A Sage's Pursuit of Power

The Chibaku Tensei technique had a reputation for being ultimately ineffective in the original storyline, every being sealed by it eventually broke free (except for Kaguya).

However, Aoba understood its real destructive potential. The ability to generate a celestial body by attracting vast amounts of mass was a feat of unparalleled magnitude.

Theoretically, the gravitational pull at the technique's center should be enough to shred any physical body. Only beings of extraordinary durability could survive it intact.

Aoba didn't dare tank the technique head-on. The moment it was activated, he used Flying Thunder God to retreat from the battlefield.

Minato followed suit, teleporting himself and Hiruzen to safety. Obito, meanwhile, soared into the air. This was his best chance to escape, as the gravitational core of Chibaku Tensei had already trapped Mui, pulling it in due to its proximity.

However, as Obito ascended, he suddenly felt a numbness spread through his body. Looking up, he noticed the sky had grown ominously overcast with thick storm clouds.

Earlier in the battle, Kisame had unleashed numerous water-style techniques, flooding the ground. Later, Itachi's fire-style jutsu had evaporated the water into steam, creating a dense layer of clouds. Aoba had subtly guided this process to accelerate the formation of the storm.

Realizing the danger, Obito immediately activated Shinra Tensei. The next moment, a massive, raging lightning dragon descended from the sky, roaring toward him.

This attack was modeled after Sasuke's future Kirin technique, harnessing the forces of nature to deliver a lightning-style jutsu far beyond the power of chakra-based techniques.

Even in his weakened state, Obito found it difficult to withstand the sheer destructive power of the lightning. However, Shinra Tensei lived up to its reputation as a divine technique, perfectly deflecting the attack and leaving Obito unscathed.

But the delay cost him dearly.

The three Flying Thunder God users: Aoba, Minato, and Kakashi capitalized on the moment. By marking each other and their kunai with the Flying Thunder God seal, they flickered through the sky, weaving a complex pattern of teleportation that left no escape routes.

Within a few exchanges, they cornered Obito.

Having just used Shinra Tensei, Obito was caught in its cooldown period. He had no choice but to endure the trio's attacks.

Dodging Kakashi's Kamui at the last second, Obito evaded the deadly spatial distortion. As the original user of Kamui, he knew better than anyone how lethal the technique was.

But this left him exposed to Minato's Rasengan, which slammed into his back.

Instead of resisting, Obito's body wriggled unnaturally. His back suddenly erupted in a forest of sharp spikes, an improvised use of Earth Release: Chaos of Hell, making his body a weapon.

The move caught Minato off guard, forcing him to retreat. Still, the Yellow Flash managed to teleport away at the last moment, avoiding any serious injury.

Midair, Minato used one of Aoba's wind-style platforms to change direction and stabilize himself.

Obito was momentarily stunned, realizing that Minato and Kakashi, neither of whom could naturally fly, were now performing aerial maneuvers as if they had wings.

It was Aoba.

Obito quickly deduced that Aoba was using his wind-style techniques to create footholds in the air for the other two. This allowed them to change direction mid-flight, creating unprecedented mobility.

As Obito repelled Minato, Kakashi struck again. Space warped around them, and Obito barely managed to dodge. However, his left arm was caught in the distortion and vanished completely.

Biting back the pain, Obito retaliated by using Banshō Ten'in (Universal Pull) on Aoba.

While Aoba could fly, controlling wind-style flight was far less fluid than using natural wings or advanced techniques like Madara's. The gravitational pull dragged him toward Obito.

"Die!"

Obito summoned a black rod and drove it toward Aoba's chest.

Although Obito couldn't yet manifest Truth-Seeking Orbs, he could use the black rods of the Rinnegan. Though often overlooked in the story, these rods were formidable weapons capable of disrupting chakra flow.

"I got you."

Obito saw the black rod pierce directly into Aoba's chest. Yet, something was off.

There was no sensation of impact.

The black rod appeared to touch Aoba's chest, but it didn't penetrate. It felt as if some invisible force was preventing the rod from making contact, even though the weapon and Aoba's chest were separated by a mere hair's breadth.

The scene was bizarre. Obito's arm and the black rod were fully extended, yet the attack felt… incomplete.

This inexplicable dissonance sent chills down Obito's spine. Something was very wrong.

To his horror, Aoba closed the gap even further, pressing against him while staring intently at the black rod.

From Obito's perspective, everything about the distance seemed normal his arm, the rod, and Aoba's position were all logically aligned. Yet, for some reason, he still couldn't land a decisive blow.

"Is this… the power of a Mangekyō Sharingan?"

Previously, Aoba had only used Kotoamatsukami on Obito. That experience was etched deeply in Obito's memory. If not for Aoba's eyes being covered, Obito wouldn't have dared to engage him in close combat.

But this time, Aoba clearly wasn't using genjutsu. Instead, he employed some sort of defensive technique.

The bizarre and formidable nature of this ability instantly reminded Obito of something, this might be the power of Aoba's other Mangekyō Sharingan.

At first glance, the ability seemed unassuming, but its effectiveness in combat was practically unparalleled.

Ignoring Obito's attack completely, Aoba forced his way into close range.

All of this happened in an instant. By this point, Obito's Shinra Tensei cooldown had just ended.

Instinctively, he prepared to activate it again, but Aoba was faster. His right hand shot forward, aiming directly for Obito's Rinnegan.

Killing Obito wasn't Aoba's primary objective. His main target had always been the Rinnegan. As long as he could remove Obito's Rinnegan, Obito's identity as Obito Uchiha would no longer matter.

The first direct clash between Elysium and Shinra Tensei occurred. Aoba immediately felt the immense pressure. It wasn't that Elysium couldn't withstand the force, but the sheer effort of resisting Shinra Tensei drained a significant amount of his Mangekyō's power.

Fortunately, this Mangekyō Sharingan had been developed purely as a weapon of war and didn't need to bear the burden of regular vision functions. As a result, its chakra reserves were relatively abundant.

Even so, Aoba couldn't afford to linger. His right hand pierced through Obito's eyelid, aiming to extract the Rinnegan.

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Currently on Chapter 299 - Something Is Very Wrong