It... it was over! He had... he had hidden himself so deeply!
This Taki Chiba had hidden himself so deeply! In that battle against Nagato—no! It should be said, that battle against Nagato's Pain—he had never fully revealed those higher-level secret techniques, the Forbidden Jutsu Spirit Transformation Jutsu! Even when Pain had driven him into a desperate corner, he had not used either of those techniques!
Could it be...
Had he begun planning this from back then?
What a...
What a terrifying man...
As the last wisp of golden flame entered his brow, the Masked Man's gradually dimming, nearly fused Three Tomoe slowly rotated open. They fixed bit by bit upon Taki Chiba's original body, and when his gaze finally settled on Chiba's face, they completely dimmed. The Sharingan's scarlet brilliance, along with the despair in his eyes, was utterly extinguished, leaving only ordinary pupils behind.
And as everything before his eyes was completely swallowed by darkness, only one shocked and horrified thought remained in his heart.
He knew what would happen to him next and what state he would be in.
He also knew why Taki Chiba had chosen this moment to use the Spirit Transformation Jutsu.
He even knew what techniques those three Shadow Clones would use next!
But now, aside from feeling this despair, there was nothing else he could do.
He knew very well how terrifying the Spirit Transformation Jutsu was, and how difficult this Forbidden Jutsu was to master. He had never imagined that Taki Chiba was so extraordinary that he could master this Forbidden Jutsu. And after mastering it, he had actually held it back until now, not even using a technique so remarkably effective against Pain when facing the desperate situation Pain had forced upon him!
Instead, he had waited until this moment.