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Damn it… he predicted even this?!
He knew I'd activate Izanagi at the very last second.
That's why he cleared away every obstacle around us. No cover. No blind spots. Not even a moment to catch my breath.
The Mangekyō he'd just ripped from Kakashi's socket hadn't even been used for long before it went completely blind.
And the one responsible for all of it stood not far away, watching him with open curiosity.
Obito glared at Akira. Back to a single eye again. Rage churned in his chest… along with regret.
If only he hadn't been so reckless.
He should've retreated first. Planned properly. Then come back.
The safest way to deal with Akira would've been to bring Nagato, the one who truly possessed the Rinnegan. Not launch a solo ambush like a fool.
Now he'd lost a Mangekyō—and with Akira eyeing him like prey, escaping would be nearly impossible.
Regret didn't even begin to cover it.
"Yo~ So this is Uchiha Madara?" Akira walked toward him casually, hands in his pockets. "You look pretty rough. Let's see what tricks you've still got."
"Wood Style: Cutting Sprigs Jutsu!"
Obito didn't waste time talking. He attacked.
His right hand shot forward, palm open. Countless wooden spikes burst out and tore through the air toward Akira.
"Trying to block my vision and slip away? Useless."
Akira curled a finger and flicked.
A compressed bullet of air screamed forward, punching straight through every wooden spike and revealing Obito behind them.
Obito didn't attempt to escape with Kamui.
He knew Akira's speed too well. He'd be caught before he could phase out.
More importantly, Kamui was still on cooldown. He couldn't access the other dimension even if he wanted to.
But that brief moment bought by Wood Style wasn't wasted.
Obito tore out the now-blind Sharingan and replaced it with a standard three-tomoe Sharingan.
Under the terrifying regenerative power of Hashirama's cells, the new eye fused with his body instantly.
Akira raised a brow. "Switching to a regular three-tomoe Sharingan? What's the plan? Another Izanagi to stall for time?"
He snorted.
"Pointless struggling. All you're doing is extending your death by a few seconds. The ending won't change."
Obito exhaled slowly.
"Young one… I admit you're strong. Stronger than me.
This misunderstanding between us is because of Danzo. He was the one who sent people to cooperate with me.
I've already dispatched my men to locate his real body. It won't be long before he's found.
I'll hand him over to you. That clears everything between us. There's no need to keep fighting."
Just moments ago, Obito had secretly ordered White Zetsu to retrieve Danzo's true body.
"Wow. Danzo again?" Akira clicked his tongue. "Why does everyone love dumping the blame on him?"
Danzo really was the king of scapegoats. If something went wrong, toss it on his head.
Akira laughed coldly. "I've basically crippled Danzo already. You think he can still send people to cooperate with you? Do I look three years old?"
In the blink of an eye, Akira vanished and reappeared right in front of Obito.
Clang—
A black chain whipped out toward him.
Crack!
Akira caught it barehanded and snapped it like it was thread.
That body… he broke steel with his fingers?
Obito retreated rapidly, forming hand seals.
"Fire Style: Great Fire—"
"Still struggling."
Before the jutsu could even form, Akira's hand closed around Obito's throat, lifting him clean off the ground.
Kamui was still cooling down. Phasing wasn't an option.
"I've already activated Izanagi," Obito said calmly despite being held aloft. "Whatever you do now is meaningless."
He needed time. Just time.
Once Zetsu brought Danzo here, he'd have a chance to slip away.
He would stall no matter what.
Akira tilted his head. "Why did you even come after me? Got tired of living?"
He genuinely didn't get it. He hadn't messed with the Akatsuki at all.
"That eye of yours… it's the Rinnegan, isn't it? The Sage of Six Paths' legendary eyes. I was curious. I wanted to confirm it. Nothing personal."
So that was it.
Akira understood now. Saving Danzo had just been a pretext to test him.
"Remind me—what did you say your name was?"
The question came out of nowhere.
"I am Uchiha Madara," Obito answered automatically, too used to the role to think twice.
