Kakashi glanced at the sky before lowering his gaze to the White Light Chakra Sabre in his hand.
He studied the blade quietly for a moment.
Ever since inheriting this weapon, he had maintained it with great care. Even now, the short blade still looked razor-sharp at first glance, but Kakashi knew better than anyone that after decades of battle, it was already covered in invisible scars.
He sheathed the weapon once more and fastened it behind his back.
"It's about time. I should head back."
"I'm leaving too."
Obito's eyes lingered briefly on the White Light Chakra Sabre, but he said nothing more.
There was no need to.
The two of them turned and headed toward their separate destinations.
Then suddenly—
BOOM!
A violent explosion erupted in the distance, kicking up a massive cloud of smoke and dust.
"That direction… Hokage Rock!"
Kakashi's expression immediately turned serious.
"Enemies!"
Obito's gaze sharpened as well.
Without another word, the two rushed toward Hokage Rock at the same time.
…
Konoha Village — Hokage Rock.
"So we're really just waiting here?"
Rin stood on her toes repeatedly, trying to see farther into the distance.
"With Konoha this empty, there's no way the Hidden Cloud would miss a chance like this. Trust me, they'll make their move soon enough."
Tobi sat cross-legged on the ground in boredom, pulling weeds and arranging them into little figures.
"I'm telling you, worrying like this won't help anything. Why don't you come make grass dolls with me instead?"
Rin glanced at the crude little figures made from weeds.
They were unbelievably ugly.
Honestly, somehow even uglier than Tobi himself.
Silently, she turned her head away again.
"But I'm worried."
"When the Hidden Cloud finally attacks, the commotion won't be small. And your target is only the Two-Tails anyway. Don't tell me you're afraid you'll miss something that huge."
"…I still think we should tell Lord Hokage."
Sitting here passively and waiting for the enemy to appear felt far too dangerous.
The thought of revealing everything to the Third Hokage surfaced in Rin's mind once more.
"We agreed already. You follow my instructions the entire time."
"But if we tell Lord Hokage beforehand and expose the Hidden Cloud's plan, maybe we can stop the battle before it even starts!"
Tobi immediately felt a headache coming on.
He had finally managed to convince her to stop doubting him so much, and now she was starting again.
"You really are naïve."
"Let's not even mention the possibility that your actions could force the Hidden Cloud to change their plans, making me—an undercover agent who knows their original strategy—completely useless."
He pointed at her helplessly.
"And even if you do tell them, who's going to believe you? What happens when they ask where your information came from? Are you planning to tell them it came from me? A mysterious outsider who invaded Konoha not long ago?"
Rin immediately fell silent.
"If you insist on doing this," Tobi continued, "then the ANBU will arrest me first and start suspecting you immediately after."
"And whether or not you end up thrown into prison alongside me, they'll definitely seal your chakra first. You won't be able to use the Three-Tails' power anymore."
At that point, he suddenly laughed.
"Then tell me—who's going to stop the Two-Tails?"
After explaining everything, Tobi shook his head.
"Stop being naïve, little girl. The things we're trying to do right now are things nobody can understand."
"Do you know why some people become heroes?"
"Because before the truth is revealed, they do things the entire world misunderstands. Only afterward does everyone realize they were completely right."
Seeing that Rin still looked hesitant, Tobi pressed harder.
"Or are you planning to stand there and watch Konoha fall into disaster without doing anything?"
"Even though you have the power to save it?"
"…Fine."
Rin clenched her fists tightly.
"We'll wait."
"That's more like it."
Tobi reached out, intending to pat her head, but Rin immediately dodged away with surprising speed.
He casually withdrew his hand as though nothing had happened, then pointed into the distance.
"Look. Right on cue."
BOOM!
This time, the explosion was unmistakable.
Explosive tags.
And from the sound of it, the blasts were coming from underground.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
A chain of violent explosions erupted one after another.
ROOOAR—!!!
A monstrous howl suddenly echoed throughout the entirety of Konoha.
Then it appeared.
A gigantic Tailed Beast resembling a demonic cat emerged within the village, its body engulfed in blazing blue chakra flames.
Its massive, ferocious head possessed an extremely rare pair of mismatched eyes, while its sharp fangs and claws radiated terrifying killing intent at every moment.
Rin instinctively gripped the edge of her clothes tightly.
The enemy had finally appeared.
Standing before her was the target of this entire journey—
The Two-Tails.
"Are you scared?" Tobi asked.
Rin instinctively nodded before quickly shaking her head again with determination.
