Obito, the Bully of the Weak and Fearful of the Strong

"Do you intend to keep me here?"

Obito wore a playful smile.

After hearing what Youhu said to Itachi, Obito would have to be incredibly slow-witted not to realize this was a trap set by Konoha specifically for him.

Itachi had likely reported his intelligence long ago, and the Hokage must have discovered his recent activity in Konohagakure, leading him to specifically task Itachi with getting close to him before dispatching elite ninjas to surround and suppress him.

However, was the Third Hokage underestimating him too much? To think he wouldn't even come out personally, sending only a squad of Anbu Ninja.

Ever since Teacher Minato died, there was no one left in the Ninja World capable of threatening his life—not even the illustrious Five Kage, nor Nagato with his Rinnegan.

Thinking of this, a sense of playfulness arose in Obito. He prepared to teach these ignorant ninjas a profound lesson.

Especially Kakashi, who had killed Rin with his own hands.

Obito reached out and gripped his scythe sword, pulling it from the Kamui Space. He lunged straight toward Kakashi, his scythe sword dancing in an air-tight flurry of strikes.

Kakashi drew the long sword strapped to his back and charged forward to meet Obito.

Itachi followed closely behind, drawing his own blade as he charged, attacking Obito from a different angle alongside Kakashi.

Kakashi was a Jonin who had been famous for years; his taijutsu and swordsmanship were incredibly solid. He was even capable of maneuvering against high-ranking officials from major ninja villages, and he took responsibility for engaging Obito head-on.

Itachi had awakened his Three Tomoe Sharingan. Although he was only a Chunin in the Root, his strength had long since reached the level of a Jonin.

While using shuriken and steel wires to set traps in the forest that were barely visible to the naked eye, he simultaneously used illusion techniques to interfere with the flow of Obito's chakra.

But in front of Obito's Mangekyo, Itachi's illusions were completely useless.

The core of an illusion technique is to control the five senses by disturbing chakra. Itachi's illusion attacks were like scratching an itch through a boot—somewhat useful, but not by much.

Kakashi's taijutsu, however, was locked in a stalemate with Obito.

Under the insight of the Sharingan, the movements of both sides became incredibly slow. As they continuously exchanged blows, Kakashi sensed an inexplicable feeling of familiarity from the masked man.

It felt as if he had fought the masked man before, but he couldn't quite put his finger on who the opponent actually was.

Youhu hovered at the edge of the battlefield. Aside from occasionally throwing a few kunai, he did not intervene in the fight between Obito, Kakashi, and Itachi.

As the Anbu Ninja who had first discovered the masked man's tracks and taken the initiative to report it to the Hokage, Youhu's main goal was not to eliminate the threat of the masked man for Konoha. Konoha lacked the ability to keep Obito, who had mastered space-time ninjutsu and possessed Izanagi as a final resort.

He had no urgent, deep-seated grudge against Obito either.

His goal was to muddy the waters of Konoha and the Ninja World, causing all factions to stir. Only then could he maneuver between the major powers, leveraging the advantage of information asymmetry to obtain Deception Points and enhance his own strength.

In other words, there was only one thing he needed to do: cause as much trouble as possible.

This was all for the future development of the Ninja World; you must all understand my good intentions.

Youhu took a few smoke bombs from his Ninja Tool Pouch, used 100 Deception Points to modify them into smoke bombs with a paralyzing effect, and manifested the corresponding antidote.

The manufacturing principle of this Paralyzing Bomb was not difficult, and it was rarely effective on the battlefield.

As long as the enemy had a Wind Style Ninja, they could easily disperse it. However, it was perfect for dealing with Obito, who possessed Kamui. As long as Obito failed to detect the toxin within the smoke, he would easily fall for the trap.

"Fire Style: Fire Dragon Technique!"

Youhu formed hand seals. Accompanied by a melodious dragon roar, Fire Style chakra erupted from Youhu's mouth, quickly condensing into a ferocious fire dragon.

The fire dragon stood in mid-air, illuminating the surrounding small grove.

Next, the fire dragon locked onto Obito's position, tore through the night like a sharp arrow, and shot toward him. Before Obito could even react, the fire dragon had already appeared before him.

"A mere Fire Dragon Technique!"

Facing the incoming fire dragon, Obito was dismissive. With a thought, his body appeared in the Kamui Space, leaving the Fire Dragon Technique to slam into the ground.

