Chapter 364: Six Path Obito

While Sasuke and Madara's battle had reached a stalemate, Naruto's fight with the Ten-Tails was in a similar situation.

Naruto didn't have a particularly effective way to deal with the Ten-Tails, and the Ten-Tails was attacking Naruto like a wild beast—ferociously, but without any strategy or control.

Because of this lack of coordination, its attacks didn't pose a significant threat to Naruto, who could dodge them with just a bit of attention.

So for now, Naruto's only concern was to make sure the Ten-Tails didn't redirect its focus toward the Allied Forces. As long as he did that, he could keep it occupied.

Compared to this fight, however, the battle inside the alternate dimension between Kakashi and Obito was far more intense and brutal.

When Kakashi was brought into the Kamui dimension by Obito, he still held out hope to ask him what had really happened.

But Obito didn't answer. Instead, after a clash of genjutsu between the two, they stared each other down.

"It seems I couldn't find anything that could change you. Then, the only thing I can do for you now... is kill you." Kakashi said, slowly forming a hand sign with his left hand.

It was the "opposing seal" that Konoha shinobi would make before a duel, and the "reconciliation seal" after.

"In that case, I'll do the same.... Let's begin." Obito, seeing Kakashi's seal, paused for a moment. It was as if he saw the younger Kakashi, back when they were still teammates under Minato. They used to make the same seal before sparring.

Then Obito formed the same opposing seal.

In the next moment, both charged at each other. Just like when they were kids, they started by testing each other's physical skills...

There were no ninja tools, no ninjutsu. Just pure taijutsu.

This was a necessity for Obito; in the Kamui space, his Mangekyō Sharingan's intangibility ability didn't work. So all he had left were taijutsu and ninjutsu, same as Kakashi.

This taijutsu clash didn't have any flashy moves, it was just two jonin-level fighters exchanging deadly blows, each aiming at vital points.

After a long exchange with no clear winner in sight, Obito summoned a black rod made from the power of the Rinnegan.

In such close combat, the Uchiha War Fan wasn't a suitable weapon, it was Madara's tool, and Obito wasn't comfortable wielding it. Kakashi, meanwhile, chose his familiar weapon: the kunai.

Inside the silent Kamui dimension, only the sound of weapons clashing echoed.

It was clear that, if this continued, there wouldn't be a winner anytime soon. Obito was no longer the weakling chasing Kakashi's shadow. His taijutsu had caught up, and maybe even surpassed Kakashi in raw power thanks to his physical enhancements.

Eventually, both realized this wasn't getting anywhere. Obito seized an opportunity to unleash a classic Uchiha jutsu...

"Release Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!"

"Release Style: Earth-Style Wall!" Kakashi responded, slamming his hands on the ground and a wall formed from the Kamui dimension's matter rose to block the fireball.

Boom!

The outer layer of the wall was shattered by the fireball's force, but its core structure remained, protecting Kakashi.

However, the explosion generated a thick black smoke that obscured his vision.

At that moment, Kakashi noticed movement in the smoke to his right. When the figure burst through...

It was just a kunai with a strip of clothing attached. A decoy!

Kakashi's pupils shrank. He immediately turned around and saw Obito rushing at him from the other side of the smoke. But it was too late, he could only raise an arm to block the strike aimed at his head.

Obito didn't hesitate. His kick landed squarely on Kakashi's arm, sending him crashing back into the Earth Wall. His head slammed into it as well.

But Obito's attack didn't end there. Just as he raised the black rod for the final blow...

Another Kakashi emerged from the ground!

This Kakashi grabbed Obito's right arm with one hand while the other held a kunai aimed for the kill.

Yet Obito smiled. A second black rod grew from his other hand and extended toward Kakashi, who now had no guard up.

"I've won!" Obito thought. But then, the Kakashi in front of him vanished in a flash of lightning and reformed as a surge of electricity that coursed through Obito's body.

It was a Lightning Clone! And Obito screamed in pain.

