Uchiha Izuna frowned deeply, muttering to himself: "A mere Yin-Yang Release construct… how could it possibly awaken Mangekyō Sharingan and boost Obito's power? That's just not possible…"

But in a flash of insight, he recalled how Obito had once inquired about the forbidden techniques used to restore Madara's life force…

"Brother, I understand now!"

Izuna called out loudly: "He colluded with Black Zetsu! They stole the life force we had converted from White Zetsu—that's how his ocular power reached a level nearly equal to an Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan!"

Madara's fury exploded further.

"If it weren't for you, you filthy thief… I would've fully returned to my prime! How could I have been injured by that reanimated Hashirama?! You ruined my perfect revenge!"

During the battle with Senju Hashirama—

Due to the Sage of Six Paths strengthening Hashirama's reanimated body, and Madara deliberately exposing an opening to rescue Izuna, he had been caught off guard by a Wood Release sneak attack from behind. The injury was quite serious…

And now, Madara was more than happy to pin that entire blunder on Obito.

Obito, however, simply shook his head with exasperation.

"You're seriously delusional… You think you could've beaten Hashirama without those mysterious Rinnegan of yours?"

"Let me give you some advice: if you're weak, just train more. And if you can't handle losing, then don't play in the first place."

"The past is the past. This is the present. If you keep clinging to what happened back then, why not compare it to the Warring States period while you're at it?"

Obito raised both hands like crab claws, swaying them in a taunting rhythm as he delivered the ultimate provocation: "Oh, right—you couldn't beat Hashirama back then either. So now you get to show off just because you're fighting a reanimated version of him?"

Madara was livid—absolutely furious.

What? Did this brat actually think he couldn't beat Hashirama?

"You've truly pissed me off, Uchiha Obito…"

Madara, controlling Susanoo, unleashed a relentless flurry of slash waves at Obito. His eyes bloodshot with rage, he roared as he attacked without pause: "You think your intangibility will save you forever?!"

"You wanted to test whose ocular power lasts longer? The moment you dare show your real body—my Susanoo and my Limbo clones will rip you to shreds!"

"You—and that trash Black Zetsu—I'll obliterate both your bodies and souls until not even dust remains!"

Madara had chosen the brute-force approach—

He knew Obito could move while intangible. So to force him to remain intangible nonstop, the only solution was to launch a barrage of saturation attacks without letting up for even a second.

And since Obito wasn't slow, the rate of attack needed to be exceptionally high to keep up with him.

This, of course, consumed massive amounts of chakra and ocular energy.

But now that Madara had been enraged—

He no longer had any interest in fighting elegantly. He would crush everything in his path through sheer overwhelming force!

Uchiha Obito narrowed his eyes, watching as the torrent of slash waves swept through his intangible body like a downpour. He frowned slightly—it was becoming a bit troublesome.

Inside him, Black Zetsu spoke up at that moment: "Obito… you've completely enraged him. When your intangibility ends, brace yourself with Susanoo for the moment, and stay alert for Uchiha Izuna's space-freezing ocular jutsu. Try shifting to the Kamui dimension to ride out the storm."

"Rest for a bit, then come back."

Obito nodded reluctantly.

"I really don't like losing sight of Kazuki… but I guess there's no other choice. That old man goes completely unhinged when he snaps…"

Black Zetsu shook its head.

"Don't worry, Obito. Kazuki will be fine…"

But inwardly, Black Zetsu was already laughing.

This—this was exactly what it wanted to see: Madara in complete madness.

As long as Madara went all out, and with Uchiha Izuna nearby as well, there was no way Obito would be able to use Kamui to transfer Kazuki's coffin.

And once Obito left the battlefield, Black Zetsu already had a second script prepared.

It would analyze the strength of Uchiha Madara and Uchiha Izuna, highlight how thoroughly they restrained Obito, and make him acknowledge the gap—persuading him to become the Ten-Tails' jinchūriki before coming back to save Kazuki.

That way, the plan would proceed exactly as intended!

And its persona in front of Obito—its motives and logic—would remain perfectly intact.

Two birds, one stone.

As the three red-eyed Uchiha—Obito, Izuna, and Madara—locked horns in their power struggle…

Senju Tobirama, who had momentarily relaxed, glanced at his older brother Senju Hashirama's helpless expression and felt a sudden sense of unease.

