The forest loomed ahead, a dark wall of ancient trees stretching upward against the fading light. You glanced at your companion, noting the tension in his shoulders as he walked beside you. The mask covering half his face couldn't hide the haunted look in his visible eye.
"Even if we succeed, I doubt it's enough for redemption," you said as you headed toward the tree line with Obito by your side. The words hung heavy in the air between you.
Obito's pace faltered for just a moment. He turned his head slightly, his Sharingan eye gleaming with an unreadable emotion.
"Redemption isn't why I'm here," he replied, voice low and rough. "Some sins can't be washed away with good deeds. I learned that long ago."
A chilled wind swept through the clearing, carrying the scent of pine and something else-something wrong. You tensed, instinctively scanning the shadowed forest edge. Something was watching you both.
"We're not alone," Obito whispered, his body already shifting into a defensive stance. His hand moved to the kunai at his belt. "Whatever's out there has been tracking us since we left the village."
"Mmm, you're right Obi-one," you said with a slight smirk despite the tension.
With a simple thought, you manifested your vectors - ghostly limbs that extended invisibly from your back. They stretched out around you both, their 25-meter range creating an unseen perimeter that could detect the slightest movement.
"Let's draw 'em out," you suggested, your voice dropping to a whisper as your vectors probed deeper into the surrounding forest.
Obito regarded you with mild surprise, his Sharingan scanning your form. "Those appendages... they're not chakra-based," he observed, his voice barely audible. "What exactly are you, Raven?"
You sent one of your vectors slicing through the underbrush about fifteen meters ahead, deliberately making noise. A dark shape darted between the trees in response.
"There!" Obito tensed, hands rapidly forming signs as he prepared a jutsu. "Three o'clock, moving fast. Two more at our six."
You reacted instantly, sending your vectors whipping through the forest with deadly precision. They closed around the nearest shadowy figure, invisible but unstoppable.
The attacker let out a startled cry as your vectors seized them, dragging their struggling form into the clearing. It was a ninja wearing a strange mask, limbs flailing uselessly against your ghostly grip.
"I'm not from around here, Obito. Let's just say I collect... abilities." You tightened your vectors around the captured ninja, watching Obito's visible eye widen slightly.
"Dimensional jutsu? No..." Obito's Sharingan spun as he analyzed your vectors. "Something else entirely." He formed hand signs with blinding speed, expelling a massive fireball toward the two remaining attackers hiding in the trees.
The forest edge erupted in flames as one attacker dodged while the other was caught in the inferno, their screams cut short. Your captive struggled harder, reaching for a concealed weapon.
You lifted the captive higher, vectors constricting until they went limp. "Want me to finish this one, or should we ask some questions first?" The remaining attacker was circling through the trees, looking for an opening.
You lowered your vectors, carefully depositing the unconscious ninja onto the forest floor. The masked figure lay motionless in the grass, chest barely rising with shallow breaths.
"I heard Uchiha had impressive genjutsu... maybe we can make some use of that? Isn't like they'll give up info willingly." Your eyes met Obito's as you gestured toward the fallen attacker.
Obito knelt beside the prone figure, his Sharingan eye spinning hypnotically. "My clan's visual prowess has its uses." His voice was cold, detached. "But first, we need to deal with his friend."
A kunai whistled through the air, nearly grazing your cheek. You ducked instinctively, vectors lashing out toward the source of the attack. The remaining ninja burst from the trees, hands flashing through signs. A wall of earth erupted between you, blocking your vectors momentarily.
"It's called nen... a different energy system from a different world... though... I doubt it's any different from the chakra of this world," you informed your ever-perceptive partner as you circled the earthen barrier. Obito's eye widened slightly at your revelation.
Obito's body began to distort, twisting unnaturally as he activated his Kamui. "Another world? That explains why I can't copy your technique." He phased through the earth wall, emerging on the other side directly behind the startled attacker. "But right now, we have more pressing matters." His hand closed around the ninja's throat.
