"It's you."
Obito raised his head to look at Kitagawa Gen in the sky, his breathing somewhat rapid.
Yet amidst that rapidness there was also a trace of calm, as if Kitagawa Gen's appearance here hadn't surprised him in the least.
"So you really came!"
After a long moment, Obito gritted his teeth and spoke in a low voice.
"I was just wondering whether you would show up. Seems my hunch was right!"
"With the commotion you all stirred up, it would've been hard not to notice."
Kitagawa Gen let out a faint sigh. He seemed almost immune to such situations by now, and a trace of amusement even appeared on his face.
"Didn't expect to run into you all again—especially you. You've changed quite a bit, haven't you?"
"Damn it, I've been found out."
Within his consciousness, Isshiki's expression turned extremely ugly. He understood all too well what those words meant!
He truly hadn't expected the vessel he possessed to be this unlucky.
Being beaten up by others and forced to awaken early was bad enough—but then to immediately run into his own "mad clansman"!
This "mad kinsman" was one who devoured his own kind in pursuit of what he called the "Divine Ascension Path."
Running into him now was no different from courting death!
"I really have changed."
Fortunately, upon seeing "Ōtsutsuki Genshiki," Obito's reason instantly returned.
Although his tone was defiant, his body did not leave Kamui's dimension at all.
"So that's your difference—hiding like a rat in a pocket dimension?"
Kitagawa Gen sighed in disappointment, then shook his head.
"Come to think of it, I've run into you so many times, and yet I still don't seem to know your name."
"Uchiha Obito."
Obito stared at Kitagawa Gen, hesitated for a moment, then still spoke his name aloud. Yet that name made Kitagawa Gen laugh.
"Uchiha? You really have no idea what's going on, do you?"
"What do you mean?"
The face beneath Obito's mask looked strange. He couldn't understand Kitagawa Gen's words—but Kitagawa Gen had already turned his head toward another direction!
From that direction, Uchiha Madara had quietly arrived.
"Ōtsutsuki Genshiki."
Uchiha Madara's voice was somewhat low, and his gaze appeared especially grave.
Just from sensing this man's aura from afar, as well as the power he had released when attacking, he already knew how terrifying this person was.
And now, facing him directly, he truly felt a shudder rising from the depths of his soul!
He himself could hardly believe it—he couldn't even remember the last time he had experienced such a feeling.
To think that even in his Edo Tensei body, he could sense it so vividly!
"Oh? So you actually know my name, Reincarnation of Indra."
Kitagawa Gen naturally heard Uchiha Madara's words and raised his brow as he spoke.
"But you really are a sorry sight. Looking like that, you still dare show yourself before me?"
"Reincarnation of Indra?"
Uchiha Madara furrowed his brows. He naturally knew who Indra was—his ancestor—but what did "reincarnation" mean?
Could there be some hidden scheme behind this?
"Tch."
From underground, a pained expression surfaced on Black Zetsu's face. Once again, it was this kind of situation, yet he could do nothing about it.
This "Ōtsutsuki Genshiki" was far too powerful—and knew far too much!
"Forget it. There's no point in discussing this with you."
Kitagawa Gen lightly shook his head and turned his gaze aside, toward the Four-Tails, which had already returned to its Tailed Beast form.
"Could it be that you, like this Obito, also intend to stop me from reclaiming what's mine?"
"Obito?"
Uchiha Madara's brow furrowed even deeper. He noticed that Kitagawa Gen's attitude toward Obito seemed somewhat peculiar.
Not only he—both Black Zetsu and Obito could sense a trace of that same strangeness.
"Hmph. Uchiha Obito is, after all, my 'Kāma.'"
Isshiki, of course, understood it clearly in his heart, giving a cold snort inwardly.
"Even if Ōtsutsuki Genshiki is a lunatic, he would never lump himself together with you lowly creatures."
Yet he was also troubled—for he was once again locked onto, and that insane kinsman of his would surely not let him go.
"Yours?"
Just as Isshiki grew irritable, Uchiha Madara gave a cold snort and spoke.
"I don't recall the Tailed Beasts belonging to you."
"Oh?"
Kitagawa Gen tilted his head, his tone carrying a hint of amusement.
"So you're saying you intend to snatch my things as well?"
"I said, they don't seem to be yours."
Uchiha Madara spoke gravely, though the fanaticism in his eyes could no longer be concealed.
