Kakashi, too, seemed to have broken free of some kind of shackle.
Father, you were right.
If I can't protect my comrades, then I'm the worst kind of scum.
Kakashi leaped back a step and formed hand seals.
Crackle, crackle, crackle!
A sharp cutting sound rang out continuously, like the mournful cries of thousands of birds being mashed together.
Kiyohara watched from behind, observing the process of Kakashi gathering Chidori.
Chidori... if I learned it, I could use it all the way to the end of the story.
Kiyohara stared unblinkingly at the azure lightning arcs that had already burst forth.
If he had the Sharingan, he could copy it.
Unfortunately, he did not.
I'll avenge Obito.
Kakashi thought to himself.
His left eye opened, revealing two tomoe slowly spinning within it.
The Sharingan's powerful dynamic vision allowed Kakashi to clearly see Kakkō's sword-swinging movements in slow motion.
He could also see the speed at which the Chidori in his hand moved.
From this moment on, the Sharingan made up for this technique's greatest flaw.
Or rather, Chidori had been tailor-made for the Uchiha clan from the very moment it was created.
"This brat's speed!"
Kakkō frowned.
He intended to strike first.
As long as he cut Kakashi's neck before Kakashi hit him, the chakra gathered in Kakashi's hand would disperse, resolving the danger.
At that very moment, Kiyohara threw a shuriken wreathed in wind!
The shuriken tore through the air, propelled by the wind and far faster than an ordinary shuriken.
"Kiyohara..."
Kakashi did not look back, but Kiyohara was the only one who liked to infuse shuriken with Wind Release chakra.
He was also the only one among them capable of such a move.
Warmth rose in his heart.
He had never expected that the person he had initially paid little attention to would help him time and again.
"Damn it!"
Kakkō also realized that someone was feinting for Kakashi.
But Kakashi was too fast for him to escape. The best option was to kill Kakashi first.
Yet if he did that, he would be killed by the shuriken!
In the end, Kakkō decided to shift his position, letting the shuriken strike his arm while avoiding any vital areas.
Then he swung his blade down at Kakashi with all his strength.
Squelch!
Kakkō had still underestimated Chidori's speed. The blue lightning arcs shattered the blade in his hand and pierced through his chest.
At the same time, Kiyohara's shuriken sank into his forehead.
Hit from both sides, Kakkō was dead beyond dead on the spot.
"Pant... pant..."
Kakashi gasped continuously. That attack had nearly drained all his chakra.
He likely could no longer use Chidori. If he forced himself to use it, he would pass out on the spot.
But...
Kakashi forced himself onward and came to Nohara Rin's side, looking at Obito buried beneath the massive boulder.
Kiyohara, meanwhile, went to loot the body.
According to Renegade Kiyohara, there were more and more Iwagakure ninja outside.
If he did not loot now, there would be nothing left to loot later.
"Whoa, is this Chakra Metal?"
Kiyohara looked at one of Kakkō's broken blades in surprise.
Chakra Metal was a rare type of metal.
Although chakra could theoretically be infused into anything, even a pencil could be enhanced into something with the effect of a hidden weapon.
But such infusion came in varying degrees of effectiveness.
Chakra Metal could assist the flow of chakra and produce stronger effects.
He then put away the section of blade that had broken off on the ground, the remaining section tied to Kakkō's wrist, and another intact blade.
"Can these be forged into ninja tools?"
Kiyohara asked Renegade Kiyohara.
Honestly, Kiyohara had only ever seen something as valuable as Chakra Metal on Sarutobi Asuma, the foolish son of a wealthy family.
That strange ninja tool that resembled knuckle blades with a bit of sword blade added to them.
As for Kiyohara himself, he had never seen, much less touched, such expensive metal before.
That young master had been the richest person in Kiyohara's class.
Back at the Ninja Academy, he had written an essay called My Hokage Father, which was said to have even alerted the academy principal.
Kiyohara could not help but marvel that Konoha—or rather, the Ninja World—was one enormous society built on connections.
"It should be enough. If they're reforged, they should be able to make a sword."
Renegade Kiyohara nodded.
Neither of the two blades Kakkō used had hilts. They had been tied directly to his wrists with bandages, like sleeve arrows.
Kiyohara could melt the two blades down into a longer blade, then simply make an ordinary hilt for it.
"But hiring someone to melt and reforge them will cost quite a bit too."
Renegade Kiyohara said.
A ninja's training required money in every aspect.
Thus, apart from the physical limitations they faced, civilian ninja were even more constrained by resources.
They had no channels through which to obtain ninjutsu, nor enough money to buy ninja tools suited to them.
Ninja could display greater strength when using ninja tools.
Some ninja proficient in swordsmanship would lose more than half their strength without their weapons.
"Good thing I have the habit of looting bodies."
Hearing that, Kiyohara sped up his looting.
He figured he should get a better Sealing Scroll. Otherwise, wouldn't that slow down his money-making speed?
During wartime, after all, a ninja's biggest source of extra income was war spoils like these.
If he honestly completed missions for rewards, how long would it take to pay off his debt?
"Kiyohara, there's movement outside."
Kurenai Yuhi suddenly said.
Even she had noticed people approaching from outside.
"I know."
Kiyohara nodded and put everything into the Sealing Scroll.
"If you have anything to say, say it quickly. We need to retreat."
Kiyohara looked toward Kakashi.
Unless someone present was proficient in Earth Release ninjutsu or opened the Eight Inner Gates, moving the massive boulder without injuring Obito would be nearly impossible.
"Kakashi, take Rin and leave quickly. The enemy's... reinforcements are coming."
Obito looked at Kakashi.
His sense of pain was gradually returning. His brain had already registered the loss of his body and was sounding an alarm.
His lower body in particular hurt so badly that Obito could barely maintain his expression.
Earth Release: Earth Trencher!
At that moment, an Iwagakure squad arrived, formed hand seals, and unleashed an Earth Release ninjutsu.
Rumble, rumble.
The ground instantly split apart, and dust filled the air.
With no other choice, Kakashi could only cast Obito one last look before leaving with the others.
"Kakashi, I'm entrusting Rin to you."
Obito spoke his final words.
His body was gradually covered by rubble, then fell into the fissure created by the Earth Release ninjutsu.
Everything seemed to have been buried.
On the front lines, Namikaze Minato's expression changed slightly.
Every special kunai upon which he had carved a Flying Thunder God mark gave Namikaze Minato a sense of its location.
Now, he could sense that something seemed to have happened over there.
He had to go.
Before you continue