From the billowing walls of thick smoke, Obito's silhouette emerged. He had deployed his Truth-Seeker Balls to shield both himself and Kanon from the blast. Standing right by his side, Kanon was completely unscathed, she hadn't even found it necessary to manifest her Susanoo.
She stood tall beside Obito, her expression vacant of any joy or sorrow, as she spoke softly to Tobirama, "As expected of a jutsu designed for mutual destruction."
In truth, Kanon could have effortlessly bypassed the entire detonation using her Flower Realm, yet Obito had gone out of his way to protect her with his Truth-Seeker Balls. This left her mildly curious, wondering whether the protective action had been Obito's conscious choice or the instinct of the Ten-Tails.
The dark sphere slowly shrank in size before receding back into Obito's palm.
Meanwhile, Hiruzen began forming a hand seal. In this situation, the only thing he could do was test the limits of Obito's newly acquired Six Paths Sage Mode. From behind the Third Hokage, a massive shuriken materialized and soared directly toward Kanon and Obito.
"Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
In the blink of an eye, the single colossal blade multiplied into dozens, raining down upon the pair.
"Leave it to me," Kanon said in a flat tone.
A brilliant white light flashed from her palm as a hundred-meter-long Chidori Sharp Spear sliced through the air, carving a stark white line across the sky. The Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu, along with its terrifying electrical currents and gale-force wind pressure, was instantly shattered to pieces. The spear of lightning continued its path, slicing straight through Hiruzen Sarutobi and the small mountain directly behind him.
Hiruzen's calculus to probe Obito's capabilities was utterly broken by Kanon. With just a single swipe of her Chidori Sharp Spear, his strategy had been totally dismantled. In fact, his entire body had been cleaved into fragments along with the mountain at his back.
"Grandpa Third!" Naruto yelled, before turning his head sharply toward Minato. "Dad! Can't you use your transportation jutsu to teleport Grandpa Third out of harm's way too?!"
"I can't. They have to be in direct or indirect contact with me or my chakra for me to teleport them."
Seeing Naruto's growing agitation, Sasuke remarked coldly, "Quiet down, Naruto. The Hokage are Reanimated bodies. They are charging into the front lines to analyze the enemy's moves and abilities precisely because they know they cannot die."
"Look at how they fight. Instead of worrying, you should be focusing on analyzing the situation."
Minato cast a glance at Sasuke and nodded slightly. He had to admit that Sasuke was an exceptionally brilliant child, but his younger sister...
Pushing the thought aside, Minato addressed the group, "The Reanimated Hokage will still need some time to reconstruct their bodies. I'll go up first and lure him into exposing a vulnerability!"
Nine Tails chakra erupted violently from Minato's body.
Hashirama started sprinting toward Kanon and the others as well. "In that case, looks like it's my turn to join the fray!"
But before he could take more than a few steps, Madara intercepted him, holding his Uchiha Fan.
"I won't let you interfere in my successor's battle, Hashirama. I am immensely satisfied with Kanon. Now, it's our turn."
Hashirama locked eyes with Madara, his expression turning grave. He desperately wanted to assist the front lines, but if Madara unleashed himself upon that sector of the battlefield, it would turn into total chaos. Pinning Madara down right here was likely his best option.
Kanon and Obito traded a brief look before leaping toward their respective targets. Obito charged at Minato's group while Kanon acted as his rearguard, cutting off Tobirama and Hiruzen.
Kanon's taijutsu and swordsmanship were simply too refined; even the Second and Third Hokage could find no leverage against her in close-quarters combat.
However, a crisis was unfolding on Obito's end. His body began expanding at a grotesque velocity, swelling into a massive, bloated sphere in a matter of seconds.
"What's happening?" Tobirama muttered, momentarily confused.
That single instant of hesitation cost him; Kanon's kick sent him flying through the air, immediately followed by her blade cleanly decapitating Hiruzen.
"As I thought, your willpower still isn't enough to suppress the Ten-Tails, Obito," Kanon observed impassively.
Minato recognized the opening instantly. Clutching a kunai, he lunged toward Obito to seize the opportunity to finish him.
"I have my own self-made jutsu!" Minato barked as a shadow clone materialized beside him. "Time for a long-awaited Flying Raijin: Spiralling Flash Super Round Dance Howl Style Three!"
Several specialized Flying Raijin kunai appeared in Minato's grip.
While Sasuke was still tracking Minato's movements, Naruto's sensory abilities picked up a sudden spike of raw malice. He screamed to Gamakichi, "Gamakichi! Below us!"
But before Gamakichi could react, the toad was blown back by a shockwave. Obito's upper body had elongated like a serpent, tearing out from beneath the earth. Just as he prepared to deliver a fatal strike to the falling Naruto, Sasuke's purple Susanoo manifested a massive hand, intercepting the Truth-Seeker Ball.
Fissures spider-webbed across the Susanoo's armor. The moment Minato turned around to assist, Obito's boot connected with him, sending the Fourth Hokage skidding backward.
Obito stared into Sasuke's Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan, falling into a tense silence.
Sasuke met his gaze evenly. "The one who will sever the past isn't you... it's me!"
In the next fraction of a second, Obito's hands clamped onto both of their faces. Behind his back, the Truth-Seeker Balls began reshaping into lethal, jagged spikes. If this strike connected, both of them would be killed instantly.
Sprawled on the ground, Minato desperately tried to trigger his Flying Raijin to teleport and save Naruto and Sasuke. To his horror, the Flying Raijin formula could no longer be sensed, it had completely vanished!
