Izanagi!

"I'm going to show you... my ultimate art!!"

He tore open the clothes over his chest!

"Whoa! Senior! You're not going to use that, are you?! I'm getting out of here first!"

Before Tobi even finished speaking, his body had already begun to warp as he prepared to escape with Kamui.

"Watch closely! This is my ultimate art! My self-destruction! C0!!!"

Deidara stuffed the last of his clay into his mouth and let out a desperate roar!

World-destroying energy began to gather!

"Trying to blow yourself up?" Ye Chuan's gaze turned cold. "Do you think you'll get that chance in front of me?"

The instant before Deidara could detonate, Ye Chuan pushed his speed to its limit!

Shing!!!

A streak of pitch-black lightning flashed past, too fast for the naked eye to follow!

Deidara's movements abruptly froze, and the frenzied light in his eyes rapidly dimmed.

"My... art..."

Thud! His body fell limply to the ground, and the explosive energy he had gathered dissipated with it.

[Detected that the host has killed Akatsuki member Deidara...]

[Comprehensive assessment... Inheritance Experience +2,300 points!]

[Current Inheritance Progress: 94.6%]

Just then, the space behind Ye Chuan suddenly warped, and Tobi, who had just used Kamui to evade the explosion, reappeared.

An opening!

Killing intent surged in Ye Chuan's eyes!

Without the slightest hesitation, he delivered a backhand slash.

Slash!!!

Coated in pitch-black Haki, Wado Ichimonji sliced through Tobi's waist without any resistance!

"What?!"

Having just ended Kamui, Obito felt a chill at his waist, followed by excruciating pain!

To his horror, he discovered that he had been... cut in half?!

Yet just as Ye Chuan thought he had succeeded, Tobi's severed body warped and vanished like a phantom!

An unharmed Tobi appeared a short distance away, the sole remaining Sharingan beneath his mask having lost its light forever.

[Izanagi]!

"Cough... cough..."

Obito reappeared, breathing heavily as he stared at Ye Chuan with unprecedented horror.

He had actually been forced to use Izanagi!

Just what kind of monster... was this Ye Chuan?!

"Who... exactly are you?!" Obito's voice was extremely grave.

"Just a passing... swordsman."

Ye Chuan looked at Obito, who had activated Izanagi, his brows tightly furrowed.

Tch, Izanagi? What a troublesome ability.

The Uchiha Clan's cheats really were more unfair than the last.

He knew it was now almost impossible to finish Obito off here. His opponent still had Kamui, that game-breaking Space-Time Ninjutsu.

Obito also knew he could not stay any longer. What had just happened had been far too close a call.

If this fight went on, who knew what other trump cards this monster had.

"We... will meet again!"

Leaving those words behind, Obito activated Kamui again. His body instantly warped and vanished from the spot.

"Tch, another one got away." Ye Chuan sheathed his sword and remarked with some resignation, "The Uchiha Clan... really are hard to kill."

He steadied his breathing, checked his bearings, and prepared to return to Konoha.

Only a long while later did Sasuke Uchiha and his teammates follow the trail to the devastated battlefield.

Looking at Deidara's mangled corpse on the ground and the terrifying traces of battle all around, as though a natural disaster had swept through, everyone wore expressions of shock.

Meanwhile, at the Akatsuki base in Amegakure.

Atop the tower, Obito, who had just escaped back in disgrace, was issuing orders under Madara Uchiha's identity.

"...That Konoha brat named Ye Chuan is bizarrely powerful. He must be eliminated as soon as possible!"

"Pain, begin the plan to capture the Nine-Tails immediately! Failure is not an option!"

"As for the Two-Tails he rescued... bring her back as well!"

"Be especially wary of that Ye Chuan!" Obito emphasized at the end.

"He may very well become the greatest variable!"

"...Understood," Pain replied indifferently, no emotion visible in his Rinnegan.

Konoha... the Nine-Tails... and that variable named Ye Chuan?

No matter.

It was time to let the world know pain.

Outside a special isolation ward in Konoha's hospital.

Ye Chuan and Hinata arrived at the deepest part of the hospital together.

The area was heavily guarded, with sensory barriers everywhere, clearly to protect someone extremely important.

"Lord Ye Chuan, Lady Hinata, please come in. Lady Yugito Nii has woken up and specifically asked to see you."

After confirming their identities, the Anbu Ninja on guard respectfully opened the ward door.

Ye Chuan nodded and walked in with Hinata.

Sakura was already waiting inside. As Tsunade's disciple, she had also taken part in some of Yugito Nii's treatment.

The blonde woman who had once been pinned to a wall with black rods was now sitting up in her hospital bed.

She had changed into clean hospital clothes. Although her face was still somewhat pale, her distinctive, differently colored eyes had regained their spark.

Yugito Nii had long, silky golden hair, delicate features, and a tall, slender figure. She truly was a rare beauty.

"Ye Chuan... right?"

Seeing Ye Chuan enter, Yugito Nii struggled to rise and bow, but he raised a hand to stop her.

"Your injuries haven't healed yet. There's no need for formalities," Ye Chuan said calmly.

Yugito Nii... in the original story, she seemed to have called herself a Perfect Jinchuriki whose strength was second only to Killer B's in Kumogakure.

Unfortunately, she had been captured by the Immortal Duo before she had much chance to show her strength in the original story. She was purely a plot device.

Still, she really was beautiful.

"No... I must thank you for saving my life." Yugito Nii's tone was full of sincerity.

"If you hadn't arrived in time, I'm afraid I..." She did not finish, but her meaning was self-evident.

She looked at the black-haired youth before her, so much younger than herself, her eyes filled with curiosity.

"Lady Tsunade told me... you drove those two monsters off all by yourself?"

"Those two... were too strong... even with Matatabi's power, I was no match for them at all..."

There was a hint of defeat in her voice. Despite being a Perfect Jinchuriki, she had lost so completely.

Ye Chuan merely nodded calmly without offering much explanation.

He knew Kakuzu and Hidan were indeed very strong. There was no shame in Yugito Nii losing to them.

Seeing that Ye Chuan seemed unwilling to discuss the details of the battle, Yugito Nii changed the subject with a slightly mischievous smile.

"Come to think of it, Ye Chuan, not only are you monstrously strong, you're so handsome, too."

"Which of these two lovely girls beside you is your girlfriend? Or... are they both?"

At her words, Hinata instantly flushed from her head to the base of her neck. She lowered her head and fiddled with the hem of her clothes, not daring to speak.

Sakura's pretty face flushed as well, and she hurriedly waved her hands in a panic.

"No! Please don't misunderstand, Lady Yugito Nii! We're just teammates..."

"Neither." Ye Chuan still wore the same calm expression as he denied it outright.