Whoosh—
Once again, the cold whistle of a blade cutting through the air rang out.
It carried a sharpness and unstoppable precision that could be felt even without approaching. Unfortunately, the enemy faced by the blade-wielder this time was not the sort of opponent who could be cut down in one strike as long as the sword in hand was fast and sharp enough.
"It is useless, Shisui Uchiha…"
Obito Uchiha, who hid his true face beneath a tiger-striped mask, maintained his previous posture and allowed Shisui Uchiha's chakra-coated blade to pass through his leg. Then he backhandedly threw a set of shuriken into the air along tricky trajectories, tearing Shisui Uchiha's phantom clone to pieces as he mocked him unhurriedly.
"I exist on a level your blade can never touch. No matter how fast your Body Flicker is, you will never have the chance to injure me in the slightest."
"There has never been a power in this world that can truly be called unsolvable. At least, not at the mortal level!"
The three tomoe Sharingan in Shisui Uchiha's eyes spun rapidly as he stared fixedly at the Mangekyo Sharingan exposed through the hole in Obito Uchiha's mask.
"Even a Mangekyo that can glimpse the future has its own flaws and shortcomings. A Mangekyo like yours, which transfers yourself to another space, cannot possibly be perfect either… not to mention, you currently only have one eye."
"…Hmph. As Rei Kaguya's loyal dog, you really do know quite a bit of unpleasant intelligence."
Obito Uchiha, who had originally wanted to use Kamui's power to ambush Shisui Uchiha after White Zetsu discovered him and make this potentially troublesome enemy withdraw early, frowned.
Without showing it, he examined the surroundings, where almost no damage had appeared from the battle between the two of them. Under the mask, a playful expression immediately appeared on his face.
It seems you are even more worried than I am about being discovered by Konoha's people, Shisui Uchiha…
And up until now, you have not activated the Heavenly Curse Mark bestowed upon you by Rei Kaguya. Are you worried about being discovered by Konoha's people, or are you worried that your secret return to Konoha will be noticed by that guy, Rei Kaguya?
Thinking of this, Obito Uchiha changed hand signs and aimed in Shisui Uchiha's direction, making the motion to launch a large-scale Fire Release.
"Fire Release: Blast—"
Swish!
A Body Flicker even faster than before allowed Shisui Uchiha to charge close to Obito Uchiha at an unimaginable speed. His gaze was cold as ice, while the katana in his hand burned with blazing flames, sweeping upward from below at a diagonal angle and aiming straight for Obito Uchiha's head—
Then, the distorted space that had originally only been meant to create powerful wind pressure suddenly surged in suction strength.
With Obito Uchiha's right eye as the center of the vortex, a massive suction force, nearly strong enough to twist even consciousness, locked firmly onto Shisui Uchiha as he closed in, sucking him into Obito Uchiha's Kamui dimension without the slightest ability to resist.
But before Shisui Uchiha's figure had fully vanished, Obito Uchiha, who was in the middle of absorbing him, had a change in expression and suddenly dodged.
Even though his reaction was already fast, several kunai still tore through his black robe, revealing a pale right arm whose color did not resemble that of an ordinary person.
"As expected, when you absorb something, you cannot maintain your body's intangibility…"
Shisui Uchiha's voice came from the direction where the kunai had been thrown.
Hearing this, Obito Uchiha raised his hand and dusted off his black robe, then sneered.
"As expected of Shisui of the Body Flicker, the person praised as the Uchiha clan's greatest genius in genjutsu… To think that, even under those circumstances, you still had time to use genjutsu to disturb my perception."
Having lost the katana in his hand, Shisui Uchiha crouched among the shadows beneath the trees, where the sunset's remaining glow could barely reach. Staring at Obito Uchiha, who was completely unharmed, he said calmly, "Although this is a contest between the three tomoe and the Mangekyo, the fields we each specialize in are different. In terms of genjutsu alone, I do not believe I have any reason to lose to you."
"Interesting. Then let us begin the second round."