Something's not right…

He knew the limits of his own Reanimation Jutsu.

There's no way his brother could be fighting at a level equal to when he was alive. Something else must be interfering behind the scenes—something he wasn't aware of!

Who else was involved?

And then there was what Obito had said—that Madara had created life through Yin-Yang Release, and that lifeform awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan, granting Obito a sudden leap in ocular power…

That felt even more suspicious to Tobirama.

Izuna claimed it was from stealing converted life force…

But Tobirama could only scoff inwardly—

Uchiha Izuna was nothing more than a brute. He had never conducted any proper research. He didn't even understand the basic principles behind the Uchiha's ocular powers!

No one—

No one knew the Uchiha clan better than him!

Even with Hashirama's cells, full of life energy, all they could do was slow down ocular power depletion or modestly supplement it. At best, the boost in strength was slow and limited—it could never explain the kind of explosive leap Obito had undergone.

From all the intelligence Tobirama had gathered, Obito's dual Kamui power had skyrocketed in a very short time, going from Mangekyō to near-Eternal Mangekyō levels.

That kind of leap could only be fueled by something equivalent to Mangekyō-level high-grade chakra.

Large quantities of life force might seem plausible—but in truth, they didn't target the core issue!

Which meant… that Black Zetsu was deeply abnormal. It likely wasn't even a product of Madara's Yin-Yang Release at all.

Tobirama simply didn't believe that any technique of Madara's could create a being capable of advancing someone's Mangekyō into Eternal form.

As these threads of suspicion flew rapidly through Tobirama's sharp mind, piecing together scattered clues—

Inside Kazuki's body, Kaguya's expression had clearly shifted.

Madara's description of Black Zetsu—as a puddle of black sludge—and the way it nurtured Obito's ocular power, its ability to control White Zetsu…

Made everything click into place for her.

This sudden awakening in Obito—there could be only one mastermind behind it.

Her third son—Ōtsutsuki Zetsu.

"Kaguya, what is it?"

Kazuki turned his head, noticing the change in Kaguya's expression. He asked gently, "Is something wrong?"

Kaguya was startled. She quickly composed herself and shook her head.

"No, Kazuki… I was just thinking… about when Isshiki and Hagoromo might choose to act."

Kazuki nodded knowingly. Narrowing his eyes as he looked toward Obito and Madara, he said softly: "If it were me, I'd strike the moment Obito's intangibility ends."

"If Isshiki has enough battle experience, he'll probably do the same."

Kaguya nodded half-believingly as she looked at Uchiha Obito, now fully engaged in combat, and couldn't help but feel a flicker of satisfaction.

Even if Black Zetsu wasn't as capable as she was—unable to lure in a Uchiha as powerful as Kazuki—

Recruiting and cultivating a fighter like Obito was still a sign of considerable loyalty.

And Kaguya was thinking to herself...

Kazuki was undeniably gifted—but could he really predict Isshiki's next move this time?

This was Ōtsutsuki Isshiki they were talking about!

Time continued ticking by at an alarming pace...

And just as Obito's intangibility was about to end—

"Ready Susanoo, Obito!" Black Zetsu shouted urgently.

"Brace yourself for Madara's first strike—use the force of the impact to shift sideways and escape into the Kamui dimension!"

Obito gave a firm nod.

At the same time, Uchiha Madara, driven into a blood-red frenzy, sensed that Obito's intangibility was nearing its limit. In a flash, he launched himself forward!

The two towering Susanoo avatars collided violently!

A deafening shockwave exploded outward. The ground split and trembled like a full-blown earthquake as dust and rubble filled the air.

The surrounding shinobi struggled to steady themselves amidst the chaos…

And when the smoke finally cleared—

What they saw was utterly terrifying.

Uchiha Madara.

Uchiha Obito.

Senju Tobirama.

Uchiha Izuna.

All four of the battlefield's mightiest figures had been simultaneously impaled by a storm of dense black Yin-Yang Release rods—each one now collapsed in a pool of their own blood.

At the very center of the battlefield—

A monk stood silently, his face covered in ominous black markings like a cursed seal. A cold, murderous grin spread across his lips.

"…You're all quite talented, for mere mortals."

"But over the course of a thousand years, I've discovered your kind's most fatal weakness—your addiction to meaningless infighting."

Jigen—or rather, Ōtsutsuki Isshiki—

Had officially entered the battlefield.

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