"Alright, I'll notify Sasori and Deidara."
After hearing Deva Path Pain's words, Zetsu immediately responded.
His figure gradually disappeared as well.
Not long after!
In a hidden location!
"Pain intends to have Sasori and Deidara recruit Hyuga Chiba. If he refuses, they are to kill him and bring back the Tenseigan."
"If necessary, Pain Six Paths will personally go and eliminate him!"
Zetsu appeared once more and reported Deva Path Pain's decision to a man wearing a Swirl-patterned Birch Mask that revealed only his right eye, dressed in the same Flame Cloud Robe.
This man was none other than the Fourth Hokage Namikaze Minato's student, Hatake Kakashi's close friend, Uchiha Madara's successor, one of the higher-ups behind the Akatsuki, Uchiha Itachi's accomplice in the Uchiha Clan massacre, the protagonist of the moving Ninja World tale "Obito Uchiha," and a beast second only to Shimura Danzō... Uchiha Obito!
"The Hyuga Clan actually has the Tenseigan, an eye said to rival the Rinnegan? Why have I never heard of this?"
Obito asked in confusion, "Could this just be the Hyuga Clan's ancestors deliberately bragging?"
"Judging from Hyuga Chiba's performance today, his Tenseigan doesn't seem worthy of that title either."
"At the very least, the Pain Six Paths created by Nagato's Rinnegan can easily destroy Konoha."
"And it certainly wouldn't suffer such a long period of weakness like Hyuga Chiba."
"No, the Tenseigan truly is an existence on the same level as the Rinnegan!" Zetsu—the true living fossil of the Ninja World, or rather, Black Zetsu—said with some hesitation. "It's just that the one who possessed the Tenseigan in the past left behind far too little information in the Ninja World."
"As for Hyuga Chiba's Tenseigan, the reason you think it is inferior to Nagato's Rinnegan is largely because he has only just awakened these eyes. He is also not an Uzumaki or a Senju, people born with enormous Chakra reserves."
"But there is no doubt that if Hyuga Chiba is given enough time to grow, he will absolutely become a huge potential threat to our plan."
"And only the Rinnegan can carry out the Moon Eye Plan."
"Still, his Tenseigan may be of use to us."
"In that case, we must eliminate this threat." Hearing this, Uchiha Obito immediately made his decision. "Someone with such tremendous potential, once he possesses power like Nagato's, may not obediently follow our arrangements."
"We have no need for someone like that to join the Akatsuki."
"Make preparations. We'll follow behind Sasori and Deidara and go meet Hyuga Chiba together."
"If he truly accepts their recruitment, find an opportunity to deal with him and take his Tenseigan."
Outside Konoha!
"Are you certain Hyuga Chiba is up ahead?"
A Root Captain dressed similarly to Konoha Anbu but with a far colder aura rapidly leaped between tree trunks as he questioned a Root Ninja with sensory abilities beside him.
"Certain. His position seems not to have changed at all. It's like he's waiting for the people hunting him down?"
The Root Ninja nodded, replying with equal confusion, "What's even stranger is that there are traces of Chakra from repeatedly using certain ninjutsu around him."
"His position hasn't changed, and he's repeatedly using ninjutsu in the same spot?" The Root Captain was immediately startled and puzzled. "What exactly is he thinking?"
"He should be at his weakest right now. Otherwise, he wouldn't have chosen to flee."
"Then why would he stay in one place for so long and consume so much of his already limited Chakra?"
"Could it be a shadow clone?" The third Root Ninja on the other side of the Root Captain offered a guess. "Previously, he seemed to use his real body to draw attention while having a shadow clone steal the Scroll of Sealing from the Hokage's Office."
"Or perhaps this is actually a trap aimed at the pursuers?"
"Let's be cautious." The Root Captain then said, "Danzo's order is to bring back Hyuga Chiba, or his Tenseigan."
"Even if we are all wiped out, we must create more opportunities for the Root forces behind us to complete the mission."
"Yes!" The other two Root Ninjas nodded at once, their voices resolute.
Before long, the three Root Ninjas had reached the target area.
Then they saw Chiba's shadow clone sitting cross-legged on the ground with his eyes closed, surrounded by traces left behind by the use of the Five Chakra Natures—burned earth, flooded ground, lightning strikes, and more.
"Is he practicing ninjutsu? Judging from the traces around him, he possesses at least Five Chakra Natures."
"But as a member of the Hyuga Clan, why is he learning ninjutsu? Could this also be a change brought about by the Tenseigan?"
Various thoughts flashed through the Root Captain's mind, yet he had already thrown several shuriken in a single motion.
The other two Root Ninjas also hurled Kunai tied with Explosive Tags at Chiba from two different directions.
"Fire Release: Fire Dragon Revolving Heaven!"
Chiba, who had been sitting cross-legged with his eyes closed, opened his pure Byakugan and swiftly rose to his feet, creating a small tornado filled with crimson flames.
The shuriken and Kunai thrown by the three Root Ninjas were all swept into the fiery tornado, causing no real harm to Chiba within.
"Fire Release: Fire Dragon Revolving Heaven?"
"What the hell is that?"
The three Root Ninjas had undergone harsh training and would not be overly surprised no matter what they encountered, but this time, they truly could not hold it together.
Before this, none of them had imagined that the Hyuga Clan's "Rotation" could be used like this.
But after recovering from their shock, they realized that this "Fire Release: Fire Dragon Revolving Heaven" was not actually such a difficult ninjutsu.
In theory, any Hyuga clansman capable of using "Rotation" and Fire Release ninjutsu could potentially perform it.
So why were they so shocked upon seeing it now?
"Earth Style: Earth Rising Spears!"
Shock aside, the Root Captain swiftly reacted, summoning sharp Earth Spikes from the ground to attack Chiba while also sealing off his movements.
"Water Style: Water Dragon Bullet!"
"Lightning Release: Lightning Dragon Bullet!"
At the same time, the other two Root Ninjas respectively summoned a water dragon and a lightning dragon.
They rapidly merged together, forming a water dragon charged with intense electricity that struck directly at Chiba with even greater force.
"The Chakra I recovered while meditating just now is nearly exhausted as well. In that case, I'll use that move."
Seeing this, Chiba gave it a brief thought before his body began to spin once more.
"Wind Release: Rotation Wind Void Blade!"
In an instant, countless Wind Blades centered on Chiba and indiscriminately sliced apart everything around them.
Before you continue