Right at that critical juncture, a chakra arm sprouted from behind Naruto, seizing Sasuke and Minato. In an instant, Naruto linked their collective chakra together, allowing all three of them to be safely warped away by Minato's Flying Raijin Technique.
Obito's spikes slammed into the empty air, carving a massive crater into the earth.
Because his strike had missed, Obito completely lost consciousness, and his face began to warp and bloat even further.
"What on earth is that?" Naruto felt a wave of revulsion washing over him.
"He can't control his own body. We have to strike now!" Just as Minato prepared to move, Obito prepared to discharge a final, erratic attack.
A hollow opening formed in Obito's hand, and a Truth-Seeker Ball fired from it like a projectile. Completely out of control, the shot veered wildly off-target, detonating in a brilliant flash of white light in the far distance. The resulting gale-force winds blew everyone off their feet.
Where the Truth-Seeker Ball hit, a profound abyss appeared amidst falling debris. As the sphere returned to his hand, Obito's erratic energy violently severed half of his own body.
Right then, a crack of thunder echoed as a bolt of white lightning erupted directly in front of Obito. As the electricity dispersed, Kanon appeared before him. Naruto and Sasuke watched her intently, while Minato quickly scanned the area behind her.
Sure enough, Hiruzen and Tobirama had already been blasted into fragments by her hand.
"The power of the Ten-Tails is too vast for you. Your current willpower cannot hope to restrain it," Kanon spoke, her voice cutting through the wind.
"Think back. For whose sake did you orchestrate all of this? Wasn't it for the girl you envisioned in your ideal world?"
"If that's the case, carry that dream of her and force the Ten-Tails back down!"
"Until you manage that... I will stand right here and block everything in your path!"
Kanon held her sword high, planting herself firmly between Obito and the trio of Minato, Naruto, and Sasuke.
Seeing Kanon blocking their path, Minato felt a pang of regret, but as the Hokage, he would show her no mercy.
"Next, I'll be using Flying Raijin: Spiralling Flash Super Round Dance Howl Style Three to create an opening for you!" Minato called out to the boys. "Be ready to launch your combination attack immediately!"
Hearing Minato's plan, Kanon raised her Kusanagi Sword. Facing the Yellow Flash, she had no intention of lowering her guard.
Through his Rinnegan, Obito stared at Kanon's crimson trench coat billowing directly in front of him. Her petite frame and cascading black hair seemed small, yet she was single-handedly holding back multiple Hokage just to buy him time.
The sight caused his memories to fracture, and the silhouette of Rin began to overlap perfectly with Kanon's back. Gradually, his erratic mind began to quiet down.
"Rin..."
Noticing that Obito was regaining his composure, Kanon tilted her head and offered a faint smile. That subtle movement caused Obito to fuse the images of Kanon and Rin completely.
An echo of Kanon's childhood voice resonated within his mind: "I'll always be watching you!"
It was the exact phrase Kanon had spoken during their very first clash long ago, and it melded seamlessly with the voice of the Rin he held in his heart. In that instant, a primal roar tore from his throat.
"Rin—!"
Minato hurled a volley of Flying Raijin kunai forward, only for Kanon to deflect them all with a sweeping blast of Wind Style.
As the grotesque fleshy mass threatened to consume Obito entirely, his Rinnegan remained locked onto Kanon's back, and a single tear rolled down his cheek. The Ten-Tails' consciousness tore at his mind, leaving him gasping heavily for air.
His left arm was violently ripped apart.
"ARRRGHHH!" Obito screamed in agony.
His other arm was torn away next. In his mind's eye, it felt as though a photograph from his past was being shredded; Kakashi's corner was torn away, and before he could process the loss, Rin's image at the bottom was ripped apart as well. He was experiencing a brutal backlash, his physical form enduring excruciating torment.
Seeing Obito on the verge of being utterly consumed, Minato lunged forward. "I'm coming, Obito!"
But his advance was instantly cut off by Kanon. She understood better than anyone that what Obito needed right now wasn't his former master Minato. He needed the person he loved most, the single anchor for whom he was willing to turn the entire world upside down just to make things right!
Thanks to Kanon's unyielding defense, Obito secured a few precious moments of respite. Within his subconscious, he refused to let the memory of Rin be destroyed! Even if his own body shattered into dust, a man would become a complete demon to protect the one thing that mattered to him!
The warm memories of Rin flooded Obito's mind, recalling those quiet afternoons when they sat together on the stone bench in the Hidden Leaf Village.
"I will never... let go..."
"AAAAHHH!"
With a furious roar, Obito clamped down on the consciousness of the Ten-Tails, forcefully dragging the beast back under his absolute control.
A violent tempest erupted from his position. Kanon's lips curled up into a slight smile as she disengaged from Minato after a brief exchange of blows. Minato's clothes were marred by numerous superficial slash marks, while Kanon remained completely untouched. But what pleased her most was that Obito had finally mastered the form.
"Did he succeed?"
"Thank you..." Obito murmured, nodding slightly toward Kanon. No matter what happened, he would never forget Rin.
Eight Truth-Seeker Balls now floated at his back, a single orb hovered over the back of his left hand, and his right hand gripped the Six Paths Shakujo.
"I've finally done it, Kanon."
Minato chose that exact moment to charge, swinging his blade at Obito. Unfortunately, his kunai snapped cleanly in two the instant it made contact with the defensive Truth-Seeker Ball.
In the next heartbeat, Obito's strike flashed forward, cleanly severing Minato's arm.
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NOTE: This fic has been completely translated. If you want to read the whole story head over to my p-atre-on: p-atre-on.c-om/Overgod [Just remove the hyphen to access normally]