Chapter 341: So Close, Yet So Dead

A few more rounds of brutal attacks later—

Obito felt like he was being dismantled piece by piece.

[Thud!]

He burned the last of his chakra to lift himself into the air, just barely dodging the next wave.

He forced his head up, eyes filled with disbelief, and roared:

"This is impossible! Absolutely impossible!"

"How… How are you still alive?! You should've been injured!"

"You should be dead!"

Minato slowly stepped forward.

Despite having lost a leg and an arm,

Minato looked calmly at Obito and sighed.

"Obito… did you forget about my Flying Thunder God Technique?"

"So what if I did?" Obito roared. "Sure, the Flying Thunder God can teleport people. But with so many here—so many Tailed Beasts—how many can you actually move?"

Minato let out another sigh. "True, I can't teleport multiple targets at once. But you're forgetting… I only need to teleport one."

"One?"

Obito froze in shock.

His mind quickly caught up—he understood exactly what Minato meant.

Was it... himself?

He glanced around.

Everything looked the same as before.

No!

It wasn't that nothing had changed—

It was that everything had changed a long time ago.

The battle had completely altered the landscape.

So even if they'd moved several hundred meters, no one would've noticed.

"You…"

Obito's expression turned dazed.

"And I had help," Minato said, glancing at Tobirama. "We swapped our marks. Working together, and with how drained you already are… we pulled it off."

"Of course, we didn't need to move far. Just a few hundred meters was enough."

Naruto, puzzled, asked Sasuke in a low voice, "Sasuke, what did my dad mean by 'one target'? Who did he teleport?"

Sasuke: "…"

Obito: "…"

Everyone: "…"

Seriously? Of all people, you don't know?

You were watching Obito launch the attack!

You couldn't tell where it came from?

What is even going on inside that head of yours?

Even Minato looked a little helpless.

"Obito," he said gravely, locking eyes with him. "Surrender. Enough blood has been shed in this world. And besides, everything you've done—it's all just delusion. It'll never come true."

Obito slowly began to descend.

Not because he wanted to, but because he had no choice.

His energy was spent. He could no longer stay airborne.

"Sensei," he asked, "when did you mark me with the Flying Thunder God?"

"You've been attacking me with it this whole time."

Minato answered calmly, "That mark? I placed it on you the night of the Nine-Tails attack."

"I see…"

Obito smiled faintly.

"So... this is just karma, huh? What I did back then… this is the consequence now."

Minato said nothing.

Obito looked up at the moon, his expression distant.

So close.

He had come so close.

He had sacrificed so much on this path.

Had he been wrong?

Was this punishment?

No.

No!

He wasn't wrong.

The one at fault… was this world!

Obito's eyes sharpened again, turning icy cold.

A black sphere appeared in his palm.

Truth-Seeking Ball.

[Clack!]

Obito pressed his hands together, his face contorting into madness.

"If that's how it is—then I'll make the entire ninja world—"

[Shhk!]

A streak of yellow light tore through the air.

A custom-made kunai, laced with Sage Chakra, pierced straight through Obito's body.

His body froze in place.

His expression turned blank, mind drifting in midair.

And then—Tobirama arrived.

He was even faster than Minato.

When he appeared beside Obito, the latter's body was instantly covered in kunai—each one tagged with explosive seals.

[BOOM!!!]

A violent explosion erupted, and Obito collapsed to the ground.

"Cough, cough!"

Blood kept pouring from his body.

"Obito…"

Minato's eyes were filled with complicated emotions.

He had always liked this student.

He wasn't gifted, but he was incredibly hardworking.

He could be scatterbrained, but he had a kind heart.

He was a Uchiha yet longed for everyone's acknowledgment.

He was simple-minded and always wore a silly smile.

And yet, it was him…

The one who caused his death!

The one who killed his wife—

And the one who brought endless bloodshed to all of Konoha.

From any perspective, Obito deserved to die.

But—

As his sensei...

[Swoosh!]

Another person appeared.

Kakashi!

His face twisted with pain as he looked at Obito.

"Cough... cough… What a joke. To think I'd be looked at with that expression on your face…"

Obito let out a few coughs, spewing blood.

"Obito…"

Kakashi murmured, "Why?"

This outcome… maybe it would've been better if Obito had died back on that battlefield.

"Kakashi… I really can't stand you. Especially when you look at me like that."

Obito gave a stiff smile and muttered, "But I've lost. From beginning to end, I've been nothing but a failure. So... let me give you all a parting gift—as the victors' reward."

