Chapter 285 – The Identity of the Masked Man Revealed
No one knew how much time had passed, but Uchiha Madara still hadn't fully recovered.
"Even a body created by Impure World Reincarnation can be killed…" everyone muttered with faces full of shock.
"No, he's not dead," Tsunade said, frowning.
Madara's body could be seen slowly restoring itself.
"That was truly dangerous. At that moment, even I—despite being in an Impure World Reincarnation body—felt genuine danger," Madara said as he looked at Yusuke with vigilance, though his tone remained oddly relaxed.
"Oh? Is that so? What a shame," Yusuke replied, his face filled with exaggerated regret.
"Is there any other way, Hatake Yusuke?" Madara asked, staring straight at him.
"There are actually plenty of ways. But I've already had enough fun. I'd rather strip you of your ability to 'act,'" Yusuke said with a wide grin.
After that, he crossed his index and middle fingers.
"Domain Expansion, Unlimited Void."
The moment the words left his mouth, a strange energy enveloped the surrounding space. In the blink of an eye, the environment transformed into something resembling the depths of the universe itself.
"What… is this?" Even Madara had never seen a technique like this before.
"I've dragged you into the depths of the Void. Next, I'll take away your ability to move," Yusuke said as he began flooding Madara with meaningless information.
"Uchiha Madara really lives up to the name. Or is it because this is an Impure World Reincarnation body?" Yusuke muttered while staring at Madara, who appeared completely unaffected.
Then again, if one thought about it, Madara was already dead—he didn't possess a truly living brain. But Yusuke's Domain was clearly not something so simple.
"Is this Genjutsu?" Madara realized as information continued to invade his consciousness.
Yusuke didn't answer.
Madara's gaze slowly turned vacant. This was another application of Yusuke's Domain—a direct assault on the mental aspect itself.
Seeing that Madara was no longer resisting, Yusuke withdrew his Domain and calmly walked toward Tsunade.
"It's done. Let's go. We're heading to Naruto," Yusuke said casually.
"Where did you two disappear to?" Tsunade asked as she looked at Yusuke.
"We got trapped. The one pulling the strings used some kind of human-shaped ninja tool to seal us," Yusuke said with a shrug.
"I see. Everyone, this is the final battle. Follow me—we're going to support Uzumaki Naruto and Killer Bee," Tsunade announced as she turned to the Allied Shinobi Forces behind her.
"Yes!" The ninjas behind her responded in unison. Seeing Madara subdued had filled them with confidence for the battle ahead.
"Alright, you organize the troops here first. I'll go on ahead," Yusuke said.
"Fine. Go. That'll put my mind at ease," Tsunade replied.
Yusuke nodded, then vanished right in front of everyone.
Naturally, the reason he was in such a hurry was because Sakumo's White Fang had already been released and was currently racing straight toward him.
Yusuke honestly hadn't expected his father to be this angry. Wasn't it just a little joke? Was it really necessary to go that far? Or… was this some kind of midlife crisis?
— — —
Elsewhere, Naruto had completely reconciled with Kurama and entered his perfected Kurama Mode.
The Eight-Tails had also taken on its complete form. The two of them were facing Obito head-on, while Kakashi and Guy were battling the newly formed Six Paths of Pain—now Jinchūriki.
"What should we do, Kakashi? They can't be killed," Guy said, glancing at Kakashi.
"I don't have a solution yet either. My Fuinjutsu hasn't reached the level where I can seal these new Six Paths of Pain," Kakashi replied, frowning deeply.
"But that doesn't mean there's no way," Kakashi continued.
"What way?" Guy stepped closer.
"Kamui. I'll use Kamui to directly send them into another dimension," Kakashi said.
"Then hurry up and do it!" Guy urged anxiously.
"They've already completely transformed into Bijū. Transferring bodies that large with Kamui will drain me immensely. I can only do it three times," Kakashi said, his brow furrowed. Clearly, he still hadn't realized that the masked man before them was Obito.
"That's fine. Leave the rest to me," Guy said confidently.
Even if Kakashi couldn't continue fighting afterward, Guy was certain he could hold the enemy off until Tsunade's reinforcements arrived.
"No. I still have one more idea," Kakashi said, staring intently at the crack in the masked man's face.
"Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall."
Kakashi immediately raised several earthen walls carved with dog-head motifs, positioning them in areas the masked man couldn't easily reach.
"Shadow Clone Technique."
He instantly created a shadow clone.
"Kamui."
The clone was sent straight into the Kamui dimension.
"I hope my guess is wrong," Kakashi muttered, casting a serious glance at the masked figure.
— — —
Meanwhile, Yusuke didn't immediately step in. Instead, he observed Kakashi from afar.
"So you've finally realized it too, Kakashi," Yusuke thought as he watched the entire process. He understood Kakashi's goal—and knew that Kakashi had already grasped several crucial clues.
"Guy, Naruto, Killer Bee—leave the masked man to me. I want to verify something. It won't take long," Kakashi said.
"Alright. Leave it to us," Guy replied confidently.
Naruto and Killer Bee both nodded.
"So you're the one facing me, Kakashi?" Obito thought silently. When it came to Kakashi, his feelings were… complicated.
"Who are you, really?" Kakashi demanded, staring at the masked man.
"That name means nothing. Madara or Tobi—it's all the same," Obito replied.
"Is that so? Then I'll destroy your mask and see for myself," Kakashi said as a sharp glint of resolve flashed in his eyes.
"If you truly have that ability, Copy Ninja Kakashi," Obito sneered.
"It doesn't matter," Kakashi said calmly. He drew his blade and unleashed a flurry of slashes toward Obito's mask.
Under the dense barrage, Obito instinctively activated his intangibility.
But sensing the sheer density of the attacks, Obito immediately changed tactics.
"Shinra Tensei."
An immense repulsive force erupted, smashing through Kakashi's attacks and blowing them away.
At that instant, Kakashi lunged forward, appearing right in front of the masked man, and swung his blade straight at the mask.
Obito instantly read Kakashi's intent with his Sharingan and dodged the slash.
Kakashi didn't stop. He followed up with an even stronger swing.
The masked man once again entered intangibility.
"One Sword Style: Azure Dragon Roar."
Kakashi unleashed a slash shaped like a roaring blue dragon toward the masked man's head. Just like before, Obito avoided it through intangibility.
"It's useless—"
The words hadn't even finished forming when cracks began spreading across the mask.
Kakashi's eyes widened.
He stared at the person before him as the mask slowly crumbled away, revealing the face beneath. Even after all these years, Kakashi recognized it instantly.
"Obi… Obito. Is that really you?" Kakashi said in disbelief. At that moment, every one of his suspicions was confirmed.
Yet even though he had suspected it, seeing Obito with his own eyes was still hard to accept. When he noticed the crack in the mask, he had already guessed that their spaces were connected.
But how could that be?
There was only one answer.
Those two Mangekyō Sharingan belonged to the same person.
And that person… was none other than Obito.
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