"Vis versa," you said with a knowing smile, watching as Obito's form solidified, his grip tightening around the struggling ninja's throat.
You smirked as you watched him warp, appreciating the fluid way his body phased through solid matter. For now at least, you wouldn't be able to copy that ever impressive Kamui of his. Not until your body completely adapted to this world's energy system.
The captured ninja thrashed against Obito's iron grip, fingers clawing desperately at the Uchiha's wrist. Obito's expression remained cold, unaffected by the man's struggle. "Who sent you?" he demanded, his Sharingan spinning hypnotically as it locked onto his victim's panicked eyes.
"We... we were ordered to... to track the Uchiha..." the ninja gasped, voice strangled as Obito's genjutsu took hold. "The bounty... on your head... is substantial." The man's body went slack, caught in the ruthless illusion.
A rustling sound from behind alerted you both. You spun around, vectors stretching out protectively as three more masked figures emerged from the trees. These weren't simple bounty hunters - their coordinated movements and chakra control marked them as elite shinobi.
"More company," Obito muttered, releasing the now-unconscious ninja to drop heavily to the ground. He stepped back until he was standing shoulder-to-shoulder with you, his back nearly touching yours. "Seems we've attracted quite the welcoming party."
"Mostly you," you replied with a dry smirk, your vectors coiling around you like invisible serpents ready to strike.
You glanced sideways at him, finding a strange comfort in the dangerous situation.
The masked ninjas spread out in a practiced formation, kunai glinting in the dappled forest light. "Looks like you're pretty popular, Obi-one," you quipped, dropping into a fighting stance as the first attacker lunged forward.
Your vectors stretched out rapidly, invisible to all but you as they filled the clearing. The first ninja's charge halted violently as a vector punched through his chest. Blood sprayed across the forest floor as another vector severed his arm at the shoulder.
The remaining attackers faltered at the sight of their comrade being torn apart by an invisible force. You became a whirlwind of destruction, vectors lashing out in all directions. Three ninjas were nothing compared to your onslaught - limbs separated from torsos in brutal fashion, bodies crumpling like ragdolls as you dismembered them without mercy.
Obito watched in stunned silence, his Sharingan tracking the faint disturbances in the air where your vectors moved. Bodies and blood littered the forest clearing, the attackers dispatched in seconds. "What... are you?" There was new wariness in his voice as he stared at the carnage you'd created without moving a muscle.
You pulled back your vectors, the invisible arms retracting as blood dripped from their ethereal forms before vanishing entirely. The forest clearing had transformed into a grotesque display of dismembered bodies and pooling crimson.
"An interdimensional time traveler in search of knowledge and adventure. And it appears that we are now partners," you replied with a casual shrug, as if tearing apart multiple elite ninja was nothing extraordinary. Your eyes lingered on Obito's Sharingan, studying the hypnotic pattern of his ocular jutsu with intense fascination, though you kept that interest to yourself.
Obito stepped carefully around a severed arm, his sandal making a soft squelching sound in the blood-soaked grass. "Partners?" His voice held a mix of disbelief and caution. "Your abilities are... unlike anything in this world. Even the Tailed Beasts don't compare to that level of casual slaughter."
"Those vectors of yours," he continued, gesturing vaguely at the space around you, "they're completely invisible to normal sight. Even my Sharingan only detects slight disturbances in the air." He knelt beside one of the fallen ninja, checking for any identifying marks or symbols.
The remaining unconscious ninja groaned softly from where he lay bound by thin wire several feet away. You walked toward him, purposely stepping on a dismembered hand with a sickening crunch. Obito's gaze followed your movement, his expression guarded but curious.
"Should I finish this one too? Or did you want to extract more information?" You stood over the captive, a vector hovering invisibly above the man's heart, ready to pierce through at your command. Whatever Obito decided, your focus remained partly on him - specifically on that eye and the space-time manipulation he commanded. Such an ability would make a fine addition to your collection, when the time was right.
