Meanwhile, on the way to the Mist battlefield from Grass Country.
"Kakashi, Rin—you both have to hold on!"
Obito, clad in White Zetsu's battle gear, muttered anxiously with a worried expression.
White Zetsu, whose exoskeleton had fused onto Obito's body, sneered mockingly, "That won't be easy. Ever since you fused with part of my body through Gatai, Kakashi's been much easier to take down!"
Obito stiffened and nearly fell mid-leap between the trees.
"Damn it! Don't say things that can be easily misunderstood!"
Even as he spoke, unease crept into his chest.
White Zetsu continued whispering provocatively into his ear, "Heard Kakashi almost ditched Rin back then? Wonder if he'll abandon her again this time—or even worse?"
"No, absolutely not!" Even as he said so, Obito's inner turmoil only deepened.
Especially after that nightmare he'd had recently—the hellish image kept coming back to haunt him over and over again.
"Damn it! No time for wild thoughts like this!" Obito forcefully shook his head and sped up toward the distance.
...
Silent Forest.
"Just where do you think you're taking me?" Rin's angry voice rang out through the woods.
"Heh, we're bringing you to the side of the person you most want to see," Akah laughed.
"The person I most want to see?" Rin turned pale as realization struck her. "So you captured me just to lure Kakashi out?"
Akah clapped his hands lightly. "Such a clever young lady."
Rin bit her lower lip tightly. "Forget it—he won't come."
"Don't underestimate your own worth so easily!" Akah idly spun the kunai between his fingers. "There might just be surprises ahead."
"You're about to get your surprise!" A calm yet powerful voice echoed as Kakashi stepped forward from among the trees, his elongated shadow stretching across the forest floor.
"Kakashi..." Rin couldn't find the right words to describe the emotions surging inside her—touched, yet frustrated at the same time.
Akah chuckled. "Just as expected, Leaf ninja sure have guts."
Ignoring the mockery, Kakashi grimly asked, "I'm here as requested. Now release Rin."
"Let her go?" Akah shrugged. "The orders only said to kill her if you didn't show up. There's no mention of letting her go if you actually came, right?"
The other Mist ninja joined in with raucous laughter.
"Hahaha! What an idiotic brat!"
"What do you take us for? In Blood Mist, we never leave witnesses alive!"
"Despair! Rage! Scream until death swallows you whole!"
"You bastards!" Painfully clenching her fists, Rin shouted desperately at Kakashi, "Don't worry about me—run now!"
"I've already felt the pain of losing a friend once, and I refuse to feel it again!" Kakashi pulled out a shuriken from his tool pouch, his voice steady with resolve. "Rin, wait for me!"
Tears welled in Rin's eyes and her nose tingled. "Why do you have to be such an idiot?"
"Or is this..." Before he could finish, Akah saw Kakashi hurling shuriken at him at incredible speed. "Hmph, childish temper!"
He lifted a kunai to block.
Ding!
One shuriken was deflected by the kunai and dropped to the ground.
But before he could even feel relieved, sounds of blocking attacks and screams from all directions caused his expression to change completely.
In the next moment, dozens of Kakashi's Shadow Clones burst forth from among the trees like a swarm.
"With insufficient chakra, you still dared use the Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu? Should I call you confident or arrogant?"
Akah murmured with another change of expression.
In his vision, every clone had unleashed Chidori. Moreover, their attack speed was practically physically impossible for a ninjutsu specialist.
"Dammit, how did this guy pull it off?"
Within moments, more than ten Mist ninja had their bodies sliced apart by Chidori, scattering blood and flesh everywhere, transforming the previously quiet forest into something resembling a slaughterhouse.
Fortunately, all ninja participating in this operation were at least chunin rank, and half were even jonin. Despite the sudden and devastating assault, they still had nearly sixty percent of their forces intact.
Still, these jonins were shocked by Kakashi's assault, staring at the silver-haired youth with horrified expressions.
"This level of strength... can this really be a twelve-year-old brat?"
"Cursed! Could this be another genius like Seiki Shimaseki?"
"Why does Konoha always produce so many geniuses? They must be getting all the luck!"
Akah narrowed his eyes toward the panting Kakashi. "So, you opened the Eight Gates to drain every bit of your chakra?"
"I'm no genius like my senior. Pushing myself to open just the second gate during spare training time was already my limit!" Kakashi gritted his teeth against the pain, his heart sinking with frustration. "Mist gave me too much credit, sending so many elite experts at once."
"No need to fear. That bastard's burst power only lasts one round!" Akah sneered. "Now, it's our turn to counterattack!"
Upon hearing Akah's explanation, the remaining Mist ninja wore cruel expressions.
Old wounds mixed with new grudges—what better time to settle the score?
"Rin, get moving now!" Rin stood up but took only two steps before collapsing weakly to the ground, dark cursed seal markings surfacing across her body.
"Do you really think you're getting away that easily?" A Mist jonin charged forward wielding a kunai.
Kakashi barely managed to block while forcing his exhausted body onward, yet immediately another Mist ninja seized the opportunity, sending him flying with a punch.
"I must endure. It's not the right moment yet!" Kakashi staggered upright but hadn't even begun reacting when a knee struck directly into his chest.
"Khh!" Kakashi curled as he fell, shaped like a fully roasted shrimp.
The surrounding Mist ninja gleefully watched the scene unfold.
"Haha! You're a genius? How come you're down already?"
"Aren't you supposed to be saving someone? Get back up then!"
"We lost a lot of comrades, but taking out a genius like you early makes it worth the price!"
Watching Kakashi being kicked around in the mud by Mist ninja, Rin felt as if a knife slashed through her heart, wave after wave of bitter regret surging within.
"Why... why are you doing this..."
When her emotional fluctuations reached a threshold, it was as if a gate within her body had been opened.
"Ahh!" Rin clutched her head and let out a pained scream as the Seals on both her memories and body shattered.
Hearing this extremely piercing sound, all the Mist ninja were startled and instinctively turned their gazes toward Rin's direction.
"Damn it, Rin has drawn their attention back again!" Though annoyed, Kakashi also worried something might be wrong with Rin. Without hesitation, he shouted, "Pakkun, now!"
With a Todoroki sound, a section of ground near Rin exploded upward.
The eight Ninja Hounds lunged out and grabbed Rin before the two Mist ninja guarding her could react!
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