A single attack crashed down, shattering the earth and shaking the trees. An attack powerful enough to break through even a Susanoo was no mere bluff. Obito had stopped running, his body phasing into intangibility.
"What terrifying power... But as I said, this body is nothing more than a vessel. It has no real substance."
"Oh?" Kakuzu's lips curled into a smirk. "Then let's continue!"
As his fist swung forward, another massive blow descended. The attack was fast, wide-ranging—inescapable. Obito had no way to dodge and took the hit head-on.
"I wonder how many of these you can withstand?" Kakuzu's eyes gleamed with curiosity as he prepared the third strike.
Dust and debris filled the air around Obito, the ground beneath him now a ruined mess. Though his mask hid his expression, his heart was pounding in alarm.
'Damn it... How does he know I can only phase for five minutes?!'
Even as panic crept into his mind, Obito maintained a calm facade.
"You like showing off, huh? Let's see how long you can keep this up."
Though he wasn't yet fully accustomed to the power of the Six Paths, preventing a seamless chain of attacks, Kakuzu had no problem delivering them one after another. He was curious to see how long Obito could keep up his act.
Just as Kakuzu prepared to launch the fifth attack, Obito moved. His body shifted slightly to the side, attempting to dodge while simultaneously phasing out to escape.
"What's wrong? Done phasing already? You think you can escape without my permission?" Kakuzu taunted, his voice as mocking as ever.
This time, Obito had no retort.
Kakuzu unleashed another punch, but suddenly, someone appeared before Obito, using their own body to intercept the blow.
"Obito, go!"
Obito didn't hesitate. Taking advantage of the brief window, he activated his intangibility and fled.
...
Kakuzu landed swiftly on the ground, his gaze locking onto the broken remnants of the figure who had taken the hit.
"It's been a while. Is this your idea of a welcome gift after all these years?"
Black Zetsu's shattered body lay in pieces, yet it showed no concern. Despite its fragmented form, the severed head turned to Kakuzu and spoke.
"Yes, Kakuzu, long time no see."
Kakuzu raised an eyebrow. Even the usual honorifics were gone—Black Zetsu really had come into its own.
"So, back to your old tricks? Manipulating people again?"
Black Zetsu let out a dry chuckle.
"Manipulating? Kakuzu, weren't you one of the beneficiaries of my guidance?"
At that, Black Zetsu's expression darkened. Kakuzu was, without a doubt, the greatest failure of its millennia-long schemes. He had seen through Black Zetsu's lies from the very beginning and had merely used it as a tool for his own ends—whether it was accelerating Hashirama cells' fusion, unlocking the Rinnegan, or even learning Senjutsu.
As for Black Zetsu's grand plan? Kakuzu had never taken it seriously.
"You win, Kakuzu."
Kakuzu sneered. "I appreciate the praise."
"But you're not the final victor."
A thousand years of patience had taught Black Zetsu to accept temporary setbacks. However, it would never accept ultimate defeat.
"Kakuzu, your Six Paths power is nothing compared to Madara's."
"Is that so?" Kakuzu pondered for a moment before giving a small nod.
Madara's mastery of the Rinnegan was indeed superior—his prowess in the Fourth Great Ninja War had proven as much. But their Rinnegan differed. Madara wielded the power of Yin-Yang Release, while Kakuzu directly harnessed the might of the Ten-Tails.
If Madara were resurrected and the two were to clash, Kakuzu wasn't entirely sure who would emerge victorious.
"But he's dead, isn't he?" Kakuzu said as he reached out, running a hand over Black Zetsu's smooth, inky form. "Which means all I have to do is deal with you next."
Clap!
Kakuzu brought his hands together. "Chibaku Tensei!"
A deep rumbling shook the earth as the ground began to tremble violently.
"What?!" Black Zetsu's expression twisted in shock. If it had been a normal person, they might have lost control of their bladder right then and there.
...
Time dragged on.
Then, realization struck.
"Kakuzu, you bastard! You tricked me! This isn't Chibaku Tensei at all—it's just a regular Earth Release technique!"
Kakuzu lowered his hands, a smirk playing on his lips.
"That's right, it's just a standard Earth Core Quake. I just wanted to see you panic. Lucky for you, I haven't fully mastered Six Paths techniques yet. Next time, you won't be so fortunate."
"Damn it!" Black Zetsu gritted its teeth, seething with anger.
But as much as it raged, there was an undeniable truth: Kakuzu had already grasped the basics of Yin-Yang Release. If he ever truly mastered Chibaku Tensei, Black Zetsu would be finished.
"You're right... But you won't get the chance."
As it spoke, Black Zetsu's body slowly melted into the ground, disappearing entirely. It didn't intend to linger for even a second longer.
Kakuzu, however, wasn't interested in chasing after it.
If Black Zetsu wanted to run, so be it—he still needed it to bring out the true final boss. But he wasn't about to leave empty-handed either.
A kunai suddenly appeared in Kakuzu's hand, its metal glinting ominously. The weapon bore his personal seal—one used for the Flying Thunder God Technique.
He lifted the kunai and pointed it toward the sky, tracing the lingering spatial distortions left by Obito's teleportation technique.
"You want to follow the trail he left behind? Isn't that nothing more than a pipe dream?" Black Zetsu said, half of his body already sinking into the ground.
"You're not wrong. Even the Sharingan can barely make out the flow of chakra in the air, but tracking residual chakra is nearly impossible. However, what if I use this?"
Kakuzu's eyes bulged as blue veins surfaced around them, but they quickly settled back down. In that instant, his Byakugan underwent a complete transformation—the Thousand-Eyed Byakugan!
(T/N: In case anyone forgot, it's an ability he got after using Earth Grudge Fear on Hyūga Tennin, if somebody forgot. In short, it's some updated version of the Byakugan he awakened before he died.)
"You! You actually awakened this kind of Kekkei Genkai?!" Black Zetsu was utterly shocked.
Ignoring him, Kakuzu focused on the unseen currents in the air for a moment before he suddenly soared into the sky and disappeared in an instant.
"Damn it!! Obito must not be harmed!!"
...
One week later.
In an underground lake cave somewhere in the Land of Water—
"Arghhhhh!!!"
Obito pressed his hands against the ground, his face twisted in agony as he let out a gut-wrenching scream.
"Hang in there, Obito!"
Black Zetsu lifted a White Zetsu from the ground. Without hesitation, White Zetsu severed a portion of its own body and attached it to Obito.
Even so, the pain was unbearable. Obito's anguished cries echoed through the cave as memories of Team Seven flashed through his mind—Minato-sensei, Kakashi, Rin. Yet, it felt as if he alone had been ripped away from the picture.
...
Several days later, drenched in sweat, Obito lay on the ground, gazing through a crack in the cave ceiling at the sky above. A faint smile crept onto his lips.
"Rin... I made it through..."
As Obito silently celebrated his survival, Black Zetsu sat nearby, lost in thought.
'Obito was too reckless... But why didn't Kakuzu kill him this time?'
That question weighed heavily on Black Zetsu's mind. The foolish young man believed he had endured purely because of his devotion to his so-called goddess. But Black Zetsu knew better—if Kakuzu hadn't held back, even ten lives wouldn't have been enough for Obito to survive.
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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