Looking at the brightly lit ruins of Iwagakure in the distance, Gen gently shook his head.
"How tragic. Fortunately, the coming battle won't take place here."
"All right, I got it."
The Divine Tree clone pointed to his own head.
"Don't forget, our minds are linked."
Kitagawa Gen nodded, slowly placed his mask over his face, and stirred his chakra.
[Buzz—]
With a surge of chakra, he vanished in an instant. When he reappeared, he was already standing atop a mountain peak.
He closed his eyes slightly, and when he opened them again, they had become a stream of starlit radiance.
"Getting closer and closer. That's a good thing."
Kitagawa Gen's gaze had already locked onto the position of Rōshi, the Four-Tails' jinchūriki, which made him nod with satisfaction.
In fact, before setting out, he had already used the massive Tenseigan on the moon to scan the entire Land of Earth and pinpoint Rōshi's location.
But since that guy was on the move, Kitagawa Gen naturally needed to confirm multiple times.
"It seems the battle in Iwagakure drew him over. That saves quite a bit of trouble."
Thinking this, Kitagawa Gen's figure flickered again; in the next instant, he was already floating in midair.
Looking at the Four-Tails' jinchūriki Rōshi charging toward Iwagakure, he slowly raised his hand, and in that instant, a Truth-Seeking Orb fell into his palm.
"Silver Wheel Reincarnation Explosion!"
[Boom—]
The massive storm driven by the Truth-Seeking Orb instantly swept across the entire valley!
Within that violent tempest, the towering valley became incomparably fragile. Countless great trees were uprooted in an instant, and even the enormous boulders were torn up and hurled away.
They were then ground to dust, everything rendered helpless under the storm of chakra.
The continuous valleys were, at that moment, shredded entirely into fragments!
And that tremendous power continued to spread, surging straight toward Rōshi's location.
"The distance is just right."
Kitagawa Gen glanced at the range and nodded in satisfaction. His control over his own power was excellent.
There would be enough time for a reaction, yet the blast would still hit. With any luck, it would disable him from fighting.
After all, he was here to capture, not to kill.
"Hm?"
However, just as the Silver Wheel Reincarnation Explosion roared on, Kitagawa Gen suddenly froze.
He clearly saw space twist abruptly along the storm's trajectory.
A masked figure suddenly flickered out from within that distortion.
In the next instant, his overwhelming power crashed violently against that figure.
"…"
...
The moonlight was dazzling, its silver glow illuminating the land.
In an open clearing among the mountains, Black Zetsu slowly emerged from the ground.
"Madara-sama, Obito, I've found him."
Black Zetsu looked at the two figures before him and spoke in a low voice.
"That guy isn't far from here and is heading toward Iwagakure. He may have sensed the upheaval there."
Uchiha Madara and his group had caused such chaos in Iwagakure that the entire Land of Earth could probably feel the waves of energy erupting over there.
Of course, it wasn't solely Uchiha Madara's doing—Black Zetsu knew Kitagawa Gen's hand was in it as well.
"It's just… that guy has already fused Yin–Yang Release? Such talent—"
Even Black Zetsu couldn't help but feel a twinge of admiration—but alongside that admiration came a sigh.
The shinobi world—within just a few short years, right before his eyes—it had descended into utter chaos.
It had also become increasingly unfamiliar; he understood it less and less.
"You found him? Good."
Uchiha Madara nodded. Having waited for so long, even he had grown somewhat impatient. Obito, meanwhile, couldn't help but ask, "How's the situation in Iwagakure? Any signs of mobilization?"
"Not for the time being. Everyone's focused on rescue and cleanup work."
Black Zetsu withdrew his thoughts but still gave Obito another look. He couldn't shake the feeling that Obito seemed… different.
At this moment, Obito had once again donned his mask, concealing himself completely, making it impossible for Black Zetsu to read him.
"The destruction was too great. That kind of devastation probably made them fail to notice that the Four-Tails has returned for now."
"Then act quickly. Settle the Four-Tails as soon as possible."
Uchiha Madara nodded and spoke directly, turning to Obito.
"Are you going, or shall I?"
"Leave it to me. It's not troublesome."
Uchiha Obito spoke in a low voice. In the next instant, his body began to distort and then vanished from the spot.
"Hmph."
Seeing Obito in such a hurry, Uchiha Madara snorted coldly, then looked toward Black Zetsu.
"You said it's not far, right? Then we'll go take a look too. There's something I want to ask you."
"Is it about Kitagawa Gen?"
Black Zetsu followed alongside Madara, curious as to what he intended to ask.
Of course, what he dreaded most was Madara suddenly bringing up what that so-called Ōtsutsuki Genshiki had said before—about "Kaguya's chakra."
Though he had managed to bluff his way through that matter and no one had brought it up again, he still couldn't help feeling uneasy.
"No, it's about Obito."
Uchiha Madara shook his head, his expression turning grave.
"That kid seems… strange."
"Obito, huh…"
Black Zetsu let out a quiet breath of relief—it wasn't about him. Still, even he found Obito's situation absurd.
