Chapter 140: Creating a New World
"Where did he go?"
Uchiha Kei stood quietly in place, his ninja blade upright before him, ready to guard against another sudden ambush from Obito.
But after standing there like a fool for quite a while, he realized—
Obito… really was gone.
"He actually left?"
Kei glanced around warily, still unable to figure out why Obito had retreated so suddenly.
He had just started to get a solid grasp on Obito's attack rhythm and was planning to take advantage of the next opportunity to slash at the part of him merged with White Zetsu!
But soon, Kei let out a quiet sigh.
"Well, maybe it's for the best."
Even though he had the upper hand, Kei was very aware of his own limits.
His eyes were starting to sting and feel sore.
Unlike Obito, he didn't have any White Zetsu cells enhancing his body—
Every use of his Sharingan was a real drain on his dwindling ocular power.
Still, Kei didn't relax completely.
"Better stay cautious… who knows if that guy's planning to sneak back for a surprise attack."
He kept his blade drawn as he slowly made his way toward Kakashi's position.
After a quick scan of the surroundings, he knelt down to check on his unconscious teammate.
Fortunately, there wasn't anything physically wrong.
Kakashi had simply passed out from emotional overload.
His chakra reserves were still full, no signs of major injury or trauma.
That discovery allowed Kei to finally breathe a little easier.
Even though the events had deviated heavily from the original timeline, the divergence wasn't too extreme.
Kakashi was still a key part of Kei's overall plan.
Then, just as he was about to stand, Kei caught a glimpse of the wound over Kakashi's left eye—and an idea flickered in his mind.
He gently lifted the boy's eyelid.
There, in Kakashi's eye socket, glimmered a crimson Sharingan with three tomoe.
Kei nodded slightly.
"So the intense shock and the resonance with Obito's eye… it awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan."
He wasn't entirely sure what this version of the Mangekyō's ability might be.
After all, Kakashi wasn't a pure-blooded Uchiha, and the chakra consumption would be brutal no matter the technique.
Kei suspected the eye's ability was likely body- or perception-based, not chakra-based.
Because if it were the latter, Kakashi would've been long drained dry.
Or perhaps because of his bloodline, Kakashi wasn't receiving the same level of feedback or adaptation as a true Uchiha…
After thinking for a while, Kei let out a sigh and gently released the eyelid.
He didn't take the eye back.
That Sharingan was a symbol of the friendship between Kakashi and Obito.
And who knew—maybe it would come in handy someday.
Kei then turned toward Rin's body.
She lay silently in a pool of blood.
All around her, Mist ANBU corpses hung from a nearby tree—an eerie and chilling scene.
But Kei wasn't fazed.
He'd seen far worse horrors before.
Still, Rin's death gave him a moment of pause.
Though he'd never been close with her, he had to admit—her gentle nature was… likable.
"Hm?"
Suddenly, Kei sensed a slow but distinct chakra leaking from Rin's body.
He froze for a moment.
"This chakra… is that Isobu—the Three-Tails?"
Without hesitation, he quickly pulled out a blank scroll.
This chakra was too precious to waste.
Even if it didn't prove useful now, it was still worth researching.
He shifted his ninja blade to his left hand and pulled out a brush with his right, ready to start sealing—
But then he paused again, mid-motion.
An idea sparked.
After a long moment of contemplation, a smile curled at the edge of Kei's lips.
He moved quickly, scrawling intricate sealing runes across the scroll.
Then, with a firm clap of his palms, both Rin's body and the leaking chakra of the Three-Tails were sealed into the scroll.
"Uchiha Obito… I might just have a little gift prepared for you in the future."
---
Meanwhile, in a secret underground base—
Uchiha Obito, voice low and grim, asked,
"Was that really Uchiha Kei? That cold, creepy guy?"
White Zetsu's voice echoed at his ear:
"My other clones confirmed it—yes, it was him."
"And he's strong. Very strong."
"If I'm not mistaken, he's already awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan. You're no match for him right now."
"You only have one eye, and he's already started to read through your abilities."
"Mangekyō Sharingan?" Obito blinked in surprise.
Then his expression returned to calm, even as questions raced through his mind.
"So that power just now—the one that let me enter that strange, twisted space… it came from my eye."
Without that power, he probably would've been finished by Kei already.
"Mangekyō Sharingan," White Zetsu chuckled. "A unique power that only the Uchiha clan can awaken."
"To open those eyes, you need a massive emotional trauma—like killing the person you love most… or watching them die in front of you. Either way, the pain has to be overwhelming."
