Tobirama and Minato—who'd been watching from the sidelines—were stunned by the sudden reversal.
They rushed in to help.
Tobirama flicked several formula kunai into the area around Madara, then gripped another kunai and launched Hiraishin Giri (Flying Thunder God Slash), aiming to take Madara's head.
But even without eyes, Madara could still "see" perfectly.
He merely shifted his body aside to evade Tobirama's strike, then snapped a back kick.
Not only did it send Tobirama flying—it shattered half his face.
"Hahaha! So it really does hurt when I've got a real body!"
Madara threw his head back laughing, then turned toward Minato, who was charging in as well.
Minato had already drawn on the power of the Yin Nine-Tails. He became a yellow flash and appeared right in front of Madara, slamming a Rasengan toward Madara's chest.
Madara dodged instantly—like the Sharingan was still there.
Minato pressed the assault, fast and relentless, even using the opening to scatter his formula kunai around the field and accelerate his tempo through Hiraishin no Jutsu (Flying Thunder God Technique).
In the next heartbeat—
Thk!
A kunai stabbed into Madara's arm.
But Madara used the moment to clamp down on Minato's hand.
"Your Flying Thunder God really is fast… but I've got you now!"
It was obvious he'd done it on purpose—failed to dodge by a hair just to bait Minato into an opening. Most people couldn't pull that off, but Madara had fought through countless wars. For him, it wasn't difficult.
And he'd noticed something different about Minato.
"There's… tailed-beast power in you. I get it—you're the father of the Nine-Tails' jinchūriki. You split off part of the Nine-Tails' power and sealed it into yourself. In that case… I'll take it without apology."
As he spoke, one hand speared through Minato's abdomen, dragging out the Yin Nine-Tails' chakra.
Over where Tenten was—
After Black Zetsu forced Kabuto to cast Rinne Tensei no Jutsu (Samsara of Heavenly Life Technique), Kabuto should have died. But with Black Zetsu possessing him, he was left in a half-dead, half-living state—still a puppet on Black Zetsu's strings.
Tenten and Shino rushed in, only to be blasted back by Shinra Tensei (Almighty Push).
Black Zetsu immediately seized Kabuto and slipped underground, burrowing toward Madara.
Tenten's face twisted with anger. "It's that Black Zetsu freak again! He just pops out of nowhere whenever he feels like it, and it's always to ruin everything!"
Black Zetsu really was like that—same as in the original story.
Back then, after Six Paths Obito was defeated and wanted to use Rinne Rebirth to revive the people who died in the war, Black Zetsu suddenly possessed him, switched the target to Madara, and rewrote the entire battle. And later, when Minato tried to transfer the Yin Nine-Tails into a dying Naruto, Black Zetsu had appeared again to steal the moment.
He pulled off one absurd play after another, and the hero side still couldn't do a thing about him.
A slippery old snake who'd lived for a thousand years, he was infuriatingly agile—an expert at escaping, and even better at seizing the exact right timing.
And more importantly, he had White Zetsu underground like radar across the battlefield. With that network and his Ukamau no Jutsu (Mayfly Technique) letting him move silently beneath the earth, he could show up at every critical moment, make a play, and usually succeed.
Just now, Tenten and Shino had looked away for a split second—distracted by the Ten-Tails getting bisected—and Black Zetsu had immediately exploited it.
It made her furious… and there was nothing she could do.
Shino said, "Black Zetsu definitely revived Madara. And now he's definitely returning Kabuto's Rinnegan to him. We need to stop it—fast!"
"Right. We're going, now!"
Even knowing how dangerous Madara was, Tenten couldn't afford to hesitate.
Meanwhile, inside the Kamui space—
After a furious, all-out brawl between Obito and Kakashi, Kakashi's Chidori punched straight through Obito's heart—just like the day it had pierced Rin's heart.
Kakashi froze in shock. He hadn't meant to kill Obito.
Obito didn't spare him a glance. Fighting through the agony of dying, he forced himself out of the Kamui space and returned to the place he'd vanished from.
But the instant he saw Madara, his expression collapsed.
"Madara… you—you actually revived!"
That was completely outside Obito's plan. He'd never intended to bring Madara back. He wanted to become the Ten-Tails' jinchūriki himself—he wanted to be the "savior."
Yes, he wanted a world with Rin in it—but he wanted to face her as a hero.
He wanted to be the one who "brought peace" to the shinobi world.
But now—
Madara was alive.
And Madara would never allow Obito to become the Ten-Tails' jinchūriki. He'd reclaim his Rinnegan, and Obito would die as a pathetic joke.
It couldn't end like this.
It wouldn't end like this.
"Obito," Madara said. "I thought you died inside Kamui."
As he spoke, he directly extracted the Yin Nine-Tails from Minato and sealed it into himself, then kicked Minato aside like he was nothing.
Seeing Obito's battered state, Madara was genuinely surprised.
Because he could feel it—the curse mark he'd planted inside Obito, his hidden control mechanism, was gone.
Obito was ruthless enough to destroy his own heart just to remove it.
If White Zetsu hadn't modified his body, he would've died long ago. There was no way he should still be standing now.
So Obito had done this because he believed he'd become the Ten-Tails' jinchūriki next—and that once he succeeded, his body would repair itself?
Madara pieced together a great deal in a heartbeat. With his mind, it wasn't hard.
Right then, someone rose from the ground.
It was Kabuto—dragged along under Black Zetsu's control.
Obito's eyes sharpened in instant understanding. "So it was you. You controlled Kabuto to revive Madara… There's no way Kabuto would've refused to use Rinne Tensei no Jutsu (Samsara of Heavenly Life Technique) on his own!"
Black Zetsu ignored him. He immediately dug out the Rinnegan and handed it over to Madara.
Madara slotted the Rinnegan in—and could use it at once.
By the time Tenten and Shino arrived, it was already too late.
They were about to rush forward when they noticed Hashirama, Tobirama, and Minato—three Hokage—standing off to the side, watching without making a move.
"Tenten. Shino. You're here."
Minato quickly waved them over. "Don't go in yet. Things are bad… we can't act recklessly."
Hearing that, Tenten and Shino hurried to the Hokage's side, getting the situation in rapid bursts while watching the confrontation between Madara, Obito, and Black Zetsu unfold.
Madara looked at Obito and spoke flatly. "Obito. You're about to die. So it's time you returned my Rinnegan."
(End of Chapter)
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