Kirigakure, in the surrounding seas.

Terumi Mei stood at the bow of the ship, peering as far as she could through the thick fog.

Beside her was Chūkichi, one of Kirigakure's elite sensory‑type shinobi. Eyes closed, he carefully felt for even the faintest fluctuations of chakra around them.

"Chūkichi, do you sense anything?"

Chūkichi shook his head.

"Although the Lord of the Ninja World told us the Three‑Tails will reincarnate somewhere in these waters, the exact location is completely uncertain.

If we just sit here and wait and the Akatsuki spot the beast first, it'll be a disaster…"

"Don't worry, I'll keep sensing with everything I've got."

"Mm. Thank you."

Besides Terumi Mei, the others—Ao, Gonbee, Hōzuki Mangetsu, and so on—were also searching independently. Naturally, that included the Konoha's reinforcements: an Anbu squad led by Hatake Kakashi.

With Chūkichi's powerful sensory talent, Ao's Byakugan, Kakashi's Sharingan, and his ninken's keen sense of smell, they at least had some assurance, though they knew it was still like looking for a needle in the ocean.

Their greatest assurance, of course, was the Lord of the Ninja World. He was now effectively the jinchūriki of all nine tailed beasts; even the deceased Three‑Tails could communicate with him. The moment the beast revived, it could immediately inform him of its position—and he could pass that on to them.

Although the Lord of the Ninja World had unified the continent, each of the Five Great Villages still needed to manage their own affairs. At her young age Terumi Mei had become Mizukage right in the middle of chaotic times. Kirigakure had just suffered a calamity and was at its lowest ebb; the responsibility and pressure were enormous.

Fortunately, the Lord himself took action: pacifying the "Bloody Mist" in a single stroke and forcefully overhauling village policy so that Kirigakure finally showed signs of revival.

Other villages—Kumogakure, for example—still harbored resentment toward him for the deaths of the Raikage and their jinchūriki. But to Kirigakure he was nothing less than a savior.

The Fourth Mizukage, Yagura, had been manipulated all along by "Uchiha Madara," whose genjutsu plunged the village into a blood‑soaked nightmare and pushed it to the brink. The one who saved everything was precisely the Lord of the Ninja World—Uchiha Chiyu.

Even Yagura himself felt only gratitude toward Chiyu in his final moments. Whether the former Mizukage or the village as a whole, none had any reason to defy him—only to give thanks.

Because of that, Terumi Mei worked all the harder, never daring to slack off. She absolutely could not—and did not want to—let the Lord down.

She knew the moment the Three‑Tails revived, the Akatsuki would appear. A fierce battle was inevitable.

While these thoughts crossed her mind—

"Mizukage‑sama! A report from the Lord: the Three‑Tails Isobu has been reborn on Shiraishi Island!"

"Shiraishi Island? That isn't far!"

"Move out!"

"Yes, ma'am!"

At once everyone set their ships racing toward Shiraishi Island. The Land of Water and Kirigakure are surrounded on all sides by sea and made up mainly of islands; their helmsmen were second to none. Even in thick fog they quickly found their heading and pushed their speed to the limit.

Before they had even made landfall, the massive form of the Three‑Tails was already visible: a gigantic turtle‑like creature plated with scales, three iron‑hard tails rising from its shell.

"It really is the Three‑Tails!"

On Terumi Mei's command, shinobi behind her cast jutsu that blew away the mist, revealing the island's true face—nothing more than a desolate white‑stone crag pounded endlessly by waves.

"Three‑Tails Isobu! Come with us, quickly!" Terumi Mei shouted.

But in that instant vortex‑like swirls shimmered in the cleared air, space twisting open in quiet spirals.

Out stepped three men in Akatsuki cloaks—black coats, red clouds, and a palpable aura of menace.

"That's… the Akatsuki!"

Chūkichi frowned. "The Samehada… and the Executioner's Blade! So it really is Hoshigaki Kisame and Biwa Jūzō!"

"Damn it. The Akatsuki deliberately sent these two Mist defectors after the Three‑Tails."