He didn't need to hear the next sound to know what was coming...

The crackling of lightning meant it was Kakashi's Chidori.

Still, even so…

There would be no more reconciliation seal this time!

Obito opened his eyes wide and steadied his footing. Holding a black rod in his right hand, he faced Kakashi, who now charged with a Chidori-powered kunai. Obito didn't dodge, he charged too.

In the next instant, their bodies collided.

Kakashi's Chidori pierced straight through Obito's chest and Obito's black rod also drove into Kakashi's side.

Splurt!

Obito immediately coughed up blood, and Kakashi did too. But in terms of damage, Obito's injury was clearly fatal.

Both men pushed each other away and dropped to their knees.

"Looks like I won. It's over, Obito."

Kakashi pulled the black rod out from his side and held his wound. He looked at Obito, kneeling, a gaping hole in his chest, yet still not dead.

"You may have won this duel... but don't think you can win this war!" Obito said through gritted teeth. Then he disappeared from the Kamui dimension, leaving the wounded Kakashi alone.

"…This is bad. I need to tend to this wound fast or I'll die," Kakashi muttered. He didn't give chase. Instead, he looked at his injuries, opened his ninja pouch, and began first aid.

In the outside world, Obito reappeared on the Ten-Tails' head, looking completely wrecked.

The Ten-Tails didn't seem to care that someone had suddenly appeared on it. Its eyes were still locked onto Naruto, the "fake" jinchūriki who held chakra from all nine tailed beasts.

After a long while, Obito forced himself to sit up and take in the battlefield. The land looked like it had been bombarded multiple times, the elevation had dropped since the war began.

He noticed the number of Allied Shinobi seemed to have dwindled drastically. But since there were no corpses, perhaps they had retreated rather than been wiped out.

Looking to the other side, Obito saw Sasuke and Madara still locked in confrontation, neither able to gain the upper hand.

"Even Madara isn't a match for Sasuke? Has Sasuke grown even stronger?" Obito was shocked. The old Sasuke wouldn't have stood a chance.

Then he noticed Madara's Rinnegan, and Sasuke's Rinnegan.

He opened his mouth in disbelief. Since when… did Rinnegan become so common?

But now wasn't the time for shock. Obito looked at the Ten-Tails beneath him. It was time...

Time to become the jinchūriki.

He formed hand seals. Rapidly, skillfully.

"That's…"

Madara had noticed. He had originally planned to manipulate Obito into using the Rinne Rebirth Jutsu to resurrect him. Once he had his eyes back, then he'd battle Sasuke properly.

But to Madara's surprise, his control over Obito had failed.

Afterward, Madara also noticed the gaping hole in Obito's chest. So, the seal he had placed over Obito's heart had been physically broken?

Was it an accident… or something else?

Madara pondered this, watching as the Ten-Tails suddenly quieted down. Realization dawned, and a faint, ambiguous smile tugged at the corner of his lips.

No matter what, his plan might need to change.

Naruto also noticed the Ten-Tails had stopped its mad rampage, and then he saw Obito standing there.

"Kakashi-sensei… where is he?!" Naruto exclaimed, shocked by the massive hole in Obito's chest, but more concerned about Kakashi. After all, Kakashi had been dragged into the Kamui dimension by Obito. Now that Obito had come out, why hadn't Kakashi?

"Don't worry. Kakashi won that fight. This hole in my chest is the best proof of that," Obito said with a cold snort, though he didn't lie to Naruto.

"As expected of Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto immediately breathed a sigh of relief and smiled. In his mind, Kakashi had always been dependable. Even though Naruto had long surpassed him in combat ability, seeing Kakashi still brought him a deep sense of reassurance.

"But rather than worry about Kakashi, shouldn't you be more concerned about yourself?" Obito suddenly smiled.

"Watch out, Naruto! Get back, now!" the Nine-Tails roared within Naruto's mind.