The Ōtsutsuki Clan—kin of the Rabbit Goddess, that fabled race said to bring about the world's destruction.
His own dream had always been simple: to bring true peace to this despairing world through the method left behind by the Sage of Six Paths!
In pursuit of that, no matter how many schemes he had to devise, no matter how many lives he had to sacrifice, he never hesitated.
And now, such a person had appeared—one who seemingly intended to destroy the world. How could he possibly remain unmoved?
Not to mention that Madara himself possessed a unique fervor for battle; even just the thought of this man taking away the Tailed Beasts, the cornerstone of his peace, was enough to make compromise impossible.
"Though I'm not in my peak state, and much of my power is missing, still…"
Uchiha Madara clenched his fists, and in that instant, his eyes transformed into the Rinnegan.
"I will never let you do as you please. I want to see what kind of power this so-called 'god' of yours truly possesses!"
As he spoke, his chakra erupted violently. The force was so immense that even the surrounding ground began to tremble.
"Damn…"
Black Zetsu's expression grew even more pained. Although he had guessed Uchiha Madara would do this, it now seemed he would truly witness Madara's miserable defeat.
"This guy…"
Obito, hiding within Kamui and not daring to show himself, was speechless as well. Yet within his consciousness, Isshiki appeared particularly disdainful.
"What an ignorant lower creature."
"Just as expected."
Kitagawa Gen nodded slightly, and in that instant, his chakra too erupted!
That overwhelming power instantly suppressed Madara's aura, and under his chakra, even space itself seemed to distort.
He stood proudly in the sky, bathed in moonlight, with Truth-Seeking Orbs rippling continuously around him.
"Though I admire your resolve, do you understand the comical sense of an ant telling an elephant to 'make way'?"
[Buzz—]
The moment his words fell, the Truth-Seeking Orbs in Kitagawa Gen's hand transformed into a golden lightsaber.
Without hesitation, he swung it downward. The violent power illuminated the entire night in an instant!
"This kind of power…"
Madara's expression changed. Even though he had mentally prepared himself, that ferocity still caught him completely off guard.
He twisted his body in an instant and simultaneously summoned Susanoo.
His speed in invoking Susanoo far surpassed Obito's; within the blink of an eye, the Complete Body Susanoo had already enveloped his entire form!
The Susanoo looked like both a celestial deity and an asura, its colossal frame under the moonlight resembling a demonic war god.
Yet even that immense and sturdy body—Kitagawa Gen could shatter it with his true form alone.
Under the golden lightsaber formed from the Truth-Seeking Orbs, it was as fragile as butter!
That violent power cleaved the Susanoo diagonally in half in an instant.
"Damn it…"
Madara's face changed abruptly, especially as the moment Susanoo shattered, he saw Kitagawa Gen's figure flicker.
In the next instant, a suffocating pressure struck him. Only then did he realize—Kitagawa Gen's hand was gripping his neck!
The two of them floated in midair, the azure Susanoo collapsing behind them.
And at that moment, Kitagawa Gen's indifferent voice rang out once more.
"This is what you are now."
...
"That is…"
The night air was cold and clear.
Black Zetsu and Obito watched as Uchiha Madara's Susanoo was instantly shattered, his entire body seized in a single grasp. Though startled, they remained relatively composed.
After all, they had already experienced the terror of Ōtsutsuki Genshiki. But nearby, Rōshi—already transformed into the Four-Tails—could no longer hold himself together.
"What is going on here?"
Rōshi had been away from the village for many years, so there were many things he didn't know much about.
This time, it was only because he had sensed something major happening in Iwagakure that he decided to hurry back to take a look—only to be ambushed halfway!
"This kind of power…"
Watching as the entire valley was swept up and obliterated, Rōshi knew something was terribly wrong.
What was worse, even the Four-Tails inside him was showing a rare expression of fear—and he had absolutely no idea what was happening.
"Run!"
While he was still in shock, the Four-Tails' furious roar suddenly echoed through his mind.
"Run! Or there won't be another chance!"
"What's going on?"
Rōshi couldn't understand, but the Four-Tails' voice was clearly trembling.
"That's… Uchiha Madara—and the one fighting Uchiha Madara…"
Uchiha Madara?
When Rōshi heard the name, he froze for a moment, and in a daze realized that it seemed to belong to some legendary figure.
But before he could think further, a roar rang out.
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