"He really is strange. He suddenly awakened the 'Power of All Creation.' He claimed it was because he thought of Nohara Rin and that the Sharingan strengthened as a result, but…"
When faced with Obito's "thinking of Rin" explanation, Black Zetsu truly felt speechless.
But he himself had no idea what was going on with Obito—there was no precedent at all, no information whatsoever—and he was utterly bewildered.
"Keep an eye on that guy. I can't shake the feeling something's off about him."
Uchiha Madara wasn't angry at not getting an answer; after all, not knowing was normal.
"Figure out what's going on with him. That kid gives me a sense of danger."
"Danger?"
Black Zetsu was somewhat startled. It was the first time he had ever heard such words from Uchiha Madara, which made him all the more alert.
"I understand. I'll keep close watch on him and find a way to uncover his secret."
"Good."
Uchiha Madara nodded, his gaze turning toward the distance.
"Though that guy isn't much to fear—despite gaining power, he still looks like someone who'll never amount to anything—power is still power. Best to be cautious."
From the bottom of his heart, Uchiha Madara looked down on Obito. Yet he would never ignore the threat Obito might pose.
For all his arrogance, he was still a veteran who had risen from the corpse-laden seas of the Warring States!
"I understand."
Black Zetsu nodded. Being with Uchiha Madara required greater caution, but at least it was less exhausting than some of the others.
"Let's hurry as well. The sooner we get the Four-Tails, the less chance there'll be for unexpected trouble."
"Unexpected trouble?"
Uchiha Madara raised a brow, and Black Zetsu gave a helpless nod.
"Madara-sama, you should know—every time we go on a mission, there's always a chance of unforeseen accidents. I don't really believe it myself, but it's better to stay wary."
"I can sense that. We've already run into Kitagawa Gen this time—don't tell me there's going to be another mishap. Could it be—"
"Yes. That's exactly what I'm most worried about—"
Before Black Zetsu could finish, a deafening roar erupted from afar!
The towering mountains seemed to be erased in an instant, as a vast surge of energy swept outward toward them.
And the furious roar of the Four-Tails echoed throughout the entire "valley."
"…"
Seeing this scene, Black Zetsu's jaw involuntarily dropped open.
For a moment, he truly wanted to slap himself hard. Even Uchiha Madara was stunned at what he saw.
That raging chakra—so fierce that even he found it hard to believe.
Lifting his head, he and Black Zetsu looked up toward the sky.
Under the moonlight, a hazy figure floated high in the heavens, its majestic divine might spilling outward in all directions.
"This is…"
Black Zetsu's breathing quickened, and painful memories began to surface. Uchiha Madara murmured softly, "Ōtsutsuki Genshiki?"
...
"What is going on over there?"
The power of the "Silver Wheel Reincarnation Explosion" swept through the entire valley, and the violent roar even reached inside Iwagakure.
Ōnoki was commanding everyone to clear the rubble. Although his mood was extremely foul, his reaction was the fastest.
Almost instantly, he sensed something unusual. He lifted his head and looked off into the distance, his expression somewhat strange.
"Another problem?"
Deidara, who had originally been competing with Naruto and Sasuke, also sensed something at that moment.
Naruto and Sasuke likewise lifted their heads to stare into the distance. That uneasy aura made their hearts palpitate.
"No way."
Beside them, Jiraiya couldn't help swallowing hard. For no reason, he had a bad feeling.
"Hey, Pervy Sage!"
Without another word, Jiraiya directly ran toward the distance, prompting Naruto to shout after him.
Afterward, the few of them immediately followed as well, and when they reached the edge of the village entrance, they happened to see Kitagawa Gen standing there!
"Gen!"
Jiraiya immediately shouted, but at that moment Ōnoki descended from the sky and spoke first.
"That aura over there—that kind of power—don't tell me it's..."
"Mm. If nothing unexpected happened, it should be him."
Kitagawa Gen's Divine Tree clone nodded solemnly and spoke in a low voice.
"After all, the intensity of the battle during the day was so high—the Five-Tails even appeared. There's no way it wouldn't have drawn his attention. Besides, don't forget, the Four-Tails hasn't arrived yet, so..."
"It really is Ōtsutsuki Genshiki!"
Jiraiya took a deep breath and slowly uttered that name, and the moment that name came out, everyone present fell silent.
That silence made everyone's hearts heavy, but fortunately, Kitagawa Gen spoke then, breaking it.
"Let's go take a look."
As he spoke, chakra burst forth from his entire body, his gaze fixed on the distance.
"Just as well—I also want to verify a few things."
Yet in his mind, he couldn't help but ponder a question—and that question likewise made Kitagawa Gen's true body fall silent.
"Is Uchiha Obito trying to play the victim here?"
He never would have thought that at the moment he made his move, Uchiha Obito would suddenly pull a "ghost pop-up."
That roaring power directly pierced through Obito's body, shredding him to pieces almost instantly!
Still, he knew that Obito was probably not that easy to kill. Otherwise, this guy would've already died by his hand who knows how many times before.
Sure enough, when everything calmed again, space once more distorted, and Obito's phantom appeared.
Evidently, this time, the guy didn't dare come out.
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