Outside World.
Kaede opened his eyes and lifted his hand from Rin's abdomen. The sealing marks and patterns that had once been there had completely vanished, leaving behind only smooth, unblemished skin.
He had carefully extracted the residual chakra left inside her, though he kept a small amount within her body, just in case the Three-Tails stirred unexpectedly. That trace of chakra would allow him to sense any abnormalities in time and react accordingly.
A few moments later,
Rin slowly opened her eyes.
Kaede sat nearby and looked at her. "How do you feel?"
Rin sat up, slightly dazed, then turned toward him. After a few seconds, she responded, "Hmm... I didn't expect tailed beasts to be able to communicate normally. It has a nice personality. It's actually kind of... cute."
In her mind, Isobu grumbled in protest:
"Cute? That's what you're going with?!"
If the other tailed beasts heard it had been called "cute," it'd be the laughingstock of the bunch!
"Uh..." Rin gave an awkward chuckle. "I meant... you're very majestic!"
Kaede watched her expression and could tell that her interaction with the Three-Tails had gone well. That didn't surprise him. Rin was naturally warm and cheerful, and with him as the "chaperone," building a rapport with a tailed beast wasn't all that difficult.
Whoosh!
Kaede dropped down from the tree and joined Kakashi and the others.
This time, he didn't use time-reversal techniques. Instead, he opted for conventional medical ninjutsu, combining it with Mystical Palm Technique to provide treatment for Kakashi's team.
Though he called it "basic treatment," Kaede's current medical skills far surpassed most medical-nin. The lightly injured recovered instantly, and even the severely wounded were soon stabilized, just left slightly fatigued.
"Is Rin okay?" Kakashi asked.
Kaede responded with a calm "Mm," while continuing his healing work. He briefly explained his prior disappearance, though he left out the part about jumping two years into the future. Instead, he said he'd been trapped in a different dimension and had only recently escaped.
That explanation more or less aligned with what Kakashi had guessed earlier. He nodded, then turned to see Rin walking over. Unable to hold back, he asked, "That chakra just now... that was from a tailed beast, wasn't it?"
Kaede smiled. "Don't worry. She's now the jinchūriki of the Three-Tails. Once she gets used to her new powers, you probably won't be able to beat her."
While the Three-Tails wasn't especially powerful compared to the other tailed beasts, a jinchūriki capable of wielding its full strength would still reach a high Kage-level in combat.
At present, Kakashi was only at the level of an elite Jōnin, still a step below Kage-level. Even now, if the two were to fight, he'd likely lose to the new jinchūriki, Rin.
"...Huh?!" Kakashi rolled his eyes.
Rin becoming the Three-Tails' jinchūriki? Surpassing him in strength?! What kind of joke was this?!
After Rin joined them, Kakashi questioned her further and learned about the Mist's plan, how Kaede helped her subdue the Three-Tails, and everything that happened.
Which meant...
Was he seriously weaker than Rin now?
…..
Somewhere Underground.
The withered body of Uchiha Madara sat in silence, his eyes gleaming faintly. Suddenly, he looked up toward a point in the air where a swirling vortex appeared. From within, the figure of Uchiha Obito emerged.
"Your Mangekyō Sharingan... that's your ability, isn't it?"
Obito remained silent, his expression grim. A dark, oppressive chakra radiated from him, far stronger than before.
He looked at Madara and said coldly, "You were right. That man is still alive. He's been manipulating everyone like pawns… even Rin..."
As he spoke, he clenched his fists tightly. The image of Kaede's hand piercing through Rin's chest flashed in his mind.
Obito had always known that Rin liked Kaede. Precisely because of that, seeing what had happened had left his mind completely blank.
In the chaos of the attack, he instinctively used his ability to escape.
"You mean that little girl?" Madara said calmly.
Obito gritted his teeth. "No! I have to ask him why! Why did he kill Rin?!"
"She's not dead," White Zetsu suddenly interjected. "She's a jinchūriki now. That kind of injury isn't fatal. The tailed beast's chakra healed her."
"Huh?" Obito's dull eyes flickered to life with a glimmer of light.
Madara said slowly, "It's useless. All of them are already under his influence. Even if you go, you won't save her. She trusts him more than she trusts you. He could make up any excuse, and everyone would believe him."
"No! Rin wouldn't do that!" Obito's eyes lit with resolve. He glanced at Madara, then twisted his body and vanished into a vortex.
Madara didn't stop him. Instead, he turned to White Zetsu and asked, "Is everything ready?"
"We've already established a connection using Hashirama's cells. We can bring him back anytime," White Zetsu replied, tilting his head.
….
Outside World.
Kakashi was talking with Rin when his expression suddenly changed.
He turned his head sharply toward the right. The air there suddenly distorted and swirled into a vortex, and a figure emerged from it.
"Who?!" Kakashi immediately drew the White Fang Blade, his voice tense and alert.
This chakra...
It felt somewhat familiar, like Obito's, but only faintly. The rest was entirely foreign and sinister.
Whoosh!
Obito charged straight toward Rin.
Kakashi's eyes narrowed coldly. He stepped forward and swung the White Fang Blade at Obito, but the blade passed straight through him, as though he weren't even there.
"Damn it." Kakashi's pupils contracted.
Rin also reacted with a slight jolt, leaping backward to evade.
"Rin, you're okay…" Obito said, finally speaking.
Rin froze. That voice... it felt so familiar.
"You… You're… Obito?!"
"It's me." Obito stopped in front of her and turned his cold gaze on Kakashi and the others. "Kakashi, you didn't keep your promise to protect Rin."
Kakashi, who had been ready to strike again, now stood frozen, staring in disbelief. "You… you're Obito? You're still alive?!"
Obito sneered. "You're all still alive, so why wouldn't I be? If I died, who would protect Rin?"
As he spoke, he turned his gaze to Kaede and said coldly, "Just like that guy said... You're the type who'll do anything for power. To gain the Three-Tails' strength, you were even willing to harm Rin like that…"
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