Chapter 168: Making a Clean Getaway
Uchiha Dali activated Kamui and entered Uchiha Obito's alternate dimension. The moment he arrived, he saw Kakashi and Minato Namikaze working together to fight Uchiha Obito.
However, Obito was relying on his Kamui's intangibility to do whatever he pleased, unfazed by the combined assault of the two.
Neither Minato nor Kakashi could land a single effective hit on him.
And it didn't seem like Obito had any intention of fighting back against the two of them either.
He appeared to be quite self-aware.
He knew full well that, with his current strength, trying to take on both Minato and Kakashi at the same time wasn't realistic.
If he showed even the slightest sign of aggression, it would mean he'd have to become tangible—and that would give his enemies an opening.
Minato wasn't just any ordinary ninja.
Neither was Kakashi.
If they managed to seize that opportunity while he was vulnerable, it'd be over.
"Quite the gathering, huh?"
Uchiha Dali landed silently on the ground.
At the sound of his voice, all three men stopped what they were doing. Obito visibly flinched.
Even though his back was to Uchiha Dali, and his face hidden behind his swirl-patterned mask, Dali could easily imagine the look on the guy's face—it definitely wouldn't be pretty.
"Lord Fourth, why are you here?" Minato was surprised to see Uchiha Dali appear.
Kakashi, however, reacted quite differently.
He looked worried.
With just him and Minato handling the situation, there was a chance they could leave Obito alive.
But if Lord Fourth got involved… then things could take a very different turn.
"I just came to have a look. Don't mind me—carry on."
Uchiha Dali said casually, making a light gesture for them to proceed.
Hearing this, Minato refocused his gaze on Obito.
Meanwhile, Uchiha Dali leisurely strolled over to little Naruto nearby, giving off the impression that he truly had no intention of interfering in the fight.
But everyone knew the truth—so long as Uchiha Dali was present, Obito didn't stand a chance, no matter how many tricks he had up his sleeve.
Even without making a move, the psychological pressure Dali exerted was immense.
Obito wasn't just facing off against Kakashi and Minato's combined assault—he also had to stay on guard against Uchiha Dali.
Having fought the man several times before, Obito understood better than anyone how terrifying he was.
He was simply too powerful.
And to make matters worse, Dali had mastered both Kamui and Wood Style.
At this point, only one thought remained in Obito's mind: Get out of here—fast.
"Minato-sensei, what do you think of my previous proposal?"
Though panicked inside, Obito feigned calm as he casually asked Minato.
It was his final attempt.
Not that he expected much.
"Sorry, Obito. You'll have to come back with us and face judgment in the village."
Minato rejected him without a second thought.
"In that case, be prepared to pay the price for your foolishness."
"You'll regret refusing me today, Minato-sensei."
"And you too, Kakashi."
Obito turned to look at Kakashi.
But the latter remained completely unmoved by his words.
Just as Obito activated Kamui to flee, Uchiha Dali—who had been teasing little Naruto—suddenly raised his head and said, "Hold it."
"Who did you just say was going to pay the price?"
Obito's rear clenched involuntarily, a chill running down his spine.
He didn't respond at all. In fact, he didn't even pause.
The moment the Kamui vortex appeared, he was already absorbed and vanished from sight.
"He escaped!!"
Minato wanted to give chase but had no way to pursue.
Kakashi instinctively turned to look at Uchiha Dali.
He had thought Dali would make a move to stop him.
"No need to worry. That guy'll show up again."
Uchiha Dali waved his hand dismissively.
Then he picked up little Naruto. "About Kushina… I'm sorry, Minato."
At those words, Minato's expression darkened.
Kakashi couldn't hold back and asked, "Why didn't you stop Obito just now, Lord Fourth?"
He thought Dali had simply kept his word, leaving the matter in their hands.
Uchiha Dali looked over at him, speaking meaningfully: "You two were holding back, weren't you?"
Then he looked at Minato.
The latter's face flushed slightly, somewhat embarrassed.
It was true—he had been holding back.
In fact, ever since he first discovered Obito could use space-time ninjutsu, Minato had already deduced its weaknesses and devised countermeasures.
When he followed Kakashi into this alternate dimension via Kamui, he had already figured out the flaw in the technique.
With his combat IQ and capabilities, he could have seriously injured Obito back there—by himself, no less. Let alone while working with Kakashi.
But he hadn't done it.
To be precise, neither of them had tried to finish Obito off.
So when Uchiha Dali questioned them, it was no surprise they both looked awkward.
"Did you get any valuable intel out of this?"
Uchiha Dali asked nonchalantly.
"We should probably leave this space before continuing," Kakashi replied.
He was worried Obito might seal this place off.
After all, this was a dimension created by his own Mangekyō Sharingan.
"By the way, Lord Fourth, how is it that you can come and go freely from here too?" Kakashi asked curiously.
"Let's leave first. Then we'll talk."
Uchiha Dali gave him a long, thoughtful look.
Then he activated Kamui and took Minato, Kakashi, and little Naruto back to the Leaf Village.
"This jutsu really is impossible to guard against…"
Minato frowned, seeing how they had returned to the village in the blink of an eye.
"Yeah, but it burns through a ton of chakra."
Uchiha Dali handed little Naruto over to him.
Then he looked at Kakashi. "Want to know the answer to your earlier question?"
Kakashi immediately perked up.
And just then, he noticed Uchiha Dali's eyes had transformed into Mangekyō Sharingan.
The complexity of the pattern was even more intricate than his own left eye.
It was clearly a pair of eyes with extremely powerful ocular abilities.
"So Lord Fourth's Mangekyō also has that ability?"
Kakashi suddenly understood.
"That's just one of them," Dali replied.
"But it doesn't really matter. Anyway, Minato—you still haven't answered my question from earlier."
Dali turned to look at him.
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