Then he noticed a glass sphere about the size of a tennis ball floating behind Akira.
"What is that?"
"Nothing special. Just recording this." Akira grinned suddenly. "I just thought of a fun little game."
"Since killing you now just means you'll come back… we might as well make good use of this time. Treasure it. It'll be an unforgettable memory."
That smile sent a chill straight down Obito's spine.
"You—what are you planning?! I'm warning you, don't mess around! Anything you do now is meaningless!"
"Oh, it'll be very meaningful," Akira replied lightly.
In a flash, he shattered all four of Obito's limbs.
"Ahhh! Trying to torture me? It's useless! Under Izanagi, I'm invincible! All damage becomes nothing but a dream!"
Akira didn't respond.
Instead, he formed seals and created two shadow clones.
The clones instantly understood what the original was thinking—and both showed clear disgust, backing away from Obito as if refusing the assignment.
Under Akira's oppressive glare, though, they relented.
One clone held Obito upright.
The other moved behind him and formed a hand seal.
A sudden chill ran through Obito's backside.
He realized exactly what Akira intended.
He struggled wildly, but with his limbs destroyed, resistance was impossible.
"Stop! Don't! I'm begging you—don't do this!"
Akira's expression turned cold.
"Begging won't help. Maybe in your next life, learn not to provoke me."
He waved his hand.
The shadow clone received the order.
And then—
With perfect precision, it thrust forward.
Konoha Taijutsu Secret Technique:
One Thousand Years of Death!
Pfft!!!
Bullseye.
Obito's face flushed red, then turned a frightening shade of purple. His mouth flew open and a scream ripped into the sky.
"AAAAAAAH!!!"
The recording orb captured every precious second.
Obito glared at Akira with pure venom. Ever since awakening Kamui, he had never suffered humiliation like this.
Bastard. Bastard! I'll kill you. I'll make you pay!
Hatred burned in his chest, hotter than ever. His will to survive flared desperately.
"Heh. Still glaring at me? Guess you haven't learned your lesson."
Akira sneered and signaled his shadow clones to keep going. Harder.
"AAAH!!"
"AAAAH!!!"
"AAAAAAAAH!!!"
The screams kept coming, sharp and gut-wrenching enough to make anyone's spine go cold.
If he'd known it would be this kind of torture, he would've killed himself earlier.
Damn it!
…
Finally, after enduring over a hundred brutal "Thousand Years of Death," Izanagi's invincibility ran out. Obito's body flickered like a mirage before slowly dissolving.
Akira tucked the recording orb away, thoroughly satisfied. That footage was priceless.
Later, he could edit it—start with Obito boldly declaring himself to be Madara Uchiha… then cut straight to the scene of him getting wrecked and screaming in agony.
If the real Madara ever saw that, he'd probably kill Obito on the spot.
…
A few minutes later, Obito reappeared on an open patch of ground not far from Akira.
He looked at him as if staring at a demon.
Damn it. Why did I ever provoke this monster?!
"Alright. Game over. Time to send you on your way, Uchiha Obito."
Akira rolled his wrist and flashed a wide grin.
"Y-you! What Uchiha Obito?! I don't know what you're talking about! I'm Uchiha Madara, not Obito!"
Obito's heart skipped. He's figured out my identity?!
He had worn a mask the entire time. How could this guy possibly know?
Shock pounded in his chest, but he stubbornly denied everything.
"Hah. Still pretending when you're about to die?"
Bang!!
Akira stomped the ground and shot forward.
Rumble—!!
The earth suddenly shook violently. The ground split apart as countless branches and vines burst upward.
Wood Release: Deep Forest Emergence!
A colossal tree surged skyward, its dense branches weaving together into a living barrier that blocked Akira's path.
Zetsu appeared beside Obito, dragging along a subdued Danzo, and hissed urgently, "Move! That guy's terrifying. My forest won't hold him for long!"
"Right!"
Obito didn't hesitate.
"Damn it! Take me with you too! I don't want to fall into that freak's hands!"