"It's normal to be scared. After all, this is one of the strongest masses of chakra in the entire ninja world."
"I… don't have confidence."
Only now, after seeing the true form of the Two-Tails with her own eyes, did Rin realize how ridiculous her earlier thoughts had been.
She had actually believed she could defeat a monster like this.
"There's nothing to fear," Tobi said dismissively, completely unfazed by the overwhelming pressure radiating from the beast.
"It's just a mindless monster that only knows destruction."
"The Three-Tails inside you is even stronger."
His voice lowered slightly.
"So make good use of that power…"
"Who's there?!"
A cold shout suddenly rang out behind them.
A squad of Konoha ANBU had appeared.
The moment the leading ANBU noticed Rin's forehead protector, his expression instantly became strange.
A Konoha shinobi…
Standing together with the mysterious intruder who had attacked Konoha not long ago?
"I…"
Rin was about to explain herself.
But Tobi moved first.
The Wood Release he had prepared in advance erupted instantly, and in the blink of an eye, four ANBU were pierced clean through by wooden spikes.
Blood splattered everywhere.
"Don't kill them!"
"Relax, I know what I'm doing."
"…Okay."
"Y-you actually betrayed Konoha?!"
The ANBU captain struggled to force out the words, his voice filled with fury and disbelief.
"I didn't!"
"Stop explaining, Rin. They're not dead."
Tobi patted her shoulder casually as a reminder.
"Don't forget why we're here. Keep your eyes on the target."
She had to constantly monitor the Two-Tails' movements.
A Tailed Beast Bomb was far too terrifying. Not a single one could be allowed to land inside Konoha.
That was the absolute top priority.
"Right!"
Rin immediately forced herself to stop paying attention to what was happening behind her.
Ahead of them, dozens of Konoha shinobi had already gathered and begun harassing the Two-Tails to hold it back. Even farther away, more shinobi were rushing toward the battlefield.
But…
There still weren't enough of them.
Everything was unfolding exactly as Tobi had said.
An understaffed Konoha.
A sudden attack by the Two-Tails.
And now…
Only she could save the village.
"I've got some bad news for you," Tobi suddenly said.
"What is it?"
"Since you insisted I not kill those four ANBU, one of them managed to escape while I wasn't paying attention."
"Huh?!"
"Well, they are Konoha ANBU. It's normal for them to have some kind of survival trick."
Rin immediately panicked.
"Then what do we do?"
"Simple. Anyone else who comes to interfere from now on—we kill them."
"No!!!"
Tobi spread his hands helplessly. "If we avoid killing people, I can't hold off that many enemies by myself, little girl."
After pretending to think seriously for a while, he suddenly offered another suggestion.
"How about you transform right now?"
"I…"
Rin immediately fell silent.
Tobi had already warned her before: even as a perfect jinchūriki, the amount of time she could consciously control the Three-Tails was still extremely limited.
After all, she was still completely unfamiliar with this kind of power.
And if she lost control—
That would mean Konoha would have to face two rampaging Tailed Beasts at the same time.
That absolutely could not happen.
She had to wait.
Wait until the exact instant the Two-Tails began preparing a Tailed Beast Bomb.
Then she would suddenly transform, interrupt the attack during its formation, and force the backlash of the unstable Tailed Beast Bomb onto the Two-Tails itself.
Only by severely injuring it that way would she have a chance of defeating it.
Or at the very least, dragging it away from Konoha.
And an opportunity like that…
Would likely only come once.
But now, if she wanted to protect all of Konoha, it would mean allowing the Konoha shinobi rushing over here to die in the process.
It was like sacrificing a small number of people to save many more.
That kind of cold, cruel decision…
She couldn't make it.
"Is there really no other way?"
Rin's voice trembled painfully.
Tobi merely shrugged innocently.
"Please... you have to help me," the young girl pleaded helplessly, her fingers desperately clutching the fabric of Tobi's robe as heavy, tearful drops traced lines down her cheeks.
Tobi looked left and right awkwardly.
"Why... why must the burden of this choice fall on me?"
Tobi looked up at the sky.
"I can't do this..."
Tobi cut through her emotional spiral, his tone turning sharp. "Konoha shinobi are here."
"RIN!!!"
An explosive, frantic shout cut through the chaos from a distance. Obito, his eyes wide with a manic mix of terror and relief, had instantly picked out the silhouette of the girl who occupied every corner of his soul.
...
Read Advanced Chapters on : www.patreon.com/c/ReadJin
~ Every 100 PS = Bonus Chapter!
~ Push the Story forward with your [Power Stones]