His gaze swept across the battlefield and landed on the golden Nine-Tails chakra cloak covering Han, the Four-Tails' jinchuriki.
Though Han had perfectly mastered the Five-Tails and displayed unbelievable power, he was indeed as he had expected.
Because time had been too short, Obito had simply never had the chance to contact and study Sage Mode.
The Nine-Tails chakra cloak had spread out, but its core was not Sage Mode.
That key, enough to affect the outcome of the battle, was now in his hands alone.
And relying on the Sage Rasengan formed from the chakra of his shadow clone, he wanted to shatter the Six Paths' Truth-Seeking Ball barrier formed from eight Truth-Seeking Balls and inflict a devastating blow that would determine the battle.
If only...
Knowing the answer but lacking the power to break through it was bitter indeed.
That hope, more fragile than paper, was mixed with an even heavier despair.
Just then.
The scarlet Mangekyo Sharingan that had drawn the attention of the entire battlefield suddenly contracted into icy resolve.
The figure floating in midair moved slightly, controlling an inconspicuous black Truth-Seeking Ball as it silently slid into the area where the exhausted jinchuriki were gathered.
There, the Raikage's Lightning Release Chakra Mode was still blazing brightly, the Tsuchikage was concentrating on forming the next scale, and Gaara's sand shield waited in readiness.
Kakashi stood at the front, holding his blade on guard, while the Mizukage's ice clones swiftly searched the entire battlefield...
The Truth-Seeking Ball emitted a lonely pulse, then suddenly burst with terrifying dark radiance.
"Danger! Get away! Defense talismans!"
The golden figure of the Yellow Flash was the first to catch that fatal energy fluctuation. His voice, amplified by chakra, tore through the air, every note sharp to the extreme.
The Flying Thunder