality was nowhere near as robust as Hidan's.
Come to think of it, this was just Obito with only his right eye, and he almost got sucked in. If he were facing an Obito with two Mangekyō Sharingan eyes who could use Susano'o, that would be extremely troublesome.
"Who are you, really!? I don't believe the Hidden Waterfall Village has someone of your caliber," Obito said angrily.
"Does who I am matter?" Midorima retorted. "That was your best chance just now. Once you missed it, do you really think I'd give you another opportunity to kill me?"
Midorima glanced at Kimimaro, roughly 50 meters away from him.
After Obito used his Mangekyō Sharingan, killing him became very difficult for Midorima.
Obito could avoid his attacks by phasing through them, unless Midorima could maintain a continuous attack for five minutes.
After five minutes, "Kamui" needs to cooldown.
But even if "Kamui" was on cooldown, he still might not successfully kill Obito.
And if the fight dragged on, the situation might not be in his favor.