At the border of the Land of Fire, inside a room requisitioned by Mist Ninja.
"Have I been taken prisoner?" With a soft moan, Rin slowly regained consciousness, her head still feeling muddled and heavy.
Recalling the battle from before, she realized she had indeed been captured by the Mist Ninja. She had been with Kakashi at the time.
"I hope Kakashi is alright." Rin hoped with all her heart. Kakashi had the strength of a Jonin; surely he wouldn't be captured as easily as she had been.
"Wait, why is there no one here? And my chakra hasn't been sealed or anything." Rin shifted slightly, feeling the chakra flowing through her body.
Suddenly, she heard voices from the adjacent room, causing her to freeze instantly.
From the other side of the wall, she heard a discussion regarding her fate. As she listened, her shock grew, and her heart began to turn cold.
It turned out that the Hidden Mist Village had already decided what to do with her. They had sealed the Three-Tails (Isobu) inside her body and placed a Forbidden Individual Curse Tag on her heart. Their plan was to let her return to Konoha, where the Three-Tails would then be unleashed to attack the village, causing catastrophic damage.
If that happened, Konohaalready unstablewould stand no chance against the combined might of the Four Great Ninja Villages.
"Is the Three-Tails really sealed inside me right now?" Rin slightly pulled back her clothing to see a sealing formula across her abdomen. She touched the seal gently, a look of resolve flashing through her eyes.
"They even put something on my heart... so I can't even kill myself?" Rin looked down with a sense of helplessness.
"Not good! It looks like Leaf Ninja have discovered this place." Suddenly, a voice rang out from outside, followed by the sound of several people departing.
In an instant, the room across from her fell silent. Even the sound of breathing vanished.
"This is my chance." Rin scrambled out of bed and pushed the door open. Sure enough, the hallway was empty.
"I have to escape." Rin opened the main door. To the right, she could see a large number of Mist Ninja gathering, likely preparing to resist the approaching Konoha forces.
"I'll head the other way and try to link up with the Leaf Ninja later," Rin decided.
She had no idea how many Leaf Ninja were coming or if they could even defeat the Mist Ninja stationed here. As a ninja of Konoha, Rin refused to be used by the Hidden Mist as a weapon to destroy her own home.
Meanwhile, in an underground space near the Land of Earth.
"Are you really going out there?" White Zetsu asked as he looked at Obito.
"Yes, I have to. I'm going to see Kakashi and Rin," Obito replied.
He had been here for a long time. Half of his body had recovered to the point where he could perform Taijutsu freely and even execute Ninjutsu without any trouble.
"Fine. Then I'll give you a hand," Zetsu said.
"Thank you," Obito replied.
With Zetsu's help, Obito punched through the stone gate, which naturally drew the attention of the elder.
"Obito, are you truly leaving?" The aged Madara Uchiha looked at Obito and asked.
"Yes, I'm leaving. I'm grateful to you for saving my life, of course. If I get the chance, I'll repay you," Obito said, before sprinting away.
He had heard the news: Kakashi and Rin were currently being hunted by Mist Ninja.
"I didn't expect the Mist to participate in this battle." Obito ran relentlessly, desperate to reach Kakashi and the others.
Looking at the shattered gate and the departing Obito, Madara Uchiha wore a mask of indifference, a faint smile playing on his lips. "Obito, don't blame me. I'm simply giving you a new life."
Obito had no inkling that every step he took was a calculated move in Madara Uchiha's grand scheme.
"I can't... my chakra is giving out..." Rin panted as she ran, dozens of Mist Ninja hot on her heels.
Though she had managed to escape the building, it hadn't taken long for the searching Mist Ninja to discover her. Now, they were in full pursuit.
The Mist Ninja intended to capture her and finish the job. Of course, Rin didn't know that; she assumed they wanted to take her back to ensure she became the weapon that would destroy Konoha.
"Rin!" A familiar shout echoed through the air, catching her off guard. "Kakashi!"
"Mist Ninja." Kakashi also noticed the pursuers.
Not much time had passed since Rin had been captured and turned into a Jinchuriki. Kakashi had been searching for her tirelessly.
"Rin, get behind me. I'll handle these Mist Ninja," Kakashi said. As a Jonin, he was confident in his ability to deal with these pursuers, especially since he noticed there were no other Jonin among them.
"Leaf Ninja!" The Mist Ninja were also surprised. They hadn't expected to encounter Leaf forces here.
"Kill them all!" The Mist Ninja quickly made their decision. they needed to finish this quickly and return to their base to report.
"Raikiri!" Crackling blue lightning erupted from Kakashi's right hand. He intended to use his signature self-created technique to cut down the Mist Ninja.
Watching Kakashi charge forward, Rin made a final decision. The sensation of the Forbidden Individual Curse Tag on her heart was clearshe knew that if she tried to commit suicide by her own hand, the seal would stop her.
In that moment, to Kakashi's utter horror, Rin suddenly appeared directly in front of him, throwing her chest squarely into the path of his Raikiri.
In that split second, time seemed to stand still for everyone present.
The Hidden Mist Ninja were baffled. Why would this Konoha ninja commit suicide like that?
"Kakashi..." Rin looked at Kakashi and forced a smile.
"Why...?" Kakashi stared at his right hand, which had pierced through Rin's chest.
"My heart... has a seal from the Mist... and they put the Three-Tails (Isobu) inside me... they wanted to destroy the village... so... cough..." Blood surged from the corner of Rin's mouth. "So, Kakashi... dying by your hand... I'm actually... really happy."
Rin's face was graced with a radiant, peaceful smile.
"Rin!" In the distance, Obito, who had just arrived, saw the scene. He saw Kakashi's hand through Rin's chest.
In that instant, Obito's heart felt as though it were being ripped to shreds. Every memory of the past seemed to shatter into a million pieces.
"RIN!" Obito let out a raw, hoarse scream of pure agony.
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