Kakashi had no idea that the person he was currently confronting was a comrade he had long believed dead. After a few exchanges of meaningless banter, he roughly grasped the opponent's intentions.
Under his clothes, two areas were still bandaged. Kakashi hadn't fully recovered from his injuries, but without hesitation, he took on the most dangerous role.
"This guy is trying to stall us. Don't let him drag this out! Everyone, break through! I'll handle him!"
Whoosh…
Before Kakashi could even finish his sentence, a sharp whistling sound brushed past his ear. Startled, he turned to see Mai flinging several dark projectiles before charging forward without pause, kunai in hand.
"Understood, Kakashi-sensei!"
The scene left Kakashi momentarily stunned, 'Understood? Did she really understand?'
The others also sprang into action, rushing ahead. Kakashi didn't have time to dwell on Mai's unusually aggressive demeanor, chalking it up to well-trained cover tactics. He focused on the masked man.
"Aww, you guys are cheating!" Tobi yelped, caught off guard, "Bullying me because I'm outnumbered? Not fair!"
The Konoha's Ninja ignored this strange Akatsuki's member, single-mindedly maneuvering around him, trying to push past.
"Tch, don't think I'm out of tricks yet!" Tobi clasped his hands together as if forming a hand seal.
"Your opponent is me." Kakashi said, lunging forward with a gust of wind… only for the masked man to abruptly vanish the moment he made contact.
Kakashi's eyes flashed with surprise. At the same time, a startled cry came from the side.
On Hinata's path, a figure suddenly burst from a tree trunk. It was Tobi. A sweeping kick forced her back, but instead of pressing the attack, he simply hopped in place before sinking into the ground like a magician's trick.
The next second, he reappeared beside Shino, "No passing! No passing!"
Vanishing and reappearing in rapid succession, he repeated the same script across every route… using simple Taijutsu to force retreats before shifting targets, like a guerrilla fighter.
"Ha, take this!"
"Hmm, what should I name this new technique? Oh, I know… Whac-A-Mole Technique!"
His incessant, mocking chatter never let up, and for a moment, he genuinely slowed the Konoha team's advance. Members of Teams 7 and 8 quickly realized this seemingly erratic Akatsuki's member wasn't to be underestimated.
Most maintained calm expressions, waiting for further orders.
Kakashi said, "It seems we can't move forward without taking him down."
Normally, with their overwhelming numbers, they wouldn't need to rush recklessly and risk giving the enemy openings.
Mai leaped high, soaring over the grass, flowers, and massive tree roots. Her peripheral vision caught the masked Akatsuki's member's movements.
One moment, he was over a dozen meters behind her, but the next, he materialized on a tree trunk right in front of her without warning.
"Girls shouldn't run so recklessly~"
Here he comes. Mai's expression remained unreadable.
A sudden kick lashed out, but Mai's calm reflexes allowed her to react instantly. Maintaining her momentum, she ducked low, her body almost skimming the ground as she slashed upward with her kunai.
A flicker of surprise crossed Obito's eye. He reached out, precisely catching her slender wrist. But the girl's assault didn't end, and in the blink of an eye, they exchanged two more Taijutsu strikes.
"Admirable courage."
Obito's tone was indifferent, 'She was the first to dare close the distance so aggressively...'
His gaze flicked to the blond boy sprinting anxiously in the distance.
'I had to stop him.'
Not in the mood for games, Obito tightened his grip.
A pained gasp escaped Mai as he disarmed her, the kunai clattering to the ground. The moment it hit, his right Sharingan snapped open.
Seizing the opportunity, he channeled chakra smoothly, effortlessly throwing a Genjutsu into the unfamiliar girl's eyes.
The Sharingan's sudden Genjutsu was near-foolproof against ordinary people. Even trained Ninja could easily fall prey if caught off guard.
"Sweet dreams~ Go ahead and punch me a few times in your head."
Obito was being generous.
The girl's pupils trembled, confirming the Genjutsu had taken hold, before he turned away without a second glance, shifting focus to Naruto.
The Sharingan fed him a clear, three-dimensional view of the battlefield. To the right, Kakashi and the others were momentarily stalled. To the left, the Kyubi's Jinchuriki had gained some distance… but it wasn't a problem.
When he arrived, Zetsu had given him the information that Sasuke had encountered Itachi's clone.
'Heh. That guy... Of course, Itachi would ensure a one-on-one fight with his brother.' Obito smirked inwardly, 'Sasuke would undoubtedly play along… his entire team was assembled for this purpose. By now, the two were likely facing off at the Uchiha Hideout...'
