Obito's Death?

On the trunk of a large tree not far from the battlefield, a face that blended in with the bark and was almost impossible to spot silently watched Obito. It was Black Zetsu, who had received Madara's orders to keep an eye on him.

"Those eyes!? He can awaken the Mangekyō Sharingan directly, without first awakening the ordinary Sharingan! No wonder he's Uchiha Madara—he could see that this boy was hiding such astonishing potential!" Black Zetsu's face showed disbelief.

"With Tobi there, he should survive. But if the Kirigakure ninja accidentally damage those eyes, that could be a problem."

Just as Black Zetsu's thoughts raced, the ability of Obito's Mangekyō Sharingan activated. The abilities of his two Mangekyō Sharingan were collectively called Kamui, and they were connected to a space in another dimension.

This space was known as the Kamui Dimension, and Obito Uchiha was its master.

Through his right eye, he could send himself or anything he touched into the Kamui Dimension. It was a Space-Time Ninjutsu that could leave him virtually invincible.

Through his left eye, he could remotely link anything he looked at to the Kamui Dimension. He could retrieve objects from a distance or twist space to tear his target apart—a peerless attack that could not be defended against!

The abilities of the Mangekyō Sharingan were extraordinarily difficult to understand. Some awakened users needed to experiment for a long time before discovering their eyes' powers, while others could identify and control their new abilities the instant they opened their eyes.

Obito happened to be the second kind. The ability he had activated was the power of his left eye!

A twisted pattern suddenly appeared in the middle of the Wakizashi in Uesugi Shinji's hand, which was swinging toward Nohara Rin. The blade, once rigid and straight, began to twist and spiral at its center.

"This is a Space-Time Ninjutsu!"

Uesugi Shinji was startled. A rare glimmer of surprise flashed across his usually calm, placid eyes.

Space-Time Ninjutsu was already exceedingly rare in the Shinobi World, and one that could be used directly to attack was unheard of. Even his old rival, the "Yellow Flash," Namikaze Minato, only used Space-Time Ninjutsu to move through space. His attacks still relied on conventional ninja techniques.

If Space-Time Ninjutsu could be used to attack directly, then a target's defensive strength would be meaningless. It was a complete dimensional mismatch!

Such an ability would make every ninja in the Shinobi World wary—and covetous!

There was no sound of metal snapping. The Wakizashi in Uesugi Shinji's hand was already missing half its length, the other half having vanished without a trace.

Although Obito's Kamui had stopped the attack on Nohara Rin, Uesugi Shinji's movements remained blindingly fast. He stepped forward, appeared behind Rin before she could react, and knocked her unconscious with a chop to the neck.

Nohara Rin was petite. Uesugi Shinji simply slipped his left arm around her and lifted her effortlessly by the waist.

"Let her go!"

Seeing this, Obito panicked. He forced his already meager ocular power to focus on Uesugi Shinji and activated Kamui again.

Suddenly, his vision spun. His sight blurred, and more blood seeped from his left eye, trailing down his face like a tear of blood.

The greater the power hidden within a Mangekyō Sharingan, the more ocular power it consumed and the greater the damage it inflicted on the eye. This damage was irreversible. For its user, repeatedly using Mangekyō techniques would ultimately mean going blind and losing all ocular power.

There was no doubt that Kamui's ability to twist space from a distance was one of the most powerful ocular techniques. For Obito, whose ocular power was limited, it was an immense burden. Using Kamui twice had already drained a great deal of his ocular power and badly damaged his left eye.

The instant Obito activated his technique, Uesugi Shinji felt an intense sense of danger.

He instinctively tilted his head to the side and used the Body Flicker Technique at top speed to leave his original position. He narrowly dodged the Kamui aimed at his head.

When he appeared again a moment later, he was standing beside Hozuki Mangetsu, who had been watching from the sidelines. He casually raised an arm and tossed Nohara Rin to him.

"Keep an eye on her. Don't let anything happen to her!"

Hozuki Mangetsu immediately caught the unconscious Nohara Rin. He had now guessed why his teacher had come here. This girl was clearly the real target.

Uesugi Shinji lowered his gaze to the Wakizashi in his hand, which had been with him for several years. He had never expected to lose it to an unknown boy.

He could already use Ice Release to create weapons in all sorts of shapes, but a weapon could become dear to its owner over time. That was why he had kept using this Wakizashi until now.

A cloud of pale, misty Ice Release chakra rose from his hand. A layer of frigid ice gradually spread over the broken half of the Wakizashi. Uesugi Shinji tossed it into the air, and the ice and blade suddenly burst apart into a shower of glittering shards that sparkled in the sunlight.

His companion of several years, who had fought by his side, had finally returned to dust.

Uesugi Shinji turned to look at Obito, who was gasping for breath nearby, his body on the verge of collapse. The strange pattern of the Mangekyō Sharingan in Obito's eyes caught his interest.

The Light Brain in his mind immediately searched through the records he had read. In an instant, he identified the origins of those eyes. Although he had never seen the Mangekyō Sharingan in person, that did not stop him from recognizing it.

"The Mangekyō Sharingan. I never expected to find it here. According to legend, only Uchiha Madara, the strongest member of the Uchiha Clan, ever possessed eyes like these!"

As he spoke, Uesugi Shinji slowly walked toward Obito. He rarely spoke to his enemies during a fight, but he wanted to claim those eyes for himself. His excitement made him say a few extra words.

Obito was now utterly exhausted from overusing his ocular power. He could barely stay on his feet, but he glared at Uesugi Shinji with hatred.

Shiranui Genma and Ebisu stood guard in front of Obito, their faces knotted with fear, nervousness, and hesitation. They had no time to wonder what Uesugi Shinji meant by "Mangekyō Sharingan." They could only agonize over whether to turn and run or stay with their comrades and die honorably.

"Run!"

As the two hesitated, Kakashi, lying on the ground, used the last of his strength to shout. Shiranui Genma and Ebisu exchanged a glance. With heavy hearts, they made their decision—to get Obito out of there first.

If they could save even one of them, that was better than staying and being wiped out!

But just then, a figure flashed past them. Obito had summoned his last ounce of strength and darted between them, charging straight at the terrifying enemy.

"I'll kill you!"

Obito's face was twisted with madness. If he couldn't save Nohara Rin, he would rather die fighting here!

Shiranui Genma and Ebisu tried to grab Obito, but they were a step too slow.

Kakashi, Shiranui Genma, and Ebisu saw a flash of cold light before Obito. Their eyes bulged, and all three cried out in horror, but nothing could save Obito's life.

An Ice Blade appeared in Uesugi Shinji's right hand, its tip dripping with blood. His left hand gripped Obito by the head, holding his whole body aloft.

A huge, horrifying gash crossed Obito's chest. His flesh had been torn open, the wound deep enough to expose bone, and blood gushed from it in torrents.

The ground all around had been thoroughly stained red with Obito's blood. Even an adult would have been doomed after losing that much blood!

Obito's expression had frozen. The eyes that had always burned with determination had lost their light, and the vivid streak of blood on his face seemed to speak of the boy's despair and unwillingness to die.

"I'll take these eyes for myself."

As Ice Release chakra slowly flowed from Uesugi Shinji's left hand, Obito's body gradually froze. In just two or three seconds, his entire body was sealed in ice inside a block slightly larger than he was.