The flames scorched the earth, leaving behind charred marks on the ground.

Unscathed, Obito returned to the Ninja World. Facing Itachi and Kakashi, who were attacking from both sides simultaneously, he didn't dodge at all, simply standing where he was.

Clang! Clang!

Itachi and Kakashi's weapons collided. After their figures crossed, they saw a look of disbelief in each other's eyes.

Kakashi's expression was as solemn as water. This wasn't a simple Space-Time Ninjutsu; it was completely different from the Flying Thunder God Technique mastered by Teacher Minato.

The Flying Thunder God Technique was about crossing space, teleporting from Location A to Location B.

But the Masked Man's ability involved leaving the Ninja World entirely, his body phasing into another dimension.

If the Masked Man didn't materialize, they would never be able to inflict damage on him. Kakashi couldn't even fathom how Teacher Minato had managed to defeat this guy back then.

"Is this the power of the Mangekyo?"

Itachi's brows were locked in a tight frown. It wasn't that he hadn't seen a Mangekyo Sharingan user before; Brother Shisui possessed Kotoamatsukami, which could rewrite the will of others. But that was a Mangekyo Dojutsu involving illusions, not one related to space-time.

He didn't know how they, just a few of them, could possibly defeat the Masked Man.

Even if the Third Hokage came to this place in person, he probably wouldn't be able to repel the Masked Man.

With such strength, even if he wasn't the Uchiha Madara of the past, he was nearly on par with him. What was his purpose in approaching him? Was it purely for fun?

Youhu was fearless; he had mixed the paralyzing smoke bombs into the Fire Dragon Technique.

Youhu, silently waiting for the effect to take hold, approached Kakashi and Itachi with a worried expression.

"Captain Kakashi, the Masked Man is too strong. What should we do now?"

"Are we just going to watch him trigger another Nine-Tails' Rampage?"

Kakashi's face tightened with difficulty. He steeled his resolve and said, "I'll hold off the Masked Man. You and Itachi go find the Hokage. This time, I must protect everyone."

Saying you'll protect everyone right in front of Obito? You're just fueling his Blood Rage, Youhu thought to himself.

Itachi shook his head slightly, his expression resolute. "We cannot leave Captain Kakashi here to die alone. The village should have received word by now; we only need to hold out for a little longer."

"Even if we are to die, we will die together."

"Then I'm heading out first..."

Without looking at the expressions on Kakashi and Itachi's faces, Youhu gathered chakra into the soles of his feet and performed the Body Flicker Technique, rushing toward the Hokage Building.

He needed to create an opportunity for Obito to launch an ambush.

Kakashi and Itachi, left behind, looked at each other in confusion.

In a life-or-death moment like this, shouldn't there be a sense of mutual self-sacrifice, where everyone stays behind to unite against the enemy? What was with this "I'm leaving first" business?

Besides, they were plotting this out loud—the Masked Man could hear them, too.

Running away alone and turning your back on the enemy? Isn't that just asking for death?

Obito shared the same sentiment.

Obito hadn't originally intended to kill anyone, but upon hearing Kakashi vow to protect everyone, his anger had maxed out. Obito wanted to make Kakashi realize that he couldn't protect anyone.

At this moment, Youhu's choice to flee had undoubtedly given Obito a target.

Youhu wasn't Kakashi; Obito had sworn to make Kakashi live a lifetime of guilt and self-reproach.

Youhu wasn't Itachi either; Obito had already set his sights on Itachi, marking him for recruitment. As long as Itachi became a rogue ninja, he would have another pawn to execute the Moon Eye Plan.

Since Youhu had stepped forward on his own, an Anbu with neither strength nor influence, it would be a crime against nature if he didn't die.

With this thought, Obito gradually closed in on Youhu, his scythe sword raised high. In the next second, he would strike, sending this unremarkable Anbu to meet the Sage of Six Paths.

However, in the next moment, a sudden change occurred.

Youhu suddenly turned to face Obito. Obito saw the white mask on Youhu's face; the design was somewhat similar to the Rinnegan, which made Obito freeze for a split second.

What kind of mask is this? Why does it look so much like the Rinnegan?

Coming back to his senses, Obito was shocked to find his body unable to move, as stiff as if he had just awakened from a long slumber. A gleaming blade had already appeared before him, striking down toward his head.

"Finally took the bait. This was my attack route all along."