Obito's Lack of Martial Ethics

In a dense forest somewhere in the Land of Water.

"Kaguya Clan Head, surrender now, and perhaps the Mizukage will grant you a chance to live."

Facing the encirclement of the Mist Village Anbu, the Kaguya Clan Head noticed something, and a strange glint flashed in his eyes.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh...

Countless senbon and kunai suddenly shot in from all directions, completely engulfing the Mist Anbu.

The sudden assault caught them off guard, and they scrambled to employ various methods to deflect the incoming projectiles.

When the barrage ceased, the Mist ninjas saw a figure in a red cloud-patterned robe approaching, controlling a dozen puppets.

"A puppeteer?"

"Could it be someone from the Sand Village?"

"Kaguya Clan Head, to think you would collude with outsiders! Now you are truly dead."

Facing the accusations of the Mist ninjas, the Kaguya Clan Head lowered his bone shield, panting slightly as he looked at the newcomer, a trace of confusion in his eyes.

This guy is... Sasori?

How did he end up here?

Although he could not fathom why the man had appeared, judging by the fact that he had attacked everyone, Sasori was clearly not on the side of the Mist Anbu. In that case, things were not entirely hopeless.

Sasori ignored the Mist Anbu, focusing his attention entirely on the Kaguya Clan Head.

The way the man had summoned a bone shield using Shikotsumyaku to perfectly block his projectiles had stirred his interest once more—the last time he had felt this way was when facing the Third Kazekage.

If such a man were turned into a human puppet, he would surely become another eternal work of art.

Sasori's gaze, as if he were appraising an object, filled the Kaguya Clan Head with indignation. Does he think he has me in the bag?

Just then, many of the Mist ninjas' faces turned pale, as if they hadn't eaten in days. Their bodies went limp, and they grew so weak they could barely stand; clearly, they had been poisoned.

Only then did they realize too late that the toxin had been transmitted through their wounds. Evidently, in the midst of that dense hail of senbon, every one of them had sustained at least a minor injury.

Against other ninjas, such wounds might have been trivial, but Sasori was different. Beyond being the strongest puppeteer in the Ninja World, he was a master of poison. Even the Third Kazekage had been brought down and killed by his toxins. It could be said that when fighting him, one could not afford to sustain even the slightest scratch.

Soon, the Mist Anbu were decimated by Sasori, leaving only the Kaguya Clan Head struggling to hold his ground.

"This game should end here. Becoming my perfect work of art shall be your destiny."

Faced with Sasori's arrogant tone, the Kaguya Clan Head abandoned any hope of a lucky escape.

It seems I have no choice but to use that technique. Although I won't have much life left after this, there is no way I am going to surrender.

Crack...

Crack...

The earth trembled.

Countless bone spears erupted from the ground, and soon, a forest of white bone appeared on the battlefield...

Not far from the battle between Sasori and the Kaguya Clan Head, Pakura crept over, accompanied by several Tenseigan puppets.

Pakura looked at the figure floating in the sky nearby, manipulating black sand, and the massive forest of bones surging below, a look of shock crossing her face.

Is that Magnet Release: Iron Sand?

Could that guy be the missing Third Kazekage?

And this bone forest—could it be the strongest secret technique of the Shikotsumyaku, the Dance of the Seedling Fern?

"Go quickly and report to The Fool. Tell him I have found the target."

Just as Pakura intended to lie in wait and reap the rewards of the conflict, she failed to notice a white figure quietly emerging from behind a tree nearby, only to silently sink into the ground and vanish.

It seems this guy is the helper Pakura mentioned. Puppet jutsu?

Could he also be from the Sand Village?

A group of White Zetsu surrounded Hyuga Lan, who was wearing a mask and posing as The Fool. Because Lan was guarded by several puppets, the numbers were evenly matched, so the White Zetsu merely circled without attacking, as if waiting for someone.

He had rushed over without delay after receiving Pakura's message, never expecting to be intercepted by this group of White Zetsu just as he was about to rendezvous.

However, this was fine. These creatures, created from weakened Hashirama Cells, were of some use to him. He had previously considered the White Zetsu, and now that they had delivered themselves to his doorstep, it saved him the trouble.

Soon, Lan slaughtered all the White Zetsu. Just as he was happily storing their corpses in a storage scroll, he failed to notice the space behind him distort. A figure in a red cloud-patterned robe wearing a swirl mask appeared silently—it was Uchiha Obito.

The moment Obito appeared, he activated his Sharingan to unleash the ocular technique Kamui. In an instant, space began to twist around Lan's back, as if intending to distort his entire body along with the space itself.

By the time Lan noticed Obito behind him, the immense sensation of detachment caused by the spatial distortion left his body rigid, making it impossible to weave hand signs.

Had it been anyone else, they would have been forced to await their doom, as the inability to weave signs meant they could not release ninjutsu to counter.

However, Lan, possessing the Tenseigan, would certainly not be caught by Obito so easily. Knowing that Obito's body would materialize while he was using Kamui, he decisively activated the Tenseigan's ability to manipulate repulsive force.

Rumble!

An invisible repulsive force radiated outward from Lan's body in every direction.

Obito, bearing the brunt of the impact, seemed not to realize that someone could still resist after falling for his ambush. Caught off guard, he took the full force of the repulsion and was sent flying backward.

At the same time, the ocular technique Obito had been activating was interrupted, and the swirling spatial vortex that had yet to fully form dissipated on its own.

After breaking free from his restraints, Hyuga Lan turned to look at the retreating Obito, a trace of lingering fear appearing on his face beneath his mask.

He had truly been careless this time; he hadn't expected Obito to be so unscrupulous as to launch a sneak attack, nearly letting the man succeed.

On the other side, after crashing through several large trees, Obito finally managed to steady himself, but immediately let out a muffled grunt as he spat out a mouthful of blood.

It was clear that the repulsive attack had caused him internal injuries. This was the second time he had miscalculated since obtaining the Mangekyo Sharingan.

The last time had been against the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, where he had been outplayed and severely wounded by a Rasengan, even losing the Nine-Tails in the process.

This time was no better; the internal organs affected by Lan's repulsive force were still aching, making it difficult for him to breathe.

Had it not been for the White Zetsu cells he had integrated, which granted his body immense durability, anyone else hit by such a powerful Tenseigan repulsion at such close range would have likely been incapacitated instantly.

However, he could not afford to worry about his injuries now. Watching Lan's figure in the distance, his expression turned uncertain and suspicious. Clearly, Lan's method of attack felt familiar, but how could that be possible? How could there be a second pair of such eyes in the Ninja World?

Just as Obito was about to speak and ask, he saw Lan extend a palm toward him. Realizing what was coming, he immediately dodged backward and dove into a spatial vortex, disappearing in a panicked retreat.

Watching Obito vanish into the Kamui Dimension, Lan channeled his Tenseigan, scanning his surroundings intently to guard against any potential follow-up attacks.

Yet, after a long while, there was still no sign of Obito. Just as he began to wonder if the man had been scared off, he suddenly sensed something and whipped his head around to look in a specific direction.

The direction he was looking toward was precisely where Pakura was located...