A Sage's Pursuit of Power

The Hyuga clan possessed many Byakugan, but even with tradition, Hiashi couldn't possibly offer all of them to feed Hinata's evolving eyes.

However, after Aoba had dealt with the elders of the Main Branch, Hiashi's authority within the Hyuga clan had reached its peak.

So, upon discovering the changes in Hinata's eyes, he did not hesitate to provide three more pairs of Byakugan for her absorption.

This time, however, Hinata began to feel discomfort.

"She's still too young, and her body isn't fully developed yet. Absorbing too many at once is overwhelming. Let's give her some time," Aoba analyzed.

The Tenseigan's progression was not an issue, just like his own Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan, it only required time to fully develop.

Neji, on the other hand, was different. His bloodline wasn't strong enough. It was unknown how the Main Branch and Branch Family division had been determined, but Neji's lineage was weaker, he lacked the innate potential to evolve into the Tenseigan.

Aoba considered whether biological methods could enhance Neji's bloodline purity, but Konoha's lab wasn't capable of achieving that yet.

So, he handed the problem over to Tobirama, adding another task to his growing list.

.....

The Borders of the Land of Fire

A figure was dashing at high speed, occasionally turning around to release Fire Release and Wood Release jutsu to stall his pursuers.

Behind him, two figures were quickly closing the gap.

"We're already inside the Land of Fire. We need to hurry, or Aoba Kamikawa will detect us."

"I know, but that brat is practically immortal, and he has Wood Release. His chakra is limitless, it won't be easy to take him down."

The fleeing figure was Shin.

After the destruction of the Akatsuki, he naturally returned under Aoba's command.

At Aoba's orders, Shin had been tracking Orochimaru.

Orochimaru had vanished after his last transaction with Aoba, but Aoba had never forgotten about him.

Aoba never intended to let Orochimaru go, the only reason he hadn't acted before was because Orochimaru still had value.

But now, with Tobirama revived, Orochimaru's usefulness had significantly declined.

It was time to eliminate him completely.

The problem was, Orochimaru always lurked in the shadows, working on unknown experiments.

To seal a previous deal, Aoba had even provided him sensitive information, if left unchecked, Orochimaru could become a dangerous variable.

Thanks to Shin's considerable abilities and Konoha's intelligence network, Orochimaru was eventually located.

But Shin was not expecting to find Obito at Orochimaru's base.

If Obito had a choice, he would have avoided Orochimaru altogether.

During his time controlling the Akatsuki, Obito was well aware of how dangerous Orochimaru was.

But he had no choice.

After being repeatedly hunted down by Aoba, Obito was struggling to survive.

While chakra depletion wasn't an issue, his body had been torn apart and damaged repeatedly, he was on the verge of complete collapse.

For some reason, his mysterious benefactor could stabilize his chakra and mitigate the Rinnegan's side effects, but not repair his physical body.

And recently, this benefactor's attention towards him had noticeably decreased.

With his last few White Zetsu sacrificed to barely maintain his body, Obito was forced to seek out Orochimaru.

When it came to biological enhancements, Orochimaru was a master among masters.

And Orochimaru did not disappoint, using his forbidden biological techniques, he successfully stabilized Obito's body.

But in exchange, Obito had to assist Orochimaru, specifically, in researching the secrets of the Rinnegan.

Orochimaru already knew that the Rinnegan was an evolved form of the Sharingan.

Given his obsession with the Sharingan, it was clear how fascinated he was with the Rinnegan.

If Obito weren't in complete control of his Rinnegan, Orochimaru would have already tried to steal it by force.

At the same time, Obito needed a collaborator to help share the burden of fighting Konoha and Aoba Kamikawa.

Thus, the two struck a deal.

But Orochimaru was fully aware of one crucial fact, Aoba would never let him live.

This was why he didn't immediately betray Obito.

Obito was a necessary tool, he needed him to fight against Aoba.

Orochimaru had lost count of how many times he had regretted not killing Aoba during their first deal.

But through their subsequent interactions, Orochimaru had come to a terrifying realization, Aoba's moral outlook was completely incompatible with his own.

Despite their successful collaborations and despite the fact that Aoba's rise to power had been largely fueled by Orochimaru's resources, Orochimaru was certain of one thing:

The moment Aoba no longer needed him, he would be eliminated.

Both men harbored mutual distrust, leading to a delicate balance in their relationship.

This is why, when Shin finally tracked down Orochimaru, he had to face both Orochimaru and Obito.

And, of course, Kabuto, Jugo, and others were present as well.

But they were insignificant, the real threats were Orochimaru and Obito.

If it were only Orochimaru, Shin wouldn't have been concerned.

Even though Orochimaru had grown significantly stronger, wielding countless forbidden jutsu, Shin himself was an unnatural existence.

With immense chakra reserves and wide-area Wood Release techniques, Shin's abilities directly countered Orochimaru's.

However, with Obito added to the equation, the battle became one-sided.

With a fully stabilized body and the Rinnegan, Obito was beyond Shin's capabilities.

Facing both Orochimaru and Obito together, Shin had no choice but to retreat.

Fortunately, thanks to his time training under Aoba, Shin had recently mastered Wind Release: Chasing Gale.

This allowed him to glide at high speed, maneuvering through the air to barely evade pursuit.

Otherwise, against a Rinnegan user like Obito, most shinobi wouldn't even have a chance to escape, Rinnegan users could fly, after all.

However, while Obito's body had been stabilized, it still wasn't strong enough to fully handle the Rinnegan's power.

No matter how skilled Orochimaru was, he couldn't conjure a Six Paths-level body for Obito out of thin air.

As a result, Obito could fly, but not very fast, which gave Shin just enough of an edge to escape.

However, as they entered the Land of Fire, Obito and Orochimaru began to grow impatient.

Both of them knew full well how dangerous Aoba Kamikawa was.

More importantly, Aoba wasn't the only threat in Konoha anymore, several mysterious powerhouses had appeared out of nowhere.

Leaving Aoba aside, there was that unregistered shinobi who single-handedly wiped out Kusagakure, Orochimaru had no choice but to flee on sight when encountering him.

Then there were the multiple Flying Thunder God users, and with Aoba added to the mix, even Obito and Orochimaru together didn't dare approach Konoha carelessly.

The closer they got to Konoha, the more Obito realized he couldn't afford to drag this out any longer.

He extended his right hand without hesitation.

"Banshō Ten'in!" (Super Universal Pull)

Shin, who had been sprinting at full speed, felt an overwhelming and irresistible force of attraction surge toward him.

In the next instant, his entire body was yanked backward, sent hurtling uncontrollably toward Obito.

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Currently on Chapter 320 - Finding Another Path of Power