Along with Uchiha Obito's somewhat embarrassed laugh.
The atmosphere that had frozen because of Sasuke instantly eased and dissipated considerably.
At this moment, Sasuke found that no matter how hard he pushed, he couldn't take a single step forward, and his heart couldn't help but sink.
During his time with Uchiha Madara, Sasuke had seen this self-proclaimed Tobi many times. Although he knew the other man was a member of the Uchiha clan, Sasuke had no idea of his specific identity.
Moreover, this guy was always acting like a fool every time he showed up. Over time, one couldn't help but look down on him a little.
At least standing alongside Kakuzu and the other original Akatsuki members, Uchiha Obito appeared on the surface to be the weakest among them.
After all, Space-Time Ninjutsu was a bizarre ability that anyone would find troublesome to deal with. As for his other capabilities, they hadn't left much of an impression on Sasuke.
And now, this man had suppressed him using only one hand. How could Sasuke not feel stunned?
"The gap is really that huge...?"
Sasuke muttered to himself. Although part of the reason was that his stamina had already dropped significantly from the earlier battle.
But the fact that he had been suppressed with just one hand was undeniable. It was enough to show that this man's strength was likely on par with Kakuzu and the others.
With this thought, Sasuke's body went still, and a deep thirst for power flashed through his eyes.
His own strength had clearly improved a lot, so why was it that the more he progressed, the more Sasuke could feel the gap between himself and Uchiha Itachi?
During his training period, Sasuke had taken advantage of Zetsu's carefree personality and extracted quite a bit of intelligence about Uchiha Itachi from him.
At least in terms of strength, Sasuke knew that Uchiha Itachi's power ranked among the higher-tier members of Akatsuki.
If he wanted to reach Uchiha Itachi's level, he would need to at least be capable of defeating two Akatsuki members.
And after witnessing Kakuzu's battle in Sunagakure, Sasuke had finally formed a clear understanding of these monsters.
At the same time, Sasuke could indirectly gauge just what level Uchiha Itachi's strength had reached.
But someone that powerful had been killed so easily!
And Yuto, the First Mizukage who had killed Uchiha Itachi — just what level of strength had he reached!
Is it even possible for me to get my revenge?
A trace of bewilderment flashed through Uchiha Sasuke's eyes.
The more he learned, the more deeply he understood the terrifying strength of those three — Uchiha Madara, Senju Hashirama, and Yuto.
While Sasuke was lost in bewilderment and self-doubt.
Uchiha Obito was looking at Kakuzu with an apologetic gaze.
"You were a bit later than planned."
Kakuzu glanced at Uchiha Obito and spoke in a cold tone.
"Sorry, sorry. It took a little extra time finding the jinchūriki."
Uchiha Obito's tone carried regret as he spoke helplessly.
"Sasuke, having energy is a good thing. But right now you need to recover your Chakra. After all, there's something more important to do tonight."
Uchiha Obito turned to look at Sasuke and released the hand that had been pressing on his shoulder.
Hearing Uchiha Obito's words, the dazed look in Sasuke's eyes cleared. He clenched his fists tightly. Now was not the time to wallow in despair!
Sasuke fell silent for a moment, then gave a slight nod and walked over to find a clean spot to sit down.
Seeing that Sasuke was no longer acting impulsively, Uchiha Obito pressed a hand to his forehead and let out a soft breath of relief.
As for Kakuzu, he gave Sasuke a disinterested glance before withdrawing his gaze. It wasn't that he was magnanimous enough to let it go. Kakuzu simply had no interest in attacking someone weaker than himself.
He'd rather spend that time recovering his stamina for what lay ahead.
The only things that stirred Kakuzu's desire to kill were powerful opponents and targets with bounties on the black market.
As for the current Sasuke, there was absolutely nothing about him that interested Kakuzu. If Hidan were here, he might have been relentless about it. But he was no Hidan.
He wouldn't do anything meaningless!
At this time.
Zetsu stopped hiding and emerged from the side.
Seeing Zetsu appear, Uchiha Obito glared at him but still asked.
"How are things on your end?"
"Hehe, no problems. The people of Sunagakure would never imagine that we're just a diversion."
Zetsu struck a comical pose and laughed strangely.
Uchiha Obito ignored Zetsu's goofy behavior. After confirming there were indeed no issues, he gave a slight nod and closed his eyes to rest.
All they needed to do now was wait!
After a series of events, the sun in the sky had begun to set in the west.
As night began to fall, the scorching temperature of the desert dropped rapidly at a rate one could feel on their skin.
Fortunately, Uchiha Obito and the others were all shinobi. The mere change in temperature between day and night didn't have much of an effect on them.
Sunagakure.
Shukaku's rampage, aside from catching the Sunagakure shinobi off guard at the very start, was quickly brought under control once the other shinobi joined in.
After all, Shukaku going on a rampage wasn't the first time it had happened. The Sunagakure shinobi present all had at least some experience dealing with it.
Thus, just as the sun was about to set.
With Shukaku letting out a roar of unwillingness and fury, it was sealed back into Gaara's body by the Sunagakure shinobi.
From this.
It was no wonder Shukaku had gone on a destructive rampage the moment it appeared. Shukaku probably knew it wouldn't be long before it was sealed away again.
It could only wreak as much havoc as possible to vent its pent-up frustration.
As for Gaara, due to Shukaku's sudden rampage combined with the sealing process, he fell into a semi-conscious state.
Although Granny Chiyo had reacted quickly during this tailed beast rampage, some of the village's buildings had still been unavoidably damaged by the aftereffects of Shukaku's assault.
As weapons of war, this was the terrifying nature of tailed beasts. Every appearance meant disaster.
Fortunately, this time there had been no casualties.
Even so, someone still had to take responsibility for what happened.
Therefore, after re-sealing Shukaku, Baki, who had originally been in charge of guarding Gaara, was recalled by Granny Chiyo. The matter of Gaara's security was handed over to Yura, the jōnin in charge of the patrol unit.
This time, although Gaara hadn't been taken by the enemy and the enemy had retreated.
For safety reasons, there were still many Sunagakure shinobi patrolling throughout the night.
Midnight.
Outside the house where Gaara lived.
Two Sunagakure shinobi stood guard on either side of the door, though their faces wore relaxed expressions.
On the outer perimeter, there were also several squads of shinobi on patrol. If the enemy wanted to reach this point, they would first have to break through the defense of those squads.
The middle of the night was inherently boring. To keep from dozing off, the two Sunagakure shinobi were chatting idly.
Suddenly, two faint footsteps echoed from a distant street.
In an instant!
The two Sunagakure shinobi exchanged a glance and immediately readied themselves for combat, their eyes fixed on the direction the sound had come from.
When the two shinobi saw clearly who was approaching, they both let out a breath and lowered their guard.
The two figures walking toward them were Yura, the jōnin in charge of the patrol unit, and his subordinate, Ōtsuka Kazuki, also a jōnin.
Yura, with Ōtsuka Kazuki following behind, walked up to the two Sunagakure shinobi. Wearing an amiable expression, he gave them an inspection-style reminder:
"It's going to be a long night for you two. Make sure to keep a close watch. Nothing can happen to Gaara."
The two Sunagakure shinobi's expressions turned solemn, and serious looks appeared on their faces.
"Don't worry, Lord Yura. We won't let anything go wrong here."
One of the Sunagakure shinobi quickly replied with respectful urgency, his face filled with earnest determination.
The other shinobi immediately nodded as well, looking equally serious.
[
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