"This is a Space Time Dōjutsu, everyone scatter!"
Minato Namikaze's expression turned extremely grave as he issued the command in a low, commanding voice.
Against such a bizarre Space Time Dōjutsu, ordinary ninjutsu would be useless.
"Hokage-sama, this person is too dangerous!"
"Everyone scatter, that is an order!"
Minato Namikaze's tone left no room for argument. The members of the Guard Detail understood immediately. The Masked Man's abilities were far too strange and unpredictable, they would only become a burden if they stayed.
If anyone could face him, it had to be the Hokage.
One by one, the Guard Detail retreated, clearing the battlefield.
Minato drew a special kunai engraved with the Flying Thunder God formula. Across from him, the masked Uchiha Obito slowly pulled a heavy chain out from the Kamui dimension, the metal clinking ominously as it uncoiled.
For a split second, silence fell between them.
Then they moved.
In less than a blink, both rushed forward, their figures becoming blurs.
Clang!
Minato thrust his kunai toward Obito's torso with ruthless precision. At the same time, Obito swung his chain toward Minato's neck, aiming to bind him in a single motion.
Minato tilted his body smoothly to avoid the chain.
Obito did not dodge at all.
The kunai pierced straight through his body.
"As expected... it is that same ability again."
Minato's pupils contracted sharply.
The blade had passed through Obito as though through smoke.
Slap.
In that instant, Obito's hand shot out and grabbed Minato's wrist.
Behind the spiral mask, Obito's lips curled faintly. His Mangekyō Sharingan spun as he activated Kamui, intending to drag Minato into the Kamui dimension.
Swish.
The Minato in front of him vanished.
Obito's fingers closed on empty air.
A split second later, Minato reappeared several meters away.
"Flying Thunder God..." Obito muttered, stunned.
As Minato's former student, he knew that technique better than anyone. But he had never imagined it could counter Kamui so cleanly.
Minato's voice remained calm, though his eyes were sharp.
"You are not an ordinary opponent."
Inside, however, he felt unprecedented pressure. In all his years on the battlefield, he had never encountered such a troublesome enemy. If he had reacted even slightly slower just now, he would have been pulled into another dimension.
Still, Flying Thunder God worked.
That was enough.
Without hesitation, Minato rushed forward again.
The two clashed at terrifying speed. Obito shifted between intangibility and solidity, while Minato relied on flawless timing and instantaneous teleportation. For a time, neither could gain the upper hand.
Swish.
Minato hurled another marked kunai toward Obito.
Obito ignored it completely and lunged forward, swinging his chain to wrap around Minato's body. As long as he captured him during a solid moment, victory would be certain.
The chain whipped forward.
Just before it tightened, Minato disappeared.
A ripple of space distortion flashed behind Obito.
Minato appeared there instantly.
Flying Thunder God Technique, Second Step.
Obito had to solidify his body to attack. In this fleeting instant, he was tangible.
"Not good!"
He tried to turn intangible.
Too late.
Boom!
A Rasengan slammed into his back with crushing force, sending him smashing into the ground. The earth cracked and debris scattered outward.
Ryūjin watched everything unfold, eyes narrowing slightly.
Yeah right, like he expected anything less.
Seeing the Flying Thunder God Technique Second Step in action was completely different from watching it in the anime. Minato's battle awareness was monstrous. To formulate such a precise counter in mere seconds proved why he was feared across the entire Shinobi World.
Obito staggered to his feet, shock and fury burning in his eye.
"Damn it!"
He had believed that with Kamui, he could move unhindered across the world. Yet even with such a cheat level Dōjutsu, he was still suppressed.
"I told you long ago, Minato Namikaze is not that simple."
A low, muffled voice suddenly echoed across the battlefield.
Everyone froze.
Another presence.
From the ground beneath Minato, two pale hands shot up and clamped around his ankles.
Crack, crack.
Thick wooden branches erupted from the earth, twisting upward like serpents. In an instant, they coiled tightly around Minato's body, restraining his arms and torso.
"Wood Release?"
Shock rippled through the Konoha ninja. That kekkei genkai should have vanished with the First Hokage.
From the soil emerged a strange figure, half black and half white, with a pitcher plant structure framing its head.
Black and White Zetsu.
The wooden branches binding Minato were connected directly to it.
Ryūjin recognized the creature immediately.
So that thing finally showed up.
Obito snorted.
"I did not need your help. Do you think I cannot use Wood Release myself?"
Extending his hand, wooden tendrils sprouted from his arm as well, wrapping around Minato and dragging him closer. With White Zetsu's body attached to him, Obito could freely use Wood Release techniques.
"Hokage-sama!"
"Release Hokage-sama!"
The surrounding shinobi shouted in alarm, but Obito ignored them. His Sharingan spun once more.
Minato's eyes briefly lost focus.
A moment later, clarity returned, yet something about him had changed.
"Stop them. Do not kill them. I still have use for them," Obito ordered casually.
"Yes."
Minato responded instantly, his tone calm and obedient.
Without hesitation, he vanished with the Body Flicker Technique and rushed toward the Konoha ninja.
Ryūjin watched silently, his expression unreadable.
Troublesome.
But not surprising.
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