At this moment, Shigure—empowered with flight through his enhanced Kotoamatsukami—accelerated rapidly, tearing through the clouds toward Kirigakure.
Everything happening inside the misty village was relayed to him through Cloud-Sight, and the images flooding his mind made his eyes burn red with fury.
Mist shinobi were falling one after another.
Nagato.
Very good.
Very brave.
To massacre Kirigakure shinobi so openly—
Shigure's killing intent exploded.
The sky responded.
Dark clouds rolled behind him as he flew, lightning tearing across the heavens, building into a violent storm that followed his path. Thunder crackled like a beast snarling in rage.
With a burst of speed, Shigure became a streak of light slicing through the storm clouds.
He swept his senses across all of Kirigakure.
Priority target: Obito.
The man carried the Two-Tails' chakra—a fragment of the Six Paths power Shigure needed.
More importantly, Kamui made Obito nearly untouchable. If left alone, he could escape any battle and steal away Nagato or the others at the worst moment.
Right now, Shigure could not perform space-warping ninjutsu.
Chasing Obito after he fled into another dimension would be impossible.
So he needed to eliminate Obito first.
But now that his Kotoamatsukami had evolved into a reality-altering ability, he was eager to see how it interacted with Kamui.
With a final acceleration, Shigure vanished into the clouds entirely—
a streak of living lightning.
Kirigakure
The outer defensive forces had already fallen.
Inside the village, Obito, Black Zetsu, Konan, and Yahiko (Deva Path) approached the sealed chamber that held the Jinchūriki.
Terumi Mei herself stood guard inside.
"The Fifth Mizukage ignores the battlefield outside… and protects only this place?"
Obito sneered.
"So in her eyes, the Jinchūriki are worth more than the village itself."
Even with tight defenses, she couldn't stop him.
The Jinchūriki would be captured.
They pushed open the entrance.
Two Yuki Clan shinobi instantly attacked from concealment, launching an ambush with perfect timing—
But the moment they closed in, wooden spikes burst from the ground, skewering both of them before the attack even landed.
Konan and Yahiko blinked, startled.
"When did they hide here?"
Konan murmured.
"The concealment technique of the Yuki Clan… their ice-based camouflage is terrifying."
Yahiko added.
Obito had sensed nothing either.
Only someone with Wood Release could feel the presence of those two hidden shinobi.
They moved further in.
At the end of the corridor stood a massive iron gate coated in thick ice—sealed solid by expert-level Ice Release.
But against Kamui, the seal was meaningless.
Obito gave a nod.
Everyone placed a hand on his shoulder—
Kamui activated.
The entire group phased through the frozen steel as if it wasn't there.
The moment they materialized inside—
Senbon rained toward them.
Ding! Ding! Ding!
Needles ricocheted off the iron walls harmlessly, having passed straight through Obito's body.
"Lord Mizukage… these guys… they're like ghosts!"
One of the Yuki clan shinobi trembled.
Inside the underground chamber, Terumi Mei stared coldly at the intruders.
Two Yuki Clan shinobi stood before her, each gripping ice-forged kunai, prepared to defend her with their lives.
Behind Terumi were the three Jinchūriki she had sworn to protect.
War was about to erupt underground.
Obito glanced at the six shinobi blocking his way and smiled faintly.
So few. Convenient.
"Hand over the Jinchūriki."
As he spoke, Konan, Yahiko (Deva Path), and Black Zetsu shifted into ready positions.
Terumi Mei narrowed her eyes at him.
"If you want to take the tailed beasts, then come and try."
Obito shook his head slowly.
"Even as Mizukage, you can't protect these Jinchūriki."
The moment the words left his mouth, Wood Release vines burst from the ground—
twisting around Terumi with overwhelming force, aiming to restrain her instantly.
But—
Two Yuki Clan twins stepped forward at the same moment, finishing the hand seals with one hand each. Their free hands clapped together, synchronizing their chakra perfectly.
Chakra flared.
"Ice Release—Frozen Hour!"
A wave of icy frost surged out.
The Wood Release vines froze solid in an instant, and the entire floor for twenty meters around them turned into white, cracking permafrost.
Obito froze for a heartbeat.
This technique—
wasn't this Shiyu's Ice Release style?
These two Yuki clan kunoichi could use Shigure's technique?
Terumi smirked.
"Surprised? Even if you have Wood Release, Kirigakure has bloodline limits to match. These two twins are the only shinobi besides Shigure who can replicate his Ice Release ninjutsu."
The girls looked nearly identical—reflections of each other—silent, cold, and deadly.
Obito nodded approvingly.
"Impressive. Kirigakure really has changed. Even without the Seven Ninja Swordsmen… and without Shigure… you still have strong shinobi."
Even if the technique required both sisters together, the result was still exceptional.
Terumi flicked her hair over her shoulder.
"Hmph. Blocking Wood Release is only the beginning. Try this one next!"
Konan's fingers snapped open.
A storm of paper erupted from behind her, sweeping toward Terumi and the twins like a razor-edged typhoon.
The twins reacted instantly:
"Ice Release —Ice Crystal Hall Wall!"
Cold air exploded outward.
An enormous ice crystal barrier surged upward between them.
BOOM!
Konan's paper detonated in a violent blast—but the Ice Wall held firm, its structure unmoving beneath the shockwave.
Not even a crack.
Obito's eye narrowed slightly.
"These two… really aren't ordinary. No wonder you put them down here."
The ice wall slowly dissipated into mist, revealing Terumi again, hands on her hips.
"They may not be on the same level as Shigure's personal guardians, Kuji and Akira,
but among the remaining bloodline-limit shinobi, they are the strongest pair by far."
Behind her, the Jinchūriki stirred.
"Mizukage-sama!"
one of them growled—
Four-Tails' host, his body steaming with rising lava heat.
"They don't look that tough to me. Let's go together and finish this!"
His molten chakra bubbled violently, scorching the ground beneath him.
War was about to erupt inside the sealed chamber.