Obito stood rigid atop a red pine, his feet resting on its soft needles.
Scarlet tomoe swirled in his lone eye.
Beneath his mask, his breathing grew heavy and ragged.
Back in the underground base, Madara had drilled the terror of Hashirama Senju into him countless times.
Throughout the shinobi world, only the First Hokage had possessed the Wood Release that could pacify a war-torn age.
That power belonged exclusively to the pinnacle of the Senju Clan.
How could a genuine member of the Uchiha wield Wood Release?
And judging by the destructive force of that last strike, it clearly wasn't some inferior product of grafting.
That combination of vitality and unyielding strength was countless times superior to Danzo's shoddy transplanted arm.
"Impossible."
"Uchiha Chikage cannot possibly be a descendant of the Senju Clan."
Obito muttered to himself.
Everything he had planned in his Kamui Dimension had been thrown into disarray in that instant.
He absolutely could not let that carriage advance any farther.
The three tomoe in Obito's eye suddenly spun.
A surge of ocular power traveled along hidden chakra threads in the air, extending toward Kirigakure's vanguard command camp several miles away.
Ahead on the muddy highway in the Land of Waves, the mist suddenly thickened.
Dense moisture soaked all the surrounding trees.
Heavy footsteps sounded from deep within the fog.
Dozens of Kirigakure Anbu flanked the procession, their expressions solemn.
Walking in the center was a short youth.
A long-handled weapon with a petal-shaped iron hook rested on his back, and a scar marked his left cheek.
He was the ruler of the Land of Water, the Fourth Mizukage, Karatachi Yagura.
At that moment, a faint red gleam flickered deep within Yagura's pupils.
Obito's genjutsu had long since taken complete control of his mind.
"The Mizukage is