"Sounds just like you, doesn't it?"
Obito's tone grew icy.
"So that guy really is as twisted as he seems…"
"He must've either watched his dearest person die... or worse, killed them with his own hands."
He remembered that Kei had been on the battlefield early.
He'd gone through squad after squad… yet he was always the one to survive.
"Maybe he really did kill all his teammates one by one… That would explain how he got those eyes."
"And it's only those eyes that allowed him to find my weaknesses and defeat me."
But Obito didn't despair.
He had just awakened this eye.
He still wasn't familiar with its true potential.
"Give me time," he muttered. "Eventually, Uchiha Kei will fall to me."
He began walking forward, silently, through the dim corridors of the base.
The place was filled with memories—
He'd once thought he would never return.
Or at least, not until much later.
But fate had played a cruel joke.
In the span of a single moment, his entire world had changed.
He hadn't brought Rin's body back.
Because he knew—
"If she knew she would die, Rin would have wanted to be buried in Konoha."
At the heart of the base, an old man with snow-white hair watched his return.
Uchiha Madara curled his lips into a faint smile.
"So… you came back after all."
Obito stood before him, still stained with blood.
And in his eyes—
Burned the desire to create a new world.
He didn't look surprised—because everything had gone exactly as he planned.
His scheme had been a success. He knew the Uchiha clan all too well.
To win Obito's trust more completely, Madara even allowed him to uncover part of the truth—just enough to be convincing. The deeper, more dangerous layers remained carefully hidden.
For instance, when the time came for Obito to discover that Rin had been implanted with the Three-Tails, and that Kakashi had no choice in her death, he would stop questioning the darker truth.
"I'm going to create a perfect new world. I don't need this one without Rin."
In the shadowy depths of the underground, Uchiha Obito spoke in a low, unwavering voice.
"Excellent," Madara chuckled, before suddenly asking in a quieter tone, "No one saw Obito fighting, right?"
White Zetsu, standing nearby, replied,
"There was a problem. Kakashi survived. And there's a new variable… that man appears to be Uchiha Kei. He... seems to have awakened the Mangekyō as well. Obito wasn't his match. If not for my intervention, Obito would already be dead."
"I see..." Madara murmured. He had already learned as much from the local Zetsu.
But now that Obito was in his grasp, he had no interest in wasting time cultivating another tool from scratch—especially one whose background was still unclear.
"Uchiha Kei? Interesting. What abilities does he have? Do you want me to come up with a plan to—"
"No need," Obito interrupted coldly. "I don't know what his ability is, and I don't need your help either. I'll deal with him myself. I used to know him, but to me, he's no different from Kakashi. Just another obstacle... A worthy opponent, perhaps."
"Besides, in the world I'll create, Kakashi will be there. Rin will be there. Everyone will be. Maybe even him."
"That's enough, Madara. Stop wasting time on irrelevant people. Just tell me what I need to do to create the dream world."
"Tch, young people really are impatient," Madara smirked. "Fine, have it your way. And don't bother thanking me. Come forward... From this moment on, you are the savior of the world."
Without hesitation, Obito stepped closer. Madara looked into his eyes.
"Look into mine."
"Hm?" Obito looked up, the scarlet three-tomoe Sharingan flickering in his gaze. In that moment, a monstrous chakra surged from behind Madara—the Gedo Statue's overwhelming presence filling the air.
But before Obito could process what he was sensing, everything shifted.
In the blink of an eye, he found himself in a vast, blindingly white space.
"Where… is this?"
"This is my genjutsu domain," Madara, still appearing as his elderly self, answered calmly. "It's empty now, but everything you see here can be shaped by my will. If I wish it, anything can be projected into reality. Like this—"
As he spoke, a burst of chakra erupted from his body. Obito instinctively took a step back, sensing the space around him shift in a way he couldn't fully understand.
And then, before his eyes, Madara began to change.
His silver hair turned jet-black, the wrinkles vanished, and his body regained the vitality of youth. A crimson armor draped over him, radiating an overwhelming pressure.
"Ah… it's been a while since I felt this kind of youthful strength," Madara said, clenching his fist.
"So this is what you looked like in your prime?" Obito was stunned, though he kept his voice steady. "This space really is incredible... It can even turn back time."
Madara—now fully restored to his youthful form—smiled lightly.
"This? It's nothing. With the power of the Gedo Statue, nothing is impossible. Even raising the dead is a trivial matter."
"All we need to do is create a perfect world using genjutsu, then cast it upon everyone... and bring them inside."