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Obito Uchiha returned to the base, only to find the ground littered with White Zetsu corpses. Among them lay a severed arm, left behind by Sasuke Uchiha.
Tobi chuckled, "Seems like while the tiger was away, the monkey decided to play king, huh?"
"Hmph." Obito bent down, picking up the severed arm. His voice was cold and distant as he said, "At this point, it doesn't matter anymore. That traitorous compatriot of mine is nothing more than a starving little wild dog. Letting him go saves me the trouble. Besides, I never expected him to be able to deal with Naruto Uzumaki."
Tobi asked, "Your eyes… Are they holding up?"
Obito replied gravely, "I'm afraid they won't last much longer."
Tobi pressed on, "So, what's the plan?"
Obito stood up decisively. "I have a solution. Let's go. There's no reason to linger in this base any longer."
Whoosh!
With the whirl of a vortex, Obito entered a unique space within his Kamui dimension.
Inside this space stood a cabinet. Its drawers contained Sharingan eyes that had been collected during the Uchiha clan's massacre.
Obito placed Sasuke's severed arm on a table and walked toward the cabinet.
Among the scrolls left behind by Madara Uchiha, there was a record of a particular jutsu.
This technique, created by the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju, harbored a dark ambition that few knew about. It was so sinister that it was never included in Konoha's Scroll of Seals.
The jutsu allowed one to assimilate their bloodline with another's through a part of their body. While it didn't create a perfect equivalence, it could establish a bond akin to that of siblings.
Tobirama's ultimate goal in developing this jutsu was to enable the Senju Clan to gain the power of the Uchiha without having to transplant Sharingan. However, the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju, deemed it too dark and forbade its further development.
The technique was incomplete and could only be used within the same clan.
"Through this jutsu," Obito muttered, "as a member of the Uchiha clan without direct blood ties to Sasuke, I can use his severed arm to become his blood relative."
Afterward…
Obito stopped before the cabinet and pulled open a drawer.
Inside were the eyes of Fugaku Uchiha, Sasuke's father, which had been recovered during the Uchiha massacre. "By transplanting these, I'll have the chance to awaken the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan."
Tobi marveled, "So, you had this planned all along."
After completing the transplant, Obito's eyes were wrapped in bandages. The process of nurturing the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan was far more complex than simply connecting the optic nerves; it required a long period of fusion.
Obito smirked. "I never intended to go this far, but circumstances have forced my hand. Until my new eyes are ready, I'll remain in this dimension for now."
He added with a faint sense of anticipation, "Naruto will undoubtedly go further than anyone else. I don't know what his ultimate goal is, but that won't stop me from carrying out the Eye of the Moon Plan. Whether it's him or me who decides the future, the battle has only just begun."
Meanwhile, in Amegakure, after ensuring the revived Jiraiya had been settled, Naruto Uzumaki calmed his emotions, which had been stirred by the joy of their reunion.
He turned to Konan and asked, "Sister Konan, you mentioned earlier that there was good news and bad news. What's the bad news?"
Konan hesitated before sharing the intelligence gathered by Amegakure's ANBU.
Whoosh!
Naruto immediately set out to remedy the situation.
Outside one of the abandoned Akatsuki hideouts, he found a dried bloodstain.
Naruto silently pulled out a kunai, scraping up the blood before vanishing into the night.
Whoosh!
He returned to Amegakure, bringing with him three White Zetsu he had captured along the way. Without delay, he summoned Orochimaru and used the collected blood and one of the White Zetsu to perform the Impure World Reincarnation jutsu.
"Argh! Why do you always have to mess with us, Naruto Uzumaki?!" one of the sacrificed White Zetsu screamed as its body was engulfed in dust.
When the dust settled, it revealed a pale-skinned young man: Sai, who had been killed by Sasuke.
Sai's expression was as calm as ever. "Naruto?"
Naruto said, "Sai, this is the Impure World Reincarnation. I'll respect your wishes. If you don't want to remain in this state, I'll have Orochimaru release the jutsu and let your soul return to the Pure Land."
Sai raised his cracked hand, observing it. "This body feels no pulse or signs of life… It's oddly calming."
Naruto asked, "So, does that mean you're willing to stay like this?"
Sai lowered his hand. "Danzo is dead, and Root is essentially disbanded. Although the Fifth Hokage gave me a place in the village, I could still feel the wariness of the other shinobi around me."
Naruto responded, "This reincarnated body isn't suitable for returning to the village. Would you like to stay by my side instead? Amegakure's ANBU is in need of a capable captain. Would you be willing to take on that role?"
Sai replied, "Naruto, I've always struggled to understand the reasons behind your transformation."
Naruto smiled faintly. "If you want to know, I can tell you."
Sai shook his head. "No need. I'll find the answer myself."
Naruto grinned. "Then from now on, I'll be counting on you!"
And so, Sai donned a mask and an Amegakure forehead protector, taking on the role of captain of Amegakure's ANBU in his Impure World Reincarnation form.
Konan asked Naruto, "Did you visit the site of their battle?"
"I did, but Kabuto Yakushi was meticulous. He erased all traces." Naruto gripped the railing tightly. "I expected Sasuke to go to Kabuto, but the unexpected twists along the way… I didn't foresee those. Who would've thought so much could happen while I slept?"
Konan remarked, "That boy from the Nara Clan even devised a way to defeat Sasuke. Quite impressive."
Naruto's eyes sharpened. "Shikamaru has seen Sasuke's abilities firsthand. With his intellect and the potential of the Ino-Shika-Chō trio, it's not surprising he came up with a countermeasure. But Shikamaru isn't the type to act recklessly without absolute confidence. This time, someone else must have taken the lead. Unable to stop them, Shikamaru could only go along with it. But still…"
In Konoha's hospital, within the intensive care unit…
After Tsunade's treatment, Ino Yamanaka had finally escaped the clutches of death.
However, the severe burns she suffered would leave permanent scars on her face and body.
Sakura Haruno wept by her bedside.
"It's okay, Sakura," Ino said weakly, her body wrapped in bandages and connected to a respirator. Her eyes remained closed as she spoke in a faint voice. "I completely understand your feelings at the time, so I don't blame you."
Sakura sobbed, "Do you really not blame me, Ino?"
Ino reassured her, "Of course not. We're shinobi, always facing death. It was my own carelessness that led to this. Thank you for treating me with medical ninjutsu halfway through; it's the reason I'm still alive."
Wiping away her tears, Sakura stepped out into the hospital corridor. Staring at the gloomy sky, her emerald eyes flickered with conflicting thoughts. "Is Sasuke still alive?"
"No!" She shook her head vigorously. "What am I thinking? Sasuke is an enemy of the village, someone who's hurt everyone! I can't hold onto any feelings for him anymore!"
The more Sakura tried to suppress her thoughts, the more they surfaced, tormenting her.
"Sakura." A stern female voice echoed from around the corner.
Sakura's body stiffened as she quickly composed herself and turned around nervously. "Master!"
Tsunade approached her, gazing at her with a heavy expression. "These past few days, you've been so busy treating the wounded from the village attack that you haven't gone home, have you?"
"Yes," Sakura replied, though confusion clouded her mind. "Why isn't Lady Tsunade mentioning my pursuit of Sasuke?"
Tsunade sighed inwardly and then spoke solemnly. "Sakura, there's something I've been keeping from you. During Sasuke's attack on the village… your parents were among the casualties."
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