"As long as we escape this fire domain, the White Zetsu outside can come to support us!"
"So—"
Shnk!
Before Black Zetsu could finish, Obito suddenly raised his hand and extended a black chakra rod, stabbing it straight into Black Zetsu's body.
This was an application of Yin–Yang Release taught to him by Uchiha Madara.
Although Obito hadn't fully mastered it, the rod already resembled the later Black Receivers, capable of disrupting chakra.
"You—!"
"Sealing Technique: Binding Formation!"
Black Zetsu stared in shock, but before he could react, Obito activated a sealing jutsu.
Since Ren had chosen to reveal the truth to Obito, there was no way he would let Black Zetsu—this ancient schemer—escape.
The entire exchange had been an act.
A coordinated deception to lower Black Zetsu's guard.
Four sealing tags slid along the black rod and attached themselves to Black Zetsu's body, binding him in place.
"Damn it… I—"
Black Zetsu struggled violently, trying to break free.
While his unique nature made him extremely difficult to kill, sealing techniques were his greatest weakness.
He simply didn't have the raw power to break them.
But as a master manipulator who had schemed for millennia, how could he possibly have left Obito without any failsafes?
"Sealing: Binding Curse Tag!"
Obito's body suddenly stiffened—
Several black rods burst out from within him.
This was a contingency left behind by Madara.
With a single thought, Obito's movements could be controlled.
As the one who monitored Obito in Madara's name, Black Zetsu naturally held authority over this Binding Curse Tag.
Obito trembled as his arm was forced upward, trying to tear off the sealing tags restraining Black Zetsu.
"Obito, don't struggle," Black Zetsu sneered. "You can't resist Madara's power."
Obito gritted his teeth, focusing everything on resisting the control. He couldn't even speak.
Black Zetsu scoffed and increased his control.
"Did you forget I'm still here?"
Ren's voice suddenly sounded beside him.
At some point, Ren had already appeared right in front of them.
Black Zetsu's pupils shrank—
Too late.
"Four Symbols Seal!"
Ren slammed his palm into Black Zetsu's abdomen.
Dark sealing formulae spread across his body, locking down his chakra completely.
"Not enough…"
"Sealing Technique: Crimson Flame Lotus!"
Against someone like Black Zetsu, one layer of sealing was nowhere near sufficient.
After all, having lived for thousands of years, he might very well know ways to undo common sealing techniques.
The Four Symbols Seal, inherited from the Uzumaki Clan, wasn't guaranteed to hold him forever.
So Ren added something new—
A sealing jutsu of his own creation.
A Crimson Flame Lotus bloomed within Black Zetsu's body, rooted in his core.
Fueled by his very vitality, it would continuously drain his strength until he was completely powerless.
"Binding Formation—Reinforce!"
Ren strengthened the existing seal, fully immobilizing him.
"…Uchiha Ren," Black Zetsu said calmly now, "I never expected you to turn Obito against us."
"I have to admit… that was unforeseen."
He had already figured it out—
The earlier "genjutsu confrontation" had been nothing but a smokescreen.
They had used it to communicate unseen.
What he couldn't understand… was how Ren had convinced Obito.
"Oh? You know me?" Ren asked.
"Madara once considered you as a potential successor," Black Zetsu replied. "But your talent was deemed… mediocre."
"So he didn't choose you."
"Later, when you distinguished yourself in the Konoha–Kirigakure war, even Madara was surprised."
"By all logic… you shouldn't have reached that level."
Ren didn't respond.
What Madara had seen… was the original him.
At that time, even as a three-tomoe Sharingan user and a jōnin, he could indeed be called mediocre—by Madara's standards.
With Black Zetsu restrained, Obito finally relaxed.
"That just means Madara had poor judgment," Obito said. "Ren-sensei is on par with Minato-sensei."
"If that's 'mediocre,' then what am I?"
Black Zetsu glanced at him.
"That's not what I meant."
"As a shinobi, Ren is certainly a genius."
"But as an Uchiha… he was lacking."
Ren spoke calmly:
"You mean I lacked emotional bonds."
"Exactly."
"Your parents died early. You had no close relationships. You were always alone."
"Without strong emotional ties, you should never have awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan."
"In contrast—Obito…"
Black Zetsu looked at him.
"His emotions run deep. His love practically overflows."
"Someone like him only needs the right push to awaken the Mangekyō."
"He's a true Uchiha prodigy."
Ren didn't argue.
The original Ren had indeed closed off his heart.
But he was different.
After accepting his identity… after choosing to change…
Whether it was emotional shock, fused souls, or something else—
He awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan.
His emotions were anything but weak.
Obito snorted.
"One day, I'll repay everything Madara—and you—have done."
"But now… it's too late for anything you say."
Truthfully, Obito no longer wanted to be Madara's chosen successor.
One misstep could define a lifetime.
Even if he hadn't fully fallen yet—
He was no longer the same boy.
"Heh," Black Zetsu sneered. "Don't celebrate too soon."
"Ren's appearance may have been unexpected—but your life is still in my hands."
Though sealed, the Binding Curse Tag embedded in Obito's heart had already been activated.
With a single thought, Black Zetsu could decide his fate.
"Is that so?"
"Fire Release: Fire Spear!"
In an instant, Ren struck.
A spinning, drill-like flame formed at his fingertip and pierced straight into Obito's chest.
Black Zetsu was stunned—
By the time he realized the target wasn't him, it was already too late.
Shnk!
The flaming spear pierced through Obito's chest—
Shattering both his heart and the curse tag engraved upon it.
Obito coughed up blood—
But smiled.
"Can you still control me now?"
Blood dripped from his lips, but his smile only grew wider.
Even if he died—
He was free.
From Madara.
From Black Zetsu.
Black Zetsu fell silent.
His final trump card… was gone.
Obito collapsed.
Behind his mask, the three-tomoe Sharingan in his left eye dimmed.
Izanagi.
The jutsu that rewrites fate.
Unlike in the original story—where he survived by becoming the Ten-Tails' jinchuriki—
Here, he used Izanagi at the precise moment to alter reality.
Timing was everything.
Izanagi allows the user to blur the boundary between reality and illusion — negating unfavorable outcomes, including death, at the cost of permanently losing the light in one eye.
But the curse mark had been implanted long before Obito learned Izanagi.
If he revived normally, the curse would return with him.
So—
He needed the exact moment:
After the curse was destroyed—
But before his body was fully ruined.
Moments later—
His "corpse" faded.
Obito reappeared, clutching his chest, coughing blood.
"You okay?" Ren asked.
"Yeah… I'm fine," Obito said weakly. "Your timing was perfect, Ren-sensei."
He removed his hand.
A scorched wound marked his chest.
Ren's attack had delayed its full force—
Destroying the curse first.
Only then did it damage Obito's body.
That precise control made everything possible.
Obito wiped the blood from his mouth and looked at Black Zetsu.
"What should we do with him?"
"Kill him?"
Ren fell silent, considering.
Everything had happened suddenly.
Even he needed a moment to decide.
"Obito," Black Zetsu said coldly, "Madara won't let this go."
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