Obito Uchiha confirmed the situation inside the Kamui dimension. Seeing that the "Shisui Uchiha" he had absorbed had already completely vanished, leaving only a katana burned red by flames lying quietly on the ground, he adopted a more serious attitude. His feet slammed against the ground, and he chased after Shisui Uchiha, who had activated the first stage of the Heavenly Curse Mark.
Clang!
A crisp sound rarely heard in the collisions between the two of them rang out.
Obito Uchiha used the chains wrapped around both hands to block Shisui Uchiha's kunai slash. While feeling the increase in strength the other party had gained after activating the Heavenly Curse Mark, he observed the flow of chakra within Shisui's body, preparing to partially shift his body into the Kamui dimension the instant the other party suddenly exerted force, causing the other party to lose balance while dragging him in as well.
Seeing the contest of strength between them reach a stalemate, Shisui Uchiha narrowed his eyes. His arms suddenly pressed downward with force, as if he wanted to use the chains in Obito Uchiha's hands as a foothold and send his body flying upward again.
Now!
Almost the instant Shisui Uchiha acted, Obito Uchiha turned his body intangible.
Shisui Uchiha, who had exerted force downward in midair but lost his point of leverage without warning, immediately fell toward Obito Uchiha's body. The instant he came into contact with him, he once again felt that immense twisting suction force—
Fortunately, he had also been waiting for this moment.
Inside the Kamui dimension, the katana burned red suddenly sprang up. Amid spreading white smoke, it transformed into Shisui Uchiha's appearance.
The Shisui within the Kamui dimension did not hesitate. He threw a large number of kunai and shuriken at Obito Uchiha, who had appeared inside, preparing to launch a killing attack from the angle the other party would be least able to guard against.
Thunk. Thunk, thunk, thunk, thunk…
A series of extremely dull sounds, like striking wood, entered the ears of Shisui's clone inside the Kamui dimension.
Then, a huge wooden spike, fired at a speed far surpassing his thrown shuriken, broke away from Obito Uchiha's body and shot straight toward the clone, piercing through it. Countless wooden spikes blossomed from within its body, completely erasing it from this world without leaving any room for survival.
Compared to that hairbreadth exchange of offense and defense inside the Kamui dimension, the battle outside was far less intense and thrilling.
Shisui Uchiha's body passed through Obito Uchiha, whose body had shifted into the Kamui dimension, and fell toward the ground. With a simple forward roll, he completed the process of landing, absorbing the impact, and regaining his stance.
Then Shisui looked with a grave expression at Obito Uchiha, who was glancing sideways at him, and tightly gripped the kunai in his hand.
He had indeed caught the flaw in the other party's Mangekyo Sharingan ability and sent a clone capable of launching a sudden attack into the alternate space the other party created.
But…
Obito Uchiha seemed to have anticipated that someone might launch an attack from inside the Kamui dimension. He had used Wood Release in advance to create protective armor sufficient to block Shisui's shuriken rain and instantly killed the clone he had sent inside.
"That was truly dangerous… You almost succeeded."
Obito Uchiha patted the additional holes and tears in his long robe, looking at Shisui Uchiha's serious expression with a faintly amused gaze.
"Although you said you are confident you will not lose to my Mangekyo Sharingan in terms of genjutsu, when it comes to insight and ocular power, I far surpass you, who only has a three tomoe Sharingan, Shisui Uchiha."
"That is indeed true."
Shisui Uchiha maintained his wary stance and acknowledged Obito Uchiha's confidence. But between his brows, there was not the slightest hint of retreat.
"But if you think I am the kind of person who will obediently admit defeat and beg for mercy after falling into an unfavorable position, then you are gravely mistaken."
…
Before Konoha's Memorial Stone, Kakashi Hatake turned his head in confusion and glanced at the forest that looked the same as always.
Just now…
Was that his imagination?
It should be.
Someone fighting in the forest near the Memorial Stone at a time like this…
That would be far too absurd.
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