Sasuke (quietly): "Naruto, did you notice how, the instant Obito appears, if we try to attack, his body instantly dematerializes—becoming intangible. But when he attacks, he seems to solidify. His space-time ninjutsu is strange!"
The two leapt simultaneously to evade Obito's kunai—Sasuke to one side, Naruto to the other. Naruto nodded.
Naruto: "Yes, it's weird—he can vanish when we attack, but can solidify instantly when launching his attacks!"
Their coordination was perfect. After exchanging a glance, both vanished via shunshin, one to each side of Obito.
A moment later, Sasuke's Chidori and Naruto's Rasengan sped straight toward Obito's head, destined to collide.
But just as Obito braced, Sasuke dissolved into a cloud of mist, while Naruto phaselessly passed through. Then, in a split second, the Rasengan transformed into Sasuke's Chidori Sharp Spear, stabbing.
Obito reacted instantly—dematerializing again and evading the blow. When he attempted to chase Naruto, a tentacle from his octopus form wrapped around him, but in another flicker of space, Obito reappeared elsewhere.
Tenzō, the moment Obito reappeared, leapt in with Wood Release: Adamantine Wood Confinement. As multiple wood stilts pierced Obito's body, Obito snarled—Fire Release: Gale Dance—his fire ninjutsu, bolstered by Kamui (space-time distortion), burned with incredible speed. The others couldn't react in time; even though Tenzō knew Wood Release, he failed to complete the seal.
A massive explosion erupted—Naruto reappeared in front of Tenzō, the cloak of Kurama's chakra dispelling Obito's fireball.
Obito (cold laugh): "It truly shows how much Tō has trained you. Especially you two—your growth has been precipitous."
Sasuke stood beside Naruto, glaring darkly.
Sasuke: "If I'm not mistaken about the Uchiha massacre—it wasn't Madara behind it, was it? Did you harbor a desire to become the true Madara, and so you emulated his hatred toward the Uchiha?"
Obito paused in surprise, his eyes narrowing.
Sasuke (continuing): "Did the Uchiha hold no hatred toward you? Then why have you maneuvered so that Danzo and the Third Hokage focus all suspicion on the Uchiha? Was that because of… the stone tablet?"
Obito subtly stiffened. Sasuke's insight reached deeper than expected.
He barely hid his shock, glancing toward Tō and quietly asked:
Obito: "Did Tō tell you this?"
Sasuke nodded.
Obito narrowed his eyes and sneered:
Obito: "Sometimes I even wonder if Tō is the true inheritor of Hagoromo's power. He seems to know everything, without investigation. Could he even know how to awaken the Rinnegan?"
Sasuke smiled.
Sasuke: "I don't know if Tō has discovered the secrets of the Rinnegan, but I do know something: Kakashi's eyes… might be able to counter yours."
Naruto was stunned. Everyone was—including Tenzō; suddenly it clicked.
Tenzō (whispering): "Could he truly be the Uchiha Obito… Kakashi's teammate?"
Tenzō (continuing): "But that's impossible… that was an accident, wasn't it? The real Obito was buried under a rock… yet his body was never found?"
Obito (shrugging lightly): "Who knows? Maybe I'm Obito… or maybe I'm not even Uchiha."
He instantly disappeared and reappeared behind Chōrōgabu, Kurama's bovine avatar. A series of massive chakra rods shot toward him, rotating rapidly and traveling at incredible speed via Kamui.
Before Sasuke or Naruto could react, the chakra rods slammed into Chōrōgabu's tentacles, pinning them completely. Naruto's counterstrike was blocked; only Sasuke responded swiftly—Susanoo materialized, shielded the incoming rods, and loosed arrows. The rods pierced through—but missed Obito entirely. Instead, two rods were thrust through, severed, and shot past Obito straight into the ground.
Chōrōgabu's now two "arms" re-attacked Obito—but he avoided them as Tenzō, Aoba, and other hidden-nin closed in to assault the protruding rods.
At that moment, Nagato furrowed his brow.
Though healed by Tō, his recovery partly stemmed from severing ties to the Ten-Tails. Still, Obito seemed to wield some power over the empty Ten-Tails vessel—possibly signifying that he now was its jinchūriki shell himself. Tō was equally shocked.
Elsewhere...
Madara Uchiha had grown so strong that even Jiraiya felt uncertain. But every time Madara prepared to overwhelm the Shinobi Alliance, one thought stopped him: Tō.
Whenever he clashed with Tō, no matter how hard he tried, Tō still emerged victorious—effortlessly.
Madara smirked:
Madara: "It seems you've reached your limit. Then I'll go meet this Tō that you speak of!"
He vanished—and Jiraiya was struck by a single devastating blow, flying across the battlefield. The other Kage also collapsed.
Before Tsunade fell, she made seals and struck the ground—slap!—consumed. Slug, summoned by her, appeared.
Jiraiya (to Tsunade): "Lady Tsunade, you're gravely wounded!"
The appearance of a slug next to her, entangled around her, signaled she was still alive—but barely. Tsunade, coughing up blood, gasped:
Tsunade: "Save Jiraiya and the other Kage… I'm holding on… but Madara Uchiha… too strong… If he reaches Tō's position, Naruto... they'll be in grave danger."
The slug summoned multiple duplicates to protect Jiraiya—his internal injuries could be healed by precise chakra control. But the Kage—their bone wounds were far more grievous and slow to heal.
Suddenly, Gaara appeared—and Tsunade was stunned. Gaara had followed Tō from the beginning, and he'd supposedly lost his tailed beast. Yet here he stood alive.