"What dreams?"
A soft yet cold female voice drifted from behind his head. Obito froze, goosebumps rising.
His Sharingan spun rapidly as he twisted aside.
Fists and kicks sliced through empty air… thankfully, the Sharingan's enhanced perception and predictive abilities let him dodge. Staring at the girl's face, her bright eyes showed no trace of Genjutsu-induced haze.
Obito barely stopped himself from blurting, 'How did you break free from the Genjutsu?', but he held back. This time, he felt a little embarrassed. In his eyes, except for the two team leaders, the strongest here were barely Chunin-level.
Boom!
A gust of wind scattered as Obito's aura sharpened noticeably.
Mai pressed her lips together, refusing to back down. She launched into the Taijutsu sequences she'd drilled thousands of times, but strike after strike met empty air.
Slowly, she realized, 'He's reading my every move.'
A cold sweat slid down her temple, 'Is it that red eye?'
In fact, less than ten seconds had passed since the fight began, yet she already felt overwhelming pressure. Gradually forced into defense, she barely blocked a sudden burst of speed, before a kunai glinted downward!
'My kunai, the one he'd disarmed.' With no time to dodge, as the blade left no room to breathe, Mai could already feel the cold sting against her neck!
"No!"
"Mai, look out!"
She'd felt this before… on missions where death's breath had grazed her neck. Distant shouts from teammates, the world turning cold and gray.
Those moments were rare. And each time she survived, a flood of emotions followed, understanding that this is the risks of being a Ninja, 'Nii-san is right... This really isn't a good profession.'
Sounds grew distant. The kunai descended. Mai strained to raise her arms, 'No more next times. I hadn't come here to hide or play around.'
People did things they didn't love for reasons that mattered. She'd taken this step, in conversations after autumn rains, in sleepless nights of waiting, to stand firm, to prove herself.
The masked man's flippant attitude, his deliberate antics, his endless taunts… it all grated on her.
"Don't underestimate me!"
Snake. Ram.
Sharingan saw the hand seals in the girl's hands, and Obito smiled contemptuously, "Water Clone?"
Even if she escaped, it didn't matter, as his goal wasn't to fight. The kunai halted mid-swing as he'd purposely announced her technique, salvaging some pride after the Genjutsu failure.
Mai stared as the kunai hovered inches from her, her hand seals halfway complete.
Obito flicked the kunai toward a more meaningful target, embedding it at Naruto's feet. The boy skidded to a stop, glancing back.
Snake—Ram—Horse—Hare—Ram!
"Water Style: Water Prison Technique!"
Mist swirled around them. Obito's movements slowed abruptly, "What?"
Threads of water coiled around his limbs, weaving into liquid chains. His Sharingan pierced the illusion, revealing the truth, 'She changed the technique mid-sequence?'
Shock broke into Obito's mind, 'It was clearly the hand seals for water clone.'
He raised his Chakra and broke the water column, 'Damn, I had to leave immediately. If I was not careful, I would be trapped...'
"I'm not done yet."
A shadow dropped from above. Obito looked up, and saw an identical face.
"You used two techniques?"
"That's right, while you were busy gloating!" The real Mai huffed, inhaling sharply as she gathered every drop of remaining Chakra into her fist, then slammed it down!
"Don't get cocky—" Though caught off guard, Obito's battle-hardened instincts kept him calm. His Hashirama's cells-enhanced right arm met the blow with equal force.
'Just a punch. Easy to counter.'
Bang!
However, the next instant, Obito's masked face twisted. The force crashing into him felt like a tidal wave, completely unlike what he'd gauged from their earlier exchanges, 'What the hell? How?!'
The freakish strength shattered the air. The girl's petite frame was very deceptive. For one brief second, their fists locked, before Obito was smashed into a tree trunk.
The water prison snapped shut around him.
Kakashi and the others, who'd been rushing to intervene, froze in stunned silence. The tables had turned so fast that all they could do was mentally chant 'amazing'. Even Sakura was impressed, while Naruto and Shino looked just as shocked as the now-captured Obito.
"So... strong..."
Trapped in the water prison, Obito floated in the airtight, water-filled space, his vision blurring.
"Glug glug..."
Bubbles escaped his lips. The technique allowed temporary breathing but once oxygen ran out, things would turn dire.
Rage simmered in Obito's heart. Suppressing it, he closed his eye, his pupil swirling violently, 'I underestimated her. I'd made a mistake… now, it was time to get serious!'
The Mangekyo Sharingan then appeared.
"Glug glug..."