BOOM!
A massive surge of energy burst out of his body. A gray-white skeletal frame appeared on Hiruko's body.
"HAHAHAHAHA… so this is Susanoo?"
While Hiruko laughed wildly, Obito felt like he had just swallowed shit.
He had witnessed the death of the one he loved most with his own eyes, endured pain like hell itself, and only then awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan.
But Hiruko had simply used the Chimera Technique and directly evolved into the Mangekyo Sharingan.
And on top of that, he had Susanoo, the very thing Obito had dreamed of.
In Obito's eyes there was an obvious glint of jealousy.
Black Zetsu glanced at Obito, then at Hiruko, his eyes flickering as though deep in thought.
"Since it worked, let's talk about the plan going forward."
Obito said coldly.
Hiruko was the model of a research man, without much real combat experience.
In the past his strength wasn't high.
And like a poor man who suddenly struck it rich, his mentality swelled instantly.
He turned his head, swept a glance at Obito, and his eyes didn't carry much respect.
"We can talk about plans after I destroy Konoha!"
"Hahahaha!"
Obito looked at Hiruko like he was an idiot, "Just you alone?"
Hiruko gave a cold snort, "Then try me!"
With that, his figure flickered and vanished, and the next instant he appeared in front of Obito.
With the Susanoo skeleton, he threw a punch straight at Obito.
BOOM!
After a deafening crash—
Hiruko's cold voice rang out, "Just you? And you call yourself the leader of the organization?"
"Oh? You have some complaints, do you?"
The sudden voice startled Hiruko.
Because Obito was standing inside Susanoo's fist completely unharmed, his body like a phantom, totally untouched.
Hiruko's expression shifted, and his hands formed seals.
Storm Release: Thunder Cloud Inner Wave!
Thick black mist poured off his body, arcs of lightning shot out everywhere.
The ground cracked and stones shattered.
But Obito stood there unscathed, completely unaffected.
Every bolt of lightning passed straight through him.
Hiruko stared at Obito in disbelief.
He had always been buried in experiments and didn't know Obito's abilities. This was his first time crossing hands with him.
Without intel, he was doomed to suffer.
Obito's Mangekyo spun, surging pupil power burst forth, and Hiruko suddenly felt pain tear through his body.
As someone who had come halfway into this, even with a complete Mangekyo, in terms of actual Sharingan use he wasn't even a fraction of Obito.
Staggering back several steps, it felt like he'd just been clubbed in the head.
By Obito's side, only half of Zetsu's body was above ground.
Below the surface, Zetsu's hand formed a seal.
A wave of needle-like agony struck Hiruko.
"AHHHHHH!"
Hiruko clutched his head, shrieking in misery.
Zetsu, sly as ever, had long ago placed a restriction within the Mangekyo.
When Nagato revived Rin Nohara and Kyoko Kurita, Zetsu had already confirmed, Nagato was hidden in the Uchiha compound.
Now what Zetsu wanted was for Hiruko to be the disposable pawn, stirring up trouble in Konoha.
But since he had been dragged in through Obito's eye technique, Hiruko didn't realize his eyes were compromised.
He thought he had simply lost to Obito's genjutsu.
Obito, watching Hiruko scream, glanced suspiciously at Zetsu.
The genjutsu clash earlier was indeed his win, but what followed didn't add up.
Zetsu shot him a look, then released the seal.
Only then did the pain in Hiruko slowly fade.
Obito spoke smoothly, "We are, after all, a loose organization. It's only because our common enemy is Konoha."
"I may be the leader, but in truth, it's cooperation. Everyone takes what they need."
"With your level of genjutsu skill, you're not even a match for the Uchiha. Going alone is just suicide."
Hiruko glared at Obito, a flicker of wariness passing through his eyes.
That failure in the genjutsu clash had cooled his arrogance somewhat.
"The Uchiha's genjutsu… it's really that strong?"
Hiruko was the type who had never been beaten down. Because he possessed multiple Kekkei Genkai, he thought himself invincible.
Just like in the original timeline, before he even perfected the Chimera Technique, he dared to declare war on the entire shinobi world.
The questions he asked now were equally idiotic.
Obito sneered, "The Uchiha currently have three Mangekyo Sharingan: Rengoku, Fugaku, and Itachi."
"None of them are weaker than me. If you want to go alone, I won't stop you."
"But hand over the Chimera Technique first. It'd be a shame if it died with you."
Hiruko felt like a bucket of cold water had been dumped on him, but thinking that he had only lost in genjutsu, he grew restless again.
"Konoha, I must have!"
Back then, he refused to stay mediocre, secretly developed the forbidden Chimera Technique, and was discovered and hunted by the Third Hokage.
Despised by everyone, and now with the Chimera complete, the once-mediocre him had become a top-tier powerhouse. If he didn't return to Konoha now, wouldn't that be like hiding silk robes in the dark?
Zetsu rasped, "We too must probe Konoha. Safer if we go together."
Hiruko answered smugly, "Fine. As long as I'm careful, even the Uchiha won't be my match."
A dull laugh rumbled from Zetsu's mouth, "You mean to say, three Mangekyo Uchiha, Rengoku of the A–B combo, Fugaku the Battlefield Demon, and Itachi the prodigy, none of them can take down you, who's never even been on a battlefield?"
"Hmph! As long as I'm wary of their genjutsu, how could they possibly beat me?"
Seeing Hiruko's utter arrogance, Obito was at a loss for words.
Even Zetsu hadn't expected someone this conceited.
Since Rengoku's rise, Zetsu had felt a deep fear of the Uchiha.
Now Obito was being beaten bloody by them, Nagato had broken free of control, what Zetsu needed most was to reclaim the Rinnegan.
And Hiruko's arrogance made him the perfect pawn.
As long as they kept him alive, he'd do.
Obito exchanged a glance with Zetsu, then said, "Our first stage of the deal is done."
"Hand over the Chimera Technique."
Even if they were a group, Obito demanded payment.
After all, who would risk themselves to collect Kekkei Genkai for him for free?
Those were jobs that made enemies.
Hiruko gave a cold snort, "Wait here."
Then he turned and walked into the cavern where the ritual had been.
From a hidden corner, he pulled out a scroll.
He tossed it to Obito and asked, "When are you going after Konoha?"
Obito unrolled it. It was crammed with records of the Chimera experiments.
The earliest dated back more than a decade.
But Obito wasn't a researcher. Embarrassingly, he couldn't make sense of it.
So he handed it to Zetsu.
Zetsu smirked inwardly, flipping through the scroll while replying aloud, "There are others in the organization who want to attack Konoha."
"Once everyone's gathered, we'll move together."
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