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Itachi's expression flickered with hesitation. His understanding of "Uchiha Madara" was indeed limited, even less than that of Midorima, who had already left the Akatsuki. If he continued to stay here, would he truly achieve the outcome he sought? The thought flitted through his mind, but the reality of his situation offered little time to carefully weigh the pros and cons. More importantly, there was no turning back for him. If the death of Kimimaro might have left some room for redemption, then killing the Kazekage had completely sealed the path of return. Itachi shook his head and murmured, "There's no going back."
Midorima sighed. Itachi's strength was beyond reproach, but his choices regarding his own fate were tragically poor. In truth, the Uchiha clan as a whole had never been good at making decisions—a pattern that began as far back as Madara's era. If Naruto hadn't been there to support Sasuke, he too would have faced countless hardships.
After hearing Midorima's explanation, A's gaze toward Obito shifted entirely. "Spatial ninjutsu… Tsuchikage, what's the plan now?" he asked.
Ōnoki stared at A with a slight smile. "The kid has already told us how to deal with it, so why ask such a simple question? Chakra runs out when it's used enough. We'll just keep attacking until he doesn't have enough chakra left to use this technique."
Suddenly, a massive hand made of earth rose from the ground to strike Obito. Obito evaded it twice in quick succession, but then A appeared beside him again. Lightning crackled around A's body as he slammed his elbow into Obito at incredible speed. Once again, Obito's form became intangible, and the attack passed through him, hitting the enormous earth hand instead. The hand shattered instantly.
"Hey, watch where you're aiming! Don't destroy my technique!" Ōnoki shouted.
"I didn't want to hit your technique either." A rubbed his elbow, frustration evident. "But he won't just stand still and let me hit him."
Against this kind of spatial ninjutsu, the combined attacks of A and Ōnoki were utterly useless—they simply couldn't land a blow. Since every strike was ineffective anyway, they might as well fight separately; maybe one of them would get lucky and land one or two hits. Though they bickered, they quickly refocused their attention on Obito. Even if he wasn't attacking, treating him as nothing more than a punching bag would only end badly for them.
Obito watched A and Ōnoki with cold eyes, a hint of frustration creeping in. If he used Susanoo, he could easily dispose of them. But he didn't want to reveal his true strength just yet. More importantly, he had no desire to "work for" Pain.
Chiyo's brother forced his weary eyelids open and looked at Sasori. "When Midorima mentioned you earlier, I thought he was lying. I didn't expect it to be true. Since he brought you up, you must have been the one who killed the Third Kazekage, right? I heard you turned him into a puppet. Let's see it."
"Hmph. He told you that? How annoying… But killing you won't require that puppet. My other puppets will be more than enough." As he spoke, Sasori produced a scroll from his robes. When he unfurled it, a puppet clad in crimson armor appeared before everyone.
In the distance, Ōnoki caught sight of the puppet's form and nearly lost his composure. Veins bulged on his forehead as he roared, "Han! You bastard, you turned Han into a puppet?!"
"What do you know? This is recycling." Sasori's lips curled into a faint, mocking smile. "He was already dead. Whether I turned him into a puppet or not, his body would have rotted away. Because I transformed him, you even have the chance to see him again. You should be thanking me."
"Shameless! This is the first time I've seen someone spew such nonsense with absolute confidence!" Ōnoki clenched his fists. "Raikage, give me some time. I'll deal with him myself."
"Wait." The old advisor raised a hand to stop the Tsuchikage. "He is a rogue ninja from Sunagakure, the murderer of the Third Kazekage, and one of those who indirectly led to the Third Great Ninja War. It is our duty to kill him with our own hands."
Ōnoki ground his teeth but ultimately nodded. "Then I leave it to you."
His fury did not subside; if anything, it grew stronger, fueled by the fact that he couldn't personally eliminate Sasori. He redirected all that anger toward Obito, silently vowing to destroy him no matter what.
Obito felt a sudden chill for no apparent reason. He quickly dismissed the ominous feeling, shifting his gaze toward Naruto. The Nine-Tails jinchūriki was right there. He would need to keep a close eye on Kisame—if Kisame started struggling, Obito would have to act immediately and secure the Nine-Tails first.
As for the Six-Tails…
His eyes lingered on Midorima. It all depended on when Pain would make his move.
Kisame took a few deep, ragged breaths, then grinned at Terumī Mei. "I didn't expect your strength to have grown so much. Impressive."
Moments earlier, their water dragons had collided with enough force to level an entire building. In that instant, Kisame realized the kunoichi before him was far stronger than he had anticipated. Her chakra reserves, at the very least, rivaled his own. But that was only for now—once he absorbed enough chakra, the tide of battle would surely turn.
"I haven't been standing still all these years." Mei's gaze remained fixed on Samehada in Kisame's hands. As the Mizukage, she was well aware of the blade's fearsome power and understood its ability to drain an opponent's chakra. She knew that ordinary techniques would be severely weakened against it. Her only real chance lay in Lava Release—if she could melt it away.
Samehada seemed to sense Mei's hostility, instinctively recoiling from her presence. But Kisame gave the blade no time to hesitate. He launched a sudden assault, moving so fast that Mei struggled to react, relying purely on instinct to keep up with him.
Tsunade lowered her voice to ask Iruka, "Can you protect Naruto?"
"Yes." Iruka nodded, though cold sweat formed on the hand clasping Naruto's. He had long since assessed the power disparity. Before the Akatsuki, he was far too weak. Yet he knew he could not retreat. He answered without hesitation, silently vowing—if necessary, he would die for Naruto.
Receiving his assurance, Tsunade signaled for Iruka to take Naruto and find cover. Then she turned her attention to the battle, watching as Mei was forced into a corner by Kisame. The moment he pressed his advantage, Tsunade struck.
Kisame caught her movement from the corner of his eye, his lips curling into a smirk. He continued pressing Mei, but when Tsunade closed to within two meters, he abruptly twisted and swung Samehada, meeting her fist head-on. The impact sent a shockwave through his arm, nearly causing him to drop the blade. Tsunade retreated a step, massaging her wrist, mildly surprised that she hadn't managed to shatter Samehada.