At the Nine-Tails' warning, Naruto swiftly leapt backward, just in time to see a massive suction force erupt from Obito's body, so strong it began to pull the Ten-Tails into him.

Naturally, this was only possible because the Ten-Tails didn't resist.

"What is this…?" Naruto's eyes widened. He had a good idea what was happening.

"He… he's becoming the Ten-Tails' jinchūriki!" Naruto's voice trembled.

This development quickly caught Sasuke's attention as well. He sensed an overwhelming chakra presence.

"Hmph… Sasuke, you're still staring at me? If you keep this up, your companion might be in real danger," Madara said.

Sasuke didn't answer. He looked toward Naruto's side, realizing what had happened. The worst-case scenario had come true, the masked man had become the Ten-Tails' jinchūriki.

But maybe it was inevitable. Obito had likely always been ready to become the jinchūriki. Although many unexpected things had happened, perhaps all of it had still been within his expectations.

So from the beginning, preventing Obito from becoming the Ten-Tails' jinchūriki had been nearly impossible. It was just that he had been too reckless, joining the war before his preparations were fully complete, giving others a false hope.

Now, it was clear that Obito had prepared. For example, would the Ten-Tails truly allow itself to be sealed without resistance?

Obviously, if the Ten-Tails still retained its instincts, it would never go quietly. But now, it hadn't resisted at all, that was likely part of Obito's plan. He was confident that even letting the Ten-Tails roam free posed no risk. How arrogant…

At this moment, Sasuke was conflicted. Just as Madara had said, the masked man's power as the Ten-Tails' jinchūriki might be beyond anything they had expected. Leaving Naruto alone to face him was extremely dangerous.

But if Sasuke left Madara alone…

"Don't worry," Madara suddenly said, "From now on, I'll just sit back and watch. I won't interfere with the Allied Forces. If I take action, it'll only be against you two."

Sasuke was silent for a moment. But doing nothing wasn't an option.

And Madara's words could be trusted, at least somewhat. Even in their brief fight, Sasuke had gotten a feel for Madara's personality. He didn't seem the type to lie out of spite. Since he said it, he likely wouldn't bother using the Allied Forces as hostages.

More importantly, Sasuke had no better choice.

He nodded. "You'd better stick to that."

Then Sasuke turned and rushed toward Naruto, leaving Madara behind.

Madara found a high vantage point and sat down cross-legged, choosing to observe the situation and reevaluate his next steps.

Obito's actions had completely derailed his plan. He might no longer be a match for Obito in his new form as the Ten-Tails' jinchūriki.

Madara's gaze deepened.

By the time Sasuke reached Naruto's side, the Ten-Tails had been fully absorbed into Obito.

Hovering in midair where Obito had been, was now a cocoon-like egg.

Something terrifying seemed to be about to break free.

"Amaterasu!" Without hesitation, Sasuke used his black flames that could burn anything. But the Amaterasu flames vanished almost immediately, as if they'd landed on something that couldn't be ignited.

Sasuke wasn't surprised. If even Amaterasu didn't work, they had no choice but to stand by and watch the creature inside hatch.

Under the watchful eyes of Naruto and Sasuke, the egg cracked open, revealing Obito.

But this Obito now radiated a divine presence.

His hair was white. His body was white, too. The right half of his torso was covered in scale-like markings that looked incredibly sturdy.

On his back were nine black magatama symbols, and a circular pattern resembling the Rinnegan.

From his shoulders to his waist, five tentacle-like appendages extended outward like the tails of a Tailed Beast.

As for the bloody hole in Obito's chest caused by Kakashi, it was gone.

Fragments of the "eggshell" still clung to him. Obito opened his eyes, one a Rinnegan, the other a Mangekyō Sharingan.

He reached up calmly, grasped the wing-like fragments of the shell around his head, and gently peeled them off.

Now, with no external support, Obito simply floated in midair, looking down at Naruto and Sasuke from above...

Six Path Obito has arrived!

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