The Kamui dimension trembled faintly as Obito stood within it, staring at his own hands. His right eye—his original Sharingan—had always required physical contact with a target. But now, with the left eye restored, his power had reached a frightening equilibrium. By phasing his body into intangibility, almost no attack could touch him. And with the left Mangekyō, his offensive power reached a peak most shinobi could only dream of.
"Offense and defense combined… flawless," Obito murmured, clenching his fist with renewed confidence.
His gaze shifted toward the unconscious Kakashi lying on the ground nearby. The sight stirred something poisonous inside him.
Rin…
Just the memory of her name sent a sharp pain through his heart.
With a cold breath, Obito drew a kunai from his waist. His expression darkened as he approached Kakashi.
Buzz.
Without hesitation, Obito thrust the kunai straight toward Kakashi's chest—
But the blade suddenly halted, suspended an inch above his skin.
Obito's hand trembled.
"You didn't protect Rin," he whispered, his voice trembling with hatred and sorrow. "Killing you… would be far too easy."
The kunai lowered.
"Kakashi… suffer. Spend the rest of your miserable life drowning in regret."
With a flick of his wrist, Obito opened a swirling vortex of space and hurled Kakashi's unconscious body out of the Kamui dimension. Kakashi fell into a remote, desolate forest, landing among twisted roots and damp earth.
Obito stepped out of the vortex moments later.
A soft rustling came from below as the ground split open. A giant carnivorous Nepenthes plant rose from the soil—its surface splitting to reveal White Zetsu's grinning face.
"Black Zetsu, looks like I win this time," White Zetsu declared triumphantly.
Obito frowned.
"What did you 'win' exactly?"
"We made a little bet," White Zetsu said, his grin widening. "Black Zetsu thought you'd kill Kakashi. I said you wouldn't—because Obito still lacks the guts to kill an old friend."
Obito's expression twisted with anger.
"You talk too much."
He pointed at Kakashi. "Leaving him alive is punishment. Regret will haunt him far worse than death."
White Zetsu chuckled.
"If you say so~"
Before Obito could retort, Black Zetsu emerged from the earth beside them.
"Obito," Black Zetsu interrupted coldly, "how long until your left eye completes the Mangekyō transformation?"
"It already has."
Black Zetsu stiffened. "Already?!"
Obito shrugged. "When I reclaimed it from Kakashi, it was already Mangekyō. I didn't need to awaken anything."
Black Zetsu's voice quivered with surprise. "Lord Madara's judgment was truly accurate."
Obito hesitated.
Then he frowned.
"There's one thing I don't understand. Zetsu… Kakashi doesn't have Uchiha blood. How was he able to awaken a Mangekyō Sharingan?"
Black Zetsu lowered his voice.
"In theory, an outsider cannot. Kakashi lacks Uchiha lineage, Senju lineage, and all special physiques—yet he awakened Mangekyō purely through his own capability."
Black Zetsu paused.
"In the thousand years I've existed, I have never seen anything like it."
Obito's expression darkened.
Those words—begrudging praise for Kakashi—left a bitter taste in his mouth. Even now… Kakashi surpassed expectations.
He didn't want to dwell on it.
"How is Kikyō Castle?" Obito asked abruptly.
White Zetsu cackled.
"Not long ago, the Star of the Clouds infiltrated the castle alone. Now the entire fortress is rubble."
Obito stiffened.
"You mean… he destroyed Kikyō Castle by himself?"
Destroying a heavily fortified castle single-handedly was something even great Kage struggled to do. The implication was terrifying.
Black Zetsu's tone was serious as he said,
"Obito, do not underestimate the Star of the Clouds. Only Nagato can fight him head-on. We must avoid him for now."
Obito scoffed.
"Are you asking me to run from him?"
His voice was layered with scorn and pride.
Black Zetsu could only sigh internally.
Obito had grown too confident after obtaining dual Mangekyō.
But Black Zetsu knew the terror of the Tenseigan.
He had no guarantee Obito could defeat Hyuga Neji—not yet.
"This is a battlefield," Black Zetsu reminded. "Uchiha Shisui is being held off by Jiraiya. And the two Jinchūriki have already defeated their opponents and are heading toward Kikyō Castle."
White Zetsu nodded vigorously.
"Yeah! If you go now, you'll get crushed."
Obito paused.
"…Fine."
He cast one final glance at the direction of Kikyō Castle before warping away into the Kamui dimension.
---
Shisui vs. Jiraiya
"Kid… you're a real problem."
Fukasaku stared at Uchiha Shisui, astonished. Jiraiya was panting, Sage Mode flickering as he wiped blood from his lip.
The Sage Arts: Demonic Amphibian Technique—an advanced genjutsu transmitted through sound—had ensnared countless shinobi in a single moment.
But Shisui's Mangekyō had broken the genjutsu's control through sheer ocular power.
Shima shook her head in disbelief.
"This boy's dōjutsu must be specialized for genjutsu… to escape our Amphibian Technique…"
Jiraiya didn't deny it.
He knew the fearsome reputation of Shisui's eyes.
But he sensed something else…
A weakening.
"Two Sages," Jiraiya said calmly, "the side effects of the Mangekyō have started. Shisui's chakra is dropping fast. If we prolong this… we win."
