In the forest along the Land of Tea's border, space had been sealed off, rendering Kamui useless.
Obito stood ten meters away, strange ripples swirling in his Pseudo-Rinnegan. They resembled the Rinnegan, but were more distorted, like shoddy imitations barely pieced together. Lin Ye's Mind's Eye System "saw" the chaotic flow of chakra inside him. Orochimaru's modifications were imperfect, and these eyes were steadily consuming Obito's life.
"Move aside, Obito," Lin Ye said, eight Adamantine Sealing Chains spreading silently behind him. "Sasuke needs me. Konoha needs me."
"Sasuke no longer exists." Obito's voice was icy. "The one inside that body now is Ōtsutsuki Isshiki. With chakra from half of the Eight-Tails and the Hashirama cells I provided, Black Zetsu has already finished fully thawing the Kāma. Even if you rush back, you'll be too late."
"Then I'll kill you first and rush back afterward." Lin Ye moved.
No hand seals. No warning. Eight chains shot forward like lightning. But Obito's Pseudo-Rinnegan spun, and an invisible repulsive force knocked the chains away before they could touch him.
"Shinra Tensei? No, a degraded version," Lin Ye assessed instantly. "The repulsion is only half as strong as Nagato's, and there's a delay. Your eyes can't handle continuous use."
"So you saw through it? What difference does that make?" Obito formed hand seals. "Wood Release: Deep Forest Emergence!"
Trees surged wildly from the ground, but Lin Ye's Adamantine Sealing Chains were faster. Rather than attacking Obito, the chains plunged into the earth, cutting off the chakra supply before the trees could grow. Without sustained support from the Hashirama cells, the trees quickly withered.
"Your Wood Release is just a degraded imitation, too," Lin Ye said. "Everything Orochimaru gave you is second-rate. He's only using you. Once Isshiki is revived, you'll be discarded."
"So what?" Obito laughed, his smile twisted. "As long as I can complete the Eye of the Moon, as long as I can see Rin, I'll do anything. Even if it means becoming a pawn. Even if it means being discarded."
"You're lying to yourself." Lin Ye raised his hand, blood running from his left eye. Though blind, it still retained its eye power. "Amaterasu!"
Black flames ignited on Obito's body. But he neither dodged nor retreated, letting Amaterasu burn him. Amid the flames, his body began to change. His skin peeled away, revealing a white body underneath. It was another of Orochimaru's modifications: White Zetsu cells covering his entire body. Amaterasu had only burned away the outer shell.
"Orochimaru even prepared for this..." Lin Ye gritted his teeth. After fighting battle after battle, he had little chakra or eye power left. He had to end this quickly.
"My turn." Obito's Pseudo-Rinnegan spun again. "Banshō Ten'in!"
An attractive force surged toward Lin Ye, dragging him toward Obito. But at the moment of contact, Lin Ye did something unexpected: he willingly released his Adamantine Sealing Chains and took Obito's attack head-on with his body.
Squelch!
Obito's hand pierced Lin Ye's chest. But Obito's expression changed. Something felt wrong. There was no sensation of piercing flesh. He looked down and saw the "Lin Ye" he had impaled crumble into dirt.
An earth clone! When?
"Over here." Lin Ye's voice came from behind him. The real Lin Ye had been hiding in the Kamui Dimension all along, using an earth clone as bait. Now he pressed both hands against Obito's back, intricate sealing formulas covering his palms.
"Sealing Jutsu: Eight Trigrams Seal!"
But this was not the kind used to seal tailed beasts. It was a modified version designed specifically to seal the flow of chakra. Obito tried to become intangible with Kamui, but the sealing jutsu had already taken effect, temporarily locking away his spatial abilities.
"You..." Obito struggled, but Lin Ye's chains were already coiling around him. All eight tightened like pythons, binding him into a tightly wrapped bundle.
"It's over, Obito," Lin Ye said. "But I won't kill you. Kakashi-sensei said he wanted to bring you back himself."
"Kakashi..." Obito's gaze wavered for an instant, then quickly turned cold again. "It's no use. I can't go back anymore. The real me died when Rin died. What I am now is nothing but an empty shell carrying out the Eye of the Moon."
"Then let Kakashi-sensei decide." Lin Ye strengthened the seal, and Obito lost consciousness.
The spatial blockade lifted. Lin Ye immediately teleported with Kamui, but the distance was too great. It took three successive jumps to reach the Land of Fire's border. He sensed in Konoha's direction. There, a terrifying surge of chakra was erupting.
Ōtsutsuki Isshiki had awakened.
Before you continue