Uchiha Obito's emotional fluctuation +1.
Chakra +1%.
Uchiha Obito's emotional fluctuation +1.
Chakra +1%.
Uchiha Obito's emotional fluctuation +1.
Chakra +1%.
Uchiha...
This guy!
This guy!
Where is my Sharingan!
Where did my Sharingan go!
Beneath his mask, Uchiha Obito stared rigidly at the familiar white-haired young man not far ahead.
What followed was an overwhelming surge of rage!
This bastard couldn't even protect Rin, and now he couldn't even keep his eye safe!
That's right!
A loser is always a loser!
This guy is nothing but a worthless failure who can't accomplish a damn thing!
A series of notifications flashed through Kakashi's mind, and at the same time, he could clearly feel his chakra surging upward at a noticeable rate.
It only stopped after a 20% increase, but even then, the occasional notification still popped up.
As expected... coming back here was the right call.
Kakashi gazed at the silent Uchiha Obito without betraying any emotion.
Returning to the graveyard.
That had been Kakashi's resolute decision.
The fact that he'd lost his Sharingan couldn't possibly stay hidden from Uchiha Obito.
The all-encompassing intelligence network woven by White Zetsu was so formidable that even Konoha, the ninja world's premier military powerhouse, had to admit defeat on that front.
Rather than letting White Zetsu sniff out the news of his lost Sharingan, it was better for Kakashi to take the initiative and squeeze out as much benefit as possible.
He'd only come here on a whim, but he hadn't expected to get so lucky and actually run into the guy.
Come to think of it, once this was over, he should track down Shizune and ask her to keep the details of whose eyes he'd transplanted under wraps for now.
Meeting Uchiha Obito here served two purposes beyond just harvesting a wave of emotional value from him.
If he could get Obito to admit he was "Uchiha Madara" or confess to being the mastermind behind the Nine-Tails Incident half a month ago, Kakashi could use that to deflect or soften the rumors swirling around the Uchiha Clan in the village. Then, enlisting the Ninja Cat Clan's help to reforge his White Fang would be a lot less complicated, especially with the Uchiha involved.
Getting the Ninja Cat Clan to forge ninja tools was no easy feat.
After all, they were the Uchiha's exclusive summons and almost exclusively acknowledged Uchiha clan members.
Back when he'd first transplanted the Sharingan, the Uchiha Clan had only grudgingly tolerated an outsider like Kakashi possessing it because of Minato Namikaze's influence.
An outsider holding their clan's kekkei genkai was practically a direct violation of a bloodline clan's taboos.
If not for Minato Namikaze, the Uchiha would probably have demanded the Sharingan back not long after the transplant.
In Kakashi's current position, bypassing the Uchiha Clan entirely to get the Ninja Cat Clan to forge a blade was next to impossible.
In other words, if Uchiha Obito admitted he was "Uchiha Madara" or the real culprit behind the Nine-Tails Incident, making the Uchiha owe him a favor, then Kakashi could secure a "pledge of allegiance" to reforge the White Fang.
With both angles covered, achieving that second goal would be like killing two birds with one stone.
He hoped this guy would play along.
"I am... Uchiha Madara."
The air grew faintly still in that moment.
Uchiha Obito fixed Kakashi with a dark glare, barely containing his fury, and spat out the words one by one.
This... Kakashi had figured he might need to put in some real effort to pry the information out of him.
He hadn't expected it to be this straightforward.
All he'd asked was "Who are you?" and Uchiha Obito had immediately spilled his Uchiha Madara alias.
This guy really was... "So, tell me now?"
"Where's your Sharingan?"
Staring at the silent Kakashi, Uchiha Obito locked eyes with him intently.
...Why the hell should I tell you?
Facing Uchiha Obito's question, Kakashi cocked his head, shooting back with an odd look on his face.
???
Beneath his mask, Uchiha Obito's face was plastered with question marks.
You bastard!
I answered your question—shouldn't you answer mine?!
Uchiha Obito's emotional fluctuation +1.
Chakra +1%.
To Uchiha Obito, Kakashi's blank expression was utterly infuriating and loathsome right then.
"Hmph, all talk and no action."
There was no one else around now—he couldn't let this guy walk away.
He'd even taken down Minato Namikaze, so what did he have to fear from a mere Kakashi?
The eye beneath Uchiha Obito's single-hole mask flashed crimson in an instant; he was ready to strike!
"Uchiha Madara?"
"How could you still be alive?"
"If it really was you, then was the Nine-Tails Incident half a month ago your handiwork?"
Facing the poised Uchiha Obito, Kakashi spoke with a grave expression.
"Hmph, that's right—it was me."
"Not even the Fourth Hokage could stand in my way."
"Now, think about your last w—"
Mid-sentence, a red flare burst in the sky not far behind Kakashi.
Kakashi never fought without preparation.
Before coming here, he'd deliberately lengthened the flare's fuse and lit it, just to keep Uchiha Obito from attacking.
Though the guy had been beaten by Minato Namikaze in three moves flat, the current Kakashi was no match for this lunatic.
Now, all his objectives were complete.
Thanks to the recent Nine-Tails Incident, the ninjas in the village were on high alert, and reinforcements would arrive quickly.
Even so, at a ninja's speed, the fastest support from the village to the graveyard would still take some time.
He just needed to stall for two minutes.
Or one minute.
No.
Maybe he wouldn't even need to wait... As Kakashi prepared to face off against Uchiha Obito, he heard a familiar voice closing in from afar.
And the owner of that voice was... "Konoha's proud blue beast!"
"Making his dynamic entry!"
As the passionate roar echoed, Kakashi's tension eased considerably.
Might Guy!
Well done!
Kakashi hadn't anticipated that the first to respond to the flare would be Might Guy!
They'd only parted ways a short while ago.
If it was Might Guy... Kakashi tightened his grip on his broken sword, lowering his stance slightly, fully alert against Uchiha Obito.
"Oh!"
"I didn't expect you to be the one who fired the flare, Kakashi. Is that guy across from you the enemy?"
"The proud blue beast will never back down!"
With dust kicking up from his sprint, a green figure came to a halt beside Kakashi.
In his green jumpsuit, Might Guy looked incredibly reliable to Kakashi right then.
Konoha's proud blue beast, making his dynamic entry!
"You two..."
Uchiha Obito gazed at the two familiar figures before him—one white, one green—with a somber expression.
He vaguely recalled that the one who used to stand at Kakashi's side in battle... had been him.