Naruto: Reborn as Yagura Karatachi

Outside the battlefield—

On a tall tree, Zetsu—both Black and White halves—emerged silently, observing the fierce clash between Mangetsu and Obito from afar.

The five-minute limit on Obito's intangibility through Kamui had run out.

Mangetsu was alone. On paper, his strength wasn't much higher than the Iwa-nin Obito had killed in the past.

But the Hozuki Clan's Hydrification Technique meant Obito lacked a reliable method to finish him off.

Obito couldn't afford to worry about suppressing the noise from their battle anymore. If this dragged on, he risked being surrounded by Mist ninja.

Chakra surged from his body—dozens, even hundreds of times more than he had before his "death," a result of the cells from Senju Hashirama coursing through him.

Massive trees erupted from the earth with Obito at the center. Barbed vines and wooden spikes spread out like a forest of natural weapons.

White Zetsu muttered, "He's having a tough time."

Black Zetsu responded, "The Mizukage is on the way."

White Zetsu sighed dramatically.

"Yare yare... If that Mizukage shows up, Obito won't be able to get away so easily."

Black Zetsu growled, "Unfortunate. Madara's plan might be stillborn."

White Zetsu chuckled. "Obito's never had much luck, has he?"

...

"So you can use jutsu on this scale... You're a bit much, aren't you?"

Mangetsu had been forced back over a hundred meters. He wiped the cold sweat from his brow. If he hadn't sensed that abnormal surge of chakra in time and pulled away from Obito, he'd be trapped inside that dangerous "forest."

There were no gaps between the wooden spikes big enough to slip through. Even with his Hydrification Technique, Mangetsu wouldn't die from the Mokuton itself—but being torn apart would leave him unable to fight for a while.

All Obito would have to do is add some fire to the mix, and Mangetsu knew he'd be in serious trouble.

Forced to retreat, Obito hadn't managed to kill this strange, ghost-like Mist ninja—but he had bought himself space.

Mangetsu quickly realized just what kind of opportunity this distance afforded his opponent.

Like hell I'm letting you run!

With a sharp glint in his eye, Mangetsu looked at the wooden forest between them—it had become an unavoidable obstacle. He didn't hesitate.

"Time to cut down some trees."

He unrolled his summoning scroll for ninja swords. Two of his clones immediately synchronized, forming hand seals, summoning four more Hydrified clones.

Four additional swords appeared with a puff of smoke. Each clone grabbed a blade and leapt into the Mokuton forest, pursuing Obito without pause.

"He even summoned the Executioner's Blade," White Zetsu noted.

Zabuza was currently with Yagura.

Samehada slithered across Mangetsu's body, sniffing and tasting the unfamiliar-yet-familiar chakra. It recognized him—someone close to its former wielder, Isobu's host—and allowed itself to be used without resistance.

Mangetsu might not have as monstrous chakra reserves as Yagura or Kisame, but he was no slouch either.

He hurled the Long sword: Nuibari!

The blade pierced straight through a hundred meters of wood and thorns, flying with such force that it disrupted Obito's absorption.

Obito gritted his teeth. He braced through the pain as Nuibari tore into his body—planning to absorb not only the blade but the needle and wire with it into his Kamui space.

Just a stab wound. He'd lived through far worse.

This kind of injury—nothing compared to the fatal damage that had once left half his body useless—was laughably easy to recover from now.

As Nuibari began to vanish into another dimension, Mangetsu sensed his intent.

"No, you don't!"

With both blades, he unleashed a full-force swing. The chakra-infused slash followed the same line Nuibari had carved through the trees—cutting straight through the barrier.

His battle instincts outpaced his vision. Obito stopped absorbing on reflex and ducked low.

The twin swords cleaved through the forest! The massive trees and their thorny vines were leveled in one horizontal strike.

"Explosive Blade!"

A scroll lined with explosive tags unrolled into the newly-carved path, igniting before the Mokuton could regrow.

The blast cleared a wide corridor. Mangetsu could now see Obito—especially the bleeding wound in his left abdomen from Nuibari's earlier hit.

Breathing heavily, Mangetsu gripped his sword.

"Don't be in such a rush to leave."

Obito's eyes locked on his relentless opponent.

—To think he's pushed me this far!

Ever since that night he lost Rin—when everything in him shattered—Obito had crawled back to Madara's cave, barely clinging to life.

He had accepted Madara's ideology, seen the cruelty and darkness of this shinobi world, and recognized its broken structure.

