After many years of recovery, the ninja world had finally recovered from the heavy damage of the First Ninja World War.
The Second Tsuchikage and Second Mizukage had also already died.
Onoki had completely consolidated his position as Tsuchikage, and his ambitions gradually grew as he sought to expand territory.
The Third Kazekage had only recently risen to power, and he urgently needed a war to establish his authority.
In addition, the uneven economic development among the nations caused the militant factions within the ninja villages to rise in influence, all clamoring to expand territory through force.
Within Amegakure, Hanzo of the Salamander had already completely taken control of the nation's war machine, and soon launched a brutal purge of dissenters within the country.
———
Inside a dim secret chamber, Hanzo of the Salamander sat cross-legged with his eyes closed, quietly waiting for someone's arrival.
Not long after, a figure wearing a black robe and an orange spiral mask silently appeared.
The moment Obito appeared, he shouted angrily, "Hanzo of the Salamander! What are you trying to do? Are you planning to betray your master?"
He never expected that Hanzo of the Salamander would boldly mobilize a ninja army to wipe out the Akatsuki organization he personally built from the roots.
Countless Akatsuki members had been slaughtered, and the intelligence network he spent years building had all turned to ashes.
"Hehehe..."
Hanzo of the Salamander slowly opened his eyes. The respectful attitude he once had was completely gone, replaced by undisguised arrogance.
"Heh, Mister Tobi, I originally thought you were some mysterious and unfathomable figure. Looking at it now, you're nothing special."
Hanzo of the Salamander glanced at Obito indifferently, no trace of fear left in his eyes.
In his view, once the layer of fake mystery was stripped away, this man calling himself "Tobi" was just an ordinary person pretending to be mysterious by relying on his untouchable ability.
As for real methods and scheming, he was nowhere near himself.
Hanzo of the Salamander even felt that this man called Tobi might just be a child, very immature.
It was just that this child liked acting and liked pretending to be some profound figure.
"What do you mean by that?!"
"I was the one who raised you!"
Obito's voice was low, filled with confusion and anger.
He had only just entered the scene and simply could not understand why Hanzo of the Salamander would suddenly betray him.
He always believed that as long as he copied the way the Great Toad Sage of Mount Myoboku handled things, he would be able to control everything from behind the scenes.
During those years at Mount Myoboku, he had grown used to seeing the Great Sage directing the winds of the world from the shadows, and always felt that as long as he used both kindness and intimidation, others would wholeheartedly serve him.
But reality gave him a hard slap across the face.
"..."
Obito fell silent for a moment, then pretended everything was under control.
"Hehehe, Hanzo of the Salamander, very good..."
"In that case, I'll deal with you first. Raising you takes years, but killing you only takes a few seconds..."
Obito laughed and clapped his hands.
Hanzo of the Salamander frowned, subconsciously getting bluffed by him again.
But right after that, Hanzo of the Salamander swung his sickle and attacked Obito directly.
The sickle carried a sharp tearing sound through the air as it slashed toward his face. Its cold gleam cut a chilling arc through the dark chamber.
The smile on Obito's lips had not faded, but his body slightly swayed like a reflection in water.
The sharp blade passed straight through his neck without drawing even a drop of blood. It only struck the cold stone wall behind him, causing broken stones to fall.
"Cheap tricks."
Hanzo's gaze sharpened. With a twist of his wrist, the chain attached to the end of the sickle shot out like a venomous snake toward Obito's waist, while his left hand rapidly formed seals.
"Water Release: Water Chaos Wave!"
Raging water surged out of nowhere, flooding the narrow chamber and turning into countless water needles that shot everywhere.
But whether it was the chain or the water needles, everything passed straight through Obito's body without resistance and struck the opposite wall, splashing water everywhere.
"I already said it. Killing you only takes a few seconds."
Obito's voice carried mockery as his figure shifted left and right through the water like a ghost.
He suddenly raised his hand and flicked his palm forward.
"Wood Release: Cutting Sprigs Technique."
Pitch-black wooden spikes suddenly burst from the ground beneath Hanzo, shrieking as they stabbed toward his limbs and body.
Hanzo's pupils shrank. The Body Flicker Technique erupted beneath his feet as he retreated backward within a hair's breadth.
His sickle spun in front of him into an airtight shield of light, cutting apart every wooden spike that approached.
Even so, one tricky spike still sliced through his sleeve, leaving a shallow cut on his arm.
"Wood Release?"
Hanzo's expression finally changed. He stared at Obito, disbelief appearing in his eyes for the first time.
"You can actually use the First Hokage's kekkei genkai!"
Only then did he realize he had still underestimated this masked man.
He never expected this person to possess Wood Release.
"I just hope this guy's Wood Release isn't a perfect copy of the First Hokage's. If it is..."
Hanzo of the Salamander narrowed his eyes slightly as he thought to himself.
At this moment, Obito looked completely in control on the surface, but in reality, his Wood Release was relatively weak. He could only use techniques like wooden stakes and basic Wood Release techniques.
While the two were locked in a stalemate...
On the other side, Uchiha Madara and the others had obtained the White Zetsu and were deploying them throughout the ninja world.
And these White Zetsu only pretended to be under Uchiha Madara's control.
In reality, they were spies planted by Arisu to monitor Uchiha Madara and the others while passing information back.
"A stone tablet? Where did Uchiha Madara get a stone tablet from..."
Arisu frowned tightly as he looked at the incoming intelligence.
The White Zetsu had just sent word that the reason Uchiha Madara awakened the Rinnegan and summoned the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path came from a stone tablet.
But Arisu was someone from that era.
Whether it was himself, Hagoromo, or even Kaguya, none of them had left behind any so-called stone tablet.
From the beginning, Arisu never intended for Uchiha Madara to awaken the Rinnegan.
That was also why, back when he was the First Hokage...
He deliberately pretended not to know that Hashirama's cells could ease the strain of the Mangekyo Sharingan.
"Forget it. I want to see what Madara is trying to do..."
Arisu did not plan to stop it immediately. Instead, he intended to wait and observe to see what would happen.
Then Arisu closed his eyes and activated the Eight-Foot Sage Technique.
When he opened them again...
He had arrived at a training ground in Konoha.
"Arisu? Arisu? Why are you spacing out? Didn't we agree to train together?", Sakumo Hatake looked at Arisu with confusion.
"Sorry, I got distracted just now."
Arisu's expression did not change. After personally using the Eight-Foot Sage Technique to set up his identity, he immediately nodded.
He had still used the same method as before.
This time, his identity was set as a genius of Konoha.
Together with Sakumo Hatake, they were known as Konoha's two geniuses.
"Alright, I heard war is coming soon. I wonder if we'll be sent to the battlefield..."
Sakumo Hatake said while throwing out a kunai.
"Where mountains rise, travelers will always find a road. Where waters run deep, there will always be ferrymen."
"Sakumo, with the talent the two of us have, there will naturally be a place for us."
Arisu calmly formed hand seals and fired a Wind Release at the large tree ahead.
"Wind Release: Vacuum Bullets!"