"Well?" you prompted Obito, your head tilting slightly as you waited for his decision regarding the surviving ninja.
Obito's Sharingan eye narrowed thoughtfully. "We need information." He stepped closer, careful to avoid the pools of blood that were spreading across the forest floor.
Your vectors moved with deadly precision, cutting through the wire bindings with a sharp slicing sound. The ninja barely had time to register his freedom before another vector wrapped around his ankle, yanking him violently upward. He dangled upside down, his face reddening as blood rushed to his head.
"Put me down! What is this?!" he screamed, arms flailing wildly as he squirmed in your invisible grip. His eyes bulged with terror as he twisted in midair, unable to see what held him.
Obito watched with clinical interest, circling the suspended man like a predator. "Who sent you after me?" he demanded, his voice cold. "I won't ask twice."
The ninja's face contorted with fear and defiance. "The Mizukage has a special bounty on your head, traitor!" he spat, though his bravado was undermined by the tremor in his voice. "You'll never make it to-" His words cut off in a gurgle as your vector tightened around his ankle, twisting it unnaturally.
"Ooh the Mizukage? Such a high ranking individual... who's that again?" You loosened your grip slightly, allowing the ninja to catch his breath. Your question earned you a puzzled look from both the captive and Obito.
"You don't know who the Mizukage is?" Obito asked, his visible eye narrowing with suspicion.
You shrugged, maintaining your casual demeanor despite the blood-soaked clearing around you. "I'm not the best on shinobi politics. If the kages don't start with 'ho,' then I have no clue which village belongs to which kage."
The captive ninja made a choking sound that might have been disbelieving laughter. "What kind of shinobi doesn't know-" His mockery ended abruptly as your vector gave his ankle another painful twist.
Obito stepped forward, his sandals leaving bloody footprints on the forest floor. "The Mizukage rules Kirigakure, the Hidden Mist Village," he explained, his tone neutral but his eye watchful. "They've maintained a bounty on me since the war. The question is why they've suddenly deployed elite tracking teams when they've been content with ordinary hunters until now."
You dangled the ninja higher, enjoying the way he squirmed helplessly in your invisible grip. "Probably because you're traveling with me now. Maybe they think you're up to something big." You turned your attention back to the captive, your eyes cold despite your playful tone. "So, what exactly were your orders regarding this traitor? And be specific this time, or I'll have to get creative with how many pieces I split you into."
"Have you ever thought of being force fed your own body parts?" you asked the dangling ninja, your tone curious and light as if discussing the weather. The man's eyes widened in terror as blood continued rushing to his head.
You tilted your head, studying his fear with academic interest. A few months ago, you'd been living a completely different life before a portal had opened without warning, sucking you in and spitting you out into this world of shinobis. None of the Konoha ninjas trusted you-not that you could blame them. This mission was their setup to prove your loyalty, though you didn't mind. You had nothing better to do anyway.
"P-please, I'll tell you everything!" the captive blubbered, his earlier bravado evaporating like morning mist. "The Mizukage sent eight of us-three teams! We're just the first wave!"
Obito stepped closer, his Sharingan spinning lazily as he regarded the terrified man. "First wave? Explain." His voice carried deadly promise.
"Your appearance with this... this stranger caused alarm," he gasped, pointing at you with a shaking finger. "They detected a dimensional disturbance. With your history and this newcomer's unknown powers... the Mizukage fears you're planning something worse than the Moon's Eye Plan."
You laughed softly, the sound echoing through the blood-soaked clearing. The dimensional disturbance hadn't gone unnoticed, as you suspected. Your team-up with the infamous Obito Uchiha had made many jump to the worst conclusions. "And people call me paranoid," you muttered, a vector casually slicing off the ninja's pinky finger. His scream pierced the forest as blood sprayed from the wound.