He would gather the nine tailed beasts, revive the Ten-Tails, and cast Infinite Tsukuyomi—a genjutsu that would blanket the world and force all humanity into a dream without war. A world where Rin could live again.

Through Madara's teachings, he mastered his evolved Mangekyō Sharingan and his nearly new, enhanced body.

He had gained power beyond anything the failure he used to be could've imagined.

Obito believed that with this strength, he could now defeat Kakashi, that genius teammate from his past.

After Madara's death, instead of going to Amegakure right away to find the man with the Rinnegan—per Madara's plan—Obito and Zetsu had quietly moved between nations, seeing the world's flaws for themselves.

Passing through the Land of Water was just one stop.

This Mist shinobi—young, probably Kakashi's age—was definitely a genius too.

...

There's no way I should lose to Kakashi now. No way I should lose to a Mist ninja!

"RAAAHH!!"

Mangetsu's axe came down—Obito threw a punch straight into it. Even as the sharp edge split open his arm, he didn't flinch.

That side of his body had long since lost all feeling.

His fist crashed through the weapon, smashing directly into Axe Mangetsu—blowing the clone apart.

The remaining clones immediately filled the gap.

The real Mangetsu stayed back, ignoring his chakra consumption. He formed hand seals again, creating a new Water Clone, picked up the fallen axe, and joined the fray.

This Uchiha could phase through and absorb attacks—but not both at once.

Now he was risking everything to escape, using a suicidal fighting style.

Mangetsu's eyes locked onto the arm Obito had just lost. It had fallen out of his sleeve.

Not a normal human arm—white and fluid, with an unnatural texture.

So that explains the physical strength and healing ability...

And—five minutes. That time limit.

That means he can't use his intangibility anymore.

"Could it be... I've pushed him into a corner?"

Mangetsu charged again.

"I thought you Uchiha were supposed to be so terrifying. Turns out you're just some guy who uses his eyes to run away!"

He slashed with both blades!

Obito was tackled by a Lightning Blade clone of Mangetsu, its Hydrified body locking him in place.

Multiple piercing rays shot out—through Obito's arms, torso, legs. Each ray had the sharpness of refined steel, bursting out the other side in a spray of blood and strange white fluid.

Severely wounded, Obito buckled to his knees.

"What's this? On your knees already? Oh—I get it. Did you drop your other eye?"

Long sword Mangetsu kept manipulating Nuibari, stabbing and pulling to entangle Obito in threads of steel.

Obito slammed a fist into the ground!

Massive trees burst upward, encasing his body in thick trunks. Thorny branches exploded outward to drive back his enemies.

Mangetsu carved a path through the chaos with his twin blades, while his clones—wielding every other sword—hacked down Mokuton growth to stop Obito from escaping.

Obito shouted: "Fire Style: Dragon Flame Jutsu!"

From inside his Mokuton cage, he unleashed a wave of fire.

With his chakra reserves, he didn't have to worry about the cost. The firestorm rivaled a full Konoha Sarutobi or Uchiha team's assault!

The blazing inferno turned the giant tree into a burning prison.

Mangetsu wasn't injured by the flames—but something about Obito's move didn't sit right.

The heat could evaporate even a Hydrified body. Mangetsu's mind raced.

Is he planning to escape from inside this inferno?

From what he'd seen so far, Obito had to become tangible to absorb others.

There'd be nowhere to dodge inside that fire cage. Was this Uchiha really going to take the burn just to escape?

Then it hit him—Obito's strange, non-human body. Injuries others couldn't recover from, he could.

Mangetsu was glad he'd forced this guy to such extremes.

But he wasn't about to let him get away.

A rare and dangerous space-time technique, bizarre regenerative body, and that damned Mokuton...

Obito still fought like a novice now, but if they let him escape, he'd become a massive threat to Kirigakure in the future.

To counter this massive firestorm, Mangetsu would need a water-style jutsu of equal scale.

He quickly formed hand seals—but found his chakra drained to the last drop.

Even his six sword-wielding clones dissolved into liquid and disappeared.

He'd been pushing nonstop for five straight minutes—swords, jutsu, clones—never holding back.

That's when he heard a sonic boom overhead.

"Yagura!!" he shouted.

A low, furious voice echoed from the sky.

"—I KNOW!!!"

Of all times... why did he have to show up now?

Zetsu couldn't stay hidden any longer.