Danzo roared from the ground where he'd been dumped.
Black Zetsu and Obito ignored him completely. They could barely save themselves, let alone worry about Danzo.
Besides, bringing Danzo here in the first place was meant to distract Akira. If Akira saw they'd delivered the mastermind behind everything, maybe he'd let them leave alive.
"Let's go, Obito! Too bad I'll never know what it feels like to poop!"
White Zetsu peeled off from Black Zetsu, cast one reluctant glance at Danzo, then fused with Obito before diving underground.
"Running? No one's leaving."
Akira burst out from the sea of trees and instantly activated his Perfect Susanoo. A massive chakra blade swung down toward the earth.
Boom!!!
A deep trench split the ground open. Zetsu and Obito, who had just tunneled underground, were forced back into view.
"I already brought you Danzo! He's the real culprit! Stop coming after me!"
Obito shouted, pointing frantically toward Danzo.
He had the Eye of the Moon Plan to complete. He was going to create a world with only Rin. He could not die here.
What answered him was a colossal chakra sword descending from the heavens.
Wood Release: Wood Locking Wall!
Black Zetsu slammed his palm against the ground. Thick wooden pillars shot up and bent inward, forming a curved wall to shield Black Zetsu, White Zetsu, and Obito.
Bang!!
Against the Perfect Susanoo's blade, the wooden wall crumbled like tofu, disintegrating into dust.
"Sorry, Rin. I failed."
Obito closed his eyes and stopped resisting, accepting death.
He still had one Sharingan left—he could use Izanagi again. But there was no point.
If Akira truly meant to kill him, Izanagi would only delay the inevitable. Nothing more.
Without Kamui's intangibility, he was nothing but a lamb waiting for slaughter in front of Akira.
Boom!!!
The Susanoo blade crashed down. The three of them were reduced to ashes in an instant, erased completely.
Akira dispelled Susanoo and waited in place for nearly ten minutes.
Once he was certain Obito hadn't used Izanagi to rewrite his death, he grabbed Danzo and left.
"Heh… looks like I've failed again. You really are a monster."
Dangling in Akira's grip, Danzo let out a bitter laugh.
He'd thought that with the Nine-Tails, Nue, and the masked man claiming to be Madara working in secret, they could finally eliminate Akira.
Instead, this was the result.
Faced with someone utterly unbeatable, Danzo felt a crushing sense of helplessness.
"You old dog. I want to know—did the Third get involved in this? Answer in a way that satisfies me, and I'll give you a quick death."
Akira's voice was cold.
Danzo said nothing, only smirked faintly.
Without another word, Akira pulled out the recording orb.
Chakra flowed into it, and a three-dimensional projection flickered into existence.
On screen, the masked man who had proclaimed himself Madara Uchiha was being relentlessly assaulted by Akira's Thousand Years of Death, screaming over and over.
Even as a projection, those shrill cries were enough to make one's skin crawl.
Too miserable. Too insane.
No wonder that so-called Madara had been trembling in fear earlier. He'd been subjected to inhuman torment.
Gulp.
After watching the whole thing, Danzo swallowed with difficulty. His mouth had gone completely dry.
He's not going to do that to me… right?
He was in his sixties. There was no way he could survive that kind of torture.
Compared to what Akira had done to him before, this… this was pure nightmare fuel.
"Danzo, tell me—would you like to experience that refreshing sensation for yourself?"
Akira put the orb away and smiled warmly.
"N-no! I don't! Don't you dare use that kind of perverted method on me!"
Danzo's entire body shuddered as he shook his head wildly.
"If you don't, then stop wasting my time. Tell me everything you know."
Akira's tone turned icy.
Danzo let out a long sigh.
"Hiruzen, you mean? He may hesitate and dither, but he has his limits. You've provoked him again and again. Do you really think a Hokage could just keep swallowing that?"
"Oh? So the Third was involved this time too."
Akira narrowed his eyes, a dangerous glint flashing within them…
"..."
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