Chapter 447: Coordinated Space-Time Ninjutsu
Kakashi remained silent. He knew Obito was completely consumed by his delusions and wouldn't stop until he achieved his goal.
As Haneda had once said, the Uchiha are inherently obsessive—an obsession that grows stronger the more powerful they become.
Even Haneda, the one who had made this statement, was acknowledged by Kabuto as being equally stubborn.
Minato glanced at Haneda, who was still trapped in the Infinite Tsukuyomi illusion. He had a vague sense of what Haneda was thinking.
To remain silent was to permit what was happening, allowing the current situation to develop unchecked.
Obito had taken advantage of this, knowing full well that Haneda likely didn't want to fight him.
This was also why Obito had shown leniency toward both Naruto and Sasuke.
But aside from Kakashi and Minato, no one else understood the intricacies of these dynamics.
Hashirama and Tobirama stared at the now ascended Obito, whose power was infused with the chakra of all the tailed beasts. It was clear to them—Obito had succeeded.
Obito was now the Jinchūriki of the Ten-Tails.
Without hesitation, Hashirama attacked. While Obito faced off with Kakashi, Hashirama summoned Myojinmon.
The massive torii gates fell from the sky, aiming to pin Obito in place.
Obito didn't bother dodging. He merely unleashed flames from his shoulders and back, effortlessly destroying the gates.
He cast a glance at Kakashi, who remained silent, and extended a hand. From his palm, an inky black substance emerged, coalescing in midair. The Truth-Seeking Orb, a sphere embodying the yin-yang and five-elemental forces, began to form.
Tobirama quickly issued a warning: "That's something similar to a Tailed Beast Bomb, but its power far surpasses it! It disintegrates everything it touches!"
Itachi, having witnessed Madara's immense strength, instinctively raised the Yata Mirror in front of the group.
Hashirama also prepared to attack, but Madara intercepted him.
"Hashirama!" Madara called out, wielding the Uchiha clan's legendary Gunbai, sending Hashirama flying.
The two locked eyes across the battlefield.
"Madara, our priority should be—"
"Hashirama, I have my own priorities now."
"Madara—"
"You're no match for him, Hashirama. And neither am I."
Madara knew Hashirama was trying to appeal to their past friendship, but he was no longer swayed by such emotions.
For Madara, ideals took precedence over feelings.
Resigned, Hashirama engaged Madara in battle once more.
In truth, with Madara's current power, defeating Hashirama would be easy.
But Madara had his own plans. He needed to divert Obito's attention from him and wait for the right opportunity to strike.
While Madara and Hashirama's clash carried an undercurrent of unresolved emotions, Obito's Truth-Seeking Orb shot into the ranks of the Allied Shinobi Forces.
Itachi tried to block it with the Yata Mirror, but the legendary artifact's supposed ability to deflect all physical attacks proved ineffective. The orb passed through both the mirror and Susano'o, detonating amidst the crowd.
To minimize casualties, Itachi and Shisui stepped forward, taking the brunt of the explosion.
Blinding white light filled the area, leaving the ground in ruins. The shockwave scattered nearby shinobi, while Itachi and Shisui knelt weakly on the ground. Their Susano'o forms were severely damaged, with only faint red and green glows remaining.
Tobirama analyzed the situation, declaring, "The Truth-Seeking Orb seems capable of disintegrating all matter. Neither sealing jutsu nor physical objects can withstand it. The only countermeasure is to use space-time ninjutsu to redirect it."
"Minato, you and I must coordinate perfectly!"
Having witnessed the devastating aftermath of the orb's explosion, Minato nodded gravely.
He turned to Naruto, who immediately understood his father's intentions.
Borrowing Kurama's chakra, Naruto shared a portion with Minato, enabling him to instantly activate Nine-Tails Chakra Mode.
Kakashi scratched his head and glanced at Tobirama, awkwardly saying, "Second Hokage, actually… I can use the Flying Thunder God as well."
Naruto added, "Yeah! Uncle Kakashi's Flying Thunder God is super cool!"
"That's my Flying Thunder God! Your father's Flying Thunder God is also mine! How many times do I have to say this?!" Tobirama snapped, his irritation showing as he synchronized Flying Thunder God markings with both Minato and Kakashi.
Minato made the first move, realizing that the Flying Thunder God mark he had left on Obito was still intact.
He hurled multiple kunai, closing in on Obito from different angles. Obito casually used a black rod to cut through them, remarking:
"It's useless. I've already seen through the Flying Thunder God."
"How about now?" Minato suddenly teleported beside Obito, using the mark he had left.
Obito smirked coldly. He had anticipated this. When he became the Jinchūriki of the Ten-Tails, he discovered the mark and intentionally left it there as bait.
Black matter surged from Obito's side, stabbing toward Minato.
"I told you—I don't fall for the same trick twice!"
"How about now?" This time, the voice wasn't Minato's—it was Kakashi's.
The familiar voice echoed in Obito's ears, accompanied by a pair of equally familiar eyes.
"Kamui!" Kakashi activated the Mangekyō Sharingan in his left eye, causing the Truth-Seeking Orb Obito had just created to vanish.
At the same time, Kakashi's kunai slipped from his grasp and into Minato's waiting hand.
The sounds of Chidori and Rasengan filled the air.
With a pincer attack closing in, Obito had no choice but to defend himself.
He raised both hands to absorb the chakra from the Chidori and Rasengan using the Rinnegan.
But Kakashi and Minato had both activated Sage Mode, even if only briefly.
Obito couldn't absorb sage chakra.
Forced to switch tactics, Obito summoned a black protective barrier using the Truth-Seeking Orb to block the attacks.
But a third party intervened!
Tobirama teleported in front of Minato, using the Flying Thunder God Technique to whisk away Obito's barrier.
The purple Chidori and Rasengan struck Obito squarely.
For a brief moment, shock flashed across Obito's face. He had instinctively tried to use Kamui to evade but realized it didn't work.
The trio's teamwork far exceeded his expectations.
Pfft!
Obito coughed up black blood. His body began to swell, his stomach expanding grotesquely, his neck elongating, and his entire form distorting.
The Ten-Tails was rebelling!
Obito, possessing only a single Rinnegan, could no longer suppress the beast's power.
"So that's it…"
Obito murmured softly, piecing together why he hadn't been able to use Kamui to escape.
But he had no time to dwell on it.
Naruto arrived, bolstered by the chakra of both Minato and Kushina. A massive Super Big Ball Rasengan formed in his hand.
With Minato's help, Naruto teleported above Obito.
And once again, Obito's face bore the brunt of a Rasengan.
The Ten-Tails' influence over Obito weakened even further.
Minato watched his struggling student with a mix of pity and determination. He tried once more to persuade him:
"Obito, no matter how strong a power may be, it will always have a weakness…"
Before Minato could finish, Obito interrupted.
"Sensei, do you really think lectures still work at this point? There are only two possible outcomes tonight!"
Kakashi spoke up. "There's one thing I forgot to tell you, Obito…"
"Shut up!" Obito snapped, his anger and pain magnified by the Ten-Tails' influence.
Kakashi continued, "…It's about Haneda."
At the mention of Haneda, Obito's expression froze. For a moment, the chaos within him stilled.
In his fractured mindscape, a photo of Haneda appeared, connecting with his own fragmented memories.
(End of chapter)