If the Mizukage stopped Obito from retreating, there was no chance he'd survive. Even three lives wouldn't be enough.

Black Zetsu rose from the ground and stepped forward.

"Apologies... Just a few more seconds, please."

Roots burst from the earth, trees rapidly growing to ten meters tall—forming a barrier between Yagura and Obito.

Yagura's eyes locked onto the blazing tree in the distance.

Wind-style wings flared from his back—his speed at its peak. The shrieking sound of sky-ripping wind rang like violin strings across the air!

Yagura drew his blade and slashed.

Hundreds of wind blades rained down like divine punishment.

The branches Zetsu had sent to block Yagura's path were cut down in an instant.

Yagura's eyes burned with a fury and hatred that Mangetsu had never seen in him before.

"I'm not waiting!"

A swirl of chakra erupted in his other hand—a violent blend of Tailed Beast energy and wind-lightning release. With a shift of stance, he swapped hands and brought his fist crashing down, smashing through the oncoming wall of Wood Release created by Black Zetsu!

A tremendous explosion of destructive energy annihilated the towering trees in his path!

In the blazing sky, a streak of pale blue light cut across the inferno, shooting through the flames that had engulfed the forest, burning it so thoroughly that its original form was unrecognizable.

All around them was a sea of crimson fire. No silhouettes could be seen through the smoke and blaze, but Yagura's eyes were locked on a single point, unwavering and sharp—as though guided by satellite precision.

That man. Uchiha Obito. He was right there!

Boom!

A single punch, like a comet crashing from the heavens, shattered the mask into pieces! Shards of it scattered in the air like falling glass.

Just a little more. Just a little more, and the absorption would've been complete!

Obito was sent flying mid-phase, knocked out of his Kamui absorption state by that one punch, and crashed hard into the earth. His face caved in with a massive dent.

Towering trees erupted from the ground in an instant, forming a wall between Yagura and his path. The branches lunged toward Mangetsu, who was clearly showing signs of exhaustion.

Obito, already in tatters from Mangetsu's earlier onslaught, had taken Yagura's full-powered blow. There was no way he had the strength left to control the Wood Release while also fighting off Mangetsu.

Yagura glanced downward and quickly pinpointed the one controlling the jutsu—Black Zetsu.

The air beneath him was empty—

He shifted mid-air and dropped, redirecting himself.

"Water Style: Coral Water Cannon!"

Landing in front of Mangetsu, Yagura released a concentrated jet of high-pressure water, slicing through the incoming wooden roots and blasting straight at Black Zetsu!

Black Zetsu's eyes widened at the sheer destructive force of the water jutsu and immediately melted into the earth to evade it.

He resurfaced near Obito, vines of wood snaking out to prop up the barely-conscious Uchiha.

Coldly, Yagura stared down the two masterminds behind the Fourth Great Ninja War.

He clenched his fists. That punch he landed on Obito had been satisfying, no doubt.

But it still wasn't enough.

Not even close to repaying the blood debt Obito had laid upon Kirigakure in that other world.

Mangetsu blinked, stunned for a second, then suddenly snapped in frustration.

"What the hell are you doing protecting me?!"

If Yagura had chased Obito right then and there, he could've finished him off!

"…"

Yagura didn't answer. He had rushed all the way from Kirigakure at top speed the moment he realized who Mangetsu was up against.

Uchiha Obito.

The man he hated most in this world.

And now, that man was standing in front of someone Yagura treasured most—a friend he had come to care about deeply since arriving in this world.

Seeing Mangetsu alive and safe with his own eyes, Yagura finally let out a long breath.

"I'm just glad you're okay."

"…Sigh."

Mangetsu couldn't deny the warmth in his heart—he'd never get used to it, but there it was. He let out a helpless sigh.

"You're really something else... But this time, it's different. Look at who we're dealing with."

His tone shifted, becoming stern and serious. He spoke with the gravity of someone invoking a legend.

"Wood Release. The kind once used by Senju Hashirama. This Uchiha—he can use it."

Yagura hesitated for a moment, then smiled.

"Yeah, I get it now. But if you're talking about how dangerous they are… trust me, I know far better than you do."

He turned to look at Black Zetsu, who was now channeling chakra into Obito to restore him.

The regeneration was fast—Obito's wounds were already starting to close up.

But it didn't matter how quickly Obito recovered.

Because now, Yagura had made up his mind.

The one who was going to die here today… wasn't going to be Uchiha Obito.

----------------

Pls Drop some Power Stones

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