Obito's Kamui attack missed. Beneath his mask, his brow lifted almost imperceptibly. The Flying Thunder God Technique's mobility truly lived up to its reputation.
"Quick reflexes, kid." Obito's voice still held the playful teasing of a cat toying with a mouse. His figure dissolved into the Kamui vortex again. "But can you predict where I'll appear next?"
Ling's Sharingan tracked every unusual ripple in the surrounding space, while his mind raced. He pushed the extraordinary perception granted by his Sage Body to its limit, sweat trickling down his temples. Facing Obito head-on was suicide. His only chance was to keep moving and buy time!
"Left!"
The instant the space rippled, Ling used the Flying Thunder God Technique again, narrowly avoiding Obito's hand as it reached out from the left, trying to grab his arm.
"Tch, sharp senses, too." Obito's figure solidified elsewhere. The amusement in his voice faded, replaced by a hint of seriousness. "So it wasn't luck."
Dodging successfully twice gave Ling a little confidence. He realized Obito didn't seem to be fighting at full strength; it was more like he was testing Ling's abilities. That gave him a brief chance to catch his breath.
"Sis Izumi! Get out of here! Find someone named Haku or Kimimaro. They'll protect you!" Ling called to Uchiha Izumi, who was still frozen with shock and fear. He had to get her away from this most dangerous battlefield first.
Izumi snapped back to her senses. She looked at the normally quiet boy from her clan, now keeping a terrifying enemy at bay, and felt an indescribable mix of shock and worry. But she knew that staying would only make her a burden.
"You... be careful!" She clenched her teeth, gave Ling one last look, then turned and rushed into the thick fog without hesitation.
"Trying to leave?" Obito chuckled. His figure blurred again, this time aiming straight for Izumi!
"Your opponent is me!" A fierce glint flashed in Ling's eyes. This time, he didn't dodge! He held three kunai fitted with Explosive Tags in each hand. With precision and force beyond his years, he didn't throw them at Obito, but at the ground and points in space between Obito and Izumi!
Boom! Boom! Boom!
A series of explosions kicked up waves of heat and clouds of dust, briefly disrupting the stability of the space in that area and obscuring the view. Obito was forced out of the Kamui state and glanced at Ling, slightly surprised.
"Not bad tactical thinking. Too bad..." Before Obito could finish, Ling had already used the Flying Thunder God Technique to change position again. At the same time, he formed Hand Seals—
"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"
It wasn't meant to attack, but to churn the fog further and disrupt Obito's vision and ability to pinpoint Ling. For a moment, the fog around them churned, their figures appearing and disappearing within it. The golden flash of the Flying Thunder God and the Kamui vortex flickered from time to time, accompanied by the clatter of kunai and occasional explosions. It was a strange and dangerous game of hide-and-seek.
Ling pushed his speed and mobility to the limit, never staying in one place for more than a second. He knew that if Obito touched him, or caught him in a genjutsu with his Sharingan, it would all be over. He was dancing on the edge of a blade, rapidly burning through both his stamina and chakra.
Elsewhere in the clan district, under the thick fog.
Uchiha Itachi moved through familiar streets and houses like a black reaper. His blade was cold and precise; every swing erased a name from the list. His face showed no emotion, but deep in his Mangekyō Sharingan lay an unspeakable pain and resolve. When members of the clan on the blacklist occasionally ran past in a panic, he merely put them to sleep with genjutsu instead of killing them.
Elsewhere, Kimimaro and Zabuza's hunting team worked with great efficiency.
"Shikotsumyaku: Ten-Finger Drilling Bullets!"
"Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique!"
The bone bullets and water dragon struck in tandem, tearing apart a radical Chunin who had tried to organize a resistance, along with his two subordinates.
"Hmph. The Uchiha's Sharingan is nothing special." Zabuza flicked the blood from the Kubikiribōchō, his tone scornful.
Kimimaro said nothing. He warily scanned the area around them. Suddenly, he sensed something and looked in one direction. "There are a lot of noncombatants gathered over there. They're panicking."
"Tch, what a pain." Though Zabuza sounded impatient, he raised his sword. "Stick to the plan and guide them to the meeting point. That kid Haku should already be on his way."
Uchiha Izumi ran desperately through the thick fog, her heart pounding. The screams and sounds of battle all around her filled her with terror. Relying on her memory and Ling's directions, she ran toward the outskirts of the clan district.
Suddenly, two figures burst out of the fog ahead and blocked her path! They were two young Uchiha radicals, driven nearly mad by genjutsu and the slaughter. They recognized Izumi, their eyes glinting with confused bloodlust.
"It's Izumi! She's with those cowards!"
"Kill her!"
Izumi's face turned deathly pale. Though she had awakened her One-Tomoe Sharingan, she had almost no combat experience. Faced with two frenzied clansmen, she instinctively backed away, nearly giving in to despair.
"Ice Release: Icicle!"
At the last possible moment, several sharp icicles rained down, piercing the feet of the two radicals and pinning them in place. They let out piercing screams.
From within the fog, Haku slowly emerged from an Ice Mirror. His face showed reluctance, but his movements were decisive. "Are you Miss Izumi? Lord Ling sent me to escort you. Please come with me. I'll take you somewhere safe."
Izumi looked at the handsome young man who had appeared out of nowhere and used Ice Release. As if she had grasped a lifeline, she hurriedly nodded.
Meanwhile, on another street, Kimimaro had found the first group of about a dozen frightened women and children. He was guiding them along a path of ice crystals Haku had made.
The rescue operation was unfolding amid the slaughter, with great difficulty but in an orderly fashion.
On the main battlefield, Ling's standoff with Obito continued. He had already used up more than half his chakra, and his breathing had grown ragged. Obito seemed to be losing patience, and his attacks grew fiercer.
"The game's over, little mouse." Obito's voice turned cold. The pattern of his Mangekyō Sharingan slowly spun as a greater force of ocular power began to gather.
Ling's heart sank. He knew the most dangerous moment was coming. As he calculated where the Flying Thunder God Technique would take him, he pressed a hand against the seal on his abdomen—if necessary, he had no choice but to risk drawing out a trace of Nine-Tails Chakra!
But just as the tension reached its breaking point, a cold, familiar voice rang through the fog, as if it had come from the depths of the underworld:
"Your opponent should be me, shouldn't it... 'Madara'?"
Uchiha Itachi emerged slowly from the fog, a bloodied longsword in hand and his Anbu uniform stained red. His eerie Mangekyō Sharingan fixed coldly on Obito.
The pressure on Ling suddenly eased. At last, the inside man had joined his side at the most crucial moment!
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