"Uchiha Obito…"
Seimei muttered the name under his breath, his mind racing to figure out why Obito would suddenly come after him.
It didn't take long for him to piece it together.
Thanks to his 'foreknowledge,' Seimei knew exactly what Uchiha Obito wanted and what he valued.
Working backward from there, and considering his recent actions, it wasn't hard to guess. Obito was likely targeting him because he'd captured the Four-Tails.
No, not just the Four-Tails—probably the Seven-Tails too.
Capturing one Tailed Beast could be explained away as having some other motive.
Maybe to boost his strength or to research some forbidden ninjutsu.
But snatching two Tailed Beasts in a row? That was harder to justify.
Back when he'd taken the Seven-Tails, there hadn't been much backlash, which had lulled Seimei into lowering his guard around Obito and his crew. That's why, after capturing the Four-Tails, he hadn't immediately considered Obito as a threat.
"Damn it, I got careless!" Seimei cursed inwardly, a pang of frustration hitting him.
If he'd been more thorough when he learned of Roshi's whereabouts, he might've acted with more discretion.
Maybe then, Obito wouldn't have noticed him.
But as soon as the thought crossed his mind, Seimei dismissed it.
There was no point in regretting what was already done. Besides, even if he'd been more discreet, Obito would've caught wind of it eventually.
Iwagakure (Hidden Stone Village) wasn't like Takigakure (Hidden Waterfall Village). When Seimei had forcefully taken the Seven-Tails from Takigakure, the Third Shinobi World War had just ended. As a small ninja village, Takigakure couldn't afford to risk sparking another war.
So, they'd chosen to let it go.
But Iwagakure, as one of the five great ninja villages, wouldn't let the loss of the Four-Tails slide so easily—whether for practical reasons or to save face.
No matter how carefully Seimei had acted, they'd have uncovered something eventually.
And once Iwagakure started digging, it was only a matter of time before Obito took notice.
Realizing this, Seimei's frustration eased slightly.
Since he'd have been found out sooner or later, the timing didn't matter all that much.
Now, he needed to focus on how to handle Obito's pursuit.
Plenty of people had returned to the village alongside his Kage Bunshin (Shadow Clone), but if Obito dared to show himself, it meant he was prepared to silence them all.
In other words, if Seimei went there now, he could fight Obito without holding back.
The real question was whether Obito would stick around after realizing he'd only caught a Kage Bunshin.
And another thing—was Obito acting alone?
Seimei knew full well that, besides Obito, there was someone else in the ninja world obsessed with the Tailed Beasts: Black Zetsu. And Zetsu's fixation on them rivaled, if not surpassed, Obito's.
Decades or centuries ago, if a Tailed Beast was taken, Zetsu wouldn't have cared much. With his near-endless lifespan, he could always wait for the beasts to reappear.
But after a millennium of scheming, with Uchiha Madara and Senju Hashirama's generation—the reincarnations of Indra and Asura—Zetsu was closer than ever to his goal of freeing his mother.
So, right now, he couldn't afford to let the Tailed Beasts slip from his sight.
That made it highly likely that Zetsu was working with Obito.
Which meant Seimei might have to face both Obito and Black Zetsu at the same time.
Obito alone wasn't a big deal. He only had one Mangekyō Sharingan. Sure, his Kamui was tricky, and his Mokuton (Wood Release) gave him a solid boost, but Seimei wasn't fazed.
But Black Zetsu…
In Seimei's memories, Zetsu didn't have any standout abilities. Yet, the fact that he'd managed to outwit and kill the Sage of the Six Paths' Madara was enough to make Seimei wary.
Sure, Madara's carelessness played a part, but dead was dead. No one gives you a do-over just because you slipped up.
So, to play it safe, Seimei couldn't send his real body.
'Guess I'll test the waters with a Kage Bunshin first.'
With that thought, Seimei tapped into the chakra stored in the interdimensional space at his forehead, restoring himself to peak condition.
Then, he raised his hands, formed the seals, and cast Kage Bunshin no Jutsu (Shadow Clone Technique).
Poof!
A puff of chakra smoke later, a Kage Bunshin infused with half his chakra appeared.
Without needing instructions, the clone locked eyes with Seimei, then activated Hiraishin no Jutsu (Flying Thunder God Technique), teleporting to a spot near the ambush site.
This was thanks to Seimei's habit of leaving Hiraishin markers wherever he went.
Otherwise, even if he wanted to return to the battlefield, it'd take a while.
---
At the same time.
In a forest not far from the ambush site.
'Seimei's' figure appeared out of thin air.
He got his bearings, then immediately cast Fūton: Kaze no Tsubasa (Wind Release: Wings of Wind) and cloaked himself in a Chakra Hagoromo (Chakra Cloak), taking to the sky.
Next, he formed more seals and used Doton: Keijūgan no Jutsu (Earth Release: Light-Weight Rock Technique) to reduce his weight.
Finally, he activated his Sharingan, sharpening his neural reaction speed. With a flap of his chakra wings, he soared toward the ambush site at a blistering 600 meters per second.
This was only possible in the ninja world, where the Chakra Hagoromo could shield him from abnormal air currents.
Otherwise, at that speed, he'd have triggered a sonic boom long ago. As it was, unless someone was paying close attention, they wouldn't even notice someone flying overhead.
Time ticked by.
Below, the forest blurred past at a speed too fast for the naked eye.
Soon, 'Seimei' arrived above the ambush site.
With a thought, he activated his Byakugan (White Eye).
Instantly, his vision pierced through his Konoha headband and the forest below, revealing the scene within.
As he'd expected, Obito had indeed chosen to silence everyone.
Not much time had passed since his Kage Bunshin dispelled and he sent this clone, but the two squads of Konoha ninja at the site had already been wiped out.
Now, only about thirty corpses littered the ground.
But since the bodies were still there, unprocessed, it meant Obito was likely still nearby.
After all, the dead weren't guaranteed to keep secrets, and Obito's identity couldn't afford to be exposed. If he left, he'd have destroyed the evidence.
With that in mind, 'Seimei' scanned the area, searching for Obito's presence.
He didn't find Obito—but he did spot someone else: Zetsu!
At that moment, Zetsu was hidden inside a large tree, his body completely merged with it, not leaking the slightest trace of chakra.
But no matter how well he hid, he couldn't fool the Byakugan, which could directly observe chakra.
Suppressing the jolt in his chest, 'Seimei' casually shifted his gaze, pretending to survey the area for a bit longer before descending into the forest.
He landed right in front of the tree Zetsu was hiding in.
This position made it easy for Zetsu, concealed in the tree behind him, to launch a sneak attack.
And Zetsu took the bait.
The next moment, an arm shot out from the tree trunk, striking like lightning toward 'Seimei's' back, aiming for his heart.
(End of Chapter)