But at that exact moment—
Inoichi's voice echoed inside Jiraiya's mind.
"Jiraiya! Something terrible has happened!"
"What is it?" Jiraiya demanded.
"Kikyō Castle… was destroyed by the Star of the Clouds!"
"What?!"
"Kumogakure's forces are too strong—we can't handle them. I've already ordered Konoha forces to retreat. Please fall back!"
The telepathic link ended abruptly.
Jiraiya's shoulders sank.
"We lost."
"What happened?" Fukasaku asked.
Jiraiya didn't answer.
He simply vanished from the battlefield.
Shisui watched him go, relief washing over him. But seconds later, the strain overwhelmed him. He collapsed, blood flowing from his eye sockets.
His last conscious thought:
"Konoha retreated… Neji must have succeeded."
Three Uchiha elites arrived beside him, helping him up.
"Clan Leader! Are you alright?"
Shisui wiped the blood from his eyes.
"Go. We check Kikyō Castle next."
---
Hyuga Clan Compound — Disaster
In the Hyuga compound, Hyuga Gensuke sat at the head of the clan hall, conversing with elders. Suddenly an elder hesitated.
"Lord Gensuke… will we not go to assist the Hokage?"
Gensuke paused, then lifted his cup.
"Do you remember why Hizashi died?"
The elder's expression tightened immediately.
The infamous Kumogakure incident—the kidnapping, the false accusations, the demand that Konoha hand over Hiashi for execution… It remained the clan's deepest wound.
Hiruzen Sarutobi had chosen appeasement.
Hyuga Hizashi died in Hiashi's place.
A beloved clan hero sacrificed as a political pawn.
Gensuke's voice grew cold.
"Hiruzen sacrificed the Hyuga for peace. Do not expect the Hyuga Clan to sacrifice for him in return."
The elders fell silent.
Then—
A piercing alarm tore through the compound.
Gensuke bolted upright.
"The forbidden-zone alarm?! Has someone infiltrated Hinata's residence?!"
Hinata's home had been designated a restricted zone ever since Neji was kidnapped years prior. Guards patroled it day and night.
Gensuke rushed toward the residence with the clan's elite forces.
When he arrived, the front door hung open.
Inside the main hall…
"Impossible…"
A white-haired elder—one of the clan's veteran jōnin—sat motionless in a chair. Blood flowed from his empty eye sockets.
His Byakugan was gone.
Gensuke's face turned ghostly pale.
"Byakugan—activate!"
He dashed toward Hinata's room.
Inside lay Hyuga Hanabi, unconscious but unharmed. Hinata, however—
Was gone.
No signs of struggle.
No traces left behind.
Just silence.
Gensuke's chest rose and fell sharply as fury overtook him.
But he forced himself to breathe, kneeling to examine Hanabi.
"Genjutsu… she's not physically hurt."
His expression softened—only for rage to return stronger.
Someone targeted Hinata specifically.
He strode back outside, where dozens of clan members waited anxiously.
"Lord Gensuke—Hinata?!"
Gensuke's face was dark as storm clouds.
"Hinata has been kidnapped."
Shock rippled through the crowd.
"She must be found!"
"Seal the compound!"
"No one enters or leaves!"
Gensuke raised a hand, silencing them.
"Close all gates. Notify the patrolling clansmen. Track Hinata immediately."
Then he turned to the elder's corpse.
"How did he die?"
A medical ninja opened the man's shirt, revealing a purple-black mark on his chest.
"Poison," the medic said. "A venomous serpent's bite."
"Impossible!" Gensuke snapped. "A poisonous snake cannot enter the Hyuga forbidden zone! And this man was a veteran jōnin—no snake could kill him instantly!"
Anger flared again.
"Branch members, leave us."
The branch family froze.
He was dismissing them out of distrust.
But they obeyed silently, retreating.
Once they were gone, an elder whispered,
"Lord Gensuke… only one man uses snakes with this level of lethality…"
"Orochimaru?" Gensuke growled.
His face hardened.
---
Meanwhile — Hokage Tower
On the rooftop, barren after the battle, Hiruzen Sarutobi fell to his knees, the Shinigami's pull draining the life from his body.
"The flames will continue to burn… Konoha will… thrive…"
He collapsed, breath fading.
Enma sighed.
"Hiruzen… dying like this is probably the best fate for you."
He vanished into smoke.
Moments later, Konoha's ANBU rushed onto the rooftop, followed by Homura and Koharu. Their faces paled at the sight of Hiruzen's corpse.
A Hokage was dead.
Word spread across the village.
Yet… Konoha remained eerily calm.
Hiruzen Sarutobi was not beloved anymore.
When Hyuga Gensuke heard Orochimaru was the killer, he made his conclusion instantly:
Orochimaru had also kidnapped Hinata.
A ceramic cup shattered as Gensuke slammed it against the floor.
But he wasn't angry about Hiruzen.
He was furious about Hinata.
How could the Hyuga Clan possibly rescue her from a monster like Orochimaru?
Gensuke's shoulders trembled as guilt washed over him.
Had he doomed Hinata by sending elite guards away earlier?
But no—he knew the truth.
If Orochimaru wanted someone…
There was no defense strong enough.
He glanced at the unconscious Hanabi.
"The future of the clan," he whispered bitterly, "may now rest on Hanabi."
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