Terumi Mei, however, did not lose her temper; it was only natural. The more terrifying enemy was the masked man who still stood behind them—the one who styled himself "Uchiha Madara." His ability to warp space, to go intangible in an instant, was the most troublesome of all.

"Careful!"

Sensing danger, the Three‑Tails let out a roar. A column of ferocious bijū chakra shot skyward; the sea behind him surged like a tidal wave, crashing down to engulf the enemy.

Boom—!

A tailed beast's might is beyond imagining. Isobu excelled at Water Release, and on this sea‑ringed island he held every advantage. Waves came in endless, sky‑darkening walls.

Uchiha Obito evaded effortlessly, ghosting through them with Kamui's intangibility.

Biwa Jūzō scowled, but Hoshigaki Kisame merely gave a chilling laugh.

"Water Release: Great Exploding Water Colliding Wave!"

His own chakra, rivaling a bijū's, produced a Water Release just as vast. Sea and jutsu clashed in a thunderous uproar; the entire island trembled as torrents of seawater poured down like a cataclysmic storm.

Isobu was taken aback. "What's with that chakra?! Comparable to a tailed beast?!"

By then Terumi Mei and her forces had reached the shore.

"So it's you… Hoshigaki Kisame, the tailless tailed beast."

Kisame smirked. "Terumi Mei—who'd have thought you'd become Mizukage. How delightful. But a so‑called Mizukage now is nothing more than Uchiha Chiyu's puppet…"

Terumi sneered. "You once served the Fourth Mizukage—who was in fact controlled by that masked man behind you. By comparison you're just a puppet of a puppet. Now you've joined Akatsuki; aren't you still taking orders?"

Kisame shrugged, unconcerned.

Jūzō added, "Mei, a rotten village like Kirigakure—what's the point of being Mizukage? Better to be missing‑nin, free and easy."

Chūkichi snorted. "Free and easy, ordered to hunt tailed beasts for someone else, you mean?"

Jūzō laughed. "Chūkichi, I'll slice that mouth of yours first, then torture you to death."

At that moment Obito reappeared.

"Catching up ends here. I'd like to take the Three‑Tails directly, but while it's flailing around in that huge body, it's a bit troublesome. The rest of them are yours. Leave the beast to me."

Kisame drew Samehada and pointed it at Terumi Mei with a sinister grin. "Then Mizukage‑sama is mine. I'll leave the others to you."

Jūzō nodded. "Works for me."

In a flash Jūzō lunged first, cleaving at Chūkichi with the Executioner's Blade. Chūkichi met him with a kunai but was overpowered and hurled away. Jūzō cackled and began mowing down other Mist shinobi like weeds.

Simultaneously, Kisame swung Samehada at Terumi Mei. Mei was not a close‑quarters type; she flickered back, but Samehada pursued, chopping down—

Thud!—only for Mei to melt into a puddle of water.

"Water clone, eh? Boring…" Kisame grunted.

From the rear Mei activated her kekkei genkai. "Boil Release: Skilled Mist Technique!"

Borrowing the faint sea fog, her corrosive acid mist spread instantly, turning the battlefield into her domain. Kisame's arm sizzled as the mist touched him, corroding flesh; he hastily retreated, slicing away nearby chakra with Samehada—yet he could not fully nullify the jutsu. In the end he plunged straight into the sea with a splash.

Mei frowned. "Hiding in the water to avoid my acid? It will be diluted completely in seawater…"

Kisame laughed darkly from below. "My turn, Mizukage‑sama. Water Release: Four Sharks Rain!"

He formed seals and slammed his palms onto the water. Four enormous water sharks erupted, streaking toward Mei like living bombs.

Mei countered—"Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet!" A massive torrent twisted into a dragon, colliding head‑on with the sharks. The two techniques exploded, drenching the island in a deluge.

Kisame's chakra was monstrous, but Mei, often underestimated, was no less formidable. Her Water Dragon Bullet had once torn through even Uchiha Madara's Great Fire Annihilation and his Susanoo alike. Kisame could only praise her.

