Although being called idiots by Obito Uchiha made them beyond furious, the clan members couldn't help but feel that his words held a certain weight. Except for a rare few, the eyes of most Uchiha would bleed whenever their Sharingan awakened or advanced in stage.
While none of them truly knew what awakening the Mangekyō Sharingan entailed, it was the evolution beyond the Three Tomoe; it stood to reason that such a breakthrough wouldn't happen without a single ripple.
If what Obito said was true, then Patriarch Fugaku was in a very dangerous position. What was the meaning of this? You refused to reveal your Sharingan when it mattered most, and now that your own son is dead, you're just going to stand by and do nothing against the murderer?
Noticing the shift in the way his clansmen were looking at him, Fugaku Uchiha's expression darkened. He quickly interjected, "Don't be swayed by Obito's provocations! Have you forgotten that it was because Obito released the Nine Tails that the village drove us out of our Clan Compound in the first place?"
The Uchiha turned their gaze back toward Obito, thinking that the Patriarch's point was valid. However, before they could dwell on it, Obito spoke again.
"I called you idiots, and you still don't believe me. Have you forgotten that the plan to target the Uchiha started all the way back with Tobirama Senju? Do you really think the Nine Tails incident was the deciding factor?
And don't forget when the Nine Tails appeared, the Uchiha were ready to help. It was Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzo who blocked us. If they hadn't, the Leaf's losses would have been significantly lower.
"And after everything was over, if Fugaku had been tough enough, the village wouldn't have dared to drive the Uchiha out of the Clan Compound. It just goes to show you were stuck with a pathetic patriarch."
Some of the Uchiha who were quicker on the uptake realized he was right. They had been barred from the rescue efforts, only to have the blame pinned on their heads afterward. Even the surrounding Anbu couldn't help but reach the same conclusion.
Many of them had lived through the Nine Tails' rampage and lost friends and family. As they connected the dots, the looks they cast toward Hiruzen Sarutobi became increasingly complicated.
Sensing the atmosphere, Hiruzen hurriedly spoke up. "The Nine Tails was being controlled by a Sharingan back then, and we didn't know who the true culprit was. If we had let the Uchiha help and the culprit used the opportunity to cause more chaos, even more people would have died."
"A fair point," Obito mocked. "But let me ask you, old monkey aren't you hailed as the 'strongest Hokage' in the Ninja Academy textbooks? Why couldn't you handle the Nine Tails then? The First Hokage could easily suppress it with Wood Release, and the Second could use his Flying Thunder God Technique to stall it indefinitely until he found an opening to seal it.
"According to the Leaf's Will of Fire, the old leaves should sacrifice themselves so the new ones can grow. But with you, it's the young who burn. Sakumo Hatake died because of you, and so did Minato Namikaze. Power truly corrupts.
I bet you only stepped down because of your age and your failures on the battlefield. Even when Minato became Hokage, I doubt he had many people he could actually use. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been left to die alone."
Noticing the increasingly bizarre looks from the crowd, Hiruzen Sarutobi hurriedly defended himself. "Stop talking nonsense! Minato died because he moved the Nine Tails outside the village to protect everyone, and there was no time for anyone to assist..."
"Right, right, you're absolutely right. But only a fool would believe you. Not everyone is as much of an idiot as the common Leaf villagers. Hiding Naruto Uzumaki's identity as the Fourth's son is one thing,
but then you leak that he's the Demon Fox Reincarnate? An Uzumaki orphan and the reincarnation of a monster... it's lucky those commoner idiots couldn't put the pieces together. If they had, I would have missed out on years of entertainment."
"Enough! Obito, why have you become like this? Where is your Will of Fire? You told me never to become trash who abandons their comrades! Why did you change?" Kakashi Hatake's eyes were bloodshot as he glared at his former friend.
Hearing those words, Obito's face twisted into a mask of rage. He walked toward Kakashi step by step. Several Anbu ninjas attempted to ambush him, and Jiraiya even quietly attempted to use a Sealing Jutsu and other specialized techniques, yet every single attack passed right through Obito's body as if he were a ghost.
Without any resistance, the furious Obito arrived at Kakashi's side. "Why have I become like this? You ask me why? Rin was my everything, yet she died. I watched with my own eyes as she died by your hand. Maybe there were other reasons, but in the end, Rin is dead. Since she's gone, what use is this filthy world? I'd rather just destroy it."
The moment he finished speaking, Obito reached out. Kakashi let out a gut-wrenching scream. The socket where the Sharingan had once been was now a hollow, empty void. Obito had reclaimed the eye.
"This eye was meant to be a gift for your promotion to Jonin, but its most important purpose was so you could protect Rin. Since she's dead, you have no use for this eye anymore. I'm taking it back."
Holding the Sharingan in his hand, Obito walked toward the village's edge. Both the Uchiha and the Anbu followed him, soon reaching the boundary of the village's Barrier. Once there, Obito's twisted expression suddenly melted into a smirk.
"Today was quite fun, especially Patriarch Fugaku. I really appreciated that look in your eyes full of hatred, yet powerless to kill me. My only regret is that I didn't get to see the Uchiha and the Leaf go to war tonight. I was hoping to collect a few more Three Tomoe Sharingan. After all, if they're going to the Leaf, they might as well go to me. But looking at things now, it seems the fight won't happen.
"I'll head back to Kirigakure to keep playing with my toys." With that, Obito pulled out the familiar one-eyed mask from his pocket, walked to the edge of the Barrier, and stepped through without triggering a single alarm.
The villagers were on high alert. With an Obito Uchiha who could come and go as he pleased, they had no way of stopping him if he truly intended to harm the village.
Just as everyone was staring blankly at the Barrier, Obito suddenly stepped back through. "I'm back! Surprised?"
Everyone immediately channeled their Chakra, watching him with wary eyes.
"Oops, I'm out again!" "And I'm back!"
After performing a series of rapid Side-to-Side Jumps across the boundary, leaving the crowd with nothing but annoyance and disbelief, he added one final jab: "Hit me, you morons!"
"I can't take it anymore! You Dead-last, go to hell! Fire Style: Great Dragon Fire Technique!" A hot-tempered Uchiha ninja roared. Several other clansmen who had been Obito's classmates could no longer endure his arrogance and unleashed their own Ninjutsu.
The attacks passed right through Obito's intangible body and slammed into the Barrier instead. Rather than hurting Obito, they shattered the village's own defensive perimeter.
"What a surprise! You actually managed to break the Leaf's Barrier. Maybe I'll drop off a little gift here later once I decide what would be best." Musing to himself, Obito leisurely walked away. After several hundred meters, he vanished without a trace.
Even though Obito had disappeared, no one dared to relax. They remained on guard for a full hour. Only after ensuring that he wouldn't return did they leave some sentries behind while the leaders went to confront each other in a meeting.
During this time, in a small courtyard belonging to the Uchiha clan, Qiu Xia was examining an eyeball. It was the very same Sharingan that had been in Kakashi's possession. Why was it here? The answer was simple: from beginning to end, that "Obito Uchiha" had been Qiu Xia in disguise.
Since both Feng Hou Qi Men and the Mangekyō's Eight Trigrams possessed spatial power, mimicking Kamui was a simple task. In fact, the version Qiu Xia mimicked was even more powerful than the original.
It was precisely because he was an impostor that he had "carelessly" revealed so much intelligence; had it been the real Obito, he would have likely said very little, even if he did choose to reveal his face.
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