A reward?

Everyone froze in surprise.

Obito's trembling hands began forming seals as he whispered, "Because of me… many people have died, haven't they?"

"Of course!"

Tobirama replied coldly.

"Even with Funan preparing in advance and reinforcing Konoha's ninja again and again—not to mention all those explosive tags—Konoha still suffered tremendous losses."

"Then let me bring them back."

Obito's voice grew calm.

"With the Six Paths power of the Rinnegan, I can open the gate between life and death... and resurrect the dead."

"Are you serious?!"

Everyone's expression changed.

Obito curled his lips and said, "I wasn't wrong. Everything I did… it was all for the shinobi world. For Rin. This world has long since been twisted. Even if you stop me, eventually... another me will rise. And another after that."

Silence.

"Heh... I'll resurrect Konoha's dead—not as an act of redemption, but as a reward. A gift for your victory over me."

No one responded to his words.

Their eyes simply locked onto Obito—bright and unwavering.

If the fallen could be revived…

Nothing else mattered.

No one cared what Obito had just said.

They only cared about the result.

Not the process.

Not the cost.

Obito noticed it too. A mocking smile tugged at the corners of his mouth.

But his hands kept forming seals at a steady pace.

He didn't worry about being stopped.

He knew exactly what kind of temptation this was for everyone present.

To revive the dead… even the slimmest chance would be something they couldn't resist.

Besides, he was so weakened now, if he tried anything else, the others could stop him immediately.

With this thought, everyone around took to the air.

Yes—

They flew.

Because someone had descended from the sky with a terrifying presence, crashing down right next to Obito.

The sheer force of his landing knocked everyone back.

And right then—an unexpected change occurred in Obito.

"Apologies, Obito."

A cold, sinister voice echoed.

Half of Obito's body was suddenly stained pitch-black.

Black Zetsu had latched onto him.

"Ugh… Aaaaghhh!!!"

Obito groaned, then let out a piercing scream.

"You little fool… looks like you've failed."

The one who had dropped from the sky—

Was none other than Uchiha Madara!

He walked up to Obito, towering over him, and looked down with an icy gaze.

"Since you've failed… it's my turn now."

"Uchiha… Madara!"

Obito's expression twisted into something wild and unhinged.

How could he not have looked into what really happened back then?

He never found any hard proof, but everything—every sign—pointed to Uchiha Madara.

Rin's death… it was all because of him.

Obito had kept all that rage bottled up deep inside.

Because he couldn't beat Madara.

And because Madara had planted a contingency within him.

Besides, the Eye of the Moon Plan… it had aligned with his own beliefs.

But now—

Everything was over.

He had failed.

And once again, Madara stood before him.

"Hmph…"

Under Obito's hateful glare, Madara remained utterly indifferent. He let out a low chuckle, then said, "Black Zetsu. Begin."

"Understood."

Black Zetsu slithered up and spread across Obito's body, taking control and forcing his hands into a series of seals.

"T-This seal…"

Fear filled Obito's eyes.

He knew this sequence all too well.

He'd just been trying to perform the same jutsu himself—only his target had been the entire battlefield.

But this time, the seal was aimed at one man—Uchiha Madara.

"You… you want to be resurrected?!"

"Of course," Madara replied with a cold smile. "Only through resurrection can I become the Ten-Tails' jinchūriki. Only then can I take on the mantle of the Second Sage of Six Paths. Only then can I cast the Infinite Tsukuyomi on the moon."

"You won't succeed."

Madara couldn't even be bothered to argue.

A man on death's doorstep might as well spend his last breath however he wants.

"Madara!"

Tobirama and the others finally arrived. When they saw him, they all froze in shock.

"Madara, where's my brother?"

Madara waved it off. "He should be here soon. I'll admit, Hashirama in his current state is hardly satisfying."

He swept a cold gaze over the crowd, his grin widening.

"As I am now… I am invincible."

Tobirama sneered. "Please. The only reason you're running wild is because my brother hasn't recovered enough strength—and Uchiha Funan isn't here either. If those two were present, you'd be the one fleeing in disgrace again."

Madara's smile faded. He turned his head slightly to look behind him.

Obito's hands had finished forming the last seal.

Turning back, Madara fixed his eyes on Tobirama. "Say whatever you want. It doesn't matter. Because your time to talk is almost up."

He raised a hand and pointed to the sky.

"I—Uchiha Madara—"

"—am the savior of this world."

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