"No wonder they made you Mizukage—impressive. Looks like I'll have to go all out…"

…

While the two former Mist swordsmen clashed bitterly with Terumi Mei and her shinobi, Uchiha Obito had set his sights on his quarry: the Three‑Tails Isobu.

To Isobu, Obito was the sworn enemy who had manipulated him for years. Yagura had once reached a perfect understanding with the beast and set Kirigakure on the road to reform—until this man destroyed everything. Isobu hated him to the core.

Obito sneered. "Such anger in your eyes… But you're only a beast. Don't play at bonds and feelings like shinobi. You're merely a fragment of the Ten‑Tails—a construct of chakra. Your fate is sealed: become fodder for the Eye of the Moon Plan, die so the world can be reborn."

Isobu roared, unleashing bijū chakra. "Water Release: Large Projectile!" Vast seawater condensed into colossal shells that hammered down on Obito—yet the masked man made no move to dodge. His body turned intangible, and the torrent passed harmlessly through.

Furious, Isobu curled his enormous, armored body into a rolling boulder, thundering across the beach to crush him—enough force to flatten a mountain. Again Obito simply phased, the attack useless.

Against most shinobi—even a tailed beast—if they cannot counter Kamui's intangibility, every assault is meaningless. Obito slipped to Isobu's flank, Mangekyō Sharingan already locking onto the beast's eye.

"Not good!" Isobu realized and tensed—but it was too late.

"Go to sleep… beast."

Mangekyō light flashed; Isobu fell under genjutsu, his massive frame freezing. Not every Sharingan can control a tailed beast, but Obito—trained by Uchiha Madara—was well versed. As he reached to drag the entranced beast into Kamui space, the capture seemed certain.

Terumi Mei's forces cried out in alarm. "No!"

Obito smirked. "It's over." He activated Kamui—the air twisted, huge chunks of Isobu's body starting to blur and vanish—

Just then—"Kamui!"

Obito's heart lurched. That voice… so familiar, so distant—Hatake Kakashi! Arriving in the nick of time, Kakashi saw the masked man try to warp the Three‑Tails away and immediately unleashed his own left‑eye Kamui.

Boom—! Twin spatial distortions collided; the swirling vortex around Isobu abruptly reversed and snapped closed with a thunderous crack.

Obito's expression darkened. Kakashi, however, showed no surprise. He had noticed since the Uchiha Massacre's night that their space‑time jutsu were linked—each the key to the other.

Terumi Mei's shinobi breathed in relief. "Captain Kakashi…"

Obito growled, "You again, Hatake Kakashi."

Kakashi's tone was calm. "Yes—me again. The Lord of the Ninja World sent me to reinforce Kirigakure for a reason. It seems he predicted you'd appear here, and that only my Kamui could counter yours."

Obito scoffed. "Uchiha Chiyu? Do you think he's omniscient, omnipotent? What makes you think he could foresee my presence?!"

Kakashi sighed, sorrow clouding his single eye. "Perhaps because the Three‑Tails is here… what do you think?"

Behind the mask Obito blanched. The Three‑Tails… Rin Nohara… those gentlest memories—

But how could Uchiha Chiyu know any of that?!

Kakashi had decided it was finally time to stop running. The Lord of the Ninja World had arranged this to let Kakashi cut the chain of fate himself.

He understood—and it was indeed time.

Facing the masked man, Kakashi spoke evenly:

"More precisely, because of a former Three‑Tails jinchūriki— not Yagura, but the one named… Rin Nohara."

The masked man's body shook ever so slightly—barely perceptible yet caught by Kakashi's eye.

With a heavy sigh, Kakashi continued, "You call yourself Uchiha Madara, but the real Madara has already shown himself. Those false identities are finished.

"The space‑time jutsu of your eye is linked to my Kamui. Your inexplicable hatred and resentment toward me, the tangled karma between us, and the Lord's repeated arrangements… Strip away my denial and disbelief, and only one conclusion remains.

"I'm not wrong, you're… Uchiha… Obito."

In that instant, the twin Mangekyō Sharingan spiraled; the space beside the two men seemed to merge and twist together—destiny, karma, grudges, bonds—laid bare at last.

~~~

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