The Masked Man's Defenses Shattered, Mercilessly Exposed

The questioning voice echoed through the air, while the crimson glow in Obito's right eye burned brighter and brighter.

Cold, sinister chakra spread along the ground in every direction. Dust and debris churned wherever it passed, and in the blink of an eye, Ye and everyone behind him were enclosed within it.

Obito had long grown accustomed to hiding in the shadows and controlling everything. Even after sensing the danger, he still maintained his lofty posture, using it to conceal the increasingly ragged breaths beneath his mask.

"Every shadow in this Shinobi World lies beneath my gaze."

Chakra continuously surged around Obito, making the nearby rubble tremble and bounce.

"A mere Uchiha who betrayed his clan dares interfere with my grand plan?"

He fixed his gaze on Ye, his words growing ever more aggressive.

"You think controlling a few Hidden Mist Village trash lets you spout nonsense here?"

This provocation was not merely an attempt to vent his anger. Obito was still probing him, hoping to force Ye into revealing his hand and determine just how much this variable knew.

Faced with his relentless pressure, Ye did not even raise his eyelids much.

A familiar, rapid mechanical notification sounded in his mind, and a blue system panel unfolded in the center of his vision.

"Ding! Core plot character Obito Uchiha is engaging in psychological warfare. Host, please make an immediate choice and launch a powerful counterattack!"

"Option One: Speak vaguely, pretend to know very little, and attempt to muddle through."

"Reward: Ten Chakra Metal Kunai."

"Option Two: Imply that you possess some top-secret intelligence and seek an opportunity for equal negotiations."

"Reward: C-rank Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique."

"Option Three: Completely expose his true identity and the truth behind Rin Nohara's death, utterly shattering his psychological defenses."

"Reward: Premium Item [Space Anchor Confinement Formation (single-use, capable of sealing Mangekyo Sharingan-level spatial teleportation for ten minutes)]."

The three options flashed before him, yet Ye's breathing did not change in the slightest.

A person who relied on deception and distortion, cowering in dark corners just to survive, did not deserve to be called mysterious.

Since the system had delivered an item specifically meant to counter Kamui, it was time for this farce of feigned mystery to end.

Ye responded to the system in his mind.

"I choose three."

The moment his response was sent, the formation disc for the [Space Anchor Confinement Formation] appeared in his system inventory.

Ye stepped forward, his black leather boots treading across the bluestone floor. Each heavy footstep landed after another.

With every step Ye took, the fingers hanging at Obito's side clenched tighter.

Ye did not stop until only five meters remained between them.

He looked at the lone eye behind the mask and laughed, the mockery on his face no longer concealed.

"Put away that ridiculous act of yours, Obito Uchiha."

The instant that name reached his ears, the chakra surging around Obito faltered. Even the tomoe in his right eye spun out of rhythm.

"You really think wearing Madara Uchiha's skin can hide the fact that you're worthless?"

Kabuto Yakushi, standing behind them, raised a hand to push up his round-framed glasses. A blinding gleam flashed across the lenses, while the fingers hidden in his sleeve quietly curled against his palm.

Obito Uchiha?

The Konoha hero who should have died at Kannabi Bridge during the Third Shinobi World War?

The masked man who had turned Kirigakure upside down and transformed the Fourth Mizukage into a puppet was actually that Konoha genin who should have long been buried underground?

Terumi Mei and Ao exchanged a glance, the color draining from both their faces at once.

They knew little about Konoha ninja, but placing the name Obito Uchiha beside the masked man before them was still so absurd that they could not speak for a moment.

Ye gave Obito no chance to catch his breath. His next words directly tore open the deepest secret Obito had buried away.

"Lurking in the shadows to control the Mizukage, yet still dreaming of escaping reality through the so-called Infinite Tsukuyomi."

Ye tilted his head, his gaze settling on the constantly trembling Sharingan behind the mask's eyehole.

"Obito, the state you're in now is pathetic beyond words."

That Sharingan spun faster and faster, crimson bloodlight nearly filling the entire eyehole.

"You couldn't even protect the woman you loved. All you could do was watch Rin Nohara die by Kakashi's hand."

Ye took half a step forward, meeting that out-of-control blood-red gaze.

"A coward like you has no right to talk about the shadows of the Shinobi World."

Rin Nohara.

The moment that name entered his ears, nothing remained in Obito's mind except a piercing buzz. Every sound around him was swallowed by that bloodstained memory.

This was the past he could never tolerate anyone touching, the root of despair he had concealed with countless lies and killings until now.

Yet Ye had completely exposed it before everyone, leaving him without even the last layer of cover.

"Shut up!"

A shrill roar burst from behind the mask. Obito could no longer care about his identity or the situation.

The chakra he had barely kept contained erupted completely out of control. Dark-purple currents surged toward the ceiling before sweeping through the entire office.

The mahogany desk closest to him was crushed on the spot. A storm of splinters was swept into the current, striking the walls with loud crackling sounds.

Dense cracks spread across the ceiling, and chunks of stone fell one after another, quickly covering half the office.

Kimimaro stepped forward half a pace, his bone blade slashing repeatedly and shattering every stone flying toward those behind him.

Zabuza drove Kubikiribōchō into the ground with a backhand motion, bracing both arms against its spine to barely steady himself in the violent currents.

The disguise Obito had maintained until now completely collapsed, and an uncontrolled growl sounded from beneath his mask.

He could no longer maintain that composed, all-controlling posture. Only one thought remained, repeating over and over in his mind.

Kill him!

Tear this bastard who knows everything to pieces!

The Sharingan within the mask's eyehole spun madly, and the Kamui vortex expanded with it, swelling dozens of times larger in an instant.

The distorted spatial force around them was forcibly twisted into several transparent blades, which shot toward Ye's throat with piercing shrieks.

Rampaging chakra currents sliced through the walls, leaving deep gashes behind. Flickering shadows swayed rapidly through the dust.

A spatial shredding attack of this level was enough to rip any ninja into pieces in an instant.

Facing the spatial blades that had already reached his throat, Ye could not even be bothered to move his feet.

He stood where he was, back straight, as his right Mangekyo Sharingan lit up with a dark golden glow. His unique ocular technique fully activated.

"Yomotsu Hirasaka, reverse it!"

The dark golden radiance tore through the gloom, illuminating the entire office in an instant.

The Mangekyo Sharingan pattern in Ye's right eye spun rapidly as the reversal laws controlled by [Yomotsu Hirasaka] spread out, forming an invisible barrier before him.

The spatial blades carrying an aura of destruction struck the barrier without producing the slightest sound of impact.

The instant the distorted spatial force touched the dark golden light, its edges began to dissolve. Then it collapsed layer by layer until even its outline vanished completely.

Only a few nearly invisible streams of air swept past either side of Ye's windbreaker, causing its hem to flutter gently.

An attack capable of instantly killing a jonin had been erased so casually.

The lone eye behind Obito's mask widened, shock flooding his gaze as even his breathing skipped for half a beat.

With his spatial shredding attack rendered ineffective, he did not stop. He stomped hard against the ground and shot forward by borrowing the force.

The five fingers of his right hand spread wide as they reached for Ye's face.

Since long-range attacks could not deal with him, Obito would activate Kamui at close range and forcibly drag this troublesome opponent into another dimension.

The distance rapidly closed, and the Kamui vortex in Obito's right eye opened once more.

But he had overlooked one thing.