The force behind Jigen's two kicks was overwhelming. Even A and Killer Bee, whose physical strength far exceeded ordinary humans, were unable to move for a moment.
Killer Bee's body flared with red tailed beast chakra, but before he could even form the chakra cloak, Jigen had already absorbed it all.
Looking down at the two beneath his feet, Jigen said coldly,
"Lowly creatures daring to resist me... utterly foolish."
A struggled to lift his head, growling,
"Take my life if you must! But spare my brother!"
"How boring."
Jigen kicked A flying, then placed his hand on Killer Bee's back. Moments later, the Eight-Tails was completely ripped out of him.
The chakra provided by the Eight-Tails brought a look of intoxicated satisfaction to Jigen's face, while Killer Bee lay motionless on the ground.
A could only watch in horror. To him, Killer Bee was already dead. Everyone knew that when a Jinchūriki had their tailed beast extracted, death was inevitable.
He roared,
"Bastard! Kumogakure has already submitted to Konoha! The Hokage won't let you get away with this!"
At such a moment, A placed his last shred of hope on Kaito. Though it was ironic, in his heart the only one who could stand against Jigen was Kaito.
Jigen arched an eyebrow and asked,
"Hokage? You mean Uchiha Kaito?"
A said nothing. After his shout, he finally collapsed into unconsciousness.
From Jigen's sleeve, a black rod suddenly extended. He stepped over Killer Bee's body toward A, raising his hand to pierce the rod into A's body.
Suddenly, a mysterious figure in a white mask appeared. He too held a black rod, and with a strike sent Jigen's weapon flying.
"Nani?"
Jigen's face darkened. He retreated a few steps, narrowing his eyes at the newcomer.
It was Obito. Lowering his gaze briefly toward A, he spoke slowly,
"Don't you think you've gone too far?"
Jigen sneered,
"They're just lowly creatures. Do you feel remorse for crushing ants underfoot?"
Obito frowned. He knew Jigen's strength was terrifying, but this arrogant attitude of treating others as mere insects left a sour taste in his heart.
A crimson gleam flashed across his two Sharingan eyes.
Jigen let out a curious "Hmm?" and asked,
"Those eyes... Sharingan? Could it be that you are Uchiha Kaito?"
Obito shook his head, his voice low and steady,
"I am not Kaito-sama."
"Kaito-sama? So you're one of his subordinates, then. Not bad... I might be able to get some useful information out of you."
A cold light flickered in Jigen's eyes. Obito immediately became alert and activated Kamui's intangibility.
In the next instant, Jigen's black rod passed straight through Obito's body. He paused in surprise.
"Nani? This isn't a real body?"
Anyone encountering Kamui for the first time would be stunned. Even Jigen was no exception.
Sweat beaded on Obito's forehead. Jigen's speed had shocked him—his Sharingan hadn't even been able to follow his movements. That was no human-level physical ability.
And the man could even use Yin–Yang Release... If Obito hadn't preemptively activated intangibility, he would already have been defeated.
No wonder Kaito-sama had warned him not to engage this opponent. This was yet another terrifying unknown enemy.
With that in mind, Obito dared not underestimate him. Taking advantage of Jigen's brief daze, he seized A and pulled him into Kamui's space.
Jigen watched them vanish, murmuring to himself,
"Space-time ninjutsu? So that's the power of those eyes... impressive. I couldn't even capture his spatial coordinates!"
...
Inside Kamui's dimension,
Obito landed with A, breathing heavily. Once he steadied his breath, he muttered,
"That was close... That guy has spatial abilities too. Good thing I didn't reveal the Kamui dimension itself. If he'd seen it, he might really have found a way in!"
The thought of Jigen's terrifying strength still left Obito shaken. He patted A beside him, snapping him out of unconsciousness.
The moment A woke, he looked around frantically and shouted,
"Bee! Bee! Where are you?!"
Obito sighed softly and said,
"He's already had the tailed beast ripped out. The fate of a Jinchūriki without their beast... you know it well, don't you?"
A froze, then tears poured from his eyes. He slammed his fist into the ground, his bloodshot gaze blazing with hatred as he roared,
"I'll kill that bastard with my own hands!"
Obito shook his head. His words struck A like knives,
"You're not even on the same level. Only Kaito-sama can face him."
The truth made A cough up blood. After several fits of coughing, he nearly passed out again.
He knew Obito spoke the truth, but his heart was consumed by hatred, drowning all reason.
Suddenly, A sprang up and threw a punch at Obito.
But to Obito's Sharingan eyes, the weakened A moved slower than a turtle.
With a slight tilt of his head, Obito avoided the strike, then conjured a black rod and drove it into A's shoulder, pinning him to the ground.
Having lived under Madara's tutelage, his attacks were always fast, precise, and ruthless.
A went still after being skewered. Struggling, he lifted his head and asked,
"Sharingan...? You... are you one of the Hokage-sama's men?"
Obito nodded.
"My mission here is done. Whatever else there is to discuss, save it for when you meet Kaito-sama."
"Wait! Could I beg you one thing?"
A forced himself up, then bowed his head to the ground in desperation. Obito frowned.
"What are you doing?"
Blood and tears mingled on A's face, twisted in agony.
"Bee's body is still there... I beg you, please bring him too. Can you?"
Obito was silent for a moment. At last, he nodded.
"I can grant that request. But you'll need to wait. That man should still be there."
Hearing Obito's agreement, A's face lit with joy. He repeatedly knocked his head against the ground, voicing his thanks over and over.
Obito lingered in the Kamui space for a while, then reappeared in the Valley of Clouds and Lightning. By then, Jigen had already left. He collected Killer Bee's body and returned to Kamui.
When A saw Killer Bee again, tears welled in his eyes once more. His voice broke as he called,
"Bee..."
But just when Obito and A had assumed Killer Bee to be dead, his lips twitched faintly, and a hoarse whisper escaped,
"Brother..."
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